Chapter 19

"And then there was the time Samuel decided if he bought at least seven different sports cars, it would help to keep up his appearance as a playboy."

Carissa smiled as she sat on a overstuffed couch in the lavish penthouse owned by the twins. Lucy was warm, friendly, and had already fussed over her like a mother. "So what did Samuel do? Drive a different one each night?"

"No," she laughed. "He has very little patience with driving, I'm afraid. Flying in the form of a hawk with no traffic was much easier." She reached over and picked up the ornate silver tea pot that sat on a nearby table. "More?"

"Yes, please." The tea was delicious and Carissa was pleasantly surprised she could hold it down despite her stomach being sick. In fact, ever since the twins brought her here, Carissa found herself feeling much better. Lucy seemed so easy-going and confident.

As she sipped her tea, Lucy chattered on about Pierce and Samuel's various escapades and nuances. She seemed to know all about them after they'd saved her from a vampire. Yet even though she laughed about their opposite personalities, it was obvious she felt a great deal of gratitude toward them.

The twins had been reluctant to leave Carissa, but Lucy took complete control and waved them off. Despite their grumbling, they obviously respected her and obediently transformed into owls before flying off into the night.

"So," said Lucy, her eyes suddenly getting serious, "what do you think of them?"

"Well…I don't really know them yet."

Lucy gave her a small smile. "They're not here, you know. It's just us."

She hesitated and then blurted out her true feelings. "I'm scared." She expected Lucy to gasp or even at least widen her eyes.

But her new friend only nodded. "They have a lot of power. It can feel intimidating to be around them sometimes. Not that they would ever hurt anyone on purpose. Well, unless they committed some crime, of course. Since I've known them, they haven't really had any true feelings. And yet I knew how strong they are with their commitment to do the right thing, especially in providing for their people." She took a sip of her own tea. "And now as their emotion has returned, I can imagine the intensity of their feelings for you. I'm sure it's very overwhelming."

"It was a little easier when I thought it was just one of them," Carissa admitted as she remembered the thrill of first going out with Pierce. Well actually, it was Samuel.

"Oh, I can imagine. To learn you belong to one of them and how you will eventually become Carpathian? That would be quite enough for me." Lucy tilted her head. "But what is it that frightens you the most?"

Carissa shifted on the couch, fiddling with her tea cup. "I guess it's the unknown. They tried to hide information from me, so trust is a little hard."

"And do you think they did it to hurt you?"

"No, of course not. They were trying to protect me."

Lucy almost gave an indignant snort. "Their intelligence amazes me. And yet they have none when it comes to women!"

"But they could probably have any woman they want."

"Being wealthy and good looking, that's definitely true. Yet they've never been interested emotionally with any woman until now. And you, my dear, are far too different than anyone they've ever encountered."

Carissa drew a deep breath. "How can I be that different?"

"As their lifemate, everything you say and feel impacts them. They react by their emotion and don't even realize it. For ages, they've only thought about themselves and their purpose. Their prince knew how savvy they were in the business world. Yet that talent has dictated what they should do with their lives. I've always sensed their restlessness. They own and manage so many companies. I think for the longest time they've been trying to fill a void." She laughed. "Now they found you and they are completely clueless about what to do. They need to get it through their heads that a true relationship requires decisions to include your feelings, not just their own."

"And there are two of them." She blushed. "It's hard to believe this will even work. How can they not be jealous of one another? And what happens if I'm angry at one but not the other?"

Lucy reached out and patted her hand. "All the more reason I have the greatest sympathy for you. Training one man is hard enough. But I also envy you. A lifemate is nothing like a human marriage. They will love you unconditionally. You must trust in that fact."

"It's a little hard to accept," Carissa admitted. "I mean, on one hand, it's wonderful to think that no matter how angry I get, or if I make mistakes, they will still be there for me."

"It's true."

"And if I get old and fat?"

Lucy laughed again. "Once you are Carpathian that will never happen. The twins could be models in the fashion world!"

"But maybe they'll get sick of me, no matter how young I look after a few hundred years!"

"I don't think so," she replied with a twinkle in her eyes. "If anything, I fear they will be even more in love with you than now."

Carissa shook her head. "That's just it. What if I can't please them? That's the other thing that frightens me about them. What if I can't live up to their expectations? I find a part of me that's willing to do anything for them. I'm scared of losing myself."

"You will never lose yourself. In fact, from what I understand, you've never had a real family."

