Eternal Flame

Page No 1 Eternal Flame 1 Page No 2 Lynn Warren 2 ETERNAL FLAME by Lynn Warren Triskelion Publishing www.triskelionp ublishing.com Published by Triskelion Publishing www.triskelionpublishing.com 8190 W. Deer Valley Road, Peoria, AZ 85382 U.S.A. First e-published by Triskelion Publishing First e-publishing September 200 4 ISBN 1-932866-31-0 Copyright © Lynn Warren 2004 All rights reserved. Cover art by Triskelion Publishing PUBLISHER’S NOTE: This is a work of f iction. Names, characters places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to persons living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entire ly coincidental. Page No 3 Eternal Flame 3 Dedications To Gail, who dug out her whip and made me do this. And to all the gals in the Lounge who’ve been waiting to sink their teeth in Christian. Page No 4 Lynn Warren 4 CHAPTER ONE Blood. To many, the life force behind the human body. H illary Tennyson spent most of her life studying blood, its agents, properties and the diseases associa ted with the fluid of life. Her degree in hematology opened doorways to rese arch. Five years of her life she studied in seclusion, fearful no one would believe her findings. If she hadn’t carefully logged and precisely recorded her experiments, she knew she wouldn’t have believed it herself. An unknown strand in the chemical composition of blood; she tested thousands of samples and found it present in just one. Hers.

Unfortunately, she didn’t know what the strand re presented or what it migh t be doing in her bloodstream. It seemed to cause her no ill effects. At le ast, not according to the multitude of test panels Hillary conducted on her self. In her study, each sample had a number and no name. There were no rec ords of which blood belonged to which person outside of the number . Simply a matter of protecting people’s privacy. Now Hillary, who had barely atta ined any grant money when the project started, wished at times that she’d n ever begun. Locking the door to the lab, Hillary juggled her keys and her briefcase as sh e left St. Anne’s Hospital of Mercy. Another night with little progress, she sighed, r unning over a hundred things in her head. A key link to the puzzle remained illusiv e. There was a clue. Somewhere. She didn’t consider everything, no one could . She’d tested a good sec tion of the population including all of her living relatives and no one on the planet seemed to have the strand. At this late hour, one-forty a.m., the city of Las Vegas was far from sleep . Fall brought crisp night temperatures with a slight chill to the air. Hill ary loved the weather. A warm fireplace with her snuggled beneath a billowy comforter with a hot bowl of s oup sounded real good at the moment. She’d gr own up in California but it wasn’t until she got her Ph.D. that she moved to Las Vegas. The excitement of the nightlife drew her, Hillary loved the part y town atmo sphere mingled with exquisite dining at any time of the night. P lus, her benefactor made it clear the funding for the project only came if s he moved to Vegas. Hillary parked in the lot reserved for doctors on the nor th side of the hospital. The grounds had beautifully manicured, filled with lush bushes. Fl owers cascaded along the brick walkway out to the Page No 5 Eternal Flame 5 parking area. Trees surrounded the hospital. Huge oak, evergreen, and a sma ll patch of palm trees flanked the grounds surrounding the parking lot. The trees led down a ravine to a heavily wooded area that was so dense, even t he gardeners gave up on it most of the time. Hillary gingerly laid her brie fcase on the roof of her Lexus. Her one outwardly symbol of luxury. She cou ldn’t resist the car and treate d it like an exotic pet. The b east always bathed and waxed once a week and its service checks meticulously scheduled on the calendar. Her key clicked into the lock when she realized something was wrong. A snap of a twig from beneath a tree, Hillary’s head jerked up. She froze i n place for what felt like eons but was closer to seconds. Hurriedly, she op

ened the car door reaching around for her briefcase. Footsteps on the gravel sprinkled parking lot alerted her. She didn’t wa nt to look. Everything ins ide her told her not to, that the person was just another doc tor working la te. Doctors didn’t come out of the bushes, though. And security made its rou nds on the hour. Her hand missed the briefcase handle in her rush and she practically lunge d for it again. The wind stopped. The fog seemed to smother her. Dear God, what was happening? Hard, ragged breathing filled her ears. Was she running ? A hollow clink hit the pavement and she knew she dropped her keys. Whippi ng about, Hillary pe ered into the darkness hoping to see them. The briefca se weighed heavily at her side. Rivers of iciness dripped down her spine. S oft footfalls approached her rapidly, someone with tennis shoes. The lights of th e hospital emergency room weren’t more than a hundred feet away. Run , she screamed to her short legs. Run! A scream gurgled through her throat as a ha nd bore down upon her shoulder. Pain trickled down her arm and she swung the briefcase with all her might. The handle vibrated in her hand as she struck the man in the chest. In the dim light, she made out dark, long hair and a beard, before she turned and ran. A second later Hillary fell, t ackled forward. Blistering pain rifled through her knees as the man’s weigh t crushed down upon her forcing her to the asphalt. A scream tore into the night before a dirty, grease-stained hand clamped across he r mouth. He wre stled her to the ground as Hillary kicked against him. “Get off me, you son ofabitch!” Hillary kicked going for his balls but missed and hit the man in the knee. She rammed him again with her knee and this time connected. He h owled in rage while Hillary scrambled to her feet. Ignoring the stinging bits of rock that bit into her flesh, Hillary scrambl ed to save her sanity and her life. He caught hold of shirt and pulled her u p agai nst him. The hot stench of alcohol on his breath nauseated her while she pummeled, fighting from being dragged halfway into the bushes where a ta ll thin man waited for a victim. Blood pounding, she heard roarin g in her e ars, breathing ceased being natural. “Get the fuck off me!” Page No 6 Lynn Warren 6 “Fuck is what we’re going to do, bitch!” He threw her hard to the ground. S omewhere in the back of her mind, Hillary knew this kind of strength didn’t belong in a normal man. Thorny vines twisted and cut into her skin, tearing at her cotton blouse and skirt. She lost a shoe as he pulled her into the wo oded ravine. Night birds ceased cooing and crickets halted in mid-chirp whil e Hillary tried gaining a foot hold through the thick leaves. Her arms twist ed behind her back at a wicked angle, Hillary could hardly sit up. Suddenly

released, she fell onto her back pulling her aching arms down to her sides. With terrible slowness, she rolled to her knees and tried to stand. Agony co ursed th rough her head as he struck her with what felt like a baseball bat. Her vision sha ttered into a million stars as a trickle of blood oozed acro ss her cheek. Hillary’s world gave a violent lurch sending her crumbling to her knees. He was going to rape and murder her and now she was helpless to s top it. Fragments of thoughts rushed through her brain, he r research, her l ife, her boyfriend. She wasn’t even married yet. Only twenty-eight. The bloo d might be the key. Hillary collapsed into a flowery bed of moss. Such a swe et clean scent overpowered the dirty stench of her attacker. How could she a ssume something like this couldn’t happen to her? It happened to millions of people. She closed her eyes to the near blinding pain, te ars blurring her vision. She reached out for the rock lying beside her. It might be her onl y chance. It wasn’t that far away. She watched her fingers crawl for the smoo th stone. A vicious jerk on her blouse pulled her out of the dreamy space he r body floated in and out of consciousness, heart beating so fast in her che st, H illary knew she would die. “Get off me, you fucking bastard!” The man leaned closer, tearing at her blouse with nails that felt like vicio us claws. He bared her breasts and bent down. A crazed grin plastered on his face and in the blue moonlight, Hillary saw something that couldn’t possibly exist. Fangs. Then, the man bit her. He actually fucking bit he r above the breast. Hilla ry screamed as hot, vile venom entered her system burning through her veins. With what little strength remained, she slammed the rock into the side of t he man’s forehead. He rolled off her screaming violently, clutching his head. Pushing herself on her side, Hillary dragged her body to a standing positi on. Kicking off the only shoe she wore , she began to run. Lights from the hospital parking lo t swam back and fort h in her muddled vi sion. Out of focus like pictures of UFO’s, she ran for t hem, her only sanctuary. She couldn’t hear herself runni ng through the brush, the traffic on the nearb y street, or the Page No 7 Eternal Flame 7 peaceful noises of the night. All that she heard were the footsteps of her at tack er in lightning pursuit. Rose bushes tore at her skirt and nylons catchi ng at her as if they too didn’t want her to escape. Finally, the row of palm

trees right before the parking lot. If only she could force herself to run fa ster. Barefoot, she ignored the sharp rocks, mud and sticks, which hindered h er, the trees, were right there. A low, feral growl pierced the fog. Hillary ne arly slid to a halt, catching hold of a ficus tree branch to steady hersel f. Absentl y, she drew the tattered blouse up ove r the wound trying to staun ch the flow of blood. A dog. A wolf. Not this close to the city surely. The n oise seemed to be right in front of her. Hillary glanced back barely able to make out the shadowed figure that couldn’t be more than twelve feet behind her. Dragging air into her parched lungs, she pushed herself forward praying th at the animal ahead could save her from the beast behind her. “Please,” her voice a strang led choke, “someone help me!” Dogs were always on her high list, she just prayed this one would understand how much she needed him to be nice and let her pass at the moment. Let him be a nice dog, she whispere d to herself. The fog fell thick and damp around her feet and ankles, obscu ring her vision nearly as much as the head injury. Fog? That didn’t make se nse. Vegas did not get fog. She could see the outline of a large dog ahead, growling softly under its bre ath. “Nice dog,” she whispered raggedly, “Please, I won’t hurt you.” Her teet h rattled together despite her best efforts. Even through the haze of the fog , the dog’s eyes glowed with a fiery orange intensity. As she cleared the tre es, she watched it straighten from a crouching position. He was huge. This wasn’t a dog, but a silver gr ay wolf. A shuddering brea th escaped her as she studied the wolf. The animal was massive. Orange eyes and long fangs, he coul d tear her apart. The wolf watched her with a keen expression on its muzzle. Giving it a wide birth, Hillary began inching he r way past him. “Good boy.” “Come back here, bitch! We’re just gettin’ started.” Hillary spun around a t the sound, losing her balance and tripped against the short brick fence. She fell over the wall, landing in a patch of marigolds. A high-pitched scr eam curdled the night air. Watching with glassy eyes, Hillary witnessed the wolf attack. The lupine leaped shoulder high pushing the ma n back into th e trees. His screams of anger instantly rang out with fear. The wolf growle d and it took all of Hillary’s common sense not to think the worst. The man deserved whatever he got; she determinedly gripped the wall and pulled her self upright. She managed a few staggered steps before shoc k caused her to succumb into a dreary, painful blackness. Page No 8 Lynn Warren 8 Christian Blackthorne caught the woman as she fell. With minimum effort, h e scooped her up into his arms. Gazing down at her, he ground his teeth tog

ether at the blood dripping down her cheek. A ribbon of blood and dirt were about her closed eyes, the burnished umber colored lashes glued together b y drying tears. She whimpered softly in his arms. He soothed he r brushing his lips against her cheek. A deeper fire lit inside him, blazing in the de pths of his soul. What was this? She should not affect him so acutely. He s hifted her in his arms intending to carry her to the hospital entrance unti l he saw the dark stain on her blouse. Easily, Christian crouched down and settled the young woman into the grass. He’d watched her for weeks now. Amu sed at her resear ch, that’s what he kept reminding hi mself. He always sta yed close by especially at night with news that Renegades prowled the city. His brother Garridon and he often ra n the night together in wolf fo rm. D raigon preferred the air, rather than running across land. This night they’ d st umbled across Hillary and her Renegade attacker. There’d been more and more of them recently in La s Vegas. The trouble was they’d begun attracti ng attention. However, Christian knew his brother woul d dispose of the fil th and that left him to tend to Hillary. He brushed the hair matted at th e side of her cheek away and then stretched out beside her whispering softly an old Romanian spell his family ta ught them when they were boys. The sof t flowers cradled them both as Christian waited for her to stir. The soft p etals tickled his skin and the scent clung around them as Hillary opened he r eyes. He watched them flicker in the moonlight from amber to a dark whisk ey. Her pupils widened slightly as she raised her head and saw him clearly. “I won’t hurt you.” “I know.” She didn’t fight which was an excellent sign, accepting him as fri end. “He won’t hurt you, ever again.” Christian shifted his weight and Hilla ry’s eyes went to his bare, thickly muscled chest. A smile curved his full l ip s. While he was quite comfortable nude, Hillary appeared surprised. “I ca n heal your wounds if, you’ll allow me.” Oh my God! Was she hallucinating? In a coma? Dead? With her head pillowed in a bed of wild flowers, she stared at the most divi ne man she’d ever seen i n her life. Black hair curled at his ears and around his collar, that is, if he’d had a shirt on. He put his muscle d biceps on either side of her and d ropped his head. Pecs that looked hard enough to bend steel made way to a se t of six pack abs making her salivate even in her weakened condition. A thin ribbon of hair angled from a perfect belly lower to a Page No 9 Eternal Flame 9 cock so huge she thought she died and went to Chippendale heaven. If she wa s dead, oh hell, what a way to go! She could feel his breath against her sk

in. “You aren’t dead, Hillary. But that man injured you, and I can help. Yo u just need to give me permission.” Hillary swallowed hard. She was a docto r. What could he do that couldn’t be done in a hospital? Some naked Chippen dale angel planne d on healing her, okie dokie, fine by her. Outside of sup erficial wounds and possibly a cracked rib, what could it hurt letting the angel give her a thrill? “Yes, why not?” His tongue swept out between his t eeth and stroked at her temple. Slanting a glance at the perfect profile, s traight jaw, sharp angled aquiline nose, and full lips, she blinked. His te eth seemed rather long. At least, his incisors were, but Hillary assured he rs elf it was simply the bending of light creating an odd shadow. The pain in her temple vanished almost instantly, replaced by glorious warmth. The s ensation rivaled the best message she’d ever had, but then his mouth touche d hers. His tongue tangled slowly, decadently with hers as an explosion of flavor danced over her taste buds. He tasted of rare wine, cherries and som ething darker more complex that she couldn’t explain. His slow exploration of her mouth as if he had all the time in the world. Hillary moaned ag ains t his lips, reaching up to run her hands over his smoothly muscled arms and down his chest. If this was a dream, it was the best freakin’ dream she’d ever had in her entire life. He tore his mouth from hers, “No dream, Hillar y. I am very, very real. And at the moment, very fucking hard for you.” She tilted her head to gaze down at his cock and suddenly wanted it and him in side her so bad that her pussy clenched in anticipation. She was ready to f uck this guy, this dreamy Chippendale angel and she didn’t even know his fi rst name. “It’s Christian Blackthorne. And I’m not sure what a Chippendale is but, I’m far from and angel.” He smoothed back her tattered blouse exami ning the wound at her breast. “You read minds?” Hillary didn’t feel the least bit self-c around him. Another time, she might consider that further but when his lips gently closed over the swell of her breast the only thing she could do was c over her mouth to keep from moaning. Hot slippery honey slicked the walls of her pussy and Hillary shifted her body so that his cock rubbed against her thigh. Multi-colored lights danced across her vision as Christian licked acr oss the wound; there was no more pain, only raw sensation and a dizzying sen se of greed. His mouth went lower capturing her tit and drawi ng on it hard, one hand cupped her breast while the other toyed with the hem of her skirt. “Do you like this, Hillary?” Page No 10 Lynn Warren 10 “Oh God, yes!” “Then allow me to please you.” She felt the scrape of his tee th, but he seemed careful not to injure her. She’d never met a man so thrill

ed with pleasing a wo man. That told her this just couldn’t be real. He slid the hem of her skirt up and removed the to rn panty hose from her legs, gen tly massaging the weary muscles. “Touch me, Hillary. You’ll know I’m real.” Straddling her waist, Hillary let out a gasp at the sheer size of his cock. Rock hard and ready and Hillary knew she must have it in her or die. Cupping his balls, she rolled them gently pleased as Christian purred. It was like taming a wild animal and she was more than ready to get a whip out. What the hell was she thinking? It didn’t matter, he arched his back and then reached under the seam of he r panties. Hillary caught her breath and pushed her body up so she could t aste hi m. She could barely get her lips around him but when she did, she tasted a dark, musky male, hot w ith a very anxious cock. Wrapping her han d around his shaft, she eased him in and out of her mouth sucking hard on the engorged head. “Enough for now.” He slid down her body, raising her skirt and loweri ng his dark head. His t ongue parted her lips and tasted the hot honey of her pussy. Hillary’s b ac k arched as her mind shat tered and everything else ceased while Christian licked and nibbled before driving his tongue deep inside. “I don’t care if this is some crazy dream, ni ghtmare or whatever,” she gasped in between co nvulsions. Her pussy begged for more, for that cock th at pressed against h er ankle. “You have to fuck me, Christian. Now.” He raised his head, aquama rine blue eyes glitte ring in the moonlight. “A re you sure, Hillary? Becau se once I have you, it might not be so easy to let go.” “I don’t care. Fuck me now, I need that cock. It’s driving me crazy.” His hands slid down her thighs and opened them wide. Levering the weight of his sculpted muscles, h e leaned close to her lips. “You shall have my cock,” he grinned at her tak ing her mouth as his head teased the entrance to her pussy. With more contr ol than she’d ever experienced, Christian slowly, inch by inch buried his c ock into her tight, wet pussy. Sheathed to the hilt, he moved hi s knees so his balls rubbed against the back of her pussy. Hillary’s back bowed at th e contact while her legs came up and locked around her hips. “Am I hard enough for y His cock was like sweltering, silky steel. A blad e of remarkable power and skill and Christian Blackthorne knew how to use it. He r body turned to mo lten lava. Sweat trickled between her breasts as the slow rhythm he created turned into a grinding frenzy. Page No 11 Eternal Flame 11 Hillary screamed as she came, not caring who mi ght find her fucking a stra nger in the flower garden. Her pussy clenched hard around his cock m ilking

Christian’s release as a thousand stars danced through her body. The heat, the power of a thousa nd beings shook through her as hi s seed emptied int o her like lightning. Visions of thi ngs she couldn’t begin to understand d a nced through her skull while another orgasm rocked her. Blinding energy s urged thr ough her entire body and she rode a white tidal wave taking her a way to oblivion. He carried her gently into the emergency room . Two emergency room doct ors and three nurses rushed over, recognizing the woman. “Oh my God!” On e nurse exclaimed as he laid the woman on an examination table. Christian straightened, although his gaze remain ed locked on the young w oman. “I was on my way home. I heard her scream and glanced into the parki ng lot. The man who attacked her pulled her into the brush. I don’t know h ow she managed it, but she got away. One of the doctors inquired if the at tacker was alive. Christian shrugged. The doctor sent two orderlies out to look for the man and asked a nurse to call the police. Chri stian turned his gaze briefly on the doctor, then back to the woman. The ass ailant was quite dead, Garridon would’ve seen to that and the body disposed of. The remaining nurse started an I.V. while the do ctor checked Hillary’s vital signs. Hillary swam in and out of consciousness, hearing bits and piec es of the conversation about her. She recognized Dr. Cassidy and two of the nurses. But the other man, his voice drifted around her in a velvet cloud. D eep and sexy, with perfect enunciation of someone rais ed around London and she’d just had the strangest, sexiest dream Hillary was certain he starred i n her dream as well. Hillary groaned while one of the nursed dabbed dirt from her cheek. She m anaged to crack her lids opened. Her vision blurred with tears as she l ooked up at the man with the accent. Very tall and distinguished in a black suit, he watched her as sh e tried to focus on him. Da rk brown hair swept back from his forehead, worn just to the collar in one lengt h. His wide forehead wrinkled as he raided a dark, slashing brow injury. “She seems to be coming around, doctor.” The voice again. Hillary could spend days just listening to a voice like tha t. Doctor Cassidy leaned over her, a pen light flicking in her eyes. “Hillary , can you hear me?” Hillary barely nodded. The merest tilt of her head caused tormenting vibrations in her skull. She blinked, clearing her vision of tear s. The man’s eyes were the color of water off the coast of Bermuda. Page No 12 Lynn Warren 12 From where she laid, they looked so deep you could get lost in them. How un

usual, she thought as her eyes drifted to his mouth. A perf ectly chiseled upper lip with the mo st sensual bottom lip she’d every seen. Why did she k now what it tasted like? How could she possibly know? “Is she going to be a ll right?” Christian asked. “Well, I want her to go up to X-ray. I’m pos it ive she has a concussion. I don’t think anything is broken though.” Doctor Cassidy made a few scribbles on a chart and passed it to a nurse. Christian reached out and brushed back a long tendril of her chocolate hair. His knu ckles brushed her cheek in the gesture. The soft touch gentled the agony in Hillary’s hea d. Her eyes widened in surprise. “Dr. Tennyson, I called Joe for you. He’s on his wa y.” Becky, one of the ni ght supervisors told her. Joe? Hillary considered a moment. That guy cracked her on the head ha rder than she thought. How could she forget Joe, her boyfriend for the past tw o years? Hillary’s lip tw isted into a grimace. What a good sign, most wome n would cry out for their husbands and boyfriends after such an assault. Th e orderlies returned with the man who attacked her on a cart. They wheeled him past her. Hillary cringed mentally and curled up into herself. “He’s de ad,” one of the young men said. “Stabbed in the chest.” Hillary cried softly as the man’s body went down to the mor gue. She didn ’t remember the knife. Or stabbing him. “A wolf--” she whispered. Christia n bent over her, in a quieting manner. “Hush now, little one. You’ve had q uite a scare.” Hillary gazed up into his gleaming eyes. “Who are you?” She licked her parched, tear stained lips. Her voice cracked in her ears, eve n though the murmur barely formed sound. “My name is Christian Blackthorne. I live on the hill around the other side o f the hospital past Summerlin.” Christian spoke softly, noticing how she cringed at loud noise s around the emergency room. Blackthorne, Hillary recalled the name. Chris tian Blackthorne was a very well known artist. As famous for his paintings as he was for seeking solitu de, he moved to Las Vegas several years ago from New York City. Hillary remembered a few of his pain ting of old Engla nd from a gallery she visited last month. The man held exceptional talent and his paintings sold like hotcakes. “Mr. Blackthorne, I’m sorry but Dr. Tennyson needs to go up to X-ray.” An orderly approached, taking the cart Hillary laid on and turning toward an e levator. “Thank you.” Hillary whispered to her savior as she rolled to the elevator. “Mr. Blackthorne,” Doctor Cassidy motioned him to where the armed police officers stood. “These officers need your statement for their repor t. They’ll take Dr. Tennys on’s when she comes back Page No 13

Eternal Flame 13 from X-ray.” Christian nodded. He willingly cooperated with the authorities at any time they asked. For Hillary Tennyson’s sake and those of his own kind, it would be best to answ er all of their questions. Even the unspoken ones. Christian left St. Anne’ s twenty minutes later and headed for home. Page No 14 Lynn Warren 14 CHAPTER TWO The mansion on the hillside rose in the fog lik e a castle fro m a gothic novel. Christian bought it immediately on sight. It’d belonged t o some magi cians who performed on the Strip and decided they needed a larg er property for their menagerie. S ecluded and large enough for hi m not to get bored with confining walls. Surrounded by massive old trees, a large g arden with many night blooms and a pond with lilies that bloomed only when the heat of the day vanished. Christian sat outside by the garden listening to the crickets and watching the fog shift and twirl through the roses. He sat there for several hours not wishing to wa ste the night. Not in the mo od to paint, his thoughts remained with the woman, Hillary Tennyson. Instin ctively, he told himself it was just because of the taste; sweet like apric ot br andy, yet much more powerful and al luring. It drew him, calling him back to her. Christian got to his feet, walking around the edge of the pond . He could return to her easily. As it was, he sensed she dreamt of him eve n now. He left her beckoning him with gentle deception. “What you did tonig ht was not wise?” Christian looked up, half expecting to find her st anding before him. What power did this woman possess? With a deep breath, he calm ed himself allowing the images of Hillary to fade. Whatever it was she sought, she would not find it with him. Then he turned his gaze on his brother, Draigon. “Were you watching?” “How could I miss you? Driving yourself into the pret ty girl in a bed of flowers where anyone might stumble across you.” Determined, he strode into the house suddenly in the mood for sleep. “You’ re just sorry you didn’t find her first.” When he woke, he would re sume his painting and forg et all about Hillary Tennyson. Christian stopped with his hand on the front door. There were th ings in this life that couldn’t change. Christian learne d that l ong, long ago. The Renegades refuse d to. Their damn stupidity migh t cause trouble for all of his kind. The last thing Vegas needed was a vampi re hunter. This time though an alert about Hillary Tennyson attracted their attention. Depending on how persistent the woman was, it might be the death

of him yet. The nurse’s station, a buzz with talk of the infa mous artist, nearly smothere d Hillary with their Page No 15 Eternal Flame 15 good intentions. Until Joe rushed in, all she hear d were ooohs and aaahs of Christian Blackthorne. Hillary lay partially elevated in her hospital bed w ith crisp linens drawn up under her breasts. Dr. Joe Henlee blanched when he looked at Hillar y. “Babe, are you okay?” He rushed over to her, concern in his brown eyes. “A little better,” Hillary murmured. She absolu tely hated it when he calle d her ‘babe’ because they hadn’t dated in eight months. She called it quits pretty fast, Joe just wasn’t her kind of guy. Joe pulled up a chair and sat next to her bed. He knew nothing prepared him for the sight of Hillary. Her eye would turn black and blue, no doubt. “Didn’t they put stitches in that?” he barely touched her cheek, drawing back with Hillary’s wince. “No, it’s only superficial.” Actually, it hadn’t hurt until he touched it. Joe nodded, not convinced though. “Damn Hillary, what did I tell you about w orking late? You should never come out of this place alone at night.” Hillary knew he was right. He was only worried about her well -being, but at the moment, she didn’t need I told you so’s. She wanted to go home, get in bed, and forget the entire thing. Her head still throbbed, her body felt achy and hot. Her skin tingled as if touched by a lightning rod. Oddly, he r pussy tightened at the thought of a lightning rod. She nearly grinned, sh e was wet and it had nothing to do with Joe. More with the sexy guy the nur ses claimed brought her into the hospital. Speaking of nurses, they promise d to bring her something to eat forty minutes ago and she was famished. Joe watched her with an odd expression so she asked, “Did they find my briefca se?” “What? Oh, I didn’t think to ask, Babe. One of the cops said he wanted to talk to you again when you calmed down.” “I’ll talk to him now if he’s still here.” This is as calm as it gets right now, she thought. “Are you sure? He said you were kind of out of it and wante d to give you a chance to rest.” Hillary sighed, “Gee Joe, I don’t know why. Some maniac tried to kill me. Not much to get upset about.” Joe held his hand up. “Take it ea sy, Hillary. I’m not the bad guy.” He got t o his feet. “Tell you what, I’ll go get him, okay?” “Please. And Joe, find out where my food is, will you?” “Sure, Honey.” He leaned ove r to kiss her and halted well above her crac ked lips. He dropped a brief kiss on her forehead instead. “Be back soon.”

