“You are safe in my care,” he whispered, his mouth at her temple.
She was content to be held. Even with the sun so close to rising, with the wilderness surrounding them and enemies chasing them, she felt totally protected. He held her for a few minutes, relaxing in the cool of the mountains before the next leg of their journey.
Chapter Fourteen
The view was breathtaking. Jaxon perched on the top of a flat rock and surveyed the cascading waterfall pour down the cavern wall in a rush of white foam. Lucian had once more stopped their flight, this time deep within a cavernous mountain. She was under the earth before she had time to think about the layers of granite and dirt above her head. The cave was huge, the pools deep below the falls giving the illusion of tremendous space. Crystals hung in long spears of color sparkling like diamonds. She could see as clearly as if it were daylight. She was very tired but strangely happy.
As they had made their way across the sky, Jaxon managed to maintain the mist by herself without Lucian’s aid. He had remained fully merged with her but had allowed her to be the one to hold the image firmly in her mind. On the first leg of their journey she had been apprehensive and very much aware of what they were doing. It seemed wholly unnatural. The second time she had accepted the method of travel as expedient and much easier to maintain than she had first thought. She had found her body relaxed and her mind calm as they streaked across the sky together. It was tiring, no doubt about it, but she realized it was like any other effort: It required only practice before she perfected it. Now she wanted to try other things. Wolves. Birds. Everything. Anything.
But it could all wait for a better time. She was too tired, and, aboveground, she was aware the sun was rising. Just before they had entered the cave, her eyes had begun to sting as if pricked by a thousand needles. And the crazy thing was, she had been only mist, with no skin, no eyes, nothing for the sun to touch. Yet she had felt it, and it had been distinctly uncomfortable.
She sat cross-legged on the huge, flat boulder overlooking the series of pools. Above and to her left the long waterfall filled the chamber with a deafening roar. Jaxon was becoming adept at turning down the volume of sounds and now did so with ease. It was good to be sitting on something solid where she felt safe and far from the rays of the sun.
Lucian was setting his safeguards to ensure they were not disturbed. She wasn’t certain exactly what he was doing, but she knew he was powerful enough to protect them from anything that might come their way. She drummed her fingers on the rock surface, wishing she had access to a telephone.
“Why?” The sound of his voice startled her.
Jaxon turned to see him gliding toward her. The way he moved took her breath away. “I thought I’d call back to the captain and make certain nothing had happened since we left.”
His hand unerringly found her hair. “You are still worried about Drake.” His voice was soft with compassion.
She nodded. “I know it’s probably best that we left, especially if we really are being trailed by... vampires.” She stumbled over the word, the idea to her still something out of a Gothic tale! “But I can’t help feeling as if I deserted everybody.”
“Drake will follow us, honey,” he said gently, his fingers tracing the delicate line of her collarbone. “I know he will. There is no reason for him to hurt anyone else.”
“I just wish I could be certain we did the right thing,” she said worriedly. “Merge with me,” he invited softly.
Jaxon hesitated for a moment only because his mind was becoming so familiar, so natural, so much a part of her. She was slipping in and out of it constantly, her mind often reaching for his even without conscious thought. It was disconcerting how much she craved being a part of him. Lucian waited patiently, never hurrying her decision, simply watching her with his dark, fathomless eyes. Jaxon allowed her mind to melt into his. At once she felt safe, sheltered, loved. She felt power and confidence. A sense of completeness.
Antonio? All is well with you?
Jaxon was startled. The mental path Lucian used to contact the man was completely different from the one he used with her. She found Lucian’s hand, weaving her fingers through his.
Yes. And you and your lady? Both of us are fine. She is worried that Drake has retaliated. All is quiet here. I am keeping a low profile, expecting him to visit your home tonight. Tell her not to worry. Thank you, Antonio, and good day to you.
Jaxon found herself smiling at how old-fashioned and courtly Lucian managed to sound even in thought transfers. “Can he contact you anytime?”
Lucian shook his head. “No, although I am certain I would feel his anxiety if he were in a situation where his life was threatened. His family has served Aidan Savage’s family for hundreds of years. They are human but well-versed in the ways of our people. To my knowledge they are among only a handful of humans trusted with the knowledge of the Carpathians’ existence. Antonio is an exceptional young man. I consider him a friend.”
“Are you sure the main vampire followed us as well?”
“Absolutely, Jaxon. He broke off from our trail earlier than did the two lesser vampires, but he has followed. No doubt he thinks we are unaware of him. He will know I am conscious of the two following, but he has a very high opinion of himself and his ability to hide from me.”
“Perhaps it’s because he deserves it,” she suggested quietly.
Lucian arched an elegant black eyebrow at her, a lofty gesture that spoke volumes silently.
Jaxon burst out laughing at his arrogance. “What?” she demanded. “Isn’t it conceivable that he has managed to stay alive for centuries because he’s really good at being a vampire? Maybe he’s more powerful than—”
“I know you are not going to say more powerful than me.” His voice dared her to challenge him. She pushed at the wall of his chest, completely unafraid. “Isn’t it possible?”
“Absolutely not.”
“You really believe that, don’t you?”
“I know it, angel. There is no vampire as powerful. I have great control, tremendous discipline, and I have learned what others have not. Only my brother Gabriel comes close to having the knowledge and abilities I possess.”
He was not bragging, he spoke matter-of-factly, unconcerned with his power. He accepted it as he had accepted everything else in the world around him. It simply was.
“What if you’re wrong? What if you underestimate him?”
Lucian shrugged with lazy casualness. “I can underestimate him easily enough without being less powerful.
Some vampires are quite cunning, all are ruthless and wholly evil. I am certain this one has lived long and acquired much knowledge. It will not do him any good. It is my duty to destroy him, and I will do so.”
“How did you hold out for so long when so many other males have turned?”
Lucian touched her face with gentle fingertips. “I would like to say that I knew you were going to be born and I held on for your sake, but the truth is, I did not believe I would be so rewarded. I met a man many centuries ago. Some say he was the Son of God. Others say he did not exist, and still others say he was merely a good man who lived an exemplary life. I know only that we walked together one night and talked. I touched his mind with mine. In all the days I have walked on this earth, I never met another such as he. He was like me yet different. He was like a human, yet different. There was only goodness in him. Only that. He knew things no one else knew. He was gentle and compassionate. I had already lost my ability to feel, yet when I was in his presence, I was comforted.” Lucian sighed softly and shook his head. “He asked me if I could have anything in the world granted to me, what would I ask for. I replied, a lifemate for Gabriel. He told me Gabriel had a lifemate and he would find her, but we would have to hold out far longer than any other of our kind. I knew he meant that, without my aid, Gabriel would not survive so long a time.”