Carpathian 17 - Dark Curse

felt the song, felt the dance, through the soles of her feet. She knew each step before she took it, each graceful movement of her hand and sway of her body before she made it. The song was loud in her mind, in perfect harmony with the other three dancers, perfectly tuned to the notes of the earth itself.
    Oh, Mother Nature, we are your beloved daughters. We dance to heal the earth. We sing to heal the earth. We join with you now. Our hearts and minds and spirits become one.
    As she sang the song, this time it was right, the women merging into one unit with the earth, in accord with the sky above them and the hot core beneath them.
    Oh, Mother Nature, we are your beloved daughters. We pay homage to our mother and call upon the North...
    Syndil bowed low and swept into a circle. South , Skyler repeated the move in perfect synchronization with Syndil. East . Lara dipped low, a sign of respect, spinning with the other two women as Natalya went next.
    West . All four women completed the fourth bow and turned at the exact same moment. Above and below and within as well .
    Power burst through the chamber, alive now, visible threads linking all of the women in the room, drawing on their energy.
    Our love of the land heals that which is in need. We join with you now, earth to earth. The cycle of life is complete.
    The soil warmed beneath their feet. Raven and Savannah gasped as the wave of heat washed over them. The color of the soil darkened even more into a rich, fertile black, sparkling with minerals.
    Lara felt the joy of the earth through the soles of her bare feet, moving up through her legs to infuse her body with strength and happiness. As part of a cosmic whole she was one with the women, one with the universe and had a complete feeling of confidence and accord. For that one moment in time, she had no fears, no vulnerabilities, part of a greater whole. She was flooded with almost a euphoric feeling of well-being, transcended by the energy and peace surrounding her.
    The dancers stopped swaying and the women buried their hands in the richness of the fertile soil, far more Page 138

    Christine Feehan: Dark Curse
    valuable to them then the richest gold mine. They all should have been drained and weary, but the soil infused them with energy.
    Syndil\'s face reflected the joy Lara was feeling, her eyes shining with wonder.
    \"This is what our soil should be for our women,\" Syndil said. \"And with four of us, we can do so much now.\"
    \"I feel a difference already,\" Savannah said, relieved. \"My cramps are far less.\"
    Raven bit her lip and shook her head. \"It isn\'t helping me. The contractions are getting stronger.\" Despair was in her voice.
    Lara, one with the other women, reached to connect with the child. Fear swamped her mind, pain followed.
    She had the sensation of being torn from her safe haven. She choked back a ragged cry. The little boy was conscious of what was happening to him and he kept reaching out to his mother.
    Raven tried to shield him from the pain and the continual battering on his tiny body. More than the physical assault against him, Lara felt the subtle flow of something else. She frowned, glanced at Natalya and then the others to see if they caught it as well. They were all caught in the same fear and grief of losing the child.
    Lara touched her tongue to her suddenly dry lips, reaching instinctively for Nicolas. At once he was there, his warmth surrounding her, his strength giving her confidence. Steadied, she took a breath and let it out, trying to follow the thread of dark influence working against both child and mother. Before she could find the source, the child slipped farther away.
    Raven began to cry, deep wrenching sobs that tore at Lara\'s heart. \"I can\'t lose another child. He\'s too tiny to send into the next life without a mother. I have to go with him.\"
    A collective gasp went up and the women visibly paled.
    \"You cannot,\" Shea stated. \"Absolutely not.\"
    \"Mother,\" Savannah protested.
    \"Raven,\" Francesca\'s voice was the sound of calm. \"If you choose to follow your son, Mikhail will follow you into the next world. Our people need both of you. You are distraught and not thinking straight.\"
    Raven continued to weep brokenly. Shea sank down into the soil beside her, wrapping her arms around her while Savannah clasped her hand.
    \"I don\'t understand what that means, that Mikhail will follow her,\" Lara whispered to Natalya.
    \"Lifemates cannot exist without one