Prologue 9 страница

charcoal-gray shirt and black pants. If not

for the emerald glow coming from his

eyes, I wouldn’t have known where he

was.

“Now, apologize for intruding.”

Not whispered. Instead, the command

resounded in the cavernlike interior.

Despite that, I couldn’t contain my snort.

“I’d rather bleed to death.”

“If you were anyone else, those would

be your last words.”

All of a sudden, I was reminded that the

dungeon was a place where most people

that entered never left. I’d looked at

storming in here from my perspective: I

was going to tear my ex-boyfriend a new

one for his underhanded way of breaking a

promise, and I had to get through a few of

his cronies first.

From a vampire’s perspective, I’d

deceived highly trained guards into

betraying their Master by taking me into

what was supposed to be the most secure

area of his house. That I’d done so in front

of enemy combatants probably made it

worse. I suppose the human equivalent

would be bitch slapping my ex-boyfriend

at his wedding while telling everyone

what a small penis he had, though that

would have short-term consequences.

With the fear-based, feudalistic system

vampires lived under, the repercussions

from this might reverberate for centuries,

and I couldn’t even claim the girlfriend

exemption anymore.

“At last, you begin to understand, ” Vlad

said, irony threading into his tone.

I no longer saw the blond guard I’d

duped into taking me down here, but even

if Jameson had left, he was still listening.

All the guards I’d fooled would be

listening, and they’d repeat my next words

to the rest of Vlad’s staff, who’d repeat

them to other vampires, who’d eventually

repeat them to his enemies. I might prefer

whatever retaliation Vlad would be

forced to dish out to apologizing, but this

was about more than me.

That didn’t mean I was overlooking

what he’d done to Maximus. I’ll play

along now, but if you refuse to see me

after this, I’ll make you impale me with

the fit I throw, I thought defiantly. Then I

cleared my throat and uttered an apology I

never intended to give.

“Please forgive the intrusion. I

shouldn’t have come down here and I’m

sorry.”

My tone was good, but if tiny sparks

shot out of my right hand in protest, I

couldn’t do anything about that.

A smile flitted across Vlad’s face.

“I forgive you, but only because you

said ‘please.’ ”

Smartass, I thought. Then I groaned at

the instant chorus of “Please! ” mixed with

cries for release from Vlad’s prisoners.

No wonder he got so sick of the word.

“I’m only merciful to one person a

day, ” he threw over his shoulder. “As the

saying goes, today isn’t your day and

tomorrow doesn’t look good, either.”

Then his gaze landed back on me.

“Now, ask me to heal you.”

You are REALLY pushing it, I thought,

glaring at him.

He bared his teeth in a charmingly

ferocious grin. “My dungeon, my rules.”

Mentally, I cursed him in English and

Romanian, but out loud I said, “Would you

give me some of your blood to heal me? ”

Another flash of teeth, now with fangs.

“Come and get it.”

I approached him the same way I would

a swaying, upright cobra—with extreme

caution. Being in close proximity to Vlad

was dangerous, especially since we both

still had feelings for each other. The odd

sort of “time out” we’d experienced on the

plane was over, so touching him now was

playing with fire—literally—and he’d

made sure that I had no choice.

Yes you do, my inner voice hissed.

Take a beating instead!

I paused, considering that, and Vlad

yanked me to him. Despite my anger, I

was the one who felt like shocks of

electricity sizzled into me when his body

touched mine. For the briefest second, I

closed my eyes, savoring the sensation.

Then I snapped them open and stared up at

him in challenge.

“Going to give me your blood or not? ”

His grin was gone, replaced with a

tight-lipped, savage intensity. Then he

brought his wrist up, bit down deeply on

it, and held it over my mouth.

I didn’t look away as I parted my lips,

taking in that warm, sharply flavored

liquid. I never thought I’d miss the taste of

blood, but with one swallow, I knew I’d

missed his. My eyelids felt heavy with the

strangest sort of bliss, yet I refused to

close them. Keeping them open proved

almost as treacherous. The look in his

eyes when I sealed my lips over the

punctures and sucked sent heat rocketing

straight to my core.

Have you missed this, too? a dark part

of me whispered. It wasn’t my hated inner

voice; it came from somewhere else. A

place that felt like it only flared to life

when Vlad was near.

His lips parted, showing the tips of his

fangs. “Ask me again and I’ll show you.”

A threat? A sensual promise? Both? I

moistened my lips. Even both would give

me more pleasure than I could stand—

“No, ” I said, the single word echoing

from my vehemence.