Hillary watched him leave with weariness. What had she expected? It was p art of the reason they weren’ t together, Joe wasn’t the kind of man she n eeded. She understood that most men didn’t know how to handle a woman that ’d been attacked very well, right? She got the distinct impression Jo e di dn’t like his possessions being mussed. And that’s was another Page No 16 Lynn Warren 16 reason, Hillary wasn’t anyone’s po ssession and damn she loved sex and a ro ugh bounce occasionally. That offended Joe’s refined sensibilities. Her entire life flashed before her without a comp leted picture. There wer e so many things she wanted to accomplish before she died. Luckily, sh e re ceived the chance. Inhaling deeply, she made an effort to calm her pounding heart and stop her palms from sweating. She wiped them on the sheets as tw o police officers came into the room. “Dr. Tennyson, we won’t be long.” The woman officer appeared to be in he r mid-thirties with a splash of freckles across her cheeks. “I’m Mari Ken t. This is Officer McGwinn.” The young man smiled cordially. “Did you find my briefcase?” Hillary asked before they could start their qu estioning. “Yes, we did. We put it with your keys at the front desk. I’m sur e they’ll see you get it when you leave the hospital.” Officer Kent told her while withdrawing a notepad. “One of the officers who took your statement e arlier noted that you said you saw a wolf attack your assailant.” “That’s co rrect.” “Wolves aren’t exactly indigenous to the coas tline. You were under extre me circumstances, doctor. The man who attacked you was wanted for seve ral rapes in the area. You were very lucky and very brave.” “Wh-what do you mean?” Hillary’s heart plummeted on hearing the man was i ndeed a rapist. She knew she luckily escaped, but bravery she didn’t feel; fear more like it. An overwhelming shadowing fear that she couldn’t lift. “Mr. Blackthorne said he saw you jerk the man’s knife away. When he tried t o get it back, he fell on his own knife.” “You found a knife?” Both officers looked a bit taken aback. “Of course we did.” McGwinn answer ed. Hillary nodded, detached. “We’ll let you get some rest, Doctor. I’m goi ng to leave this pamphlet on the nightstand. There are some phone numbers f or vi ctim assistance if you need them.” She watched the two police officer s leave with a multitude of questions in her eyes. A knife. Hillary tried d esperately to recall it. She couldn’t. There had been no knife. But, she would swear there had been a wolf, not indigenous to the area. Maybe a wolf that liked the nightlife. Hillary groaned. Hallucinations weren’t in her rep

ertoire. Closing her eyes, she mechanically relived the entire incident. She felt her attacker’s sweaty hands close around her. The scene replayed itself over and over until Hillary felt herself cry out on the verge of hysteria. Then, she remembered the angel. Oh man, was that som e sort of defense mechanism? She found Page No 17 Eternal Flame 17 that hard to believe. That cock was so hard and real and shit, if she had th e chance, she’d fuck him again. Her eyes snapped open, focusing on the bland hospital walls. She was safe, she repeated again and again so that her hear tbeat and respiration finally calmed. “Hey Babe, you’re awake.” Joe walked i n carrying a tray with soup and a small salad on it in one hand and a bottle of iced tea in the other. “This is all I could scrounge up.” He sat the tra y down in front of her and adjusted the bed and pill ow so she could eat com fortably. Then, he opened the bottle of tea and passed it over to her. “I wa nt to apologize for the way I acted before.” Hillary regarded him with the s oupspoon just below her lips. “What do you mean?” Joe shrugged, obviously un comfortable. “I just acted kind of weird when I saw you. I wasn’t expecting, well, you know.” “My face to be injured?” Hillary sipped at the vegetable soup, amazed at h ow good hospital food could taste when you were starvin g, though she had t o make a delibera te effort to stop her hand from shaking. Joe’s lips twisted to an uncharacter istic frown. “I didn’t mean it li ke that.” When Hillary didn’t comment, Joe pursed his lips together in thought . “Look, Dr. Cassidy says you’ll be ready to go home tomorrow. They just wa nt to keep you tonight for observation. I’ve got the early shift in the mor ning, so how about I pick you up around four-thirty?” “Thanks, Joe, but I’v e got my car here. I want to leave when they release me so I can go home an d get some rest. I think I’ll take a couple of days off.” Hillary convinced him easily enough. “Okay, sounds good. You could use a few days off anyway. I’ll give you a call tomorrow night and see how you’re feeling.” H e ga ve her a quick peck on the cheek and waved good-bye. “Joe, that isn’t necessary. Really. I’m fine just a bit banged up.” His expression clouded , then he nodded and left. “Take care.” Hillary finished her bowl of soup and sat the tray aside. She wished she remembered to ask him to bring her briefcase in. Thinking about work would keep her mind off the attacker. Th en again, she could also let her mind drift about the dangerously sexy Bla ckthorne who she knew in her soul she’d had mind- blowing sex with Hillary smiled. Just the mere thought of him managed to cause her pulse to race.

Oh well, such were the things daydreams sprung from. Rubbing the side of her temple, Hillary bega n clicking through her researc h she committed to memory. The blood sample. The tests; she conducted them r epeatedly, no errors. Out of her entire field of samples, the sixth antigen only existed in one. She must find the donor of that one. Hillary picked up the telephone and dialed a line out. True, the hour might be late, but Dexte r would still be awake. Page No 18 Lynn Warren 18 “Hell-o,” came the cheery greeting. Amazing! Dexter must be the perkiest yo ung man on the planet. Possibly one of the most brilliant. “Dexter, it’s Hil lary.” “Hi, Doctor. Kind of late for you to be up, isn’t it?” “Well, I ran into some trouble this evening.” Immediate anxiety crackled across the line. “Are you okay? You don’t sound yourself.” “I was uh, atta cked leaving the hospital this evening.” “Geez!” Dexter shouted into the t elephone. “A re you okay? Do you want me to come down there?” Hillary lifted the receiver away from her ear. “Yes, and no. Ye s, because I want you to pull the files of all the donors on the experi ments we’ve bee n working on. I need everything we have on number eight, one, five, thirteen .” “Sure, Doctor. I’ll be right down and I’ve got some news.” “Okay, great. D exter?” “Yeah?” “I’m fine,” Hillary whispered raggedly. “Not yet, Doctor. But you will be.” Dexter hung up. “Forgive me for disturbing your rest.” Hilary twitched, startled from her l ight slumber. She glanced at the digital alarm clock beside her bed. She had just called Dexter tw enty minutes ago. Her gaze focuse d on her visitor an d she knew she could only be dreaming. Christian Blackthorne stood next to her bedside, still dressed in a resplen dent black suit, crisply pressed, with a high-collared white silk shirt. De vastating and very Old World. Her eyes widened in surprise. “I didn’t expect to see you again,” she softly murmured. “Again, I ask your apology.” He til ted his dark head slightly as his words danced around her ears. “I wanted to make certain you were recovering fully from your ordeal.” Hill ary didn’t know what to say. “That’s very nice of you.” Not even Joe exuded this much charm, even when he kicked it on to impress people. Hillary’s pa le rose lips turned into a smile. Christian Blackthorne reminded her of the men she us ed to read about in hi gh school. The kind that didn’t exist in

the real world. Christian watched the smile and returned the favor she bestowed upon him. He would be mistaken to think her a delicate, frail beauty such as the iris es blooming in his garden. Odd how she Page No 19 Eternal Flame 19 effected him this way. He shouldn’t explore this fasc ination but he sorely lacked willpower and as he suspected, he wanted to be inside her again as he lay in his bed at home, her beauty haunted him until his only alternative w as to come . “You realize we have yet to have a proper in troduction. I’m af raid you were still in shock when we met before.” Hillary pushed herself up in the hospital bed, dr awing the starched linen up with her. Acutely aware of her tussled straw colored hair and the hospita l gown, Hillary experienced a wave of selfconsciousness. “I look terrible,” she muttered apologetically. “You look li ke a woman who survived a horrendous ordeal.” His resonant tone reassured h er with hypnotic tranquility. “I’m Hillary Tennyson.” Christian extended his hand, “A doctor I’m told.” Hillary lifted her hand to his. The clasp was firm and cool. “A pleasure.” Warmth and heat seeped into Christian’s hand as he held th e woman’s. The searing pulse wrapped around his hand and into his arm. “ I’m Christian Blackthorne.” The heat became too much and he abruptly rele ased her. That aqua blue seemed more pronounced in his eyes standing in the dimly lit room. “An artist I’m told.” Again a smile, Hillary couldn’t help herself. T he light flirtation did wonders for her bruises. “Actually, Mr. Blackthorne, I’m very familiar with your work.” A slashing brow lifted. Chris tian moved closer to the bedside. “I’m intrigued as well as flattered.” Folding her hands on her lap, Hillary watched him move closer. Like a moth d rawn to a flame, she felt herself pull closer to his magnetic presence . “Not flattery, I can assure you. You are an incredibly gifted artist.” “My dear lady, you do honor me with the tribute. However, in more ways than not, aren’t those of your profession truly artists?’ Christian picked up he r hands and he ld them in his own. Deliberately, he allowed no heat this tim e to invade him. “You give life with these hands. You ponder mysteries as ol d as time at the level of creation. You seek to bring diffe rent interpretat ions to your discoveries. Isn’t that art?” Having never considered medicine an art, Hilla ry found the comparison a st

retch. Yet, the more she thought about it, the more it beca me plausible. “I suppose, if you look at it that way, you could be right.” What sort of inte nsity inspired art that he created, Hillary wondered. There lurked something brilliantly imaginative beneath his charm and polish. “Hillary, I am never wrong.” Raising up her hands, he brushed them with his soft cool lips. Page No 20 Lynn Warren 20 Hillary bit back a gasp filled with surprise and secret delight. “I should let you sleep.” He released her hands and started toward the door, but not before giving her a backward glance. The power in the depths of his eyes en veloped he r. Heat fused itself throughout her entire being. She had never experienced such a chemical reaction from any man. If this were some sort o f delusion, she’d gladly pay for it in the morning with a tr emendous heada che. “It was nice meeting you, Mr. Blackthorne, but you were more fun the o ther night” Sh e wondered if he’d heard her, she didn’t mean to say that al oud. But she wasn’t into the cultured charm affected by some men, she liked them a bit hard to handle. Christian paused before opening the door, “The pl easure was entirely mine .” He left slowly and quietly, and apparently more than a bit unwilling. Hi llary leaned back against the pillow and sighed contently. Just the short v isit lifted her fears, soothing her even though he never mentioned the atta ck. Thank God, he’d happened along when he did but after talking to him, she knew their flowerbed encounter was nothing bu t her over active imagination. The way he acted while he was talking to her made Hillary wonder if he wasn’t gay. “Hi, Doctor. How are you feeling?” D exter poked his head in the room and slipped quickly inside. “You know, the y’re guarding you like crazy. Visiting hours are over and they’re not takin g any chances. I had to wait until everyone was busy before sneaking in her e.” He closed the door quietly behind him and walked over to Hillary. “They let Christian Blackthorne in.” Hillary sa id looking eagerly at the files Dexter had in his arms “Who?” Dexter sat the files on the bedside table. “Christian Blackthorne, th e artist. You had to have seen him in th e hallway. He left right before you got here.” “I didn’t see anyone. Besides, th e nurses wouldn’t have let anyone in anyw ay. I just told you, I had to sneak in here.” Dexter flipped open a couple o f the files. “I’d better hurry. If they catch me, I’m dead. They sent sample s down to th e lab accidentally last night from your assault. I’m pretty sur e they were supposed to go to the crime lab but in all the hubbub, they came

to me and I ran them.” “You’re sure you didn’t see him? Tall, dark hair, ve ry good-looking?” Dexter placed a couple of open files in her la p. He grinn ed with youthful good humor. “Oh, I’m sorry I missed such a specimen. But, I ’ve got some thing better, another match for you. The guy that attacked you had the same strand in his blood.” Hillary growled under her breat h. “Very funny.” Christian probably snuck in the same way Dexter had. What a nice gesture. A man she hardly knew fo und it necessary to sneak into her room to Page No 21 Eternal Flame 21 check on her. Perhaps charming, intelligent, romantic men did exist after all. “This is all I could find on your my stery attacker.” Dexter pointed to the pro file sheet on the first file. Hillary read all of it. This was just too damned weird. She didn’t know tha t man. Yet they shared some commonalty in their blood. Weird and a little cr eepy. She wasn’t sure she needed to tell Dexter any of this. “This isn’t goi ng to help.” She pushed the files aside. Sun crept across the sky and Hillar y was suddenly exhausted. It’d been a busy night, after all. Dexter watched with a bemused expression. “Maybe you should te ll me wha t we’re looking for with this?” “He just walked in and donated a sample?” Dexter shook his head. “No way. You know they did the screening for this a cross the entire country. I’m not even sure which lab did the sampling.” De xter gath ered up the files. “Besides, you know as well as I do, all the sa mpling they did was conf idential. No one signed releases for their identit y to be released after the testing.” A single tear burned down Hillary’s ch eek. “Oh well, so much for my article in the New England Journal of Medicin e, my Pulitzer Prize, and my brilliant research career.” Dexter saw the tea r and swallowed hard. He ne ver could handle seeing a girl cry, even when i t was his boss. “Dr. Tennyson, relax will you? You’re all upset over what h appened tonight. Things will look better in the morning.” “Dexter Hamble!” One of the on-duty nurses shouted as the door swung open. “I can’t believe you’re in here at this hour! Get your junk and get yourself out of here bef ore I throw you out.” Dexter scooped up the remaining files giving Hi llary a wink. “Yes, Nurse Amery. I’m terribly sorry. I know I shouldn’t have bot hered Dr. Tennyson.” “Get going. Now!” The door closed quickly on the two. Hillary could hear t he nurse berating Dexter a ll the way down the hall. She laughed. Dexter wa

s such a terrible liar. He would be in the doghouse for weeks with Nurse Am ery. Settling back against the pillow, Hillary closed her eyes. Thoughts da rted through her brain like speeding trains through the city underground. T he assaul t on her weighed heavily. She couldn’t, for the life of her, reca ll a knife. But why would Christian Blackthorne lie about something like th at? He hadn’t seen the wolf, had he? At least, he didn’t mention seeing the lupine. And if he had seen the animal, surely he would have said something to the police. Hillary rubbed her temples gingerly. Too much to consider a t such a late hour. Exhaustion swam beside her suck ing her into its dept hs. She needed that f ile on the man who Page No 22 Lynn Warren 22 donated the miracle blood. To continue her research she not only needed the file, she needed the man. Her last thought before submitting to sleep was simply Christian Blackthorne. Page No 23 Eternal Flame 23 CHAPTER THREE Goths lived solely for their connection to his kind. They e mulated, sought him and the others out as if they were rock stars. This ni ght, Christian didn’t care where food came from. He took hold of a boy wit h spiked hair and wrapped his fingers around his neck. The young man jerke d only once from fear, and then settled comfortably against him. Christian drank briefly from the tantalizing elixir. Only enough to appeas e the hunger, and then he released the male. He gripped the other more tigh tly drinking from him none too gently. Before he left, he created in both t heir minds very pleasant evening for the young men he walked down to the ed ge of the lake and sat upon a large, smooth stone gazing at the moon. A cri cket chirping in the distance and the tingle of a mild breeze drifting thro ugh the leaves were oddly comforting. “So! This is how I find the great Chr istian Blackthorne, Defender of the Innocent, Champion of the Night.” The w ords drifted through the trees with biting derision. Christian whirled arou nd, coming eye to eye with Sinclair Drayloch. “How dare you?” Sinclair’s th in lips turned upward. “You, who speak nothing but praise for our species, do not even kill your victims. How would the Guardians feel if they knew yo u were out saving young women in the light of the moon instead of killing t hem by it?”

Christian felt anger burn into his throat, but refused the provo cation by t his whelp who led the Renegades. “You know as well as I that we do not need t o kill.” Sinclair turned his head slightly, glancing out across the water. “But it is o ur way, though. You fight for our traditions, Christian.” “Perhaps.” “Then why do you not hunt, Golden One, as traditi on speaks we should?” S inclair’s dark green eyes bore into Christian’s with unspoken animosity. “I find no need to kill just for the sake of doi ng so.” Christian’s cheeks tightened as Sinclair laughed coldly. “I am surprised you still live consider ing your abhorrence to your existence. Speaking of the Guardians, do they kno w of your latest little ploy?” “I can’t choose who will follow me.” Christian noticed Sinclair frowned as he sorted things through that maniacal brain of his. Sinclair’s laughter ceased. “What are you talking about?” “I’m referring to your scheme trying to get th e attention of a medical doctor. Do you thin k Page No 24 Lynn Warren 24 perhaps she can cure you? Is that what this is all about?” Sinclair Drayloc h experienced an odd, sour feeling in the pit of what used to be his stomac h courtesy of Christian Sinclair’s lungs, which had not inhaled oxygen in a ges, nearly collapsed from the swift intake of breath. “Who told you of thi s?” The younger man shifted his weight from side to side, combing his finge rs through long auburn hair. “Who told you?” Christian stared, unable to believe the younger’s stupidity. “What did yo u do, Sinclair?” “You seem to already know what I have done. Why repeat th e obvious?” Christian stepped back, away from Sinclair to avoid smacking h im across th e jaw. “Tell me one of your followers was killed last night, did you know?” The words contained an eternity of threats which Christian would enjoy carrying out. The younger man remained a consta nt source of a ggravation. The youth seemed bent on self-destruction in recent y ears. Ch ristian knew not the reason for the younger man’s turmoil, nor did he care to know. He did care, however, when some fledging decided to choose the f ate for all of his species merely because he felt some displaced loyalty t o humanity. “I gave a blood sample.” “You did what?” Certainly, he merely misunderstood the youngster. Christian stepped closer and repeated his question. The answer followed the same and Christian felt anger, frustration and utter confusion by it. “Are you trying to get yourself killed?” “I am trying to get my life back. You may enjoy th is existence, but I do not.” “You are a fool.” Sinclair shrugged, “Perhaps.”

“What else have you done?” “That is all,” Sinclair said firmly. “I think there is more which you are not telling me .” Christian reached out and grasped a lock of Sinclair’s beautiful hair. He tw isted it between his fingers. “What else have you done to endanger us, fledgling?” Sinclair swallowed. He unders tood now he never should have baited someone as powerful as Blackthorne. The man could crush the breath out of him with the tiniest movement. “I placed an antigen in the blood to call attention to it.” Christian jerked the man’s hair sharply and b acked him up against a tree. “What are you talking about? There is no antigen in our blood that different iates us from humans?” “I know. But I needed something that would make it st and out. I can ’t be like this, Christian. I cannot live like this.” Sinclai r sighed raggedly. “I had hoped they would seek me out, but they have not. I t must have been overlooked. So there, you have nothing to be worried about. ” Page No 25 Eternal Flame 25 Christian’s eyes glittered crystalline at the foolish lad. “I should kill you no w.” “It would be better than this half-life I lead.” “Perhaps, Sinclair, you should have researched more carefully before askin g to become one of us.” With that, Christian vanished leaving Sinclair. “So that’s it, end of story?” Madison lifted her fork with shrimp Caesar salad on it to her perfectly red lips. Hillary nodded, sipping at the wine cooler. “That’s it. Christian Blackth orne brought me into the hospital The hospital staff took wonderful care o f me and I was released this morning.” Madison stopped chewing. “Christian Blackthorne, the artist?” Tearing off a piece of home backed sourdough br ead, Hillary popped it into her mouth. “Um- hmm.” Considering this, Madison picked her way through the salad looking for som e other bits of shrimp. She looked at her friend with a cat-like smile, “Si nce you don’t want to tell me about the assault, how was Blackthorne?” “I’m not sure I understand the question.” Madison gave a lilting laugh, a tin kling of delicate silver bells. “Of co urse you understand the question, Hillary, but let me spell it out for you. Was he as gorgeous as everyone who’s seen him says?” Finally, Madison made Hillary smile. “Incredible is a good word.” Stabbing a shrimp camouflaged by romaine, Madison eyed it w ith anticipation. “And does the word apply to

him?” “You might say that.” Hillary bit back a breath of a sigh. Directing her att ention to the wonderful fillet of red snapper, she savored the subtle flavor. “Madison, I swear I’ve never met anyone like him. I even dreamt about him la st night in the hospital.” Madison didn’t say it, but “sure be ats the hell out of that loser Joe” Hill ary could see it tease the tip of her tongue. “What kind of dream?” She confi ned herself to the safer topic. A smile relaxed Hillary filling her with warm th and the delightfully raw-edged humor of Madison. “Not what you’re thinking.” “Oh, damn.” “You’re terrible, Madison.” Hillary’s laughter sounded normal, not straine d in her own ears. “So if it wasn’t the good stuff, tell me what it was.” “ Just that he came into my room to check on me, to make sure I was okay.” Hi llary’s eyes sparkled with the memory. Hillary hesitated a moment, Madison was her best friend and they always told Page No 26 Lynn Warren 26 each other of their nights out. “I think I fucked him out in the garden.” Ma dison shrugged, obviously disappointed it hadn’t been something juicer then choked on a piece of salad, and hurriedly reached fo r her drink. “I’m sorry , did you just say you fucked Christian Blackthorne?” Hillary let the heat from the memory briefly entice her before answering. “I ’m pretty sure it was a result of the concussion. But then, I wasn’t sure. I didn’t think it was until Dexter came in.” “Dexter was there?” This brought a note of distaste to the conversation. “How did he get in your dream?” “He wasn’t in my dream, Madison.” Hillary took another sip of the wine. “H e came in right after Christian left. He said he didn’t see anyone in the h all and that visiting hours were over. He had to sneak into my room, so I j ust assumed I had dreamt about Christian instead of actually seeing him.” “ Mmm-hmm.” “Now, what is that supposed to mean?” “Nothing.” Madison picked up her wine glass and twirled it in her fingers. “Madison!” The cat-like smile returned along with nasty star e. “Suppose I told you I have tickets for Mr. Blackthorne’s next show.” “You’re kidding?” Hillary couldn’t be sure if Madison yanked her chain or not. “Honey, I’ve been trying to get you away from no-show Joe for years. N ow, I have the perfect opportunity. Besides, you might get a nother shot wi th his cock at th e show.” Madison finished the remainder of her salad toyi

ng with the idea of dessert . “Do you want to go or not?” That was about as blunt as you got. Hillary swallowe d her last bit of snap per critically a nalyzing the question. Yes! Practically screamed in her head. The man was e verything Joe was not. At least, he appeared to be. “Hillary?” “I’m thinking about it!” Hillary’s head sn apped up. She looked roughly fr om Madison to the young man beside their table. “He wants to know if you want the chocolate cheesecake, too.” Madison mu rmured in a polite stage whisper. “What? Oh, yes. That would be fine.” The young man nodded. “Oh, don’t forget the raspberry sauce,” Madison called after him. Hillar y dipped her head, faintly embarrassed by her musings. The man would undo ubtedly not even remember her. Was she willing to take the chance? Who kn ows? Maybe he could be the one. The Page No 27 Eternal Flame 27 one from all her childhood fantasies. Firmly, Hillary forced that out of her mind. The type of man she longed for did not exist. She knew it from previo us experience. But, why not take the ri sk? Just this once… “I’ll go.” “I never had a doubt.” Hillary wiped a bead of perspiration trickling down her cheek. What in the hell was going on? How could it not be human? She had drawn her own blood. “You’re not just kidding me, are you, Alyssa?” “I don’t kid about this sort of thing, Hillary.” Hillary inhaled sharply, what was this, some sort of prank? Alyssa was too p rofessional to lie about anything like that. “Can you send everything back as soon as possi bl e? I want to run some more tests.” “Sure, Hillary. I’ll give it to a messenger right away. Are you going to tel l me how you did this?” Hillary sighed, “When I figure it out for myself.” Hours spun into days and weeks as she began to unravel the mystery in fron t of her. It came back to her and this sample that appeared out of nowhere. She would swear they were related, her, her attacker and this latest sampl e. Astonishment rifled her system glazing over her pale eyes and turning he r stomach into a launch pad for her heart. What was going on? She got up an d walked back into the lab. Who would perpetuate such an elaborat e prank a

nd why? Hillary rubbed he r temples, riddling her brain with possibilities. Nothing made any sense. First, she had a mystery antigen. Then, she didn ’t. In the beginning, it wa s only in her blood. Now, there were three. She supposed it should make her f eel better. She wasn’t some sort of freak of nature. Now, she was the proud owner of a sample of DNA, which although drawn fro m a human, wasn’t a human. She felt as if she had just stepped into an epi sode of The X-Files. Only problem was, she didn’t have the luxury of two h ighly trained, unflappable FBI agents. It had to be a joke. That was the o nly reasona ble alternative. Someone was getting a great laugh at her expe nse and spending a shit load of research money. Hillary shook her head slo wly. But, it simply had to be a joke. It just had to, because the alternative frightened the dayl ights out of her. Dexter sauntered into the lab. “All done, Dr. Tennyson. Wha t do you want me to do next?” Hillary whirled around pierced ears , tattoos a nd exotic clothing, Dext er just fell into the Goth existence practically ove rnight. And that friend of his that seemed to captivate him made her a bit Page No 28 Lynn Warren 28 nervous. “Dexter, is Sinclair still at the hotel you put him up in?” “No.” Why should that surprise her? If you expected the ordinary, you got the in sane. “Where is he?” Dexter shrugged, “Staying at some friend’s house, I gu ess.” Sullen, nearly morose, wasn’t a typical Dexter response. “Call him and tell him to get his body down here. We can all go out for a beer or something.” Dexter jerked, arching both brows. “I can’t.” “Why not?” Hillary caught her sel f in a mixture of frustration a nd burgeoning anger. Dexter had become i ncreasingly unsociable since his alliance with Sinclair a trait that Hillary did not care for. “I told you, Doctor, Sinclair stays up all night and he s leeps days. I don’t want to wake him.” Hillary looked at the clock. “Gee, De xter. It’s a quarter to four, I think we can risk it.” “I’ll call him but no one will answer.” Dexter started out the door. “Then leave a message, Dexte r.” Hillary could not believe it. Did Sinclair think he was some sort of mol e? For Pete’s sake, he ha dn’t been working since she brought hi m up from S an Diego. If he had found it necessary to party all night, he could do it on someone else’s time. “Umm, Dr. Tennyson,” Dexter stuck his head back in the door. “Yes, Dexter?” Hillary tried reorganizing her work spread out in the lab. Starting with picking up all the files. Dexter walked back in, “This ju st came for you.” Hillary looked up and Dexter handed her a sing le large, b lood red rose. Attached to the de- thorned stem were a ribbon and a card. Hi

llary took the rose gently in her hand. Dexter beat a hasty withdrawal not w anting anymore of the boss on the warpath. The warm scent of the rose stream ed into her nost rils with its delicate pe rfume. Hillary did not want to op en the card. Damn it, she took Madi son’s advice and had not thought about C hristian Blackthorne all day. She didn’t need him. She didn’t need any man w ho fought commitment or even the opportunity for it. Hillary slipped the small white card from its e nvelope. The black ink del ivered a bold script. Hillary’s resolve wobbled when she read: “Can I make you come again sometime?” Signed in a beautiful stroke, simply: Christian. Page No 29 Eternal Flame 29 CHAPTER FOUR The messenger dropped the DNA test results o ff and Hillary f ound herself engrossed by the information. Her brain tumbled the data like a rock po lisher. The news boggled her, tore at her sense of normality. If she wasn’t staring at the sequencing herself she would swear it were a hoax . Amidst this chaos, she thought of Christian’s rose . Sitting next to her on the desk, it gave her an ardent tickle from the bottom of her toes all t he way to the center of her chest. She wanted to call him, thank him for th e gesture, but she didn’t know his number and right now and her focus on Si nclair and her own bizarre DNA kept her from lingering on that delicious ma le She looked at her watch. Dexter hadn’t been kidding. She expected Sincla ir to call her back by now or show up and he hadn’t. She clutched the test results. Dear God, what did these results mean? Hillary tugged at her hair. Not human! How could DNA not be human? Sinclair was human and so was she a s Hillary got to her f eet, a shudder rippled through her. She rubbed her a rms trying to warm her suddenly freezing body. He was human, wasn’t he? Hil lary took a deep breath. She let her imagination get carried away there, no t a good idea. There was a simple explanation here. Mutated genes occurred in a variety of ways, over exposure to a chemical or even the prolonged exp osure to X-rays. That might explain the fear Sinclair had to being X-rayed. It sounded good. It sounded scientific, logical. Yes, that was the kind of answer she wanted to this. Something scientific and precise. Something she could explain. Hillary picked up the test results and stuffed them back in the envelope. She waited around long enough for Sinclair. It was late, she was tired, and her mind clouded with weariness she grabbed her purse and s hook off the lab coat. With her keys in hand, she locked the office and the lab up tight, taking the DNA tests with her. She could continue going over them at home. She stepped out into the corridor and headed for the elevato

