its way toward the cottage. He was there. She knew it, just as she knew that he needed her.
She told the driver to stop the carriage before the cottage came in sight. She thrust the fare into his hand and began to run, her feet flying over the ground.
She was light-headed and out of breath by the time she reached her destination. Eyes wide, she stared at the cottage. There were wooden crosses everywhere, even on the roof. The heavy odor of garlic assailed her nostrils.
She tried the door, but it was locked. Lifting her skirts, she went around to the back of the house and climbed through the broken window.
"Gabriel?"
Go away!
"Gabriel, where are you?"
Go away!
Taking a deep, calming breath, she went into the kitchen and down the stairs that led to the cellar door. She was surprised to find the door unlocked, and more surprised by the sudden and total terror that engulfed her as she lifted the latch and crossed the threshold into darkness so thick it was almost palpable.
"Gabriel?" Her voice was soft and low and shaky.
"Go away!"
She peered into the darkness, trying to see him. "Gabriel, where are you?"
"Sara, for the love of heaven, get out of here while you can!"
"I'm not leaving. You called me, and I'm here."
Tears stung his eyes. She had heard his anguished cries, and she had come to him.
He pressed his forehead against the cold stone wall and closed his eyes, striving for control.
"Please, Sara, go away."
"What's wrong, Gabriel? Won't you tell me?"
"I'm... not well."
"I'll help you. Only tell me what to do."
"No." He placed his hands on the wall on either side of his head, his fingernails raking the cold stones. "Please... go. Please... I don't want to hurt you."
"Tell me what you need, and I'll get it for you."
"What I need?" His voice was shrill, edged with pain and despair. "What I need! Ah, Sara," he murmured brokenly. "If you only knew."
"I'll get it, Gabriel, I promise, whatever it is. Only tell me."
She took another step into the room. Her eyes had become accustomed to the darkness and she could see him now, a black shape huddled against the opposite wall.
She took another step, and he whirled away, his cloak swirling around him as he stumbled toward the far corner.
"Gabriel, my angel, please let me help you."
"Angel... angel..." He laughed then, a horrible sound that bordered on hysteria. "Devil, you mean. Go away from me, my sweet Sara. Go away before I destroy you as I destroyed Rosalia."
"I'm not leaving," Sara said firmly. And before she could change her mind, before her imagination could frighten her away, she crossed the room and gathered him into her arms.
She felt his whole body tense at her touch.
"Gabriel..."
For a moment, he closed his eyes, absorbing her nearness, her warmth. Ah, how he had craved her touch, yearned to hold her, to be held by her. He shuddered as the hunger rose up within him, hot and swift, the need, the pain, more than he could bear.
The heat of her hands penetrated his clothing. He could hear the soft whisper of blood stirring through her veins, smell it, taste it...
"Gabriel, please tell me what to do."
With an inhuman growl of despair, he whirled around to face her. "Go away!"
Sara stared up at him, at eyes that blazed in the darkness like hell's own fires, and knew she was looking into the face of death.
"What has happened to you?" she asked, her voice quivering with barely suppressed terror.
"Nothing has happened to me. This is what I am."
He bared his teeth, and Sara took a step backward. Even in the darkness, she could see his fangs, sharp and white and deadly. And the unearthly red glow in his eyes.
"Now will you go?"
His voice was ragged, his hands clenched at his sides as he struggled to control the hunger that burned through him.
Sara took a deep breath, fighting down the urge to run away as fast and as far as she could.
"No, Gabriel," she said with quiet determination. "I'll not leave you again."
The room was growing lighter, and she realized the sun had come up, that its light was slowly creeping down the stairs.
With a low cry, Gabriel spun away, his cloak swirling around his ankles like black smoke. Taking refuge in a corner untouched by the sun's searing brightness, he dropped into a crouch, his head lowered, his arms shielding his face.
Vampire.
The word echoed in her mind.
"Yes, Sara." Gabriel's voice, taut with pain, spoke to