Dark Legend (8 page)

Francesca twisted her wrist experimentally, reminding him to release her. "There's no real need to hurry," she said coolly. Even as she said it, even as she tried to dismiss him, she was reaching up to smooth his collar.

At once Gabriel felt the same soothing calm he had experienced from the moment she had first touched him. He had not realized just how tight he was inside. Francesca recognized it and knew what to do to relax him. "You are a great man, Gabriel, a legend among our people, and your reputation is well deserved. I wish that I could give you all that you should have." Francesca's long lashes swept down to conceal the deep sorrow and guilt in her eyes. "But I had a life before you came here. I don't know you. My body reacts as a Carpathian lifemate's should, but my heart is not yours."

Gabriel brought her hand up to her chest and held it over his heart. "You feel admiration for this human doctor, Francesca, I can read it easily in your mind, but do not mistake it for love."

"Why do you believe I could not love a human man?"

"Because you are my lifemate and there is only one man for you. I am here now, Francesca. I should have been here sooner, but I am here now. Do not allow fear to send you running to this man."

"I have felt affection for Brice for a long time, Gabriel. It is true I was entertaining the idea of sharing my last years with him. I deserve some semblance of happiness in so long a lifetime." Francesca could not understand why she was feeling guilty. She owed Gabriel nothing. She had asked him not to bind them together, yet he had done so. She felt cornered and confused.

"You enjoy this doctor's company because you share his interests. You are a born healer. He, too, heals people. But that commonality is not love, Francesca. Affection, admiration and friendship do not add up to love."

"If he had asked me to marry him, Gabriel, you would have found him living with me."

Gabriel's black eyes moved over her face. Very gently he reached out to tug her chin up. "I do not have to read your mind to know just how often he has asked this question of you. No man, human or otherwise, would take long to try to make you his. You do not love him, Francesca."

"I don't love you, Gabriel. And that matters to me. I have lived far too long to enter into a relationship at this late date because I wish to experience sex."

His eyes laughed at her. "Great sex," he corrected.

A small answering smile flirted with her mouth. "All right then, great sex," she conceded. "Don't get any ideas, I'm just giving the devil his due. All this time our people called you the angel of light and Lucian the dark angel. I think they might have it backward." She withdrew her hand and turned away from him. "I do not mind if you find another sleeping chamber, Gabriel. Do not count too heavily on winning this battle between us. Even after what has occurred between us, I am still determined to carry on with my plans to grow old. I have lived long and I tire of watching others die."

"There is no battle, honey," he murmured softly and watched her walk out into the dark night. She had no chance of escaping him. He had made sure of that. No one, human or otherwise, could take her from him now. And his insurance policy would prevent her from seeking the solace of the dawn as nothing else could. He glided through the room to the door and stood staring out at the lights of the city. So many. It was lit up as brightly as the heavens above.

Gabriel had been locked beneath the earth a long time; there was much to catch up on. He had to relearn the layout of Paris, find every alley and every bolt-hole in it. This was a perfect hunting ground for a demon such as Lucian had become. Soon it would start. The killings, the deaths, the endless hunt and the many battles. Somewhere out there in the slumbering city stalked a merciless, relentless killer. No one was safe, no one would be safe again until Gabriel destroyed him. Now with Francesca to protect, Gabriel knew it was imperative he win this time. He had to find a way to destroy his brother. If he had hesitated out of misguided loyalty in the past, he no longer had the luxury of being able to do so now. Francesca must be protected at all times. With a heavy heart, he took three running steps and launched himself into the air.

Francesca took her time walking to the hospital. She loved the night. As much as she had longed for the sun, had worked to be able to walk in it, she loved the night. There was peace and tranquility after sunset, whereas chaos often reigned during the day. She loved the sounds of the night creatures, the rush of wings overhead that only a select few ever heard. There was a secret world she had always been part of, and now Gabriel was demanding she return to it.

