Dark Legend (27 page)

Gabriel shook his head. "I wish that were true, my love. It would make my task so much easier, but Lucian did not have a choice. He waited long with me, far past the time he would have met the dawn. He waited to protect me even though he lost his emotions centuries before I did. He waited too long for my sake. In the end he was unable to make a rational choice. He was too close. He rose without me and it was done." He bowed his head in shame. "I was struggling with the demon. It was with me endlessly, calling, whispering that all was lost to me. I thought I would rise undead if I did not choose the dawn. There was so much death around us, so much violence. I often wonder if my struggle pushed him over the edge."

Francesca flung her arms around his neck. "Do not do that to yourself, Gabriel. We have enough burdens to bear in our lives without taking on those that belong to others. You must honor Lucian's last request and defeat him. Remember your true brother, the one who shared your life for those two thousand years. He fought to protect you that you might find me, and you have. Your real brother would want your life, not your death."

He brushed at the silken ebony strands tumbling around her face. "You have given me food for thought, Francesca. In the meantime, I must hunt this night for the lesser vampires that have invaded the city. They are a foul stench in the air, impossible to ignore."

"I will send out the quilts and stained-glass pieces I have been working on. I do have a business to run," Francesca said, trying to think of mundane things so that she wouldn't live in terror of what Lucian might do to Gabriel.

"There is no need for worry," he said softly, his voice magic and so pure Francesca felt instantly better. He was like a clear breeze blowing through her body, removing the terrible fear.

Francesca knew he was using his voice, his magical voice to aid her, but she didn't mind. She pressed her hands to her stomach and thought of their baby for further comfort. Gabriel, like all of their race, would believe she carried a male child. Yet she knew she carried one of the precious females. She had a daughter. Fragile. So very vulnerable. Francesca took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Was their baby one of the rare females because she had succeeded for a short while in changing her body chemistry enough to walk in the sun? As a healer it was all important to find that answer. Female children were so unusual within their race, and very few managed to survive the nine months' gestation. The one in a century that did, still had to face that difficult first year of life. Francesca did not want to have to face that fight without Gabriel. She did not want to lose her child and not have him beside her, rock steady, to lean on.

Gabriel's eyes met hers with sudden understanding. He caught her to him, nearly crushing her slender body in his arms. Yet at the same time, he held her so tenderly he made her want to cry. "It is impossible. Our family produced only one daughter in eight hundred years. Before that, it was nearly a thousand years and she did not survive. We cannot be so blessed as to have a girl."

Francesca leaned into him, savoring the heat of his skin, his masculine frame, so different from her own. "I examined her earlier while you went out to feed. The child is female and she clings to life stubbornly. I do not want to face this test alone, Gabriel. Find a way to live for us. You are right about Skyler. Without my aid, without her belief in me, she would slip back into her mind. We would surely lose another of our males to the undead. More than that, we would be without a brilliant, rare treasure. I cannot do it without you, Gabriel. Live for us."

He buried his face in the silken curtain of her hair. "I can do no other than as you command, my love. It is my duty to see to your happiness. I will find a way."

He meant it. She could hear the resolve in his voice. The weariness was gone, as was the acceptance of his own destruction. Lucian had held him for two thousand years. Francesca would not give him up so easily to his dark twin. She would fight with every cell in her body, every weapon she possessed to keep him with her. Lucian would not win. It didn't matter that he was Gabriel's twin and had been a great man once; he was now the biggest threat to her family. She would find a way to combat him. There was a way. Somehow. There was a way.

They clung to each other for a few minutes longer, each aware of the other's thoughts, each determined to find a way to defeat the ultimate vampire. "You must go," Francesca finally whispered reluctantly. "I have so much to do this rising, and I must attend to Skyler. I have neglected so many of my responsibilities."

Gabriel's smile was slow and sexy, heart-stopping. "I am very pleased that I was able to provide such a distraction for you."

For no reason at all, Francesca found herself blushing. At once she ducked her head so her hair fell around her face, protecting her. He laughed softly. "My beautiful woman, I cannot believe you are blushing after all that we have done together."

