Dark Peril (35 page)

She felt worry in his mind, although there seemed to be only that same speculation in his voice. “What does that mean?”

“Some mages, a very few, can possesses another body, leaving fragments of themselves behind. It is not the same as a blood bond, which Carpathians use to track those who may betray us. Once inside the host, the mage can force the body to do its bidding. As far as I am aware, no vampire has ever achieved it. And no Carpathian would choose to do such a foul thing.”

Everything in her stilled. Even the breath in her lungs. “Could someone like me do it? A jaguar?” She could hear her own heart roaring in her ears.

“Brodrick?”

She chewed nervously on her lip. “I told him I was his daughter. He didn’t deliver a killing bite to my skull when he landed on my back, and he could have. I was very vulnerable for just that one moment, and that was all it would have taken, but he hesitated. He bit me, and he had my blood on him. Maybe he wasn’t certain I was telling the truth, but his jaguar should have known, so that doesn’t make sense.”

“He would have to be mage-trained to accomplish such a feat. It would not be easy, and I doubt he would have taken the time for such complex training,” Dominic said.

She heaved a sigh of relief. “But they got the blood from him to track me, so he at least has knowledge of the mage—and it must be a mage—who sent the familiar. Brodrick would have knowledge of his cooperation. He exchanged the blood for something of value.”

“We know he has an alliance with the vampires.”

Solange pushed back the heavy fall of her hair as she sighed. “The other jaguar-men are not protected from the vampires or mages by their blood.”

“We know you have something extraordinary in your blood,” Dominic agreed. “I had a lot of time to study what was happening in my body as well as your own. Maybe the mages have need of it for some reason—and anyone willing to force another’s body to his bidding should not have access to your blood.”

“Let’s do this, then. He’ll never expect us to be able to track his familiar back to him. Anyone arrogant enough to take possession of someone’s body will believe he’s too powerful to be caught.”

She was suddenly aware of her body. She’d been so comfortable with him, she hadn’t realized she’d awoken naked. It felt good not to be worried about what he might think of her. She already knew. She wasn’t ashamed or wanting to hide herself from him. If anything, she felt a little sexy and very cared for. He’d given her a confidence in herself she never believed she’d have. She didn’t hate her scars anymore. She didn’t mind that she was too curvy by modern society’s standards. Most of all she appreciated that no matter if she was in jeans and a T-shirt, ready to fight battles with him, or naked from shifting, or together alone face-to-face as a man and a woman, she didn’t have to hide who she was from him.

He had given her the gift of freedom, of acceptance, and, looking up at his face, her heart opened to him and took him in. Her moment of revelation was waking up in his arms to see him beating himself up over what he thought was imperfection.

“Why are you looking at me like that,
kessake
?” he asked.

She could see the dawning knowledge in his eyes and she smiled. “I think I’m madly in love with you, my Dragonseeker friend.”

“Lover,” he corrected.

She gave a small smirk. “Not yet.” She stretched languidly as only a cat could do. She stretched sensuously as only a woman sure of herself could do. “Let’s go hunting.”

He groaned. “That was just mean.”

Her smirk turned into a full cocky grin. “
Now
you’re finally seeing the real Solange.”

“I like the real Solange.”

“Well, no one has ever certified you as sane, have they? Get us out of here.”

He wrapped his arms around her and floated them from the deep earth. “You are becoming a bossy little thing. I can see I have given you far too much scope, woman.”

She wasn’t about to test the threat in his voice. He had a decidedly wicked side to him, definitely very sexual, and she wasn’t going to get herself in trouble. Her confidence was growing with every minute spent in his company, but she had the feeling he knew a lot more about her body than she did, and would use his knowledge to his advantage. She nuzzled his neck. “You always smell so good.”

“I should not let you get away with distracting me.”

