Superstition

by Veronica Blake

  He looked back at his grandfather. He hoped the time was right for him to ask this question again, and maybe this time he would receive an answer. “Grandfather? Why did you leave your original clan in Mexico and come here to find your mate, instead of waiting for her to come to you as has always been the custom of our clans?”

  Drago’s mouth opened then closed. He blinked and looked away from his grandson for a moment. The silence before he answered was dense and heavy in the air. “I have always known I would have to answer that question eventually.” A poignant smile rested on his lips. “And I have thought many times how I was going to answer you. But there is only one story to tell.” He shook his head and focused his intense gaze on Mateo. “My clan in Mexico was strong. We had many male dhampyres in our village. My great-grandfather was our leader, and he was a kind and powerful man. He protected us always.”

  Mateo grinned. “Like you.” Drago returned his smile.

  “Thank you.” He stared off in the distance as his mind recalled the past. “I was just becoming a fully mature vampire—like you. I was very curious about the world of the real ones, too. Like you, and like Chaz.”

  He could only stare at his grandfather in stunned silence. Never had he suspected his grandfather ever wondered about anything other than protecting the secrets of the Blood Clan.

  “I would leave my village, hidden deep in the Chirallcula Mountains and explore the villages of the real ones down below.” He chuckled. “I was an impatient young vampire. I was anxious for my mate, your grandmother, to come to me.” He touched his bare chest above his heart and added, “Though she was far away, I felt her presence and somehow I knew she would be coming from the Jicarilla Apache tribe that lived at the base of the Superstitions.”

  Drago glanced over at Raven. She was sitting by the fire with Anton and his family, but her gaze was focused on her mate as if she knew he was talking about her. Her mouth curved into a smile when she saw him look in her direction. His head nodded slightly as he smiled back. He looked away from her and settled his gaze back on his grandson.

  “So, to answer your question. I don’t know why I decided to go against our customs and come here to get my mate instead of waiting for her to come to me. There was just this moment of clarification, and I knew it was time for me to leave Mexico and come here to start my own clan.” He glanced briefly at his mate again. “In my heart, I just knew.”

  Mateo continued to stare at his grandfather as he digested all this new and surprising information. He could only begin to imagine the turmoil his grandfather must have endured when he made the decision to leave his family and original clan over two centuries ago. Although, he had always admired his grandfather, at this moment he realized just how strong and wise the ancient vampire truly was. His respect and love for his grandfather filled his heart and overflowed.

  He rose to his feet as his grandfather followed him. The two vampires embraced, and when they parted, their gazes met. In the glow of the firelight, Mateo saw the depth of love and understanding his grandfather also felt for him.

  “Thank you, Grandfather,” he said in an emotional tone. “Thank you for sharing your amazing story with me.”

  Drago stepped back as he nodded and smiled. “Go to your mate now. I know you will make the right decision.”

  Mateo glanced around the peaceful village and at the family he loved so much. A calm feeling settled over him. He had felt uncertainty about the future for so long now. Lately, he had mostly been worrying about forcing Dawn to give up her human life and live a life of obscurity as his eternal mate in the shadows of the rugged cliffs here on the Superstitions.

  He desperately wanted to live in her world with her, because he always believed there was something more for his kind other than hiding in the caves and hoping they would not become extinct. Now, he was convinced there was so much more out there for his kind, more than he ever dreamed possible. He just knew it in his heart.

  With a renewed sense of hope for the future, he began his descent down the mountain. He envisioned his beautiful blonde mate waiting for him in the luxurious condo in Apache Junction. They would spend the night making sensuous love in the big bed and he would cherish each and every moment they spent in one another’s arms while they were there, because whether they were in her world or his, all that mattered is they were together.

  A smile claimed his lips and a feeling of excitement rushed through his body. Udaya. His Dawn. He would love her forever.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Dawn remembered this sort of darkness. It was the most intense and engulfing blackness she ever experienced. The first night she camped on the mountain with Chloe she experienced this same feeling. It was as if the rest of the world was swallowed up by this overpowering nothingness.

  She pulled the brim of her old straw cowboy hat down over her eyes and wrapped her arms tightly around her waist as she crunched down in the driver’s seat as far as possible. Mateo could come down off the mountain at any location and the odds were slim it would be anywhere near where she was parked right now. This was the only route she knew, though, since this was the way she had come with Chloe—and on the night she had come up here on her own in that weird trance to meet Mateo.

  With any luck, he would sense her presence here, and would know where to find her like he had on the night he found her parked along the side of the road at the Arizona border. He felt her tears that night when she foolishly thought she wanted to leave him. Hopefully, tonight he would feel her fear.

  The stress of everything going on was making her stomach churn with nausea, and she squeezed her eyes shut as she forced down the threat of vomit hovering at the back of her throat. She placed her hand on the door handle in case she needed to make a quick exit to throw up.

