Carpathian 03 - Dark Gold

the soft, vulnerable organs.
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    The vampire raged and screamed, raking at Aidan with his last dying strength, determined to take the hunter with him. As Aidan extracted the pulsating heart, the saber-toothed tiger contorted, shaped-shifting until the withered, gray-skinned vampire lay beneath him, still and silent.
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    Aidan tossed the decaying matter away from him and hastily put distance between himself and the abomination that had once been a decent Carpathian male. He allowed himself a deep, cleansing breath and sagged against a tree trunk. The wind rustled, picking up strength to carry the putrid scent of the vampire away from him. The night was full upon him, dark and mysterious and beautiful.
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    Should we come? Do you have need of blood, Aidan?
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    He could hear the weariness in her, matching his own. It was a difficult task to maintain mental contact when she had just recently learned to do so, especially through so violent a struggle. And she was weak from lack of nourishment. She had allowed him to feed greedily, and she had lent her waning strength to him without hesitation. Even now, her concern was for him.
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    Stay , piccola, I will be home soon, and I will bring Joshua with me. Tell Marie and Stefan all is well . He struggled to keep his voice even so that she would not be afraid for him.
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    Her soft laughter warmed his heart. I'm in your mind, my love. You can't hide your wounds from me .
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    There was the merest disturbance in the air, just a flutter, no other warning. A large raptor landed on the branch above Aidan's head and slowly folded its wings. Aidan should have known another of his kind was close by, yet he hadn't. As it hopped easily from the perch, the bird's form changed, and it was Gregori who landed lightly on his feet.

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    He glided past Aidan to survey the grotesque sight on the ground. "He was good, was he not?"
    he asked softly. His voice was beautiful, a soothing sound that seemed to seep into Aidan's tired body and renew his strength. Despite his darkness, Gregori brought purity and light with him; it clung to him like the aura of power. "Diego studied with the most evil of the vampires. They began banding together in our homeland, thinking to defeat Mikhail with their numbers. When that did not work, they enlisted the aid of human butchers. Now they are turning to travel and trickery. They use many methods to try to defeat us, Aidan. You have done well this day."
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    "With your aid." Aidan straightened, one hand pressed hard to the flowing wound at his neck.
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    Gregori glided over the cockroaches and blackened snakes, his feet never touching the carnage as he approached the open trunk of the car.
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    Aidan could not prevent himself from giving the healer a warning, just in case. "I used your safeguards to keep the boy free from harm." He couldn't believe the healer would ever turn, but he was watchful all the same.
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    Gregori nodded. "You added a touch of your own. You have grown these years, Aidan. Come here to me." He turned his head then, his strange, pale eyes a compelling silver, his voice low and mesmerizing.
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    Aidan moved forward despite Alexandria's low cry of alarm. She didn't believe the other Carpathian was evil, but the healer believed his soul was already lost. That made him unpredictable. Don't go near him! He's so dangerous, Aidan, and I can feel your weakness.
    It's his voice. Can't you tell that his voice is calling to you ?
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    He is a great man , cara. Trust my judgment , her lifemate reassured her.
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    Gregori touched Aidan ever so lightly, but the hunter felt heat spreading throughout his body.
    The healer closed his eyes and sent himself seeking outside his own body and into Aidan's. At once the ancient tongue of their people echoed in the air, through their bodies, a healing ritual as old as time. Aidan felt the pain moving from his body, pushed aside by the greatest healer of them all. The chant went on for some time, but Alexandria continued to share his mind, firmly refusing to relinquish her rightful place. She knew Gregori could feel her presence, was aware that he could read her distrust of him, but she was more concerned with Aidan's safety than with Gregori's feelings.
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    Gregori slowly returned to his own body, the strain of the healing process revealed by the lines etched into his face. But he casually tore his wrist with his