The poll result is in, and it looks like I'll be holding off on Penny and Grace's story. Ah well, in the meantime I hope you continue to enjoy Dark Release.

Chapter Sixteen

"A strong conviction that something must be done is the parent of many bad measures."

- Daniel Webster

___

Marach released Izzy and slowly rose to his feet. "This isn't necessary, Gregori. Isabel doesn't need to be converted if she doesn't want to be. To force it upon her is a grave crime, and I refuse to put her in that position."

"So long as her sister and she are free to wander in the light," Gregori said shortly. "So long that they have more freedom to move than we do, they will get into trouble."

"I-I wasn't—" Izzy sputtered.

Gregori gave her a harsh look. "Then why do you do it? Why do you both continue to wander away from us, from our protection, when you have the freedom to do so?! We put ourselves at risk to help you both and protect you, and yet both of you act recklessly!"

"I-I don't do it to cause trouble! Besides, Serenity is the one who wanders off, and—"

"Yes, this is true. And for this we must make killing Parn amongst our highest priority. He almost killed you tonight, Isabel, and she not only didn't believe you; she accused you of provoking the attack. Serenity is dangerous, and I believe it is fairly obvious she would betray us at the first opportunity."

"Well I don't believe that!" Izzy snapped. She stood up as well and squared off with Gregori; despite the fact this man could squash her like a fly. "I don't believe for a second that my sister would EVER do me harm! She's simply in denial over Parn's true nature, and why shouldn't she be?! He's her lifemate, and he's evil! He tried to force her to kill him and he called out to her tonight when he thought he was going to die! The messages he's sending her are so twisted, and…" She dug a hand into the hem of her shirt. "I don't even know what his true motives are."

"He's a vampire and he's evil," Gregori stated matter-of-factly. "He is no different than any other vampire who's come before him. The fact that he can communicate with his true lifemate without visible repercussions means nothing. He is simply building a tolerance to the terrible truth of his existence."

"Have YOU ever experience a vampire situation like this?!" Izzy cried. She clenched her hands into fists, but it was to stem the urge to hit Gregori.

"…No," Gregori admitted after a long moment. "But it still means nothing."

"But—"

"Even if by some impossible miracle that Parn somehow changes for Serenity, his soul is lost forever. He will never return to the person he once was. Serenity doesn't want to face this fact, and so she will continue to fight us on this. Just the same you fight the inevitable."

"Gregori." Marach stepped in front of Izzy. "I'm not going to corner my lifemate into a decision she isn't comfortable with, and I refuse to allow you to corner her. If she wants to remain a human, I will take the risks to protect her. And if you feel the presence of these two women put your daughters in any danger I will take them away. But nobody will violate Isabel's personal rights! Not you and not our Prince!"

Gregori was silent for a long moment. "You're misunderstanding. I have accepted these women under my protection as well, most poignantly Serenity. I would never cast them out of my house. I only need the both of you to realize what your recklessness is doing to my home. These attacks by vampires are too close to here. If my lifemate or my daughters are in any danger, I can assure you I will show no mercy to those who cause them danger. But…know that I will not tolerate this behavior by either woman." Gregori fixed his eyes upon Izzy again. "If you become Carpathian, you can go to ground with Marach, and you will not be in danger during the daylight by Neve. Neve is a powerful mage, but she is still human. As a Carpathian, it will be difficult for her to kill you. As you are now…you are a danger both to yourself, but to your lifemate and those around you."

"Gregori, that's ENOUGH!" Marach roared. Still, his admonishment couldn't stop the sting his words caused Izzy. She felt very uncomfortable…nauseas, even. She was avoiding this possibility, and she hated having it thrown in her face.

Carpathian…there was so much to both gain and lose from this. Maybe…maybe things would make more sense with her relationship with Marach. She wouldn't age, either. Marach was seven hundred years old, but he only looked a few years older than her. She could gain all the knowledge she needed to complete med school four years worth of knowledge, all within a single day. Marach produced items out of thin air; she could do the same. She wouldn't have to buy supplies or textbooks or anything. Just a simple thought and she would have anything she wanted.