  Her thoughts kept returning to Chloe. She couldn’t stand thinking of the way Mateo described how she was now. She only wanted to remember her as the beautiful vivacious young woman who had such a zest for life and had been such a wonderful friend to her in the short time they had known one another, as well as the love and devotion she felt toward her students and family. Dawn found it especially touching Chloe wanted to find the gold mine so her dad would know of its existence before he died.

  Her stomach heaved again as she pulled her cowboy hat off her head and tossed it over on the passenger seat. With the back of her hand she wiped the heavy beads of sweat from her forehead. It was not helping. As scared as she was, she hated the idea of throwing up in her truck. She yanked the door open and was only able to stumble a few steps forward before the small amount of food she had eaten earlier today ejaculated out of her mouth. Her entire body began to shake uncontrollably.

  Violent waves were thrashing around inside her stomach. She felt as if she might puke again, but she was too vulnerable out here. She took a couple of faltering steps backward toward her truck. It didn’t matter if she did get sick in her truck, she couldn’t stay out here in this threatening blackness for one minute longer. The shaking in her entire body was causing her teeth to chatter together like mini jackhammers and the rising panic was stripping away all her senses. Was this what it felt like for Chloe right before…

  Dawn could not even cry out when she was grabbed from behind. Her mouth was wide open, but her scream was frozen on her tongue and she couldn’t emit a sound. Visions of handsome vampires who looked like her beloved Mateo but only wanted to drink her blood and stick her mindless body in a cave for future feedings, flooded her mind with a terror so great she couldn’t even attempt to get away. In blind terror, she fell into his arms.

  “Dawn. Are you alright?”

  It took a moment for her to realize who was holding her until his worried voice finally penetrated through the horrors raging through her head. “Oh, thank God, Mateo,” she cried as he turned her around to face him. She couldn’t make out his features in the impenetrable darkness, but she didn’t need to because she had his face memorized. “I was so scared you wouldn’t be able to fi
nd me here.”

  Her arms moved around his neck of their own accord and she buried her face in his shoulder. She felt the softness of his cotton shirt against her cheek and smelled his intoxicating musky scent. All her fright disappeared into the encompassing black of the dessert night. She was where she was supposed to be...and she would never leave again.

  Mateo held her tight until the shaking in her body began to calm down. “You are sick?” he asked in a worried tone.

  “I was just so scared, and I started to think about Chloe and how you said she was now. I don’t know if I’ll be able to handle seeing her like that.”

  His kissed the top of her head as he continued to hold her close. “You won’t have to see her, and I promise you, I’m going to do everything in my power to protect you from any more pain.”

  Dawn leaned against him, letting him support most of her weight as her legs continued to feel wobbly and weak. He was all the strength she needed, and as long as he was next to her, she knew she could face anything.

  As much as she wanted to kiss him right now, she was too worried she would taste like vomit and he always tasted like a delectable mixture of tangy and sweet candy. She ran her tongue over her teeth and swallowed hard as she burrowed her face deeper into his muscled shoulder.

  “I don’t have cell reception in our village, but I received all your messages when I came down from the mountain. Why did you come here? It’s so dangerous for you to be here at night for so many reasons.”

  She nodded her head, still overcome with the raging panic she felt before he arrived. It had been crazy for her to come here tonight; she realized that now. “I know. I should have waited at the condo like I said I would, but I…” She took a deep breath. “I’m ready.”

  “Ready?” He repeated.

  “To go to the top of the mountain. I want you to make me your mate tonight.” She said the words as quickly as possible before she lost her nerve.

  He was silent for a few moments. “We received some news in our village. Billy Torres came up on the mountain tonight to tell us they learned from other clan society members in different parts of the world about other stillborn births among dhampyre babies.”

  The breath caught in her constricted throat. There were already so many confusing and scary thoughts spinning through her mind right now. She wasn’t sure she could deal with his news about dead babies.

  “My brother blamed me for the death of his son. He thought my attempt to change the traditions of our clan with you somehow cursed our village.”

  Placing the palm of her hand gently against the side of his face, she replied in a hoarse whisper, “I’m so sorry, Mateo. The last thing I want to do is cause problems between you and your family.”

  “But now that we have learned of five other babies who were stillborn in other clans, Rafael knows his grief was causing him to be irrational. We talked tonight before I left the village, and everything is good between us again.”

  “I’m so glad to hear you and your brother are okay. Do they know what happened to all of those poor babies?” She tried to keep her building anxiety from overtaking her frail grip on reality.

  He shrugged and exhaled a heavy breath before relating Billy’s story about the new virus that was affecting women of the clan and their unborn babies.

  “That’s horrible,” Dawn gasped. “Is there a cure? How many more babies could be affected by this—this virus?”

  A heavy shrug lifted his shoulders. “There is a Swiss doctor who believes he can develop an antidote from the tissue he extracted from the dead baby who was not cremated. But it will take time.”

  The uneasiness she felt about the things he was saying was settling into a queasy heaviness in her stomach again. There was nothing to do now except to face whatever the future held for them.

