Carpathian 18 - Dark Possesion

thought it a possibility that she might come here. We knew she wouldn't go to your ranch."
    "And you knew the younger woman was with her. The one Juliette and Solange took back from your men."
    "Not my men. I can't control them. I had hoped to find her before the others."
    "And what would you have done with her?" Manolito demanded, his black eyes glittering dangerously.
    Luiz shook his head. "I don't know. I thought I came to talk, but then I scented you, and I became very confused." He rubbed his forehead. "I began to think you were here to take our women and I wanted you dead."
    "You came to the island in control, but then something happened. You had to have encountered him here,"
    Manolito said in alarm. That meant the master vampire was close, somewhere on the island, and no one knew. Solange, Jasmine, Juliette and even his brother Riordan weren't safe. "Who did you meet?"
    "Not a vampire. An old friend. He had taken shelter here and was leaving because he realized the house was occupied by the De La Cruz family."

    Manolito kept his expression blank, but his heart jumped and pounded. Fear was an incredible emotion, and now that he felt it, he knew it was for those he loved rather than for himself. "Your old friend is long gone, Luiz. Avoid him at all costs. You met a master vampire, and only because he has a plan and needed you did you escape unscathed."
    "You think my friend is dead?"
    "If not dead, then certainly tainted."
    "Thank you, Manolito, for your aid," Luiz said, and for the first time he looked defeated. His body crouched, a quick graceful move, fur rippling as his muzzle lengthened to accommodate a mouthful of teeth. In absolute silence he slid into the underbrush and disappeared.
    Just to be safe, Manolito dissolved into mist and joined the low, gray vapor drifting around the tree trunks only a few feet off the ground. It was far better to err on the side of caution with the jaguar-man.
    He took form again atop a boulder facing a roaring white waterfall that poured over the rocks and fell into the swollen river. He needed his lifemate. Needed to touch her. Hold her. Taste her. His hunger had returned, bringing confusion with it. He needed to warn his family of the danger lurking on the island, but most of all, he needed his lifemate to anchor him.
    Where are you? The echo of his cry was in his mind, the sound lost and lonely.
    Chapter Four

    MaryAnn placed one foot carefully out of the all-terrain vehicle and watched her beloved Kors boot sink deep into the muck. She gasped in horror. The boots had been a treasured find. Dark brown, antiqued stressed leather with a tapered toe, they were stylish with their high, thick heels, but comfortable, and very rain-foresty. More than that, they matched her Forzieri jacket in the same elegant color and leather, cut short, trendy and butter soft. She had even carefully rainproofed both for any and all occasions such as a trek in the forest. She'd come totally prepared, yet she wasn't out of the vehicle and already she was ankle deep in mud.
    She loved those boots.
    As she pulled her shoe out, a squishing sound accompanied the unpleasant odor of too-sweet flowers mixed with rotting vegetation. She shifted back onto the seat to examine the damage, wrinkling her nose in distaste.
    What in the world was she doing in this place? She needed to be in a coffee shop with the music of the street singing to her and the bustle of people everywhere, not in this strangely silent world of… of… nature .
    "Hurry, MaryAnn. We have to walk from here," Juliette said.
    MaryAnn gingerly dragged her backpack to her and peered out the open door at the strangely quiet interior of the forest. "It's pretty muddy, Juliette," she said, grasping for any reason to stay in the relative safety of the Jeep. The forest terrified her in ways she could never explain to anyone. Her fears were deep-rooted and she'd never been able to overcome them. She couldn't just make herself walk calmly into that oppressive darkness like a sacrificial lamb. "Maybe you could just call him and tell him we're here. You can do that sort of thing, right?"
    "He would not answer," Riordan reminded. "He believes we mean him harm."
    "I did mention I've never been camping, right?" MaryAnn said, scanning the ground for the driest spot.
    "Three times," Riordan said, his mouth set in grim lines.
    He was suddenly in front of her; he caught her around the waist and deposited her a short distance from the vehicle. There was