Dark Curse Page 0,156

touch their minds and let them know what was happening. Bronnie looked up at her, blinking her enormous emerald eyes, tears swimming there.

Auntie Bronnie. It's Lara. I came back for you.

The dragon turned her head and stretched to cover her sister with her chin, her touch gentle when her body went rigid, contorted and then relaxed again.Starved . The single word was a croak.

Can you shift to human form? Natalya can clothe you and we can give you blood. The idea made her stomach lurch, but to save her aunts, she was willing to do anything.

The great emerald eyes blinked and then turned to look at Natalya.

She stared at her niece for one long, emotion-laden moment.No strength .

Put the images you need in Natalya's head and she can hold them for you. Vikirnoff will help send you strength. We have little time. Xavier is sending his guardians after us.

Natalya and Vikirnoff held the images Branislava provided and the dragons disappeared, leaving two women lying on the floor of the ice cave. Natalya had provided clothes for them, warm leggings and sweaters to help heat their bodies. Their hair was long and thick, far past their waists and Natalya hastily braided both with a wave of her hand and then covered them with warm caps to keep the strands from freezing.

Lara held their heads in her lap while Natalya immediately offered Tatijana her wrist. There was no hesitation. Natalya smiled at her aunt and murmured the ritual offering.

"I offer my life freely for yours."

Lara took a breath and held out her hand to Branislava. "I offer my life freely for yours." Her heart thundered in her ears. Her mouth went dry. Terror filled her mind, but she ruthlessly pushed it aside. This was her beloved aunt, who had sacrificed everything for her. She would save her and she would do so gladly. She meant her offering. She owed her life to Branislava and Tatijana-more, she owed her soul to them. Razvan's soul had been stolen by a madman and he could just as easily have used her, but at great cost to themselves, they had saved her.

Teeth bit down into her wrist. Her stomach lurched, but she held on, breathing through the need to be sick, grateful her aunt was too ill to notice. It took a moment to realize her aunt wasn't hurting her. The teeth didn't tear at her flesh, but rather pierced with two small holes. There wasn't the erotic feel that there was when Nicolas took her blood, but more of a giving, a sharing, an act of camaraderie, giving her a deeper connection.

Her aunt's body warmed faster with the influx of blood, but it wasn't enough for the shriveled cells and organs. As soon as Branislava swept her tongue over the pinpricks to close the wounds, Vikirnoff knelt beside her.

Branislava shook her head.You need your strength to get us out of here . Even that small effort exhausted her.

The continual sound of water became overly loud, drawing Lara's attention. She caught Natalya's wrist and gestured with her chin, not wanting to alarm her aunts. The water dripped onto the floor and ran along a crevice, forming a long, narrow tube. Within moments of hitting the icy floor, the water refroze, forming the long body of a snake. The moment one formed and slithered off, another took its place until a good portion of the floor was taken up by hissing snakes.

Tatijana swung her head toward them, although she was too weak to lift her neck to see.Don't let him take us. Kill us if you have to .

Lara tightened her arms around both of them. "He will never get near you again," she assured fiercely.

"I'll deal with the snakes," Natalya said. She raised her arms and gathered power to her. She was tired of Xavier's relentless pursuit and happy to find a target. "Those people onSnakes on a Plane should have tried this."

That which does slither, bites and strikes, feel the wrath of fire-cold ice. I call thee fire, cold of flame, fit to my hand, strike this bane. As Natalya gathered the energy force, converting it into cold fusion fire, she directed it straight at the icy serpents.

The snakes shattered into a million pieces, the ice crystals melting. They were absorbed by the floor. Natalya looked grimly satisfied. "We've got to get out of here fast. I hear the water beating at the dam Nicolas built and if we're caught..."

"Nicolas will find us the way