But, she wouldn't be able to go outside during the day. All the foods she liked to eat…they wouldn't appeal to her anymore. If she didn't age, she would have to watch her parents, her friends, maybe even Serenity die before her. Her life would never be the same ever again. She probably couldn't even return to the United States like this.

"Dragă, do not distress." Marach spoke clearly, calmly in her head. "It is not up to Gregori whether or not you're converted. It is only up to you."

"Marach…" Izzy looked at him briefly, and then looked at Serenity, who was still unconscious in the chair.

"Gregori." Izzy jumped suddenly, as she heard a new voice. It was from Marach's mind, though it wasn't Marach's voice. It was Shea. "I need you to come to the lab right now."

Gregori abruptly shut his mind off to Marach, so Izzy couldn't hear anymore. The healer revealed nothing on his face to whatever he was privately discussing with Shea. Marach was on edge, watching him closely.

Then, he suddenly spoke up. "Marach, we need to go to the lab right now."

"What's wrong?" Marach asked.

"Now." Was all Gregori answered. And it was with a tone that commanded absolute authority.

"Can I go with you?" Izzy asked, taking hold of Marach's sleeve.

"It's best that you stay here," Gregori said. "What is to be discussed is highly important."

"Wait…Shea took a sample from me." She gripped Marach's sleeve tighter. "If she took a sample from me, then I deserve to know what she found!"

"Isabel." Marach cupped her chin gently and kissed her on the mouth. "It will be all right. Let me find out what this is about first."

"But it's my body! I deserve to—"

"Yes, you do. But trust me on this. I am in the dark as well, iubita mea. Whatever is to be revealed, I will hide nothing from you."

Izzy wanted to find out whatever Shea found out firsthand, but she knew the Carpathians weren't going to budge. "All right…" she took a seat on the edge of Serenity's chair.

"We'll be back shortly," Gregori said. "Do not worry." Then he disappeared into the air.

"Everything will be all right." Marach kissed her again on the forehead. "And as I said, don't worry over what Marach told you. I am happy as you are now, and that's what should matter most to you." then he was gone as well.

Izzy was alone with her still unconscious sister. She curled at Serenity's feet, resting her head on her knees. It was becoming too much. Everything that was going on with Serenity, the tests…this unavoidable issue of conversion.

What could she do? What was the right thing to do?

"Oh, Serenity…" tears burned at her eyes and she hugged Serenity's knees. "I don't know what to do…"

___

The first thing Marach noticed when they entered the lab was that all of the healers were present, including both Ivory and Razvan. Mikhail was present too, in addition to Gary, who still wasn't fully healed.

"Thank you all for coming," Shea said, sitting down at her station. There was some sort of complex piece of machinery there, looking like a computerized microscope. "There's something I need to show all of you."

"Does this have to do with Isabel's sample?" Marach asked.

"Yes." Shea typed into the computer and a microscopic image of blood cells appeared there. "Let me start off with this. This is Izzy's blood."

"The shape of the cells looks different from before," Gary observed, allowing Gabrielle to guide him to a seat. He looked at Marach. "You gave her a second blood exchange, correct?"

"Yes," Marach said. "My blood has diluted the healing capabilities of her blood."

Shea typed into her computer a little more and another image appeared. "Here's another sample. What can you tell me about this?"

Everyone came close and looked at the blood sample on the screen. Gregori frowned visibly. "These cells…the shape is abnormal."

"The color, too," Razvan pointed out. "The color of this blood is strange. It's very luminescent. And…purple?" he squinted at the image. "I see the color purple."

"There is a purple tint to it, but it's very subtle," Ivory observed. "Almost like a hue, or a highlight."

Marach's eyes were on Shea, though. He didn't like her constant questions, when he knew she had answers. Finally, she raised a hand for silence. It was slow in coming, but she was patient.

