She wanted to look away from the violence. It seemed such blasphemy when it was Gary, not Aleksei, battling the undead. A scholar with a gentle soul, a poet, a man with such a brain . . .
Kislány. That single endearment whispered into her mind so intimately. She closed her eyes, feeling his love surrounding her. She wasn’t lost anymore, not when she had Aleksei.
He’s gone, Aleksei, completely gone. I’m looking at him and almost don’t recognize him. It’s as if he’s aged a thousand years.
He has.
She knew Aleksei spoke the stark truth. He didn’t sugarcoat the truth for her. She bit her lip hard, wanting to weep for Gary. Inside she was weeping.
Gabrielle. You did not do this. He was converted and then brought to the cave of warriors for recognition. Had Gregori not claimed him, he could have lived a half-life. Carpathian and yet not, with no hope of a lifemate. No one knew exactly how it worked. Andre said few males are converted. Until the prince converted his lifemate it was not known it was even a possibility without madness setting in. There was never a reason to convert a human male.
Not until they fell in combat defending Carpathian women and children. She tried not to be bitter.
He is alive, kislány, that is a gift in itself.
He isn’t Gary. I don’t know this man, he isn’t Gary. Over time, I saw the difference in his build and his combat skills. He had to become a fighter in order to defend the children, but he’s completely different now. He looks like . . .
Gregori. The Daratrazanoff family.
Yes.
Because that is what he is. That is who he had to become to come fully into our world. Just as you are changed, so is he.
Aleksei was wrong. Essentially, she was still Gabrielle. She wasn’t blind. She knew her looks were enhanced, but inside, she was Gabrielle. Gary was no longer Gary. He was all of those ancients who had gone before.
He was a hunter of the vampire. Skilled. Merciless. Capable of ripping out a heart and throwing it onto the ground. Capable of withstanding horrendous wounds without flinching to get the job done. Capable of calling down the lightning and incinerating the blackened, wizened heart and bathing his arms and torso in the white-hot energy in order to get rid of the acid-like blood from the undead before he directed the whip of lightning to the vampire’s body.
“Eww,” Trixie whispered. “So that’s how it’s done. I don’t suppose they can put lightning in a bottle and sell that in their vampire-hunting kits on the Internet.”
“I don’t think so, Grandma,” Teagan said, her voice even softer than her grandmother’s. “I saw Andre do that several times and it never feels real.”
Gary turned toward them, and Gabrielle’s heart thudded wildly. Aleksei?
“I’m here, kislány,” he said, and he was, striding toward her, right past Gary to wrap his arm around her, to inspect the side of her neck.
I have to go to him.
I know. Give me a minute to make certain this wound is thoroughly cleaned and as healed as possible until we get to ground.
I know. Two little words, but they said everything to her. Meant everything.
She felt him inside of her, so bright. No ego. All Aleksei. At once the throbbing in her neck stopped.
“Teagan,” Aleksei said softly. “Thank you. You did a great job.”
Teagan sent him a smile. “Andre’s been working with me.”
Andre and Fane stood in front of Gary. Gabrielle could see them greet him in the way Carpathian warriors did one another. Forearms to forearms. Making themselves vulnerable to attack.
Gary had definitely saved Trixie’s life. Without him, the three hunters might not have made it back in time to save any of their lifemates, let alone Trixie. His eyes moved from the two warriors thanking him to Gabrielle. She felt his penetrating gaze all the way down to her toes. It was a little disconcerting to be looking into Gary’s eyes and see that he wasn’t Gary. She saw that so clearly.
His eyes were even different. He’d always worn glasses. Now, his eyes were a deep blue, moving on to a dark inky black and then, when he blinked, a blue green, like the color of the sea. Her heart pounded as Aleksei wrapped his arm around her waist and urged her toward the man.
I don’t think I can do this, Aleksei. Maybe if I had . . .
What? Recognized he wasn’t her lifemate? Would that have changed anything at all for him? He had not made the decision to become Carpathian. Gregori had made the decision for him, based on his dire condition. She’d been there. She couldn’t have stopped Gregori. No one, not even the prince, could have. Gregori had few people he loved in his life. Gary was one of them.
You need to go to him, Gabrielle. I will be with you. Close. Inside you. In your mind. But you need this and you know it. Aleksei stopped walking and allowed her to take the last few steps on her own. Kislány, you are not to touch him. Not for any reason. I will not be able to tolerate that, so for all of our sakes, keep your hands to yourself. He will not touch you. He is an ancient now, far gone from any of us—even Gregori.