The Dracove (The Prophecy series) (32 page)

“Aye, the Merlin trained him. That is, until the Merlin discovered something very dark about him, from what I understand.”

“The Merlin?”

“That’s where he learned his sorcery from.”

“He’s a sorcerer?”

“Aye.”

Kylie blinked. “I thought Merlin was just a fairytale character.” She didn’t find a trace of lie within his ice blue eyes. “And what about you, did you learn any of that?”

“Some.” He grinned widely. “How do ye think I got into your studio that day?”

She slapped him again. “I knew I locked that damn door!”

He laughed heartily and it sounded good in her ears. She thought about everything he’d told her and bit her fingernail.

“So why do you think he’ll hurt me? Does he want to sacrifice me now?”

“Aye, that’s why you must never take the locket off. It has a protection spell on it, one of the first spells I learned.” His eyes shifted to the locket. “I should probably make it stronger . . . an’ add more blood.”

“Why me?”

“He thinks you’re his Chosen One. I’m afraid he might be correct. Your birthmark is the Talisman of the Sacred Three. I never connected it before until I saw it on you. Siobhán had one as well, only hers was on her arm.” He smiled and raised a brow. “I kinda like where yours is.”

She grinned. “I bet you do. And when exactly did you see it? I would have to be na—”

“It was the night I cooked dinner for ye. After I put you to bed, I went in later an’ checked on you because I was concerned. You were scratching your ribcage an’ pulled your shirt up just enough—”

“What else did you see that night, Grant?”

“Nothing,” he replied, miming like he swore upon a Bible. “I swear it.”

“Sure, I believe you. Not. And here I thought you were a perfect gentleman,” she said.

He shook his head and chuckled.

“Is that the only reason he wants me, because of my birthmark?”

“Aye, as far as I’m aware. I’m not quite sure how the whole thing came about. I think it has something to do with your gifts, your powers. It runs very deep in your bloodline. You
do
realize ye have certain gifts, don’t you?”

She shook her head. She didn’t understand what he was asking.

“Don’t you fall into trances?”

She nodded.

“What about your dreams? I think they’re visions of what events that have passed or what’s to come. The one you had earlier told you what just happened here.”

“That happens all the time.” She cringed a little at the reminder of the dream and what always followed. “I told you earlier, every time I have that dream, someone dies. It’s happened that way most of my life.”

“Interesting. You’re a strong psychic, which would explain how you read my mind earlier tonight.”

“I did?”

“Aye. Quite a few times, actually. Let me ask you somethin’. The blood drop that was in the locket, what happened to it?”

She looked at him oddly. “Blood drop?”

“Aye, the one that was inside the locket. You did see it?”

“Yes.”

He paused and studied her face. “Did ye ingest it?”

She cleared her throat and looked away. “I thought it was mine.”

He laughed. “That’s why I smelled my scent on ye. I thought it odd; I hadn’t really been around you much. I thought ye might have known about me already.”

“Perhaps on some level I did. Why didn’t the blood dry?”

“Because I’m immortal, as is my blood.” He chuckled, and continued. “Kylie, you have an incredible amount of power inside you, and it seems to be growing. I don’t know why, maybe it’s your surroundings, being here with me—”

“Maybe you’re rubbing off on me,” she said with a grin.

“Or your powers are growing because you’ve come to your family’s homeland. I’m not exactly sure how it’s happening; perhaps somethin’ to do with your age as well, but you’re getting stronger. I wish we could find out why.”

“I’m sure there’s a way to, Grant.”

“I don’t even know how old ye are.”

She grinned again. “It’s not polite to ask a woman her age. But if you really must know, I’ll be thirty-three on Halloween.”

Shock jumped over his features. “Thirty-three? That’s a sacred number. Did you know there are approximately thirty-three gods an’ goddesses in the Celtic pantheon?”

“No, and I don’t care,” she said.

“An’ All Hallow’s Eve? That’s a sacred day.”

“Yeah, where kids dress up and get bags full of candy.” She leaned forward. “How old are you?”

“Much older than you.” His grin widened.

“Oh, come on, I told you.”

“Halloween is the eve of the festival. I wonder—”

“Grant!”

He grabbed both of her hands and looked deeply into her eyes. “Kylie, when I said I needed ye, part of what I meant was I need your help fighting him. I wasn’t sure who was going to help me, but now . . . .

“This explains why I was drawn to you; why I couldn’t kill ye or harm a hair on your precious head. You don’t remember seeing me in the club, do ye?”

She shook her head.

