Dark Curse 19

by Christine Feehan

  He waited in the comfort of the thick forest for Mikhail. He almost wished he'd had the meeting with the prince before his emotions had been restored. Overhead an owl settled onto a tree branch, wings fluttering before spreading out and swooping toward the ground. At the last moment, the owl shimmered and took the form of a man.

  «You are pacing, Nicolas,» Mikhail said as he took the ground in a smooth stride. «That cannot be good.»

  «I bring news, Mikhail, and no, it is not good. My brothers all send greetings and Zacarias has asked that I renew our family's pledge of loyalty and defense of you and our people.»

  «That has never been questioned.»

  Nicolas met the knowing black gaze of his prince straight on. «When your father ruled, and we were young and filled with arrogance and importance, we often sat around the campfires discussing options other than blindly following traditional Carpathian ways. My family and the Malinov family were close. We protected one another in battle and we shared memories as our time came and emotions faded. We spent a great deal of time together.»

  Mikhail nodded, but remained silent-waiting-knowing that Nicolas rarely carried on conversations unless he had something important to say.

  «The Malinov brothers had a sister, a bright, beautiful girl totally revered by all of us.»

  «Ivory,» Mikhail said and instantly pulled up her image in his mind. Tall, slender, hair like black silk flowing to her waist. She had been beautiful inside and out. Wherever she went, she brought a fresh soothing breeze with her that could bring peace to the hearts of even the eldest warriors, the darkest hunters. Of course he remembered her. Poems had been sung about the legendary Ivory.

  «Her parents died soon after her birth and our two families raised her together,» Nicolas continued. «Ten elder brothers, battle-hardened and stern. It must have been difficult for her, but she was always smiling and singing and making the world seem a cheerful place even as colors and emotions faded from our world. Ivory could restore a semblance of what was lost to us when we were in her company. But she wanted to study, to go to the school the mages provided. She was so bright and her mind demanded stimulation. Power hummed in her veins and she needed the knowledge to better use such a great gift.»

  Mikhail knew the story, but didn't stop Nicolas, knowing instinctively he needed to retell it, to remember the small details that needed to be said, but more important, to give his news the only way he could.

  «We believed Xavier was betraying the friendship of the Carpathian people. The debate raged among our people and we wanted our women to be protected. Vlad tried hard to keep peace when many of the ancients were becoming bothered by his increasingly erratic behavior. We could not stop the others from allowing their daughters and lifemates to study, but we refused Ivory unless we attended with her. And we were called to battle so she was left alone.»

  Without protection. Nicolas didn't say it aloud, but the thought was there in his mind. Even now, hundreds of years later, he remembered that moment as if it was yesterday. Ivory, his sister-kin, the only relief from the stark barren existence, smiling at them bravely, tears in her eyes, yet warmth and love seeping into minds and hearts as she watched them go. She kept her fears to herself, leaving them all with what comfort and happy memories she could provide.

  «I am telling you so you know our frame of mind, Mikhail, at the time this dark deed was done,» Nicolas said. «Not to offend you or place blame on your name. I know you gave the order to destroy your own brother when it was necessary. But in truth, Vlad should have given that order years before.»

  A muscle ticked in Mikhail's jaw, but he said nothing, simply waiting.

  Nicolas rubbed the bridge of his nose and met Mikhail's gaze. «Your brother was twisted and Vlad knew it. Your brother wanted Ivory, even knowing he wasn't her true lifemate. Your sister Noelle carried the same strain of madness.»

  Mikhail nodded. He hadn't ordered his sister's death any more than his father had ordered his brother's-and Jacques had paid the price. «So much power running through our veins can corrupt and twist, Nicolas, just as in any other family.»

  Nicolas nodded. «It is true. When we learned a vampire had killed Ivory, we searched for her body to attempt retrieving her from the shadow world, but we could not find her. We had lost the one bright light in our lives, and there was no relief from the madness of our existence. So late at night, around the campfire, we plotted how to bring down the Dubrinsky family and end the reign of a man who was no longer fit to lead. Our two families had discovered the ability to link and share power in the way the Daratrazanoff bloodline can do. At the time, we believed that because we could do as the Daratrazanoff line could, that there must be another family that could be the living vessel for our people.»

  «A living vessel must be able to hold all knowledge and power-past and present-for our people. He links all Carpathians together telepathically as well as physically through his mind,» Mikhail said. «I know of no other family who can do this.»

  Nicolas sighed. «It stood to reason if we could do as the Daratrazonoffs could that there would be another family that could hold power. We know your family carried madness, tainted with a need for control over the opposite sex, and we believed we could find another more worthy leader.»

  «And you came up with a way to destroy us?» There was quiet acceptance in the prince's voice.

  «Yes.» Nicolas said honestly, still unflinching. «With the Malinov brothers. And they are implementing that plan. We believe they have been doing so for hundreds of years. First as Carpathians and now, perhaps, as vampires.»

  Mikhail paced a short distance from Nicolas and returned. «I will call in our hunters.»

  Nicolas reached for Lara, found her floating peacefully in the pool chamber. He nodded. «I think we have no choice.»

