Slowly he nodded. “I knew you would come someday. I have always felt it in my bones. A destiny I could not escape. The old ones talk of vampires and creatures of the night. I did not believe them, and yet I did not misbelieve them. There are many things in this world we do not see and that exist just the same. It does not bode well to ignore the words of our elders.”
He did believe her and yet his words shocked her. “You never told me of this night when I met you as an old man.” She remembered him as engaging and free with conversation. Her sense back then was they were strangers meeting for the first time.
He shook his head and shrugged. “Much happens in life that we cannot explain, and still there are reasons for all things.”
Not news to her. It wasn’t like she was free with the truths of her life. She tended to keep them close to the vest. There were people along the way she should have shared more with and didn’t, so she had no right to cast stones. “We need your help.”
He nodded slowly. “This I understand. Your friends are not of this land, are they?”
“They’re from a time many years distant.” She wouldn’t even try to explain what that meant. It would have to suffice for him to know they came from the future. “We came to find a relation who has been taken or has gotten lost in her walk through time.”
“Ah.” His eyebrows lifted. “Gossip in the square is that a beautiful woman arrived with Alexandru Vizulea. He has been away for many years and suddenly appears out of nowhere with the strange woman. She is said to have bewitched the Prince. Is she too a vampire?”
“Vlad Dracula?” She’d suspected as much since their arrival but had to make sure.
“Yes, Prince Dracul. Is the woman like you?”
It was as she suspected and feared. “No, Lura is not a vampire. Do you believe she is safe?”
He sadly shook his head. “One can never be certain. The Prince’s favor changes from day to day. Favor is a fickle thing in this land we live in. One day you are his trusted confidant, the next day, a bloody puppet hanging from a spike. He has done much good. He has done much harm. To know where the woman you seek falls is measured in moments.”
She suppressed a shudder at the thought of what could happen to Lura. Impalement was an incredibly cruel way to die. “Can we get to her?”
He studied her, really studied her for the first time. “Perhaps, but you will need to be very careful. You, like the woman who came out of the night with Alexandru, are very beautiful. Our Prince is drawn to beauty. He uses it and, often, he destroys it.”
Shit. Shit. Shit. How in the world were they going to get Lura out of this place…alive?
*
How crazy was this? Lura kept waiting to wake up and discover it was all a dream of fantastic proportions. Only it was real—as amazing as that was. She was wrapped in the arms of a woman who set her body on fire and made her feel complete. Never before had she felt like this, and she didn’t want it to end.
Except it had to…didn’t it? She didn’t belong here, even though in Nicoletta’s arms it was as though she’d finally come home. She was out of her time, out of her world, and had never been as content and happy as she was at this moment. Giving it up was going to be pure torture.
She closed her eyes and gloried in the softness of Nicoletta’s body, the lovely scent of the fire, the sounds outside the shuttered window. She would take each memory with her when she left this place and hope it would be enough. At least the ache in her heart was filled, even if only for one night.
“What are you thinking of?” Nicoletta asked. “You seem quite far away.”
She smiled and stroked Nicoletta’s cheek. “I was thinking how wonderful it is to lie here with you. Being with you like this is the most breathtaking thing that’s ever happened to me, and the most unbelievable too.”
“Not so to me. That you are in my bed, yes. That you are here, no. I have known you would be coming since Alexandru went on his journey to bring you to this land.”
They’d explained it to her and she still didn’t get it. Alexandru, it appeared, was some kind of seer who had prophesied her coming. As he’d told it, she was to be the one to save the people of Wallachia from continued bloodshed at the hand of Dracula.
Now…what exactly was she going to do to make that happen? She was a doctor, a psychiatrist to be precise, and while in a sense she did in fact save lives, that was all in the twenty-first century. This was so out of her comfort zone and skill level it defied logic. What exactly could a shrink from her century do to save the medieval Wallachian people? Group therapy? Intensive counseling? Not likely.
“None of this makes sense, you know.” Her mind was still spinning and coming up with precisely nothing.
“Oh, but it does,” Nicoletta said with conviction. “It has been foretold. What Alexandru sees always comes to pass. He is a man blessed by God with vision. He has never been wrong. ”
In her world seers were crackpots who had 1-800 lines. They were the lost and the scammers. People who didn’t give a damn who they hurt as long as they made a buck. Their victims were often her patients.
She was a woman of science, which conflicted greatly with those who claimed to have the skills of sight. Then again, what did she really know, considering where she was right this moment? If it was possible to walk through time, maybe it was just as possible that Alexandru could see the future.
Made her wonder if maybe at least some of those folks on the other end of a 1-800 line might actually be able to see beyond the veil of the physical world. The last twenty-four hours had so far managed to shake up her perception of what was and wasn’t. She’d be pissed off if she didn’t feel so awesome right now.
She closed her eyes and sighed. “I don’t want to think about any of it at the moment. It makes my head hurt.”
Nicoletta took her head in her hands and kissed Lura very gently. The sweetness of the kiss took her breath away. None of the hows or the whys mattered when she kissed her like that. Passion raged in her body the moment they touched.
