Before she could reply, Trehan said simply, "Greatness resides in you. Power or not, you can become empowered."
The vampire's words were like a bell pinging in her brain, reminding her of Morgana's cryptic comment: "The greatest thing about having power is the mere having of power. Use the latter well, and you'll never have to use the former."
Bettina had figured that her godmother was advising, "Fake it till you make it." Or "Perception is reality."
All at once, the real meaning clicked. Power is where you find it, where you seize it, how you wield it.
Bettina finally understood. As Daciano pointed out, the Vrekeners had robbed her of this folly; she could steal it back from them.
She might not be able to get her ability back, but she could still be empowered.
It's where you seize it!
This was a fantastic revelation. . . . But I'm still not going out into that glade.
She backed away from Daciano, away from his big, warm hands. "Greatness? Are you joking? I can't do this. Vrekeners could be teeming in the trees, and I would never see them." Until it was too late.
"They could very well be."
"Wh-what was that?" Chills raced over her.
With a confident nod, he said, "There could be twenty or thirty of them. Perhaps more."
"What?"
"It's possible that a dozen more have landed since we've been discussing this."
"Why are you telling me this?" she cried.
"Because you're still going to walk out there."
"The hell I am!"
"If I told you none were here, would you believe me?"
How to explain this? "I would believe you. But my mind wouldn't . . . it wouldn't register it."
"Then accept that they are here. Now, what do you think would happen if our foes lie in wait?"
"They'll attack!"
"And then?" His voice went lower, silky with menace. "Come, Bettina, you know what comes next."
"You'd fight them?"
"I would do to them-what I did to the four." He leaned his shoulder against a carved basilisk column; at that moment he looked far more terrifying than any dragon. "You'll have a ring of bodies around you, more heads than you could ever fit in a sack. I'll let you pick which Vrekener to spare-for torture."
That shouldn't sound so utterly appealing.
"You're in a prime position, dragă."
"I . . . am?"
"If there are no Vrekeners, then you'll walk out there and reclaim this place from your enemies. If they are here-which I'm hoping for-you'll get to witness firsthand what happens to those who think to harm my female. Win-win; either way makes for a memorable picnic," he said dryly, his lips curling.
She stunned herself when she almost smiled in return. Maybe the connection that continued to grow between her and Daciano didn't leave any room for emptiness-or for fear.
She gazed out at the murky glade and back. Before the rain comes the clear. "Vampire, we could go together."