Chapter 24

When Pierce returned, he was taken by surprise when Carissa practically tackled him. "I was so worried!" she cried. Her head was against his chest and her arms around his neck. "Don't ever do that again!"

Pierce felt his body respond from her embrace. His head dropped down and he cradled her to him. She had a light floral scent, and his reaction was making his trousers uncomfortably tight.

"I was worried, too."

He looked up to see his twin standing across the room. Samuel had his arms folded across his chest as he leaned against one of the walls. Pierce noted his twin's eyes were dark.

"Care to tell us what happened?"

Pierce slowly stepped back from Carissa. "We are to see the Prince tomorrow evening."

Samuel narrowed his eyes. "No kidding. Now how about telling us what happened after you closed your mind to us."

"The Prince is willing to…consider that Carissa is our lifemate."

Carissa let out a sigh of relief. "Good. That's all we ask. We just need a chance to convince him."

"Exactly," said Pierce, his mind racing while he carefully guarded his thoughts. Was Mikhail right? Had Samuel been manipulating everything all along? He glanced at his twin. Samuel had not moved and was unusually quiet. "What are you thinking about?"

"Funny you should ask as I was wondering the same thing about you."

Pierce shrugged, acting indifferent. "The sun will be up soon. We should make sure everything is secure for Carissa."

Samuel was across the room in a flash and Pierce had no time to react. Carissa gasped as Samuel grabbed his twin's shoulders and slammed his back into the wall. Holding him there, Samuel spoke hard and fast. "Quit avoiding the subject! Now you either tell me what happened or Carissa is not stepping anywhere near the Prince tomorrow."

Pierce looked at his twin, growing completely still. Samuel expected an angry reaction and couldn't hide the surprise in his face when Pierce responded in a calm voice. "You know the answer."

"You've told me nothing!" Samuel was furious. He knew Pierce better than anyone and could feel his twin was hiding something. When Pierce refused to answer, Samuel's anger got the better of him and his fist made contact with his twin's jaw in a last attempt to illicit a response.

And he definitely got one.

With lightening speed, Pierce grabbed him as Carissa cried out. Samuel suddenly found himself flat on his back with Pierce on top of him. "I've told you nothing? Neither have you!" Pierce snapped. "Think about everything that has happened! Carissa's voice on the phone turning my world upside down and then you seeking her out. The wound to yourself appearing on me but then you healed yourself, yet it didn't heal me. The fact that Tyrell was helping you escape from the lab."

Samuel narrowed his eyes. "You are so blind! All you've ever wanted to do was deny our bond with Carissa. And now you've let the Prince dissuade you. God, it amazes me how intelligent you are and yet so stupid at the same time!" He immediately regretted his remark as Pierce slammed the back of his head into the floor.

Carissa screamed. "Stop! Please don't do this!"

For her sake, Pierce backed off his twin. Standing, he glared down at Samuel. "You are my brother. I want to believe you. But think about it from my view. You admitted you were about to turn. You'd lost all hope. Then suddenly you and I are both lifemates to Carissa?"

"I'm tired of trying to convince you," replied Samuel in a hard tone. He struggled to stand and rubbed the back of his head which was a painful ache. At least there was some satisfaction that his twin's jaw was bruised.

"Then explain some of the events which happened."

"How the hell can I?" Samuel approached his twin again, not caring if this conversation was still going to end in more blows. "When you first heard Carissa, what can I say? You heard the doubts I had in my own mind when I first met her."

"The whole thing could have been staged," accused Pierce.

"Oh please. Why would I as a vampire even do such a thing?"

"Mikhail and the council have seen far more than we have when it comes to our enemies. Today our enemies are more patient, waiting for the right moment. Now they even form alliances when necessary."

Samuel shook with anger. "And what's that supposed to mean? You think I'm talking regularly with Tyrell? That we are planning some type of attack on the Prince?"

"What am I supposed to think, Samuel? I have to consider everything! The Prince's brother Jacques even admitted a vampire created the same wounds he caused to project onto his lifemate. Every blow on the vampire inflicted the same wound onto her."

"And so because I can inflict wounds from my body onto yours, I must be a vampire."

"What other damn explanation is there?"

Samuel clenched his jaw. "Maybe we should find out and experiment with the process again. You're already stabbing me in the back, so what does it matter?"

Carissa walked between them. "Stop it, both of you," she begged. "Can't you see they are already turning us against ourselves?"

"No," hissed Samuel. "Only Pierce is turning against us." He looked at his twin with disgust. "And I have no explanation as to why when I healed my leg wound, it didn't heal you the same time. Yet do I need to remind you that I felt it when you were so weak from blood loss that it almost caused me to crash a plane! And when you took blood, I regained control."

Pierce shook his head. "How do I know all of that wasn't some elaborate scheme to make me eventually believe what you wanted?"

