Carpathian 01 - Dark Prince

spilling silver light across the tree-tops, turning everything into a surreal dream.
    Things slipped in and out of her mind. Soft whispered words, a constant murmuring she couldn't quite grasp. It seemed important, but Raven was too tired to unravel it all. Had her mind fragmented from chasing the last serial killer? She couldn't remember what had happened to her. The wind felt good blowing over her body, cleansing her. She was cold, yet it didn't seem to matter. Lights danced, colors swirled, the sky sparkled brilliantly above her head. Beneath them a large pool of water shone like crystal. It was all so beautiful, and yet her head ached abominably.
    "I'm tired." She found her voice, wanted to hear if she could speak. Perhaps she could wake herself up if she was in the midst of a dream.
    The arms tightened fractionally. "I know. You will be home soon."
    She didn't recognize the voice. Something in her rose up to rebel at the closeness. Her body didn't like the feel of his against hers. Did she know him? It didn't feel as if she did, yet he held her as if he had a right to her. There was something slipping in and out of her memory that she couldn't quite catch. Every time she thought the pieces of the puzzle began to fit themselves together, pain sliced through her head so violently, she couldn't hold the thought.
    They were suddenly walking together, out under the stars, the trees swaying and dipping gently, his arm around her waist. Raven blinked in confusion. Had they always been walking? No one could fly; that was absurd. She was suddenly afraid. Had she lost her mind? She glanced up at the man walking beside her.
    Physically he was beyond merely handsome, his pale face sensually beautiful. But when he smiled down at her, his eyes were flat and cold, his teeth a flash of menace in his scarlet mouth that struck fear in her heart. Who was he? Why was she with him?
    Raven shivered and tried to draw away from the man with a slight, subtle movement. She was weak, and without his support, she might have fallen. "You are cold, my dear. We will be home soon."
    His voice sent a ripple of terror through her; distaste was rolling in her stomach. There was a gloating taunt in his voice. For all his seeming solicitousness, Raven felt as if a giant snake was coiled around her, its cold, reptilian body and hypnotic eyes mesmerizing her. Her mind reached out, struggled to connect.
    He would come. Mikhail. She screamed in agony and fell to her knees, pressing her hands to her head, terrified to move, to think.
    Cold hands grasped her arms, dragged her to her feet. "What is it, Raven? Come, tell me, so that I may help you."
    She despised his voice. It grated on her, sent shivers over her skin. There was power there, and a depraved, secret amusement, as if he knew exactly what was happening to her and enjoyed her suffering, her ignorance. As much as she loathed his touch, she could not stand on her own two feet and had to lean against his strong body.
    "You need to feed," he remarked almost casually, but she sensed a hidden excitement in that statement.

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    Raven pressed a hand to her stomach. "I'm feeling sick."
    "That is because you hunger. I have prepared a special surprise for you, my dear. A banquet in your honor. The guests have been waiting impatiently for our return."
    Raven stopped walking and stared up at his cold, mocking eyes. "I don't want to go with you."
    The eyes flattened, hardened. His smile was a parody, a soulless flash of fangs. She could see his receding gums, the lengthening incisors. He was not beautifully handsome, as she had first imagined, but foul and cruel-looking. "Raven, you have no other place to go." Again he sounded slightly mocking, sickly solicitous.
    Raven pulled her arm away from him and sat down abruptly when her legs buckled beneath her. "You are not…" The name eluded her with an explosive burst of pain. Blood beaded on her forehead and trickled down her face.
    Deliberately, the vampire leaned down and ran his tongue coarsely along her cheek, following the path of her blood. "You are ill, my dear. You have to trust me to know what is best for you."
    Raven forced herself to remain calm, to push aside the cobwebs clogging her mind. She had special gifts.
    She had a brain. Those were two indisputable facts. She was certain she was in grave danger and she had no idea how she had gotten here with him, but she needed to