r. Suddenly, an overwhelming rush of fear covered and nearly suffocated her. Hillary hallway, glancing around like a startled rabbit. Someone was watching her. She couldn’t see anyone else in the hallway, couldn’t hear anyone. Hillary moved quickly to the elevator and presse d the button. The feeling closed in on her. She whirled around and found herself staring at the wall. No one was there, she was just jumpy. The elevator opened and she walked inside. The door closed behind her giving her a measure of security. Page No 30 Lynn Warren 30 Hillary clutched the test results as the elevator started downward. Reme mber, an over active imagination. She heard pounded in her chest. Calm do wn, no one was around. There was nobody watching. The elevator door opened and she rushed out headlong into the chest of Sin clair Drayloch. Hillary jumped, jerking backward and losing her balance. Sinclair caught her and straightened her up. “Dr. Tennyson, I was just on m y way up to see you.” Hillary stared at him, then down at her test re sults. She pulled her arms free and stepped away. “Sinclair, you startled me.” Sinclair’s eyes narrowed. “What’s wrong?” “Nothing,” Hillary shook her head, taking a cleansi ng breath. It pulled he r in, sucking her mind up in the fantastic. Settle down, logical explana tio n, remember? Hillary turned, moving away from Sinclair into the foyer of the hospital. “Something’s frightened you. It wasn’t me, was it? I’m sorry, but you came off that elevator like a bat out of hell.” Sinclair followed her. Fear practically ripp led off her body, and it didn’t seem to be easing eith er. It appeared to be gaining a strong hold and she needed to get out of the hospital. She really wanted to see Christian again, she felt safe with him, and sexier than she’d ever felt in her entire life. Hillary looked at him w ith pale, shimmering eyes. “Do you know what these are, Sinclair?” She held up the envelope. Sinclair shook his head. “I don’t have a clue.” “I had a co lleague of mine run DNA tests on the blood sample you gave. She’s an expert in genetics.” Hillary made the accusation known and a light dawned in Sincla ir’s green eyes. “She did the whole nine yards, Sinclair, and guess what?” H illary’s voice rose in defiant sarcasm. “What?” “You’re not human!” Hillary took a breath. There she said it, and without an ounce of hysterical laughter. Sinclair wasn’t laughing either. What was wors e, he did not look in the least bit surprised by her revelation. He took several steps toward her, his index finge r across his mouth trying to silence her. “Dr. Tennyson…” “Didn’t you hear me?” Hillary regarded him, feeling the skin along her face

tighten making her expression rigidly composed. “I just said you weren’t hu man.” Sinclair took her arm. “I heard you. We need to talk about this in pri vate.” He led her out the front door of the hospital and out onto the ground s. He didn’t release Hillary until they were well out of earshot on the fron t lawn of the hosp ital. “What kind of test was this? What did it do?” His v oice Page No 31 Eternal Flame 31 became tense with anticipation. The night seemed warm against Hillary’s co ol cheeks. Almost stuffy without the normal breeze from the sea. The faint scent of freshly mowed grass teased her nostrils making them itch. Cricke ts chirped from nearby brush. They were the only witnesses to the exchange out on the lawn. Except for the wolf watching them from across the parking lot . Wolf? She shook her head, blinked and settled her gaze on the amber refle ction in the wolf’s eyes. He cocked his head and seemed to listen to there conversat ion. Wasn’t that interesting? She picked up a pet wolf. This one seemed to have darker fur though than the one from the other night. Hillary stared. That was it. Forcing her attention back to Sinclair, she understoo d why he wasn’t surprised. He didn’t have a clue as to what she was talking about. “A DNA test is sort of like a map code. It tells you exactly what t he person or organism is made up of in a broad sense.” “And mine was different?” “My God, Sinclair! Haven’t you heard a word I said? The DNA, your DNA, is n ot human.” Hillary pulled out a sheet of paper. “See this, the st rand is of f. It’s close but not for a human.” She shoved the paper practically under h is nose. “Now, would you like to tell me what sort of a game you’re playing and why?” Sinclair pushed the paper away. The lines of numbers meant nothing to him. “It’s no game.” “Oh, so the fact that you don’t carry human DNA and that the entire strand is full of mutant genes isn’t some sort of sick joke .” Hillary launched her words in a full frontal assault. Sinclair didn’t und erstand the medical aspect, but it sounded as if she had isolated the change . He shook his head, “I’m afraid you’ll have to spell it out for me.” Hillary stuck a finger in his chest, absolutely enraged. “No, Sinclair, you exp lain it to me. First, you donate blood that cont ains an antigen. The antigen never recu rs becaus e you’ve told me it won’t. You resubmit blood. Then I do everyday testing on you and come up with the most bizarre readings I’ve ever seen.” Hillary gla red up at him, boiling over. “I have never in my entire life seen anything l

ike this. I‘m thinking I’m losing my mind ove r stress or something, so I go for an expert opinion and send the blood over to my colleague who now thinks I’m Fra nkenstein creating some unknown life form.” Her voice dropped to a thi n slivery threat . “I suggest you tell me what the hell’s going on before I call someone who will want to slit you open and find out why you are wal king around.” The wolf emitted a low, menacing growl and rose off its haun ches. Sinclair ignored the animal and turned agitated eyes to Hillary. “Ca n you cure me?” Page No 32 Lynn Warren 32 “Cure you?” Flabbergasted, Hillary’s eyebrows soared. “Sinclair, I don’t e ven know what the hell is wrong with you,” she shouted back at him. Was he deaf or just completely dense to what she tried to tell him? The blossoms from the fruit trees farther out on the grounds enveloped her with their heavy perfume. The silken around them echoed uncomfortably in t he sticky night. Th e humidity must be off the scale. Hillary pushed up the sleeves of her blouse feeling much too warm. “You said it was some type of genetic muta tion.” Sinclair looked around hoping the doctor’s voice didn’ t carry far. “Yes. Every single one of the genes has been altered. Would you care to t ell me how before I decide to do my own cutting?” “I can’t.” The wolf padded closer and Sinclair took several steps back. “What do you mean, you can’t?” Hillary flung at him, waving the envelope. “Don’t you know how it happened?” “Of course I know.” Sinclair mumbled under his breath. Hillary’s ears tuned to a razor’s edge. She looked over at the wolf and back at Sinclair. He mov ed farther away, ready to run at any second. She wiped a flyaway strand of h air from her eyes. She took a few steps back, giving herself some breathing room. She was going to kill him. For the first time in her life, a human bei ng pushed her to the edge making her completely furious, and she was going t o have to kill him. He wasted a great deal of her valuable time to create th is trick, not to mention he r benefactor’s money. The idea, just a vicious j ibe, clenched itself around her throat and chest as if it was a vice being t ightened down. She could never kill anyone but that wasn’t the point. She ha d thought, human being, exce pt for the small actuality, Sinclair wasn’t hum an. At least, not according to all the information she compiled on him. Hillar y shuddered, freezing in the humid air. She threatened so mething that wasn ’t human. How di d she know it wouldn’t just crush her with one well-timed

blow? Her imagination had spiraled into another galaxy. “I won’t hurt you,” Sinclair told her, raising a hand to comfort her. “Dr. Tennyson, I need yo u to help me.” “Help you do what?” “I want to be normal again.” Simple words. Normal. Hillary glanced about. The crickets weren’t chirping any longer. The scent of blossoms faded away, repl aced by the rich tang o f fresh eart h. “Sinclair, I don’t know what is wrong with you. Can’t you u nderstand? None of this ma kes any sense. With the data I have here, it Page No 33 Eternal Flame 33 looks like you come from Mars, not from Earth. I can’t explain it.” Hillary sighed heavily. “I think you’re the only one who can.” Sinclair’s head tilted to the tiny noise. Human ears might have registered it but certainly wouldn’t have processed the sound. His head snapped up, l o oking past Hillary. Someone was approaching them quickly. He took Hillary by the shoulders. Sinclair’s green eyes bore lasers in to hers. “Listen to me, Doctor. You are right, a lot of people would want to know about this.” “My colleague at the University is still waiting for an explanation.” “Don’t tel l anyone anything.” Sinc lair’s grip tightened. Hillary flinched, but he did not release her. “There are people looking for me Doctor, who have no probl em disposing of inconveniences.” “I don’t understand.” “Just be careful, don’t trust anyone. Especially not new acquaintances. Pe ople are rarely what they seem, Doctor.” Sinclair let her go, gazing ar oun d the area behind Hillary. His eyes narrowed as he recognized the figure ap proaching them. “They’ve sent out the hunting pa rty,” he murmured to himse lf. “I’ll be back tomorrow night, Dr. Tennyson.” “But, Sinclair…” Hillary stammered at his retreating figure. “Hillary?” Whirling around, Hillary’s heart catapulted itself into her throat. Clutchin g the envelope tightly to her chest, she gazed at Christian as if he were a g host. Christian stepped closer, “Are you well?” Concern edged his voice causi ng a frown to his lips. “I’m fine,” the words blew out in a rush. Where did t he wolf go? “I was just talking to Sinclair and you startled me.” “Sinclair?” Christian moved closer so that he was in arms reach. “Is everyth ing all right? You don’t look well.” “I’m just a little rattled. That’s all.” Hillary began walking across the law n to the parking lot and her car. She wanted to go home, clear her mind of thi s bizarre nonsense, and relax in the warm familiarity of her living room. “Let me take you home.” Christian offered, walking beside her with his arm

around her waist. “That’s okay, Christian. I have my car and I really just want to go home and rest.” Christian smiled gently, “So you have not forgi ven me?” Hillary stopped and looked up at him. His dark brown hair swept off his for ehead, the gorgeous sapphire eyes. His tall, well-muscled form stood close t o her, very close. “The rose was very pretty.” Christian curled his lip in s elf-derision. “I made a fool of myself. Hillary, you are a beautiful and int elligent woman. I am uncontrollably drawn to you and I have absolutely nothi ng to offer.” His mouth Page No 34 Lynn Warren 34 brushed over hers in a hot whisper. Tears of joy or frustration shimmered in her eyes and Hillary fought them back. She was so tiered she was going to c ry. Her mind turned to mash potatoe s filled with the overload of data. Now Christian poured hot gravy on it. “Why don’t you let me decide what I think you can offer?” “I am only trying to protect you.” Christian eyes burned wit h sincerity. Protect her from Sinclair and from the hideous discovery that t hreatened a great number of lives. “From what?” Isn’t that what a knight in shin ning armor did for his lady? Maybe he simply felt obligated. After all, he’d rescued her once before, he could slip into a pattern. “I don’t think I need protection. I guess you have to decide if you can trust me.” Hilary f lipped out her keys and unlocked her car door. A jolt fired into his chest and spread through his body as a brush fire thr ough kindling. He was able to hurt her because she cared about him. Th e rea lization stunned him. His body went from burning heat to icy cold. She cared for him and he hurt her, deliberately. “Okay, look, let’s cut this civilize d crap b ecause you and I both know what we did in that flowerbed over there was anything but civilized.” Hillary climbed into her car and started to close the door. Christia n backe d up. “I’ll talk to you later, Christian. Right now, I just want some sleep.” Hillary closed the door and started the car. Christian’s hand drew together in a crushing fist. He stalked off into the surrounding woods, his body fadin g into the incoming fog with each step. Hillary got home in rapid time. She opened he r front door, stepped inside and dropped her purse and the envelope on the couch on the way to the kitc hen. She debated calling Madison to tell her the plan already worked, but s he didn’t feel much like gloating. She felt as if she went through the perm anent pr ess cycle on a washing machine too many times, faded and stretched out of shape. Hillary ignored the blinking light on her answering machine and went straight for the kitchen.

She opened the freezer door and perused her rema rkable collection of TV d inners. After a moment’s hesitation, she chose spaghetti and tore th e box open. Punching the prescribed hold into the plastic with distinct relish, H illary popped the dinner into the microwave. She set the timer and wandered in the direction of a nice warm shower. In her bedroom, Hillary stripped out of her clot hes in the darkness then, padded barefooted to the shower. Her mood vastly improved as she pulled out a tube of purple bath gel and turned the spray on hot. Page No 35 Eternal Flame 35 Christian stood outside her bedroom window locked in turmoil. Even in the d arkness, his intense night vision could make out Hillary through the filmy c u rtains. For an instant, he stared driving in the beauty and grace as she s lipped out of her clothing. How the mighty had fallen. Once proud of his heritage, Christian felt the da rkness enshroud him. He felt dirty and wicked, an abomination using its st ro nger abilities to intimidat e. And right now, he honestly didn’t care because for the first time in hi s life, he needed a woma n more than he needed anyt hing in his life. As he stood outside her home, he knew the hunger had drawn him. The beast , which lived within now, surfaced demanding satisfaction. Christian close d his eyes. The fever raged scalding him as he tried to dampen the burning embers. The next thing he re alized, he had rang her doorbell and was wai ting for her to answer. Hillary appeared moments later. Her hair hung damply about her shoulders. She wore an oversized gray sweatshirt and sweatpants and red so cks. She stared up at him, her mouth opened in surprise. Her cider colored eyes pro minent beneat h her damp bangs. “Chris tian, what are you doing here?” He ground his teeth together, fo rming coherence. He would not , above any circumstances, hurt her. He refused to. If there was any goodness left in the darkened cavity he cal led a soul, he would not touch her. “I need to b e inside you, Hillary. You’re the only one who can soothe this fever.” Chri stian knew the old adage about crossing the invisible line. The legend was once Hillary gave him her authorization, she allowed him entrance at any ti me. He could come and go as he pleased and she lost control to keep him at bay. That was such a load of crap. He could come and go based on the bond a lready created within them. “Come in.” Hillary stepped back from the door a nd dropped her towel. “I’m not sure if I like the artistic façade or this b ad boy thing you’ve got going on now better.”

Page No 36 Lynn Warren 36 CHAPTER FIVE Hillary’s home formed a direct contrast to his own, small and cozy, filled with warmth. Christian drew in the soft scent of her skin and h is cock instantly went rock hard, the scent combined with a pleasant mix of vanilla. Christian followed her into the living room where she left him and went into the kitchen. She was completely nude and stirring a pot of sauce. “You don’t mind if I eat my dinner do you?” She returned with a massive past a bowl and some silverware. The pungent tang of spaghetti sauc e and a lot o f garlic hit him and Christian felt his own hunger and his hard on dissolve sickeningly away. He sat on a chair across from the sofa. “Of course not.” “ Good.” Hillary sat on the couc h placing her food on the table in front of h er. She didn’t like thinking along the terms that were flowing into her mind , but she needed a good defense. Otherwise, she might just throw herself int o his arms and beg him to make love to her. “You followed me home.” “In a ma nner of speaking,” Christian relented the point. “Do you always eat in the n ude? If so, I plan on making a habit dropping in.” He twirled his tongue ove r his lips and gave her his best smile. He watched in rapt fascination as sh e took a healt hy bite into some garlic bread. Contrary to popular belief, t he foul smelling weed didn’t disable his kind. In most cas es, they were jus t nauseated to the point of weakness. “Do you actually like that?” He pointe d a long finger at the bread. Hillary looked at the slice of bread and kept chewing. “Love it.” “I see.” Christian did his best to keep his stomach from flopping as a fish out of water. “Are you trying to torture me?” “What are you doing here, Christian? I find it hard to believe you would st op by to watch me eat.” “True. But I do have an ulterior motive. I will let you eat so that you have enough energy for what I have planned later.” Hillary kept eating, doing her best to appear undisturbed. “You think I’m going to fuck you again? I was delirious, I could’ve fucked Frankenstein and not even known it.” “You fucked me because it was me.” Christian leane d forward. The chair was too small to be comfortable for his tall form. “I can be any man you’ ll ever want or need all you have to do is say the wo rd.” The accent became more distinct, more pronoun ced. “I want you and th ere’s nothing to keep me from having you” Page No 37 Eternal Flame 37

Hillary nodded. “And why is that?” Because eventually you will die and I wi ll have to go on shattered in a ragged existence. The words were dancing on the tip of his tongue. Instead, Ch ristian got to his feet and slowly went t o Hillary on the couch. He stood over her weighing his decision. The lesser of two evils and this one only gave brief satisfaction. He bent over and dre w Hillary up beside him. “I want you to the point of madness, Hillary. I go to sleep hard and wake up even harder and it’s all from wanting to be inside the tight, wet pussy of yours. No one’s ever done that too me, not in this lifetime.” As he head bent over her, Hillary witnessed the flames licking in the golden flecks of Christian’s eyes. His chiseled lips closed over hers h otly. Easing her mouth open, he swept his tongue inside delving expertly to engage her. Hillary groaned, leaning into the kiss. So much for the icy façade. He pulled her hands around the back of his neck a nd locked them there. Th en, Christian used his hands to wrap around her thighs and curl one leg up around his waist. His invading tongue plundered the soft, dark recesses of her mouth. Sucking on her tongue with blistering intensity, the reward was Hillary pressing those gorgeous breasts closer to him. Christian’s lips lef t hers seeking to tease a nd tantalize new areas. He moved across the smoot h peach of her cheek whispering against her ear. “You don’t want to stop.” The harsh ragged sound fueled the furnace within her. He could be leading her down the path they already traveled. One that did not have a particular ly nice ending as far as Hillary was concerned. There was no doubt in her mind she wanted Christian Blackthorne. What kind of sensibilities was she w illing to forgo to get him? While his lips renewed their demands upon hers, his long artistic fingers e dged over her collarbone. The briefest touch caused his fingers to flood wit h heat. Christian groaned, a low feral growl, against her mouth. Her skin wa s velvet, soft and hot to the touch. His nimble fingers contracted upon comi ng into contact with the bare curve of Hillary’s breast. The gentle stroke of Christian’s hand made Hilla ry press herself closer. H e teased and lightly pinched her nipple while Hillary cried out, breaking th e kiss. With his other hand, he hauled her hard against his blatantly hard c ock. “Feel what you do to me, Hillary?” Christian’s teeth grazed her throat and the most exquisite hunger taunted him. He could taste her, just a small sample. His tongue laved the edge of her collarbone. “You are the most exqui site woman I have ever seen.” The warm air of her living room felt cool agai ns t the blazing heat of her skin. She watched the look in his eyes change f rom feverous desire to pure reverence. Hillary’s surprise reflected in her a ttempt to break the spell binding them t ogether. No man had ever looked at her with the open honest and awe

Page No 38 Lynn Warren 38 shining on his face. The power and beauty swept through and filled Hillary. N o one could give this gift as Christian gave it to her. He lifted one breast tilting his head to cover it w ith his lips. Hillary ga sped as sharp tingles of pleasure slid into her stomach before migrating lo w er to her slick pussy Christian suckled fervently creating tidal waves throug hout her. Licking at the hard nipple, he pushed her down slowly to the couch and knelt between her legs. Hunger conducted an assault, threading throug h each vein in Christian’s b ody. A foggy haze clouded his mind and his judgment. Leading him perilous l y close to the cliff, Christian saw a vast, steep canyon yawning before him . His game of risk took him much too far. The temptation too great and much too tantalizing to refuse, his fangs nicked across his tongue Christian to ok solace in the fact he should be condemned to an eternity of hell. Of cou rse, since he ’d never believed in that particular landscape, he wasn’t worried. Smoothing back the champagne highlighted strands of Hillary’s drying hair, he cupped her face in his hands. He kissed her lightly en gaging her lips in a delicious fora y be fore breaking off and gliding down to her throat. As Hillary drug her finger s through the crisp hair on his head, Christian bit softly. Hillary moaned a s his teeth scraped against her throat and he drew the creamy skin into his mouth. “Christian…” His name escaped on a sigh. Her ha nds went down the fro nt of his chest and stopped at the waistband of his black jeans. Christian r an his tongue across his teeth alre ady sharp enough to pierce skin. “I sens e your hunger, you want something more. You crave something darker. I can gi ve that to you.” He licked his dry lips. Once he sipped from her life’s bloo d, he knew he would not stop. Hi s control shattered into thousands of cryst al shards. He let his teeth rasp along the inside of her th igh and parted her legs. “How far would you like to go, Hillary?” Using his fingers, he parted the d elic ate folds and dipped his head. Warm honey danced over his tongue and h e inhaled the excitement drumming through her vein s. She thrashed about as he nibbled, sucked, and drove his tongue deep into her we t pussy. She ros e on the first wave and Christian knew she was ready. He would show her jus t a glimpse of what it could be like. Hillary’s body bowed backward. Every muscle clenched in hard, delicious anti cipation. She crested hard and fast and then Christian bit her thigh and she screamed as the world collapsed in on itself. Stars streaked past her vision as Hillary dragged air into her lungs. She couldn’t tell if she still screame d, she didn’t really care ei ther. She only wanted to feel like this longer.

Her blood pounded through her veins as if it were lava. Hillary arched agains t hi m twisting her thighs around his head. God, this was Page No 39 Eternal Flame 39 incredible! She’d become magma, hot, thick and desperately hungry to devou r everything in its path. “More,” she managed to choke out as her pussy cl enched, waiting for Christian’s huge cock. “Give me more.” “All in good time.” Hillary barely took a breath befo re she found herself bent over the back o f the couch. She didn’t realize either of them moved. Her sk in tingled with some strange electrical current. Christian trailed his hand down her spine and she shivered. He squeezed her ass and Hillary only groaned in desperatio n while he unzipped his fly. She felt the hot tip of his cock press against the back of her pussy and H illary squirmed to get him inside. Christian laughed and drove the hard len gth deep into her wet pussy until she moaned and bucked against him. Then h e drew it out so slowly, she was sure she’d come before he had a chance to bury himself inside her again. “Do you like that?” “Oh God, yes!” “Do you want me back inside you?” Hillary tried reaching around to pull him back in but he caught her hands a nd bent over her slowly. He sank inside her so far, Hillary bit her lip this time to keep from screaming. Leaning over her, he began to grind against he r. In and out. Slow and easy, goi ng in so far, she could feel her pussy clo se around him tightly. She wanted his cock in her so badly, it was like some weird addiction. She’d had men. Some good, some thought they were, but Chri stian was phenomenal. The man bordered on god-like with this kind of skill. Most guys would be finished and clearing out by now, but Christian, well, th is was fantastic. Hillary sucked in a breath as he slipped inside her again and then ran his nimble fingers across her tits. “How far do you want to take this, Hillary?” He nipped at her ear while gr inding his balls into the back ridge of her pussy. His muscled legs pressed against hers and her skin tingled with the scrape of the hair-roughened te xture. “Are we just playing here? How far do you want to go?” She straighte ned off the couch and clenched her legs around him. “How far can we go?” Mu scles slicked with sweat, she released him and spun around. Sitting her ass on the back of the sofa, she wrapped her legs around his wais t and slid o

nto his cock. “Show me what you’ve got, Christian Blackthorne.” Pressing his rock hard chest into her tits, he caught her lower lip between his teeth. A feral light appeared in his eyes. “You don’t know what you’re dealing with.” She tugged her lip away. “I don’t care what it is, you’re amazing and I plan to keep you.” She Page No 40 Lynn Warren 40 growled before licking his ear. “Do you?” “Yes.” “That’s a good thing, because I’m never letting you go, Hillary.” She kisse d him with more fire in her soul than she’d ever experi enced. He sucked at her tongue and she returned the favor. She felt the tendons in his arms bunc h and tighten as he lifted her off the sofa. Those arms created a piston mot ion as she rode his cock until she could only scream as she came like a volcano. Her pussy pulsed around him as he groaned hi s release and she felt his fiery seed shoot deep inside her. Christian inhaled. “I know.” He stood up slowly, reluctantly pulling his a ching cock from her hot pussy “I want you to come to my show. You should me et my brothers.” He reached down and picked up the sweatshirt handing it ba ck to Hi llary. “You know I find it difficult to keep my hands off you. It’ s only going to get worse until we complete it.” Hillary slipped the sweatshirt on. “I should say we need to slow down. Get to know each other.” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “But that’s not the truth.” “What do you want out of life?” “That’s kind of a weird question.” “Not really, some people want money, fa me, a fa mily. Some people wish to solve the riddle of their existence.” Hillary picked up a wine bottle and stopped in mid pour. “What?” Christian’s hand went over hers to pour the wine. Then he t ook the bottle and poured himself a glass. He raised it to his lips and watched her carefu lly. “That’s what you’re after isn’t it? That’s why you’re a doctor, why you do research instead of working with patients. You want to unlock secrets.” “How did you know that?” He sipped the wine allowing the flavor to travel across his tongue. A subt le flavor of oak, cherries and a rich chocolate finish it was nothing compa red to Hillary. He knew the hunger as it clawed and scratched at him. He wo uld never tire of her, not in a thousand life times. “I know many things. I can show you so much, be so much for you.” He tilted the glass and swallow ed the remainder of the wine. Christian decided to introduce the idea gentl y to he r. He leaned forward and whispered in her ear from an ancient tongu

e. Kissing her temple, he let his fingers drift over her eyelids as they sl id closed. “Learn who I am, Hillary and accept what you could become.” With ease, he scooped her up into his arms and tucked her into her bed. Page No 41 Eternal Flame 41 Christian sat idly by his pond, staring off into the night sky. The sweet s cent of roses did nothing to clear his head or ease his mind. Once again, he resorted to trickery with Hillary. As the night deepened, the air restored by the coolness of an autumn storm rolling into Las Vegas. He heard the flut ter of wings and turned his head slig htly to see a white owl sett le on a s tone in front of him. Misty vapor swirled around the owl as Draigon transfor med. His tr iplet brother stood before him with a smirk on his handsome face . Where Christian was dark, Draigon was blonde. A mishap in their youth and his older brother found himself caught in th e middle of a violent thunderst orm. Struck by lightning, Draigon’s dark hair instantly turned plati num blo nde. The gypsies cursed the brothers from then on and maybe, the Blackthorne family should’ve paid attention. “Good evening, brother.” Christian leaned back against the pond bench, running his fingers through h is hair in agitation. He knew from the beginning Hillary Tennyson was a pro blem. “Hello, Draigon. Out hunting?” “It’s a good night.” Draigon tilted hi s head slightly and the brilliant gold hair shook to one side. “We’ve a vis itor approaching.” He didn’t really listen to his brother as Christ ian sorted through his deci sion to reveal himself to Hillary. He could just leave, neve r to return to L as Vegas, never to see Hillary Tennyson again. That might be the best choice for both of them. Draigon knelt on the ground next to him. “It was bound to h appen eventually, little brother. We’re sensual beings, not meant to live thi s life alone.” “What if she doesn’t want this?” Draigon grinned. “She wants you.” A sudden shift in the wind alerte d Christian. His h ead snapped up, eyes na rrowing to scan the garden. The sound of very soft foot steps caused Chr istian to get to hi s feet and turn around. From the direction of the roses stood Sinclair, the younger man gave a mocking bow. “Greetings, Golden One .” “What are you doing here, Sinclair?” Draigon st raightened from his pron e stance. His smile flattened sharply into as he pressed his lips together. The younger approached slowly, hands raised. “I ask for a moment of your t ime. After all, we are both quite busy this night. Are we not?”

