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stranger. She knew him. She would know him anywhere. He was raw power and pure elegance with his long hair and strong face and piercing eyes. Eyes of death. Whirlwind of death. He took her breath away. She couldn't think of him as anything but her mortal enemy. A dangerous vampire who had killed again and again.
    "How badly are you injured?" Nicolae demanded tersely, his brilliant gaze slashing through the heavy yellow vapor that was gathering around them. "This entire chamber is a death trap. We have to get out of here." He took a step toward her, leaned close, reaching for her to gather her into the safety of his arms. Pater had disappeared, and the feel of the chamber was alarming. The very air vibrated with tension and something far more sinister.
    Destiny flung herself forward to meet him, a dagger concealed along her inner wrist. She would have only one chance to save herself. As Nicolae loomed over her, all muscle and sinew and flowing grace, her stomach lurched alarmingly, her resolve weakening for just a moment. Then she saw his eyes. Dark. Dangerous. Flames flickering in the depths. She thrust the knife at his heart.
    Hands clamped around both of her wrists in a vise-like grip, pinning the flat of the blade against her skin. Someone caught her from behind, jerking her backward against a hard chest. Her captor was enormously strong, his grip unbreakable. Destiny threw her head back, attempting to make contact with her captor, hoping to smash his nose. The back of her head hit a chest so hard that pain exploded behind her eyes and in her temples. She could only watch helplessly as Nicolae bent ever closer toward her. Destiny brought up her one good leg, attempting to kick him.
    "We have to get out of here," said a voice behind her. Low. Musical. Compelling. "You were careless, Nicolae. She nearly did you in." Her unseen captor twisted the dagger from her hand, and just that quickly slit her wrist.
    The action was swift and unexpected, the cut deep and extremely painful. Blood poured from her wrist. Destiny scowled, unable to understand why they would do such a thing. Vampires craved blood and the power of feeling their prey die. They needed the rush of adrenaline in their victim's blood as much as the blood itself.
    "Damn it, Vikirnoff, it wasn't necessary to hurt her." The low murmur of the voice registered even as she felt the combined power of the two men merge, thrust deep and hold her in their thrall.
    Completely helpless, unable to move or to deny them anything, Destiny could only watch in horror as Nicolae gathered her to him, opening his chest with a single slash. He pressed her close, offering his ancient blood, blood she knew would bind them together for eternity. She struggled in her own mind, heard the scream of fear and panic wrenched from her soul, a scream that never made it past her throat. But she drank because she had no choice. They were far too powerful together.
    It is necessary to remove the tainted blood from your system. Relax — we have to do this fast. We need to leave this place, and the vampire has poisoned your body with something new to us. Go inside yourself, analyze the compound, break it down and push it out of your body . As always, Nicolae's voice was gentle and steady.
    She heard her captor chanting, words Nicolae had used in her mind before, a rhythm of soft, soothing music that somehow took the pain from her calf and her wrist. From her shoulder and arm where the vampire had managed to mark her. Strangely, as Nicolae's blood poured into her, the terrible burning that was with her day and night seemed to ease. She became aware of Nicolae's hand at the nape of her neck, cradling her head, massaging her neck. Gently.
    Destiny closed her eyes to shut out what was happening to her, the helpless feeling of being utterly and completely vulnerable. The ground beneath them shivered, a forewarning. They couldn't dissolve into mist with the poisonous vapor surrounding them, and she couldn't