Still…what she had to say was shocking.

"What you see…is vampire blood."

"Vampire blood?!" Mikhail demanded. He looked at the image. "But how can this be? You've told us it's been impossible to get such a sample. Didn't your equipment get destroyed the last time you tried?!"

"Yes, it did," Shea said sagely. "But there's no mistake. This is vampire blood."

Jacques stepped forward slightly and calmly took the lid off a petri dish. A small amount of blood was inside. Marach knew that this was the vampire blood that was shown on the screen. His stomach turned as Jacques suddenly stuck a finger inside, smearing the blood all over the tip.

"Are you mad?!" Mikhail roared. He surged forward and jerked Jacques's hand away from the dish. "What sort of full move is that?!"

"Look," Shea implored calmly. "Look at his hand."

They did. Jacques calmly rubbed the blood between two fingers, into his skin. The vampire's blood was like acid, burning and destroying everything it touched. And yet, Jacques gave no indication whatsoever that the blood was hurting him.

Mikhail shook his head and grabbed Jacques by his hand. "I won't stand for this." In the process, some of the blood touched his palm.

"Mikhail!" Gregori roared, shoving the Prince forcibly away from Jacques.

But…Mikhail didn't look like he was in any pain, either. Astonishment crossed his face and he stared down at his palm. "W-What the—?!"

Gregori grabbed him by his wrist and touched his own fingers to the blood. Shock registered on his face and he looked at the tips closely. "…This isn't burning us. We are unharmed." He quickly looked at Shea. "This isn't vampire's blood."

"On the contrary," Shea said, standing up from her desk. "It is."

"That's impossible," Mikhail said, looking up at her. "This blood should hurt us, but it doesn't. It feels fine."

"That's the whole point, Mikhail. Something has happened to this blood. Here, let me show you." She reached into her desk and withdrew a test tube filled with a very small sample of blood. "This is the last of the vampire blood I have, so I will make this experiment count." She poured it out into a clean petri dish.

"Do you still have samples of Izzy's blood?" Jacques asked, calmly wiping his hand. The tissue didn't rot under this blood, either."

"A small amount, as well." She produced another test tube that Marach knew was Izzy's blood. There was so little left in comparison to the other sample, but she poured that into the dish as well…right on top of the vampire blood.

What happened next left Marach speechless. Almost immediately both blood samples merged. A strange hissing sound filled the air, and steam rose up. The blood in the dish began to bubble as though it were being boiled, even though it was sitting on a room-temperature countertop.

This chemical reaction lasted several minutes, and the Carpathians stood there transfixed on the scene. Then suddenly…the blood stilled, stopped boiling. Right before their eyes the fluid began to move throughout the dish. One set of blood pressed to one side of the dish, and the other pressed against the other side, leaving a small area of open dish between them.

One of the samples was still clearly Izzy's blood. But the other…

"Everyone," Shea said. There was a strangeness to her tone of voice. "There you have it. Purified blood."

"Purified…" Gregori trailed off, his tone filled with disbelief. He looked at the dish closely. "A-Are you saying that…?!"

"This is probably why the vampires get hurt when they drink Izzy and Serenity's blood. These regenerative abilities aren't just self-inflicted. They've literally attacked these deadly cells, these parasitic blood cells, and tore them apart. But they didn't kill the cells, only weakened them to an extent. And it seems…" she frowned as she looked down at the dish. "It seems Izzy's blood cells gave the vampire cells nutrients to rapidly rebuild, and reshape. The result leaves Izzy's very weak, almost near-death. But not dead. Here, let me show you." she went back to her computer and opened up a video file. "Here, look at this." It slowed blood cells, Izzy's blood cells, and they looked shriveled up. But she hit the fast-forward button, and Marach could see the cells build up in strength and return to their former glory.

"…Shea," Mikhail said slowly. "Are you saying…Isabel and Serenity's blood have the ability to heal vampire blood?"