“He allowed Hillary to draw his blood and test it.” Christian watched, cont empt lacing his eyes. He motioned for Sinclair to advanc e and Christian smi led smoothly. “Thi s is not an excellent choice for you to hide here.” “Oh, I’m not hiding, not yet.” Sinclair walked up beside him and came aroun d to the front of the Page No 42 Lynn Warren 42 bench. “Relax, Christian. We have a few things to discuss.” “You try to thr eaten him, fledgling. After giving a medical doctor your blood. A very curi ous medical doctor.” Sinclair’s tone appeared mocking, secretive. Indeed, Sinclair was up to som ething. The younger enjoyed elaborate little games and it attracted attenti on of the Renegades. Very well, it would take his mind off Hillary for a whi le. Christian shifted and folded his arms in front of his chest. “Go ahead.” Sinclair made a mental note of crossing his fingers, it was so blatant anyo ne could hear his thoughts. Sinclair was entirely insane to try this with Ch ristian or tota lly desperate. Christian might rip him to shreds, but it see med the young man willingly took a chance. Sinclair inhaled, there went ever ything, or nothing. “Do the Re negades know that you are in love with a woma n who is conducting research to find a cure for me?” An instant passed, seeming to be an eternity, as Christian stared into Sincl air’s eyes. Christian reconstructed the words several dozen times making cert ain he heard Sinclair corr ectly. His lips parted, but at first no sound cam e out. “What did you say?” A light of victory blazed in Sinclair’s green eyes. The first round was his. “You heard me, Christian.” Christian straightened, his body sti ffening in rage. His eyes gleamed wit h fiery copper and gold. He branded Sinclair with a look that made the youn ger man back away. “Where did you come up with such a foolish notion?” Sinc lair remained smiling, a nervous laugh bubbled up in his throat. “I have se en you with her, twice now.” Sinclair recovered some of his bravado. He lifted an auburn br ow, inquisitively. “However, the episode at her home was very enlightening .” Draigon moved with the speed of lightning, ca tching hold of Sinclair and laughing. “You wouldn’t do that, Sinclair. Because if I didn’t kill you fir st, Garridon would.” Christian launched himself forward. He wrappe d his ha nds around Sinclair’s throat so quickly Sinclair had not even blinked. “You were spying on me?” Sinclair swallowed, feeling the crushing pressure . If he had been human, Sinclair would’ve passed out from lack of oxygen. He pu

t his hands on Christian’s arm forc ing a little leeway. “Christian, let me speak, will you? You can kill me in a mome nt if you wish.” Christ ian inh aled sharply and released Sinclair who staggered back, rubbing his throat. “Thank you.” Christian turned his back briefly and returned to his seat. An ger burned, shooting off sparks throughout his entire body. His arms bent s teely as he folded them tightly across his chest. “What was your purpose, f ledgling?” Page No 43 Eternal Flame 43 “You do not deny you’re in love with the mortal woman?” “What I do isn’t a ny of your business, you little asshole” Christian snapped revealing perfec tly sharp white teeth. “Then, you have no feelings for her at all?” Sinc lair’s courage returned, he smoothed his hair and moved closer. Christian di d not say a word. A flicker of a smile teased Sinclair’s lips. “It would not matter to you in the slightes t if the hunting party killed her as well as me?” “They won’t have a chance to kill you. I’ll do it myself.” He chuckled. A bit forced but he was relaxing. “Y ou have a great wit, Golden One. It will come in handy when Seraphina hears about your little mortal.” Christian’s eyes went cold. His lips slid into a malicious grin. “Who is going to tell her?” Sinclair returned the smile. “I will.” Sinclair took out the tidbit h e had been saving. “You have always professed that our existence is the per fect one. I can see the conflict in you now, Christian. I recognize it beca use I have lived with it for seventy years. You finally experienced the fla ws of our life in a most tragic way.” Draigon tightened his hold on Sinclai r and Christian knew exactly why. Rumors were that Christian had a torrid a ffair with their Queen. But it wasn’t him, the affair was with Draigon. “Yo u deny yourself your true nature every time you are with Hillary Tennyson. You can’t reveal yourself, you can’t be with her as the creature you are, a nd you have no desire to become human again.” Sinclair looked closely. “Or do you wish you could be human so that you could be with her?” “Never, Sinc lair unlike you, I have more than a ccepted my heritage. I would not change myself for anyone, let alone a mortal.” The thought never cr ossed Christi an’s mind. He was content with his existence. He enjoyed his heritage. “Not hing will be the same for you, Christian. Even if you left right now, even if you traveled to another time. You have already involved yourself with th e mortal woman. No matter what you do, you will always think of her.” “You know, Sinclair, it might be fun to see what the Renegade s did to you .” Draigon snapped sharp incisors at the younger man.

“No?” Sinclair cocked his head. “If she meant nothing to you, why didn’t y ou take her this night. You could have had her body and soul and you didn’t . However, I simp ly don’t believe anyone is that chivalrous by nature or b y deed.” Christian could spend the remainder of the night denying Sinclair’s words, but he grew weary of the game, weary of the self-denial. Did it take this br ash youth to point out to him what seemed blatantly obvious? Apparently so. Christian sighed roughly in defeat. “What do you want, Sinclair?” Sinclair l icked his lips. He waited what appear ed a lifetime to have Christian Blackt horne at his Page No 44 Lynn Warren 44 mercy. He wanted to squeeze a bit more. “Admit it, you are in love with Hi llary Tennyson.” Draigon spun Sinclair around his eyes glowed w ith a gold en light. “Playtime is over, young one. Do not come back here ever again. And I highly advise you to stay away from Dr. Tennyson.” Draigon’s words c racked a barbed whip across Si nclair’s bare flesh. Christian wa tched as pain radiated through is chest and soul. Sinclair lamented on his error. “I apologize, Chri stian. I had no right to sa y that. I have no right meddling in your affairs.” “Leave, Sinclair. Before you regret it.” Sinclair felt tremendously guilty. He honestly had no idea Christian’s fee lings ran so deeply. However, the older man wasn’t considering his apology, so Sinclair decided to give the reason for his appearance. “The doctor ran a DNA test on my blood.” “Wonderful,” Christian lashed forth with cynicism. “The DNA is not human.” “You are not human.” Christian stated only the obvious wondering where th is led. “The genes, my genes, have been mutated. All of them.” Christian didn’t appear surprised. “The change alters your entire being. Why wouldn’t it do so on a cellular level?” “I think the doctor could change me back. If there’s a way to reconstruct the DNA back to human form, maybe she could inject me with a new DNA and it would take over.” Christian leaned forward and stood up. He had to admire the younger man’s tenacity. Sinclair did not let go of an idea very easily. “Did she tell you she could do this?” Sinclair shook his head. “She thinks I’m playin g a joke on her. She doesn’t believe any of the tests are real.” Christian nodded. “I can understand that. Hill ary is a very logical wo man . You are presenting her with the extraordinary. Most people’s minds would r ebel against that.” “How can I make her believe? Sh e can find me a cure. I’

m certain of that.” Sinclair pursed his lips in consideration. “Even if you told her what you were, she still wouldn’t believe you. Most humans consider us as myths or legends. Something out of a story book or fi lm.” Draigon sniffed at the wind. “The girl can’t help you, Sinclair.” “You thi nk I should simply give up? Resign myself to my fate?” “Sinclair, I thought your plan was foolhardy at best to begin with.” Christian developed an oun ce of patience. “However, let’s suppose for a moment that Hillary did belie ve you, she accepted the DNA as Page No 45 Eternal Flame 45 fact and not a hoax. What do you expect her to do?” “Recreate the DNA w hich was human in me.” Christian sighed, shaking his head. “That isn’t possible. Even if Hillary a greed to make the effort to change you back, I do not think humans possess t he capability to arbitrarily recreate human DNA“ Sinclair refused to let go. “She could try.” “Yes, she could. But consider this, what if she did make a pseudo DNA for you and injected you with it?” He watched the young man with clinical ey es . Sinclair smiled, imagining the possibilities. “Suppose some portion, howe ver small, was wrong, faulty in some minute way. It could trigger a disaste r turning you into a freak of nature.” Sinclair lowered his head. “I’m already a freak of nature.” Christian grow led. At times, he just wanted to knock some sense into the youth. He was al most like an errant child in his behavior, even though in appearance their ages lo oked to be five years or less. “Sinclair, why do you persist on condemning a lifestyle you chose for yourself?” “I would not wish this night time existence for anyone.” “Have you ever tried it though? For as long as I have known you, you have lamented your fate. You have never explored your abilities or the possibili ties it brings.” Christian did his best to appeal to Sinclair’s adventurous nature that was often misdirected. Sinclair frowned. “And how do all the p ossibilities stack up with Hillary? You have only two; go away or change he r. You might leave but that would not rid her fr om your heart, and I don’t think you would change her.” “Heart? Now, that is a strange word coming from you.” Baffled, Sinclair g azed at him with his electric green eyes. “Why is that?” “You accuse us of not being human. Doesn’t a heart and its symbolism represent a human

characteristic?” Christian proceeded. He didn’t wa nt to use the example th at came to mind, but it illustrated the point the best. “Love isn’t a human emotion?” Sinclair nodded. “Do you believe we can feel these emotions as k eenly as any human?” “Yes.” Christian listened to his response and avoided the critical gaze of his brother. Christian thoughtfully stroked his chin w ith long fingers. “So, we can experience emotions, possibly with far more i ntensity than any human. What about the senses? Sight, sound, taste, touch? Do you feel those any less now than when you were human?” Colors became brighter, more distinct, and shap es clearly defined. Hear in g became so acute it could be painful at times. Taste far more intense and p owerfully satisfying th an he could remember. When he touched things, it rad iated through his entire being. He could almost feel the energy used to Page No 46 Lynn Warren 46 create the object. “I see your point.” “But, you still plan to pursue this no nsense?” “Give me a little more time . I want to see if it is possible, at le ast. If it becomes evident that I cannot be turned into a human once again, I swear to you, Christian, I shall accept my fate, and I will do it gladly.” R esignation filled Sinclair’s expression with firm unwavering strength. Christ ian admired the boy’s steadfastness. “I can’t promise anything, but I will do what I can to delay them.” Christian smiled with a faint touch of warmth. “I never thought I would say this, Sinclair. I appreciate your willingness to e xhaust all avenues. I hope if you find what you s eek and that you are be hap py with it.” Sinclair didn’t know what to sa y. He hadn’t expected Christian to understa nd. He assumed he would have to threaten him to attain his goal. Now, with a brief bow of respect, Sinclair bid farewell. “I will leave you the rest of this night. Thank you, Go lden One. You have no idea how much I appreciate y our intervention.” Sinclair drifted into the night. “Has a hunting party bee n sent out for Sinclair?” Draigon turned his head at the sound of his brothe r’s soft steps. Hunting pa rties dispatched by the Council didn’t use conven tional methods to track prey. They were a death squad designed to eliminate any threat to the vampiric way of life. Garridon nodded silently, then he qu irked an eyebro w. He joined his brot hers sitting in a chair beside the pon d. Of all of them, Garridon remained the most old school in his mannerisms. Christian and Draigon floated back and forth to suit their needs but Garrido n seemed to like the old ways. “Surely, you aren’t surprised by this?” “No.” Christian wasn’t the least bit surprise d. The longer they sought Sin clair; the less time Sinclair would have. “How long have they been out?” Garridon calculated. “It’s been two nights, I believe.” He l ooked at Christ

ian and noted his friend’s interest. “What’s this all about? I thought you wo uld be the first to want Sinclair captured.” “Perhaps I’ve had a change of he art.” Garridon clucked his tongue. “That’s not good, Ch ristian, not good at all . The Renegades want him.” “Is there any way to delay the party’s progress?” “Are you telling me you are on Sinclair’s side now?” Garridon found the no tion highly improbable, yet Christian’s attitude seemed otherwise. “Perhaps I was too harsh. He should be allowed a little more time to try.” “Christi an, I really wish you would have made your opinions known a bit earlier.” G arridon’s Page No 47 Eternal Flame 47 dark eyes shrouded in apprehension. “Why should it matter when I change my mind?” Garridon scratched the back of his neck. “They don’t just want just Sincla ir.” Christian leaned forward. “What are you saying?” A threatening edge ap peared in the whispered words. Garridon frowned, “They want the woman as well.” “What the fuck is this?” Christian practically shouted causing Garridon to lean back. Garridon shrugged an apology. “If the mortal mean s anything to you, Christian, you’d better beat the Renegade hunting party to her.” Draigon nodded, “We can’t risk intervening. Too much activity will get the attention of a vampire hunter.” Someone fired a cannon at his chest from point blank range. “How much tim e?” “Hard to say really.” Draigon frowned, “Two days. Before your gallery showing. This needs to b e resolved.” Page No 48 Lynn Warren 48 CHAPTER SIX The landscape unfolded in front of her in a series of gray s an d blues with long shadows. Gorgeous arches of gothic architecture rose in th e distance as she stood along a cobblestone road. Hillary watched the storm clouds roll in over the m ountain village. She’d never been to Europe, but s he’d love to spend time in a quaint village like this. She heard a shout of laughter from behind and saw three young boys race up the street toward her.

Their eyes sparked with misc hief and she could tell just by a glanc e that these three were brothers. Nearly identical in appearance, Hillary stopped and stared as one of the boys turned to look at her. Christian. Oh wow! The village spun away from her to reveal a small tavern. Golden light from oil lamps illuminated the crowd as men drank heartily and the women inside did their best to ‘comfo rt’ them. Hillary moved through the crowd, search ing for someone. She wasn’t certain whom she sought, just that she needed t o find someone. She heard the laughter again and turned to fa ce a table of three very handsome young men. Christian wore his long hair pulled back in to a sleek ponytail. He drank from a pounded metal mug while his brothers a te from a mountainous plate of food. Hillary imagined they were in th eir e arly twenties by now. Maybe a bit older, she couldn’t be sure. A strange ti ckle went through her mind but she di smissed it. Dreams were simply painti ngs of the self-conscious. It didn’t matter how old he was no; this wasn’t real. He looked at her and smiled. “Come sit with us.” She blinked. Was she in this dream? She actually thought she traveled as an observer. Hillary shook her head. That tickle returned and this time, it scratched with a dull edge of dread. Something wasn’t right. The scene before her swirled again and nearly k nocked Hillary off balance . Her head swam and her stomach pitched and rolled. Thunder crashed in th e distance as she realized she stood next to Big Ben in the center of London on a dark night. Oil lamps lit the street as she walked slowly toward a crowd assembled aro und a pub. She wasn’t frightened in the normal sense of the word, but it di dn’t take a genius to assume something bad lurked Page No 49 Eternal Flame 49 around the corner. She found herself standing in the mi ddle of the street, st ari ng at movement in the alley. The scene shimmered into focus and Hillary knew this was more than any n ormal dream. She felt the chill in the air and she definitely smelled the stench of body odor and human waste coming out of the alley. “Oh I wouldn’t go down there, love! Seraphina has herself some tast y y oung boys.” A woman dressed in a faded blue gown warned. What? Hillary moved slowly down the alley, squinting into the darkness. Fog roll

ed over her feet and Hillary shivered. Rubbing her bare arms, she nearly tr ipped over a drunk man passed out in the middle of the alley. The stench gagged her and Hillary brought a hand to her mout h to keep from vomiting. Not that anyone would notice amidst all th e filth. Slowly she drew in a brea th as beads of sweat formed on her face. The fog twisted away in curly fingers to reveal Christian and his brothers. All three men had their shirts torn open wide revealing heavily muscled chest s and abs that you needed to lick just to appreciate. Trouble was, a tall bru nette did just that. Oddly attracted to the scene, Hillary continued to observe. She didn’t con sider herself a voyeur in any way shape or form, but this was Christian. D eciding to remain unobtrusive, she moved behind a stack of crates, careful where she put her feet, and stared as the Blackthorne brothers stripped t he woman of a beautiful red gown. The woman was as gorgeous as the men wer e. H illary let the sharp sting of jealously crawl across her spine as the naked woman revealed Chris tian’s cock and took it in her mouth. Christia n’s hands tangled into the woman’s dark, wavy hair and drew her head close r as she bent over him. To her shock, the blonde brother came up be hind t he woman and wrapped a muscled arm around her waist. With his other hand, he opened his fly and pulled out his ow n cock that he greedily drove into the woman’s pussy. The woman moaned in delight continuing to draw hard on Christian while his brother pumped into her. Jealously danced and teased along her spine a nd Hillary shifted her weight . She was wet and horny and Christian Blackthorne belonged to her, not this greedy bitch. Hillary’s eyes narrowed. Some analytical part of her brain mus t sti ll function normally. She wasn’t certain, but the men seemed dazed. Or dazzled as if this bitch had them all under some sort of spell. She was att ractive for sure, but damn she didn’t deserve three men that looked like thi s! Hillary moved from behind the crates certain that the four were so caught up in their escapade, Page No 50 Lynn Warren 50 they’d never notice her. She wanted a better look at the men’s eyes and to d o that, she needed to get closer. Determine to avoid watching the remaining brother took hold of the woman and got into the act, Hillary focused on Chri stian and then his blonde brother’s face If she didn’t know better, she’ d say these guys were under some so rt of ma gic spell or held in thrall by this chick. Christi an’s eyes appeared dilated and so did hi s brothers. She knew the flush on their faces wasn’t normal ei

ther. Her head tilted as the woman gripped the dark haired brother and spun him around showing astonishing strength. Hillary caught the flash of red in her eyes and stumbled back. Teeth, no fangs glinted in the dim light right bef ore they sank into the throat of the man she fucked. The man sagged against her and Hillary didn’t know what to do. She watched as the brunette cradled the man as she wiped the bl ood from her mouth. Then, she laid him in a pile of trash while the blonde lined up to fuck her again and get bit in t urn. Hillary couldn’t believe her eyes. She rubbed the heels of her hands into t hem hoping to clear the image but no, when she looked back, big, blonde hand some fell to his knees and rolled over onto his brother from lack of blood. “Oh my God,” realization dawned as Christian fell into place w ith the bitch. She bit her lip, “Christian!” Hillary sat straight up in bed. Blood pounded in her ears, sweat pooled at her tailbone. Air puffed out her lungs in giant gasps. She pushed her damp h air away from her face and neck and kicked off her bed covers. Shit, shit shit. She was fucking a vampire. Worse, she was probably in love with him. That afternoon Hillary accepte d a lunch invitation from Madis on. She met Madison at a little Italian restau rant near the Strip. The restaurant was small and filled with th e wonderful ly pungent arom a of Italian herbs and spices. Madison sat in a booth near s ome old wine barrels, waiti ng patiently, Hillary laughed as she strolled in . Not. Hillary gave a smile as she a pproached, absently smoothing her pale sage slacks and oatmeal sweater. This wasn’t going to be easy. Madison needed to be told, only Hillary wasn’ t sure exactly what or how she was going to tell her. Page No 51 Eternal Flame 51 “Hey there! How’s it going?” Hillary’s smile wavered. “I’ve been incredi bly busy.” She glanced around for a menu. Madison reached out and gave he r a quick hug. “I’ve already ordered for us. I know you like the eggplant.” “How was the p arty at the Lanes?” “Okay. They asked about you. I didn’t have much fun without you, though. ” A waiter brought Hillary a wine glass. She shook him off. “I’d prefer iced tea, if you don’t mind.” “I already ordered us a bottle.” Hillary waved th

e waiter away and picked up the bottle. “I’m probably going to need it anyw ay.” “What’s up?” Sliding into the seat, Hillary took a swallow of wine. The ve lvety texture surrounded her tongue and exploded in a burst of cherry. Madison had excell ent taste when it came to wine. “Well, let’s see, I think I’m in love with C hristian Blackthorne.” Madison’s brows rose and she c oughed slightly. She pressed he r index fin ger into her ear and wiggled it. “Sorry, chunk of wax or something.” Hillary’s smile broke through. “No, you heard right.” “Okay. I heard right. What’s the rest? Cause I can see the rest.” Hillary sh ook her head, “Oh trust me, nothing will prepare you for this.” Madison picke d up a piece of foccacia and smothered it with herbed olive oil. “I’m waiting .” “Well, I’m trying to figure out how to tell you this.” “Shit, Hillary, I know you’ve been fucking him so nothing you could say ca n shock me.” Madison grinned as the waiter slid a hot artichoke dip in fron t of th em and withdrew as if he thought they’d pounce on him. “He’s a vampire.” Madison’s teeth snapped together around the crack er covered with hot dip . Her tongue nearly rolled out of her mouth as both hands went for the gl ass of ice water. She gulped down a few swallows then lifted watery eyes t o Hillary. “Wh—what?” “Vampire.” Hillary made her fingers into claws and growled at Madison. Unf ortunately, that was the time the waiter decided to return for their orders . He took one look at Hillary and nearly fell over the busboy behind him. “ Oh hell.” At least Madison recovered long enough to orde r two lunch specials before swallowing three gulps of wine. “Okay, say that again.” Page No 52 Lynn Warren 52 “I think everyone heard me.” Hillary watched as Madison took a deep, cle ansing breath. They’d both started yoga a few months ago and enjoyed it i mmensely. “Yeah, but you said you were doing a vampire.” “That’s right.” “Oh.” If it wasn’t her, Hillary might be tempted to laugh. “You okay?” “Oh sure ,” Madison reached for the wine. “My best friend’s gone round the bend.” “ He wants me to meet his brothers.” Madison spit part of her wine back into the gl ass. She settled sharp eye s onto Hillary. “The vampire wants you to meet his brothers? His regular b rothers or his vampire brothers?” This time Hillary did laugh. The convers ation was just too funny. She swallowed some wine and figured they would n

eed another bottle before lunch ended. “I’m pretty sure they’re vampires t oo.” “And you came to this conclusion how?” Mmmm, explaining that would probably blow a hole in Madison’s brain. Hill ary didn’t know if it was a good idea, but she needed to know. Hillary wai te d until the salad arrived and picked out a tomato. Madison appeared pre occupied by th e salad dressing. Now was as good a time as any. “I had a d ream last night. A very vivid, um explicit dream.” Sh e raised a brow and grinned at Madison, “I think you ought to meet Christian’s oldest brother. He is endowed.” Madison choked on a piece of carrot. “Excuse me.” “I saw them all naked.” “Oh my God!” Madison’s eyes flashed, “You fucked all of them? Good God, you greedy bitch!” “Hang on a second, would you? I’ve only been with Chri stian. I saw them in a dream. And they got bit by this vampire queen bitc h.” “Please tell me you’re really not insane.” Madison poured the remainder of the wine into both glasses. “I don’t think I could handle it if you went n uts, you know?” “The art show is tomorrow night. I want you to come with me .” “To a vampire party?” “It’s not a vampire party. It’s an art show, at a gallery, Madison.” “I don’t do Goth.” The waiter slid their lunches in front of them and moved away rapidly. “I d idn’t say you had to do them. Just go with me to meet the family and all.” Madison arched a brow into her dark bangs. “Are you marrying a vampire? Because if you are, I’m calling Hannah and having her commit you. What about your work? You know until you met him, Page No 53 Eternal Flame 53 that was the center of your universe. He rescued you the night of my assaul t, brought you into the hospital. You’ve given him strange hero qualities.” Hillary listened but remained very calm. Madison’s reaction was expected. She took a bite of her lunch. The eggplant tasted like rubber for all she n oticed. “Oh, I get it. He saved you. Now you feel some sort of misplaced he ro worship for the guy. Maybe you should talk to Hannah about that. I’m sur e she can help you work it out.” “Sometimes, Madison.” Hillary sw allowed a large gulp of wine. “I do not feel hero worship for Christian. He is a kin d, charming and exciting man that I care a great deal for.” There, she said it. She finally put her feelings in order. No matter what strange happenings occurr

ed around Christian, she cared for him. No one could change that. “Geez, Hillary. Are you in love with this guy?” Love? Before Christian, love seemed to be such a st rong word to her. The bond ap peared too tightly restrictive and binding. The idea of it frightened Hillar y to no end. She had never been in love. Since her relationships always ende d so poorly, it appeared she never would be either. All of a sudden, the con cept of love took on a new meaning. The beauty of a diamond that lit the nig ht sky and shone brilliantly w ithout ending. Fury, speed and fl ame crashed through her body at the idea of him touching her. All these things brought to mind Christian. Was that love? She wasn’t certain. The doubt from last ni ght surfaced unexpectedly. She truly believed Christian cared for her, yet s trange speculations nagged her conscience. “I care for him.” Madison groaned , rubbing her neck w ith her hands. “I feel like a complete idiot. Are you g oing to work tonight? Cause I’m thinking we ought to give this a girl’s nigh t to think about things.” “I wasn’t looking for this to happen.” “But you let it happen so you must’ve wanted it or him.” Hillary wiped her lips with her napkin, so much fo r lunch. “Yeah, I need to go in for a while . There’s something I want to check on. Then I’ll meet you at the Palms.” The drive to St. Anne’s was short and relatively pleasant. Hillary listened to country music on the radio. Singing aloud to the woes of the world, she rolled the windows down letting the sun and wind saturate and dispense her black mood. Amazing wh at a bit of cooler weathe r and some hearty vocalization would do. Hillary pulled into the parking lo t of St. Anne’s and took one of the close r spaces reserved for doctors. She climbed out of her car, reaching in th e b ack seat for her purse and briefcase when she Page No 54 Lynn Warren 54 noticed the police cars. Three of them parked along the curb of St. Anne’s. Hillary approached the entrance, wondering what the hell was going on. She entered the building and Nurse Amery spotted her. The nurse rushed u p to her amidst the bedlam ensuing in the entryway. “Dr. Tennyson, thank goodness. We’ve been trying to call you.” Hillary glanced around. Two pol ice officers were questioning several hospital employees. “What’s going o n?” “Oh, it’s really te rrible, Doctor. Last night , after you left, someone brok e into your lab.” The nurse rushed through, trying to alleviate the blow by sp itting out everything all at once. “ What?” Hillary practically shouted. “I kn ow. It’s terrible. Th ere are some police officers up there now going over the lab for fingerprints.” Hillary started for the elevator, but th e nurse caugh

t her by the arm. “That’s not the worst of it, Dr. Tennyson.” Hillary couldn’t possibly imagine anything wors e. She punched the button for the elevator. “What could be worse than that?” “The police arrested Dexter Hamble just a little while ago.” Hillary sagged against the wall. Arrested? Dexter? “What on earth for?” The nurse shrugged. “They said they found something belonging to him up in the lab.” “Well, of course they found something belongi ng to him.” Hillar y shouted stepping into the elevator. “He is my lab assistant!” The elevato r door closed, sending Hillary up to the lab. The elevator door opened and Hillary strode down the hall rapidly. There were several people gathered outside the door of her offi ce and lab. Most of them stepped aside as they saw her approach. Hillary walked into her lab and skidded to an abr upt halt. Broken bits and pieces of glass littered the white tile floor. Th ey crunch ed under her feet as she took a few small steps toward the desk. At least it used to be a desk. She leaned heavily against a broken, twisted collection of metal drawers. Antiseptic splashed across the walls and tile, mixed with the rubbing alcohol. The smell was so sharp it made Hillary cough and gasp. Someone ripped, shredded, and tossed her files as if they were confetti afte r a parade. The breath squeezed out of her lungs and she took a few steps ov er to her beloved equipment. They demolished her microscope. Her computer resembled items found in a junk pile. The refrigerator door stood wide open, the coolant from the compressor leak in g out onto the floor. Her more expensive machinery laid in ruins. Twisted chunks of metal and plastic, more like modern art now, than medical equipm ent. Tears sprang into Hillary’s eyes. A warm hand squeezed her shoulder. “It’s al l right, Hillary.” Page No 55 Eternal Flame 55 The words came from the hospital administrator. “W e’ll get someone up here to clean this place up.” Hillary sniffled, nodding. “Now, don’t you worry. The equipment can all be replaced. You’ll be back in business in a matter of weeks.” “What about the files in my office? All my research?” The administrator ga ve a sympathetic smile. “We’ll go through it later to see what can be salva ged.” Salvaged? Hillary’s research, all of it was only salvageable. Hillary wipe

d at tears running down her cheeks. How the hell was she going to replicate all this research? She couldn’t even begin to explain most of it if someon e asked. Oh gee, I decided to test my blood as a lark and several DNA marke rs appeared in it and my attacker, and some bizarre guy that my lab assista nt is in love with. Oh yeah, maybe she should go talk to Hannah. The administrator patted her shou lder. “Don’t worry about that e ither. Ob viously, you’re on to something, my dear. Otherwise, no one would have taken quite an offending interest.” Sniffing, Hillary shook her head as the admin ist rator left the lab. What was she on to? She thought the entire episode w ith Sinc lair was a hoax. She clutched he r briefcase tighter in one hand. S uddenly, she didn’t find this very funny. One of the officers looked familiar and Hillary decided she needed a few answers. She walked up to the woman she remembered questioning her the n ight of her attack. “Officer Kent?” The woman straightened from the doorw ay to Hillary’s office. “Dr. Tennyson, how are you feeling?” “Great, until I came in here.” She looked arou nd at the remains of her lab and felt a distinct twinge between her shoulder blades. “I can imagine. We’re checking for fingerpri nts now. Neither door a ppear s to have been tampered with.” “How is that possible? I lock both doors every night before I leave.” Hill ary didn’t understand how anyone could enter without breaking down a door. “Anyone have a key?” Hillary thought a moment. “Dexter Hamble has access to one.” She couldn’t accept that Dexter destroyed her lab, even if Sinclair asked him to. The police officer nodded, drawing a notepad from her breast pocket and j otting down some things. “That’s what we thought.” Hillary stared at the officer, positively aghast. “You think Dexter did this? Is that why he was arrested?” Page No 56 Lynn Warren 56 The officer nodded affirmatively. “He had the opportunity. Now, did he ha ve a motive?” “Of course not!” “How do you know he didn’t?” “Because I know Dexter. He w ould never do such a thing.” H illary couldn’t believe she was hearing this. Granted, Dexter acted a bit strange r ecently , but all in all, he was the sweetest young man she knew. “Not even for drugs?” “Drugs?” Hillary stared, numb with shock. “You think Dexter is doing drug s?” The police officer shrugged, noncommittally. “He might’ve been looking for some for himself or to sell.”

