Warmth burst from Tatijana’s hands. She spread it over Dimitri’s body while Fen concentrated healing light over his belly. When Dimitri had taken enough blood from him to satisfy Fen, Fen took his time packing each separate wound on his brother’s body with Lycan blood-stained soil and his own saliva.
Keep Zev occupied while I find a resting place for my brother, he instructed Tatijana and lifted Dimitri’s body into his arms.
Tatijana nodded. She looked a little tired and very pale. She hadn’t fed and yet she’d fought a battle, was wounded as well and she’d worked to save Zev.
I will return swiftly to see to you, my lady. Forgive me for not putting you first.
I would have liked you less had you done so, she replied. She raised her voice. “Zev, I’ll be right there. I’m sorry this has taken so long.”
Mist swirled thickly around them. He felt Tatijana’s feminine hand in the renewed veil of fog.
Fen took to the air. It had been long since he had used his Carpathian abilities. Staying in Lycan form, thinking like a Lycan, living as one had allowed him to keep the ever-present darkness at bay. Now he needed his Carpathian skills. He searched for a safe resting place where his brother could remain. He would return and give him blood when needed, but it could not be a place another might rest. No cave.
He found a field rich with life and knew the soil was extraordinary. A dog barked near the small dilapidated house and he silenced it automatically. Fen opened the earth for his brother. He went deep, weaving safeguard upon safeguard. Dimitri would be vulnerable should any enemy find him. He floated down with his brother in his arms, placing him carefully in the rich soil. Almost at once, he felt her presence again, that young-old soul that was Dimitri’s lifemate. He waited while she moved through Dimitri’s mind, assuring herself he was still alive, although still so close to death.
He won’t die, she declared. Will you, Dimitri?
When Dimitri stirred as if he might answer, she painted brushstrokes, small caresses over the cracks and fissures where the darkness had seeped into his mind. Be still. I will come to you soon, when you are healed and strong again. For now, rest. Take my love with you and wrap yourself in it while you sleep, just as I did yours for so many troubling nights.
There was such a simplistic honesty in her voice. A directness. And love. He heard it. She felt the emotion deeply for his brother. The connection between Dimitri and Skyler was strong. They were already intertwined although so far apart.
Mother Earth, I call to you. Skyler’s voice once more slipped into his mind through her connection to Dimitri. This is Dimitri, my lifemate. The other half of my soul. I ask a favor for your daughter. Hold him close in your arms. Heal him of every wound. He is a great warrior and has served his people well. Protect him from all things evil while you hold him close. I ask this humbly.
Fen actually felt the small shift of the earth around them. Richer soil pushed up from beneath him, to form a bed for Dimitri to lie in. Sleep well, my brother. I thank you for your aid this night. Without your intervention, I might not have gotten to Bardolf in time to save Tatijana.
He waited until the earth was filled in and the field was exactly back as it had been before he returned to the battlefield in the forest.
4
“Great battle,” Zev greeted as Fen came out of the thinning mist toward him. Zev half sat, half laid on the ground, his back against a tree.
“You look a little worse for wear,” Fen said.
Zev was covered in wounds from teeth ripping at him and claws tearing him open. He was obviously in pain, but stoic about it.
“You might want to take a look in the mirror yourself,” Zev suggested with a show of his white teeth.
By the way he didn’t move, Fen knew Zev was in bad shape. Like Dimitri, he had taken the brunt of that last attack in order to give Fen time to save Tatijana from the Sange rau.
“Honestly, I’d rather not. Tatijana dealt with the carcasses. I still have to get those two home.” Fen jerked his head toward Enre and Gellert still shielded in the tree. “I have to admit, I’m tired.” He sank down, his legs a little rubbery. He’d given a great deal of blood to Dimitri and he hadn’t attended his wounds.
“You knew he was here, didn’t you? The abomination? You tracked him here.”
