Dark Song

He is out there waiting beyond the safeguards of the compound.

Ferro knew Sergey was there, or at least his spies. They all felt him. They’d been feeling him since Elisabeta had been brought there. That is so.

A delicate shudder ran through her body, but her gaze never left his, clinging there, as if he were her safe anchor in a terrible storm. Then have the healer access my memories.

“Gary,” Ferro said, still holding Elisabeta’s gaze. “But you will be merged with me at all times, healer.” He decreed it. If Tariq and Gary were looking for anything but what they were telling the others, or they planned on hurting his lifemate, he would be there to stop them. He glanced at Sandu, then to Andor. Both men were tied soul to soul with him.

Ferro felt Elisabeta’s unshed tears, but there were none in her eyes as she stared directly into his. He saw her make a tremendous effort to pull herself together. To still her mind. To let her heart calm along with her breathing. She took her direction from him, choosing to follow his lead. He was very proud of her, knowing how difficult it had to be and knowing she was doing it for him to avoid him having to fight their way out of the compound.

Gary was already shedding his body, once more becoming healing light. Ferro didn’t want to leave her alone, but he didn’t like the idea of anyone entering her without giving her his protection. Piŋe sarnanak, I must watch over you. Sandu and the others will guard my physical body and yours.

Her nod was barely perceptible. He didn’t wait. He shed his body and followed the healer, not trusting Gary with his lifemate. The healer knew him well enough that he waited, and the two of them flowed together to her brain once again.

She is very afraid of Sergey. I think looking in the amygdala is our best choice to access any memory she might have of his calling to her.

That made sense to Ferro. The amygdala was the part of the brain that regulated emotions like fear, which Sergey had trained Elisabeta to have in abundance. Again, Ferro stayed back, allowing Gary to take the lead, but he merged with that hot spirit in order to know any piece of information the healer discovered. He had no idea what he was doing and didn’t want to disturb the healer while he sorted quickly through Elisabeta’s memories, but he was determined to see each memory as it came to light.

Here, Gary said. I have found her memories of his communication to her.

The recall of the vampire’s voice whispered to them, filling her mind, filling theirs. He sounded commanding. Menacing. A snarling, ugly broadcast that hurt the ear.

You will return to me or I will skin those children alive in front of you and allow my puppets to tear the flesh from their bones.

Every man, woman and child will be burned alive when we are finished torturing them.

Come to me now. You cannot exist without me. You do not know how to exist without me.

Come to me now or when I get you back you will be punished for a thousand years.

Each different refrain from rising to rising was repeated in a grating voice that was much like nails on a chalkboard. Ferro could imagine that someone as sensitive as Elisabeta would suffer endlessly just hearing his voice, let alone from the vampire’s actual punishments. Sergey’s threats weren’t empty ones, either. He had shown time and again that he would carry those intimidations out. Ferro had seen glimpses of her memories and knew that Gary had as well. They had gone through her brain, hunting for evidence that Sergey may have left a sliver of himself behind, and had to examine her so closely that they could see many of the terrible things the vampire had done to her and to others in order to force her to comply with his wishes.