His embrace was my drug of choice,

and as any addict knew, one sampling was

too many—and a thousand never enough.

Then I pushed him away. Something

dangerous smoldered in his gaze but he

did nothing to stop me. Several torches

flared to life, allowing me to find my way

to the exit without tripping or groping

about. Once I reached it, I turned back to

him.

“I meant what I said. We still need to

talk.”

“Be in my private lounge at ten tonight.

Otherwise, I’ll consider the matter

closed.”

His private lounge, the same place I

used to cross every morning because it

bridged his bedroom with my old room.

I’d sooner face a firing squad than go

there, but if I refused, Maximus could stay

locked in this dungeon for centuries.

The smile Vlad flashed me before he

disappeared into the darkness said he

already knew what I’d choose.

Chapter 21

I entered the lounge at exactly ten p.m.

Vlad was on the sofa, two wineglasses

and a bottle on the obsidian table in front

of him. The TV was off and the light from

the fireplace cast a soft glow over the

rust-colored couch.

Memories assailed me as mercilessly

as I’d feared. Vlad and I had spent many

evenings unwinding with a bottle of wine

on that couch. We’d done other things

there, too. Unbidden, warmth crept

through me that had nothing to do with the

blazing fire.

I tried to squelch it with bluntness.

“You didn’t misunderstand why I wanted

to see you, did you? ”

He laughed, and that half growl, halfamused

purr played havoc with my senses

even as my hackles rose.

“You think I’m trying to seduce you?

How presumptuous, considering I’ve

never allowed an ex-lover back into my

bed.”

I glanced at the wineglasses, the

romantic lighting, and finally back at him.

If Vlad wasn’t trying to seduce me, then he

was taunting me with what I couldn’t

have. I’d dressed in a simple navy sheath

that rose no higher than my knees. His

black pants molded to his lower body,

while his white shirt contrasted like snow

against his tailored ebony jacket. That

shirt was open, revealing all of his throat

and the first few inches of his chest.

Platinum cuff links winked when they

caught the firelight, and his long, dark hair

was combed back, all the better to

highlight his lean, sensual features and

arresting copper eyes.

The only thing missing was him slowly

pouring hot fudge onto that bare expanse

of chest. Then any court in the world

would consider this sexual entrapment.

His smile widened. Crap, I’d forgotten

to sing to keep him out of my thoughts.

“Fine. We’re both here for platonic

reasons and we’ll leave it at that, ” I said,

hating how husky my voice had become.

“Fine.”

All of a sudden he was inches away,

bringing me eye level to his open collar

and the skin I’d just imagined drizzling

with chocolate. I swallowed. Think of the

dungeon and his broken promise, not

how intoxicating he tastes even when

he’s not covered in dessert!

The dungeon image helped. “You need

to let Maximus go, ” I stated, my voice

stronger now.

“No. Wine? ”

I blinked, anger covering my desire.

“You promised you wouldn’t torture him,

but being imprisoned in a dungeon for

centuries counts as torture.”

Vlad held out a glass and then drank

from it himself when I refused with a

sharp shake of my head.

“No it doesn’t, ” he said, still in that

damnably unruffled tone. “Since I’ve

firsthand experience with both, I assure

you that torture and imprisonment are very

different.”

“You’re splitting hairs. You knew

exactly what I meant when I asked for

your promise.”

A shrug. “I’ve honored my word as it

was given. If you wanted more, you

should have specified.”

“I was drugged! ”

“And I was coerced, ” he replied, his

gaze narrowing. “Many would consider

that reason enough to invalidate a

promise. I don’t, and Maximus knew that

betraying me would cost him. Because of

you, it hasn’t cost him as much as it

should.”

“This is just what you did with Marty, ”

I seethed. “Giving me a promise that’s

useless after you’re done playing word

games with it, then you get offended when

I call you a liar! ”

Vlad set his glass down so hard I was

amazed the stem didn’t snap. Then he went

to the door. When he opened it, I thought

he was going to order me out. Instead, he

left.

“Where are you going? ” I called.

“To kill Maximus” was the reply that

drifted back. “If I’m a liar, I may as well

get full value out of it.”

“Wait! ”

He’d already made it to the end of the

hall by the time I ran out to him, but at my

frantic call, he turned around.

“You can’t have it both ways, Leila.

Either I’m a liar or I’m not, and if I’m not,

then you have no cause to cry foul over

what I’ve done to Maximus.”