"No, and I lost Kylie."

Lucy's eyes softened. "Have you ever thought for a moment that it's not about losing yourself, but maybe discovering who you really are in the Carpathian world?"

Carissa took in the notion. Lucy had a point. She never really knew where she belonged. Maybe traveling to the Carpathian Mountains to meet others would help her. Deep down, the thought that she might be able to find more family and friends gave her a feeling of hope. Then she realized what Lucy said earlier about the twins never having any emotional interest in a woman. Carissa drew a deep breath. "So Samuel went out with other women."

Lucy put her tea cup down. "Yes, but I don't know if he recently even had interest in anything from a physical standpoint."

"But surely he's been with women…in their bed."

"I'm sure both of them have had women in their past. But you shouldn't worry about comparing yourself to them. Remember, a lifemate changes everything."

"How many women?"

Lucy blinked. "I'm afraid I don't know. They've lived for hundreds of years…"

"Which means there could have been twenty? Thirty?" Carissa was having strong feelings of sudden jealousy and worry. She had no experience. How could she please one of them, let alone two?

"Their past is behind them. Besides, everyone has physical experiences in their lifetime before they find real love. With how pretty you are, I can imagine you had caught the attention of a number of men."

As a foster child, she drew unwanted advances from older men and she loathed their touch. She'd always run from them or hide. Even when she was starving and they'd offered her money or food. Carissa looked away.

Lucy's voice grew quiet. "You haven't had any…experience?"

She swallowed hard. "No."

"And do the twins know?"

"No. I mean, I think they know I've had a rough life growing up in foster homes. But I've never even had a boyfriend. Who at my age is still a virgin?" Carissa gave a bitter laugh while quickly wiping away a tear.

"Carissa?"

"Yes?"

"Will you allow me to give you a hug?"

Carissa looked at her. "Why?"

"Because I think you need one."

Carissa nodded and burst into tears. Lucy reach out and held her, stroking her hair while she had a good cry.

"You know," said Lucy in a calm voice, "they would never hurt you. They love you. You have to find a way to trust them in your heart. Your soul calls out to them. It's not just you who belongs to them. They belong to you."

Carissa wiped her eyes again. Lucy was right. As scared as she was, they were her soul. She not only needed them, they needed her.

Pierce pounded a fist on a desk at the LogTech offices. He was frustrated as hell. The systems had been corrupted. Despite all their efforts, a lot of valuable data was lost. The senior staff at LogTech had indeed suddenly bought two companies that had almost gone under themselves. Those companies still had viruses in their systems that destroyed what was left at LogTech.

Samuel strode into the room. "So I visited a few of their homes. Our CFO's memory was wiped clean."

"A vampire?"

Samuel shook his head. "No, that's the problem. First, what vampire would have patience to let the man even live? Second, I would have felt something, like an evil, left behind. There was nothing."

"So he has no memory of the last few days."

"Worse. He's incoherent. Whoever did it, caused permanent memory loss including damage to some of the higher brain functions. There was nothing I could do, even when I tried to heal him. I'm no miracle worker when it comes to the mind. He's not in any danger of dying, but it will be a long recovery just for him to live normal. I made sure his maid will find him at dawn. Doctors will say it was a stroke."

Pierce cursed. "And the others?"

"Not as severe, but memory loss."

"It had to be Morrison."

Samuel frowned. "There's no way they'd have the power to do such a thing. Only a Carpathian or vampire."

"Or a wizard."

"We have to get this information to the Prince," insisted Samuel. "We need to leave tomorrow with Carissa. Our assets are safe, but it's clear we are still being targeted."

"We'll make arrangements to dissolve the company. I'll make sure the remaining employees find other jobs.

The twins suddenly grew still. They immediately sensed another presence. Samuel hissed. "Tyrell. Come out where we can see you. Or are you afraid to face us?"

Fine mist gathered in the room, until it finally took shape and formed a man. Tyrell now showed no sign that he was any vampire from a physical appearance. He had smooth, long black hair with piercing dark brown eyes. He was extremely tall, even for a Carpathian. When he smiled at the twins, Tyrell made a point of showing his fangs. "Ah, the twin lovers."

Samuel edged toward the right, making sure he and his twin could easily attack from both sides if needed. "Re-visiting the scene of your destruction?"

"My destruction? While I may not love humans, I have no patience for any that are only used as puppets to Morrison."

"What do you know?" demanded Pierce. "Is a wizard or some other vampire helping to control them?"