  “I’m pregnant,” she blurted out. “I took the second test and it was positive.” She drew in a shaky breath and continued. “So, I went to the store and bought two more tests and they were both positive.” She barely took a breath as she rushed on, “I just can’t spend every day waiting to see you only at night, then sometimes, you don’t even come to see me. But most of all, I can’t go on pretending to live a normal life anymore, especially now that I’m having your baby. I refuse to live another minute in my world if we can’t be there together, regardless of what might happen to us, or to our baby. I just want to be with you forever. It’s our destiny and we can’t deny it any longer anyway, right?”

  After taking a gulping breath she rushed on. “I will leave my truck here and there’s a note in there saying I went looking for Chloe and if anything happens to me to tell my family I love them, and that way they will have some idea what happened to me. I mean, it’s going to still be horrible for them, but—”

  “Did you just say you are pregnant?” Mateo interrupted in a shocked tone. He leaned back and stared down at her.

  “Yes,” she mumbled. “Are you surprised it happened so soon?”

  He chuckled and slightly puffed up his chest. “Well, no, not when you are as virile as I obviously am.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Whatever,” she retorted. They were both silent for a few more seconds. “I’m still scared Mateo, so very scared.”

  He pulled her up against him again and rested his chin on the top of her head. “That makes two of us. But no matter what happens, please know I will never fail you, my love. You will be my mate in my world, and I will also be your man in your world.”

  “What do you mean? Don’t you just suck the blood from my thigh and the party’s over?” she asked in a confused voice.

  A chortle escaped Mateo. “I had a bit more in mind for you, my beautiful Udaya.”

  Her mind was spinning. “Is it possible there is a way I wouldn’t have to just be your baby-making sex slave?” she asked. “I—I would like to be more, I want to be everything to you, if that’s possible.”

  He gently lifted her chin up with his fingertips, His vampire sight had no problem seeing her in the darkness, and he could tell her eyes were beginning to adjust to the lack of light as their gazes met. “There is a new world for our kind on the horizon. I won’t give up until I find a way to blend my world with your world so maybe someday we will be able to walk in the sunlight together.”

  “I still don’t understand,” she answered, growing more bewildered, yet more hopeful, by the second.

  “I don’t understand it all yet, either, but I know there are many changes coming for the clans. We—you and I and our children—are going to be the ones to blaze new trails for our kind.” He reached down and gently placed his hand against her abdomen adding, “Should this child be a male, it is my greatest wish he will be able to walk among the people in both our worlds, the Blood Clan and the real ones, without having to hide in the caves during the daylight.”

  She remembered something she read about dhampyres when she had been researching them. They did not have all the weaknesses of full blooded vampires. Could Mateo have discovered something that would make it possible for him to come out in the daytime? Is that what he was talking about? What would this mean to their future, and to the future of their children? Did she dare hope?

  “Do you still trust me,” he asked quietly.

  “I trust you with my life.” she answered. “I trust you with our baby’s life.”

  “Then, are you truly ready to become my mate in every way?”

  Dawn’s heart thrashed wildly in her breast; her legs threatened to give out from under her, and her intestines knotted into a tight ball in her stomach. All coherent thoughts were lost to her mind now.

  This was it. This was forever. And forever was a very long time.

  “Yes, in every way,” she whispered as she closed her eyes and pressed her body up against him again. His kiss stole her breath away as he picked her up in his arms and carried her to where his truck was parked at the edge of the reservation.

  She did not look back, nor did she think of what lay ahead for them
. When she told him she trusted him, she meant it with all her heart. Mateo Two Moons possessed her body, mind, and soul. When the first rays of the sun rose in the desert sky tomorrow morning, they would be together in every mortal and immortal way for all eternity.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Mateo watched his woman from the shade of the dense trees. He hoped someday soon he would be able to endure the sunlight for longer periods at a time. His tolerance to the rays of the sun was still weak, but he was growing stronger all the time and every day he was able to stay out a few minutes longer. To be standing here under nothing more than the shade of the tree branches during the daylight hours—without feeling like he was going to burn to a pile of ash—was more than he imagined would be possible.

  The first few times he attempted to venture out into the sunlight, the pain had been excruciating. His skin felt like hot coals were igniting in each of his pores and he could barely last more than a minute or so without retreating into the safety of the cave to recover. But he refused to give up, and the pain gradually lessened. Now, there was only a slight burning sensation in the areas where his clothes didn’t cover his skin, and he didn’t feel that until he was in the direct sunlight for at least fifteen minutes or more.

  The clan also believed being awake during the daytime was impossible, but he was sleeping less during the day and growing more tired at night time. Eventually, his sleeping habits should be the same as his mate’s and they could sleep together through the night and be awake together all day—something they were both anxious to have happen as soon as possible. But until that time, a small cave nearby provided Mateo with a dark sanctuary for his daytime slumber while his body was still acclimating to his new schedule.

  Once he completed all these miraculous transformations, he would share his accomplishments with other Blood Clan members. But now, every day was still an experiment. He was confident that ultimately his kind would be free to live openly among the real ones without worry of being detected.