"What about when I hold Carissa?" Samuel challenged. "When I touch her, explain how you feel the same thing I do!"

Pierce swallowed hard. He had no explanation for that one. Projecting wounds was one thing, but allowing another male to also feel pleasure from the same female as he touched her? No matter how devious a vampire could be, he just didn't see something like that happening in sharing the feeling of pleasure.

Confused and exhausted, Pierce waved a hand toward the other end of the room. A bed appeared and he walked toward it. He created it for Carissa, but he was so damn tired, he sat down on it himself. He simply leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees, dropping his head into his hands.

Neither his twin or Carissa said a word. The silence was actually a relief. Pierce was tired of arguing with his twin. And God only knew what Carissa was thinking at this moment. She appeared to have her mind blocked, not letting either of them in.

Carissa had never seen a strong man seem so helpless. Her heart broke for Pierce. She couldn't imagine the stress he was under in this situation. It was obvious honor was everything to the twins. Pierce had been the one to insist on going before the Prince alone to explain their circumstances. It was reasonable to think that with so many enemies, the Prince would never believe that one female had two lifemates. Pierce was so intelligent and logical, Carissa realized just how difficult it was for him to accept what the three of them felt was real. Samuel naturally embraced his feelings as was his personality. But Pierce was still struggling with his new emotions. He was in constant conflict with the logic he'd depended on for so many years.

She walked over to the bed and sat down next to him. He was so absorbed in his thoughts, Pierce didn't even hear her until she placed her hand on his arm. Startled, he looked at her and she gave him a small smile. "I know it's true."

Pierce blinked. "What do you mean?" Did she believe the three of them were lifemates or not?

Her hand went to his. "That both you and Samuel are my lifemates."

"How do you know?"

Her voice lowered to a whisper "Because I can feel it." Her fingers entwined with his and she reached up, giving gave him a soft kiss on the corner of his mouth.

Pierce felt his body temperature go up about a thousand degrees. He actually trembled. When he looked over at his twin, Pierce could see Samuel was having the same reaction. And this time it was initiated by Carissa which made both of them to respond.

No vampire could cause that.

"Exactly," she said softly.

Pierce squeezed her hand and looked at Samuel. "We will all go before the Prince tomorrow evening and I will stand behind the fact Carissa is our lifemate," he declared.

"At least you finally came to your senses. But our bond with Carissa is not logical," said Samuel. "You know we cannot prove it to them."

"It's what we feel." He was adamant now. "We are what we are. They can either accept it or not."

Carissa bit her lip for a moment. "And what happens if they don't accept it?"

Pierce looked gravely at Samuel who answered her. "It is likely they will think I am the vampire."

"They don't know about Tyrell," interjected Pierce. "They have no reason or proof that you have been with any other vampire to create some insane plan to get to Mikhail."

Samuel shook his head. "It doesn't matter. Come on, Pierce, stop fooling yourself. The best we can hope for is the Prince to not condemn me."

"No!" cried Carissa. "I won't let that happen."

Samuel remained eerily calm. "You may not have a choice."

"If you die, so do I," said Pierce.

"But Carissa will live." He looked down at her. "We haven't said the words to bind you to us. You'll be safe."

Carissa began to shake, tears welling in her eyes. "Safe? What kind of life would I even have? I'm lost without both of you! No, I won't let them condemn you. I'll…I'll tell them I would die first!"

The twins both felt their hearts just about stop. It was unbelievable, but she was actually offering her life for them. Neither would allow it, of course. But the realization that she would defend them with her life left them completely amazed.

Carissa looked between both of them. "Don't you believe me?"

"I'm afraid to," whispered Samuel.

She looked down at her hands. "It's true. I-I can't live without either of you. I'm still scared, but deep down, I just know it's true."

Pierce was overwhelmed. He lifted her hand and kissed it. "Thank you, Carissa. No matter what happens tomorrow evening, just hearing you say those words…it is enough to convince me that we are indeed lifemates."

"Do you think it will convince the Prince?" Carissa asked with a hopeful tone. She was trying hard not to cry.

"It may buy us some time," he replied. "Perhaps they will only keep Samuel in seclusion, a tactic to ascertain the situation themselves."

"Or at least until the SongMaker returns," said Samuel.

"But how long with that be?" asked Carissa. She wiped her eyes in frustration. "I heard the Prince say it could be weeks or longer! I can't live separate from either of you for that long."

"It is better than the alternative," soothed Pierce.

She knew he was referring to the fact that Samuel could be put to death. "But even that could still happen, right?" When the twins remained silent, she knew the answer. The thought of being without them was too much for her. "Then I want you to convert me…before this night is over."

Author's note: A reminder that this story if for mature audiences; especially the next chapter.