Dark Destiny Page 0,2

was choking, suffocating, hardly able to breathe.

She waited a heartbeat. Two. Drew deeper into the shadows. She could hear the sound of her own heart beating. She could hear Mary Ann's heart following the rhythm of hers. She could hear the beckoning invitation of the ebb and flow of blood rushing through veins. Calling to her. Intensifying her terrible hunger. Her tongue felt the sharpness of her lengthening incisors. She trembled with the effort to control herself, to stop the inevitable.

This woman was everything that she was not. Mary Ann Delaney. Destiny knew her well. She was compassionate and brave, her life dedicated to helping others. A light seemed to shine from her very soul. Destiny listened to her often - her lectures, her group discussions, even her one-on-one counseling sessions. Destiny had appointed herself Mary Ann's unofficial protector.

"You saved my life. A few weeks ago, when that man broke into my home and attacked me, you came in and saved me. I know you were hurt - there was blood on your clothes - but when the paramedics came, you were gone." Mary Ann closed her eyes for a moment, reliving the terror of waking up to find a furious man standing over her bed. He had dragged her out from under the covers by her hair, punching her so hard and so fast she had no time to defend herself. He was the husband of a woman she had helped escape into a sanctuary and he was determined to get the address from her. He had pounded her into a bloody heap on the floor, kicking her and then stabbing at her with a large knife. She had the raw scars on her arms where she had tried to protect herself. "I didn't tell anyone you were there. I didn't say a word about you to the police. They thought he must have tripped over the overturned furniture and fallen awkwardly and broken his neck. I didn't betray you. There's no need to worry; the police aren't looking for you. They don't know anything about you."

Destiny bit down hard on her lip and stubbornly remained silent. Fortunately, the incisors had receded. She had enough sins on her soul without adding Mary Ann to the list of her victims.

"Please answer me." Mary Ann opened her arms wide. "I don't understand why you won't talk to me. What harm could there be in telling me if you were hurt that night? There was blood all over you, and it wasn't from me and it wasn't his blood."

Destiny felt tears burning in her eyes, clogging her throat. Her hands clenched into two tight fists. "It wasn't my blood. You don't owe me anything." The words were strangled, barely making it past the lump in her throat. It was partially the truth. Mary Ann's attacker had not put a scratch on her. "I'm just sorry I wasn't there earlier, before he hurt you."

"He would have killed me. We both know that. My life isn't the only thing I have you to thank for. You're the one who leaves me the money for our safe houses, aren't you?" Mary Ann pursued. "And our women's recovery programs."

Destiny leaned against the wall, tired of pain, tired of being so alone. There was something incredibly warming and soothing about Mary Ann. "It's no big deal, it's just money. You do all the work. I'm happy to help in some small way."

"Come home with me," Mary Ann said. "I'll make us tea, and we can talk." When Destiny remained silent, Mary Ann sighed softly. "At least tell me your name. I feel your presence often and think of you as a friend. What would it hurt to tell me your name?"

"I don't want the ugliness of my life to touch you," Destiny admitted softly. The night was enfolding her as it always did, gently whispering to her so that she saw its beauty despite her determination not to see anything good in it.

"I'm not afraid of ugliness," Mary Ann persisted. "I've seen ugliness before, I will again. No one is meant to be alone in the world. We all need someone, even you."

"You aren't making this easy." The words were wrenched from Destiny, almost a sob. "You don't know how evil I am. There is no redemption for me. I should never have allowed our lives to touch, not even for a moment."

"I'm very grateful that you did. I wouldn't be here otherwise, and I have much