Chapter 40

Katya had been cornered near the monumental fountains and was forced to make a stand. The creatures were similar to those from the train, their fingers morphing into long claws and moving so fast, she barely had time to block them.

Katya screamed as one of her attacker"s long claws ripped through her side. She fired her gun, and it clicked a hollow sound that signaled she had finally used her last bullet.

Fuck.

The creature raised its clawed hand to strike her down when a black wolf knocked her aside. She fell to the ground and rolled back to her feet. Izrayl tore through her attacker"s throat. It lay gargling as Izrayl padded towards her, his black face shiny with gore. Another pale-faced creature appeared behind him.

"Look out!" Katya screamed.

Izrayl turned, but a clawed hand was already digging deep into his back. Katya pulled a long knife from the sheath strapped to her thigh, sliced through the creature"s hand, leaving five bloody fingers and claws embedded deep in Izrayl. The creature screamed, cradling its hand. It hissed defiantly at her before vanishing into the blackness. Katya took up position in front of Izrayl"s bleeding body, unwilling to lower her guard again.

"Katya!" Trajan was running towards her.

"He"s hurt," she said, sinking to her knees and passing out on the cold grass.

By the timethey returned to Trajan"s twenty minutes later, the back seat was covered in so much blood, Anya thought their passengers must have been dead. As they drove back into the garage, Cerise was waiting and dressed in medical scrubs.

A part of the garage had been transformed miraculously into a make-shift hospital. Anya had thought the wall of stainless steel cupboards and drawers were places to keep tools. Instead, the two metal panels folded down to make sturdy operating tables. Drawers had been opened to reveal medical instruments and bright lamps.

"God," Anya muttered. "I see you two have dealt with this before?"

"More than we would have liked. Open the back doors, please, Anya," Trajan said. With the ease of the supernaturally strong, Trajan and Cerise carried Katya and Izrayl from the car and laid them on the metal tables.

"Cut her coat and shirt off, Anya, so I can see what I"m dealing with," Cerise said, handing her a pair of scissors. "Trajan, try to wake Izrayl up so he can shift back. I"m a nurse, not a vet."

Katya didn"t move or wake up when Anya started cutting the sleeves of her leather coat. Katya"s back was covered in deep claw marks oozing dark blood.

Oh god, how could anyone live through that and keep fighting? Anya thought, her stomach clenching.

"Hurry up, Anya, and stop gawking," Cerise prompted. Anya quickly removed Katya"s arsenal of weapons and the tatters of her shirt. Now that her back was bare, Anya could see, amongst the wounds and blood, the odd symbols tattooed around Katya"s narrow hips and up her backbone.

"You"re going to be okay, Katya," Anya promised, tears in her throat.

"Trajan, she"s going to need blood," Cerise said, assessing Katya"s wounds.

"What type?" he asked. He opened a fridge full of bags of blood. Cerise ran her gloved finger over one of Katya"s wounds and put it to her mouth with a thoughtful suck. Her blue eyes flashed black for a split second. She said, "AB positive, my favorite."

Anya"s stomach churned as Cerise smiled at her. "Don"t worry, I don"t really like living blood, and Katya won"t be a corpse for a long time yet."

Anya looked in time to see Izrayl"s body shudder and change back into its human form. Pale clawed fingers still stuck grotesquely from his back amongst the blood and other wounds.

"Be a dear and pull those out for me, Trajan," Cerise instructed.

Trajan did as he was asked and gripped the first finger. Anya swayed and was about to faint when the elevator dinged, and Yvan stepped out.

"Perfect timing, Yvan. Take Anya upstairs. She"s about to pass out," Cerise said.

Anya"s knees went squishy, and she started to rock as Yvan"s strong hands caught her.

"Easy there, shalos?, let"s get you upstairs." He lifted her up into his arms and carried her to the elevator. Yvan managed to get her back to her bedroom before she threw up all over herself and his arm.

"Shit," Anya muttered. Yvan helped her into the bathroom, and she stuck her head in the toilet. "I thought I had a stronger stomach than that. I"m so sorry."

"I"ll live," Yvan said, calmly washing his arm in the sink. He wet a washcloth and placed it on the back of her neck. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, let me get cleaned up, and I"ll tell you all about it," Anya said, waving him out. She looked at the mess all over the bathroom and was mortified Yvan had witnessed it.

Anya pulled off her ruined clothes and rinsed them in the sink before she climbed into the shower to wash the sour smell from her skin. She had stitched up wounds on animals before without a blink, but stitching up wounded friends was completely different.

Anya came out a short time later, wrapped tightly in a robe. Yvan was coming in through the door with two steaming cups of tea.

"I thought you would need something to drink, and I don"t think vodka will be your friend," he said, handing her a cup.

"Thanks," Anya said and sipped the scalding liquid. "I think I"ve had enough vodka for one night. It"s probably why I couldn"t keep my stomach under control." They both knew it was a lie, but Yvan didn"t call her on it.

"What happened to Katya and Izrayl?" he asked.

Anya told him about the mind link and the fight in the park with the creatures who looked like the one on the train.

"It worries me that the Darkness was already waiting for her. What the hell are these creatures? They don"t sound like anything I have encountered before, even in Skazki," Yvan said.

