He turned his head to give her a cocky grin. «It happens to be my job to keep you satisfied, and I take that task very seriously.»
Her fingers found his. She closed her eyes and just savored him. Being with him. «I want you to know something, Razvan. It is very hard for me to say the things in my heart. It makes me feel silly to say them aloud but you have to know this.»
She opened her eyes, locked her gaze with his and put one hand over her heart. «If things go wrong, and we both know there is every chance they will, this has been the best time of my life. I do not regret one moment with you. You made me feel alive again. You reminded me why I hold my brothers' memories in my soul. And you gave me such a gift of your heart. I want you to know that gift is treasured. I love you without measure.»
The admission meant all the more because he knew it was truly difficult for her to express intense emotions.
«I love you, too.» That didn't quite make it, as far as he was concerned. He sent the emotion to her. Intense. All-consuming. Swamped her with it. Drowned her in it. Let her see into his heart and mind and very soul.
«You move me like no other could,» she said and swallowed hard, blinking back tears. She sighed. «We have to feed well. Ourselves and the pack. This is our best chance to destroy the high mage. He will be weakened by what we did last eve.»
«You are certain you want to take on this task.»
She smiled and this time her smile was serene, matching his. «I have not changed my mind, nor would I let you go without me, as you are thinking. You need me if we are going to succeed, just as I need you. We have a better chance together than apart.»
«We cannot lose this night, then, fel ku kuuluaak sivam belso-beloved,» Razvan said. «Let us choose our weapons and call the pack. If he escapes us it will be a long while before we-or anyone else-has this opportunity again.»
«He will not escape us,» Ivory said, and there was steel in her voice.
CHAPTER 20
Flakes of snow drifted down as they streamed across the sky away from their home and toward the mountains where Razvan knew Xavier had taken up residence. They had found a small group of human hunters tracking deer through the forest miles from the village nearest to the Carpathian territory and fed well. With the pack sated and everyone at full strength, they immediately began the journey to the glacier mountain where Xavier had gone when his labyrinth of caves had been destroyed months earlier, allowing Razvan to escape.
They traveled through the sky, careful to leave no tracks, but stayed low so they could examine the ground carefully. Once out of the trees near an icy stream, a splash of color caught Ivory's eyes. The wolves reacted with unease. Ivory and Razvan hovered just above the ground, resuming their physical forms in order to study the tracks.
«There is a blood trail here,» Ivory pointed out unnecessarily. «You can see where the carcass of a deer has been dragged from the shelter of the trees through the snow and toward the mountains. It is not wolves who killed the deer, nor human hunters.» She pointed to the spike marks in the snow. «Bats.»
She stood for a long time just studying it. Razvan said nothing, enjoying watching the huntress in her puzzle out the trail. It was highly unusual for Xavier's mutated bats to feed any distance from the caves, but this had definitely been a bat attack. The evidence of the creatures walking on their wings was clear in the snow.
«They ambushed the deer here,» she said. She pointed overhead. «Some dropped from above, some came from below, and they obviously surrounded it. The poor thing had no chance.»
He didn't point out that she hunted with various wolf packs, aiding them in getting through the winter.
Ivory glanced up sharply, her gaze narrowing. «It is not the same thing. They take the blood to their master for evil purposes.»
«That is true,» he agreed. «Why do you read my mind when it just annoys you?»
«It only annoys me when you get that secret little smirk on your face. The male one.» Because he melted her insides with it, and that just wasn't acceptable. Like he thought she was cute or something. Cute. What an irritating word. She shot him a look, a mixture of annoyance and embarrassment. There it was again, that little male smirk that made her want to jump his body right there in the snow and ice, with danger surrounding them. «You are distracting me.»
His white teeth flashed. «I am simply paying close attention to the expert so that I might learn.»
«You are deliberately distracting me and I-« She broke off, her eyes widening.
The smile faded from Razvan's face as he followed her gaze to an overhead tree limb. It looked fine to an untrained eye. The snow clung to the needles and weighed down the branches. He caught the flash of alarm in her mind.
«What is it?»
«Up there. High in the very top branches.» Her voice was very low, barely a thread of sound. «The snow is disturbed.»
It took a moment to see what she was talking about. In four small places, as if a bird had landed lightly on the thin branch, the snow had flaked off, revealing a smudge of bark.
«The bats?»
«No, they scratch lines in the snow but the bark does not show through. Hunters followed the bats.» A note of fear crept into her voice. «They do not know who dwells in this place and what they face. We weakened Xavier with our ritual. We turned his hatred back on himself. If he manages to find a hunter . . .» She trailed off.
His stomach lurched at the idea of Xavier getting his hands on Carpathian hunters. Not only would the hunter suffer, but Xavier would be extremely powerful with a Carpathian's blood.
«Are you certain?»
