Carpathian 15 - Dark Secret

Kirja, to set up an ambush of his own. It took only seconds to see the long expanse blackened lava he needed. At once he weakened the surface several yards ahead, keeping the outer layer looking smooth even, but paper thin. Beneath the surface, he pooled the a'a makeshift dam that wouldn't hold long, but might give an edge.
    Rafael pulled out of Kirja's mind as gently as possible, not wanting to give away the fact that he'd made the contact. He saw the exact moment the vampire stepped on the thin surface, cracking it and falling through. A hideous scream shook walls of the precarious tunnel and the noxious smell of burning flesh permeated the air. Rafael rounded two corners and found himself staring at the vampire only a scant few yards away.
    Kirja was pulling himself from the hole. Most of his legs burned to bloody stumps, the skin falling off in ashes, raised his hate-filled gaze to Rafael. Your woman will suffer as no other woman has ever suffered. He made the promise in harsh, hissing voice, all pretense at friendship long gone. Rafael rushed him, going for a kill, determined to separate heart from body. Halfway to the vampire, the entire tube caved in and above it, the underground cavern itself. Tons of earth and rock rained down between them, Generated by ABC Amber LIT Conv erter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
    driving Rafael back. He was forced to use his power to keep from being buried under the debris, forming a protective cave around him and waiting for the earth to settle.
    Kirja was in no shape to attack Colby or the children. They were safe while the vampire healed, but he had to get to her. He had run out of time. Colby had to be brought fully into his world, where Rafael could protect her from revenge. Even digging through the debris would not get him a vampire. He knew Kirja, knew he would find a hole and crawl into it, maybe waiting years to rise before attempting to exact his vengeance, but he would eventually make his move. Now or later, it would happen.
    Rafael reached to touch Colby, to assure himself she was waiting at theEverettranch where he had sent her. To his shock, she was in the bar. For a moment he simply stood there in outrage, buried under the mountain, the earth above him ravaged by the battle between two ancients. Colby hadn't listened to him, hadn't paid any attention when he tried to warn her. She hadn't wanted to hear him.
    He made his way through the dirt and rock until he found where he had last seen Kirja. There was no blind spot. No trail of blood. Not even a scent. In the closed-in cave he should have smelled the taint of vampire, but Kirja was an ancient master and he could conceal what he was when he desired. There would be no following him and taking advantage of his wounds.
    Back aboveground, Rafael cleared the evidence of the storms. He incinerated the damaged trees and sent the underground streams back where they belonged. The lava was gone as quickly as it had been wrought, back in the small pool beneath the sleeping mountain. When it was done and he had cleaned himself up, he turned his attention to his most important task. Seducing Colby and taking what was rightfully his.

    Natalya sat in the darkest corner of the bar, with her back to the wall, her gaze moving constantly over the crowd. She nodded when Colby sat down. "You know everyone, don't you?" There was a wistful note in her voice.
    "Pretty much, yes."
    "Must be nice. I can never stay anywhere for very long." Natalya leaned close. "I can't take a chance on one of the hunters finding me."
    "Why? What do they want with you?" Colby asked, rubbing at her suddenly throbbing temples. "I have to have some answers or I'm going to go out of my mind. I'm honestly at the point where I can't tell reality from illusion. Are there really vampires? I encountered a horrible creature, but I swear I might just be going insane and I'm being fed illusions. Mass hysteria." Briefly she covered her face with her hands before looking again at the other woman. "I wanted to talk to Ben about this—he's the sheriff, a friend I've relied on all my life but do you know how insane this all sounds? He'd lock me up and throw the key away."
    Natalya regarded her with compassion. "I'm sorry, I know how difficult this must be for you. I wish I could help you."
    "You said if I wanted to come with you... " Colby trailed call as Natalya shook her head.
    "He can follow you. You said he talks to you." She indicated Colby's neck. "He took