How long had it been since she had seen her homeland, the Carpathian Mountains? What would it be like to walk among her own kind? To dig her fingers deep in the rich, healing soil? She had long ago given up that dream. Why had he come back after all this time? Why now? What was it she felt for Brice? Could she give her body so willingly, so completely to Gabriel and really have affection for Brice? Gabriel hadn't taken what she wasn't willing to give. He might have awakened her to his need, might even have planted the seeds of desire in her body before waking her, but she was no fledgling. She could not place the blame on Gabriel's shoulders. She could have stopped him, or at least made things extremely difficult. No, she couldn't place the blame on Gabriel. She had wanted him almost from the first moment she had awakened with his blood coursing through her veins.

What did that mean? Was she a woman who could be with more than one man at the same time? Could she love Brice? If she really loved him, why hadn't she said she would marry him long before now? Was Gabriel right? Was she rushing to Brice because he was safe and someone she knew? Someone who could never dominate her? Was she still harboring a young girl's hurt and humiliation? She had thought herself long over those silly feelings.

She was bound to Gabriel. Her mind tuned itself to his. Her body cried out for his. They were tied, yet her wayward heart seemed to have a mind of its own. How could that be? Had she made herself so human, she could no longer be tied by the ritual words? No, she had felt the burning need, the terrible hunger only Gabriel could assuage.

Sighing, Francesca rubbed her pounding temples. She had betrayed her own beliefs. She had never committed herself to Brice, but she had secretly entertained the idea that there was a chance for them. Brice cared a great deal for her; she felt his genuine affection every time they were together. It would be impossible for him to lie to her, she could read his mind so easily. He would be so upset if she suddenly withdrew from their relationship. She had allowed him to feel for her. Didn't that make her responsible? She felt confused and lonely. And she was so very tired of living so completely alone.

"Not alone, Francesca. I am here to talk with you. There is no need to feel betrayal. I came into your life unexpectedly. I cannot say I am happy you think constantly of another man and worry more about his happiness than mine, but I do understand. I complicated things for you."

Francesca blinked back tears. There was something comforting and very intimate about another speaking so softly in her head, whispering soothing words of understanding and camaraderie in the face of her personal crisis. It had been so long since she had used such a means of communication. Gabriel's voice was a powerful tool, stroking like a caress through her mind. For the first time in many centuries she felt she was not alone. The women of her species needed their other half.
Gabriel.
She closed her eyes briefly. Why had he come back now?

"Francesca! Thank God." Brice came hurrying out of an alcove just around the corner from the entrance to the emergency room. "I've lost half my life worrying about you. Who was that man?"

Brice's arm curved around her shoulders and at once she felt the heavy weight of Gabriel's disapproval. Carpathian males did not share their women well. Gabriel was Old World. He had spent centuries of his life chasing demons, protecting others. He had the instincts of a predator, yet he was also courageous, a courtly, elegant lord. She could feel his struggle to remain balanced and understanding when his very nature demanded he eliminate his competition efficiently and very swiftly. It had been a long time since Francesca had lived in his world. She had almost forgotten the way the men of her race were with their women. Protective. Possessive.

"His name is Gabriel, Brice. I'm sorry, I had no idea he was going to be there. If I'd known, I would have told you about him before you met him."

"He looks at you as if he owns you." Brice hugged her to him, suddenly feeling as if he had already lost her. There was a wariness in her eyes that had never been there before. Francesca was different, but he couldn't exactly say how. "He thinks he does, doesn't he? What is he to you?"

"He was my husband. I thought he was dead," Francesca said softly, truthfully. "I was more shocked to see him alive than you must be. I'm sorry, Brice, he's been gone forever. I had no idea he would come back. I truly thought him dead all these years."

"You never mentioned a husband." Brice was clearly in shock.

She nodded. "I know I didn't. It was a long time ago and I had accepted that he was gone. His return is a shock and I have to deal with it. All of us do."

