Carpathian 05 - Dark Challenge

beside him on the log. "Hold still, cara ," he ordered. "The vampire's claw was tainted. The poison is already moving through your system. I will drive it from your body, and then I must remove the memory of your song from these humans so that their lives will remain unchanged."
    "You need healing far more than I do, Julian," she protested. "Do not worry about so small a thing as this scratch. We can take care of it later."
    "I will not allow such a thing," Julian said. "Your health comes before all else. The vampire has been destroyed, but his poison is still lethal. Be still, Desari. I will do this. I know what it is to have the darkness growing and spreading inside, a thing that that cannot be removed. I will not allow such a thing to happen to you."
    She read his determination, wished she could see the source of his grim resolve, but still it was hidden from her. Although she felt foolish having Julian attend such a tiny laceration when he was so badly wounded, Desari didn't attempt further protest. There would be no changing his mind, and she was not about to waste his time and energy on arguing.
    Julian's golden eyes closed while he centered himself and once more disassociated himself from his own pain and fatigue. He sent himself seeking outside his own body and into hers. He found the foul drops of poison almost immediately. The thick black flecks were growing insidiously, spreading throughout her bloodstream and multiplying. He was light and energy, fire moving swiftly to overtake each and every speck of toxic venom and neutralize it. It was a difficult task. He took care not to overlook the minutest particle, delving into every artery, vein, and organ to ensure she was completely free of any residual toxin that might later grow and spread, causing illness or harm.
    When he was finished, he made the journey back into his own body. Desari touched his face with loving, gentle fingers. He was gray and swaying with weariness. She pushed back his hair, her heart aching for him. She could feel the burning of his flesh, of his insides, the gaping wound in his shoulder. "You must rest. Let me do what needs doing."
    Julian shook his head. "You would be a great help to me if you would take care of the humans. I cannot allow you near the remains of the vampire or his victims. You cannot trust the undead, not even in death."
    "He is destroyed, Julian," she reminded him softly.

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    "Trust me, cara mia , I have dealt with his kind for centuries. Their traps often lie in wait long after they are dead." He brought her hand to his mouth. "Do as I say, Desari. Help the humans. You do not want them to live the rest of their lives as zombies. Go now. And then go through the air to Darius. Call to him, have him put you in the earth. I will go to ground as soon as I safely can."
    Desari laughed softly at him. "Persist in your fantasies, my love. I am certain they will see you through this difficult time." She pulled her hand away from his and left him while she went to attend to the group of campers stumbling around the edge of the clearing.
    Julian watched her walk away from the scene of brutal death. She looked so serene and beautiful, so untouched by the violence and ugliness surrounding them. He felt his heart lurch, and a curious melting sensation followed. He shook his head in wonder at his luck, pushed back his hair, and stood on shaky legs. He was weak, far weaker than he had allowed Desari to see. The wound in his shoulder was a fiery pain that encompassed his entire chest. He could feel poison spreading throughout his system, and each laceration of his skin throbbed and burned. But he had a duty; he was honor-bound to see to his lifemate first and then remove all signs of the vampire to hide their race from those mortals who would seek to destroy them.
    He knelt beside the dead and dying birds. Those already dead he could do nothing about. Those that still lived were suffering. Gathering the live ones to him, he once more sent himself seeking outside his body and into the creatures who had answered the call to help him. No matter how difficult, he would heal every one that he could. Julian had a deep respect for wildlife. He ran with the wolves, soared in the sky with the birds, swam in the waters with the fish, and hunted with jungle cats in Africa. He lived as one with nature, and nature lived within him. Before Desari, wildlife had been his