Lura deepened the kiss and began to run her hands over Nicoletta’s warm skin. Her earlier trepidation about her lack of experience fled. She felt alive, confident, and sexy. Her tongue met Nicoletta’s in a fiery dance that quickened her breath. It seemed to her that since Nicoletta had rocked her world, not to mention her body, it was only fair she return the favor, which is precisely what she proceeded to do.
Chapter Eighteen
Dawn started to flow into the sky, and outside, the sounds of life stirring filtered through the closed door. With Antoine’s help they got Colin patched up fairly well. After a goblet of tuica, a wonderful plum brandy she recalled well from her time here, they were all feeling much better. Colin certainly didn’t put up any fight when they placed the goblet in his hand, and he managed drink it all without spilling so much as a drop. His cheeks flushed and a smile pulled up the corners of his mouth. The second glass turned out to be a great sleeping aid, and now he was resting comfortably in a small bedroom in the back of the home, with Ivy keeping vigil at his side.
“You know, staring out the window isn’t going to answer the burning question in your pretty little head.”
Adriana stroked Riah’s hair and she tilted her head against her touch. She had an almost uncanny ability to read her. No one else in her many years of existence had ever been as in tune with her as Adriana. No one.
And every day, she worried it would all end.
Especially today. Since they’d walked through the stones and through the open wormhole that moved them from one time to another, she’d had the feeling things were going to change. For the first time in centuries, she liked her life and hoped it could stay just the way it was. For hundreds of years she’d been alone, and at the time, she had been fine with her existence that way. Since Adriana had opened her heart, everything around her had taken on color, texture, and dimension. She liked it and wanted to make the most of every moment they had together. The gray neutrality
she’d been living in before finding love just wasn’t going to cut it anymore.
Certainly she understood that Adriana was human and a day would come when she’d once more be alone. It was unavoidable, and she’d deal with that day when it came. She only hoped it would turn out to be many, many years in the future.
What bothered her right now was the feeling that whatever change was on the way was going to happen soon. She feared what it might be and was far from ready to return to her isolated existence. Losing Adriana would crush her as nothing else had ever done.
Shaking off the dire thoughts, she smiled a little and turned to look into Adriana’s deep-brown eyes. “A burning question, eh?”
Adriana rolled her eyes. “Don’t pretend you don’t know what I’m talking about. You got a little taste of acting like a regular old human-type person again, and you want to take your skinny white ass right back into the sunshine.”
Leave it to Adriana to put into words exactly what she was feeling. On the one day they’d moved through the countryside she’d remembered how it had been before Rodolphe stole her life. Adriana was right, she did want to know. Could she do it again? Could she walk outside and pretend for a little while longer that she was once again a woman made of flesh and blood? Could she turn her face to the sun and feel its warmth as long as she wanted?
“Yes.” She didn’t have to explain. Adriana would know.
“I think, girlfriend, that it’s gonna be. This place has your number, and whatever you were, whatever you are in our time, the rules have changed since we got here. In your favor, no less.”
Always the devil’s advocate, she said, “One day doesn’t mean we’re changed.”
“Oh, I don’t think you’re changed. Pretty sure you’re still my sexy vamp. I just think, for whatever reason, the sunshine doesn’t hurt you while we’re in this dimension, and I’m gonna find out why. I want to know what the mojo is that makes this place different.”
“No microscopes here, A.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Details, girlfriend, just details. You know my mother used to tell me that where there’s a will, there’s a way. Besides, have you forgotten what a kick-ass sorceress I am? I can make wine out of water, baby.”
“You know I believe you. If anyone can figure it out, you can.” Riah kissed her and smiled.
Adriana wiggled her eyebrows. “Abso-damn-lutely.” She held out her hand. “Now, come on, gorgeous. Let’s take a little walk and see if you go up in a puff of smoke.”
Riah took her outstretched hand in hers. “Easy for you to say, when you’re not the one who’ll get smoked.”
Adriana tugged a little on her hand. “Come on, Riah, have a little trust. Have I ever led you astray yet?”
That was a loaded question. “Oh, you’ve led me astray all right. Remember the silk scarves, or how about…”
Adriana’s smile grew huge. “Yeah, good times, good times.”
*
Nicoletta hated the thought of leaving the bed. Lura was so warm, and the feel of her body throughout the night was the most wonderful thing she’d ever experienced. If Lura were in her bed forever, she would never want to leave her chambers.
Alas, staying beneath the covers was not to be. Soon, others would be up and about in the castle. If she was not among them, it would be noticed, and the last thing she wanted was to come to the Prince’s attention. Her hope was that his disinterest in her of last night would endure and that he would ignore her from this day on.
As long as she was out of his sight and word did not reach the Prince that she had done something to displease him, her life could go on. Not that she could stay here much longer. She dared not take the risk. Whatever it was that made him turn away from her might not last, and she did not want to stay long enough to find out.
The only way to have any hope of freedom was to leave the castle. She would get as far away as possible and make the best of her life as she could, given what was to happen.
She dressed quietly after building up the fire until it crackled and popped. It quickly took the chill off the room. While they had taken turns keeping it stoked during the night, it had finally died down to embers, and the cold winter air had chased away the warmth.
