Benedek could feel Tora’s concern as well. She tried to conceal her worry. Her demeanor was serene. Her expression, composed. To look at her or hear her speak, she appeared to believe Silke had everything well in hand. She just didn’t feel that way.
“I had last night and most of the day to, hopefully, solve the problem. You know I manage the medicinal plants in the forest as well ascheck in with the current residents. I’ve studied the dragon lily and spoken many times to the dragon. It occurred to me that the lily itself, when the petals are rolled before it opens, fits like a sleeve over the sword’s crystal beams. The plant is quite poisonous, a natural poison. The scent is rather horrific for us but would be appealing to demons. At least I believe it is so.”
“You’ve really thought about this?”
“I would never take a chance on your life or Raik’s until I had a plan I believed would work.”
There was confidence in Silke’s voice. In her demeanor. Benedek could feel steel in her. Determination. She had already visualized every move she would make in her mind, going over and over the battle until she felt she could defeat the enemy. He wanted to merge his mind with hers and learn everything there was to know about her. The parasite the vampires had left behind was a problem in that none of the ancients could find it, which meant they couldn’t remove it. Benedek couldn’t take a chance on infecting his lifemate. Until they discovered what the vampires had implanted in them, they had to be extremely cautious.
Just being this close to his lifemate set up an even worse craving than had already been there. Whispers grew in his mind.Take her blood. The others crave her. They are desperate for the taste of her blood. They are conspiring to take her from you.
The whispers were loud, amplifying the cravings he’d awakened with. He was grateful for the centuries of discipline that allowed him to compartmentalize. He allowed the whispers to grow louder to try to analyze them.
Nothing will ever taste as good as that woman. Her blood belongs to you.
The thoughts couldn’t possibly be his own, not even to magnify. He trusted the other ancients. He absolutely knew Nicu was a man of honor and would never conspire with anyone to take his lifemate. Mataias had no parasite in him. He would fight them to the death toprotect an innocent woman—particularly an unmated Carpathian woman. No, the thoughts weren’t his. They had to be coming from the parasite.
Benedek,Tomas said.The temptation to take the women’s blood is extremely loud in my head and getting worse. I shouldn’t be in here.
The same goes for me,Lojos confessed.
The voices grow louder in my head as well,Nicu said.
It is the parasite the vampires injected into us,Benedek said with conviction.These are not your thoughts. A vampire is attempting to control us using compulsion. This was a well-thought-out plan. Even the master vampire and his minions, the ones we fought, were pawns, sacrifices to get the parasites into us.
Nicu was thoughtful as he speculated.Humans made certain we couldn’t use our private plane. They had to have known we would take the fastest route to get here.
Essentially,Mataias said,you’re saying we were herded like cattle right into their trap.
That’s what I believe,Nicu replied.They set us up with a couple of easy battles with lesser vampires so when we ran into the trap, we wouldn’t be suspicious. They expected us to defeat Frisi and his followers. Frisi didn’t realize he was expendable and that his one purpose was to get those parasites in us.
I have to agree with Nicu,Benedek told the others.This attack on us was planned far in advance. The voices we hear are not coming from any of us; rather, they have been planted in us to get one or more to turn vampire and join their ranks. What they don’t realize is we are men with a strict code. We’ve been following that code for centuries. We aren’t going to turn because they amp up our craving for blood.
“Stop talking. Or if you have something to say, show yourself. Don’t hide.” Silke’s voice was low and compelling—compelling enough that for a moment Benedek thought to show himself.
Benedek was certain Silke was speaking to the demon she was determined to extract from Raik Bootsma. All the ancients fell silent.No one moved. Like Benedek, they assumed she was talking to the demon.
Benedek studied Silke’s expression. Pure concentration. Weirdly, her features seemed softer than ever, not at all stern or warrior-like. She faced Raik, feet shoulder-width apart, one foot forward, on the balls of her feet, ready for action. In one hand she had a large tube with clear liquid in it. In her other hand she had what appeared to be a small sword.
Benedek had been around other slayers. He knew they used crystal swords with various shades of light produced from the different crystals embedded in the sword. This sword had five long dark maroon tines coming off the main blade. Each prong closely resembled the velvet petals on a large lily not yet unfurled.
He felt the power of her mind as she sought the demon within the fisherman. It wasn’t just Raik. Her entry into his mind was so subtle, so delicate, the energy so low, he wasn’t aware of her immediately. His first inclination was to throw her out, to erect a barrier so strong it would be impossible for her to penetrate. If he did that, she would be very aware of his presence. As it was, she didn’t seem to realize she had touched his mind when she sought Raik’s. She simply reached out, merging ever so gently with everyone in the room. He didn’t dare warn the others to stay still. He didn’t want to call attention to the ancients or distract her.
Demons were incredibly dangerous, even the lesser ones. Silke didn’t try to invade or push her way into his brain. She didn’t look at his memories. Instead, she kept her energy low-key. She was searching for something, but it wasn’t him or any of the ancients. It wasn’t even Raik.
Benedek found himself growing tense. He had a bad feeling, and it was increasing. His gut reaction always heralded a bad scenario. Tora had woven strong safeguards. It wasn’t as if a vampire could get into the house, so what was coming?
He felt the change in Silke. All of them did. He was connected tothe other ancients, and each of them had a visceral reaction to the flow of energy moving through their minds. This was still low and barely felt, but being so connected to her, Benedek felt power moving through him. Through all the ancients. He knew by their reactions they hadn’t expected a human woman to wield that kind of power when she stayed low-energy. What would she be like when she used every bit of power she had stored in her?
The ominous feeling grew in direct proportion to that subtle flow of energy. It took some time before he realized her energy filled his mind. Filled every space in the room. That was how slow and low-key she was. At no time did she try to hurry. When the ancients fought in battle they could be still and patient for hours, if need be, but they preferred a direct confrontation. Just get the job done and move on.
Benedek wished he could chance reading her mind. He already found her intriguing. Different. He didn’t want to distract her, and she seemed sensitive to their presence.
Without warning there was a swell of nearly overwhelming power. The energy engulfed and targeted the prefrontal cortex of his brain. He felt the other ancients’ shock. Like him, that part of their brain was completely surrounded by her power. It was as if she’d thrown a golden lasso and captured each of them. He still wasn’t certain what she was doing, so he stayed quiet and waited.
“Come to me,” Silke commanded in a whisper. Her voice may have been low, but it was authoritative and seemed to blast through his brain, rocking him. “Leave your host and come to me now.”
He felt a curious wrenching at the prefrontal cortex, as if she had hooked a piece of his brain and was slowly reeling it in. Her demeanor hadn’t changed in the least. Her facial expression appeared soft, serene even. He couldn’t hear an elevated heartbeat. She could have been drinking tea and chatting with her friends.
