she toldBryan goodbye and hung up the phone.
Rising, she showered and dressed and then went downstairs. She put on a fresh pot of coffee and then, feeling suddenly famished, she fixed breakfast.Bacon and scrambled eggs and fried potatoes, orange juice and coffee and toast, and a slice of melon.
Sitting at the table, she stared at the food on her plate. She never ate this much. What on earth had possessed her to prepare such an enormous meal? Even as she asked the question, she knew the answer. She was eating it because she could and, as foolish as it sounded, she was eating it for Dominic because he couldn't.
She savored every bite as if it were the last morsel she would ever consume.
After clearing the table, she washed and dried the dishes and then went outside. She'd forgotten how big the yard was. It was enclosed by a high brick wall that insured her privacy. There were a couple of peach trees near the back wall, a gazebo in the middle of the yard, a small, man-made pond in one corner.
Hands on her hips, she tried to decide where to start. There was, after all, much to be done. The gazebo needed painting, the flower beds needed weeding, the lawn needed to be mowed,the pond needed to be drained and filled with fresh water.
She grunted softly. She had no paint and no lawn mower. She didn't know how to drain the pond, so she spent the next hour and a half pulling weeds, her gaze constantly straying to the path that led to Dominic's lair.
Gaining her feet, she dusted off her jeans, then walked down the path, finally admitting to herself that this was the reason she had come outside in the first place.
When she reached the door, she placed her hand on it. The iron was cold beneath her palm.
"Dominic, are you down there?"
There was no answer, but she hadn't really expected one. With the sun up, he would be sleeping the sleep of the undead.
With a sigh, she laid her cheek against the door. "Oh, Dominic, what are we going to do?"
Tracy...
Startled, she backed away from the door, only to realize that the voice, his voice, had been in her mind.
Pressing her cheek against the door again, she whispered, "I'm here."
Come to me.
Her heart seemed to turn over in her chest as the door swung open.
She took a step forward, and several candles sprang to life to light her way.
She hesitated a moment, then crossed the threshold.
The door closed behind her. There was no turning back now.
Filled with apprehension, she slowly descended the passageway. The door at the bottom opened as she approached.
She moved into the room with great trepidation, not certain what she would find. Would he be in his coffin? She was afraid she would run screaming from the room if he were.
Her relief was almost palpable when she saw him sitting in the easy chair in front of the fireplace.
He looked up at her, a faint smile playing over his lips. "You came. I did not think you would."
She sat down on the ottoman. "Why did you call me?"
"To warn you to be careful."
"Bryansaid you're going to destroy Petrina . Can you?"
"Yes, but there is a new complication."
"Won't it cause trouble with the other vampires if you kill one of them?"
"Perhaps.But Petrina is not the only problem now."
"What do you mean?"
"It was not Petrina who tookBryan 's blood. It was Kitana ."
"Who's that?"
"She is the vampire who made me."
"I don't understand. What does she have to do with Bryan and Petrina ?"
"This is my chosen territory. Petrina has long desired to have it as her own. I think she has brought Kitana here to fight her battle for her."
"Why have you let Petrina stay?"
"She was turned by the same vampire who brought me across. I suppose I have been lenient with her because of my affection for Kitana ."
"And now?"
"The next move is Kitana's . I do not want to fight her, but I will if I must."
"What aboutBryan ? Is he turning?"
"No. Becoming a vampire is not a gradual thing."
"Then why has he lost his appetite? And he says the sun hurts his eyes."
"She must have given him a good deal of her blood. He is feeling what she feels."
"Will he be all right?"
"If she does not drink from him again, he will be as he was before, in time."
"Dominic, what's wrong?"
"What do you mean?"
"Something's wrong. I can feel it. Tell me."
"There is nothing