Carpathian 17 - Dark Celebration

seen. When I plunge my hands into it, I can feel the difference . He tried to keep his excitement contained.
    Who has done this?
    I do not know, but I intend to find out.
    Mikhail . Raven hesitated. This probably sounds silly, but last evening when quite a few of the ladies got together in the caverns with the pools, we all went swimming, remember? I told you about it .
    He did remember vaguely. Some of the women had gathered together in an effort to get to know one another. You said you had a good time .
    We go there often; it's beautiful and the soil as well as the water is rich and rejuvenating, but this time it seemed even more so. I remember thinking how the cavern looked renewed and the soil darker and richer, the water in the pools amazing, but I thought it was just me — that maybe I was just very happy to be with everyone .
    And ? he prompted hearing her hesitation.
    You're going to think I'm crazy, but when I woke tonight and knew I could conceive, my first thought was that I should have stayed out of the water.
    His heart jumped in his chest. He reached down to touch one of the budding branches from a young sapling that hadn't been there a few hours earlier. Who was there with you ?
    Savannah went with me. Desari, Syndil and Tempest were there, and Corrinne and Alexandria. Sara dropped by briefly. What are you thinking?
    The impossible . And because he needed to give more thought before voicing hope, he changed the subject. How is your meal coming ? He was feeling much better about tonight's celebration. If this gathering resulted in finding a woman who could heal the earth and help protect their pregnant women and infants, giving their healers more time to find answers, he would be eternally grateful—and their species would truly have something to celebrate.
    And what if—just what if… He hardly dared to hope that the water or the soil had encouraged the women to be able to conceive. He didn't dare hope, but it was there anyway for the first time in a long while, refusing to be suppressed.
    Better than fine now. Christmas always seems to bring miracles. We just have to look for them. Find this person, Mikhail. If she can do what you say, she is more valuable than any of us realize.
    Mikhail took to the air once again, his heart pounding in his chest. Far below him, he glimpsed a couple wrapped around one another, oblivious to anything but each other. Once more he quickly scanned the region, needing to ensure the safety of each of his people.
    Again, although he had that same edgy feeling that kept his alarm system prodding him, he could find nothing that indicated an enemy was setting a trap. He sent a small warning to the male, a slight hint of censure reminding him to keep alert for enemies, and flew on until he found the small remote cabin Lucian had chosen for his stay. Several wolves called a warning as he shifted into natural form and stepped up onto the verandah.
    Lucian materialized almost right in front of him, and still, after all the years of power and command weighing on his shoulders, Mikhail felt awed by the man. His black hair flowed down his back, his shoulders were ramrod straight and his eyes blazed with the dark promise of death.
    Lucian and Gabriel Daratrazanoff were twins, legends unsurpassed in Carpathian history, and it showed in the set of Lucian's shoulders and his stern face. Mikhail found Gabriel much more approachable. He always found it humorous that other Carpathians feared Gregori, Mikhail's second in command, best friend and son-in-law, but found his older brothers so approachable when they were at least as dangerous, if not more so.
    Lucian gripped his forearms in a warrior's greeting. Gregori's older brother looked fit and strong, his eyes gleaming, piercing through Mikhail straight to his soul as if he could read inside any man.
    "It is good to see you again after all this time, Mikhail. You have grown into a powerful leader since I last saw you. Your father would have been proud."
    Mikhail clasped the man's arms, feeling the solid strength there. "You may tell your woman she can put away her weapon now."
    A slow smile warmed the bleak, cold eyes. "She will not be pleased that you spotted her.
    She is a cop and definitely prides herself on her abilities. Being Carpathian has only added to her skills."
    "I do not actually know where she is," Mikhail admitted. "Only that she is close by and pointing a weapon at me. I have heard she does not stay home where she