«Much better, thank you,» she said and circled his neck as he stepped off the cavern floor into the dark abyss below them.
Vikirnoff was acutely aware of her soft body pressed tightly against his, and her misery over their conversation. She was very distressed over her lack of memory and she'd been holding her fears in for years, unable to discuss them with anyone. He brushed a kiss on top of her head in a gesture meant to reassure her.
Vikirnoff settled them onto the floor of the chamber. They had descended close to two hundred feet. The sound of the dripping water was even louder, a pulsing heartbeat that felt more ominous than right. His gaze slid alertly around the ice-cold chamber, probing every possible place of concealment. He kept a cloak of heat around Natalya to help regulate her body temperature. «I do not like the feel of this place.»
«Me, neither, but it's beautiful, isn't it?» Natalya said. She dug a glow stick from her pack and held it up. «I swear there are veins of gold in here.» She turned in a circle holding the stick high to help illuminate the large gallery. «I've never seen such beautiful ice formations. All of these openings lead to halls and more galleries. This is amazing. Like a great crystal palace.»
Vikirnoff went still. He had heard those words long ago to describe the great cave of the dark mage. A great crystal palace with a burning flame in the center of one room, a palace of gemstones and gold. He stared at the ice formation rising up in the center of the room. Depending on the angle, the formation appeared polished diamond bright, or looked exactly like a brilliant red-orange flame. When Natalya played the light over it, scattered gems seem to glow from the very center of it.
«Natalya.» There was warning in his voice. He waited until she looked at him. «I think this is the cave of the dark mage. The one used for study and experiments. I think this is his place of power.» There would be guards. Powerful, deadly guards. He listened to the sound of the water again, the relentless pulse taking on new meaning.
She bit her lip hard. It wasn't hard to believe that he was right, and that meant the caves would be strewn with what would amount to landmines. «Even in death, Xavier would never leave his cave unguarded. It would hold too many of his secrets. So what you're saying is, we've stumbled into the lion's den.»
«That would be about it.» He moved to cover her, keeping his body between hers and the walls of the cavern. «If he is alive and he was the one to tamper with your memories, why would he lure you here? What would be his purpose?»
«That is the burning question, isn't it? The vampires want me, you want me, maybe my dead-or-alive grandfather wants me. I'm just a popular woman.» She shrugged and sent him a faint grin, using humor to keep her courage up.
His heart reacted, shifting and melting in his chest. He frowned. It was uncomfortable being so susceptible to her. He could not remember a time in his life when sentiment or emotion swayed his judgment. Right now, his every instinct screamed they were in danger and he needed to scoop her up and run for the surface. He could read fear in the depths of her eyes, but she had steel in her and she wasn't about to leave until she had a few answers.
He forced down his natural protective inclination and tried to find a way to aid her, one that might get them out of the trap as soon as possible. And he was very certain the cave was a giant trap. «What can you do aside from the obvious charms and skills you have, that might make you so valuable to the vampires? Or to your grandfather?»
«I have no idea. I'm good with spells. I can find things. I honestly don't know, Vik.» She sent him a quick look from under long lashes.
«Vik?» He winced visibly and his eyebrow shot up. «You are not going to call me Vik. I am considering using one of the words you have stricken from my vocabulary.»
Her eyes sparkled at him. She turned her body in the direction she could feel the strongest tug. «We have to go that way.» She indicated a hallway that was little more than a tunnel.
He groaned. «How did I know you were going to choose that one?»
She reached for his hand with obvious reluctance, but needing the contact. «I feel the subtle vibration of power. Do you feel it?» Her voice trembled.
«Yes,» he answered tersely. «Let us get this done.» He squeezed her fingers in reassurance. «Be careful, Natalya. I will follow you.» He didn't want to tell her he was certain there were a couple of vampires stalking them. The undead were still a distance away, but he feared she was somehow imprinted with something that drew vampires to her. «Have you been here before?»
«No, never.» She frowned, searching her memories. «It's so frustrating to remember bits and pieces. I've studied thousands of spells. I've read ancient text, and can remember all of
it, but I can't remember where I studied. In my dreams, Razvan would protect me from the teacher. He would be punished when I refused to go work. In my dreams I remember what my grandfather looked like, but I couldn't describe him to you now. How do I know what is real or not?»
Frustrated, Natalya turned back to the tunnel to keep him from seeing her expression. What did she know about her childhood? What if everything was a lie? Memories removed and others planted. The idea of it sickened her. «Great.» She couldn't help feeling humiliated and ashamed that Vikirnoff had seen the inside of her mind and the trauma of a blank void. «I'm a freakin' robot.»
«With a beautiful backside,» he pointed out when she dropped to her hands and knees, head disappearing into the ice hall.
She wiggled her bottom suggestively and grinned back at him, grateful to him for giving her something to laugh about.