"Whatever they are, their bodies are littering the park right now, thanks to Katya and Izrayl," Anya replied.

"The Darkness won"t allow humans to find out what happened. The bodies will be removed quickly, and the wounded one would have reported back to them by now." Yvan"s eyes danced over her face, his concerned expression turning uneasy before he shifted in his chair uncomfortably. "It was lucky you were with Trajan when you had the vision and could get to her in time. Should I ask what you were doing in his room so late at night?"

Anya tugged the ends of her wet hair, suddenly nervous. "Talking…and I kissed him."

"I see," Yvan said slowly, looking away from her and at a picture on the wall above her head. "So you are a couple? Together? I don"t know the right word to use in this time."

"I don"t know about any of that," Anya replied, feeling more awkward than he looked. "I wouldn"t know what to call it at this stage."

Yvan frowned. "It sounds complicated."

"Are you angry?" Anya wondered why she felt the need to ask.

"Should I be?" Yvan asked, his frown deepening.

"No! It"s just…never mind. I thought you would lecture me, warn me against it."

"I"m your friend, not your father, Anya. I don"t need to tell you to be careful, and I won"t try to make decisions for you, but I"ll be there for you if and when you make the wrong ones," Yvan replied.

"Prince Yvan, my hero," Anya teased and was rewarded with one of his rare smiles.

"We all need rescuing sometimes, Anyanka. All I ask is you be careful with that heart of yours. You have so much you need to learn about your magic, and you don"t need a broken heart on top of that." Yvan leaned back in the couch cushions. "And don"t make me have to deal with jealous lovers when I want to spend time with you."

"I don"t think Trajan is the jealous type." Anya dropped her head to his shoulder, letting the warmth of the firebird seep through her cheek. "Don"t worry, my heart is big enough for both of you."

Katya wokeas the sun was rising. She had been placed back in the bed, and Izrayl was sleeping on a lounge not far from her, his chest wrapped tightly in bandages. He looked tired, and his long hair was a mass of tangles. She tried to recall what had happened the night before. She remembered fighting and Izrayl knocking her out of the way, but everything else was a blur. As if Izrayl sensed her watching him, he opened his amber eyes.

"Hey," she said.

"How long have you been awake?" he murmured.

"About five seconds. You look like crap."

"That"s because I had my ass kicked, and I"ve been keeping an eye on you, so I haven"t slept much."

"No, I mean in general," she teased.

"You"re lying," Izrayl grunted. "So much for gratitude for saving your boney ass. Be careful not to move."

"Why?" Katya asked and moved. Pain shot through her, and she cursed.

"I warned you. Don"t move, or you"ll bust your stitches." Izrayl propped a cushion under his head. "I hope you don"t mind, but Cerise put me in here to sleep. Easier to check on us both at once that way."

Katya rubbed her eyes. "How long have I been out?"

"This is the first time you"ve been conscious since you cut the hand off that thing in the square. I woke up when Trajan was pulling its claws out of my back."

"That sounds like great timing," Katya said, taking a sip of the water from the glass someone had put beside her bed. Someone had arranged brightly colored tablets on her nightstand. Katya took them all and hoped they were painkillers.

"It was great timing. You never told me you had tattoos," Izrayl said, his mouth kicking up into a sexy smile.

Katya had to struggle to keep herself from choking on her water. "That"s because my tattoos are none of your damn business," she said once she had swallowed. Izrayl just grinned, making her even more self-conscious.

Katya shifted on her side. "Thank you for coming to my rescue. I would be food for crows by now."

"You didn"t really need saving. There was a pile of dead creatures before I even got there. You just needed help towards the end. I"ve never seen a woman able to fight like that."

"I"ll take that as a compliment."

"Good." Izryal"s eyes glowed with wolf in the dim light. "You should sleep now."

"Don"t tell me what to do," she muttered.

"I wasn"t trying to. You just took two lots of pain killers and sleeping tablets. You are going to be" But Katya was already asleep.

Lookthrough the fog to a small campground deep in the North American mountains. Sitting in the closest tent is a man in the middle of a trance. His visions usually come unbidden, but everything he had been seeing for days makes no sense. He keeps seeing his hunter friend in trouble, and he is hoping the magic of the Land of Dreaming, will make help his visions become more complete.

He can send a message to her psychic sister, so he follows the paths of the spirit world. The colors move in front of him to form a picture of Katya bleeding on the ground next to a wolf"s body.

He sees a girl trailing bright red magic wherever she goes as darkness hunts her. He is stunned and horrified as he glimpses the war that is coming for her. He knows she will need him and his brother.

Aleksandra? He throws the name to the wind. Where is your sister? He waits quietly. He feels the trance wearing off, but he hangs onto the spirit world, waiting for her reply.

Paris. Black magic is following them. The firebird has returned. Aleksandra"s voice is barely a whisper against his cheek.

Suddenly his world is crashing, and he is being pulled backward. Air rushes through his ears, and he cries out in pain as his spirit slams back into his body. He opens bleary eyes and sees his twin brother across the fire. His grin is wide and knowing.

"When do we leave?"