"Not just heal," Shea said, her tone was full of awe. "But purify to the point that reproductive parasitic antigens are destroyed, and in its place are clean cells."

Everyone looked stunned, and Marach shut his mind off from Izzy. He pressed a hand over his gaping mouth, but it did nothing to hide his shock. It was too surreal…Izzy could not only automatically heal herself through her regenerative cells, but her cells could fight vampire cells and morph them into something different?!

"I don't understand this," Francesca cut in suddenly. "How is it that this blood can purify vampire blood? How can it be so strong when Carpathian blood clearly dilutes the healing capabilities?! Such a thing as this is impossible!"

"It is strange," Gabrielle said slowly. "Especially since Izzy's blood usually acts in survival mode. It will kill any invader that threatens it, and yet not only does it not kill this blood, but it heals it."

"Maybe the Carpathian blood that has merged with her cells identifies with the vampire cells for the Carpathian blood it once was?" Gary asked.

"Then its first instinct would be to kill the blood," Ivory said shortly. "The only real explanation that can be is either her cells act naturally to want to save the cells infected by the vampire's influence…"

"Or that vampire's blood is somehow linked to her healing capabilities," Razvan finished gravely.

Marach snapped to attention at this. "My lifemate is NOT influenced by vampire's blood, and don't you make the implication that it does!"

Ivory surged forward and got nose-to-nose with Marach. "Don't you ever raise your voice to my lifemate!"

Marach glared at her. "Am I to be threatened by you?! What should I fear from a woman who condemned her five brothers to hell with her selfishness?!"

Ivory let loose a furious growl that even Marach had to admit intimidated him slightly.

"Marach!" Mikhail roared suddenly, stepping forward before Ivory could attack. "Don't you ever talk that way to her! You know nothing of what she sacrificed for our people!"

"I have suffered too, and don't you forget it," Marach snarled, though he tried to calm down in the face of his Prince. "I have lost my entire family, and every friend I have ever known has either met the dawn, was murdered, or became a vampire! I have nothing and no one without my lifemate! Don't expect me to stand by and allow accusations to be leveled at her! I tolerate enough criticisms over the danger to her and her sister that is the fault of neither woman, but I REFUSE to stand by and allow anyone to even think that the forces of evil created something as wonderful as her abilities!"

He spun around, ready to leave. Not just the room, but the house itself. It was bad enough they were trying to force the issue of Izzy's conversion on her, and now they dare question the identity of her blood?!

"Marach."

Shea's soothing tone reached out to him, and it was only that that prevented him from completely leaving. He turned back around to see her walking towards him, though Jacques was fast at her back.

"I don't care how she can heal as she does, or why it purifies vampire blood," she said. "All I care about is that it does. We…we cannot save vampires with this blood, because they are soulless. But can you imagine the help I can give people who've been forced to drink vampire blood? I-I mean…what if Destiny had been given this blood to drink? Perhaps it would've alleviated her pain by such a long shot, and maybe it would've made her purification much easier."

"…What do you want me to say?" he asked grimly.

"Destiny wasn't alone. Many, many people are being victimized by vampires. But if I…if we, were to create some sort of medicine out of this blood, then maybe…it would be impossible for vampires to hold such an influence over people again."

"So you're saying you want another sample."

"I am saying you cannot convert Izzy yet."

Marach raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Shea continued. "Her blood seems to hold those regenerative antigens, even with the Carpathian influence, but the Carpathian blood still weakens the capabilities. It's quite confusing as to why her blood is stronger than vampire blood, but not stronger than Carpathian blood, but I honestly don't care. I care about her blood as it is now, and the good it can do."

"It's not up to me to decide. You'll need to discuss this with Isabel. If she wants to help you, then I'll stand by her. But if she chooses conversion, don't think I'll hesitate."

"I understand," Shea said sagely. Her face twisted up a little. "Another thing…I would like to speak to Serenity."

"Her blood isn't completely pure of the Carpathian influence either. I established a blood connection with her, and gave her enough blood for a first blood exchange."