In answer, Ivory shifted, streamed as vapor up to the treetop. She hovered in the air while she examined the branch and dropped back to earth beside him, careful not to disturb the snow. «Definitely Carpathian. There is no scent. Nothing else, just those two small telltale marks.»
Razvan rubbed his hand over his jaw. «We have to follow them all the way in, Ivory, if they followed the bats. You know we will have no choice. We will not be able to leave them to Xavier. If we are very lucky, they will be very strong, experienced hunters.»
«Xavier will not be alone,» Ivory added.
«No, he will not. And he has many abominations to guard him, not the least of which is the undead,» Razvan said.
She reached out to him, her fingers connecting with his. «We go then.»
«All the way,» Razvan agreed.
Ivory and Razvan moved with stealth, careful of disturbing even a single snowflake as they approached the outer rolling hills leading to the mountain where Xavier had begun to build his latest fortress. He needed the deep ice caves and network of caverns beneath the earth where he could conduct his evil experiments and wreak havoc on the Carpathian people. He had chosen an optimal location near the edge of the glacier, so he could use nature to carry his mutated extremophiles into the waterways leading throughout the mountainous range where the Carpathians dwelled.
If the hunters came this way, at least they left no other sign, Ivory said, using their telepathic connection, unwilling to risk sound carrying in the night.
A terrible feeling of dread had been growing in Razvan. As they approached the mountain, it grew stronger. He knew they were closing in on Xavier, but worse, he knew who the hunter-or huntress-was.
Natalya and her lifemate are ahead of us.
Ivory gasped. Are you certain?
Absolutely.
Razvan looked at Ivory and his midnight blue eyes had gone so dark the pupils had nearly disappeared. Small flames flickered deep in the depths and Ivory shivered a little in reaction, a chill sliding through her.
He cannot have my sister. He bit out each word.
She leaned into him for just one brief moment, surrounding him with warmth. No, he cannot. She was fully committed to hunting Xavier down and ridding the world of his evil.
The wind began to pick up as they moved through the valley leading to the base of the outlying hills, just below the bu
rsting peaks of bluish ice. No trees grew on the slopes of ice. Few ever tried to climb there, the sharp-rising ridges were too sheer and jagged. The winds increased as though in protest, and great spears of ice often came hurtling down upon hapless victims. It was a treacherous mountain and most shunned it.
As they neared the first of the hills, they felt the first impact of the safeguard. A low humming began, growing louder as they continued on their course. The pressure inside their heads grew, a painful burst that shook both of them. Ivory stopped and pressed her fingers to her throbbing temples, trying not to cry out.
Even an animal would feel that. No wonder there is no life close by, she said.
Which explains the tracks we have seen, the drag marks and bloodstains in the snow. Razvan placed his hand to her temple and flooded her with a healing warmth. At once the pressure lessened in her head. She glanced at him sharply. His face tightened only for a moment, and when she touched his mind, it took a moment before he allowed her in.
The bats have to go farther than they did in the other caves to find prey, Razvan said before she could protest.
Ivory shuddered. She really detested fighting the bats. They had nasty little teeth and a liking for flesh. The blood trail led to a spot near the base of a small hill that rolled just in front of the sharper climbing flow of ice cliffs. She knew from experience that the ground near the spot where the bats had gone under would be a trap for some unsuspecting creature. If they ventured too near, the ground would give way.
Xavier has not had time to work out a better system, which means he is not in the best of shape, he continued. I escaped when they moved here. He kept me weak, as he did my aunts, because he feared my resistance, but that also weakened him. He had me drained and could not use me to feed. He made do with mage and animal blood.
Ivory didn't want to think too much about Razvan in Xavier's hands. She sent up a prayer that his sister was not in the high mage's fortress. Keeping her safe had been the only thing he had clung to, the reason he had survived. As long as Xavier lived, he was not going to allow Natalya into his hands. And now . . .
She clamped down hard on the thought. I do not want to drop through the bat lair if we can help it.
She had a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach as she hovered above the bloodstained snow. The carcass of the deer had obviously been dragged inside, but something else had gone in after it. Flakes of snow partially covered the stains, which meant something had disturbed the snow after the bats had returned to their lair with their prize.
It is an entrance. Razvan was pragmatic. We have dealt with them before.
The ground beneath them rolled. The mountain shivered and a great chunk of ice calved off the sheer cliff towering above them, driving the snow and ice straight down on top of them with little warning. Without hesitation, both reached for the ringed canisters in their war belts and dissolved into vapor as they leapt into the ominous hole covered by a thin layer of bloodstained snow.
The foul stench assailed them first, even before the sounds of highly agitated bats registered. The smell of fetid, rotting flesh burned their noses and offended their stomachs so that they had to fight to keep their present form and not react. The high-pitched angry shrieks swelled in volume as they descended through the narrow tube, scraping like sharp fingernails on the walls of their minds, shredding their nerves to the screaming point.
