Carpathian 08 - Dark Legend

musical voice out ahead, so that her body seemed to be moving quickly along the hall as she called to an unseen nurse around the corner.
    At once the reporter turned his head, catching a glimpse of her slender shape and long hair. He hurried down the hall in an attempt to catch up to her. Francesca laughed softly, waiting until he disappeared before entering Skyler's room.
    The girl turned her head, her soft dove-gray eyes wide and beautiful. There was a welcoming look in her gaze that hadn't been there before.
    "I was waiting for you." Her voice was stronger and Francesca noticed for the first time how melodious it was. "I thought you'd never get here."
    "I had quite a bit of work to do," Francesca said, seating herself and reaching for Skyler's hand. "I make stained-glass windows and also quilts for people in need."
    A slow smile curved the young girl's mouth. "I had my friend here to keep me company." She hugged the stuffed wolf to her. "I like the way you say that. 'People in need.' People like me. I've noticed you have a way of making me feel like everything is going to be all right.
    Sometimes, when my mind is very chaotic, I think of you and feel you in my mind." Her long lashes swept down, concealing her expression, but Francesca was holding her hand and could read her mixed feelings. The girl was struggling to come to terms with the idea of entering life again.
    "I'll be with you every step of the way, Skyler," she softly reassured her. "You won't be alone, and you won't be expected to take on more than you can cope with. I see you are worried about school. It isn't necessary to think about it at this time."
    Skyler turned her face to wall. "Dr. Brice said I would have to go to school immediately so I wouldn't fall behind. I didn't want to tell him, but I hardly ever went to school. I'm different. I could never fit in."
    "You are different," Francesca affirmed, "but that is not a bad thing. It doesn't matter about school. You are gifted, quite brilliant actually.
    We can provide tutors for you and I can help when there is need. It is certainly nothing to worry about. Dr. Brice is a good man and he wants what is best for you, but he doesn't have a clue about your special talents and gifts. He does not understand what it is like to be a woman and be abused as you were. He does not understand what it is like to be a child and have no guidance, no one to love you unconditionally. He has no say in your future, Skyler."
    Skyler's fingers twisted together, a small betrayal of her nervousness. "I don't like it here. I never feel safe unless you're here, or…" She trailed off as if she had done something wrong. "Sometimes the other one touches my mind and I feel reassured."
    Francesca's heart skipped a beat. "Not Gabriel?"
    "He is there sometimes, but it is different. The other one never really says anything, he's just there, touching me, but I can feel I'm not alone and he only comes when I'm very frightened. Like when I have a nightmare and I wake up. In the middle of the afternoon there was a stranger in here. I didn't like him and I was so scared. That's when the other one touched my mind. It was soothing and comforting."
    Francesca bit her lip. The other had to be Lucian. Was he so strong, then, that he could defeat the daylight and reach out to touch Skyler when she was frightened? Was he already so connected with her that he could read her fear even when his strength was at its lowest ebb?
    She forced air through her lungs, remaining calm. "What stranger entered your room, Skyler?"
    "A man. He asked me lots of questions about you, but I didn't answer or look at him. I retreated like I do. Into my own mind." Skyler continued to look at the wall as if she were slightly ashamed of herself. Her hands were clutching the little stuffed animal until her knuckles turned white. "I don't know if I can keep from doing it when I'm really afraid."
    Francesca gently pushed her hair from her forehead. She couldn't wait to get the child home, where she would be surrounded by love, by feminine things. She couldn't wait to do something with the wealth of hair that had been neglected for so long. "He's a reporter, honey, nothing more. Someone told him a story about me and he wants to write about it. It has nothing to do with you, but I'll make certain there's a guard posted outside your door at all times. No one else will get in." She should have posted a guard long before this.
    A small sound escaped Skyler's throat, something