Brice swallowed hard, visibly upset, so much so that she automatically soothed him with her touch. He immediately laced his fingers through hers. "What does it mean? He can't think after all this time he can just walk back into your life, can he? You know how I feel about you. Was he legally declared dead? What does this mean for us?"

"I don't honestly know what to think right now, Brice. I told you, I'm in a state of complete shock." Because Francesca could not bear to be dishonest with him, she forced herself to go further. "But it does change things. How could it not? Gabriel is a very overpowering man and he certainly was never declared dead."

Brice stepped away from her, his eyes moving over her face in censure. "You're still attracted to him, aren't you?" It was an accusation.

Francesca looked away from him, guilt washing over her in a rush. "He was my husband, Brice. What do you think?"

"Damn it, Francesca! You should have married me a long time ago. You certainly thought about it, you can't deny that you did. So what if he's come back? He doesn't belong in your life anymore." Suddenly he went very still. "He isn't staying at your house, is he?"

Francesca remained silent, her gaze studiously avoiding his.

Brice slapped his forehead. "Francesca! Are you out of your mind? You don't even know anything about this man anymore. Where has he been all this time? Do you even know what he's been doing lately? I'll bet you don't yet you just take him in as if no time has passed. For all you know, he could have been in jail. He probably was in jail." His hand on her arm detained her progress into the hospital. "Is that it, Francesca? Was he in jail somewhere and you just don't want to tell me? I think you owe it to me."

"If I wanted to tell you, I wouldn't be able to. You won't let me get a word in edgewise," Francesca protested. "Where Gabriel was and what he was doing is his business, only his, and I don't owe you that information."

"You slept with him." Brice made it a statement.

"That isn't your business either." Her chin was up, her eyes flashing a warning signal. Francesca might feel guilty but she couldn't find it in her to allow Brice or any other man to chastise her. She had always been honest with him, always. More than once she had encouraged him to find another woman, one who would adore him as he deserved. Francesca was just not that kind. It made her feel sad that she wasn't. It made her feel inadequate that she couldn't give her heart completely and totally. There was something wrong with her, something missing. It was just as well Gabriel had chosen to follow another path; he would have found her less than perfect, his life with her less than satisfying.

"Has it occurred to you he may have been living with another woman all these years? He could have another wife and even children somewhere and you wouldn't know it." The words slipped out maliciously, before he could stop them.

Her large black eyes flashed with sudden anger at the suggestion. "That's beneath you, Brice," she pointed out softly.

"Francesca, please. Don't do this." Brice circled her waist with his arm, but as he drew her close to his body he was very much aware he had crossed some line.

At once she was uncomfortable, stiff. She could smell his cologne and though it was expensive, it made her feel slightly nauseated. It was strange, she had always rather liked his cologne, yet now she thought only of the way Gabriel smelled, his musky, male scent. Was that part of the ritual, the binding? Did it make it impossible for her to touch another man? Was that the secret the men of their race held over the women? She shoved an impatient hand through her hair, found her fingers were trembling. Maybe there was a way to undo what the ritual words had wrought. After all, she had done the impossible: she had found a way to walk among humans in the noonday sun. Gabriel might have reversed her accomplishment, but that didn't negate the fact that she had done what no other Carpathian ever had.

"I'm not doing anything, Brice. I don't know what to do, so I'm not doing a single thing. I'm not asking you to put your life on hold or asking you to wait. I've always told you to find a sweet girl and settle down." Francesca brushed her hair away, a nervous gesture she rarely made.

"I love you, Francesca," Brice said unhappily. "I'm not about to run out and find another woman. You're the one I want. I can't say I like the idea of a former husband staying at your house, but I don't want you shutting me out because you think I can't handle it."

Francesca shook her head. "I can't handle it, Brice. You have no idea how confused I feel. I'd rather not talk about it any more right now. What if I just look at this patient for you?"

Brice caught at her arm and slowed his pace to prevent her from entering the hospital. "Do you love him?"