"Like what?"
He let out a deep, ragged breath. "You want to know how Desiderius got to him?"
She nodded.
"His memories. I've never felt such agonized pain in anyone. When they come upon him, they weaken him. And so long as they do, he will always lose his battle calm."
"Is there anything I can do?"
"Not unless you can think of some way to erase those memories. If they continue to plague him like this, he's doomed." D'Alerian looked at Kyrian. "He will sleep until tonight. Don't disturb him. When he wakes, he'll be able to walk, but he will still be weak. Try not to let him go after Desiderius for a few days. I will speak to Artemis and see what can be done."
"Thank you."
He nodded and was gone in a golden flash of light. Two seconds later, his jacket evaporated, too.
Taking his vacated seat, Amanda looked up at the ceiling and laughed nervously. All she'd ever wanted in her life was normality. Now she had a vampire lover and a Dream-Hunter, whatever that was, poofing in and out of her sister's house while yet another vampire was trying to kill her.
Life was nothing if not ironic.
She turned her head to watch Kyrian. His breathing was easier than it had been before and the stern frown had faded from his features. The marks on his body were horrendous, but even they appeared to have faded out some.
Just what had Desiderius done to him?
Kyrian came awake to the moonlight streaming through the open windows. At first, he couldn't remember where he was, until he tried to move and pain sliced through him.
Clenching his teeth, he sat up slowly and found Esmeralda standing with a huge cross in front of her and a garlic necklace around her neck.
"You stay right there, buster. And don't try any of that mind-meld stuff."
In spite of himself, Kyrian laughed. "You know, crosses don't work on us and neither does garlic."
"Yeah, right," she said, inching closer to him. "Would you still say it if I touched you with it?"
When she came close enough, Kyrian grabbed the cross out of her hand. "Ow, ow, ow!" he feigned, then he held it to his chest. "Really," he said seriously, handing it back to her. "It has no effect. As for the garlic, well, it's garlic and it stinks, but if it doesn't bother you, I can live with it."
Esmeralda pulled the necklace off. "So what is your vulnerability?"
"Like I'm going to tell you."
She cocked her head. "Mandy was right, you are infuriating."
"You should have talked to my father before I ate him."
Esmeralda paled and took two steps back.
"He's teasing you, Es. He never ate his father."
Kyrian turned to see Amanda standing in the doorway behind him. "Are you sure about that?"
She smiled. "Very much so, and you must be feeling better to taunt us." Amanda came forward and checked the bandages on his arms. "Good Lord, they're practically healed."
He nodded as he reached for one of the shirts Nick had dropped off that afternoon while he slept, and put it on. "Thanks to D'Alerian. After another few hours, they'll be gone completely."
Amanda watched as he slid off the couch. Only the slowness of his movements betrayed the fact he was still recovering. "Should you be up?"
"I need to move, it'll help with the stiffness." As he walked past her, he mumbled under his breath, "Some of it anyway."
She helped him into the kitchen. "Essie, is there any spaghetti left?"