Standing, she stared at Lura as she slept peacefully. Her hair fanned out around her face, and sleep softened her features. She was so beautiful. Nicoletta’s heart beat faster, and her stomach fluttered as though filled with moths. The feeling was not unpleasant and made her smile. She had not had many occasions to smile in a long time.
A soft knock came at the door, startling Nicoletta and making Lura stir. Rubbing her eyes, Lura sat up and looked as though she was not certain where she was. After a moment, her expression cleared and, like Nicoletta, she smiled.
Nicoletta’s breath caught in her throat at the sight of Lura’s naked breasts. She wanted nothing more than to remove her own dress and return to the bed. She did not dare, for she feared who might be at their door.
She moved toward the door and motioned for Lura to pull the covers up and over her exposed breasts. Before she opened the door, she glanced back, and as Lura was properly covered up, she pulled on the ring, bringing the passageway into view. Outside the door, her friend Mia stood wringing her hands. Her cheeks were flushed and her lips pressed into a thin line. Dread pooled in her stomach.
“Oh, Nicoletta,” she said with tears in her eyes. “It is terrible.”
The look on Mia’s face was frightening, the somber tone of her words dreadful. She was afraid to know what made such a cheerful woman look as though death had come knocking on her door. “What is it? What has happened?”
The tears could no longer be contained, and they spilled down her pale cheeks. “It is Alexandru…” His name was a sob on her lips.
Her body stilled and a glacial cold descended over her. “Dear God, tell me.”
“He…he…I cannot…” Mia clamped a hand over her mouth, whirled around, and ran down the corridor.
Sickness rose in her throat as Nicoletta turned again to Lura. She choked out, “I must go. Something has happened to my brother.”
Out of the corner of her eye she saw Lura scramble naked out of the bed and reach for her gown. She did not wait for her. Instead, she raced down the corridor in the same direction as Mia’s fleeing form. Silent prayers went up to God that she would not run into the Prince or any of his trusted confidants. She had to get to her brother.
Catching sight of Mia’s yellow gown exiting outside, she hurried on. A little faster and she would reach her. She flung herself out the door and into the cold morning air. Outside, the early day sun was chasing off the icy grip of the morning, and her fleeting thought was that the day was going to be a lovely one. No snow, no blowing wind, just a soft winter sunshine to warm their weary bones.
Then she noticed the quiet outside the castle. Normally the sounds of people going about their daily tasks would fill the air. Not now. Instead of the sounds of people’s voices, the whinny of anxious horses, the clattering of wagon wheels, an eerie silence met her. As did the smell—a stench she recognized instantly: blood. No matter how many times she came outside only to be greeted by this same odor, she could never make peace with it. She despaired that her beautiful homeland was becoming all too often the setting for violence and death. She hated that the rich soil that grew their food and made the floors for their homes was turned crimson with blood.
Slowly her head came up and her eyes settled on the gory sight that in her heart she knew would be there. No one was spared from the horror of the Prince’s fatal justice. Not the poor, the rich, the young, or the sick. All were to see and to take to heart the price of wrongdoing, whether it actually happened or not.
That was the hurtful part. While the Prince might perceive a sin, that did not mean the person was evil. She was too aware of the innocents whose bodies had been impaled and on display for the stares of friends, neighbors, and worst of all, family. Left to rot as though they were nothing more t
han food for vultures. It made her stomach roll.
Three men were impaled upon the tall, sharp spikes on this day. The first two were strangers, and their bodies sagged bloodless and devoid of life, their unfamiliar faces slack in death. As her gaze fell on the third man, a scream rose in her throat and her legs trembled, her knees buckling. The ground rose up to meet her as her sobs shattered the morning silence.
Chapter Nineteen
The sun came up and Riah stayed at the window despite Adriana’s coaxing her to take a risk and step outside. Rays of light crept through the opening of the heavy drapes, creating a growing pool of light around her feet. Hope began to build as the circle of light grew bigger and bigger.
Nothing happened.
She brought her gaze up to meet Adriana’s, and seeing the smile on her face made Riah smile too.
Putting both hands on her hips, Adriana said calmly, “I told you so.”
Riah nodded. “Indeed you did. No puff of smoke.”
This was going to make getting around easier, though easier didn’t necessarily mean easy. During the nighttime hours, while Colin rested and Ivy worried, Antoine had filled in the blanks.
She’d been fairly certain they were in Wallachia during the reign of Vlad Dracula, better known as Vlad the Impaler. What she hadn’t been sure of was during exactly which reign they had arrived. He’d been the ruler of Wallachia during three separate time frames, although his last stint on the throne was relatively brief.
She’d been able to feel him the moment they’d stepped through the rocks. It was as if his life force permeated the very air. That in this time he’d been both a savior and a curse to this place was a conviction she agreed with. She’d seen firsthand how he’d saved the land from domination by the Ottoman Turks. At the same time, she’d also seen the devastation to families his bloodlust had caused. Did the good outweigh the bad? She didn’t have an answer for that one.
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