Dark Nights Read online

  Well, darn, and here I was expecting I’d take a nap while you did a little cleanup.

  Traian worked at keeping a straight face. Even in their desperate situation, Joie could let him know her feelings.

  I was worried you might be a little tired and needing a rest. Can you distract them for a moment?

  Joie tapped her foot. “If it isn’t the troll brothers. How are you? Just dropped in to be neighborly? I’m so glad you didn’t bother to dress formally. It’s just a small get-together we’re having.”

  Deliberately she walked across the stone patterns in the floor, keeping their attention centered on her even as she made certain she was just a bit behind Traian. “We’re in the midst of redecorating. What do you think? Too many crystal balls?” She indicated the largest, nearly a foot tall, resting on a tall pillar of black obsidian. “They’re very valuable. You can see your future in them. This one answers questions and finds objects.” She reached out as if to pat the smooth sphere.

  Joie was fully aware that Traian was keeping his body between her and the vampires. The two creatures stood in a swirl of steam and mist, coated in black ooze. The moment she mentioned the spheres, greedy eyes stared at the globe.

  Surprisingly, Joie felt warmth along her palm as she positioned it above the crystal ball. The crystal leapt to life at the close proximity of her hand. For a timeless moment, she saw her own face swirling in the mists of the globe, and Traian standing behind her, reaching for her, love etched into the lines of his face, hunger and desire burning in the depths of his eyes. She couldn’t look away from his face, there in the sphere, from the intensity of his love. He couldn’t feel that way about her, could be? He didn’t know her. How could two people be so drawn to one another, recognize love so quickly? His look robbed her of breath, of sanity. She wanted to crawl inside the sphere and be with him for eternity.

  Get away from that thing.

  Joie blinked, and forced herself to look up. White swirls of mist were filling the cavern, consuming Traian. Consuming her. In the tendrils of fog, something moved—something dark and menacing. She caught a glimpse of another shape in the shadows curled protectively around an object, but she couldn’t make it out with the white mist and gray shadows merging together.

  Traian turned slowly toward those gray shadows, his hands down at his sides and slightly outstretched, palms up as if appeasing something—or someone. Behind him, a darker shadow loomed, one with a hideous skull, skin stretched tight, blood-stained teeth and glowing red eyes.

  Watch out!

  Joie tackled Traian. Her momentum carried them both away from the vampire and close to the outer wall of the cavern. Traian rolled with her, his arms tight around her, taking her through the dense fog. The drops felt wet on their skin, the blanket muffling sound, but still, something moved inside all that white and gray swirling mist.

  Very gently, Traian eased her to her feet. Stay very still. Perfectly still, he cautioned.

  Joie looked cautiously around her. An array of weapons adorned the nearest alcove. Glittering gems decorated wicked-looking knives and long spears and swords. Here was a virtual treasure trove for Joie. She was drawn to the weapons, yet something held her back, some finely tuned warning system that prompted her to put her hands behind her back and ignore them.

  Traian calmly regarded the black shadow that was emerging from the fog in the cavern. “Justice has come, Valenteen,” he said to the master vampire. “A shadow warrior has been awakened and he is seeking our deaths. Do we fight each other?”

  Valenteen growled harshly, shaking his head, backing away from the large, smoky creature emerging from the shadows.

  Joie twisted her fingers in the back of Traian’s shirt, peeking around him at the thing Traian had identified as a shadow warrior. It was insubstantial, made of ever-moving black and gray smoke. Its eyes glowed an eerie red, not like the bloodshot eyes of the vampires, but fierce flame burning brightly. There was something very noble in the stern face she occasionally caught sight of, as if the shadow was a warrior of old who had long fought for honor.

  I wouldn’t mind waking up now. If the vampire is afraid of it, how much trouble are we in?

  Traian reached behind him, circling her bare wrist with his fingers. Gently. Barely there. Just a whisper of contact, yet it was enough. They were together. It was all that mattered. He would shield her from the warrior, from the vampires.

