for a long time together, hearts beating wildly, struggling for breath, sated and happy.
Destiny pushed a shaky hand through her hair. "You can do that anytime, Nicolae. You're very good at it."
He propped himself up on one elbow. "I am most grateful you think so."
"Don't go fishing for compliments, because you aren't going to get any. How long was I in the ground? I know time has passed. I don't sense the presence of any of the others close to us."
"Gregori wanted to start back to our homeland as soon as possible. He felt it important to give the Prince the news of vampires forming some sort of organization. He also thought the blood was an important find. No one has ever analyzed vampire blood. We all knew it was toxic, but no one imagined it created an environment to spawn a separate life-form. Of course, we still do not know for certain. The vampire that took you as a child might have somehow been infected by something else. Or the infection could have been a result of the poison injected into you. Gregori feels it is important to find out. In any case, we know for a fact it is completely different from what was found in Alexandria's body. Gregori contacted Aidan, who said there was no such damage. Gregori wants to find out the significance of the difference."
She ducked her head. The thought of the tainted blood still repulsed her. "I'm glad it's over. I hope they get rid of that blood; it sickens me to think of it inside me... inside you. I had no idea. I saw the lesions and felt the pain of it, but I never once suspected something living." She shuddered, "They reminded me of maggots."
"Most were microscopic." He didn't share with her the condition in which the healer had found her body, and it was significant to him that she didn't look at his memories. It had taken the healer two risings to ferret out every trace of the tenacious blood and reshape her organs and tissue. They had nearly lost her on two occasions.
It had been Gregori's tenacity and Nicolae's sheer will that had saved Destiny's life. Gregori had worked a miracle, and Nicolae was forever in his debt. Savannah had lent her considerable strength and blood along with Vikirnoff and Nicolae. Carpathian soil had been packed around Destiny and she had been left in the ground for nearly a week in the hope of renewing her strength and vitality. In the end, both Nicolae and Gregori were in awe of Destiny's ability to live and function with her body in such condition.
"Where's Vikirnoff?" Destiny didn't want to ever think about vampire blood again. She felt as if she'd been granted a miracle. It was enough for her.
"We thought it best that he start his search for the poor woman being hunted by the vampire organization. It took years for me to find you. We are hoping he finds her before the undead does."
Destiny sighed. "I wish him the best of luck. Are you worried for him?" She tunneled her fingers in his luxurious hair. "He's well able to care for himself."
Nicolae turned his head to kiss her fingers. "I know he is. Often when a hunter close to turning is given a job such as this, it allows him more breathing space. He does not have to kill, and the call of the darkness is not so loud." He stood up, donning clothes. "Come on, the sky is beautiful tonight."
Destiny followed him, grateful for the ability to fly. It was her favorite pastime. She laughed aloud. It had been her favorite pastime.
Nicolae caught her thought, and there in the air, as they burst from the cave, he pulled her to him and kissed her until the world spun out of control and they were forced to break apart. The wind blew in their faces and scattered the stars as they made their way to the neighborhood Destiny loved so much.
They stood together in front of the church. Destiny gazed at the building for a long while. It had been a refuge to her; now it was an old friend. "I love this place, Nicolae. And the people. I know you would like to go back to your homeland, and I'll go with you... I will... but this will always be my favorite place to live. And the people here will always be in my heart."
"We do not have to live