“That’s absurd. Dexter has worked for me for almost two years now. He does n’t use drugs, I’m sure of it. And, if he were selling them, he would know from working here that I don’t keep any drugs in the lab.” Poor Dexter, how had he managed to get himself tangled up in this? It had to have something to do with Sinclair. Hillary felt a lump of stone lodge in her chest. De x ter’s infatuation with that man wasn’t healthy. “As of right now, he’s our best and only suspect. You say he doesn’t do drugs. When we picked him up this morning, he looked as if something had done a number on him.” The officer tucked the notepad away. “He consented to a drug test. We’re doing some lab work on him now to see if there wer e any chemicals in his bloodstream.” “Will you let me know the results?” “Certainly. And, we’ll be out of your hair in a few minutes, Doctor. We’ve about got everything we need.” After the police left, Hillary went into her o ffice. A tornado left less damage. Several maintenance workers walked into the lab armed with brooms a nd mops and trash bins. She heard a few of their comments; something along the lines of condemning the property. Hillary scooped up the remaining files sorting them as she went. There was nothing that pertained to Sinclair, nothing left at all. Maybe she should’ve taken the episode with Sinc lair seriously. There were vampires involved now and who the hell knew what their agenda might be It might have saved thousands of dollars of equipment and years of work on her part, because so meone obviously did take it seriously. Seriously indeed. Hillary glanced over at her briefcase lying on a chair. They might have sto len or destroyed all the tests on Sinclair, but they did not have the most si gnificant one. Compared to everything else, the DNA tests were as valuab le as gold. Page No 57 Eternal Flame 57 Hillary spent the remainder of the afternoon help ing with the clean up. There was so much glass on the floor that one of the workers went and got a heavy-duty vacuum. The administrator got a hold of a refrigerator repair man who replaced the compressor. Unfortunately, most of the samples overni ght with no cooling spoiled. Several people hauled the damaged equipment o ut of the laboratory and Hillary filled out the forms to replace them. Thank goodness for insu rance. She didn’t e ven want to think what her mysterious benefactor would do when he heard ab out the break-in. The police seemed to think the break-in was drug related

vandalism. Hillary knew better. The reason for the break-in was Sinclair, and the sooner he showed up the bette r. This time, Hillary planned to give him no alternative. He would explain everything or else she would call the police and accuse him of vandalism. The maintenance people managed to get the floor cleaned up. They scrubbed the walls with heavy duty cleaner. Now the lab smelled like pine alcohol. H illary grimaced, it could be worse. Eventually, the smell would wear out. T hey moved the furniture out and told her they would find replacements. Hill ary stared at the nearly emptied laboratory. All of her work destroyed. Her research, save for the DNA, and all her results were gone. It was hard to imagine, but she felt more violated now than she had right after her assault. This was her most p rized possession, her deepest dream, and someone had stolen it from her. Sinclair nearly gagged when he walked into the laboratory, crunching on a piece of missed glass. Hillary heard the choking and turned to look at him. An acid mixture of contempt and accusation burned in her throat. “Welcome to my nightmare,” she held out her hands in bitterness. Coughing, Sinclair glanced quickly around the lab. Hillary noticed his wate ry eyes and figure d they burned with the chemicals used recently in the room. He stopped brea thing and rubbed his eyes. “What in the hell happened?” The janitorial staff stripped the room bare; the furniture gone, the equipment gone, the doctor’s files gone. And suddenly, it began making sen se. “I was hoping you might know.” Sinclair swallowed. From the expression on his face Hillary could tell he didn’t want to know. He hadn’t considered they might si mply destroy her work. “What happened to all your equipment, your records?” “The equipment was destroyed, my samples are ru ined, and my records were shredded.” Hillary moved closer to Sinclair motioning him to follow her int o her office. “You should have seen it, Sinclair It looked like a ticker ta pe parade.” “Oh, no…” Page No 58 Lynn Warren 58 Hillary sat in her desk chair. They even tore her desk apart but the office c hairs were still in tact. Sinclair sat across from her. “Oh, yes. And guess wh at, Sinclair? All of my records, files and samples on you are gone.” Sinclair bit the inside of his lip. He should have thought of this reality. H e could have built some defense against it. “You’re kidding?” “Don’t you find

that just the tiniest bit odd?” The edge of Hillary’s voice rippled in despair . “I don’t know what to say.” Si nclair appeared sincere. He did his best not to express the devastation that crushed his chest as if a boulder rolled on to p of it. “Let me tell you the other bit of news. Woul d you like to know who t hey arrested for the break- in?” Hillary linked her fingers together to keep t hem still. Sinclair didn’t see where it would matter. He had a real good idea who was r esponsible. “I don’t really care.” “They arrested Dexter.” Sinclair’s eyebrows arched skyward. “They did what?” Hillary saw he was ge nuinely surprised. “They think he was looking for drugs.” Sinclair shook hi s head. “That’s crazy. Dexter’s a good kid.” “He was a decent, responsible young man before he started hanging around you.” Hillary planted the accusa tion firmly in Sinclair’s lap. One of many she planned to give him. “Are yo u saying I told Dexter to do this?” Sinclair gazed at her, positively incre dulous. “No, I’m saying ever since you came into his life, Dexter has chang ed and not favorably.” Hillary sounded like someone’s older sister, but as far as she was concerned, Dexter had too much talent to let it slip away ev en on a man as beautiful as Sinclair. “You’re right, and I apologize. Dexter didn’t have anything to do with this. ” Sinclair glanced over his shoulder back at the lab. “But you know who did?” Sinclair nodded. “I have a good idea.” Hillary knew she should’ve called the police, ex cept the phone was ripped out of the wall during the break-in and her cell phone was out in her car. “You’re going to call the police.” Sinclair frowned, his handsome face tur ning dark. He frowned slowly. “I can’t.” “What do you mean, you can’t? You have to. Whoever is responsible needs to be caught.” Shock drove into her c hest with the force of a hammer. “It wouldn’t matter if the police knew. Th ey wouldn’t be able to do anything.” “They could arrest them, bring them to trial.” Page No 59 Eternal Flame 59 “Dr. Tennyson, it won’t happen because they will never find the ones who d id this.” Hillary took a deep breath forcing herself not to scream at him l ike some raving lunatic. He spoke around her, constantly supplying riddles to her questions . He had done tha t all along. He gave her tiny clues, leading her down a path wh ere no one should go. She had the DNA that belonged to Sinclair, but she had no answer

s to the myriad of questions foggi ng her brain. “Okay, Sincla ir. You win. Whatever sick game this is, I’m tired of playing. You and your cr azy frie nds can go find so meone else to play with.” Hillary stood up and motioned him out the door. “I think things have gotten out of hand now. My research is ruined so if that’s your goal, then congratulations.” “Dr. Tennyson, you have to believe me,” Sinclair got up, imploring Hillary. He was ready to g o down on his hands and knees. “I am the last person on the planet who want ed this to happen. Don’t you realize that you are my only hope of a cure? Y ou ar e my salvation.” He gripped her by the shoulders, forcing her to look up at him. “I am sorry. I should have known, realized they would do anythi ng to stop me, including destroying your work.” Hillary jerked free, “Spill it, Sinclair all of it or else the next person you ar e explaining things to will be a police officer.” Sinclair released her. Humans got so riled up. As if a member of the police force would ever find him. “Telling you anything could get us both killed.” Hillary glazed at him as if she’d never seen him before. The sharp-edged t ail of fear twisted around her spine making her straighten. This all had to do with the DNA, she was certain of it. Whatever had altered his genetic c ode was the cause of this mess. Maybe Sinclair was involved in some secreti ve experiment, and now whomever it was that destroyed her lab wanted their little lab rat back. Then it smacked her square in the face like a bowl of wet, soggy noodles. Realization dawned and sometimes, Hillary thought it wa s just the dumbest th ing. Her eyes narrowed and she turned a clinical gaze on the handsome Sinclair. Gone were Sinclair’s easy smile and his bright eyes. In its pl ace was a ma n with features like stone. “Did they steal everything about me?” Hillary shook her head. “I still have all of the DNA results.” Sinclair shoo k visibly with repressed gratitude and excitement. “You’re brilliant,” he smi led broadly. “Absolutely, positively amazing. Hillary nodded, “Mmm-hmm. I’m just wonde rful. Sinclair. You know why your DNA is different, don’t you?” Sinclair moved away, turning his back and returning to the chair. “Sinclair !” Hillary went over to him. She to uched his shoulder and he glanced up at her with Page No 60 Lynn Warren 60 shuddered lids. “You told me you wanted me to help you. Before a doctor c an do anything to help a patient, they have to know what caused the sympt oms.” “I believe you, but if I tell you how it happened, you won’t believe me.”

“Oh for God’s sake! You’re a fucking vampire, aren’t you?” His lip curled and he dipped his head almost lik e a forlorn pup. He nodded slowly. “To the best of my knowledge, the alteration came during my change.” “What is Las Vegas just full of you guys?” “The change seventy years ago from human to what I am now.” Damn, these guys looked good for dead. Hillary shook her head. She knew she had to ask. If only to hang on to the remnants of her sanity, she would play along in whatev er alternative reality she found herself. “Sinclair, I really hate to break t his to you, but I would stake my life on the fact that you aren’t any older t han thirty-two or thirty-three.” “Then you would lose.” Sinclair’s eyes glitt ere d with an unnatural light. He leaned closer to Hillary so that his face w as merely inches from hers. “I stopped being human seventy years ago.” Hillary blinked, leaning back a bit uncomfortable by his stare. So much fo r alternative reality, maybe she suffered from suspended reality. She’d mak e a note to call Hannah soon. She wondered what the medical profession woul d think of a prominent researcher chatting with a vampire. “Okay, Sinclair. If you aren’t human, they what are you?” She licked her lips, would it rea lly make it better once he admitted it aloud? “I’m a vampire.” Hillary’s head twitched at the wo rds. She rocked so far back on her heels she nearly fell over. Nope, that didn’t make it better. Her stomach pitched and rolled as if she were a small craft caught in a storm at sea. She caught herself and rolled back onto her feet. Hillary shook her head in dismay. Th en, a trickle of laughter escaped her lips . It flowed over, bursting forth in a loud rush. Maybe Hannah would discount her psychiatric services fo r a long time friend. “Oh, that’s hy sterical, Sinclair!” She nearly doubled ove r. “I guess I walked right into that one.” She sniffed, wiping her tearing e yes. Sinclair mouth didn’t move, not even a chuckl e. The skin across his ch eekbones tightened perceptively. His lips drew together in a line. It was he r last hope. Her mind darted from thought to thought like a hummingbird. Who else was a vampire in Las Vegas? In the past few days, she’d managed to st umble across four of them. Well technically, she’d only met two and Christia n still hadn’t admitted he was one. So some hope remained, however weird it was. “Come on, Sinclair. You got me, joke’s over, you can laugh now.” Sincla ir continued to watch her. Hillary sank into her chai r. She gazed steadily at him for a long moment. Page No 61 Eternal Flame 61 “You’re serious, aren’t you?” Sinclair gave a small nod. Hillary licked her

lips. People who thought th ey were supernatural creatures; werewolves, va mpires and the like were right up Hannah’s alley. Hillary frowned. She just never thought she would ever run into one. Apparently, some of these peopl e were quite fanatical in their beliefs, drinking blood, sleeping during t he day, never going out in the sun. She glanced back at Sinc lair. The poor , distraught young man needed help. “Sinclair, I have a friend who is wonde rful with people. You could talk to her. Maybe she could help you.” “Dr. Tennyson, you are the only one who can help me.” “Sinclair, I’m not a psychologist. I don’t know anyt hing about this sort o f thing.” Hillary felt helpless and extremely sorry for the handsome young m an. Oh hell who was she kidding? She started to feel extremely sorry for her s elf. Re searcher gone wacko! She could see the headlines now. Sinclair sighed raggedly. “Christian said you would not believe me.” That g ot Hillary’s undivided attention. “Christian who?” “Christian Blackthorne is a fr iend of mine.” Sinclair’s lips went crooked at the word friend. Sincla ir shifted slightly and that cu rtain of auburn hair fell in front of his fa ce. “Christian warned me against trying to find a cure. He said no one would believe me. He tried to stop me.” Hillary wondered why Christian hadn’t got ten Sinclair some help if he were truly Sinclair’s friend. “But, you persist ed. Why come to me?” She did not even want to think about Christian’s connec tion to Sinclair. Nope. Not at all. There were no such things as vampires. And they certainly didn’t have little vampire gangs. Maybe they were clutc hes? Oh hell, clutches of vampires? She really was insane. “You were doing resea rch. I didn’t know what for, but I thought if I could somehow call attention to myself, you would help me.” Sinclair smirked. It did sound very far-fetc hed. “You started finding all these strange test results and I got hopeful.” Hillary listened carefully. D ear God, what if he really was a vampire? An impossible incredible notion, but it resolved a great many things. Starting w ith Sinclair only being available after sunset. The bizarre pH level of hi s blood, the st range white count, and the topper to this whole thing was th e DNA tests. Hillary felt numbness spread up from the tips of her toes into her stomach, locking her in place. Page No 62 Lynn Warren 62 “When the DNA tests came back and you said I wasn’t human, I was elated. I

never dreamed you would find such things. I couldn’t tell you what it mean t to me when you said you found mutant genes in my body.” Sinclair grinned as an immense weight lifted from his shoulders. Hillary appeared a bit on t he green side, she could practically feel slime crawl through her body. She really couldn’t imagine why anyone would be happy at such a revelation. Si nclair looked as if he had just received his Christmas present early. She u nde rstood now why he was so hopeful. He thought she had the capability to rec onstruct the DNA strand. She hated to dash his hopes, but there was jus t no possibility of her doing that. “Sin clair, even if I wanted to, I don’ t have the know ledge or the skills to reverse the DNA to what it was before.” “Christian has given me some more time. But the hunting party is out and I don’t know how much time we’ll have. Doctor, I understand that you might n ot be able to reverse the process, but can you try? Please?” She might be able to duplicate one segment, if she was lucky. But, the entir e thing, that was impossible. Even if she agreed to try this, she reali zed s he accepted what Sinclair told her. Sinclair was really and truly a vampire. That rebelled agains t every logical principle in her body. Unfortunately, no thing else made sense. What was a hunting party anyway? And what exactly did Christian have to do w i th this? She found it difficult to comprehend Christian being involved in s uch fantastic nonsense. My best friend is a vampire just didn’t fit right wit h Christian Blackthorne. Hillary looked at Sinclair. Hi s sincerity touched h er, he really believed. Hillary fought back a sigh. Why not? People believed in UFO’s, Bigfoot, and who kne w what else. What not vampires? Hillary forced a smile she wasn’t certain she really felt. “All right, Sinclair once my lab is put back together, I can try to is olate part of the genetic code.” Sincl air leaped to his feet. Hillary held up a hand, stalling him. “I can’t promis e anything, Sinclair. I don’t even think I’ll be able to do it.” Sinclair gri nned, “But you’re willing to try.” Hillary nodded slightly, “I will try, but the odds of me being able to recreate anything are slim and mill.” “That’s okay,” Sinclair sat back, a satisfied crease to his lips. “I can wait.” “Oh, but you really can’t, Sinclair, darling. Your time just ran up.” Page No 63 Eternal Flame 63 CHAPTER SEVEN Sinclair leaped to his feet, whipping his head around. He k new that frosty tone and the sensuality that dripped around it. “Seraphina ?” Hillary watched the stunning, brunette step into the doorway. Her short curls framed a heartshaped face and feline eyes. Her entire mannerisms revealed beneath a tight

, black pantsuit cat-like grace and motion. Behind the woman were five of t he mo st attractive men she had ever seen. Models? Somehow, with everything going on, Hillary didn’t think so. This was the vampire bitch from her dre am! Oh shit and she traveled with her ow n orgy. They glided into her lab, a silent, very deadly parade of the undead. Hillary back up ever so slowly until she was behi nd Sinclair it might go over better if she feigned extre me innocence in this matter. “Hello,” she greet ed the one Sinclair called Seraphina with a bright smile. “I’m Dr. Tennyson, is there something I can do for you?” Seraphina’s full red lips transformed into a snee r. “So you’re the famous doctor. My, what a pleasure it is to finally meet you. I’ve heard so mu ch a bout you.” Hillary smiled inwardly. Wow, this chick really was a bitch. The glitter in the woman’s eyes felt positively unholy. It nearly made Hillary s quirm, but she forced herself to remain calm and not reflect any ot her emot ion. She spared a glance at Sinclair who appeared absolutely horrified. “Rea lly? How nice.” “Yes, I was.” The words practically slithered forth as Seraphina roamed abo ut the lab. Hillary could see that she searched for someth ing. Her jaws tig htened, gee, wonder what that might be? It didn’t take a genius to figure ou t who trashed her lab. Pr obably a ton of vampires in Vegas that didn’t want anyone knowing about their existence. Sinclair stared at the five men w ith a strange glitter in their eyes . That made her uncomfortable. Light reflec ted in their eyes creating a golden pupil. Eerie, very eerie and Hillary got the impression that whatever they wanted, Sinclair was a big part of it. “A re you doing some spring cleaning early, Dr . Tennyson?” Seraphina indicated the empty laboratory. Hillary saw the knowledge of the answer teasing benea th a small smirk of the bright red lips. Hillary moved slowly toward the doo r, watching Si nclair’s eyes and the small tilt of his head. He wanted her o ut of there, now. Hillary let her eyes travel over the lab while she mentall y counted how Page No 64 Lynn Warren 64 many steps it would take to get out the door and down the hall. “Oh no, we had some trouble last night.” “Really? That’s awful.” Seraphina saw the l o ok on Sinclair’s face a nd winked at him. She intercepted Hillary smoothly before she could get to the lab door. “Isn’t it a shame? You simply can’t t rust people these days.” Hillary backed off. She might rush the young woman and knock her down, but she knew she wouldn’t stand a chance against the five men. She looked hopefully at Sincla

ir. “Christian gave me more time, Seraphina.” Sinclair spoke quietl y, hopin g to appeal to Seraphina’s sense of propriety. “Did he?” Seraphina tilted her head, placing a long red fingernail to her l ips. “Good try, Sinclair” She gazed at him with glistening eyes, looking exc epti onally wicked. She wagged her finger at him. “I don’t think so, though.” Whatever this little interchange was about, Hill ary refused to let this bi tch Seraphina intimidate her. “Would you like to tell me what you are doing here?” Seraphina sauntered over to Hillary. “I think you already know that, Dr. Tennyson.” Sinclair shook his head, lying he perfected long ago. “She do e sn’t know anythi ng, Seraphina, except that you and your friends have barg ed in here for no reason.” Hillary did her best to appear baffled. Seraphina regarded he r carefully. “She knows why we’re here, Sinclair.” “Actually, I don’t. And, since you don’t seem to be telling me, I woul d suggest you and your friends leave before I call security.” Hillary hoped it sounded as fir m as she intended. “My, my, isn’t she quite the spunky little thing?” Seraph ina moved closer to Hillary but her gaze remained on Sinclair. She reached o ut and brushed a ha nd down’s Hillary’s shoulder length hair. “She’s very pr etty. Isn’t she Sinclair?” Seraphina licked her lips and Hillary didn’t like the look in the women’s eye. “Now we know why Christian has taken such a sh ine to her.” Sinclair’s hand balled into a fist. Hillary sensed his agitatio n. Her eyes darted to the window and wondered if she jumped would anything c atch her fall ? Breaking an ankle was better than letting this bitch and her boy toys have her for dinner. The idea made her shudder. Hillary raised he r hands, brushing Seraphin a’ s away. “That’s it, sweetheart! Take your cold ass hands off” She pushed pa ssed Seraphina and headed out of the lab. Seraphina turned to go after her, but Sinclair gripped her by the arm. “Let her go, Seraphina. You’ve got me , and I’ll go willingly.” “I couldn’t care less about you, Si nclair. I want the mortal. Se raphina rip ped herself free of the grasp and started for Hillary. She motioned her men to detain the doctor and they did so rapidly. Page No 65 Eternal Flame 65 Hillary made it to the doorway leading out into the corridor when two men grabbed her by the arms. She screamed only to find a huge hand wrappe d aro und her mouth. They lifted her off the ground and carried her back into the laboratory where Seraphina waited. “You can’t do this, Seraphina.” Sinclai r st ared down at the young woman, his emerald eyes burning with disbelief and anger. He glanced briefly at Hillary as they returned her to the lab. S

he was unharmed; confusion littered her features. “Who says?” Her sharp white teeth revealed a vi cious smile. She looked a t her comrades. “Do any of you care what happens to the mortal?” All of th e men shook their heads. “You see,” she turned to Sinclair. “No one cares.” “I care,” Sinclair growled. “Well, of course you do, Sinclair darling.” She patted his arm. “You want t o be human again. I’m sorry to say that just isn’t going to happen.” Held high in the air over one of the boy toy’s shoulder, Hillary scream ed as she fell forward suddenly. She landed in a prone position off to the side of three of the boys. It took only one breath to realize what’d happened when she heard Madison yell, “What the fuck is thi s?” “I’ll explain later!” Hillary scrambled to her f eet. She’d forgot Madison planned on picking her up tonight to head over to the Palms. “Right now, j ust run damn it!” Mortal? The word lodged itself into Hillary’s brain as sh e practically shoved Madison out the door of the lab. She glanced back in t o the lab at each of the intruders. Now wouldn’t that just be an interestin g police report? Yes, officer, vampires trashed my lab and destroyed my res earch. Her breath clogged in her lungs and she could hear her heart echoing in her chest. None of these people were human. Hillary took a sh allow bre ath to keep from passing out. Her knees wanted to lock and she forced her m uscles to bend slightly as the grip of weakness on her l oosened. The hallw ay was thirty feet tops leading into the lobby where people milled about. I f they made to the lobby, there was no way the bitch and her boys would com e after them. What on earth had she gotten herself involved in? More import antly, how would she get herself out? Blood rushed in her ears. Evidently, Sinclair was the cause of some in-figh ting going on. She could understand why these people wouldn’t want their sec ret out in the open. Imagine all the havoc raised by an announcement along t hose lines, vampires in Las Vegas. The click of heels on the tile pushed her attention to the present as she and Madison ran as fast as possible in thei r shoes. Talking about falling in with the wrong crowd. Sinclair, she had de veloped a certain fondness for, but the one called Seraphina was a bitch on wheels. Page No 66 Lynn Warren 66 Madison skidded to a stop and grabbed hold of th e wall. “Why are we runn ing?” She kicked off her shoes and rubbed her feet. “These are made for da ncing.” “We need to get out of here.” Hillary wra pped an arm around Madison and

pulled her into the lobby. “Where are you parked?” The hospital seemed dea thly quiet. Where were all the people when you wanted them? She could prac tically feel the feral breath of Seraphina from around the corner. “When a re you going to tell me what this is about?” Hillary grabbed Madison and yanked her through the lobby and to the main entrance. “When we’re a long way away from here.” The practically slamme d into the glass doors as Hillary pushed them through. “Who the hell was the beefcake hoisting you like a bag of popcorn?” “Don’t know.” Hillary scanned the parking lot sear ching for Madison’s little Miata . A flutter of wind trailed across her face and Hillary’s eyes refocused. “O h shit.” Seraphina didn’t appear the least bit amused. “My dear, Doctor, it is unfortunate you got involved with Sinclair here. I can understan d, thoug h. He is rather pretty and he can be a heartbreaker when he tries.” Before she could blink, they surrounded her and Madison. “I am not involv ed with Sinclair He is a patient of mine. Nothing else.” One of the men pu t his hands on her and Hillary pulled loose of her captors. What did this creature do anyway? Go around insulting and intimidating people for a livi ng. Madison’s hand went to her purse. She was an undercover cop with Las V egas PD and Madison rarely took shit off anyone. “What is this crap?” Seraphina raised a slash of a da rk brow. “This crap doesn’t con cern you, m ortal. I advise you to remain silent and you might survive this little alterc ation.” “You really don’t want to get her riled.” Hillary reached the end of her rope. Her pale brown eyes blazed with rage. Her fists balled together wit h hopes of one clear punc h at the snotty little Seraphina She might not infl ict any damage, but she knew Madi son would. At five foot ten, Madison had th e body of professional athlete and she wasn’t afraid to mix it up a little. S inclair sighed. Seraphina looked as if she were ready to engage in the obviou s catfight Hillary itched to launch. “I don’t really think we should go into introductions. We’re already off to such a good start here.” “No need to be rude, Sinclair.” Seraphina sm iled prettily. “I’m Se raphin a.” The young woman announced grandly. Hillary looked for the applause at s uch a profound announcement. Seraphina walked up to Hillary, tilting her he ad slightly at the height difference. “Let me tell you all the mistakes you have made recently, Dr. Tennyson. Now, if you can come up w ith ways to co rrect these errors, I will be very Page No 67 Eternal Flame 67 pleased. If I am not pleased, well, let’s say, it will be your last mistake.” “Is that some kind of threat?” Hillary bit out beneath thin lips. Seraphina to