  Can you get out of here by yourself? It suddenly occurred to her that he could shape-shift, perhaps become as insubstantial as the mist. Maybe even burrow through earth and ice as the vampires had done. He had known she would be a hindrance to him. He’d told her to leave with the others. Traian? Can you get out of here without me?

  The vampires dissolved, leaving behind a pool of black goo. It bubbled and spat a poisonous brew at the shadow warrior. Joie gasped. There was a strange silence. An icy blast of air cleared the stench from the chamber and pushed the smoky creature away from Traian and Joie.

  It matters little if I could. I would never leave you behind. His voice was reassuring. Calm. Steady. Confident.

  Joie’s mouth went dry. Jubal and Gabrielle are still in the caves. If the vampires find them . . . my brother and sister can’t protect themselves from the vampires.

  Both vampires have remained in this room. They will not leave or move to give away their presence to the warrior. In any case, there is little we can do other than hope they make it out fast. At this moment, both are alive. I would know if your brother perished. You’re doing fine. Stay calm. We will get out of this and your brother is a man of great resources.

  Joie let her breath out and worked to control the wild beating of her heart. Why isn’t that thing coming at us? Can’t he see us?

  The shadow warrior has not attacked because we haven’t touched anything. If we draw his attention to us, or take something the mages left behind, he will strike.

  Joie frowned. My brother took the weapon that came to him. It’s on his wrist. Why didn’t the warrior attack him?

  I believe that is a good question. The shadow warrior would not attack a mage.

  Joie didn’t like the speculation in his voice or the distrust in his mind. Voices whispered, distracting her. She could hear the continual murmurs filling her mind—filling the chamber with temptation. Before she knew what she was doing, Joie’s fingers were nearly curled around a knife with a wicked-looking curved blade. It called to her. Her palm itched to feel the weapon in her hand. She clenched her fist, resisting the temptation. The voices increased in strength. She glanced toward the spheres, saw them all active, the clear colors swirling with life, with deeper hues and sparkling gems.

  Traian caught both of her hands in his. Talk to me. Tell me about yourself. Everything you can think of. Look only at me. Look into my eyes. See me. Only me.

  His hands were much larger than hers, enveloping them. When she obediently tore her gaze from the jeweled daggers and knives, she was caught in the black depths of Traian’s gaze. The world narrowed for her.

  Around them, smoke and mist drifted upward from the floor, creating a world in the clouds where voices muttered, the words in an ancient tongue, harsh, yet not foul, insistent, yet not commanding. Colors pulsed in the room, bright banners from the spheres, which were alive with heat and energy.

  Look only at me, Traian reiterated when she would have turned her head toward the pulsing lights. This is a trap directed at you, at your love of weapons, at your curiosity. Think of me. Let me tell you who I am, what I am. What I need and want. I want to know everything about you and your family. Talk to me. Tell me who you really are, what you stand for. Tell me everything about yourself.

  His voice was mesmerizing, tugging at her heart when she thought there should be only physical attraction. He was easily the sexiest man she’d ever encountered. They were in mortal danger. Vampires huddled somewhere in the room, awaiting their moment to strike. A warrior come to life out of the shadows that guarded centuries-old treasures in a world of sorcery, yet Joie was fascinated by the man in front of her.

  You don’t make sense.

  I make perfect sense. He smiled, a flash of dazzling white teeth. We make perfect sense.

  She nearly stopped breathing. You know I work as a bodyguard.

  Joie found it difficult to resist the pull of temptation for those amazing weapons just inches from her fingertips and her gaze strayed to the ornate swords.

  Traian tipped her chin up, forcing her gaze to his. Silly profession, placing your precious body between someone else and danger.

  She laughed softly in her mind, amazed at how, in the middle of danger, he could mesmerize her.

  Traian felt the vibration pulse through his body, touch him in places he had long ago forgotten.

  You spent several lifetimes chasing vampires. I’m catching very interesting memories in your mind, unless you spent all of your life watching Dracula movies. I think you’ve placed your precious and very sexy body between danger and people many times. And don’t say you’re a man and that it makes a difference. That would seriously annoy me.