"But that was quite some time ago, wasn't it? The influence of your blood over hers must've faded by now. If I…Izzy's blood is so powerful as it is, but Serenity's abilities must be even greater."

"We cannot do it without Serenity's full permission," Gregori said. "And we will never get it so long as Parn is still alive."

"…Then it is settled," Mikhail said. "In addition to stopping Neve, we must target and kill Parn as quickly as possible. Serenity's spirit will be scarred for a long time, but if we can get her life back to normal—"

"We can," Gregori said firmly. "I swear to you I'll get her life back on track."

It lifted Marach's spirits that Gregori held onto his convictions to save Serenity, despite the trouble she was causing them.

"When she gets her life back on track," Mikhail said. "We'll talk to her about making a formal test."

"Why not just take it from her in secret as you did Isabel?" Marach asked sarcastically.

Jacques gave him a hard look, but Shea said nothing to the comment. "Let's just see what we can do about this purified blood for the moment."

___

When they were children, Izzy liked to braid Serenity's hair. She liked to listen to her sister tell all sort of stories about what was going on in her life. It was so simple, and Izzy would experience similar things when she got to that age.

Serenity lay still in the bed, and it felt like nothing had changed from before. But Izzy braided several strands of her hair in nice, neat little braids. It was hardly a gesture of apology, but she hoped it would give Serenity a feeling of home when she woke up.

If she was allowed to wake up.

"Serenity…" Izzy blinked away tears and continued to braid. Both of their faces had healed, but she still felt the sting. They'd been reduced to fighting amongst themselves. Parn would get a kick out of this, and Neve surely would too. Serenity was now so vulnerable and impressionable…

Izzy tried to put herself in Serenity's shoes. What if it'd been Marach that had turned into a vampire? What if she was the one living through this? That sick feeling began to consume her at the thought of wishing death upon Marach. How must Serenity feel with Parn?

But they don't know each other. All they know is that they are lifemates.

"He knows you're my sister! He wouldn't just attack MY sister! You must have done something to make him angry!"

Serenity must have told him too much for comfort about herself. But the way she spoke of Parn, he must've opened up to her as well. As much as he could.

It was all too confusing. Everything was.

Izzy stopped braiding her hair and slid her hands into her lap. Marach told her not to worry about conversion, but how couldn't she? This thing…this lifemate connection she had with him…it was so deep. She knew where he was, she could feel him. But when he wasn't in the room she felt so lonely…

She gasped aloud and raised a hand to her head. Marach cut off from her. But why? Was something wrong? She felt the absence immediately and tears welled up in her eyes. This truly was too much for her to handle. What kind of a doctor could she be if she couldn't handle this? What kind of a sister or person was she if she couldn't handle this?!

"Hi."

Izzy jerked up, quickly wiping at her eyes. "H-Hi, Sara."

Sara smiled sadly at her as she came further into the room. "Am I disturbing you?"

"No, not at all." Izzy tried to force a smile. "How are you?"

"I'm fine. I'm so sorry I haven't been by to see you for a few days. I went back home to check up on my children." She laughed softly to herself. "It turned out to be a good thing, though. They put together something for Serenity and you."

"R-Really?" Izzy noticed that Sara held a piece of poster board in her hands. "Is that it?"

"Yes, it is." Sara handed it over. Izzy's heart melted as she looked at the colorful collage those seven delightful children made. Big bold letter of 'GET WELL, SERENITY!' dominated the page, with a sub-heading of 'Hi, Izzy'. Drawing, paper cutouts, glitter, and everything of that nature covered the board, signed by each of the children.

"This is so wonderful," Izzy said, wiping away tears of gratitude. She looked at Serenity. "Oh, Serenity will love this when she wakes up!"

"I'm glad to hear that." Sara's smile dipped slightly as she took a seat on the edge of the bed. "How are you feeling, Izzy?"