uched Hillary’s hair, thinking it would make a lovely decoration. She shook he r head, “Not a threat, only an assurance.” Fear made you do exceptionally strange things. Th is wasn’t the trapped, ca ged animalistic fear she had when the man tried to assault her. This rive te d Hillary to the floor daring her to back down. Try to run. Try to get free. Seraphina toyed with her as if she were a sm all bird. When she flapped her tiny wings, Seraphina’s paw would be there. The terror streamed across her in rivers of flowing spasms. Muscle began to flinch throughout out her body, tiny tremors which Hillary battled down . This was no ordinary woman she dealt with and when she saw Madison’s han d move inside her purse, Hillary put her own over the top of her friend’s. “Not now.” Hillary whispered, wishing fervently she had only a misunderstanding o f the situation. The power radiating from Seraphina in an unnatu ral aura hi t her in rippling currents . She could almost see the dark blue pattern runn ing over them. Perh aps, if she gave in and did not challenge this creature, Seraphina would let her and Madison go. She looked at Sinclair. The young man shook his head. Clearly, he knew he r thoughts. Seraphina would not be subdued. What could she do? “What kind of mistakes are you talking about?” “We’ll start with Sinclair here . How did you let yourself get mixe d up in this? I did warn you, you know.” “I know.” Seraphina’s eyes widened. “So you are perceptive. One of your many talents , I’m sure. After all, it would take someone extraordinary to hold Christia n’s interest.” “That might be why you’ve never excited him, Se raphina” Sin clair looke d at her blandly, well aware of the violent anger in her eyes. A couple of her men chuckled; Sinclair smiled, appealing to some hope of an alliance. That was the only way Hillary and he would get out alive. He won dered if Hillary grasped the extreme danger they were in. If she did, was i t wise to anger the one with the proverbial gun? Seraphina glared at Sincla ir, fury stretching her pretty face into an angry mask. “Hmm, maybe.” “Why take it out on the woman? She has no idea what is going on.” Again, Sinclai r appealed. A light came into Seraphina’s eyes. “Really?” Seraphina walked beside Hillary, very slow, very sure of hersel f. “Is that so? You have absolutely no idea why we might be upset with you ?” Hillary wondered if “we” meant the group or if Se raphina adored hersel f way too much. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Page No 68 Lynn Warren 68 Seraphina smiled, a curling snarl. “This could be a lot of fun.” She ran a na

il across her cheek, considering. “A lot of fun.” “Seraphina, don’t do this.” Sinclair’s head tilted and he sniffed the air. “You have no idea what you’re dealing with, is what you should be saying, my dear.” Seraphina laughed sending a chill up Hillary’s spine. “Let me ge t b ack to your mistakes. First, was Sinclair then, proceeding with Sinclair’s f oolishness.” Sinclair shook his head in dis gust. “Seraphina, stop. Take me and let’s ge t out of here. The hunting party is over unless you plan on calling the rest of the Renegades.” “I think we’re just getting started.” Seraphin a walked around Hillary slowly tapping her nails lightly on her cheek. “These weren’t your worst mistakes though. The worst one was thinking you could have one o f the Blackthornes.” She stopped directly in front of Hillary, eyeing her wi th eyes like a cobra. Sinclair strode up to Seraphina and whirled th e woman around. “Seraphina, t his is the last time I’m asking. Now, I’m telling you, stop this.” Seraphina raised one finger, glar ing at him with restrained animos ity. “T his is not your concern. Your feelings for humans are touching, however, mis placed.” Hillary instantly understood. “Are you sure we’re talking about the same m an?” The she sensed something near them. It was a predator, definitely. Hil lary’s head turned as well as the cool breeze swept past them. Then she saw them. A large black wolf with a sh iny coat moved forward. With a sable wo lf as a companion, they padded across the parking lot toward th em. A large white owl se ttled in a tree branch above them in a flutter of silent wings. Hillary leaned closer to Madison. “I think the cavalry arrived.” “Excuse me ?” Hillary motioned in the direction of the wolves and the owl. “Remember a t lunch when you thought I’d lost my mind?” Madison nodded. “Man? Now that is an interesting choice of words.” Seraphina flashed a pre tty pout in the direction of Sinclair and the other men. “Wouldn’t you say that was interesting?” At Seraphina’s words, Madison’s eyes snapped onto Hi llary. “You’re fucking kidding me? These people think their vampires?” Hill ary tapped on Madison’s foot to k eep her quiet and nudged her in the dire ction of the wolves. The air around the two wolves rippled and shim mered as if time and space folded in upon each other. Stars danced around, spinning away from the wo l ves, as if bees composed of light. Hillary held Page No 69 Eternal Flame

69 her breath as the wolves shifted and stood. The lig ht became brilliant and she squinted as suddenly, Christian and two men who appeared nearly identi cal to him stood before them. “Oh shit!” Hillary spun around at the thud and found Madison passed out against a con vertible. “Step away, Seraphina.” Never in her life were three words so compelli ng. The vampire bitch turn ed her head as did her five, hunky minions to face Christian and his brothe rs. “Oh come on, Christian, don’t look so despondent. You won’t miss these. ” Seraphina clicked her tongue at him. Then she turned back to Hillary. So much for luck. Hillary felt the color bleed from her face, leaving a c lammy texture. “Are you in love with him?” The words felt hollow and nearl y painful as Seraphina whispered at her. Seraphina sneered, shaking out he r dark curls. “Interesting?” Christian and his brothers stepped forward. T he blonde bent over Madison. He propped her against him and lowered his ch in to her bare should er. “They are marked, Seraphina. You can’t touch them.” Hillary blinked. Wow, blonde brother had one sexy, husky voice and eyes as blue as a lake. Icy laughter filled the air. “You wouldn’t dare ” The glar e she Seraphina sent the blonde man nearly froze Hillary in place Seraphina glanced back at Hillary. “Dr. Tennyson, I have spent years attempting to e arn Draigon’s favor. Suddenly, you’ve s eemed to have earned all the brothe r’s protective instincts with your obvious charms.” She turned a nd faced D raigon with her hands planted on her hips. “What you don’t understand is th at Draigon belongs to me. I want him and I will have him. If that means I h ave to remove you and your friend permanently from the equation, then so be it.” Hillary blinked. Reality shattered like a plate glass falling in slow motion. Tiny crystals of thought fell about her feet leaving her without d efense. She watche d as an icy glare appeared in Draigon’s eyes and he lowe red his sharp teeth to graze Madison’s shoulder. Seraphina hissed. “You bastard.” Christian moved closer his palm stretched outwa rd. “They are marked Sera phina.” Shards of electricity tingled off Christian’s hand. “Take your Ren egades and leave. ” Seraphina ran this herd of outlaw vampires off the edg e of propriety. The Blackthornes cleaned up several messes, bodies, in ord er to protect their culture. The more violent the Renegades became the mor e exposure they garnered. “Oh, you are clever.” Seraphina made a motion wi th one hand. “Time for all of us to go.” The man who resembled Christian the closest, bu t he had long hair where Christian’s was short, moved slowly. “Keep this in mind, Seraphina. The Gu ardians dissolved the Council earlier today. They Page No 70

Lynn Warren 70 have left the city.” Hillary swung into motion. Spinning on the other man, s he smashed her foot into his kneecap. Instantly, she was free and scrambling forward toward Christian. “There is no use trying to escape.” Seraphina ge stured for the men to bring Sinclair and Hillary back into the lab. Seraphina considered for a moment. “Kill he r here. Without the Guardians, there’s no need for us to worry about anythi ng.” “No one will believe that,” Hillary spat out. “Probably not, but they aren’t going to believe vampires did it either.” Ser aphina snickered and Hillary noticed she appeared to enjoy her evening. “Kill her.” “Let her go.” Christian’s voice came as a low, vicious growl. Steady in inten sity, it sent shivers racing up Hillary’s spine. She remembered a growl. Remembered it from a dr eam and remembered it as her savior the night she of her atta ck. “The act ions of your Renega des have drawn the attention of a Hunter. Page No 71 Eternal Flame 71 CHAPTER EIGHT Hillary’s head turned a degree at a time. Part of her prayi ng she wasn’t hallucinating, the other half hoping another innocent person had not wandered into this arena of terror. Tears shimmered in her eyes b etraying the only emotion she felt. The ne wcomer looked down on her with fiery gold and copper flecks dancing in his eyes. His sensuous mouth cut a violent line. Rigid animosity tightened his jaw. He walked up to them wit h a commanding presence and th e other five nearly fell over themselves to get out of his way. “What is the meaning of this?” A harsh threat lined the inflection. He gaze d at Christian and his brothers with a look of di sappointment more than ang er. Then th e golden stare fell upon Seraphina. “I asked you a question.” Seraphina smiled brilliantly, “Elliot, darling. What a wonderful surprise! I wasn’t expecting to see you in Las Vegas.” Elliot advanced with a snarl. “Is that so? I can’t imagine why you would be surprised to find me here especially since that’s my doctor you have hostag e.” “Oh, well, yes. I did forget about her.” Seraphina flicked a careless gl ance in Hillary’s direction. “Who gave you the right to hunt a mortal?” “Elliot, darling, we always hunt mortals. There isn’t a rule against that. Yo u know as well as I do,

they are open game.” Seraphina gave a seductive look, moving closer to brus h Elliot’s arm. Hillary stared uncomprehendingly at the exchange. They alwa ys hunt mortals? Her eyes went to slits as she noticed the wide respectful berth they all gave the man known as Elliot. Hillary leaned closer to Draig on, “Who is he?” “A warlock. A very, very powerful one.” Draigon kept his eyes on Elliot. Se raphina appeared to be the last of their worries. “Take the one you came for and leave, Seraphina.” Seraphina’s eyes closed in on Hillary. “But I’m not finished yet, Elliot.” Her thick lips bent into a pout. “I’m doing you a favor. She’s very pretty, Elliot. I can’t fault your taste and I can understand why you would be attra cted to her. After all, someone of your appetite needs a variety I suppose.” “Shut up, Seraphina.” A very soft, very dangerous warning. “But she is weak , Elliot. You can’t fancy yourself involved with someone to pitifully weak. You Page No 72 Lynn Warren 72 need someone as strong as you are.” Seraphina ran a hand down her curved hi ps. “Someone like me.” Elliot removed his gold wire frame glasses from th e bridge of his nose and tucked them into his coat pocket. “You’re insane,” his lips turned upward br iefly as if he only noticed that tidbit. Then he turned to look at Hillary. Warlocks? Vampires? Hillary’s stomach rolled as bile rose in her throat. Veg as must attract them all because of the nightlife. “No need to get nasty, Elliot.” Seraphina frowned with a great deal of pract ice. “You’ll thank me for this eventually. I know it.” “You have your rogue vampire. Leave.” Elliot flex ed the fingers of his le ft hand and blue sparks snapped and popped all around. Seraphina clicked her tongue in disappointment . “Really, Elliot, look aro und. You are a bit outnumbered. Color seeped out of her cheeks and her eyes wi dened incredibly. Madison b egan to stir and Draigon steadied her while Christian and his other br othe r moved closer. He reached a hand out to her and she clutched it hard. “Why do I have the feeling I’m in an adult Harry Potter movie?” He cracked a smile. “An interesting way of putting it.” Hillary directed h er gaze at Elliot. “Warlocks?” Christian nodded. “What’s he doing here?” “O h he’s probably as interested in your discovery as the vampire contingent.” “Oh my God.” She noticed the concentration in Elliot’s eyes never wavered. Seraphina was far too dangerous an adversary not to pay attention too. “Yo u’re cha llenging me, Seraphina?” Elliot cocked a brow and directed his ind

ex finger at one of Seraphina’s pretty boys The cover model vampire explode d into a blast of gold and green sparks. “Holy shit.” Madison blinked as Hi llary practically scrambled into Christian’s lap. “That’s better.” Elliot s miled brightly. Hillary watched as Seraphina pondered for a moment. “That’s not a nice way to make a point, Elliot. I rather enjoyed him.” The brunette angled a bit cl oser. Hillary wasn’t sure if she tried making a play on the warlock or if sh e had more balls than brains. Elliot glanced over at Hillary. “Dr. Tennyson, do you actually want to get involved in this? You have the chance to leave in one piece.” Christian’s arm went around her waist. “That’s our cue.” He urged her to ward Madison’s car. “Where were the two of you headed before we were so r udely interrupted?” “You’re just going to leave him?” Page No 73 Eternal Flame 73 Draigon laughed, “We don’t tangle with warlocks. Not on purpos e anyway. ” He winked at Madison. “And that one especially. What he did to Gerard, he could do to all of them without breaking a sweat.” Madison appeared a bit grin around the gills. “I need beer. Lots and lots of beer.” “What didn’t you tell me?” The crowd in the Ghost Bar at the Palms exhibite d a sultry sophistication t hat Hillary usually enjoyed. Tonight, her brain spun lik e some out of contr ol merry-go-ro und as she watched Madison suck down a tall draft. Christian pushed a tall martini in front of her. She sipped it sl owly. A man who wasn ’t really a man. “Why didn’t you just tell me?” “I couldn’t.” Christian’s eyes turned to slits. He shook his head grimly. “I never intended to hurt you, Hillary, never. But, I couldn’t until I knew you were ready to accept the truth.” “Swell, the best sex I’ve ever had was with a dead guy.” Madison choked on her beer and Draigon solicit ously took the mug out of h er hand and pushed a plate of appetizers toward her. He grinned at her then at Hillary. “Not technically.” Madison didn’t let him slide the mug too fa r. “Not technically? What? Dead?” Garridon sat in the corner, preferring sh adow. H illary learned from Christ ian that he was eldest and took the job quite seriously. She could see the irritated reflection in his eyes as he w atched Madison and Draigon. “We’re undead. Neither totally alive nor are we dead. We exist on a different level than mortals. Our senses are brighter,

sharper.” He picked up a glass of red wine and drank it. Madison leaned fo rward, “I thought vampires only drank blood.” “You would be sadly mistaken.” Draigon grinned again. “We can drink and eat an ything. The only probl em is with such an advanced palate, we only eat things that appeal to our soph isticated tastes.” He slung an arm around the back of Madison’s chair. “How ev er, I’ve recently developed a taste for buffalo wings.” He winked, squee zing her shoulder and earned a glare from Garridon. This was just too freak in’ weird. The tension off Garridon nearly lanced her while Draigon simply ignored his brother’s poin ted stares. Christian s eemed to be enjoying the date and she was pretty sure Madison would never speak to her again after tonight. “You know, as much as we enjoy the company of gorgeous guys, I thi nk you all ought to hit the road tonight.” Leaning back, Draigon used his f ist to mimi c stabbing himself in the heart. “Oooh, ouch!” Page No 74 Lynn Warren 74 Madison gasped and lifted shaky hands for the beer mug. Draigon laughed an d popped an appetizer in his sensuous mouth. “Just kidding. Actually docto r, there’s a bit of a problem with that.” “What kind of problem?” “Sinclair to start with.” “I don’t think so.” Hillary sippe d at her drink. Christian refuse d to look at her, suddenly very preoccupied with his glass of wine. “If it’s my resear ch, well, it’s done. The lab’s destroyed and I really have no desire to study vampires. And I can’t alter someone’s DNA.” “But the Renegades know you have the capability.” “You mean Seraphina? Or the warlock dude?” Madison’s eyes went to Hillary. “They’re going to eat us, aren’t they?” Pan ic made her voice rise several octaves and Hillary tried not to chuckle. The big, homicide detective turned into a simpering girl over three sexy vampir es. Draigon howled with laughter as another round of drinks appeared on the ta ble. “We’re not going eat you, at least not the way you’re th inking, Madis on.” His eyes glittere d with humor. “Now I’d love the opportunity to have a lick.” “Shut the fuck up, Draigon.” Garridon leaned forward and Hillary got a g ood look at him. Intensity practically shimmered off him. “Hillar y, ther e’s a reason you found anomalies in your own blood. Christian marked you to protect you from the Renegades just as Draigon did with Madison.” Her brow rose, “You bit me?” At least he exhibited some decency by the hangdo g expression and pleading eyes. “You bit me, when?” Then it dawned on her . “O h for God’s sake, while we were fucking?” He nodded.

Hillary shook her head, trying to comprehend. She knew the stories about c reatures hunting the night. “I’m a vampire?” Draigon started laughing again. “Go ahead, Christian. Tell her.” “We couldn ’t do this somewhere else?” Christian di dn’t look at his brother. Instead, his gaze fell on Hillary. She appeared pale and fragile, much like the night he had discovered her. He knew the inner strength was there, though. Buried beneath the surface, she would find the courage to deal with this. “I did i t to protect you. At least that was part of it. The other, well, I’m in love with you.” “So you turned me into a vampire? Without my consent?” Hillary s tarted to get out of her chair. Christian caught hold of her a nd spun her a round so hard he t hought he heard something snap. Something did, her barsto ol. Garridon got to his feet and retrieved another for Hillary. His eyes gli ttered dangerously. “Listen to me.” She stared, oddly shaken and he could se e it plainly in her clouded eyes. “You aren’t a vampire, for God’s sake.” Page No 75 Eternal Flame 75 “Anyone need another beer?” Ma dison slipped to her feet. “I gotta pee.” Dr aigon steadied the other woman and Christian waited till they headed in the direction of the bar. “If he hurts her—” “Don’t give me that shit of an attitude, Hillary. You’re smarter than that. ” “I don’t feel real fucking smart at the moment. The guy I’m seeing is a va mpire. His vampire brother is off with my best frie nd and his other brother gives new meaning to Count Fucking Dracula.” Hillary swallowed the rest of her drink. “I feel just fabulous.” She looked around sure that their strange party would draw attention. It didn’t. “Your blood is different because you could be one of us if you chose.” “I thought you sucked people dry and they were your slaves or something.” “Shit Hillary, would you cut that out?” Madis on returned with Drai gon. Hi llary eyed her carefully and her friend appeared perfectly fine. Back to he r old smart ass cop self. Hillary noticed she shoved at Draigon playfully w hile the two consumed a new plate of wings. “He’s still the same guy you we re going on about. Get over it or let’s get the hell out of here.” “What di d you do to her?” “Wouldn’t you like to know?” Madison laughed and bit into a puff of someth ing Hillary couldn’t identify. “Oh for fuck’s sake, I’m kidding. He carried the drinks back.” Christian slid closer. “You wanted to know how far you could go. This is your answer.” “I need to think about this.” “Go for a walk down to the pat io or somethi ng. Me and Dragonboy are going to see who can eat the most w

ings.” Hillary and Christian walked out onto the pati o and observed a wet and wild pool party at a distance. She didn’t touch him, preferring to appear intent on the young, wet couples in the water. “You can have it. Everything you’ve e ver dreamed about.” He didn’t look at he r, only let his words create the des ired effect. “You’ve dreamed of something more your entire life, Hillary. I c an see it in you. I can taste it.” “I don’t want to die.” “You don’t need to die.” From out of the shadows, one of Seraphina’s va mpires flicked out a long d agger and waved it at Hillary. Fear clouded her thoughts. With lightening s peed, he reached out and captured Christian’s arm, twisting it behind him. These evil creatures had destroyed her lab and her research. That bitch Serap hina cost her a lot of Page No 76 Lynn Warren 76 time and money. That was one wickedly curved dagger. “Look out!” There ha d to be something she could do to help Christian. Time dripped like a sti cky syrup runni ng in slow motion. Hillary saw Christian turn as the dagg er arched over his head. Christian’s eyes glowed menacingl y as the arch began a downward swing. Hillary’s brain slammed into overdrive. The dagger swung downward and imme diately something caught Hillary’s eye. She picked up a tray used to delive r drinks and slammed it into the vampire. Son of a bitch. This didn’t look like one of Seraphina’s guys, it looked like a freakin’ Goth under some sor t of spell. Hillary nearly dove forward at him in alarm as the blade plunge d into Christian’s side. Christian howled and fell to his knees. The shrill wail of the alarm caught the Goth off guard. Hillary slammed a fis t into the vampire’s kidney section. Christian slumped ag ainst the wall. Hill ary watched as Christia n struggled to his feet bracing himself against the co unter top. She could practically sense the pain, hot and searing pain traveled his entire body in light speed. The Goth moved closer, the dagger still in hi s hand. “It really is a shame it has to end like this, Christian.” Christian’s left hand pressed in effectively against the bloody wound. He didn’t answer. He was too intent in focusing his concentration in another d irection. The Goth stroked his cheek. “I’ll end it quickly for you, Christi an.” He raised the dagger. Draigon soared at him, spinning the evil around. “Like hell you will.” The Goth chuckled and smashed Draigon with a well pl aced right cross. Hillary blinked and scrambled to get out of the way as Ga rridon and Madison ran up. Hillary turned back toward Christian.

His side stained crimson with an indescribable amount of blood. Instantly, she realized she had made a grave mistake. Suddenly, a wall of pure fire met her. Flame engul fed her licking terribl y at her skin. The Goth screamed in rage and sheer terror. He spun away try ing to escape the orange flames. Okay, wrong there. Goth boy was a vampire. Fire burned her eyes and throat. Anyone foolish enough to mistake the powe r of Christian and his brothers put themselves in a dangerous position. Ne ver in her wildest dreams could she imagine such a force unleashed upon her . The Goth went over the rail ing, a fireball burning to ash before it hit the pool below. Hillary glanced about, shocked at the uncontrollab le tirade. She stared ou t over the pool and saw no sign of Goth boy anywhere. She rushed over to Chr i stian, letting him lean against her. “We need to Page No 77 Eternal Flame 77 get you to the hospital.” “They couldn’t help. You’re a doctor, Hillar y. H ow would you treat me ?” Christian tried smiling but ended up coughing in p ain. “We’ve got to get him out of here before anyone shows up.” “How are we goin g to do that?” Hillary looked at the pool of blood, deep red against the til e floor. “We could get a gurney and wheel him out.” “Someone would notice me immedi ately.” Hillary stripped off her jacket and pressed it against the w ound. She looked at Christian, “He’s lost a lot of blood.” Shifting Christia n over to Draigon and Madison, she looked at Garridon. It took every ounce o f will to hold onto the medical training and not panic. The sight of him as he bled to death in front of her drove an icy edge of panic into her heart. “He needs to be in the hospital” Madison bent down. “Let’s get him bandaged up.” “We’ve got to get out of here.” Draigon shifted his gaze around the party goers. “How?” Draigon looked over the railing and nodded with his head. “We jump.” “Are you crazy? He can’t jump in his conditio n. And even if the both of you m ade it without breaking your necks, we can’t jump.” Garridon hoisted Christian up and on the railing. “You won’t have to.” He jumped quickly heedless of Hillary’s cry. Garridon landed gently on the slo pe leading out onto the Strip. He leaned the unconscious Christian against the side of the building, as a long black limo pulled up. “Hurry, Doctor. W e don’t have all night.” Madison watched as Hillary picked up some discarde d pool towels and began mopping up the blood. Cringing at the amount of blo

od loss, she glanced up at Draigon. “He’s hurt bad, isn’t he? Even for one of you.” Hillary shoved the towels in th e trash and Draigon grabbed her an d Madison around the waist. He leaped off the railing and Hillary thought s he was taking a fall on a roller coaster. Her heart lodged in her throat as they landed. “That’s amazing.” Draigon grinned quickly, “It is kind of fun .” Garridon picked Christian back up and then stopped and looked at Hillary . “By car, the trip to the house is ten minutes. By air, four.” “Take him. I’ll meet you there.” She bent over Christian. “Let me try to sl ow the bleeding first.” “Don’t bother. No infections, remember?” Draigon sti lled her hand. “He needs to feed, Hillary.” Hillary nodded. “Well, if that’s the case. Here.” Madison st epped forward and pulled her s leeve away from her Page No 78 Lynn Warren 78 wrist. “Have a nibble. Whatever will help.” Draigon gazed at Garridon. The eldest nodded briefly. “A bit, will be enough to get him home.” Garridon ea sed Christian’s hand over Madison’s wrist. His lips curled back to reveal s harp white teeth. “Madison!” Hillary cringed as Christian suck his fangs into her friend’s wrist. Madison fell back against Draigon. It lasted only seconds but Christian’s pallor lif ted. Draigon kissed Madison on the cheek, “I’ll take her home.” “Hurry.” Garridon lifted Christian into the air and they vanished into mist. Half out of her mind with fear for Christian, Hill ary made sure the driver blew all speed records getting to his home. She bolted up to the front door , caring the first aid k it, and knocked. The door opened slightly under th e pressure. “Hello,” she called out, stepping slowly inside. If Christian’s garden was a masterpiece, his home was a vision of classic art. The huge mar ble entry framed lighted walls where priceless art hung. Hillary stared in a stonishment as she closed the door slowly. Pedestals held beautiful sculptur es from past ages. She w ondered if they were originals. Christian could be old enough to have seen the masters at work. She stepped further into the en try. “Draigon! Garridon!” The name echoed loudly through the high ceiling. “ Up here!” The words traveled down from a circular staircas e with an intricately beau tifully carved cherry banister. She charged up the stairs at full speed. Sev eral doors remained closed down the hall, she found Garridon in the doorway at the end of the large hallway. “How is he?” Garridon held the dagger used on Christian in on hand. “I don’t know. The bleeding slowed down, but he isn’t conscious.” He moved out of th e doorw

ay to let Hillary inside. “The dagger had poison on it. A magical blend.” Except for a small light burning by the nightstand, the room was pitch bla ck. It took Hillary a moment to adjust to the darkness. She walked clos er to the massive bed wher e Christian lay, unmoving. He was on top of a gor geous, burgundy damask quilt. Hillary opened the sticky shirt. The wound already appeared infected. “Is there something we can use to clean the wound?” “I’m sorry, Doctor. There i sn’ t anything to do for him except hope the night’s sleep keeps him Page No 79 Eternal Flame 79 strong.” Garridon turned away, “I need to do somethi ng. Draigon is downsta irs preparing a poultice to draw out the magic.” “Christian’s going to be all right.” Hillary prayed with an eerie breath that what she said wasn’t a lie. She managed to get the shirt off Christian and di scard it. She touched his face finding it icy cold. That worried her. “That will heal by sunset tomorrow. Providing we can get the magic out of him. He’s weak still.” Draigon strode confidently into the r oom carrying a n herbal pad. He laid it across Christian’s wound. “He hasn’t fed in a long while.” “You’re kidding? He will be all right by tomorrow night?” Relief f looded her tense bones sending tiny fissures of warmth through her body. Th en it hit her, a smashing dose of reality. “What do you mean he hasn’t fed?” “I didn’t say he would be all right. I said the wound will heal.” Draigon kep t an eye on the poultice for a moment then turned his glittering eyes on her. Too bad Chris tian couldn’t see the desperate concern in her eyes. “Dr. Tennyson, Hillary , Christia n is a very strong vampire, and very powerful. However, he has l ost too much blood. Without the blood, he cannot heal and he will not wake up.” “What can we do?” Draigon shrugged, “He is too weak to drink.” “What do you mean, too weak? We have to wake him long enough to get some blood in him.” Frantic, Hillary leaned over Christian calling his name . C hristian did not stir or move. With another towel, she pressed it tightly agai nst the wound and wrapped fresh gauze around it, securing it with tap e. “You’re telling me he’s going to die?” “If Christian can sleep a while, he might gain enough strength to wake long enough to feed.” His jaw tight ened and he shrugged. “I don’t know, Doctor. I really don’t know.” Hillary looked at Christian’s brother. The exceptionally handsome man appeared mo re haggard, and gaunt stood looking at her with eyes of glass. She touched his cheek. “