Frustration made me go right for the

jugular. “He’s the only reason I survived

after that gas line bomb. Doesn’t that mean

any thing to you? ”

He came toward me with the unhurried

gait of a true predator, making the hallway

feel like it shrank around me. The closer

he got, the more I instinctively moved

away. It wasn’t until I saw the mahogany

paneled walls that I realized he’d

maneuvered me back into the parlor.

“Yes, it does. That’s why I forgave him

for telling me he was checking on his

people when in reality, he was stalking

you. I won’t, however, forgive his

repeated lies after the explosion. Those

weren’t to save you. They were to keep

you from me because he wanted you for

himself.”

“He really thought you might’ve been

behind it, ” I muttered.

Vlad rolled his eyes. “ You believed

that, but Maximus knew I wouldn’t murder

an innocent woman out of spite.”

“He thought your injured pride might’ve

made you more homicidal than usual.”

“No, he wanted to fuck you.”

His even tone vanished, replaced with

one that sounded like razors over

shattered glass.

“If he believed any of what he told you,

it was only to assuage his guilt for

betraying me.” His eyes changed from

copper to emerald in a blink. “He’s

wanted you since the first. When I

discovered you were alive, I wondered if

he’d succeeded and the two of you rigged

that explosion in order to disappear

together.”

“You thought I killed a bunch of people

to fake my own death so I could run off

with Maximus? ” If my voice got any

higher, all of the nearby glass would

shatter.

“You believed I ordered your death out

of injured pride because you left me.” His

gaze raked me. “Don’t pretend to be the

injured party when you also leapt to the

wrong conclusion.”

At that, my temper snapped. “Of the two

of us, who’s more likely to have killed

those people? ”

His smile was sharklike; all teeth, no

humor. “Me, but you still should’ve

known better. Martin, who I tortured the

day we met, contacted me after the

explosion because he knew I hadn’t done

it. Yet you, my once-treasured lover, were

so convinced I might that you let me

believe you were dead.”

I barely heard the last sentence. My

mind seized upon one thing, shock

replacing my anger.

“Marty contacted you after the

bombing? But that would mean he... he

wasn’t...”

“Wasn’t killed in the blast, ” Vlad

supplied, his lips curling. “Terribly cruel

of me to let you believe that someone you

cared about was dead, wasn’t it? ”

Rage collided with a tidal wave of joy.

Those wildly contrasting emotions proved

too much. I lunged at Vlad, snarling,

“Damn you! ” while happy tears sprang to

my eyes.

He caught me, lifting me several inches

off the ground. At this height, we were eye

level, and the look on his face would’ve

made me take a step backward if I could.

“Don’t, ” he said, the word falling like a

hammer. “You’re the only one who’s

struck me without retaliation, but you’re

not my lover anymore so I won’t be as

lenient again.”

I hadn’t intended to hit him. True, I’d

wanted to shake him until his fangs rattled

for letting me believe my best friend was

dead—and wait until I got ahold of Marty!

—but that urge drained away as I stared

into his eyes. His expression was so

thunderous I should have been afraid, but

something other than fear began to fill me.

Unable to help myself, I glanced at his

mouth. It looked hard, but if I leaned

forward a few inches, I knew it wouldn’t

feel that way...

Suddenly his mouth was on mine,

proving that I was wrong. It did feel hard.

The stubble on his face felt rougher, too,

plus I’d have bruises from how forcefully

he yanked me down to him.

And nothing had ever felt better.

Rapture burst forth, scorching everything

else in its path. I kissed him back so

fiercely that I tore my lip on his fangs, yet

the sting didn’t register. All I knew was

his taste, like spiced wine mulled with the

darkest of fantasies. How his arms

crushed me closer while his heat seared

through my clothing. The sensually brutal

way his tongue twined with mine, and the

overwhelming urge I had to touch him as

fast as my hands could race over his body.

I needed him as much as the jagged

breaths I snuck in between kisses, but

another emotion proved stronger, giving

me the strength to push him away despite

every cell in my body howling in protest.

“What are you doing? ” I managed.

His expression was nothing short of

ferocious, and if his gaze grew any hotter,

I’d burn beneath it.

“You’ve never had angry sex. I’m about

to show you what you’ve been missing.”

At those words, the throbbing between

my legs became painfully intense. In spite

of that, I stopped him when he swooped

down to kiss me again.

“You said you’d never take an ex-lover

back.”

His mouth descended to my neck with

devastating effect. “You’ve proven to be

the exception to my rules.”

Those burning lips made the cool

pressure of his fangs feel that much more

erotic. Still, a deep-seated hurt overrode

the passion slamming into me.

“Not all of your rules.”