  Warriors, heed the call to council. Mikhail sent the call immediately.

  The two Carpathians exchanged a long look, took two running steps and leapt airborne, shifting into the bodies of owls, racing across the snow-laden clouds to the ancient cave of council. The two predatory birds dipped wings as they flew threw the entrance and raced down the long corridor to the council chamber.

  Nicolas hadn't been in the cave for centuries but it still gave him the same sense of pride, honor and camaraderie as it had in days of old. The sacred council chamber was large, rounded, with a narrow, natural chimney in the center. Script on the wall was in the ancient language, the code of the warrior, the one he had lived by throughout the centuries. Honor. Mercy. Integrity. Loyalty. Deadly purpose. Their code-their way of life.

  The walls of the cave were a deep midnight blue, almost like the darkest sky, great stalagmites rising from the floor in a semicircle, tall, nearly shooting up to the high ceiling where stalactites grew in downward spirals, each glistening with sparkling deposits of colored minerals. Crystals in various geometrical shapes erupted from walls and covered the floors in giant prisms. The interior blasted them with heat from the magma chambers beneath them, forcing the Carpathians to regulate their temperature.

  At one time, the cavern had been flooded with hydrothermal water, rich in minerals, leaving the deposits

  behind, until great, glowing crystals had formed. The crystals aided the warriors in focusing clearly on the coming battles, strategies and solving problems as well as the daily rigorous mental and physical training all Carpathian warriors were sworn to continue.

  The first chamber opened into a second one, much smaller, completely enclosed and ringed inside with lava rocks. Purifying steam curled from the inside of the second chamber, beckoning to them.

  Many single males crowded the cavern, dark, tall, eyes cold and distant. With his new emotions, Nicolas felt despair for them. Warriors without hope, who lived on honor only, battling not only the vampire but-worse-the call of the vampire. He took a breath and let the cave work magic on him.

  Nicolas stood in the center of the crystalline cavern, in the place so many legendary warriors had
stood before him. «It will be difficult to face my brother-kin when shame hangs over our family name for the first time.»

  Mikhail shot him a look of exasperation. «It is a little arrogant to feel shame for things that happened hundreds of years ago, Nicolas, as if you are the only ones to ever make a mistake. You and your brothers have proven your loyalty over and over. Manolito saved my life and then the life of Shea and her unborn child. Should I hang my head in shame for all the errors in judgment I have made over the centuries? If I did, I would never see the sky.»

  Nicolas shrugged, a small humorless smile flitting across his face. «We came up with a plan to overthrow your father, a way to bring down the reign of the Dubrinsky family. Mikhail, the things we planned were idle, angry talk to begin with, but when we sat around that campflre and fleshed out the details of a long-term battle plan, we committed treason against you and our people. There is shame in that.»

  Mikhail frowned. «If you had destroyed the Dubrinsky line, who did you believe would carry the power and knowledge of our people?»

  «As we are able to perform the duties of the Daratrazanoff family we were certain there had to be another family and we intended to search them out. Of course, later we abandoned the plan, so no one ever approached any of the other lines to see if they could be a living vessel.»

  «And did you suspect any other lineage of being capable?»

  «You sound as if you would step down immediately.»

  «In a heartbeat,» Mikhail said and then sighed, shaking his head. «There is no one right way, Nicolas, and just because my family's line must bear the leadership does not mean we have all the answers. I am as fallible as any Carpathian. Every time we lose a child. Each time one of our women miscarries or a child dies. I consider it my failure and my shame that I have not found the answer to our dying race. I sit protected in my home while my warriors go out to battle evil, losing pieces of themselves along the way. Good men, better than I, stand between me and danger at every turn. Would I step aside and allow another to lead? In a heartbeat-especially if they were smarter than I.»

  Nicolas shook his head. «We were wrong, Mikhail, as you are now to think that way.»

  Mikhail sent him a small, twisted smile. «I thought to end my life. Before Raven, before I found my lifemate, I thought to end my life so I would not have to see the complete extinction of our species. You and the other warriors who served my father are far older, have hunted longer, endured longer, yet I could not continue under the weight of my failures. Was that not far worse? Was that not an act of

  cowardice?»

  Nicolas shook his head. «I believe it was an act of desperation. I walked the streets this very night intending to meet the dawn, yet I did not trust myself to make it one last night. It is the way of our people, Mikhail. Every hunter faces that moment, yet we do not have the added burden of an entire species resting on our shoulders.»

  Mikhail clapped him on the shoulder. «We are flawed men, my old friend. Every last one of us. We sin and our women redeem us.»

  Nicolas answered with a wry grin. «That is the truth.»

  «Tell me of your lifemate. Where did she come from? The Dragonseeker blood runs strong in her.»

  Nicolas's white teeth flashed in a real smile, one that lit his eyes. «She is the daughter of Razvan, and she is amazing. I cannot even begin to describe the way I feel inside. I barely know her, but I want to spend every moment with her. She just came out of nowhere at the perfect moment and saved my life, my sanity and my soul. I look around and I don't know how I survived all these centuries without her. The world is alive again for me. I had forgotten the beauty of nature. In truth, I had forgotten what it feels like to truly love my brothers.»

