Hearts In Darkness

and the other vampires had not.

'It will kill you, you know.'

'It cannot. It merely resides within me, controlling me when I'm within Cordell's boundaries.'

If her actions now—or lack of them—were anything to go by, then she was currently well outside those boundaries.

'The imp killed the young vampire who was supposed to meet us at the airport, Elizabeth. His body could no longer contain the imp's heat, and he literally melted. Ginger has already told us her form will not long contain her. What makes you think your fate will be any different?'

A frown flickered across her face. 'You lie.'

'You would taste it if I did.'

'Yes.' She hesitated, then shrugged and glanced at Nikki. 'Is this your thrall? Does she taste as pretty as she looks?'

'Keep away from her, or I promise you, I'll tear your cold heart out of your chest.' He kept his voice flat, devoid of any emotion. But anger rose in him, as well as fear. Elizabeth was a bigger danger to Nikki than she had ever been to him.

She raised her eyebrows again. 'Touchy. One might be inclined to think you cared for her.'

He shrugged. 'She suits my current needs, and I have no wish to make another.'

A red cloud of annoyance flashed through the link. Nikki was awake. And listening.

'I'm sure she does,' Elizabeth murmured. 'She looks… athletic. Boringly so.'

The annoyance became a cloud of indignant anger, and he had to bite down on his amusement. Boring was one word he would never use to describe his and Nikki's lovemaking—what little there had been of it so far.

'However,' Elizabeth continued, pushing away from the door frame,'I did not come here to discuss your thrall. Your presence has presented me with something of a quandary.'

Tension knotted his gut. He watched her carefully, knowing from the past that she would give no warning if she chose to attack. 'You cannot take the teenager.'

'Don't be tedious, Michael. I must. What I don't want to do right now is have to kill you.'

'Presuming you could.'

Her smile was that of a mother indulging a child. 'What is the point of protecting him? Without me, he is nothing. An empty shell.'

'I don't mean to protect him, Elizabeth.'

'Ah. Well. I can't let you kill him. Not yet.'

Her canines were beginning to show. She was anticipating the fight, even if she wasn't yet ready to actually fight him. 'Then we are, as you say, at an impasse.'

'Not really,' Nikki muttered and flung out her hand. Energy seared through his mind and across his skin.

Elizabeth's eyes widened in surprise, and she jerked backwards, tumbling down into the well. After several seconds there was a splash, then silence again.

'That witch deserved a good dunking. Boring indeed!'

He grinned, even though he knew the sudden swim would only make Elizabeth angrier—make her more inclined to go after Nikki.

He grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet. 'I take it you've recovered from the trip through

Matthew's memories?'

The amusement fled from her face. 'Yes.' She shuddered. 'It was awful, though. God, I felt her suck his thoughts dry. It felt like she was sucking mine…'

He wrapped his arms around her, holding her close, comforting her even though he knew they had to get going. Elizabeth wouldn't hesitate to attack a second time—not if she found them still in this room.

'We only have one choice, Nikki. We can't leave him like this. They'll only continue to use him, and when they've finished, they'll kill him anyway.'

'I know.' She hesitated, then pulled out of his arms. 'Make it quick.'

Hands clenched and back rigid, she walked to the door, her back to the room. He turned to the teenager and gently closed the kid's unseeing eyes.

I hope you find peace in death, Matthew.

The words echoed through the emptiness that was the teenager's mind. Anger tore through him.

Elizabeth had no right to do this. Not to a mere boy like Matthew. Not to anyone.

He wrapped an arm around the teenager's neck, grabbed his head with the other, and twisted sharply, just the once. Human life was all too fragile, so easily taken. He laid Matthew gently on the bed and joined Nikki by the door.

She glanced up at him. There were tears in her eyes and her thoughts. 'How could you love someone capable of doing something like that?'

'I don't love her.' It was the truth. He hadn't loved Elizabeth for a very long time—if he'd ever truly loved her. It had just taken him a long time to realize it.

'But you did love her once.'

'Perhaps.' He touched her back, feeling the chill in her skin through the dampness of her clothes. She needed warmth, not darkness and death. He guided her past the traps. 'Let's move, before she gets back.'

She shivered, but he wasn't sure if it was the cold or the thought of Elizabeth returning.

'Will she come after us in revenge for Matthew?'

He doubted very much whether Elizabeth would really even care about the boy. She'd had her fun, and it was Cordell who'd wanted the teenager's help, not her. Besides, if she had really wanted them dead, she would have attacked right away, when she'd had the upper hand.

'I think it's Cordell we have to worry about, not Elizabeth.'

Doubt ran through the link, as bright as fire. 'Don't trust her, Michael. The darkness in her heart is stronger than you think.'

Seline had said much the same thing, and he wasn't about to take either warning lightly. 'It's Cordell who's pulling everyone's strings, Elizabeth's included.' And it was about time he did something about it.

But not before he got Nikki out of this resort and back home to safety.

Chapter Eighteen

Nikki flopped on the bed and closed her eyes. Images ran past her eyelids—visions of fear intermixed with pleasure. Elizabeth had sucked Matthew's mind dry even as she made love to him. And it had all happened in that office, with Cordell watching avidly.

Sick. They were all sick.She swallowed heavily. They might be sick, but they were also very dangerous. Michael had locked all the doors to their room, but she couldn't escape the notion that if

Cordell wanted to get in here, he could do so without using the doors. Easily.

From the bathroom came the sound of running water. Michael preparing the hot tub for a bath she didn't want. She didn't care about the need to get warm. She just wanted Michael to take her in his arms and hold her. She had a very strong suspicion time was running out for them.

She knew, too, that he intended to ask her to go home. But he had a snowball's chance in hell of making that happen. He was going to need her help to survive the battle that loomed, and she had no intention of going anywhere.

'You're not getting undressed.'

 She opened her eyes. He leaned against the bathroom door frame, dark hair tousled and a warm light in his eyes. 'I don't have the energy.'

'If you don't get up and undressed, I'll throw you in, clothes and all.'

'If I go in, you're going in, buddy.'

His sudden grin was almost boyish, and he looked so damn sexy she just wanted to grab him and kiss him and make love to him. How could he treat her with such warmth and tenderness and expect to keep her at arm's