Tyrell laughed. "As I've been a vampire myself, I'm not sure the word 'help' would come to mind. Vampires rarely form alliances with those who only want to kill them."

"Morrison did control you. They could have found a way to use more vampires."

"They were anxious to find more," agreed Tyrell, "but they barely controlled me. I had the impression I was their first true vampire."

Pierce frowned. "There are Morrison Center organizations hidden everywhere. Some may have already had more success than others in capturing and controlling vampires."

"Or Carpathians," said Tyrell. "Let us not forget that our precious Prince allowed the most ancient Carpathian to join with his lifemate after being controlled with such minerals."

"You will speak with respect when it comes to our prince," growled Samuel.

Pierce collected what was left of his patience. "Your point is that Morrison may have more of these minerals with the ability to control our species. They do not know the difference between Carpathian or vampire."

"So Carissa was correct. You do have some intelligence."

"I don't have to listen to this," snapped Samuel as his hands curled into fists. "You've already admitted you don't know what you are. You could be lying. For all I know, you wiped out our CFO's mind!"

"And what of you?" challenged Tyrell. "What illness do you have, given that both share the same lifemate? Or deep down are you the one turning vampire?" Tyrell knew this probably wasn't true, but he couldn't help himself.

Pierce caught his twin's arm just as Samuel was ready to attack. "Enough of this! What made you come here?"

"I managed to find evidence from the human Todd that was with Carissa about Morrison. He had far too much knowledge about LogTech. I knew he was working for Morrison and therefore had more connections to this company. How he penetrated your CFO, I do not know. He had no power to do such a thing. But he did have the intelligence to create a number of viruses."

"If there was any further evidence of LogTech senior staff having more knowledge, it's gone."

"Indeed," replied Tyrell in a low voice, "Morrison has most likely ensured no evidence could be left of whoever controlled them. But I must insist on looking for more evidence with the rest of your human employees. I want a list of their names."

Samuel grimaced. "And how do we know you won't damage their minds? We know you could care less about them!"

"True. But I'm sure Carissa would not be happy with me if I killed innocent souls."

"Carissa," repeated Pierce as he narrowed his eyes. "You seem to have quite the fondness for our lifemate. Are you admitting that she, in a way, saved you from continuing on as a vampire? Or is it really that you want her?"

Tyrell stiffened. "Neither of you are worthy of her. And yet I know she is not meant for me. But she has given me hope." He looked back and forth between them. "She is a precious gift. She told me that you will take her to the Carpathian Mountains, to our prince. What will become of you then? Of her? You know even if the SongMaker confirms that you are both her lifemate, you will never be accepted."

"We do not care," said Samuel.

"Our honor demands that we do what is right and not keep our bond hidden. If they do not accept us, so be it."

"And what of Carissa?" asked Tyrell. "Are you prepared for her feelings of what that might mean? She converts to Carpathian and then none of us accept her?"

"It is none of your business!" snapped Samuel.

Tyrell gave a mocking smile. He truly cared about Carissa and yet he wasn't going to completely let it show. The darkness was still calling to him. "And have both of you thought through how to complete the ritual? Who will be the first to become one with her? Tell me Samuel, will it be you? Or maybe I should reconsider and break the tie for both of you. Maybe I should be the one to at least show her what a true joining could be like with only one Carpathian."

Samuel lost it at that point and Pierce couldn't hold him back. He attacked Tyrell and shoved him against a nearby wall. "All I have to do is pull out your black heart," he snarled as his fingers tightened around Tyrell's throat.

"By all means," the former vampire replied. "Kill me and go to the Carpathian Mountains. In the meantime, Morrison will strengthen again. Maybe next time, they will find a way to target the Prince himself."

For a moment, the twins were silent. Then Pierce finally spoke. "Let him go."

Samuel was still shaking with anger, but he released Tyrell. But then Samuel couldn't help himself and slashed the former vampire's face.

Tyrell growled as a thin line of blood formed from his left eye down to his chin. It quickly healed and he watched with narrowed eyes as Pierce hauled his brother back.

"We are leaving," said Pierce firmly.

"And the list?"

"I'll think about it." With that, both twins simultaneously transformed into mist and faded away.

Author's note: I'm sorry everyone. As you know work has been still hectic with travel and I had a family emergency at the hospital. Everything is okay, but unfortunately my planned relaxing writing weekend, didn't go as planned. At least i got one more chapter out! - Anne