Read Online Dark Promises (Dark #29) by Christine Feehan - Free Book Online Page B

battle, and a Daratrazanoff was between them. Close to her. Far too close to her. He felt Andre moving in his mind, telling him to stop, but that didn’t make sense either. Andre knew that a lifemate was never to be touched by another man. Never. To break that sacred rule was punishable by death, no matter the lineage of the offender.
    As he whirled toward Gary, using both speed and movement to prevent the crazed Carpathian from using his weapon, Aleksei sent the wind rushing around them, driving the man away from Gabrielle with a series of fireballs aimed at him raining out of the night sky. The two combatants came together in a fury of blazing fire. The flames came out of the wind, firebombs dropping to surround them, to hold the two in the center, moving them back away from Aleksei’s lifemate. He was careful that the fireballs were well away from her, but the flames prevented Gary from getting near her.
    â€œStop them, Andre,” Gabrielle shouted, terrified for Gary. She struggled against the vines, and the more she struggled, the harder the tough wood bit into her skin, until blood began to trickle down her arms. “He’s going to kill Gary.”
    She could see nothing now but the wall of flames. Strangely the fire wasn’t in the least bit hot to her skin. Still, not seeing what was happening between the two men was far worse than witnessing it.
    â€œI cannot,” Andre said quietly, and indicated something to her left and then to her right.
    Gabrielle turned her head, and her breath left her body in a rush. For a moment she went still, her heart pounding so hard it nearly came out of her chest. There were others. Others like the one called Aleksei who had claimed she belonged to him. She felt their darkness. It was oppressing. Frightening. Sad. So sad that even in the midst of her fear for Gary, she felt the weight of their sorrow pressing down on her.
    She could see they were watching the combatants intently, and they also were very aware of the blood trickling down her wrists. They could smell it. Sometimes eyes would move over her and then become riveted on her wrists. Terror mounted. If Gary didn’t save her, these horrible ancient Carpathians were going to feast on her. Devour her. Drink her blood until there was nothing left of her.
    â€œGary.”
She whispered his name. Her only salvation. Her love. Her fear. “Please, God, help him.”
    She didn’t care if every one of these horrible ancients ripped her to pieces. If Andre wouldn’t help Gary, then she would. She turned her head and stared at the bracelet on her wrist. She’d seen her brother Jubal’s bracelet become a weapon. He did it by tuning himself to the metal. It worked only for him.
    Gabrielle closed her eyes and tried to block out what was happening around her. She concentrated on the delicate links of metal surrounding her wrist. At once she heard the low hum that she’d noticed before. Instantly she locked on to that and sent her own command. She needed the vines gone. Right. This. Moment.
    Gary Daratrazanoff hit him with the force of a freight train, driving him back toward the wall of flames. Aleksei dissolved and came up behind Gary, re-forming, catching at his head and wrenching with enormous strength to break the neck. Gary shifted out from under him, becoming a huge, powerful python, coiling around him fast, the head eye to eye, the constriction deadly.
    Aleksei didn’t fight it; instead, he shifted his body to that of a python as well, a feat many Carpathians weren’t able to do. Few could shift when they were being held captive in any form. The two snakes coiled and thrashed, upright, standing on their tails, facing each other with big, angry, curved teeth. Once those teeth sank in, it would be difficult to extract them, even in his present form.
    The head of the python came close and, without warning, small, wiggling snakes erupted from its mouth, leaping to fill his.