"I…" Izzy faltered, but she felt deep down that she needed somebody to talk to. Marach always gave her reassurances, but…she needed someone to speak levelly with. "I'm confused, Sara. Gregori…he's pushing the issue of my being converted. Marach says he accepts me as a human, but I know he's suffering as he is. As I am right now, I'm both in danger and a threat to everyone. I…I don't know how to feel about Marach," she admitted quietly. "He…I barely know him and yet I feel closer to him than I've ever felt closer to anyone in my life."

"That's the power of lifemates," Sara said. "Their souls are connected and meant to be together."

"I-It's just that…I like my life. It's a difficult one, but life isn't meant to be easy. I can't just give it up to start something new. Something I have no experience with. I-It's…I'll lose so much if I choose to be a Carpathian. Yet, I know that my life isn't complete without Marach.

"What am I suppose to do? Can I just stay human, keep my life as it is? Oh…" Izzy buried her face into her hand. "I'm such a liar, Sara. It's not that I don't know what to feel for Marach. I care, I care so much! But I'm scared! I'm being selfish by doing this, and I'm hurting so many people! But I'm scared…" She dropped her hand away from her face. "I want to go home…"

Sara was silent for a long moment before she spoke. "There's very little I can say to help you. I've had nothing and no one but Falcon for a good portion of my life. It was easy for me to say 'yes, I will be Carpathian' because I had nothing to lose and everything to gain. Both will happen with you, Izzy, no matter what you choose.

"I think…to really answer this indecisiveness, you must look deep into yourself. What do you cherish most? The life you have as it is now, or what you have with Marach? To be honest, in terms of familial ties you won't lose them. You can still see your parents and have contact with them. You can be with your sister, and you can be in contact with your friends. You will be handicapped by many things, yes. No sunlight and no human food. But, these ties won't fade."

"M-My father is sanguivoriphobic. Afraid of vampires," she explained when Sara gave her a blank stare. "He wouldn't accept me as a Carpathian."

"Don't be so sure about that," Sara said. "I'm certain your father loves you. If you stand firm in your convictions, he will surely support you. But before you can convince him of that, you must be sure yourself of what you want."

"You have nothing to worry about, dragă."

Both women jumped and looked up at Marach, who stood at the bedside. All at once the link opened up between them, and the worst of Izzy's grief and uncertainty was washed away. Still, her stomach churned at this. He could wipe away everything wrong with her with a simple motion. She couldn't possibly live without this.

"I'll take my leave now," Sara said. She squeezed Izzy's hand. "Please take care of yourself. And don't worry so much. Everything will work out for everyone."

Both Marach and Izzy remained silent until Sara left. Marach took the seat Sara had occupied and pulled Izzy into his arms. "Forgive me, Isabel, for blocking you. We had a very heated discussion."

"What's wrong?" Izzy asked. Her hands seemed to naturally burrow into his shirt, and her body turned towards his.

"Nothing too serious, on the contrary. For starters, you don't have to worry anymore about the possibility of conversion. I will not convert you."

"Really?" Izzy looked up at him. She was both relieved, and…disappointed. "What happened at Shea's lab?"

"They found something interesting about your blood." Instead of repeating the dialogue aloud, Marach replayed the scene for her inside her head. Izzy took in the images calmly. She didn't share in Marach's rage at Razvan over his comments, though she was puzzled as to why Ivory was defended so staunchly.

Still, the overall theme of the discussion didn't escape her. "I can heal vampire blood? But why did it hurt the vampires?"

"Ah! It hurts! It burns! It's burning me!"

"Poison! Your foul blood is poison!"

"I'd forgotten what your blood does to us."

"Because your cells attack the very structure of these parasitic cells and purifies them. It practically kills the cells and revives them anew. That's probably why vampires feel pain by your blood."

"Hmm…" Izzy looked at Serenity over her shoulder. "So Shea wants to run more tests on my blood? And because Carpathian blood dilutes mine…"

"It looks like your wish is granted. Shea sounded like she wanted to make a serum of sorts out of your blood—"

"What?!" Izzy pulled out of his arms. "Just when are any of these people going to ask me for my body parts?!"