  Growls of hatred mixed with the insidious whispers. The smaller vampire, the one Traian had identified as Shafe, emerged from the black goo, hissing and spitting, dragging himself across the floor on his belly. His gaze firmly fixed on the largest crystal ball, his claws scored the stones as he tried to stop himself from answering the summons.

  Even with Traian’s mesmerizing eyes and hypnotic voice, it was nearly impossible for Joie to ignore the drama being played out in the swirling mists of the cave. The insistent voices chanted a steady rhythm, drawing the vampire toward the glowing crystal. Greed and fear were on the face of the creature as it edged closer and closer. All the while, the dark shadow of the warrior, guardian of the wizard’s treasures, watched dispassionately.

  Joie shivered. Fear was a living, breathing entity nearly choking her. At times, through the rising mist coming off the stone floor, she could make out a suit of armor on the warrior; at other times it was as insubstantial as the clouds.

  Traian pulled Joie into his arms, drawing her tightly against his chest. His movements were deliberately slow, careful, wary of drawing the warrior’s attention to them. We are going to float upward, Joie, just drift toward the ceiling above us. Keep looking at me.

  She was afraid. Battling human adversaries was one thing; facing down vampires and warriors made up of smoke and shadow was something altogether different. She slid her palm up Traian’s chest, the solid wall of flesh and blood reassuring her. Her arm curved around his neck. She locked her fingers there, fitting her body tightly against his. His much more masculine frame was hard like an oak tree. There was little give to the defined muscles beneath his skin. She felt her feet leave the ground and she closed her eyes, sending up a quick prayer.

  Traian watched the warrior. Colored lights pulsed through the cavern, lit the mist so that wraith-like creatures appeared to be moving within it—ghosts of the mages, lost so long ago. He tightened his arms around Joie. She fit perfectly to him, her mind comfortable in his, drawing knowledge and studying tactics. He could feel her there inside him, sharing his memories and gathering information on his battles with vampires, fully prepared to join him should there be need.

  More than anything else, he wanted her to know him as a man. He wanted time with her. He wanted to hear her laugh, to see warmth and acceptance in her eyes the way he had imagined during their long-distance chats. And he wanted her out of danger. Things could go wrong in an instant and he focused on one thing—getting Joie to safety.

  They drifted higher in the cavern, and Traian clouded their image with more mist, more smoke, so that they seemed part of the haze. He took care that their movements were slow and lazy and as natural as possible, so that nothing would trigger the instincts of the warrior.

  The shadow creature was motionless, even while the smoke that made up its body whirled and spun in dark threads. The fierce eyes remained fixed on the vampire crawling toward the temptation of the pulsing crystal orb. Shafe drew closer, closer, reaching out to the visions and promises of wealth and power swirling inside the globe.

  Triumphantly the vampire placed his palms around the beckoning crystal. The moment he touched the globe, the shadow warrior threw back its head and roared. For a brief moment the smoke around it cleared. The guardian stood tall and straight, dressed in glittering, multihued scaled armor. And then it was smoke again, rushing across the wide expanse of floor, not quite touching the ground.

  Valenteen, the older vampire, oozed from the black pool, shifting into the form of a snake-like creature with a head like a drill. It slithered to the nearest wall and began to burrow through the ice wall. Joie strained to see below her, to see the shadow warrior as he reached the undead cupping the crystal ball.

  Your light. Turn it off.

  Her heart jumped. We need the light.

  I see fine in the dark. We want to escape this chamber. I can take us through the air shaft and do not want to chance drawing the warrior’s attention.

  As she doused the light, Shafe screamed hideously. Colors glowed in the rising mist. A dark blood-red stain slowly began to invade the smoky fog. It spread like a virus. A violent clash of light and sound burst through the chamber as the vampire’s voice shrieked and wailed until Joie buried her face in Traian’s neck, her body trembling.