Fen shrugged. He didn’t mind Bardolf being called an abomination. The undead had chosen to give up their soul, but he knew that Zev would think Fen was Sange rau—bad blood as well, if the Lycan knew the truth about Fen’s own mixed blood. Fen respected Zev, so it was just a little disconcerting. “I suspected. I came across the rogue pack and thought I’d better try to do damage control, pick them off one by one if possible. But then I saw the destruction, and even for a rogue pack, it seemed too brutal.”
“I didn’t know,” Zev admitted. He sounded disgusted with himself. “I should have suspected. You called him by name.”
“My pack was destroyed by the Sange rau, years ago, and I went to a neighboring pack,” Fen explained. “Bardolf was the alpha. He was . . . brutal with the younger members. I had a hard time with him and knew I wouldn’t be able to stay long.”
Zev looked a little amused. “I can imagine. You’re pure alpha. One would think you would have a pack of your own.” There was a mixture of speculation in his voice as well as the laughter.
“A few months after my pack was destroyed, Bardolf’s pack was attacked by the same Sange rau that had killed most of my pack. The demon wreaked havoc, killing everyone in his path. He targeted the women and children first and then began killing the men. Bardolf’s mate and his children were killed in the first attack. Bardolf went a little crazy and went hunting on his own while we were burning the dead. No one noticed at first that he was missing. We tracked him to a cave deep in the mountains.”
Fen leaned his head back against the tree trunk and closed his eyes as Tatijana knelt beside him. Rather than the battle with blood and death, she smelled of the forest, fresh rain and wild honey, that elusive scent he found enticing. She passed her hands over his face. At once a soothing calm came over him. He looked at her face, so beautiful, her skin flawless, her lashes long and feathery. She smiled at him, lighting up her glittering emerald eyes.
“You need healing, Fen,” she said gently.
“So do you, my lady,” he answered, his fingers finding the wound on her shoulder.
The wind ripped through the trees, sending a shower of leaves and swirling fog rushing between Zev and Fen, hiding the glow of warmth and Fen’s mouth moving over the wound with healing saliva.
“It’s nothing,” Tatijana said aloud for Zev’s benefit. “Let me see to your wounds. They’re far worse. I will have to go to ground soon and any injury will heal fast.”
Fen couldn’t help but be proud of her. She never missed a cue. As far as Zev was concerned, Fen was Lycan. Tatijana had gone a long way to keep his secret safe. She bent over his wounds, her body partially hiding her actions from Zev, but Fen wasn’t too concerned. Carpathians were known for their healing abilities.
Her tongue stroked over the wound. His body clenched, reacted unexpectedly. Her eyes had closed, and she looked so incredibly sensual she took his breath away. He’d never thought in terms of sensuality, that was a new experience for him, and he was a little shocked at how intense his reaction to her was.
For me as well.
Her voice was soft, brushing along the walls of his mind, almost with the same sensuality as her tongue. She didn’t attempt to hide her wonder or her need from him.
“You said you’d tracked Bardolf to a cave in the mountains,” Zev prompted.
Fen couldn’t help himself. He touched Tatijana’s face with gentle fingers. She smiled, but she didn’t stop her work. She took soil from between them, where Zev had no chances of seeing what she was doing, and mixed it with saliva to press into the worst of the bite marks and lac
erations.
“What was left of his pack went with me to find him—to aid him. There weren’t very many of us, and we had wounded along so we couldn’t go as fast as we would have liked. We didn’t dare leave them alone, not with the Sange rau so close, and none of us wanted to take the chance of Bardolf finding him and taking him on alone. I couldn’t leave them to go ahead. I knew none of them had the skills to deal with a monster like we would be confronting. That gave Bardolf a good head start on us.”
Fen was tired. Much more exhausted than he had been in a long, long while. Fighting in the other world, without his body and only using his mind and spirit, had been draining. Tatijana seemed to know, her hands moving over him with sureness, taking on some of the burden. Zev shifted position and groaned softly. It occurred to Fen that Tatijana had performed the same healing rituals on the Lycan.
Not the same, she denied. Her breath was warm against his skin as she knelt up and pushed the hair from his face to find a particularly nasty claw rake.
