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Still, she pressed on. This much she could do: She knew how to battle through even when she didn’t know what she was doing.
Despite the ever-present waves, images emerged slowly of Daniel asleep on a couch, bare-chested, his hand on top of the knife wound, his complexion pale. She sensed nothing would happen for a while since the man causing so much trouble was temporarily incapacitated.
She shared what she saw with Marius. All I see is Daniel, on his back, eyes closed, recovering.
He’s still lying down?
Yep.
Huh. I must have gotten deep into a vital organ.
Shayna said, I’m guessing by how high the wound was that you pierced his left lung. But I’ll never forget how surprised he looked when your dagger struck home.
You and me both.
So why do you think you’ve had a sudden increase in power and ability?
I’m really not sure, but I keep coming back to the one constant: My power increased each time I fed from your vein, especially this last time. Nothing else in my life is different. Just you.
Well, I have a different view altogether.
While in flight, with clouds whipping by like soft feathers against her face, he drew back just enough to make eye contact. And what would that be? He seemed genuinely bemused.
Call it an instinct, but I think it’s possible you might have more latent ability than either of your brothers, possibly even more than Daniel.
Marius, once more on autopilot, held her gaze. He even laughed. Sorry, but that’s just not possible.
Think about it. Daniel has all but begged you to come on board, and when we arrived in that cave, I think he could have killed you, but he didn’t. No, he’s holding back and I think it’s because he knows your potential. He really does want you to rule beside him. He might even need you to make everything work.
Marius shifted his gaze back to the path ahead. Well, you couldn’t be more wrong. And if you’d ever seen Adrien or Lucian, you’d get the whole picture.
You really look up to your brothers, don’t you?
I do. I think, well, they’re my heroes. There’s no one like them, and I wouldn’t be alive today if they hadn’t gotten me out of Daniel’s compound all those centuries ago. I owe them everything. No, I honestly think this latest power increase is about you.
Shayna didn’t respond. She disagreed with him on an essential level, but she doubted he’d ever believe her. She already knew that whatever bad thing he’d done in the past was keeping him from seeing himself clearly. Maybe feeding from her had triggered a new power, but the rest was all Marius.
And she was feeling too much for him. Dammit, there was just so much to like about the vampire. She knew he had issues, but she loved that he was so loyal to his brothers, that he treated those around him so respectfully, and that he would sacrifice himself without a second thought for the world he loved.
And just like that, a new vision opened up, again with annoying wavy lines. Daniel once more, but his eyes were open now and even though it had been just a couple of minutes, he looked better. The bastard was healing fast, just as Marius had said he would.
Quill was there again, with Lev standing in the shadows of his brother’s stronger personality. Quill’s complexion had turned ruddy. “You should have killed Marius when you had the chance, Father. Why didn’t you? You could’ve taken them both out and, as a result, he almost killed you. When will you figure it out that Marius is your real enemy, not the hope for the future you believe him to be.”
Daniel shifted slightly on his couch to face Quill. “I find your incessant jealousy unbecoming.”
“You owe me, Father, not that traitor.”
“But he will fulfill a need of mine that you can’t. He’s the one that…” He said something more, but the presence of the lines occasionally marred the audible portion as well. When Shayna could hear him again, he was saying, “Have you chosen the next location? Let me look at the list of places again.”
As usual, the vision faded in and out so that she could only catch glimpses. Something was in the background, that same sense of a vast space, perhaps a cavern as large as a skyscraper, but she just couldn’t tell. Maybe it was night somewhere and Daniel was on a chaise longue outside.
She couldn’t hear the men speak, but she saw them and watched their lips move. By this time, the waves were making her nauseous.
When the image sharpened once more, Daniel handed the list back to Quill. “Fine, then check out the Costa Rica cave and if for whatever reason Marius should show up, don’t kill him—and that’s an order. You’re to try to bring him back here. Use whatever means you can. We need him. If he ever discovers…” But the remainder of his words faded with the lines.
The vision dissipated, in part because she really couldn’t take the waves a second longer.
She shared the information with Marius.