"At least you didn't mention my age," she said.

"I am not that unbalanced, although I will admit I do not have much practice with women." He bowed, that curiously courtly bow that always made her breath stop.

Francesca glared at him. "Go away, Gabriel, you have that look in your eyes and I have much to do."

His hand moved possessively over the long curtain of her black hair. "Nothing is more important than satisfying the needs of your lifemate." His face was innocent and very serious.

Francesca blinked once, then gave him a good hard shove. "Go tell it to the last century, ancient one. I am a modern woman with many commitments."

"You are a woman much sought after by these human males and I am beginning to find it tedious."

Her eyebrow shot up. "Tedious?" she echoed. "Do I hear a veiled threat in there somewhere?"

He bent his head to kiss her. "It was not all that veiled." His grin was boyish and seductive at the same time. "I cannot very well admit I am bothered by those who seek your attention when I am your lifemate. As an ancient I am above such trivial things."

Francesca found herself laughing. "You're above something all right, but I'm not entirely certain what it is."

"Watch yourself tonight, Francesca," Gabriel cautioned as he glided through the room toward the door. "You must always remember you are a target now, and so is Skyler."

"I'll send word to Aidan's family, asking them not to delay. That way if Skyler is home, she can be protected while we sleep." Her dark gaze was suddenly anxious. "Gabriel, don't let Lucian undermine your confidence in yourself. I really need you and so does our child. Our children."

He paused at the door, looking back at her, his world, the only real joy he had known. "I love this home of yours," he answered softly.

She watched him leave. "Ours," she corrected, knowing he could still hear her even though the door was closed. Gabriel's hearing was phenomenal and he often shared her mind.

It was their house, their life. Gabriel had to separate himself from his twin if he were to survive the battle that was to come. Francesca was carefully folding quilts into large boxes when it suddenly occurred to her that Lucian might lead him out of the city and far away from her. Her hand went protectively to her throat.

"Stop worrying over what has not happened."
There was a wealth of love in Gabriel's voice. It felt like a caress.

She glanced at herself in the mirror. "Quit mooning about and get to work. You have much to do and little time to do it in." She was very stern with herself but a curling heat stole through her body as Gabriel's warm laughter echoed softly in her mind.

Francesca completed as many tasks as she could. She took orders for her stained-glass pieces and her quilts. She sent out the ones she had completed and paid her bills meticulously. There were the shelters to call and the hospitals. There were charities she had neglected and friends she wanted to keep in touch with. Because they had risen late and spent a great deal of time talking together it was already well into the evening and past time to call too many. She kept each conversation brief, but very upbeat. It was necessary to maintain the appearance of being human at all times. She was firmly entrenched in society and it wouldn't do to simply disappear. Her contacts would be helpful to Skyler.

Once her phone conversations were concluded, Francesca drove to the hospital, scanning the surrounding area along the way. She was worried about Skyler, worried that something was going to upset their careful plans for her. She had been vaguely uneasy ever since her encounter with the reporter. Something about him bothered her immensely. He was the type of man who could cause her tremendous trouble.

She walked into the hospital, greeting the nurses with a little wave of her hand as she made her way down the hall toward Skyler's room. Her heart dropped when she caught a glimpse of the reporter lurking just a few feet from the room. Francesca paused for a moment, waved her hand to create a clonelike image as she blurred her own. She sent her soft musical voice out ahead, so that her body seemed to be moving quickly along the hall as she called to an unseen nurse around the corner.

At once the reporter turned his head, catching a glimpse of her slender shape and long hair. He hurried down the hall in an attempt to catch up to her. Francesca laughed softly, waiting until he disappeared before entering Skyler's room.

The girl turned her head, her soft dove-gray eyes wide and beautiful. There was a welcoming look in her gaze that hadn't been there before. "I was waiting for you." Her voice was stronger and Francesca noticed for the first time how melodious it was. "I thought you'd never get here."