  Mikhail let out his breath. «Another child with Dragonseeker blood is most welcome. As for the joy of lifemates, I have had Raven in my life for many years now, and yet each time I awaken from the earth, I am overwhelmed anew by the gifts she has given me.»

  Nicolas cleared his throat. «I am uncertain that my lifemate sees a reason to be with me.»

  «There is no reason for our women to be with us other than the way we are able to bind them. They are light to our darkness and the darker our souls, the stronger the woman must be. Guard your lifemate well, Nicolas. She is a treasure beyond price.»

  Nicolas turned Mikhail's words over in his mind. There was no reason for their women to accept them other than the binding words that locked their souls together. His hold on Lara was fragile at best. He needed time to establish his bond, to form some sort of trust between them, although truthfully, he felt she should follow his lead without question.

  He glanced around him, feeling the subtly flowing influence, the focus of the crystals, the energy of the cavern with the magma flowing far beneath it and the snow gathering a thousand feet above. Nicolas spread his arms wide. «And this place of power. I had forgotten the beauty of this cave. And the clarity one has when in it.»

  Mikhail nodded. «There is no other place on earth quite like this. Ice and fire meet as one. Passion and control. The earth always holds the answers for our species.» He looked around him at the wondrous display of nature. «Hopefully we will come closer to finding answers this night.»

  Chapter 5

  As Mikhail spoke the Daratrazanoff brothers arrived. Four of them. All tall with striking looks, flowing black hair held back with leather ties. Faces cut from the same classic mold. Wide shoulders, broad chests, narrow hips, a warrior's straight posture and easy, fluid movements.

  Darius, the youngest brother, every bit as battle-experienced as the eldest. Intelligent, cunning, able to do the impossible. He had the black eyes of the Carpathian race, and the grim mouth that came with too much knowledge of death. Beside him were Lucian and Gabriel, legendary twins who had hunted and battled for the Carpathian people. Gabriel flashed a smile of greeting as he clasped arms with Nicolas. Lucian and Darius remained expressionless, although their eyes held genuine warmth when they greeted their prince.

  The very petite woman beneath Lucian's shoulder was his lifemate, Jaxon. Pixie face, short platinum hair, dark shrewd eyes, she had been a cop, maybe even still was, but now hunted the vampire alongside her lifemate. Nicolas disagreed violently with the modern idea that women-even trained women with the ability to fight-should ever be allowed to place themselves in danger, but Jaxon wasn't his woman. She belonged to Lucian, their most legendary warrior, and yet he allowed her to fight beside him. Perhaps it was sheer arrogance on the warrior's part, a confidence that he could protect his lifemate no matter what, but Nicolas felt she should be kept far away from the vile creature that was the undead.

  Women were to be protected and cherished, not put at risk on a battlefield. A hunter couldn't be worried about protecting a lifemate when he battled the vampire. In ancient times, most lifemated pairs ceased hunting altogether rather than risking death for both. It was one of the main bones of contention between the De La Cruz and Manilov brothers and Vladimir Dubrinsky. Even then, their birthrates had been declining. None of them had believed the women should be allowed to fight when they didn't have the edge the males had. Not strength-but darkness itself.

  Nicolas hid his true feelings behind a calm mask as he greeted the fourth Daratrazanoff, Gregori. Second in command to Mikhail, the man was without mercy when it came to enemies of the prince. He was a ferocious guardian, yet was known far and wide as the Carpathian's most gifted healer. Instead of the glittering obsidian eyes of his brothers, his were slashing silver, eyes that weighed and judged a man. He looked fit and healthy, not at all pale from fighting to save a human from parasites.

  «Thank you for what you did this night for Lara's friend,» Nicolas said. «How is he doing?»

  A frown flitted across Gregori's face and was gone, a huge show of emotion for him. «I did my best to rid his body of the parasites, but how much damage they did, I cannot say. I am hoping for a full recovery, but not expecting it. His friend is staying with him and Slavica, the ow
ner of the inn, will check on him periodically. Should he have need, she will call.» Gregori looked around the cave, warmth creeping into his pale eyes. «It is long since I have come to this place-too long.»

  His brothers nodded their agreement.

  New arrivals forestalled further conversation as Jacques Dubrinsky, the prince's brother, entered. He had midnight black hair, black eyes, a thin white scar circling his throat, another on his jaw and cheek and it was said a jagged rounded scar on his chest. Carpathians rarely scarred, which meant the wounds dealt him must have been fearsome indeed. He had been a victim of torture that had nearly driven him insane. Even now, he stayed mostly to himself.

  Nicolas stepped forward to greet him, clasping arms.

  «Bur tule ekamet kuntamak,» Jacques said. «Well met, brother. It has been a long time since I have

  seen you. How is Manolito?»

  «Manolito is very well and has found his lifemate. Her name is Mary-Ann Delaney. I believe you know her. And your woman? And the child?»