You need some rest yourself.” Draigon nodded. She knew he also needed food. The late hour a nd Christian’s condition tangled in a pit near his stomach . Maybe he could get Christian to drink a bit before he left. “I want to tr y something. I don’t know if you want to watch it though.” “What’s that?” Draigon moved to Christian’s beside. “It might he lp him a little bit.” Usi ng the pillows from the bed, Draigon propped Christian up. “You don’t have t o watch.” He told Hillary once more. Then, Draigon took his wrist and cut it sharply with the fi ngernail on his right index finger. Blood oozed from th e wound. Holding Christian’s head tightly, he pressed his wrist to Christian ’s lips. Blood seeped across Page No 80 Lynn Warren 80 Christian’s lips. “Come on, Christian, open up.” He ya nked the top of Chri stian’s hair and at the same time curled his other hand around and pried op en his mouth by pus hing down on his chin. “Stubborn fellow, aren’t you?” T he blood from Draigon’s wrist began draining into Christian’s mouth. Hillar y watched, a combination of apprehension a nd fascination filling her. At f irst, she was horrified. Then, the clinical nature took over. This young ma n was performing nothing more than a transfusion. He was giving Christia n a chance at life. Hillary knew she would never be able to repay Sinclair’s generosity. Draigon tilted his head, instantly alerted. “He swallowed.” Hillary moved closer, glancing from Christ ian who remained unconscious, to Draigon. He appeared pasty and growing wobbly with each passi ng moment. “Are you oka y, Draigon?” She saw it, he could feel the drain. Christian swallowed again. “I just want to get him a bit stronger.” A soft moan came from Christian’s lips and H illary moved to sit next to h im. “It’s okay, Christian. Keep drinking. You’re going to be fine.” Hillary saw Christian begin to draw on his wrist. Draigon’s eyes dilated dizzy wit h weakness. He needed to break the contact. He could come back la ter and g ive Christian some more, but if he didn’t disengage, Hillary would have pos sibly two dying va mpires on her hands. Christian’s hands moved on reflex p ressing Draigon’s wrist tighter to his lips. “Hillary! Pull him off.” Draig on pulled Christian’s head back. Feverish golden eyes gazed up at him with menace. Hillary tried to pry Christian’s hands away. “Christian, let go.” S he spoke gently at first, then with loud authority. “Christian, you have to let go!” Draigon sagged back against the headboard as Christian endeavored to drain him completely. Hillary saw no alternative. “Son of a bitch!” She hauled off and

smacked Christian hard across the cheek. Christian’s glazed eyes leveled on her and he growled low in his throat. Hillary took hold of Draigon’s wrist a nd yanked it away. “I said, let him the fuck go!” Draigon slipped to the flo or breathing heavily. “Thank you.” He looked over at Christian who slept pea cefully. He blotted the wound on his wrist w ith a shirttail and pulled hims elf up. “I have to leave.” “That’s okay. I’ll stay with him.” Hillary went to sit beside Christian and Draigon stopped her. “That may not be the best idea.” “Why not?” “Because he is still dangerously weak and extr emely hungry. If he awakens during the night, he will be after food.” “He won’t hurt me.” Page No 81 Eternal Flame 81 “Hillary, there isn’t any sentiment in a starving vampire. Imagine if you w ere coming out of the desert ravished by thirst and the first thing you sa w was a huge glass of ice water.” Draigon waited for her to get the picture. “He would be on you before he even realized what he was doing.” Hillary swal lowed. “I’m staying.” “I am weak and very tired. I will try to be back before dawn, if I can. The room here is without any light so you don’t have to worry about that.” “Be careful.” Draigon smiled a patented grin. “I am always careful. How do you think I’v e managed to keep out of everyone’s clutches for so long?” With a chuckle, he left Hillary. A cloak of fear and aloneness washed over her. Hillary shook her head. She would not be afraid of Christian. She knew he couldn’t hurt her. She glanced about the room, then at Christian. He still slept still as the dead. She di dn’t really like the comparison but it was close to the truth. Maybe she sho uld just go wander about the hous e, find a television or something. She cou ld check on Christian in a little while. She could just give Madison a call. She needed to check on her after Christian’s bite anyway. She went downstairs pondering the irony of it all. This was too fucking wei rd Hillary didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Hillary stepped into a cherry paneled room off the entryway. Rich, dark le ather furnishings and the scent of the open woods filled the room. Book cas es line one wall. The other held traditional paintings of a hunt scene. The re was a desk by the window with a telephone. Across from it a long leather sofa situated in front of an entertainment cen ter. Hillary clicked on th e television and picked up the telephone. She was more comf ortable in the

house with a bit of sound drowning out the overcoming silence. She dialed M adison’s number. “Hello” “Shit, Hillary. My head exploded a couple of minut es ago and I feel like I’ve been on an eight day bender. What are you doing calling so late?” A warm chuckle came over the line. “I just wanted to check on you. Make sure you’re okay.” “Yes, I’m fucking fabulous. Drank too much beer and go t bit by a vampire.” “Twice.” “What?” “Madison, I’m really sorry for everything.” “Yeah, I’ll bet.” Madison took a gulp of air. “Oh shit, I know.” Hillary looke d at her watch. “I didn’t realize it was so late.” Madison laughed. It sounded more like steel brakes grinding. “How about I g ive you a call after I Page No 82 Lynn Warren 82 process this whole thing?” “No problem. I’m really sorry.” “Hey, I’m a cop. I’ll deal.” Madison clicked off the line leaving Hillary alone. Well, maybe not alone exactly. She wandered back into Christian’s ro om, not wanting to snoop around his house. Besides what would that do excep t prove she wa s a snoop. After all the trouble Hillary went to find a man this sexy and exciting, it was her bad luck he was a vampire. Vampire. The more she said it, the easier it became. A wry smile curled her upper lip. Curiosity got the better of her in most re spects. That’s what made her an excellent research do ctor. Now, her nimble m ind rolled over the issue of age. It didn’t normally create any trouble, only when the guy is couple of hundred years older, that’s all. Shouldn’t be any trouble at all. Except when she was fifty-five and he still look ed thirty. Then people wou ld think she picked up a prime piece of beef. Let them be envious, as long a s Christen didn’t grow bored with her. Hillary considered it. She was in one hell of an unorthodox relationship. Of course, if she wanted to critically analyze her pathetic track record with men, all of her relationships were un orthodox. Hillary thought a long while Chri stian slept fitfully. Could she have a real relationship with a vampire? How did she feel about Christian re gardless of his heritage? She truly cared a great deal for him. Who the hell was she kidding? She cared for him? Her heart nearly shriveled and died whe n that Goth thing stabbed him. Did it really mater what he was? Hillary shook her head. It didn’t matter. Beca use she just didn’t care wha t Christian was. She was in love with him. He must love her as well. He risk ed his life for her toni ght. She, like Sinclair, owed her life, twice if sh

e was correct, to the man sleeping upstairs. She touched his cheek each time feeling still the icy coldness. Finally around two in the morning, Hillary couldn’t stay awake anymore. It was obvious Draigon didn’t plan on coming ba ck any time soon. Poor guy, he needed time to rest just as Christia n did an d she had no idea what happened to Garridon. Talk about the strong silent ty pe. With an enormous yawn, Hillary shuffled to th e side of Christian’s huge bed and sat down. She lay on the outside of the comforter, pulling it aroun d he r. She’d sleep awhile, then get up and check on Christian. If either of his brothers came in, they would wake her. She curled her exhausted body in to a ball and Hillary slipped into a cloudy sleep. Page No 83 Eternal Flame 83 CHAPTER NINE Christian woke in stages. A vast canyon sepa rated reality f rom the phenomenal wanderings of sleep. Agony vaulted along his side and r ifled into his head. Clearing through the shreds of pain felt like walking across jagged glass. He couldn’t move, his body seemed encased in sticky webbing. Every movement echoed the agony that traveled his body. He didn’t know how long he lay quietly, trying not to struggle against the magical bonds, praying for no moti on to take place. After what seemed like an ete rnity, he moved one hand. It crawled to the wound at his side. The bleeding mercifully st opped. He could feel the wound closing, scabbing over. Healing tingled at his side. A t least, he would not die from the wound the Goth inflicted on him. A muscl e twinged at the corner of his lips. Obvi ously, since Seraphina didn’t do her own dirty work, she’d faired worse with her warlock encounter than he i n their confrontation. She would not resurface for a long while. He thanked whatever divine power could keep Seraphina at bay as long as possible. He wanted to open his eyes. He cracked them to slits half expecting them to fall out. His muscles shimmied with pudding intensity. Drif ting in and out of wakefulness, Christian moaned softly. Balmy, soft breezes stirred his su bconscious. He saw himself in a tropical paradise with Hillary by his side. They sipped at exotic drinks and made love in the sand while the waves fr om a crystal lagoon licked at their heels. Rolling on his side, he drifted away once more into the realm of unconscio usness. Pain transposed into a healing sleep, long and deep and peaceful. H e dreamed of Hillary, beautiful, kind and giving Hillary. Champagne brown hair; long silky tendrils. Pale whiskey eyes frame d by the blonde lashes. Her smile haunted him. Her laugh made his heart ach e. Her scent filled him with excessive need. Spicy, heat enticed and teased

. Christian rolled back, stirring in his sleep. Blood. The scent. The intoxication of it lifting him on a current of voracious hung er. The aroma sent him spiraling within its reach. It was close. So very close. And he was so very, very hungry. The driving need lured him closer, caught somewhere between his joyous dream and the driving force. He licked his lips, sniffing the air. Heat and th e sweet spice of floral a nd cloves teased together Page No 84 Lynn Warren 84 around the glorious soft scent of warm, hot flesh. He moved slowly, gently coming closer. Need thundered through his veins drenching him in the blood lust. Consumed by it, he closed in on his prey. So soft, so quiet, never to make a sound. He leaned close, nuzzling the creamy flesh. The smooth hair ti ckled his nose and he found himself inhaling deeply. The sweet fragrance permeated his brain and his eyes snapped open. Hillary woke, sleepily, to find Christian peering at her with an eerie glow in the depths of his eyes. The glow seemed a wicked trick of moonlight, but the golden stare made her tremble. “Christian?” Suddenly, Hillary remembered Sinclair’s warning. The eyes blazed, a feral growl came from Christian’s lips. “Hillary.” “Don’t hurt me, Christian. Please.” Her voice ca me without a quiver, but t he whimper clutched tightly at her chest. She knew he co uld tear her apart if he chose to, sh e just prayed that Christian would realize before his hun ger consumed him. Christian leaned heavily on top of her, burying his face in her neck. “So h ungry, Hillary.” He took several deep breaths then ceased. “You must go.” “Christian, I’m not leaving you.” Gently, she stroke at his hair and ran her hand across his cheek. Still very cold. Licking his parched lips, Christian fought to stave off the burning hunger that warred with desire. The desire he had fought so long not to give into f or this would be the outcome. Now, he lay desperate in need of food and Hill ary was telling him she wouldn’t leave. “I don’t want to hurt you, Hillary.” “You won’t. Not if you’re careful.” Did the woman know what she was saying? Ho w could she even think along th ose lines? He must be losing his sanity; his last shreds of life were leavi ng and with it all coherent thought. He made one small shake of his head, t urning it to the si de of Hillary’s face. “You don’t know what you’re sayin g.” “Do you need food?” Christian move d to the side of Hill ary with great ef fort. His eyes closed and he did not move. “Christian, answer me.”

“Yes.” “Then, take it.” Hillary held her breath and waited for what she did not kn ow. “No,” The soft refusal nearly made him groan in despair. Hillary put her hand along the side of his face. “Damn it Christian, you’re going to die if you don’t get some food. Draigon to ld me that much. I won’ t be able to live with myself if you die. Now, take it before I change my m ind.” Christian’s eyes opened a crack. He thought he felt tears in them. Vampires didn’t cry. It was Page No 85 Eternal Flame 85 impossible. “I would rather die than cause you any regrets.” Shit, he wasn’t going to make this easy was he ? Christian nearly laughed hearing her thoug hts plain as if she spoke them aloud. Hillary conjured up images of old horr or flicks where the villain pounced on the sleeping heroine. Rolling Christi an ove r onto his back, she leaned across him. Tossing her hair out of the w ay, she pressed her throat against his lips. “Drink, Christian, please drink .” He knew Hillary didn’t know what to expect, pa in for certain, dizziness probably. She received neither. Christian’s lips teased her throat, parting on th e hot skin near the base of her neck. She braced herself on the bed as she felt the tender scrape of his teeth. She tried staring straight ahead, as if braving out the shock of a shot in the arm. Instead, there was the bri efest prick and Hillary’s body launched into a whirling pool of wild sensati ons. Her eyes fluttered closed. Connected he flew along with her as visions swam past her, exotic beautiful colors and shapes as if a giant kaleidoscope surrounded her. She flew past the colors into a web of heat tangling about her. The rich, heady taste of her burned through him with kinetic energy. He felt her gasp as the heat crawled up her entire body, filling the tips of h er toes al l the way to the top of her head. She burned for him, immersed in an insatiable fever. Her hands moved from where they braced on the bed to C hristian’s chest. They skimmed across the flat, hard muscled surface lightly dusted with hair and Christian inhaled sharply. The fever scorched her, drawing her closer like a moth. At this point, he k new she burned so hotly she didn’t care what he did to her. Groaning, she wr apped he r fingers in Christian’s hair trying to pull him closer. His hand s lid down and cupped her breast kneading gently. Her mind soared distances, e xperiencing sights and sounds she never thought possible. She could hear in the echoing around her the soft thud of a drum . Vaguely, he sensed her wond ering if it were her heart, yet she didn’t feel alarmed.

Christian knew that after the first sip he w ould lose himself to the hung er. Instead, his body seemed born anew. The vibrant life force filled him w ith hope and triumph as it carried him away. The darkness faded teeming wit h brilliant light beckoning him. Swept into a vortex of desire, he wrapped his arms around Hillary drawing more. The taste exhilarated him like soaring off a mountain to sail into the lush valley below. Delicious and divine and it was his new. His fingers tore at he r clothing as she arched against him. He wanted flesh against him, her flesh. His cock grew heavy and thick with need. Finally, after what seemed a lifeti me of yearning, he tasted the forbidden. Power and vitality surged into his blood stream restoring his health. Ra gi ng in an inferno of desire, he forced himself to stop. He drank enough. He w ould not put Hillary at any unnecessary risk. Page No 86 Lynn Warren 86 Shuddering as the flow of the marvelous elixir ceased, Christian eased himse lf from the feverish madness. Never had he experienced such an unmitigated t hrill of power and desire flooding through his entire body at once. He inhal ed gasp s of air to calm the raging storm insi de him. Standing in the eye o f the oncoming storm, he gazed up at Hillary. “Are you a ll right?” He wasn’ t sure he was even all right. He felt blissfully intoxicated, drunk on Hilla ry and now he needed to plunge his hard cock into her tight, wet pussy. Hillary raised her head gradually. She looked at him with sparks flaring in her eyes. He could see the excitement blazing through her veins. Her skin w as deliciously hot to the touch. She wasn’t the least bit ill or dizzy. She flowed on a wave, riding the cres ts and coasting the valleys. It reminded h er of the warm fuzziness you got around the edges after several glasses of r eally good wine. She smiled, “That was amazing.” “You’re good?” Christian rose up, a bit concerned. “More than that,” Hillar y nearly purred. She bent over him pressing her lips softly against his mout h. “That was positively unreal.” She breathe d on his mouth, kissing gently around it. Her eager fingers going for his fly. Christian groaned. He was already aroused to the point of madness and now s he would tease him. He twined his fingers through her hair and ground his li ps down on hers . Pulling her across him, he trailed his hand down her shoul der blades to her hips. He pressed her closer, letting her discover the evid ence of his arousal. Agitated he moved against her, kissing her deeply, fall ing with her into oblivion. Hillary released his cock and made a noise of ap proval low in her throat. He created a yearning within her so deep and hot it felt as if her entir e body was turning into a

volcano. His tongue cavorted about her mouth, delving deeply into soft rece sses. She lingered on the warm and darkly male taste, she ran her hand over the muscles of his chest, outlining them. His skin, no longer cool, practica lly singed her fingers. He drew heat from the oncoming passion as if he were a well drawing from a spring. His kiss gentled, softened as he explored. Hi s mind clouded over with fiery images, a fire he gladly dove into. With his tongue, he tasted the sweet flavor that reminded him of blossoms in the rai n, distinctly Hillary. Every thought whispering in his head flooded with Hil lary’s face, her body. Christian rolled Hillary over onto her back and leane d over her. His fingers went to the muscles of her stomach and glided upward. Such deliciously soft skin. A feather could neve r be as soft. He brushed th e pad of his thumb over her nipples tickling her breasts. “Very pretty.” Page No 87 Eternal Flame 87 The response in her was a wild thrill of nerve endings jumping as if electr ically charged. He lowered his head, placing his mouth over one breast and H illary gasped. Lightly, he dragged his teeth her tits, sending shivers of ne ed racing along her body. He licked around them and sucked in gently. Then, lifting his head barely an inch, he inhaled directly above her heated nipple . Hillary blew out a stream of air as the cross cu rrent of heat and sudden coolness fell over her hard nipple. She tried to pull his head away but he o nly c huckled in the back of his throat. He moved to the other breast and dr ew his teeth over that nipple, teasing her. Hillary cried out in a mix of la ughter and agitation. Her pussy clenched, slick and wet just wa iting for th at amazing cock. Who the fuck cared he was a vampire? He had the best cock s he’d ever seen. “I can’t stand that.” Christian laughed, ceasing his tauntin g. He pulled her up and reached around the back of her bra. He unclipped it easily, tossing the lacy garment aside. “Lace is meant to be toyed with.” He gazed down at her breasts, perfect globes. If he were a sculpturer, he woul d have carved her in marble. He moved over her, pressing them closer, rubbin g against her. The exhilarating sensation of flesh against flesh only create d a deeper chasm in the hunger raging in Hillary. She breathed heated caress es at his throat and shoulde r enjoying the smooth tautness of his skin. Christian sought her mouth once more. His kiss grew hotter engaging Hill ar y in a battle, which she gladly met him in. He wrapped his arms around her t ightly, the thrill of passion speeding in his veins. Hillary sucked air into her lungs fighting the vortex of longing. She couldn’t remember ever feelin g this swept away by anyone. The idea frightened and excited her pushing her closer. Christian sucked her bottom lip into his mouth a nd ran the edge of

his tongue across it. Such a delicate taste. He bit tenderly against as Hil lary ran her fingers down the hair on his chest and teased his hard male nip ples unrelentingly. He gasped releasing her captive lip and ran his tongue down the line of her jaw to her ear. He placed tiny kisses along the sensitive area around he r ea r and neck. Then moved slowly downward, trailing his tongue to the base of he r throat. Christian’s fingers we nt to her pussy and slid inside, massaging g ently while the other strayed to her hip. She clutched her fingers in his hai r as he lathered the other breast with sudden kisses. “You are incredibly lovely, Hillary.” He breathe d against the valley of he r breasts. “I have thought so long of this moment and never dreamed it could be a reality.” “Christian, are you sure that’s a good idea?” She wasn’t sur e the bouncing would open his wound. “I’m fine. And I want nothing in the wa y. I want to feel every inch of you against me.” Stunned, Hillary stared at what had been a terribly vicious wound. It looked like a twelve day old Page No 88 Lynn Warren 88 scratch. “That is absolutely unbelievable.” Christian got to his feet and k icked off his s hoes and socks. He stripped off his jeans with a wicked lee r. “Let me show you something unbelievable.” Hillary chuckled at his teasin g. She watched as he lowered the jeans over leanly muscled thighs and calve s. She’d always been a sucker for a man with good legs a nd a tight, well, you know. Christian had it all. He returned to her in black underwear and H illary swore he could model. He wrapped his arms around her pulling her clo se. Hilla ry sighed inhaling the tangy scent of his skin. “You are about go rgeous.” He turned his head and grinned. “Thank you for the compliment.” His cock pressed between his thighs pressed ag ainst her stomach and H illar y wiggled enticingly against him. Reveling in Christian’s groan of despai r, she teased her fingers over the soft line of hair trailing down from his bell y. Christian let out a strangled gasp. “You are evil, woman.” But, he didn’t move her hand away. Hillary drifted across his thighs and around his stomach until Christian sat up quickly. “Fair is fair.” She was possibly the most exq uisite creature he had ever seen in his life. The precious wonder of his feel ings for her made him all the more aware that he would do his best to reveal pleasure. He could cherish her until the end of time, if it were only possibl e. Christian gave himself a mental shake. Nothing would spoil this for him or for Hillary. He waited what seemed like lifetimes for someone like her, an d no dooming thoughts of the future would ruin this night. “I want to bring

you more excitement than you’ve ever known, make this the richest of pleas ures.” Hillary felt zapped by volts of energy wherever he touched her. He t hrilled her to the point of erotic delusions. He smoothed his hands over he r calves lifting them to kiss the inside of her ankle. With slow deliberate motion, he captured one of her toes. Hillary shrieked in delight as muscle s melted to hot wax. He moved up between her legs almost like a slithering snake, tasting her with his ever-busy tongue. “Are you trying to drive me c razy?” Hillary shook with tiny tremors at each flick of his tongue. “Am I s ucceeding?” He curled a forefinger ar ound the waistband of the lace pantie s she wore which matched the bra. He watche d Hillary nod slowly, then retu rned to the area which captured his immediate interest. At the top of her thigh near the lacy edge of the panties, he placed a soft kiss. Nothing more than a whisper, the reaction from Hillary was delightful . She squirmed in something much more profound than glee. Christian raced hi s tongue along the soft skin th ere. Returning to the other side, he tasted more slowly, delicately tickling her until she clutched tightly at his hair trying to pull him away. “Christian, please. You’re driving me fuck ing nuts .” Hillary burst out somewhere between Page No 89 Eternal Flame 89 laughter at the tickling and burning provocation. No one ever stirred her to s uch wonderful heights, thrilling and tantalizing at one time. “Please, what, Hillary? I’ve barely started with you.” She didn’t know if she could stand any more of this without exploding. Or imploding. Her entir e body seemed drawn into the untamed funnel cloud emana ting from the heart of her very being. When Christian hooked his other finger in Hillary’s pan ties and started them down over her hips, Hillary locked her eyes shut prep aring herself for some exquisite torture. Christian found it difficult to k eep from tossing his underwear aside and plunging into pleasure hidden bene ath the cloud of hair He ground his teeth together and clenched the inside of his jaw. Despite the nature of his species, he was not a savage and didn ’t intend on acting like one. “I may have to paint you,” he whispered ragge dly to himself. Hillary heard him. Flattery it might have been, but it sent a lovely little r ipple through her heart and into her stomach. His head dipped to stroke the li ps of her pussy with his tongue. Hillary shuddered as he explored. Christian whirled his tongue in the honeyed wetness, tasting. He held Hilla ry’s hips as she arched closer. His tongue became a spearhead driving harder and harder fucking her with his tongue. Her eyes rolled back into her head

and disapp eared, spasms of ecstasy immersed her in a pool of hot pleasure. She gasped for breath, sucking air in to her lungs and clutchi ng at Christi an’s hard shoulders. A flashpoint cindered liquefying her bones away on cont act. Trickles of sweat dripped down the sides of he r face and her shoulder blad es. Christian soothed her, gentling her heated body. Her mind dropped, plummeting out of the rush of stars. Hillary cracked he r eyes, wondering if she would ever see anything after the burst of energy , which danced behind her closed lids. Christian loomed over her like a Gr eek god. Hard muscles tensed with undeniably powerful. He breathed another kiss near her ear. “You bring me to madness, Hillary.” He moved, settling his cock between her thighs. As he urged her legs apart, he lowered himsel f into her waiting arms. She felt the gentle probing of that velvet, thick head, and then she clutched hi s shoulders in anticipation. Hillary arched her back, delirious in the b lin ding. Her body accepted his easily and the joining split every concrete real ity in her mind and rebuilding it with astonishing alternatives. She found h erself speeding through a tunnel of vibrant colors and sound as the air she brea thed blew out around her. Her body sailed ahead of her mind swirling th rough the whirling tempest of greed and heat. Christian drove into her while her pussy tighten ed around him. Her legs locked around his waist Page No 90 Lynn Warren 90 and she nearly tore him apart at the seams. He tr ied inanely to dampen the pull only to drown in an oncoming tidal wave. He could feel her. Not merely her body racing with his toward an ultimate goal. He could feel her heart and soul soaring with him in a vast cavern of crystalline colors and beautiful, tremulous sounds. Hillary surged beneath him and he felt the top of his very being become unplugged. Insanity splas hed over him, pushing him further. Hillary’s eyes slid open to stare at Christian. He eyes glowed, feverishly i ntent as he wrapped one hand under her hips pulling her harder against him. H e charged forward, his eyes glittering like that wolf. Hillary’s legs tighten ed harder around him as she sl id her hands down his chest before clutching a t his hips. Madness filled her. She gasped as the air left her lungs in a rush. She felt the roller coaster begin its rise hurling her over the edge of a wild drop. Her eyes squeezed shut as she fell headfirst. Thousands of impressions streak ed past her and she cried ou t convulsing and bucking ben eath him in a victo rious explosion. Christian’s last shred of coherent thought was that he’d never let her go. H

is skin could peel off his body and he wouldn’t care. He arched deeply into h er, shuddering as the first surge of unbridled pleasure burst from his body. His eyes snapped closed. Delirium came and overtook him. He jour neyed min dlessly through slick heat draining his body. The energy shook out of his b ody leavi ng him a quivering mass. Christian didn’t dare think or move. He seemed to have mispl aced a portion of his soul that he was certain Hillary possessed, along with his heart. Floating hazily, he didn’t dare open his eyes for fear Hillary would leave him, dooming him to darkness. Hillary managed to sail back to earth as if sh e rode a giant hang glider. Her breathing slowed. The thoughts that ricocheted around her brain eased. S he reached up and stroke Christian’s hair and back. He sighed heavily agains t her. “You do realize I am in love with you?” Startled, Hillary twisted sli ghtly to look at him. A vampire in love with her, her life drifted into the Twilight Zone she gazed hard at Christian. He’d never not told her the truth . Simple, plain honesty appeared on his face with the bewilderment at her la ck of believe. “I hope you realize I feel the same?” Christian pulled the co vers over both of them. He kissed her softly against the temple. “Will you s tay?” Hillary nodded, snuggling closer to him. “Sleep well, Hillary.” Page No 91 Eternal Flame 91 CHAPTER TEN Hillary woke, momentarily disoriented. The dark room felt cool as if it were the middle of winter. She couldn’t tell what time it was, ther e were no clocks in the room. She sat up stretching languorously, feeling li ke a well-fed kitty. Her hair was a tangled mane around her face and eyes an d she pushed it out of the way with a yawn. Last night seemed more a dream t han any real ity. She glanced at the incredibly still form of Christian besi de her. His inert body gave her the tiniest shiver. The wound in his side to tally healed. The restorative powers of his kind amazed her. She imag ined t he possibilities of all diseases or injuries treated this way, the implicati ons astounded Hillary. She rolled slowly out of bed, her bare feet sinking i nto the plush emerald green carpeting. She moved carefully so she wouldn’t w ake Christian and then realized probably nothing could until sunset. Hillary went into the master bath discovering o pulent luxury found in the finest h otels. A huge marble tub dominated the bath. The walls were richly paneled a nd tiled in green marble. Hillary sighed looking over the bath, Christian’s taste was magnificent. She wondered why he went to so much trouble, though. She doubted vampires needed to bathe. She we nt to the vanity and found a co unter with large decorator bottles filled with perfumed oils and bath sa lts . Hillary picked up a jar with bath salts and ran herself a bath. As the bat