She circled his neck with her arms and turned her mouth up to his, her first daring risk of initiating any real physical contact between them. She felt very brave, and her heart nearly exploded when his lips moved under hers, parting to draw her tongue into his mouth. There was no hesitation, only the same heated eagerness she felt. His kisses thrilled her, sent her into another world of pure sensation where she lost herself, her body going up in flames.

She pressed tightly against him. Her breasts ached, and as always, she was wet and welcoming for him. It didn’t bother her that he knew. She
wanted
him to know. She took pride in her reaction to his hot, inflaming kisses. “You’re so beautiful,” she murmured against his mouth. “Really, truly beautiful, Dominic. Thank you for saving my life.”

His fingers bunched in her hair and pulled her head back. Her womb clenched in reaction to his sudden aggression. “You are more than welcome. But I meant what I said.
Never
scare me like that again. I will be putting you in an impenetrable bubble if you do.”

She laughed out loud. “You probably could really do that. Come on. I’m a little worried that if this mage saw you, he could identify you to the vampires. If he’s in league with Brodrick, he could very well be in tight with the vampires as well and he’d blow your cover.”

“Protecting me again, I see.”

She shrugged. “It works both ways. I might not be able to come up with an impenetrable bubble, but I can find something else.”

He ruffled her hair, massaging her scalp where he’d been so rough before. “I bet you could, too, my little warrior woman. When we have children, make them all boys. Little girls running around with no fear in them will be too much for my heart.”

Solange stepped away from him, hastily turning her head. She knew she would never be able to hide the shock his teasing had produced. Her heart pounded so hard she feared it might crash through her chest.
Children?
Plural? A family. She bit her lip hard. She supposed that was the natural progression of a committed relationship. Dominic was always five steps ahead of her. She was still tiptoeing around having him inside of her and he was already at
children.

“You’re hyperventilating.” There was amusement in his voice. Purring, satisfied male amusement.

Solange glared at him. “You said that on purpose.”

He definitely kept her off balance, and in a way it was exhilarating. She could never be with a man she could walk on, let alone be with one who didn’t stimulate her intelligence. She liked that he played. She’d forgotten laughter and teasing. She’d certainly forgotten playing, and it was just plain fun with him. She even missed wearing her sexy clothes. That was a new experience for her, one she would treasure and never
ever
tell her cousins.

Dominic shrugged. “Nevertheless, it is true.”

“For that, I’m producing ten daughters. Two at a time. And since I have no idea about raising children and you’re so knowledgeable, I will let you do the raising.” She managed to sound as if she was doing him a big favor, but the “true” part had definitely sent another somersault rolling through her stomach.

He laughed and nudged her. “I will accept your terms. Mostly because you will never hold to them. You are very opinionated.”

“I’ve been very quiet these last few days.”

“Risings,” he corrected automatically. “I am in your mind, never forget that.”

She tried not to blush. If he was in her mind, he would be seeing quite a few shocking things, especially the last couple of risings. “We should go before the trail gets too faint.”

His grin told her he knew she was deliberately changing the subject. “I suppose you are right, although I find this conversation very interesting. Once I remove the safeguards, wait for me to scan the area and make certain it is clear before you leave the chamber.”

She rolled her eyes. “I think I’m perfectly capable of determining when it’s safe to emerge. It isn’t like this is my first time.”

“You nearly died. Whether you like it or not, you are going to have to put up with me being a little on the protective side for a bit.”

She secretly didn’t mind his protective side because she was going to do whatever it took to win each battle, and hopefully they’d always be thinking alike, but it was nice to have someone worried about her.

She blew him a kiss and shifted, shocked that she did so easily, certain of him now. She liked that—being so certain of him. He did trust her at his side in a fight, and she found she could tap into his battle experiences, which gave her insight to the way he worked and also valuable information when facing his enemies.

“I will follow the water to the source and see if I can pick up any ‘footprints.’ ”

I’ll be waiting in the forest by the stream where I think it is most likely he found a way in. At some point he had to be more than shadow. Each time he attacked, he had to become his flesh and blood self, so there will be tracks. In this form, I can track anything substantial.

