Chapter 19

Nicolae could hardly believe it. He was going to be a father to a very strong little girl. It had never even crossed his mind that he would be able to have a lifemate let alone be a papa. It seemed as if God had blessed him with the truest and rarest gift of all. Nicolae had given selflessly his whole life and now was given the family he so desperately desired but never thought possible to have.

When the sun was high in the sky, Nicolae had finally succumbed to the slumber of his people. He woke as soon as it set and just continued to watch Elena's face. He wanted to get his childish giddiness out of his system before Elena woke. It would do them no good if she worried over him and their child, so when she fluttered her eyes open, he quickly shut his mind of the topic and thought of more important things.

"It's too early for such evening activities, Nicolae…and besides I can't even move from the last time." He smiled warmly at her when she read the images he played in his mind of the two of them.

I can't help it, love. Every time I gaze at you I want you all over again. He leaned down to her soft skin and brushed feather light kisses all over her face. She giggled and shoved at his chest.

"No, seriously, Nicolae. When are you going to meet up with Gregori?"

"In about an hour, love." That was all he said before she grabbed his face and pulled him down to her.

Then it seems to me, Mr. Big Bad Carpathian, that you are wasting my time with all of this talk.

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After the hour past, Nicolae and Elena met Gregori and Savannah at an abandoned cabin way out in the northern Pennsylvania area. The wind was a bit sharp and snow was already gathered on the ground, but Nicolae made sure she was comfortable. Elena felt like an eskimo.

"Nicolae, why are you dressing me like I am going to freeze out here in the woods? I am perfectly fine with a coat and boots. Do I honestly need the cardigan, scarf, boots, and cloak!"

Nicolae looked her over once and realized that he did go a bit overboard, and when she rolled her eyes at him, he waved his hand and lost the cardigan and cloak. He smiled at her and shrugged his shoulders before he walked up to her and kissed the top of her head. Sorry, Cara…I only wanted to make sure you were warm enough.

Well thank you, but don't be so antsy around me…I am not made of glass. I won't break. She thought with a smile when she looked at him. If she only knew.

Gregori walked hand in hand with Savannah up to the cabin. Nicolae followed with Elena right behind them. Once inside Gregori started a fire and lit several candles that reminded Elena of honeysuckle and jasmine. Such a unique scent for a candle.

They came from my homeland. Nicolae informed her and before she could ask him more about them and what was in them, Gregori began to speak.

"This house will be safe guarded and surrounded by my wolves. They will alert you to any danger and if something should go wrong, just go through the cellar and find the trap door. It will lead to an underground tunnel that leads to Lake Erie."

Elena's heart seemed to begin to ache all over again at the thought of Nicolae getting hurt and something going terribly wrong. He sent her reassuring waves of comfort and supplied her with a warm smile.

"Nicolae and I will only be long for a couple of hours or so, but we need to hurry if we are to prevent another innocent from death." Gregori walked up to Savannah and kissed her sweetly on the lips. And when Nicolae approached Elena, she reached for his embrace and whispered in his ear.

"You remember your promise to me you big brute." She kissed him slightly and turned him away from her. She urged him to the door and gave him a swift smack on the ass. "And make sure you come back to me in at least one piece!"

Savannah gave a soft chuckle as she walked up to Elena's side at the window ledge. They watched their men shimmer away as mist and for the first time in both their lives they truly knew what fear was.

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Gregori glanced at Nicolae as they traveled through the night sky. He chose his words very carefully. "How has Elena been feeling? I couldn't help but notice back there that she is with child."

"She has been tired and groggy ever since I met her, but it has only increased since she has been converted. I couldn't figure out what was different with her until the night before this rising." He shook his head wishing there was some way he could keep her even safer from harm.

Easily reading his mind, Gregori let out a small chuckle. "You know that you can't stuff her in a corner wrapped in a dozen blankets…She would writher away with unhappiness."

"I wasn't going to put her in a corner with blankets!…I was going to stuff her away in a tower with padded walls and a mote around the whole thing."

I heard that you big ox! Now pay attention and quit losing focus on your task!

Her voice in his head snapped him back to focus and he realized that he needed to keep his thoughts off of his discovery or she would find out before he destroyed the vampire. He closed a portion of himself off to her and he sent her distracting images of the other night they had made love in the woods. When he felt her blush he smiled and felt instant satisfaction.

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Savannah looked at Elena and smiled warmly at her curled up against the couch. "Don't worry about them, hun…Everything will be just fine. You'll see."

Elena just chuckled at her and waved a hand shushing her up. "I am not worried about them as much as what I have just discovered last night."

Savannah jumped to the edge of her seat ready for every drop of gossip the woman had to offer. "Tell me everything and don't leave out one detail!" The woman's excitement made Elena giddy as well.

Before she spoke she took a deep breath and let it out slowly. She clasped her hands firmly on her lap and look deep into Savannah's anxious face. "What does it feel like when you first got pregnant?"

Savannah's mouth dropped two inches as she realized what her new friend was trying to tell her. Very slowly she started her question. "Are you trying to tell me that we are going to be pregnant…together?"

Elena just nodded her head and agreed with the woman.

"Well tell me how you are feeling right now?"

Elena shrugged slightly and didn't know if her suspicions were stupid or not. "Well I have been more tired since I have gone through the conversion and yesterday and this rising my stomach was kind of upset. I felt better after a while but what sealed the deal was Nicolae. He thought I had fallen asleep but I had stayed awake and listened to his mind. He scanned my body to check and see if I was ok and that was when he found our child. She is so tiny and so wee that I think it scares him to think that he might not let me down, but our daughter down as well."

She shook her head with confusion.

"Savannah tell me something. When you are bounded with a male you are supposed to have access to each others mind. You can't hide things from one another right?" Even though Elena was new to this whole Carpathian thing, she was growing more and more familiar with the laws of her new body and the rules of her new race.

"Yes. There can be no untruths when bounded and there is nothing you can't hide from one another. That is how deeply the bond holds to the couple." Savannah spoke matter of factly and glanced at Elena wondering why she would ask such a strange question.

"That's what I thought, but Nicolae seems to think that he can hide whatever he wants from me at will. He didn't want to tell me about the baby because he didn't want to put more stress on me." She laughed to herself putting a protective hand around her belly.

Savannah remembered a time recently when her own lifemate was foolish enough to think the exact same thing. "I am afraid, dear, that all of the men of this race have air for brains. It is up to us to keep them in check." Savannah jumped almost clean out of her skin when she felt a sharp nip on her thigh.

Stop filling that poor woman's head with your nonsense and change the subject!

Elena had the feeling that Gregori was keeping her in check. She hid her smile and changed the subject for her. It truly was nice to finally have a friend.

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The two forms of mist flew into the town of Cranberry, and began their search for the Vampire. Two bodies were discovered along the way and the trail lead to a stretch of farm country. The plan was already set into action when they discovered the blank void in a hillside by a dairy farm.

"Are you ready, old friend?" Nicolae said with a hint of sarcasm. Gregori glanced at him with a faint smirk on his face before he formed his body into fog and headed for the east side of their battle field.

"I will take that as a yes then." Nicolae thought of Elena and reached for her mind. She sent him a reassuring touch and a warm smile. It was exactly what he needed before he went into battle. Now all he had to do was wait for the attack.

(Author's note)

Thank you all for your support! I have thought long and hard on the names you all have provided me with and i have decided the names of my characters. I will announce at the closing of this story.

Hope you enjoy! please review!

It really helps when i write the next chapters!

Thanks,

Ashley