h filled with aquamarine wa ter, a fresh scent filled th e air. Hilary saw a large antique mirror on a corner wall. Hillary assumed va mpires didn’t lik e mirrors from all the tales she had heard. Of course, those were all fictit ious. She walked over to it and examined herself. She felt marvelous. Tiltin g her head, she deliberated the mark on her neck. Very slight red mark, noth ing horrible. It actually looked kind of cute if you thought about it. Hilla ry pressed her fingers to the wound and smiled secretively to herself. She w ent back to the tub a nd turned off the water. Towels, thirsty and huge lay across decor g water. She would sit in the tub awhile, relax, and then she would dress an d go home. Easing her body into the huge tub, Hillary settled comfortably ag ainst one of the headrests. She closed her eyes and let herself absorb the s cent from the salts and the steam. Hillary didn’t want to think about Christ ia n or what happened the night before. Such a momentous occurrence was a ma tter of inevitability though. She refused to pounce on the gloom and Page No 92 Lynn Warren 92 doom tapping her upon the shoulder like some evil little devil telling her what to do. She would not look at this relationship in any manner except a good light. If she didn’t, the undeniable hopelessness of it all would over whelm her. How did you have a normal relationship with a man who was a vamp ire? Hillary shook her head, what was normal anymore anyway? They could do this. She was absolutely certain of it. Desperately certain of it. Hillary dipped a washcloth into the swirling water and sluiced it over her shoulder s. In her whole life, there had been only two people, besides her parents, she would do anything for, her grandmother and now, Christian. It didn’t ma tter how she had him, just as long as she could. “Isn’t this delightful?” C hristian leaned against the doorway, beautifully naked, gazing at her with an admiring glow. “Christian, you’re awake.” Hillary sat up her eyes wide i n dismay. Christian stepped into the bathroom and appr oached her with a sens uous tu rn to his full lips. “How could I rest with all that splashing going on?” “W hat?” Hillary was positive she didn’t splash. At least, not that loudly. Chr istian chuckled, “I could hear you, Hillary, smell you. And you were thinkin g very loudly.” Hillary swallowed, “I keep forgetting you can read people’s thoughts.” Christian gave a slight nod of affirmation. “Oh, that’s just peac hy.” Christian raised a leg and stepped into the tub. He climbed in and sat acros s from Hillary putting his legs on either side of hers. “I don’t make a pract ice of it with pe ople I care about. However, when I’m sleeping, I have no co

ntrol over it.” Hillary accepted it readily enough. “Why are you up? Isn’t it kind of early ?” Christian gave her an indulgent grin. “Hillary, it is already a bit after six in the evening. And even though the sun is not down, have you noticed t his part of the house is without windows?” Hillary noticed it was dark. Not that there wasn’t windows. Good idea though. “So you can get up before the s un goes down?” “Yes. But I don’t do it very often. Only when there is a beautiful lady bath ing in my tub.” Christian moved closer, his hands on Hillary’s hips. He pushe d her gently back against the headrest, leaning against her. Hillary felt the firm arousal teasing against her thigh as he wrapped his ar ms around her. Rippling eruptions charged across her entire body. He possesse d her in one stro ke launching her into a realm of tangible rapture. “I won’t be able to see you this night, Hillary.” Christian told her later as s he was dressing. Page No 93 Eternal Flame 93 Disappointment clouded her pretty eyes. “Oh.” Christian went to her. “It isn ’t that I don’t want to. I have a prior commitment tonight. Sinclair’s fate w ill be decided.” Hillary slipped the sweater quickly over her head. “I want to go with you.” “That isn’t possible.” Christian watched as she dressed, his eyes glitterin g dangerously. Hillary slid on her shoes. “Why not? Obvious ly, you have som e influence with the crowd. Oh shit, you’re going after Sinclair.” “He deserves punishment, not death.” Christian snapped, then instantly regr etted it. “He not only endangered my entire species, but he nearly got you k illed.” “I think what happened had more to do with you and me, than Sinclair ” Guilt and self-hatred filled Christian’s entire body. He turned away from Hillary and went to sit on the edge of the bed. Sinclair almost got her kill ed. He pledged he would never drink from her and last night he had broken th at vow. He lifted shaking hands to his face and rubbed it roughly before thr eading his fingers through his hair. “You are right. I never intended to end anger you. For that, I can never apologize fully.” His accent returned. She could tell instantly this upset him. Hillary knel t down beside him. “You couldn’t have known that Seraphina would want to ki ll me. She was crazy. People like that are unpredictable.” “It doesn’t matt er. I should have realized what her intensions were.” Hillary put her hands on Christian’s knees. “Don’t do this to yourself. It isn’t fair.” Christia n turned his eyes to hers. Her beauty inspired and weakened him simultaneou

sly. The intense emotions whirling about her swam into him. He was so painf ully in love with this mortal woman, he didn’t know what to do. “Hilla ry, do you understand what happened last night?” She seemed so nonchalant about it all. Perhaps, she blocked some of the more terrifying portions of it. “ What do you mean?” Hillary didn’t know what he asked of her. Christian’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Do you remember what I did to you?” Hillary smiled. Now she understood. “You made love to me, with me.” Christian shook his head. “I took blood from you.” Hillary smiled, relieved. “Christian, you would have died without it.” Bit ing the inside of his jaw, Christian got to his feet. “Perhaps, that would have been best.” Hillary stood, rapidly taking hold of him. “Wha t are you talking about? Do you know what it would have done to me if you would have died?” Uncompromising sadness filled him. The same thing it would do to him when Hillary eventually Page No 94 Lynn Warren 94 died. The slicing heat traveled acr oss his chest. He would have pref erred dying last night, than face the reality. Time would steal his beautif ul Hil lary from him. And, in it, his destruction came completely. With a gruffness he didn’t intend, Christian started out of the bedroom. “I have to leave.” Hillary caught up with him in a heartbeat. “Christian, take me or I will fol low you.” Christian laughed harshly. “Suddenly, you have a perv erse interes t in vampires, Hillary. Haven’t you seen and experienced enough first hand o r would you like to complete your research by becoming one?” Hillary took a step back. Her lip trembled and tears swam across her visio n. Her heart tore into a hundred pieces. “Why would you say something like that? What have I done?” Christian started down the stairs. He wanted to dr ive a steak through his heart and set himself on fire when he saw the look in her eyes. She had done nothing except profess her love for him and show it in the most extreme ways. He heard Hillary’s st eps behind him and he st opped on the landing. “It is nothing you have done, Hillary. Nothing you co uld have prevented.” “Then why are you saying these things to me?” Hurtful, almost hateful, accusations thrown in her face. “Because I am in love with you and there is no way I can ever bring you ha ppiness.” Hillary stared, dumbfounded. She pushed her hair back and took a deep breath. He was in love with her so he was go ing to drive her away. Th at didn’t make any sense. “C hristian, I love you too. You’ve only made me happy. You have never really hurt me. Until now.” “Hillary, please. This is for the best. Now, I must go.” He started for the door. “Christian, don’t think I won’t follow you.” “Hillary, the meeting site is on another contine

nt.” She moved to his side. “Please take me. Sinclair needs someone to help him . And your kind needs to know that all humans aren’t creatures that need to be destroyed.” Christian considered a long moment. Her persis tence bother ed him. His eyes hardened over. Why not? Half of his ki nd found it distast eful he was interested in a mortal. What not antagonize everyone? His miser y dropped him lower into a dark pit. “All right, Hillary. I will take you w ith me.” They left the house and Christian wrapped his ar m about Hillary’s waist holding her tightly. He ignored the stirrings of his body, clamping down hard on them. “Close your eyes if you get dizzy. We’ll be there in les s than an hour.” With tremendous force, Christian leaped into the night sky. Hill ary felt her heart rocket to her feet. She exhaled on a rush as if someone pushed the air from her lungs. The night sky got cooler as they propelled into the blackness. Hillary felt the moisture in the air and smelled the sweet, clean scent of ra in. Page No 95 Eternal Flame 95 She opened her eyes, enjoying the glittering lights fa r below. After the in itial shock, this wasn’t too bad she decided. Christian held her firmly agai nst him and she couldn’t forget the temptation. She placed a soft kiss on his neck. Christian turned and looked down at her, the twinkling of copper and g old. A moment later, they soared across the sea. Dee p, black glass glitterin g blue from the light of the moon. “Where are we?” Salt tingled her nostrils. Skimming across the water, Christian brought them closer to the surface. Hil lary almost yipped in surprise that their feet were all but four feet away fr om the cold waves. “Very far from home.” In other words, Hillary told herself , don’t ask. Sh e contented herself with the thrill of flying. No human ever experienced such a thrill except in dreams, or with the help of artificial fl ying devices. This was like the highest, fastest roller coaster combined wi t h a stale over the calmes t, quietest water. She wished she could do this all the time. Grinning sheep ishly to herself, she let the excitement and the so othing force drift across her. Minutes later, the pair headed downward into a dense, dark forest. Hillary c ringed, squeezing her eyes tight. They were going to cras h into the trees, s he was sure of it. Pine and fertile earth filled her senses as they slowed th e downwar d decent. They landed in a clear ing and Hillary took several deep breaths. She looked at Christian, smoothing her tussled hair. “That was incredible.

” Christian didn’t say anything, merely headed into the woods. Hillary stum bled after him, her eyes adjusting to the darkness. “Where are we going?” S he nearly jumped into him when something skittered around her feet. “Quiet.” He stepped into a clearing lit by seve ral torches. Hillary followed quickly. She gasped aloud at the spiral of stones that formed a circle about them. Eith er naturally occurring or not, it resembled some type of supernatur al alter. It sent a chill up her spin e. Christian took her arm, drawing her t o his position near one of the stones. Hillary sensed eyes watching her. She blinke d as several people came from behind the rocks to stare at her. Most regarded her w ith varying mixtures of distaste to pure hatred. She saw Sinclair in the center of the circle. The young man looked at her with pure shock. An older man with a beard and fatherly expression approached Christian. He spoke with a great deal of cur iosity in his pleasant, low voice. “Christian, what is going on?” Christian spoke so the entire group could hear. “This is Dr. Hillary Tennyson. She h as requested the opportunity to speak on Sinclair’s behalf.” Garridon took hold of Christian’s arm. “Where is Seraphina?” He looked around at his fell ow guardians. Seraphina was distinctly not present. Page No 96 Lynn Warren 96 Christian stepped away from Hillary leaving her feeling vulnerable and alo ne. Perhaps, it hadn’t been such a brilliant idea. Moving to where Sinclair stood, he addr essed the Guardians. “Seraphina didn’t fair well with her w arlock encounter. There is no doubt now a hunter will follow soon. Warlocks generally travel with hunters.” Hillary saw a handsome man, with a sharply wicked appearance step forwar d. He inclined his head toward Hillary politely. “Did he destroy her?” “No,” Christian shook his dark head. “I don’t know.” Hillary got the drift that Derick wanted to ques tion him longer but Christian’s dark anger left him no opening. He merely assumed Christ ian and his brothers liked the bi tc h Seraphina out of their hair for whatever amount of time. He walked ove r to Hillary and held out his hand. “My name is Derick.” Hillary didn’t kno w what to say. She gave her hand to shake his and he turned it placing a damp kiss to the inside of her wrist. Christian moved behind Derick instantly. “Take your hands off of her, Deric k. Now.” Derick turned a wicked glare on Christian. “I thought that was how it was. Only confirming suspicions, Christian, nothing more.” He glided away , leaving Christian glaring at Hillary. A lovely woman came into the light, hatred flic kered across her pretty f eatures. “You dare to violate our sacr

ed place by bringing a mortal here? I can’t believe this, Christian. What ha s happened to you?” “Rennata, I brought her because she has asked for the ri ght to speak with all of you.” Christian snarled nastily. “Since when does a mortal have the right to spea k with us?” Rennata grow led back. Evidently, Seraphina had her own gang of bitches. She looked arou nd for support seeing it in the eyes of several of the more quiet women. “B ecause you’re having an affa ir with her, Christian, doesn’t mean she has a ny say in this matter.” Christian knew the answer. He thought long and hard about revealing it. S ome of the more power hungry would endeavor to discover it anyway. “For tw o reasons, she was treating Sinclair and because of Seraphina’s attack upo n her.” Derick looked confused. “Seraphina attacked her? The hunting party was only for Sinclair” A man a bit older than Hillary with brown ha ir and very expr essive eyes stepped forward. “Seraphina finally cracked? It isn’t much of a surprise to any of us.” He glanced about at the others and crossed his arms in front of his chest. “Now, is it?” “Seraphina decided that Hillary was in the way of her goal to get to me. S eraphina assumed if Hillary were dead, everyone would go willingly into he r arms.” The vulgar taste in Christian’s mouth Page No 97 Eternal Flame 97 made him want to rinse it out. Derick raised a brow. “I see. She was jealous. ” “What reason would Seraphina ha ve for being jealous of a mortal ?” Rennat a’s teeth snapped on the word mortal. “She wasn’t jealous of the mortal at all. Seraphina has no preferences. She abhors all mortals.” Christian eyed her steadily. “Perhaps the fact that I am in love with Hilla ry and not Seraphina do you think that would provoke her, Rennata?” Sinclair grinned broadly, “I kn ew it!” All eyes snapped to his position a nd Sinclair bowed his head. He was in enough trouble and he called attentio n to himself. “Were you trying to provoke her for a reason, Ch ristian? Per haps one woman is not enough for you? Obviously the mortal is lack ing and you felt the need to string Seraphina along.” Rennata glared openly at Chri stian. Hillary a ssumed as soon as the meeting concluded, she would find Se raphina and discover what happened to her. A mumbling of disgruntled voices filled the mee ting place. Garridon glance d sadly in Christian’s direction. Derick looked sharply at the Golden One. “ That is hardly the case, Rennata, and you are qu ite well aware of my l ack

of feeling for your friend.” Christian held up his hands. “We are here to de cide what will become of Sinclair Drayloch, death or a reprieve.” Hillary sn apped to attention. The awesome pow er radiating from the group finally ceas ed to intimidate her. “You can’t kill him.” Sinclair gave her a smile. Chris tian turned. “When it is your turn to speak, Dr. Tennyson, you will be addre ssed. Kindly reserve your words until that time.” Thoroughly chastised, Hillary folded her arms about her chest. Her eyes found those of the man who spoke a while ago. He eyed her with pleasant g ood humor. “Sinclair is guilty of pursuing the unlikely pr ospect of becoming human aga in. He willingly deceived the doctor into trying to find him a cure to his il lness. He revealed his true nature to her and endangered himself, as well as the doctor during the raid by the hunting party.” Christian stepped in front of Sinclair. “How do you plead, Sinclair Drayloch?” His emerald eyes lifted w ith fire. “Guilty.” Christian nodded. “Before sentencing you may c hoose two to speak for you. Or, if you wish, I will choose them.” Sinclair nearly laughed. Hillary could tell not one of the Guardians woul d speak favorably for him. He successfully alienated th e governing popula tion when he deci ded he wanted to be human once Page No 98 Lynn Warren 98 more. He looked at Hillary. She was the only one who saw him for what he truly might be. “Dr. Tennyson.” Christian assumed that one. “And who else?” Sinclair shook his head. “There is no one else who would speak for me?” “V ery well. I will speak on your behalf.” Sinclair blinked, clearing his throat that suddenly dried to sand. “You wi ll?” Christian spoke quietly. “I may not approve of your methods, but I und erstand your dilemma.” He looked at Hillary. “Tell us, Dr. Tennyson, why Si nclair Drayloch deserves life.” Hillary looked at the hostile audience thro ugh pa le eyes. She never understood or experienced such antipathy from peo ple who did not know her, nor were they willing to try and know her. This g roup called the Guardians probably wished Seraphina took care of the mortal problem . She wondered if the animosity came from the fact that she was hu man or that she was in love with Christian Blackthorne. Hillary took a deep breath and collected her thoughts. “It is true that Sinclair used trickery to get my attention. However, he did so because he was de sperate. Sinclai r wants to be human again. Why, I do not know, with all of humanities’ shor tcomings, but that is beside the point. Sinclair possesses a great deal of

intelligence and when it’s applied in a creative manner, I’m sure nothing c an stand in his way.” “This isn’t a character analysis, Doctor.” Garri don spoke quietly. “We are all perfectly aware of Sinclair’s rather creative ta ctics. A few of the men chuckled softly. “I didn’t intend it to be.” H illa ry moved to the center of the group. “However, if you understood Sinclair’s character, perhaps, it wouldn’t be such a difficult task fo r you.” Garrid on raised his eyebrows and looked at Christian who merely shrugged. “None o f you have bothered with Sinclair because he is different. He doesn’t think the way you do, apparently, so he’s an outcast just like I am to this grou p.” “You aren’t an outcast, Doctor. Merely a mortal female.” Derick smiled caustically. “Thank you so much,” Hillary gl ared at the man. It was a good thing that the Guardians didn’t know about her blood. “Are Christian and S inclair the only admirable members of your species?” Several of the women s narled baring their teeth. Christian turned a shar p golden glace at them. Then, he gaze “Sinclair, did anyone bother to tell you what it was like to be a vampire b efore you became one?” Hillary hoped not. She had a sneaking suspicion that Sinclair needed a teacher in the art and had never received one. Sinclair shook his head slowly casting a weary gl ance at Christian. “It w as my own fault. My behavior was impossible. No one could tolerate me.” “So you were supposed to have a tutor in this new lifestyle?” Page No 99 Eternal Flame 99 “All fledglings are provided with a mentor until they are able to care for t hemselves.” Rennata haughtily flicked her hair aside. “Where was Sinclair’s mentor?” Christian stepped in front of Hillary. “I was Sinclair’s mentor.” Hillary s wallowed hard, grave, tactical error. Nothing like accusing the head vampire , the man you were in love with, of neglect. “What happened?” “Sinclair begged, annoyed, and hara ssed us until I gave in and ch anged hi m. However, once he was turned, he discovered it wasn’t as he hoped. He beca me belligerent and difficult to control. He was hardheaded and refused to le arn. I left him.” Christia n’s eyes went cold as stone. His body turned stif f. He could practically hear his own d eath sliding up to him. Now, he faced her with the coldness of his very soul. Hillary imagined a mother who abandoned a young child. A hideous scene repl ayed in the headlines. Obviously, vampires, for all their power and sophisti cation, still had problems. “Sinclair, I am sorry you were never taught prop erly.” She apologized for Christian and others. “My involvement came through

my research. Through a series of tests, I discovered that Sinclair was not human. I couldn’t believe my results. I accused Sinclair of deliberate ly sa botaging my lab and setting up my lab assistant. Sinclair had no choice but to tell me what he was. At first, I didn’t believe him, couldn’t believe him . But, it was as the only thing that made sense.” “Sinclair, you didn’t tell the doctor at the beginning what your intentions were?” “No. Christian swor e me to secrecy and I did my be st not to reveal it.” Sinclair’s face reveal ed complete and utter sincerity. His mouth twisted into a bitter smile. “It was only when I realized how dangerous it was for Dr. Tennyson that I told h er. If she would have told me to go, then I would have.” “Is that so?” Deric k inquired, eyeing Hillary. “I didn’t want to hurt her. I wanted her to cure me.” Rennata stepped forw ard. This was what she was waiting for. “And can she?” Despondency cracked Sinclair’s smile. He gazed at Rennata with clear gre en eyes. “No. There is no known way to reverse the change.” Rennata eyed him carefully. “However?” Sinclair swallowed wishing he could drink water. “There’s a possibility t hrough experimentation she might be able to duplicate a human DNA.” Hillary briefly explained her test results and what she could attempt to do. Derick snatched this opportunity instantly. “You w ould treat Sinclair as some sort of e xperime ntal creature? Who is to say you wouldn’t turn your information ove r to so meone with less than admi rable desires?” Several of the Page No 100 Lynn Warren 100 others nodded affirmatively. Fed up with Derick, Hillary wished Madison wer e along. She’d just kick his ass. It would appear that Seraphina had a love ly comrad e in this group. “I would never be tray a trust, nor would I reve al anything about my research to anyone.” “But aren’t you employed by a hospital to produce results?” The dagger cam e from Christian. Hillary whirled on him. “A doctor’s trust is paramount to his or her patients. You know me better than that, Christian. I would neve r tell anyone what I know.” Christian pressed his lips together. “I know.” “And do you vouch for her, Christian?” “I will. If she says she will never tell anyone, she won’t.” Hillary didn’t understand. He stabbed her wi th one hand and withdrew, and then bandaged t he open wound the other. She shook her head, trying to clear it. “Sinclair i s a nice man. I think he deserves a second chance.” Christian gave her a brief smile. “Thank you, Doctor.” Rennata moved away. “You would speak for Sinclair now, Christian?”

“I shall.” Christian gave the younger man a glance of reassurance. “Sincl air has shown me a number of things for which I shall never be able to rep ay him. Until I met Dr. Tennyson, I have always been satisfied, more than satisfied, with my existence. He revealed to me thoughts in my own mind. T houghts I didn’t want to hear, but he made me listen.” He looked hard at S inclair the younger man seemed uncomfortable by the attention. “Sinclair i s unorthodox, rash and foolish. However, he deserves the chance to grow an d explore.” Garridon was utterly stunned. “Are you suggesting he should be allowed to live?” Christian’s tone was precise. “Yes.” Sinclair nearly toppled over in relief. No one would dare disagree with Ch ristian. He felt his knees quiver and bent slightly to steady them. He coul d have sworn his palms were sweating. “Is there anyone who would challenge this?” Ch ristian’s heavily accented voice fell imperiously over the ears o f the Guardians. No one spoke or even moved. After a moment, Christian look ed at Sinclair. “You are free, Sinclair with one exception, and one choice. ” Sinclair bit his lip. “I gratefully accept any punishment, Golden One.” “ For the next year, you are to abandon any thoughts of becoming human. You w ill choose a mentor to learn from and spend the next year learning and expe riencing all that it is to be a vampire.” Sinclair’s chest rose slightly at Christian’s words. “At the end of the year, if you are not happy, you will come before this group and petition to be permitted to continue your resea rch to become human.” Page No 101 Eternal Flame 101 Sinclair could deal with this. Anything was far better than death, he sudden ly realized. He smiled brightly, shaking out his long, red hair. “I can do th at.” Christian stepped closer, standing several inches taller than Sinclair, his eyes blazed. “If during that time, you fall back on your vow, a hunting p arty wi ll be dispatched and no one will be able to save you. That is your pu nishment. You may choose to accep t it or face the wrath of a hunting party w hich is personally selected by me.” Sinclair nodded, blowing out a gust of air. His lungs seemed dusty and frag ile. It didn’t matter; he could do anything for a year. “I won’t disappoint you, Christian.” “You will spend three days in isolation. From then, you sha ll choose your mentor and what time you wish to spend your year.” “I am to travel through time?” Christian gave a thin smile, “If you wish.” Ch ristian turned blazing ey e

s upon the Guardians. “Should anyone think of retaliatio n on Seraphina’s b ehalf, I highly advise you to think again. The Guardians were not created t o be the toy of some power hungry indi vidual. Nor for the torment and slay ing of mortals.” He gazed directly at Rennata. “Challenge me and you will d ie regretting it.” Rennata stared calmly back at Christian, a tiny spark of fear permeated her eyes. “No one will bother your little mortal, Christian .” Spinning on her heel, she left the meeting place. The remaining members dispatched quietly, not wi shing Christian’s foul mood directed on them. Ch ristian motioned for the meeting to end. Two men escorted Sinclair away bef ore he could thank Christian. “I hope you know what you’re doing, my friend.” Garridon gave Christian a p at on his shoulder as he left the meeting site. Christian pondered that for a mo ment. Did Garridon refer to hi s rather l enient punishment for Sinclair? Or was he speaking dire ctly of Hillary? In either case, Christian thought his judgment was sound. He had done what wa s fair a nd right by Sinclair. Now, he mu st do the same for Hillary. The a gony waiting before him burned in his heart and drove nails into his head. He must distance himself from this woman before all was truly lost. Eventua l ly, she could forget him and live a happy normal life. Unfortunately for him, he would never, even in twelve lifetimes, forget her. He took Hillary by the arm leadi ng her out of the meeting site. “We must go. I will take y ou home.” Hillary hadn’t understood one lick of Christian’s attitude swings the ent ire time they were at the meeting. She thought maybe it was something she said or did. “Did I do something wrong? Break some kind of protocol or som ething?” Page No 102 Lynn Warren 102 She glanced about the bleak wooded area. The cr ush of the trees far above and on both sides of her made it appear they were closing in on her. The f ragrant earth smelled dark and musty. Gone was the deep pine scent, replace d by rotting wood. Hillary would have sworn they had gone the wrong way. Sh e looked about rapidly, not a speck of light, except the glow of tiny ey es reflected by the dime light of the moon. “Christian, were are we going?” Christian stopped near a gathering of rocks and ol d tree stumps. In the di stance came tiny lights from a village up ahead. He turned and looked back a t Hillary who leaned against one of the large rocks. Old moss covered the st one; the dusty smell tickled his nostrils. His hands clenched and unclenched several times. He needed to do this promptly, make a slicing blow and try t o recover. “We need to talk, Hillary.”

Page No 103 Eternal Flame 103 EPILOGUE A thousand diamonds twinkled over the night sky in Las Vegas. Th e air clear and cold shimmered with a translucent fog that settled high at op the Mandalay Bay overlooking the shimmering neon of the Strip. The fog shifted and reformed. Christian caught hold of Hillary before she could ta ke a step off the roof. Hillary wiped remnants of mist from her hands and took several breaths. Sen sations exploded across her body in a wild burst of li ght and color. She sm elled things she never knew existed, delicious exotic scents. Christian rele ased her suddenly and stepped away. She thought Christian appeared pretty pi ssed off. Now, she was sure of it. She brushed the loose hair back from her face and blew out a breath. “What is wrong?” She saw his hands clench ed tog ether, his eyes were strangel y distant. “Christian, tell me, what did I do that was so terrible?” “You have done nothing wrong, Hilla ry, absolutely nothing.” His jaw tight ened. “I’m the one who has been wrong.” Hillary didn’t like this disturbing ly familiar tr end. “What are you talking about?” Then a light dawned, she clicked her tongue at him. Who w ould’ve thought he had a jealous streak? T he entertainment level just went up a notch. “Is this about what I said abo ut Draigon and Garridon?” His eyes narrowed. “Oh for God’s sake, I was just kidding.” “That didn’t sound like a joke.” “I don’t know if it’s even possible. Besides, it’s your fault. You showed me that wet dream of all three of you.” Hillary moved closer . She nibbled alon g his jaw, ignor ing the stiff posture he held. “Besides, it might be fun.” “ I don’t like to share.” “I guess you didn’t know what you’re letting yourself in for.” Sh e laughed taking in the scenery. The colors, so vivid now they n early burned her eyes . The sounds of traffic and people below so clear, she needed to shake her head to keep focused. “Oh, I think I’ve got an idea.” She touched his cheek, “You love me, right? I mean after all, I’m your fled gling now.” Page No 104 Lynn Warren 104 He grinned. “So why wouldn’t you want me?” He nodded sl owly as she laced h is mouth with a kiss. “Anyway you could get me?” She f lirted with disaster

by teasing him this way, but it took awhile to get over her first flight. Th e ru sh still tingled along her skin just as th e night air. She forced her attentions back to her lover. Her fingers tangled in his hair. “I choose you .” She gazed at him, amazed at all the colors dancing in his eyes. “One Blac kthorne is enough for me.” “So it shall be.” Christian enveloped her in a kiss that would last all time.