  His gut knotted. We are almost out. Do not look. This cave is a trap and we will seal it up so no others can find it.

  You’re thinking you’ll come back tomorrow night and find out what the vampires were searching for, she guessed.

  I have to find out. I have been in these caves several weeks, fighting the vampires on and off. I destroyed more than one, yet they remained. That is highly unusual and it worries me. Worse still is the fact that Valenteen was not the only master. There was another in the group, Gallent. I was able, after several battles, to destroy him, but he was clearly with this group. And I think there is still one more. . . . so much more powerful . . .

  Joie sighed and hugged him tighter. This is not happy news. Sounds like our gang problems. We’d better start looking on the internet for a site called vampires of the world, unite.

  Above her head, he smiled. It had not occurred to me to check there, but if we find such a thing, are you volunteering for undercover work?

  She made a small growling noise of dissent and bit his shoulder hard.

  The air shaft was narrow, but he angled their bodies until they slipped through, taking them to the upper levels. As soon as she felt the ground beneath her feet, she turned on her light, caught his hand, and sprinted through the tunnel toward the entrance.

  “Valenteen is not following us. Although he is a master vampire, he will not attempt to fight me alone.”

  His words stopped her. The idea that a creature as hideous and lethal as a vampire wouldn’t fight Traian alone was frightening. What did she know of him, after all? He was a voice speaking to her in the night. A man who drank blood and shifted shapes.

  “I am a man of honor. A man who has found the one woman. The only woman.” He put a gentle hand on her shoulder. “I know this happened too fast and you do not altogether trust it.”

  “If I don’t think about it, I trust it, and that scares me, Traian. I’m not particularly a trusting person. All this time I thought I was still in control, after all, I did rescue you. But now you’re saying those creatures won’t attack you while they’re alone and that tells me that they’re very afraid of you.”

  “I am an ancient hunter. I have been tried in battle for more years than I care to remember. I know the ways of the vampire and I am much skilled in what I do.” There was no arrogance or bravado in his voice, only acceptance and truth.

  “And these vampires?”

  “Should not have been together. They should not be here, in the Carpathian Mountains, so close to our prince and many of our males. I was returning to my homeland when I first came across them. I knew they were desperate to find something in that cave. Although it was risky to pit myself against so many, it was my duty to my people to stay and discover what they were looking for. Even after you found me and I recognized who you were, I stayed because the vampires were so frantic to find something. I had no idea this was a cave of mages. And it looks recently occupied.”

  “And what is the significance of mages to a vampire? I know what it would be to humans. Most of us don’t actually believe the fairy tales about wizards and crystal balls—and dragons. That was very cool, by the way.”

  “You saw the spheres in that room. Ancient spells and power remain in them. We don’t want vampires, or anyone, for that matter, to get their hands on things best left alone. Carpathians are of the earth. We have gifts, but we do not wield power in the same way as the mages do.”

  “You believe that some still live?”

  “I would think it likely. At least I would think some of their descendants remain and have retained their knowledge, or at least a portion of it.”

  Joie sighed. “Lovely thought. Anyone who created that shadow warrior is not going to be counted among my best friends.”

  “Nor mine.” There was an ominous warning to his voice.

  She looked up quickly. “I know what you’re thinking. You just remembered, if my brother is a mage, than so am I. We are from the same parents and that’s an indisputable fact. I can’t reach either Gabrielle or Jubal. They’re too far away.” There was worry in her voice.

  Traian took a breath and stopped, seeking his blood bond with Jubal. “They are out of the caves and heading for the inn. They thought to get a rescue team together. I have informed him there is no need, we will join them shortly.”

  Joie nearly sagged with relief. “You’re certain?”

  “Absolutely.”

  Joie followed him through the long hall, already feeling the open air on her body, not looking at the beauty and magnificence of her surroundings as she normally would. She was so relieved that her brother and sister had made it out that she wanted to weep. She searched for a topic to keep from giving in to the intensity of her emotions. “You grew up a long time ago.”