Carpathian 03 - Dark Gold

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    'dominating' her."
    
    Marie nodded, and Stefan followed his wife through the house, uneasy with the way things seemed to be going. Aidan was dangerous, powerful, more beast than man when push came to shove. And he would allow no one or nothing to take Alexandria Houton from him. Stefan could easily read that in Aidan's protective, possessive posture when he was close to her. And Aidan's thin veneer of civility was wearing thinner by the day.
    
    Marie and Stefan's search for Alexandria came to an abrupt stop when they saw her huddled beside the front door. She looked small and lost, a forlorn little girl tormented beyond endurance.
    Her knees were drawn up to her chin, her face down, hair spilling around her, hiding her expression. She was shaking, pale, the terrible daytime lethargy of the Carpathian people slowly creeping over her, taking control. Clearly it was frightening for her to feel her body turning to lead, as if all control was lost forever.

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    
    "Alexandria," Marie said anxiously, approaching the huddled figure, "are you all right?"
    
    Her concern seemed genuine, but Alexandria was under no illusions. Marie's first and only loyalty was to Aidan Savage. Anything she said would be reported to him immediately.
    Alexandria did not lift her head. Inside her was a growing dread that she was utterly helpless, caught in a snare, a maze so tangled, she would never get out. Aidan was far too powerful to fight, and for some reason, he wanted her with him.
    
    "Alexandria?" Marie gently touched her bowed head. "Tell me, should I get Aidan?"
    
    Alexandria squeezed her eyes shut. Aidan. It always seemed to come back to Aidan. "No, I…
    I'm just finding everything… overwhelming. I… I need time to adjust." Her voice was so tight, she felt so close to a breakdown, she was afraid to speak. She struggled to stop the inner trembling threatening to shake her apart. Was she crazy? Did she belong in a mental institution?
    
    She had to find a way to get Joshua away from these people. She should have asked Thomas Ivan for help. But the truth was, he could never hope to win against Aidan. Aidan would never let her go. She didn't know why, she didn't understand how, but she had an absolute conviction that he would follow her to the ends of the earth. She bit down on a knuckle to keep from screaming.
    How could she hope to fight Aidan? Could she even survive without his help? If she checked herself into a hospital, admitted to hallucinations, what would happen to Joshua?
    
    Without warning she could feel the need to touch Aidan creeping up on her, entering her mind.
    No matter how hard she tried to wipe the idea away, it persisted. She wanted to know he was there, somewhere close. Insanity! Her own mind had turned against her! The more she fought herself, the worse it became. She needed him. Needed his reassuring touch.
    
    Marie gave a soft exclamation as droplets of blood dotted Alexandria's forehead. She turned toward Stefan, afraid for the girl. They needed Aidan immediately. Clearly the struggle taking place in Alexandria's mind was causing her agony. Tears welling up in her own eyes, Marie knelt beside Alexandria and put a comforting arm around her shoulders. She felt so small, so fragile, her body trembling so hard, Marie was afraid she might shake apart, break into a million pieces.
    
    "Please let me help you, Alexandria," the housekeeper begged softly.
    
    "What can you do?" Alexandria asked hopelessly. "What can anyone do? He'll never let me go."
    She looked up at the older woman plaintively. "Will he?"
    
    Marie's silence was her answer. She felt the girl's shudder of fear. "Aidan is a good man and means only to protect you. Trust him."
    
    "Do you?"
    
    "With my life. With the lives of my children," Marie said solemnly, truthfully.
    
    "But then, he doesn't want the same thing from you that he does from me, does he?" Alexandria asked bitterly. "He would do anything to keep me here, even deceive me about what is real and what isn't."
    
    Without warning she leapt to her feet, nearly knocking Marie over. Then she was struggling to open the front door. Stefan yelled a warning. Marie shouted for Aidan. And Alexandria jerked Generated by ABC Amber LIT Conv erter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
    open the heavy door and ran out into the relentless, murderous sun.
    
    At once a thousand needles