Scorch marks blackened the stains on the walls although bats continued to pour out of the dark, sulfur-smelling holes in the tube, dropping down to join the fierce battle taking place on the floor of the cavern. Bits of rotting meat and splashes of blood and fur clung to the outer edges of each hole where the carnivorous bats dwelled.
Xavier has been warned that his fortress is compromised, Ivory said, irritation creeping into her voice. Even weak, he is a formidable opponent. I had hoped to come on him unaware. I do not want him to escape us.
He will not give up his fortress easily, Razvan predicted. He has fewer and fewer places to go. He has not had time to fully make this one secure. This is our best chance whether he knows we are coming or not.
Ivory refrained from saying Xavier was expecting two hapless hunters who had inadvertently stumbled upon the bats and probably was joyfully preparing for feasting on Carpathian blood.
Hurry, Ivory, they attack Natalya.
Xavier will order his guardians not to slay them-at least not to slay her. He will want her blood for himself, which gives them a slight advantage, she reassured.
They were close to the bottom of the long tube and could see the bats now. Hundreds of them, with black furry bodies and razor-sharp teeth, claws tipping the toes of their feet and their wings spiked at the tips. Swords swept violently through the mass of bats, slicing heads and bodies, but the sheer numbers were overwhelming. Vikirnoff and Natalya stood back-to-back, faces grim, blood streaking every exposed bit of skin. Both Razvan and Ivory had felt the tear of teeth shredding flesh from their bones and, at the sight of the Carpathians, the haunting memories rose up to taunt them.
Coming in, Ivory warned, using the more ancient common telepathic path that Vikirnoff would recognize. What we are going to do is change the composition of air using our homemade grenades. The fire will burn hot, very intense, and you cannot draw this chemical into your lungs. You will want to panic and go toward the surface, but the fire will race upward, she warned, giving them nearly the same instructions as she had given Razvan when she'd first used her chemical grenades with him.
Razvan reached for his sister, feeling her startle when he used their much older connection, one they had made as children. Fight your way out of the center but stay away from the walls. When we materialize we will use the chemical, and then change back to vapor; do the same instantly, but remember, you will still feel the intense heat.
I understand, Natalya sent back.
Razvan tried not to see the mass of bats attacking her. She looked fierce, her grim face a mask of concentration, her hair striped with the colors of a tigress.
Razvan positioned his body face-to-face with Ivory's. As soon as they materialized, he knew from previous experience, the bats would attack, ripping and tearing at their flesh. Ready, kont o sivanak-heart of a warrior?
Let us get it done, Ivory responded, as calm as always in battle. She could handle nearly any circumstance when it came to fighting without panic; yet when it came to emotion, she wasn't so good at hiding her nerves and vulnerability.
One more thing, fel ku kuuluaak sivam belso-beloved, I love you more than life itself. Now, Razvan added.
She wanted to hold him. Wanted to say it back to him. But he was already materializing and she had to match his rhythm. She burst onto the chamber floor, noting that Razvan's body, while protecting the front of hers, was angled to shield his sister.
The moment they donned their flesh-and-blood bodies, the bats went into a feeding frenzy, the scent of prey driving them insane. They ripped and tore, hurling their bodies at the Carpathians. The wolves roared, heads emerging, paws digging, ready to leap.
Stay! Stay! Ivory ordered frantically.
Raja and Blaez subsided, calling orders to the rest of the pack, although they snapped at the bats, grabbing heads and shaking, snapping necks even as the bats' claws shredded skin. Razvan and Ivory pulled the pins simultaneously. They had only five seconds to get rid of the canisters.
Ivory lobbed her grenade directly into the center of the chamber amid the sea of fighting bats. Some pounced on the canister, trying to bite through it with sharp teeth.
Razvan pulled back his arm to throw, and at least a dozen bats, drawn by the scent of Dragonseeker blood, leapt on him, the weight of their bodies pulling his arm down as he went to throw the oval-shaped canister.
Vikirnoff leapt forward, swinging his sword, sweeping it across the lot of them, missing Razvan by a paper-thin margin. Razvan sucked in his breath as the bodies toppled from his arm, leaving behind torn flesh. More rushed to feed on the open wounds, but he
had already let the canister go.
Now! Now! Razvan warned his sister.
All four Carpathians dissolved into vapor. The chamber rocked with the explosion, the air raining bodies of bats and chunks of rock, ice and rotted carcasses, both human and animal. The flash of light was so bright it pierced their eyes despite them being in a different form. The intense heat ate through their natural shields as the composition of air changed to gas. Fire raged up through the chimney, burning through the holes and cracks in the rock, voracious for the air outside.
The ice melted, turning to boiling, hissing steam as the fire raged with orange-red rolling flames, flashing through the bats' burrows and roaring out and through every crack. The external pressure was so extreme, the molecules of their bodies threatened to collapse inward, imploding like the bodies of the bats. All around them, the mutated creatures erupted into hot flames, exploding as if a bomb had touched them, or simply coming apart.
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