Carpathian 18 - Dark Possesion

beetles, but she wasn't leaving the rain forest until she found the man or his body. She could handle the dark of an alley in the city any day of the week, but she detested walking in the mud and rotting leaves, with the oppressive darkness and the silence closing in around her. She felt eyes watching every step she took.
    Juliette whispered softly, although it was her mind she reached out with, to ask the frog to get off MaryAnn.
    Juliette had an affinity for animals, and even reptiles and amphibians sometimes responded, but in this case, the frog moved closer to MaryAnn's neck, clinging with its sticky feet.
    Get off me ! MaryAnn screamed it in her head, not able to wait for the frog to obey Juliette's command. Right now ! "Get off!" she yelled aloud.
    Evidently the creature had had enough of humans, and it leapt to the nearest tree trunk, landing near two other small frogs. Overhead, in the canopy, a small monkey threw leaves at the trio of amphibians.
    MaryAnn closed her eyes, took a deep breath and began walking again, this time, in spite of the high heels on her boots, picking up the pace until she was practically running. She pushed past Riordan, who looked shocked. When he would have started after her, Juliette caught his arm and gestured to the trees around them.
    Small frogs dotted the trunks and branches, leaping from one tree to the next, following MaryAnn's progress.
    Overhead, in the canopy, monkeys used the highway of tangled vines to converge and follow the woman as she made her way through the forest.
    Do you think the vampire is here ? Juliette asked.
    Riordan did another, much more careful and thorough scan of the surrounding forest. If so, he is a master at hiding his presence. I know they are getting much more clever about such things, so we will need to be fully alert to all danger to her. She is drawn to Manolito, and perhaps can find him even faster than we can, as he is shielding his presence from me .
    Juliette frowned as they began to follow MaryAnn. Your blood bond should keep you informed of his whereabouts .
    Riordan sent her a small smile. We are ancients, Juliette, and we have studied many things over the centuries. Manolito can hide his presence even from our best hunters, and there is no detecting Zacarias when he does not want it known that he is near .
    MaryAnn realized tears were running down her face. The sense of dread and fear was overwhelming. Where are you? Find me . She continued to try calling to Manolito mentally, although clearly she didn't have the psychic gifts they all thought she did.
    As she moved deeper into the interior of the forest, she noticed that the greens weren't quite so vivid. Leaves and shrubs appeared to have a veil of fog over them, changing the vibrant color to a dull gray. Shadows grew where there had been none. First she had seen bright colors in the dark, and now she was seeing shadows when she shouldn't be able to. Terror moved through her, but she couldn't stop going. Whispers plagued her mind as she began to jog. She didn't jog. She wasn't a jogger, or a runner of any kind, but she found herself hurrying through the forest in an effort to get to Manolito.
    Something pushed her onward when all around the forest grew darker and the rustling above her head more pronounced. Once, she risked a look up, but there were small furry things swinging over her head, and it made her feel dizzy and slightly sick. She stumbled and nearly fell, putting out her hand to break her fall. Her long, beautifully manicured nails dug into the wet moss. One nail broke. A dozen green frogs leapt onto her arm and clung with their sticky webbed feet.
    She froze. The frogs stared at her with huge, black, green-lidded eyes. They were shiny, with spots on their underbellies and matching green toenails, as if they wore polish. Tongues darted out, tasting the leather of her jacket. MaryAnn shuddered and looked back at Juliette.
    "Why are they doing that?"
    Juliette didn't have an answer for her. She'd never seen the frogs congregate together in such numbers before, and she'd spent most of her life in the rain forest.
    "I don't know," she admitted. "It's unusual behavior." Riordan, they ignore even the strongest of pushes .
    There was alarm in both her voice and her mind.
    Riordan set Juliette behind him, regarding the frogs with suspicion. "When creatures do not act as they should, it is best to destroy them."
    MaryAnn's breath caught in her throat. She shook her head. "No, I