His body tightened unexpectedly. No, it’s not the same, my lady, he agreed, filling her mind with his warmth. It was the only thing he could give her without betraying who he was.
He glanced at Zev before he could help himself, afraid to put Tatijana in any more danger. He was tired and it would be easy enough to make mistakes.
Zev’s eyes were closed. Lines were etched into his face. He looked every bit as exhausted as Fen felt.
Fen laughed softly. “We’re in great shape, Zev. I’m not looking forward to another dance with this bunch, at least not tonight. Aside from getting our two drunken friends home safely, there’s a body in the forest the rogues killed. Tatijana and I found it on our way to the village. That’s what brought us running back.”
Zev stirred as though he might rise. Tatijana whirled around and held up her hand to stop him. He groaned and subsided.
“I don’t know what the healing rate is for Lycans,” Tatijana said, “but it isn’t this fast. If you don’t want those wounds to open again, give yourself a few minutes. I’ll get you back to the inn so you can rest. Let me take care of Fen first. But don’t you dare move.”
Zev laughed. “Are all Carpathians as bossy as you?”
Tatijana gave a little sniff, her eyes alight with amusement. “Only the women. We have to be. Our men are difficult, you know. We have no choice.” She turned her emerald eyes back on Fen. Laughter made the green facets glitter. She looked more beautiful than ever.
“If your men don’t treat you right, they don’t have brains in their heads,” Zev said. “You’re a beautiful woman, Tatijana, and hell on wheels in a fight. You didn’t even flinch.”
Fen felt himself go still. He looked around Tatijana to Zev. The man clearly wasn’t flirting, just stating a fact. Everything in him settled, when two seconds before, he’d been coiled and ready.
Tatijana nudged him. “Pay attention, wolf boy.”
Zev snickered. “That’s a good one. You fight like the elite.”
It was a probing question delivered in a casual tone.
Fen forced a smile, showing strong white teeth. He’d lived as a Lycan so long it was second nature to him now. He wouldn’t make a mistake, not unless Tatijana was in danger. He thought like a Lycan. Zev was cunning, intelligent and fierce, a very skilled fighter. He had walked into their circle and told them to leave, and had they, he would have fought the entire rogue pack alone.
“I’ve been around and without a pack, I tend to hunt more than most,” Fen admitted carefully. “Once I suspected Bardolf was running the rogue pack, I’ve spent most of my time tracking them, trying to pick them off one at a time.” He shot Zev a grin. “They’ve turned on me a couple of times and I got my butt handed to me.”
Zev studied him, eyes too old—too shrewd. “I doubt that. But you’ve seen your share of battles. You’re every bit as skilled as I am, maybe more, and that’s saying a lot.”
He hadn’t hid as much from Zev as he would have liked. Zev was one of the elite, and they were few. They were born that much faster, that much stronger and that much more intelligent than the rest of the Lycans. They regenerated at much more rapid rates. When a pack discovered a child with such attributes, he or she was sent to a special school for education.
“You must not have been very old when your pack was destroyed,” Zev ventured.
Tatijana sank back on her heels. “There you go, gentlemen. Both of you should live, although next time I suggest you move just a little faster. If you notice, I have very few bites on me.” She flashed a saucy grin at them both.
You healed them, my lady, and that is unfair, he teased her privately.
The Lycans looked at one another and then both of them laughed. The tension between them seemed to evaporate with Tatijana’s observation.
“Finish telling me about Bardolf and the cave,” Zev prompted again. “If you really think that he’s the alpha for this pack, I need to know everything about him.”
“We found massive amounts of blood. Scorch marks. A sign of a terrible battle. No bodies, but we knew Bardolf had met up with the Sange rau. All of us believed Bardolf had been killed by him, but there was no body.”
There was a small silence. Zev shook his head. “The others believed Bardolf died that day. You knew he was still alive.” He made it a statement.