“Think about it. Wasn’t there a second of time when you saw someone, glanced at him, an’ it seemed to last forever?”

She stared at the floor, trying hard to remember. She gasped. “It was you.”

He smiled.

“You disappeared so quickly. I’d never felt like that before.”

“Neither had I,” he said.

She lightly touched his face. He closed his eyes, obviously savoring the feeling her touch gave him before he spoke again.

“I’m not strong enough to fight him, Ky. He’s much stronger here and I never learned enough to go up against him in battle. He was weak in Arizona, and knew it. He wouldn’t fight me there. Or maybe he wasn’t prepared for it. I’m not sure—”

“When did that happen?”

“The night ye found me wanderin’ outside.”

“Well, that explains that. At least I know I’m not going crazy. Or maybe I am. This is so much information. These things aren’t supposed to be happening in the real world.”

“I know it’s overwhelming. Believe me, I know, but you’re a strong woman.”

“It’ll be okay, Grant. I think I can handle it. I just need to let it sink in.”

“We don’t have that much time,” he said with a grin.

She slapped his thigh.

“Besides, your strength is why I love you.”

“Is that the only reason?”

“You know it’s not.”

“Just checking,” she said with a smile. “I don’t understand how I can help you.”

“I’ll teach ye, but like I said, we don’t have much time.”

She wondered briefly if she’d be stronger as a vampyre. After all, she already had a drop of his—

“No!”

She fell back on her ass.

“You will
not
become vampyr.”

“Jesus, it was just a thought.”

“Well, don’t even think it. I will
not
do that to you.” He crossed his arms over his broad chest.

“What if you already have?” She’d thought he was going to ignore the question, he sat silent for so long.

“Not possible with only one drop of blood. The transformation is a delicate process, an’ I haven’t taken your blood.”

She froze. “Wait a minute. How’d you know what I was thinking?”

“I’m still tryin’ to figure it out myself. I’m telepathic, but ye block me most of the time. I don’t understand it.”

She was okay with that . . . maybe. “What if you don’t have a choice but to change me?”

He shook his head. “It doesn’t matter, I can’t—”

“Will you become like me again if Cianán dies?”

“
When
he dies, an’ I don’t know,” he replied.

“What do you mean you don’t know? He’ll be dead and there will be a chance that you’ll stay a vampyre? I see, so you’ll live forever and I’m supposed to grow old and die.”

Grant hadn’t planned on falling in love with Kylie, or meeting her at all. He’d never considered the idea of changing Siobhán, but she wouldn’t have understood what was happening, and he definitely wasn’t strong enough to kill his Master back then.

Kylie did understand, though, or so it seemed. She might be stronger as a vampyre, and his strength would certainly grow, but he didn’t want to bring her into this life. He didn’t want to tell her he might not even exist anymore once Cianán was dead.

“The answer is still no.”

“Do you love me?”

“Of course I do,” he said, upset she would even ask him that.

“Then if this doesn’t work, promise me we will be together . . . forever.”

“You have no idea what this life is like.”

“If I’m with
you
, I don’t care what it’s like.”

“Ye will, after the fact. Besides, I don’t know what it’ll do to you. There’re things ye don’t know about yet.”

“Then tell me,” she begged, and took both of his hands in hers. “Please, tell me about your world. You’ve brought me into it whether or not you like it. I think I have a right to know, don’t I? Especially if I’m to be sacrificed. If I’m this so-called Chosen One, I was going to end up in your world one way or another. Perhaps you’ve given me an advantage here.”

He sighed, knowing she was right. There was so much she didn’t know. As much as he wanted to tell her, there wasn’t time for everything. The short version would have to do . . . for now.

“I’ve never said these things to a mortal before.”

She nodded, waiting for Grant to begin.

“Pardon me if I have a little trouble . . . .”

He cleared his throat.

“Not all vampyres are exactly the same. When we’re born into this life, if ye can call it that, each of us goes through the end of the Change differently. Some receive the power of telepathy, some telekinesis, and some receive other gifts. I have telepathy an’ most vampyres are empathic, but mine is stronger. These gifts are strong at night, but for reasons not known to us, our gifts are weak durin’ the day.

“The sun doesn’t kill us. We aren’t going to explode, catch on fire, or the like. That’s a myth, an’ you’ve seen that it truly is just a myth. However, we can be killed, but only if ye can get close enough an’ can catch us off guard—a nearly impossible feat. The only way to kill a vampyre is to be-head one. A stake in the heart can slow the older ones down tremendously, but it won’t kill us. Believe me, I know it very well.”

“Oh my God.” She placed a hand over her heart.