"She does want to ask you, iubita mea. What your blood has done to the vampire blood tested is…" he looked absolutely amazed by it all, but he remained calm. "She won't do it without your permission though, or Serenity's."

Izzy shook her head. "They can't experiment on Serenity! She's too fragile right now!"

"Which is why they plan on waiting until she's fully recovered before asking her, as you saw in my memory."

A tiny sound escaped Izzy's throat. She looked at Serenity again, and looked at Marach. "She said…it could help people infected by vampires."

"It very well might," Marach said. "Helping people is why you want to become a doctor, isn't it?"

"Of course." Izzy swallowed thickly and continued to look at him. All this time she was agonizing over whether or not she should choose to become a Carpathian. But now she didn't have to? All because of her blood?

"Marach, I want you to be honest with me."

"I'm happy with you whether you're human or Carpa—" Marach said.

"Just stop it! Be honest with me! Look deep inside yourself and tell me whether or not you want me to convert!"

Marach's face twisted up slightly, but he did give it some thought. When he answered, it was with visible reluctance. "I…would certainly like it if you chose conversion. However," he quickly added. "I will accept you if you choose your human life."

And he meant it; he couldn't lie to her. Izzy couldn't help the gratitude that filled her heart. She slid over and hugged him tightly. "Marach…thank you. And I…if my blood can help people, I'll give Shea my cooperation."

"Draga—"

"And I…when they don't need my help anymore, I'm certain I'll have a better answer for you about my fate than I do now. I'll think about it hard, Marach. I swear I will."

Marach felt tears well up in his own eyes as he returned her embrace. "Iata de ce te iubesc."

She didn't understand the Romanian words, but she felt the affection behind them. And it made all the difference.

___

"Damn it all!"

Eis looked up calmly. Neve was hunched over the counter, her shoulders shaking with fury. "No luck?"

"Of course not!" Neve smashed her fist over the glass petri dish, spilling its contents onto the countertop. Contents that happened to be blood. "The cells are still dying!"

"Calm down." Eis walked over to her and took her now bruised hand into his. "This is Xavier's blood, but there's no telling what sort of traps he laid upon it. He will not show mercy, not even to you."

Neve took several deep breaths, controlling her heart rate to a steady rhythm. Once she was calm, she straightened and brushed herself off. "How many samples are left?"

"Just two," Eis said, looking at the remaining test tubes filled with Xavier's blood. "You were right about Isabel Crane's blood, though. It continues to thrive, even while separated from the body."

"The cells aren't reacting right." Neve sighed and put her hand on her hips. "We know what her blood does to vampire blood. The same should be of this, right? Then why isn't it happening?!"

"Maybe…" Eis floundered for a moment. "She's found her lifemate, and he's surely taken her blood. Perhaps Xavier's cells are going suicidal once it senses the Carpathian influence in the blood?"

"Then her blood is useless." Neve scoffed in furious disgust. "Why cannot she be useful at all?!"

Both of them suddenly jerked as "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies" suddenly filled their office. Neve jammed a hand into her pocket and turned the ringer off. "Does she have to call me all the goddamned time?!"

"You don't mean that," Eis said coldly, his tone clearly reprimanding.

Neve sighed shortly. It was the rare occurrence he would admonish her. "You're right, I don't mean that. I'm only venting my frustrations. I will call her back later."

"She will be angry," he mused, moving towards a leather couch on the far side of the room. "When I last spoke to her, she hung up on me."

"She's always angry. But never mind about that." Neve cleaned up the blood on the counter. "If Xavier's blood is reacting to the Carpathian influence, then Isabel is useless to us."

"There's still Serenity," Eis said. "Parn might have it for her."

"Of course he does. She's his "lifemate"." She said the word with a total mocking tone. But, a smile played upon her lips and she turned to face Eis. "I guess it's time that little parasite gets his little bird. Maybe he can get rid of Isabel while he's at it."