Carpathian 16 - Dark Demon

past Vikirnoff and found Natalya. He went utterly still. For a moment it seemed as if he had ceased to breathe. "You are the exact image of Rhiannon."
    His penetrating gaze seemed to see straight through her to every dark deed she'd ever committed. "Rhiannon was my grandmother," Natalya said.
    "Was?"
    Ordinarily the demand in his voice would have irritated her, and Vikirnoff was already moving to put himself between her and the stranger, though for her protection or the stranger's she wasn't certain. Something in the man's face saddened her. The man, whoever he was, bore an uncanny resemblance to her father. "Xavier killed Rhiannon long ago," she explained.
    "She is dead?" Though no expression crossed the man's face, she was certain the news struck him hard. "You are certain?"
    "I'm capable of accessing the memories in objects, particularly if violence is associated with the object. Xavier used his favorite ceremonial knife to kill her. I saw it happen through the knife and Vikirnoff witnessed it as well." The man closed his eyes as if in pain.
    "I'm sorry," she added. "Did you know her?"
    "Forgive me, little sister. I should have introduced myself. I am Rhiannon's brother, Dominic. I have long sought my beloved sister in the hopes of finding her alive. It is good she lives through you." Dominic clasped Vikirnoff's arms. " Ekä, kont . I had hoped one day to see you again."
    "You are wounded."
    Dominic shrugged. "I had a run-in with Maxim Malinov and we had ourselves quite a little battle."
    He was the dragon in the sky the other day, wasn't he ? Natalya asked Vikirnoff, excited.
    What did he call you ?
    Yes. He has always been a superb warrior. He called me brother and warrior. Coming from Dominic, it is a great honor.
    "It is why I was late this rising. I meant to attend the healing, but fear my wounds needed a few extra hours in the soil to ensure I was fit to aid our people should the need arise." All the while he spoke, his gaze continued to flicker over Natalya. "I would see the memories of the murder of my sister with my own eyes, Vikirnoff."
    Vikirnoff readily complied and Natalya looked away, out the window, refusing to brush their minds while they exchanged information. She could not bear to relive the past again.
    "I have long used the disappearance of my sister as my reason for remaining on this earth. I thought once I knew what happened to her I would seek the dawn, but I must know about her children."
    "My father is dead," Natalya spoke up. "Xavier murdered him. I don't know what happened to my aunts. They were triplets, two girls and a boy. My father thought his sisters had to be dead. He rarely spoke of them." Natalya pressed a hand over the suddenly burning birthmark and looked anxiously at her lifemate. "Vikirnoff? They are coming."
    "Who is coming?" Falcon asked, rising from where he'd been sitting with Sara.
    "Vampires," Dominic answered, his palm covering his side over the same birthmark.
    "The dragon is burning. They are already here."
    Mikhail thrust Raven behind him, looking out his window. "I do not feel their presence."
    "Nor do I," Falcon agreed. He was at the opposite window.
    "I feel them only through Natalya," Vikirnoff said. "This is what has been happening everywhere and must have something to do with whatever they are putting in their blood."

    The first explosion rocked the house, sending a shower of wood and debris down on them. An orange-red ball drove through the roof, the top story, past them and down to the basement below, spreading flames everywhere it touched. Instantly several more fireballs hit the house from every direction. Explosion after explosion shook not only the house, but the ground. Flames shot up the walls and danced across the ceiling. Faces appeared in the rolling waves of fire, laughing and taunting. The ceiling collapsed in large, burning chunks.
    Vikirnoff drove Natalya to the floor, covering her body with his own as he threw up a hasty shield, trapping oxygen inside. Mikhail and Raven and Falcon and Sara huddled together, while Manolito and Dominic raised similar barriers. The breath slammed out of Natalya's lungs, leaving her gasping and fighting the weight of Vikirnoff's larger frame. She pushed at him, trying desperately to get at her weapons.
    "Mikhail is creating a vacuum, sucking all the air from around us to put out the fire. Be still." Vikirnoff gripped her shoulders, holding her down with the casual strength of his species.
    "Freakin' idiot, next