Dark Curse Page 0,31

on his own shoulders."

She managed a small smile. "Thank you for that. And what of my aunts? Do you know anything at all of them?"

"I am sorry, Lara, but I have heard no news of them being seen alive. If they are truly your aunts."

"Great-aunts," she corrected. "But I always called them my aunts."

He smiled. "I did assume that. If they are your great-aunts, that would make them Rhiannon's daughters. We know Rhiannon had triplets with Xavier. Two girls-your aunts, and Soren, your grandfather. Soren was murdered by Xavier some years ago. No one has ever seen the girls. What do they look like?"

"I only saw them in dragon form. They were weak and sick. Xavier used them for blood, and kept them in a weakened state. He was very afraid of them. Often, if one was unfrozen, he would hold a knife to the other's throat. They saved my sanity, whispering to me when things got very bad, distracting me when I was used for feeding."

"You are certain they were Rhiannon's children?"

"The love story they told me was of their mother, Rhiannon, and her true lifemate. Xavier murdered him and held Rhiannon prisoner, forcing her to have his children, triplets. He believed he could be immortal, living on the blood of the Carpathians. I'm certain the things they told me were true, at least they said they were." She looked at him. "You were able to bind me with the ritual words. How would they know the Carpathian marriage ritual if they weren't Rhiannon's daughters?"

"Dominic, Rhiannon's brother, has sought news of her many years now. We were informed of her death at the hands of Xavier and he has been hoping to hear of his nieces. This news will sadden him."

"They could still be alive," she said. "It's possible. They helped me escape the ice cave, and maybe they managed as well. They were very powerful. Xavier kept them weak, but they were smart. They might have found a way. That's what I've come back to find out. I'm going to hunt for evidence of what

happened to them."

Nicolas drew in his breath sharply. "The ice caves are too dangerous. The last visitors barely escaped with their lives. It is not a place you should enter."

She kept her eyes on the water in the pool gently lapping at the ring of rocks. "Have you been down there?" She didn't much care one way or the other what he thought. She intended to go to the cave and find out for herself what had happened to her aunts.

"Not personally, but all Carpathians share knowledge. Vikirnoff and his woman fought shadow warriors, vampire and mages alike when they were there."

She frowned and glanced up at him with a quick flick of her lashes. "His woman? Not that again. Does she have a name? Do women hold so low a place in your estimation that you can't be bothered to learn their names?"

He bent down, placing his lips against her ear. "I think you are trying to pick a fight with me because you are upset over the flashbacks you are experiencing. You have been in my mind enough to know I respect women, and would give my life to protect them." He tugged on her long braid. "I have to see the prince and will get news of your friend. I also need to feed and you must as well. Stay here and relax. I will bring you food and something to drink and we can figure this out together."

The feel of his warm breath against her ear, the mesmerizing brushing caress of his lips sent a shiver down her spine. Her breasts tingled, nipples tightening. She pressed her teeth together in a little snap.

"I do not want anything at all to do with blood."

"I figured that out." He straightened and moved away from her, gliding across the cave floor in that peculiar silence that reminded her of a stalking jungle cat. "Do you feel comfortable enough to stay here on your own, or will being underground trigger more flashbacks?"

She sent him her most fierce scowl. "I'm a caver. I explore caves all the time. I hadone small problem for just a moment seeing those disgusting little parasites. I'm fine now.Perfectly fine." She deliberately took a slow look around. "It's quite beautiful here."

It was, too. The walls were veined with minerals and crystals. Candles of all sizes were everywhere. The pool looked inviting. The air smelled fresh and soothing. Beyond the chamber