Hearts In Darkness

Oh yeah, she was definitely feeling better. Smiling slightly, he rose and helped her to her feet.

'Where are we?' She clutched his arm, hanging on tight, as if afraid she was going to fall.

Maybe she wasn't feeling as well as she was making out. He opened the link again, felt the knot of pain and weakness in her thoughts. He glanced at her head and saw the glimmer of blood. But the tide had slowed to a trickle, and she wasn't in any danger of bleeding to death.

'I don't know where we are. Are you able to walk?'

'Yes.' She teetered forward a few steps. 'What exactly happened?'

He wrapped an arm around her waist, holding her close as they walked, trying to keep her warm. 'You don't remember?'

She shook her head, frowning slightly. 'I remember falling and cracking my head on something, then nothing.'

'You must have hit your head when we fell. We'll head back to the room and—'

'No,' she said, stopping abruptly. 'We've got to get Matthew out of here.'

'Nikki,' he said, as patiently as he could. 'You're wet, and shaking and—'

'I said no, and I meant it.' She glared up him, fists clenched and eyes sparkling with anger. She'd never looked more beautiful. 'We may not get another chance at this.'

He rubbed a hand across his eyes. What she said made perfectly good sense, but he just wasn't willing to risk her life again.

'It's my life to risk, Michael.'

She was back to reading his thoughts. As he'd feared, the barriers he'd raised to stop her were beginning to fade.

She touched his cheek, her fingers cool against his skin. Her thoughts spun around him, through him, tender and persuasive. 'A chill is not going to kill me,' she said softly. 'But any delay might mean the difference between life and death for Matthew.'

She cared more for her client's safety than she did her own. Always had. And no matter what he said or did, she wasn't going to be swayed. 'Stubborn wench,' he muttered and pulled her close, kissing her cold lips.

A shiver ran through her, but he knew it had nothing to do with being cold. He could feel her need as heavily as he did his own. It was an ache growing steadily stronger by the hour. But if he gave in to desire and made love to her as he so desperately wanted to do, he knew he wouldn't have the strength to leave her again. And he had to leave. He couldn't face seeing her cold and lifeless again. Twice was more than enough for his heart to take.

He stepped away, though it was the last thing in the world he wanted to do right now. 'Let's go find a way back up to Matthew, then.'

A knowing smile touched her lips. 'You won't win this battle, you know. Fate is on my side.'

His shrug was noncommittal. He had to at least go down fighting. He held out his hand, and she slipped her fingers into his. Once more he led the way through the caverns, his pace slow at first, then gradually speeding up as she recovered and regained her strength.

They wound their way through the darkness, heading steadily upwards. The air was damp and stale, and it felt as if it hadn't been breathed for many years. Cordell and his cohorts obviously didn't come down here much. If they had, the air would have caught their scents and left them lingering.

The path flattened out. In the distance, like a far-off drum, he could hear the beat of a single heart, guiding him on even as it called to the darkness in him—a darkness he was increasingly able to ignore.

We're getting close to Matthew's cell again.

Her thoughts were touched by fear. He scanned the night, wondering what she felt. He could find nothing, taste nothing in the stillness of the night. Only Matthew. What can you sense?

Something is watching us again. I can feel its presence.

That he couldn't see or feel anything meant little. In some areas, her psychic abilities far outweighed his, and he'd learned to trust her instincts. Is it dangerous?

I don't know.

He scanned the night again. Still nothing. Tell me if it moves.

I will.Her tension was a lump sitting heavily in the link.

He squeezed her hand lightly and continued on until they reached Matthew's cell. The door was still open, the teenager still sitting on his bed. He didn't even look as if he'd moved.

Something's wrong,she said. No teenager in recorded history has ever sat still for so long.

Maybe he's just scared.Yet he could feel no emotion, taste no fear. Frowning, he touched the teenager's thoughts—and found nothing more than memories. All self-awareness had been wiped away, leaving only the desire to please.

He clenched his fist against the surge of anger. He'd seen this done before, though thankfully only rarely.

Matthew had, in some sense, become a thrall, but not one like Nikki. In Matthew's case, his mind and his will had been sucked from his body, leaving him little more than a robot, waiting to fulfill the wishes of his master. It took a vampire with exceptional telepathic abilities to achieve such a thrall. He could never have done it, despite the fact his gifts were very strong. But Elizabeth could.

Michael, what's wrong with him?

His mind has been wiped.His anger surged through the link.

He felt her wince, then her growing horror. What do you mean, wiped?

Just that. Let's go in for a closer look.

She regarded him doubtfully. Do you think it's safe?

Yes.The trap door had already been sprung, and there was no feel of magic in the air. Cordell was either extremely confident no one would find their way through this darkness, or he was a fool. Maybe even both.

He helped Nikki step over the hole, then guided her past the metal spikes that had threatened to skewer him, and the loose stone that had opened the trapdoor. No sense in hitting it a second time, just in case

Cordell wasn't a fool and he did indeed have a second trap waiting.

'Matthew?' Nikki let go of Michael's hand and walked across to the teenager. There was no response from him, no spark of life. It was if she were facing a robot. A chill ran through her. She squatted down beside him and gently pinched his cheek. 'Matthew?'

Michael stopped behind her and crossed his arms. His anger was a storm crowding the link. He knew who was behind this, even if he wasn't saying. Not that it took great intelligence to guess that it was probably Elizabeth.

The teenager didn't respond to either Nikki's touch or her words. She glanced up. Michael's face looked as grim as she felt. Why would someone do this? He's only a kid, for God's sake. They could have just asked him to do what they wanted. They didn't have to do this.

No, they didn't.

She bit her lip, studying Matthew again. What are our options now?

He is little more than a robot. He has no future like this.

What he was really saying was that they had no option but to kill him. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. I know. But you can't. Not yet. Maybe whoever did this to him could undo it.

No one can replace what has been wiped.

She bit her lip. Can you touch what remains? We need to know why they kidnapped him. If we can't save him, we have to at least try to stop this from happening again.

Nothing remains in him, Nikki. Nothing but memories, and the need to obey.

Memories?Michael might not be able to access memories, but she could. She dug a hand into her pocket. Matthew's watch had survived the dunking, but Michael grabbed her wrist before she could wrap her fingers around it.

Damn it, don't be a fool. His mind voice was as fierce as his grip. You risk losing yourself in his thoughts.

Then be my anchor and pull me out if you feel it's dangerous. He'd done it before when Jasper