Vlad made a sound too harsh to be a

growl. “You won’t be satisfied until

you’ve brought me to my knees, is that it? ”

“Why not? ” It shot out of me with all

the recklessness of my still-broken heart.

“You brought me to mine.”

He released me so abruptly I had to use

the couch to steady myself. Without his

body against mine, I felt cold despite the

pleasant warmth of the room.

“I told you that you can’t have it both

ways, and that’s true for us as well.”

Did I miss something? “What are you

talking about? ”

“I’m Vlad the Impaler, ” he said, biting

off each word. “I’ve survived for over

five hundred years because if someone

crosses me, I kill him, and if I am

betrayed, I exact my revenge. I told you

this when we met, yet you’re still upset

when I act on it.”

“Oh, you don’t have to remind me how

merciless you are, ” I said, bitterness

leaping to the surface.

“Obviously I do, ” he replied. Then he

cupped my face with hands so heated they

felt like brands.

“You claim to love me, but the man you

love doesn’t exist. That man wouldn’t

have survived years of beatings and rape

as a boy because sheer hatred kept him

from breaking. That man wouldn’t have

impaled twenty thousand prisoners to

terrorize a larger advancing army because

fear was the only tactical advantage he

had, and that man wouldn’t have

imprisoned one of his closest friends for

lying to him over a woman he was

enamored with. I am not that man.”

His hands dropped and he stepped

back, his expression still frighteningly

intense.

“You see, you don’t want me to love

you. You want the version you’ve made

up. The knight, even though I’m the dragon

and I always will be.”

Then he left. This time, despite my

calling out, he didn’t stop. In the seconds

it took me to get to the hallway, he was

gone, the two open windows at the far end

still vibrating from his exit through them.

Chapter 22

I went down to the second floor, so upset

over Vlad’s accusations, I walked right by

my family without seeing them.

“Leila, ” Gretchen snapped, jerking my

attention to the sitting room I’d just

passed. “What is your problem? ”

“What’s my problem? ” Hysterical

laughter bubbled, but I choked it back. “I

wouldn’t know where to begin.”

My father’s gaze swept over me, taking

in my mussed hair, swollen mouth, and

sparking right hand.

“Gretchen, I want to have a word with

your sister.”

She shrugged. “Go ahead, I’m not

stopping you.”

“He means leave, ” I said wearily.

This was the last thing I needed, but I’d

put him through hell recently, and

everyone knew how paybacks worked.

She got up, muttering, “You’re lucky

Vlad covered my expenses for the year, ”

under her breath.

“What? ”

“Gretchen, go, ” my dad ordered.

She did, leaving me alone with my

father. I plopped onto the couch opposite

his, noting the differences between this

sitting room and the one I’d left. The

colors were lighter and there were no

weapons or barbaric shields over the

fireplace. All at once, I hated the apricot

and cream decor and the white hearth with

the insipid oil landscape above it. This

room lacked complexity, fierceness,

passion...

It lacked everything that Vlad was.

“So he’s covering Gretchen’s expenses

for the year.” Of course he hadn’t told me

that. Vlad seldom mentioned his thoughtful

deeds. “That’s very generous of him.”

My dad glanced around pointedly. “He

can afford it.”

“He can also mesmerize her into

forgetting she ever met him and drop her

back at her apartment without a cent, ” I

said in a crisp tone. “Come on, Dad. Give

credit where it’s due.”

That salt-and-pepper head snapped up.

“I do. He promised to bring you back

safely and he did. He promised to let us

return to our lives when the danger had

passed and I believe him. But he refused

to promise to leave you alone, and from

how you look now, he’s made good on his

intentions not to.”

I was a grown woman, but I didn’t think

I would ever feel comfortable discussing

my sex life with my dad. In this case,

though, he had nothing to worry about.

“It’s not what you think. We’re not back

together.”

“You’re still in love with him, ” he said

flatly.

Not according to Vlad! my inner voice

mocked. He thinks I’m in love with a

version of him that doesn’t exist.

I drew in a deep breath. If I could pull

that voice out, I’d send it to the moon with

all the currents I’d shoot into it. But

thinking that way made me one step up

from Gollum in The Lord of the Rings.

Soon I’d be arguing with my own

reflection.

“When does love solve anything? ” was

what I replied.

My father grunted. “You’re too young to

be so jaded.”

I held up my right hand with a short

laugh. “You remember what I see with

this, right? Everyone’s worst sins, so I

might only be twenty-five, but I haven’t

been young for a long time.”

He was silent for several moments. At

last, he nodded.

“I suppose you haven’t.”