“Bardolf did die that day, whether he appears to be intact or not. He tangled with the Sange rau and somehow he became just like the one he fought. I wasn’t certain, but the more I studied the battlefield, the more it looked wrong to me. Staged. The burn marks, the withered plant life, blood everywhere, but no body. Something wasn’t right.”
Very slowly, Fen could feel his strength returning. Tatijana’s powerful blood and healing magic was already working miracles and soon, his Lycan blood would kick in to aid in even faster healing.
“Where are you staying, Zev?” Tatijana asked. “I can take you there. Have you ever ridden on a dragon?”
“I can’t say that I have,” Zev admitted. “I’ve been around a few Carpathians over the long years, but only to hunt with them and not once was any of them polite enough to offer me a ride home.” He flashed a tired grin. “Of course, they weren’t nearly as beautiful as you are, and I might have had to object to them insinuating I couldn’t make it home on my own.”
“Of course you could,” Tatijana said. “But I’m not turning down an escort.”
You are amazing, Fen said. Zev has a lot of pride.
He’s hurt pretty bad. Even with his blood, and mine, it will take him several days to heal.
Alarm spread. Is he aware you gave him blood?
Centuries ago, the Lycans didn’t know what caused the combination of Lycan/Carpathian. Or for that matter, Lycan/Vampire. Clearly the Lycans didn’t distinguish between the two. They saw both as a powerful threat. So few crosses had been made that maybe the Lycan council still was unsure, but they must have guessed. They had access to laboratories and they studied and researched. Most likely they had to suspect a mixture of blood in this century.
I was careful, Tatijana soothed. Rest until I return. And be watchful. Don’t go to sleep on the job.
Fen found himself laughing. She was one smart woman. He had explained the danger he was in and she was going to be able to tell him exactly where Zev stayed. She’d taken Zev’s blood as well as given him blood. She could monitor him even from a distance.
“How do you both manage to wield silver?” Tatijana asked curiously. “Wouldn’t it harm you the same way it does the rogues?”
“We get used to using gloves,” Zev answered. “Or we coat our hands and arms with sealant. That wears off fairly quickly. I prefer gloves, and clearly Fen does as well.” He nodded toward Fen’s protected hands.
Fen had lived so long as a Lycan it was second nature to him to don gloves and he was grateful he’d done so the moment they ha
d been threatened by the rogue pack.
“Are you strong enough to hold on by yourself?” Tatijana asked Zev.
Fen winced. That would hurt Zev’s ego. A hunter of rogue packs? A skilled warrior? To be asked by a woman if he could hold on all by himself? He nearly groaned out loud. He didn’t dare look at Zev’s face.
“I think I can manage. What about you, Fen? Are you safe here until she returns for you?”
Fen looked around the battlefield. There were several silver stakes lying on the ground in the ashes of the burned carcasses. He had enough energy to draw them to him after they left. He lifted one eyebrow. “You can leave me that silver sword. I covet that.”
“I made it,” Zev said. “It comes in very handy in tight situations.”
“What other weapons have you made?” Fen asked curiously.
Zev hunted with an elite pack. He’d been chosen, above all other hunters in his elite pack, to be the scout. He went ahead, investigating rumors and sifting through evidence before calling in his pack to clean up. Scouting put him in continual danger. Rogue packs could be as few as three but as many as thirty. The fact that he was still alive was a testimony to his skills.
“I’ll have to show you. Have you considered being trained?” Zev asked.
Fen shrugged. “Honestly no. Since my pack was destroyed—and it’s been a very long time—I’ve been on my own. I’m an independent thinker. Following an alpha would be difficult.” That much was the truth. That, and the pack would turn on him the first full moon.
“I’d welcome you into my pack anytime,” Zev said. “Elite packs are different. Every member is an independent thinker, they have to be. Our alpha is more the counsel than one individual within the pack, although generally, the scout has a lot of clout. I imagine you would be more suited to the life of a scout.” He grinned suddenly, the weariness and pain etched into his face gone for a moment. “And think of all the cool toys you get to have.”
Dark Lycan (Carpathian) Page 7