She waited, crouched at Dominic’s feet, taking the chance to look over his magnificent body. He was really quite gorgeous, although she found his hard-edged masculinity a little intimidating. He was well endowed and she had to admit she found herself looking at that one part of his anatomy more than any other, absorbing the shape of him, the girth and length. She’d never been intrigued by the male phallus, certainly never the real thing. Now she felt almost obsessed, wanting to touch him, to taste him, to know him as intimately as he knew her.

Hidden deep inside the jaguar where she was safe, she sighed, recognizing that now it was essential to please him. She craved bringing him pleasure. Her. No other woman. She wanted to be the one to send him soaring, and she didn’t know the first thing about making love to a man. She didn’t do that sort of thing. Mostly she killed them.

Dominic dropped his hand on top of the jaguar’s head. “It has been said that the sun hides inside the jaguar at night. After meeting you, Solange, I believe that could be true. I look at you, in either form you choose to show yourself, and I see that bright light leading me through a labyrinth of darkness. I know our union has been difficult for you, and I thank you for being open to me.”

Solange felt a curious melting in the region of her heart. He was so good at making her feel beautiful and important to him. She wanted to give that back to him and was determined to learn how.

I wouldn’t have missed being with you for the world,
she admitted shyly. Safe within the jaguar’s body, where she’d often hidden to tell her dream lover her deepest secrets, she found it easier to admit the truth to him.

He rubbed his fingers in her fur for a few more moments. “There is no one close,
kessake
. Be safe.”

You, too.
She sprang past him, eager to get on with the hunt. Dwelling on whether she was going to be good in bed was depressing—and scary. Hunting something—or someone—dangerous was invigorating and natural.

She crawled through the twisting maze of tunnels to emerge in the forest. The moment she felt the night air on her muzzle she shook herself, happiness bursting through her. She loved the forest. On the floor, the air was rich and still, the oxygen levels so high she felt energized. The rain forest was vibrant and alive, ever changing and yet always the same. She could count on the life cycle of the forest, everything living, breathing, growing and then falling. Death and decay came next, sometimes fast, sometimes slow, but always feeding and enriching the cycle of life.

She loved the rain forest during the day, but the night always seemed special to her. This was her world. She might want to travel, but mostly she wanted to see other worlds like her own while they were still in existence. The jaguar-people’s time was over. There was no way to save them, not anymore. Not with Brodrick’s leadership honing the men into brutes who chose to live with violence toward women, who took part in the slaughter of women and children they deemed unacceptable to them.

As few knew of their species, there had been no law down through the centuries to protect their women, and with no leadership to recognize their importance, the species had been doomed. She sighed and began to wind her way through the trees toward the small stream that was up above her chosen cave, feeding her small waterfall. She listened to the murmurs of the animals in the canopy above her head. She heard the flutter of wings and the slide of monkeys as they slipped from one limb to another, not yet ready to settle completely for the night. Bats wheeled and dipped, chasing insects, while small frogs hopped along the tree branches.

Already the songs of the many bird species were giving away to the call of the cicadas. The frogs began their nightly chorus, singing to one another from the various puddles on the forest floor, while the tree frogs chirped much more gently and harmoniously. Moths as big as dinner plates scattered across the sky. Fruit bats clung to the succulent fruit. Fireflies signaled to one another in brief flashes like neon signs.

Solange took it all in as she padded through thick vegetation, occasionally coming upon a porcupine feasting on fallen fruit. A snake struck at a mouse, detecting the heat as the small creature scampered too close to the silent predator. She startled a gecko as it emerged from its hiding place to hunt. The hungry creature raced up the tree, its eyes shining red in the night through the leaves as it looked down at her.

The jaguar ignored the nocturnal animals and kept to her course, moving a little faster now that she was away from the cave system. Above her head, fluorescent mushrooms appeared suspended in midair, growing on the trunks of trees that blended in with the night. A faint light glowed here and there from luminous fungi dotting the forest floor.