Then he leaned forward, lowering his

voice to a whisper. “But, baby, you’ve got

to stay away from Vlad. In my decades in

the military, I’ve met all types of hardened

men, yet I’ve never looked into any of

their eyes and felt afraid. When I look into

his, it’s like someone just walked over my

grave.”

A rational reaction considering Vlad

wasn’t your average soldier, mercenary,

warlord, or anything else my dad could

compare him to. In many ways, he was a

slice of history’s untamed past among us,

yet I had only one response. While it was

the last thing my father wanted to hear, it

was also the truth.

“I don’t feel that way when I look at

him.”

Then I rose, filled with renewed

determination. Vlad thought I loved a faux

version of him because I couldn’t handle

the full Dracula? I’d prove to him—and

my hated inner voice—that he was wrong.

“Good night, Dad. There’s something I

need to do.”

I made sure to mentally sing the most

annoying song I could think of in case

Vlad had come back. What I was about to

do might be risky, but when was my life

not risky? Besides, the last two times I’d

used my powers, I’d only gotten a

nosebleed. I’d also had Vlad’s blood

today, so that further decreased the

danger. In short, it was now or never.

Once on the first floor, I bypassed the

dining room, library, and conservatory for

a room I usually avoided. The Weapons

Room, as I called it.

This room was second only to the

dungeon in bloody mementos. It was filled

with chain mail, suits of armor, swords,

long curving knives, mallets, shields,

spears, crossbows, and spikes, most

bearing dents, stains, and other evidence

of use. Even being close to them made my

right hand tingle, as if the essences in

those objects were reaching out to me.

The last time I’d been here, I kept my

right hand glued to my side because I

hadn’t wanted to know the grisly stories

these objects contained. This time, I

stretched it out, seeking the events that had

made Vlad into the man he thought I

couldn’t love. The first thing I touched

was a long spear.

I hoisted my spear with a shout that

was echoed by thousands of soldiers

behind me. Outnumbered or no, we

would rather die than allow Wallachia to

be conquered. Then I urged my horse

down the steep hill, hearing the thunder

of hooves as my men followed me...

That image faded and I went for the

shield next, touching the dragon emblem

hammered into the metal.

A cloud of arrows blackened the sky. I

raised my shield and braced, waiting to

see if I lived or died. Once my shield

stopped shuddering, I rose, slicing the

arrows sticking from it with a rough

swipe of my sword. Then I grinned

despite the blood streaming from my

forehead. Not dead yet...

My heart had begun to race from those

battle echoes, but I wasn’t about to stop. I

stroked a wicked-looking mallet next.

I sat on my throne, showing no sign of

the rage coursing through me. Mehmed

thought to cow me by choosing three of

my former jailers to accompany his

envoy. He was mistaken.

“Your piety prevents you from

removing your turbans in my presence? ”

I repeated. Then I smiled at my boyhood

torturers. “Let me assist you in ensuring

they stay on. Hold them.”

My guards seized the officials while I

fetched a mallet and several long spikes.

Then, my rage turning to cold resolve, I

nailed their turbans onto their heads.

After the third one fell lifeless to the

floor, I flung the bloody mallet at the

horrified envoy.

“Here is my response to the sultan’s

terms.”

I fell out of that memory into another

one faster than I registered what I touched

next. My vision swam as more images

from the past overtook the present. Once I

glimpsed a woman with luxuriant brown

hair, but when I tried to see her face, it

blurred. Then she was gone as I touched

something else in my determination to see

everything Vlad thought I couldn’t handle.

Phantom pains and emotions blasted into

me with each new object, coming so fast

and violently that I began to lose focus on

what was real. I was no longer a woman

seeking validation about her feelings for

her ex-lover.

I was Vladislav Basarab Dracul,

bartered by my father into hellish

political imprisonment as a boy, then as

a young man, fighting war after war to

keep my country free, only to be betrayed

by my nobles, the church, and even my

own brother. Then I was abandoned by

the vampire who sired me, widowed by a

woman who’d shunned me for my deeds,

and imprisoned again by Mihaly

Szilagyi, a vampire who sought to rule

Wallachia through me. Betrayal, pain,

and death were my constant companions,

yet I would not let them break me. I

would use them to break my enemies

instead.

“Leila! ”

As if from a long way off, I heard

Vlad’s voice. Felt him grab me, but I

couldn’t see him. My vision had been

replaced with red.

Vlad called my name again, but his

voice became fainter. Soon I couldn’t hear

or feel him. Good. Couldn’t he see that I

was trying to sleep?