His heart nearly stopped beating and the air left his lungs in a burning rush. She could have lit up the entire cavern with her high wattage smile. Thunder roared in his ears. Deep inside, his demon struggled for release and unexpectedly, desire shot through his body. Not the intense lust he experienced earlier, but something bright and passionate and deep that came, not from his groin, but from his heart.
«You don't have to come with me,» Natalya said, forcing the words out as she looked back at him. He had gone so still, his expression carved in stone. How could he want to be mixed up with whatever was happening? The fact was, she was terrified of the cave. Something she couldn't even remember from her childhood warned her she was in danger and the increasing volume of the dripping water was nearly driving her out of her mind. Every instinct told her to run, but her body and brain refused to obey the command.
She had longed for a partner, someone to share her life with, but for the first time she needed to be with someone. And not just anyone. Vikirnoff. Not just for his fighting skills, but for the sheer comfort of his presence. And that was almost as frightening as the situation she was in.
Vikirnoff exuded power and confidence. She couldn't imagine anyone defeating him, not when he was at full strength. But he wasn't at full strength. The thought came out of nowhere. She realized that not once had she worried about his physical condition since they'd been in the cave. He wasn't fully healed. She had seen the agony on his face on more than one occasion earlier, yet he carried himself as if nothing was wrong. Had he been subtly influencing her or was she really that selfish? She groaned softly.
«I am with you because I want to be. I am not under compulsion, Natalya. And I am fit enough to protect you should there be need.»
She turned away from him before he could see her reaction to his words-his voice.
There was just something about the man that called to her. She crawled through the twisting ice tube until it began to widen and opened into another series of galleries. The ice formations and columns were impressive. Following her instincts she chose one chamber and discovered streaks of old blood along the ice wall. Her own blood ran cold and she stood gaping at the thick, frozen clots dinging to the wall. «This doesn't look good, does it?»
Vikirnoff put a hand on her shoulder. She wasn't used to being touched and she trembled in response, but didn't shrug him off. «You can see where they put ice picks through him to hold him to the wall.�
� He touched the frozen blood. «There was a Carpathian being tortured in this chamber.» He examined the entire room. «It was not within the last week. Someone rescued him, human I think, and at least one vampire died here.» He sighed. «Why would a vampire risk coming into the cave of the dark mage?»
«Secrets? Power?»
«Maybe. But is it worth the risk? There have to be traps scattered everywhere. The vampires are looking for something. There is no other explanation.» He glanced around warily. «I can feel something watching us, can't you?»
She wanted to deny it, but the back of her neck prickled with alarm. «Yes. The vampires think I can help them find whatever they are looking for, don't they?» Natalya said. «That's why Arturo said he had a small task for me. He wants me to find something, probably something the dark mage left behind.»
«Anything Xavier had of power would be deadly to the entire world, not just our species, if a vampire wielded it.»
«Can you tell where the others got out? The ones that killed the vampire?» She pointed to a solid wall of ice. «Because I want to go there.»
Vikirnoff examined the wall. «A Carpathian closed a slide tube behind them. I still feel the power lingering.»
«Can you open the slide?»
He studied the bluish wall of ice. «Yes.» He knew he sounded grim. He felt the weight of the ice over them, the pressing of their enemies closing in and more than all of that, the certainty that they were going somewhere far worse than where they were. He hesitated, the need to get his lifemate to safety hammering at him. He actually settled his fingers around her wrist in protest.
Natalya shook her head. «I really have no choice, Vikirnoff.»
Swearing under his breath, he found the original opening, the tube slide that led to the lower caverns, and commanded the ice to bend to his will. Even within the cave of the dark mage, he wielded power over the things of the earth. The ice shifted, parting, to once again form the slide leading to the lower chambers.
«Thank you,» Natalya said. She didn't have words to express how grateful she was that he didn't fight her on the issue. She had the same warning bells shrieking at her and she sensed he was forced to fight age-old instincts. His protective nature simply did not allow him to see her in danger without shielding her. And without him, she had no idea how she would have made her way through the ice to the lower chambers.
«We go in together,» he decreed.
She sent him a black scowl, just to warn him to back off with the orders, but didn't mind in the least when he wrapped her in warm, safe arms and climbed into the cold of the ice chute. Vikirnoff pushed off and they slid deeper into the freezing world of blue and crystal ice, spiraling fast down the long, cold tube. His arms kept her from ice splinters and the thicker, jagged crystalline protrusions that hung above their heads. It was breathtakingly beautiful, yet utterly frightening in that she knew the formation was unnatural.
Natalya felt a little dizzy by the time they reached the bottom and she held onto Vikirnoff until she knew her legs would support her. In a narrow hall of ice they both were able to stand up straight without fear of hitting their heads on the ceiling.
«Are you all right?» Vikirnoff kept his arm around her until her legs stopped shaking.
She shook her head. «I feel strange. Afraid. I'm not usually afraid all the time. My heart is pounding so loud it's hurting my ears. And I feel sick to my stomach. Worse»-she looked up at him as she pressed her hand against her body, low, to the left, just below her stomach-«the dragon burns. A vampire is close.»
