As I stepped across the carpet of our bedroom, a new worry surfaced. I detoured from the bed and peeked out the door.
Gwen stared back. “I’m not taking you anywhere. It’s almost dawn, and you have a black cloud following wherever you go. The dayshift guard needs to—”
“Has Tane returned?”
She stood straighter and widened her eyes. “No.”
“Shouldn’t someone go find him before the sun does?” I clenched my towel even tighter. The vision of him twisting around me to take the second arrow haunted my thoughts. Not even sex drove it away.
“He knows how to survive in the wild, Connie.” She gave me a wiry smile. “He was a vampire before civilizations developed.”
Chapter Eighteen
The crack of the whip made me flinch, yet I didn’t feel its bite. I tried to run with all my might, yet my body wouldn’t move. Manacles weighed heavy on my wrists, dragging them to the floor. Blinded by darkness I could hear him approaching, one heavy footstep at a time.
Terror clutched my soul and squeezed me like a squeak toy until I screamed.
And sat bolt upright in bed. Blankets twisted around my legs as I tried to escape. I kicked and rolled, only to tumble head over heels off the damn bed. The thump to my head only fogged my mind more.
My sweat-soaked nightie clung to my body. Weary and exhausted, nothing made sense. I only wanted to sleep, except Luckard wouldn’t let me. I had to run, to hide, then maybe he’d leave me alone.
Without another thought, I headed out the door. A strange man stood in my way, his eyes wide, hands held up in front of him.
I didn’t allow him a chance to capture me and swung a left hook before I lost the element of surprise. It connected with his chin and the stranger fell, but my knuckles stung.
No destination, no plan or goal, I just needed to flee the sound of the cracking whip.
Rounding a corner, I rebounded off someone heading in the other direction. With unnatural speed, they pinned my arms to my sides and dragged me down the hall.
I bit, screamed and tried to head-butt my assailant. We came to a pair of familiar wooden doors where Tane stood waiting.
I knew him. He felt safe.
Released from the man’s grip, I raced to Tane’s open arms. He’d saved me twice, I could trust him to do it again.
With a slight grunt when I flung myself against his chest, he encircled me in a strong hug, and kicked the door shut. “What the hell is wrong with you?” He glared at me, bewildered.
“I-I. The whip…and Luckard.” Looking around, I realized I stood in Tane’s foyer. “I don’t know.”
He guided me to a couch in the sitting area. The creepy masks on the wall all stared at me as if laughing. “Sounds as if you had a nightmare.”
I flopped onto the cushion. “Yeah, a pretty vivid one.”
Tane sat next to me. “We should check your mental shield.”
“Let’s not and say we did. I’ve had enough of you in my head lately.”
“A human is more susceptible in their sleep, Rabbit. This might not be a nightmare.”
I swallowed with a dry throat and stared at him. “Then what the hell is it?”
“Luckard trying to get into your head. He probably thinks he can slip into my head from yours through our bond, but I’m too strong for that and he’s too stupid.”
“Okay.” The thought of Luckard trying to get inside my head turned my stomach. It quelled my anxiety enough to allow Tane access to my mind. This was all I needed, two Nosferatu taking a field trip in my brain.
Tane stared at me, I didn’t sense anything around my shield though. Not a good sign.
He nodded. “All done. Have you had similar dreams?”
I retold the one I’d had yesterday afternoon before asking Gwen to take me outside for some fresh air.
“Sleep the rest of the day here. My presence will shield you.” He stood and retrieved a blanket from a trunk then spread it over me as I lay across the soft couch, too tired to argue.
Something struck me as wrong at that moment. The fog cleared. “What are you doing awake? Is it later than I thought?” I sat up and scanned the room for a clock.
“I don’t need to rest during the day like the others.” With one finger on my shoulder, he pushed me back into the plush cushions. “This is usually my quiet time, though.”
“When dawn arrives you don’t shut down?” The incredulity in my voice was apparent, even to myself.
He sighed as if trying to grasp at some patience. “I’m old enough to resist it.
Sometimes I sleep because I’m bored.” He tucked the blanket under my chin. “Rest.”
“Can all Nosferatu stay awake?”
A low growl rumbled in his chest “You’re driving me nuts. Sleep.” His last word snapped like a command.
I pulled the blanket up to my nose. Tane’s reassurance that Luckard couldn’t reach me didn’t ease my fears. What if they were just nightmares from my sick and twisted mind?
He knelt next to the couch so we could be eye to eye. “Sometimes I forget how young you are. What are you, twenty-five?”
“Twenty-nine.”
The color of his eyes was such a dark brown they almost seemed black. They softened at my response. “I can’t remember being twenty-nine.” He chuckled. “I’ll tell you something a wise man passed on to me once. You’re going to live longer than you expected, and bad things are bound to happen. Let them bounce off you. Grieve, cry, fight whatever you need to survive, but don’t cling to it. Move on.”
“I tend to cling.” When my husband had died, I clung to a bottle of rum for a year.
“What’s bothering you?”
All I could do was sputter. His question struck me speechless. “Where do you want me to start?” I flung my hands out.
He frowned. “Patience has never been one of my virtues, Connie.”
“Luckard, the bond and having to stay here.” I took Tane’s hand. The expression of confusion on his face as he stared at our melded fingers made me want to smile except I couldn’t. “I feel trapped and helpless.”
“Is this the same woman who refused to choose sides in Budapest, and once told me she’d build her own damn boat to brave the political storms?”
“I’m not feeling very brave this morning. Luckard broke something inside me, and I don’t think you can lick and make it better.”
Tane gazed at me as if not sure what manner of creature sat on his sofa. “I wish I could. The best I can offer you is revenge.”
I nodded as he slipped his hand out of my grip. His red silk robe hung open and the wound on his chest peeked out. I reached to touch the edges. “It’s not healed?”
He flinched as if it stung. “Wounds caused by wooden weapons heal slower. It will be gone by tonight.”
Tracing my fingers across his chest, I examined the injury, the one he took for me.
“Did you catch the person who tried to kill us?”
“No.” A simple word, but the angry tone told me of his frustration. “I have it under control, though.”
“Really? You planned getting a cross bolt through your chest?” Sometimes I wish I could pull back the things I’ve said. I couldn't have alienated Tane more if I tried.
He stood and his robe closed. “If you need me, I’ll be in my bedroom reading.”
“Wait.” I sat up and offered a rare act on my part. “I’m sorry.” Apologies grated on my nerves, especially when the person deserved one.
“Control over your words will be essential if you wish to survive in this court. You need to practice restraint.”
“Rurik’s told me this already and it probably won’t happen anytime soon. I’d rather not be alone right now. Can you read here?”
Tane turned slightly, his gaze traveled along my body. He then retrieved a thin, brown leather bound book from a drawer in the side table. “Scoot forward.” He sat behind me and straddled his legs on each side of my hips. “Lean back.”