"I had quite a bit of work to do," Francesca said, seating herself and reaching for Skyler's hand. "I make stained-glass windows and also quilts for people in need."

A slow smile curved the young girl's mouth. "I had my friend here to keep me company." She hugged the stuffed wolf to her. "I like the way you say that. 'People in need.' People like me. I've noticed you have a way of making me feel like everything is going to be all right. Sometimes, when my mind is very chaotic, I think of you and feel you in my mind." Her long lashes swept down, concealing her expression, but Francesca was holding her hand and could read her mixed feelings. The girl was struggling to come to terms with the idea of entering life again.

"I'll be with you every step of the way, Skyler," she softly reassured her. "You won't be alone, and you won't be expected to take on more than you can cope with. I see you are worried about school. It isn't necessary to think about it at this time."

Skyler turned her face to wall. "Dr. Brice said I would have to go to school immediately so I wouldn't fall behind. I didn't want to tell him, but I hardly ever went to school. I'm different. I could never fit in."

"You are different," Francesca affirmed, "but that is not a bad thing. It doesn't matter about school. You are gifted, quite brilliant actually. We can provide tutors for you and I can help when there is need. It is certainly nothing to worry about. Dr. Brice is a good man and he wants what is best for you, but he doesn't have a clue about your special talents and gifts. He does not understand what it is like to be a woman and be abused as you were. He does not understand what it is like to be a child and have no guidance, no one to love you unconditionally. He has no say in your future, Skyler."

Skyler's fingers twisted together, a small betrayal of her nervousness. "I don't like it here. I never feel safe unless you're here, or…" She trailed off as if she had done something wrong. "Sometimes the other one touches my mind and I feel reassured."

Francesca's heart skipped a beat. "Not Gabriel?"

"He is there sometimes, but it is different. The other one never really says anything, he's just there, touching me, but I can feel I'm not alone and he only comes when I'm very frightened. Like when I have a nightmare and I wake up. In the middle of the afternoon there was a stranger in here. I didn't like him and I was so scared. That's when the other one touched my mind. It was soothing and comforting."

Francesca bit her lip. The other had to be Lucian. Was he so strong, then, that he could defeat the daylight and reach out to touch Skyler when she was frightened? Was he already so connected with her that he could read her fear even when his strength was at its lowest ebb? She forced air through her lungs, remaining calm. "What stranger entered your room, Skyler?"

"A man. He asked me lots of questions about you, but I didn't answer or look at him. I retreated like I do. Into my own mind." Skyler continued to look at the wall as if she were slightly ashamed of herself. Her hands were clutching the little stuffed animal until her knuckles turned white. "I don't know if I can keep from doing it when I'm really afraid."

Francesca gently pushed her hair from her forehead. She couldn't wait to get the child home, where she would be surrounded by love, by feminine things. She couldn't wait to do something with the wealth of hair that had been neglected for so long. "He's a reporter, honey, nothing more. Someone told him a story about me and he wants to write about it. It has nothing to do with you, but I'll make certain there's a guard posted outside your door at all times. No one else will get in." She should have posted a guard long before this.

A small sound escaped Skyler's throat, something between a laugh and a cry. "A guard? I don't think you have to go that far. I think it's a little late for guards."

Francesca leaned over the teenager and brushed her forehead with her lips in a small caress. "You are so silly, young lady, to think it is too late for a guard. You are beautiful and unique, a rare treasure. I intend to guard you and keep you safe for all time. There is no need to have idiot reporters breaking into your hospital room and questioning you."

"He asked strange things. He wanted to know if I had ever seen you during daylight hours. Isn't that a strange thing to ask?"

Francesca went very still inside. There were many people throughout Paris who would testify they had seen her during daylight hours; and there were photographs to prove it. Her picture had appeared more than once in the newspapers at various charity functions around the city. The reporter would soon lose interest in her if he was no more than a simple reporter; she wouldn't fit the profile of what he was looking for. But if he was more than a reporter, if he was a member of the society hunting the Carpathian people, seeking proof of their existence, she needed to know.