«Ahead or behind us?» He was already scanning, as he had been since they'd entered the ice caves and was dismayed to find he couldn't locate the vampire. And that meant it wasn't Arturo. Arturo couldn't hide his presence from the hunter. He sent up a silent prayer that he wouldn't be facing a master vampire when he was already wounded.
«I can't tell.» She began to jog, hurrying through the tunnel.
The hall ended abruptly, the floor dropping away to a great abyss. Vikirnoff caught her before she ran off the edge of the precipice. He held her against him. «That was close.»
Natalya stared at the ice bridge glittering so invitingly. The structure was made of ice and stone, very narrow and had several holes in it. The bridge appeared to be the only way across. She frowned, gesturing toward the gaping holes. «I'm not going to set one foot on that thing.» She grinned up at him. «I knew you were going to come in handy.»
«Are you expecting me to carry you?» He lifted an eyebrow.
«Without a doubt. We go to the other side.»
Vikirnoff reached for her, gathered her close. Natalya wished it felt impersonal, but his touch was electric, heat coursing through her body, making her acutely aware of him, aware
of the definition of every muscle in his body as she leaned into his strength. It seemed natural to be in his arms and his body was familiar. Perfect. She fit exactly. She closed her eyes and savored the feeling of him being so close as they moved together through the air to the other side of the cave.
Vikirnoff was careful, holding her even as he settled onto the ice floor, looking cautiously around before allowing her feet to touch the ground. «I feel the level of danger elevating. Hurry, Natalya. Find what you must and let us leave this place.»
Natalya didn't need him to prompt her. She wanted out of the cave more than he could possibly know. She hurried through the chamber, past a small alcove and turned back abruptly. She held a glow stick high so that it shone on the wall of ice. Her breath caught in her throat. «Vikirnoff,» she whispered. «Look.»
Scales covered the body of an enormous creature. A long serpentine neck supported a wedge-shaped head. The extended tail ended in a spike and the wings were folded in close along the body. Sharp claws, made for rending and tearing, looked as if they had been digging in the ice as if trying to scrape free. One beautiful eye, a sparkling vivid emerald green stared at them hopelessly through the thick wall of ice.
«A dragon, Vikirnoff. How would a dragon be trapped in the wall like that?» She wanted to weep for the creature. She put her hand on the ice, fingers spread wide, right over the claw as if to hold it close to her. «Who would do this to a dragon?» She couldn't look away from that one, brilliant eye.
«Not one, but two.» His voice was grim. He peered closer. «There is a second one, side by side with the first. You can see the outline of the leg and claw.»
Natalya pressed against the wall, until her nose turned blue. Unconsciously, her fingernails dug at the ice, trying to get to the mythical creatures. «This isn't right, Vikirnoff.» She wanted to weep. Her chest burned and felt too tight. «Can we get them out?»
His hands were gentle as he pulled her away from the wall of ice. «Is this what you are after? More than one vampire are now seeking us. I feel the presence of Arturo and several others. Unfortunately, I worry more about the ones I cannot feel. I sense the presence of evil, but cannot tell where it is. We cannot take a chance of removing a wall of ice this thick without the entire mountain coming down on us and even if we could, we do not have the necessary time.»
«I wish I had come for the dragons. This is just not right. I had no idea dragons were real.»
«They are and they are not.» He turned her away from the ice tomb. «You are much too sensitive. Your grief is as strong as it is unexpected.» And her compassion only endeared her to him more. He tugged on her until she followed him. «Which way?»
Natalya took the lead again. The hall opened into a gallery. Tall columns of intricately carved, Gothic-style architecture rose to the high cathedral ceiling. Crystals and ice pillars formed two rows of columns down the room, each holding several round globes of various colors.
Natalya stopped abruptly. «This is the place. I'm supposed to come here, to this room. Don't touch anything, Vikirnoff. There are traps everywhere. I can feel them.» She paced a distance down the wide-open room and then returned to him. Mythical creatures rose up from the floor in life-size sculptures made
of clear crystal. Blood red pyramids made of stone gleamed from chiseled archways in the walls. If she stared too long at one of the many spheres, it came alive, swirling and changing color, trying to draw an unwary victim to the intense beauty.
On the floor, beneath the ice were strange squares, pyramids and starburst patterns of stones. In the center of each shape were hieroglyphics, pictures carved deep into the rock. «This is the way out,» Natalya said. «They had to have an escape hole and the shapes have to be stepped on in a certain pattern to open the stone above the stairs.»
«You have really never been here before?»
Small lines appeared around her mouth and across her forehead as she tried to reach into her memories. «I may have dreamt of this place. My father told me of the cave and the ice stairs leading the way out. He warned me not to touch anything until I was certain…» she trailed off, her gaze suddenly meeting Vikirnoff's. «It was my father. He set up the compulsion for me to come here. He must have.»
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