Chapter 47

“Please, the high council is waiting.” Grace shuffled her feet, her hands clenched in her long gray skirt.

Was Grace worried about the master vampire? “What about Dracula? Are we safe here?” Lynda asked.

“Nowhere is safe from our father,” Mihnea said, “not even death.”

Lynda nodded, but the movement made her dizzy and she leaned her head against Mihnea's chest as he held her in his arms. “Take us to Andrei first. Then we can visit the healers and afterward address the council.” But she couldn't help thinking maybe they were just healing her to have her healthy for her execution. Her pulse sped up at the thought.

“We won't let anything happen to you.” Mihnea kissed her forehead. His vamp hearing back must have detected her racing heartbeat.

“The council is expecting you,” Grace bit her lip, “they know you've arrived and will expect you momentarily after a quick healing.”

“I need to see Andrei now. She wanted to be able to run into Andrei's arms and hug and kiss him anyway without passing out on him.

“It would be better if you were healed and addressed the council before seeing him.”

Lynda paused. “What are you not telling me?” Dark thoughts of him injured or hurt tightened her chest and she couldn’t take a deep enough breath.

“We’ve done all we can for him, but he won’t wake.” Her face colored.

Her heart folded in on itself and she gasped in pain. “No. I can’t accept that. S-show me how to heal him. I have to go to him now.” She’d tear this place apart brick by brick if she had to.

Grace jerked. “That's not possible.”

Did only certain witches have the ability to heal others? “Why not?”

“The amount of power you used to destroy the building alone would take ten witches to heal you.”

Images of the bodies under the sheet and the broken building made guilt slammed into her. A boulder stuck in her throat, but she pushed her words past it. “Take me to Andrei, please.”

“Fine. Follow me.” Grace's heels click-clacked across the stone floor. “But we have to hurry.”

Mihnea carried Lynda with Pierre walking beside them. Her instinct was to push out of his embrace and stand on her own except she didn’t doubt if she tried, she'd fall on her face in three steps.

Down a narrow hallway, they trailed after Grace and into a stairwell with more of the glowing lights. “What are those?” Lynda asked.

“Witchlights,” Grace answered. “The elders put them in place. When light is needed, they glow, when no one needs them then they dim to nothing.”

“Handy.” Pierre smiled over at Lynda. “Think they'll teach you how to make those? I'll never have to change another lightbulb again.”

“They aren't maintenance-free, exactly.” Grace opened a thick oak door. “When an elder passes, the orbs they created vanish and the new elder must create a new set for the ones lost.”

“Sounds like you witches need better spells,” Mihnea said.

“Hush,” Lynda hissed. Her luck, the witches would be offended before she even reached the council.

They continued down another hallway, this one with the witch lights farther apart. At a wood and iron door, Grace hesitated.

Lynda's stomach knotted. “What's wrong?”

Grace swallowed and looked from Pierre to Mihnea before returning her gaze to Lynda.

“Don't blame us for his condition…it was a group of rogue witches that smuggled him inside. We only recently discovered what had happened and the council has punished those involved and sent me to collect you.”

Terror flooded Lynda and she pushed out of Mihnea's arms despite his protest. “Open the door.”

It squeaked open and Lynda dashed inside. Her eyes slowly adjusted to the dark room.

On a metal cot lay Andrei. His handsome face contorted in pain. Sweat beaded his brow, but he didn't move or acknowledge them.

Lynda sank to the ground beside him. Her heart flopped against her chest. She took his hand in hers. It was cold...way too cold. She pressed her lips to his. They were dry and cracked.

“What did you do to our brother?” Mihnea grabbed Grace and held her up by her throat.

She gagged. Her face colored purple as her heeled boots kicked in the air.

“Put her down,” Lynda said. “We need answers, not blood.”

With a grunt, Mihnea dropped the witch and she fell in a heap, coughing and holding her throat.

“Talk or I will rip out your bones one by one until you do.” Mihnea grinned and Lynda was reminded of Dracula. But her lover wouldn’t harm Grace unless she was guilty of harming Andrei. Unlike his father who'd probably kill anyone just because he could. But they did need to know what was wrong with Andrei and Grace might not tell them everything unless she thought her life was at risk.

Grace held up her hands, magic danced along her palms in a white light. “Try that again and I’ll splinter the door and make you a wooden pincushion.”

Rage burned up Lynda’s throat. Her magic sizzled along her skin and Grace’s eyes widened. “Answer us or I will bring down this place like the Russian’s building.” As much as she didn’t want the reminder, at least Grace knew Lynda wasn’t bluffing.

“It was a group of rogue witches.” She winced, replacing her hand on her throat, her words hoarse. “They thought they could use him in an experiment because he’d recently fed from you. One that they could glean some of your magic from his blood that kept him safe in the sun, temporarily. They believed if they could isolate the exact magic, they could duplicate it.”

Lynda straightened. “Let me guess, they’d then sell this magic potion to the highest bidders.” The ability of a full vampire to walk in the sun was an advantage the rich and powerful would love to have. They could keep vials of her special blood and wipe out their enemies while they slept. The current delicate balance of power would be turned upside-down.

“And did they succeed?” Pierre asked pacing in the small room while Mihnea stayed by her side.

“No.” Grace sighed. “We stopped them before they bled him dry.”

“Have you healed him? Why isn’t he waking?” Lynda asked. Seeing her love so still and cold during the night made her chest hurt.

“Yes. And we gave him our blood, but he’s been like this since we found him.”

Lynda nodded. “Thank you. C-can you give us a few moments, please?”

Without a word, Grace slipped out of the room, the door creaked closed behind her.

“I don’t trust these witches.” Mihnea glowered.

“Neither do I.” Pierre stopped his pacing and tilted his chin to Andrei. “All too convenient if you ask me. Something is going on more than the witch admitted and until we know for certain, we shouldn’t take their word for anything.”

Lynda kissed Andrei’s hand. “Please come back to us. You’re safe now, my love.” No matter what the witches wanted, Lynda swore that she’d make whoever hurt him pay. And once the witches healed her to her full power, she was coming back here, council or no, and waking Andrei up. If she tried it now, she would slip into a coma that she doubted all the witches in the world would be able to wake her from. As much as she hated to leave him, she needed all her strength, not only to heal him, but to break them out of this magical place if it came to that.

“Mihnea, please stay here while I go visit the healers in this place.”

He grunted, but sat cross-legged on the other side of Andrei. “I will give you one hour to return or I’ll start painting these drab stone walls in witches’ entrails.”

“Save some for me.” Pierre winked.

Lynda opened the door and met Grace’s startled stare. “Take me to the healers, then I’m returning here.”

“But the council—”

“Screw the council.” Lynda pushed past Grace into the hallway. “All of my princes will stand beside me during their hearing or you all will have more to worry about than two livid vampires.”