Clarissa's heart ached at the thought they'd be in danger. "We've got to find a way back to town and warn them not to come looking for us."

Erin started for the crack in the crypt. Wedging through the crack one by one, they shoved through the stiff trailing fronds of a plant that grew out of the side of the rock.

"We aren't going to survive this cold much longer." Erin rubbed her arms as they surveyed the dark landscape.

When Clarissa looked at the big crypt from the outside she could barely see it for the tangle of bushes surrounding the entrance. More than that, the crypt didn't stand alone like the one in the graveyard did. Carved straight from an enormous ridge of rock, the crypt melded with the hillside in perfect harmony. A person could walk right by this spot and never see the burial chamber at all.

"Where are we?" Clarissa asked.

Erin shook her head. "I don't know."

Their dire circumstances overwhelmed Clarissa in one horrible thought. "We're in the middle of who knows where in the freezing cold without coats. If we stay here we'll die of hypothermia. If we leave, we may die of hypothermia."

Erin's eyes flamed with a golden light, a dance of red and sun yellow that would frighten most people with one glance. "I think I'd rather die trying to find a way out of here, don't you?"

Understanding the truth when she heard it, Clarissa said, "If we keep moving, we just might stay warm enough to make it out of this alive."

A popping noise near the entrance to the tomb made them both jump. Before they could move or speak Jim appeared near the crypt entry.

Clarissa and Erin both stepped back. Clarissa's heart pumped like crazy.

Jim smiled and his pointed canines showed. He, too, stood in the cold with nothing but a sweater and jeans. She knew he didn't feel the chill of winter. If it weren't for his pointed teeth and an eerie look in his eyes, she'd never guess he'd been turned into a vampire.

"Clarissa, I see you're planning on escaping. I don't think so," he said.

Her mind raced for something to say, but her brain felt like cottage cheese. Struggling with fatigue, she leaned back against the crypt. "Why did you do this, Jim?"

"I didn't decide to do this. It was done to me." His words sounded angry, almost petulant, his smile turning into a frown.

"No, why did you hurt us and take us to this place?" Erin asked.

He continued to frown, his eyes shining with an ethereal glow like a full moon. He took a deep breath. "The old one commands it."

"Did you bite me?" Clarissa asked suddenly.

"I didn't want Sorley to do it because you're mine."

Erin asked, "What about me?"

Jim's eyes took on a confused appearance, as if he couldn't quite remember what happened. "The old one said I needed blood to survive. And I...I..."

He stopped, his voice cracking a little.

Clarissa wondered if he could see around the haze of becoming a vampire to understand what he'd done. "Yes?"

"I couldn't let the old one or Sorley take your blood." His hands went out.

"They're...they would have killed you both."

Withering emotional pain made Clarissa's eyes well up with tears. "So you took our blood to save us from them."

"Of course." Jim staggered a little and leaned back against the rocks near the crypt opening. "I'm sorry I hit you. I had to make it look good. The ancient one attacked me after the last time I saw you, Clarissa. He's had me sequestered in those damned tunnels all this time. When I woke up and he explained what he'd done and what he plans to do, I couldn't let him take complete control of me. He's still inside me. I can feel him."

Jim reeled around and slammed his fist against the rock. A loud cracking noise hurt Clarissa's ears and a nine-inch gash opened in the stone.

Her heart broke for Jim, his life transformed into a new form he could never change back.

Unsure what he planned to do next, Clarissa made a decision she hoped she wouldn't regret tomorrow. "Where are Sorley and the ancient one?"

"The ancient one took Sorley with him to the community center."

Clarissa took a chance. "Help us. They're planning on the complete destruction of Pine Forest."

He shook his head. "It's already started."

Erin walked closer to him. "The people in the community center are in danger. We've got to do something to stop it."

"Those dreams I told you about in high school? Do you remember what I said about them?" Clarissa asked Jim.

He bowed his head. "You told me and I didn't believe you."

"Now's the time to believe me." Clarissa looked straight into his wary, sad gaze. "Help us, Jim."

Defeat etched his features. "How?"

"Ronan and the others are probably out looking for us. Find them and tell them what's happened to us." She turned her gaze to Erin. "We have to go to the community center."

Lines formed between Erin's eyebrows as she frowned. "How can we stop the ancient one if we go there?"

"I don't know." Clarissa shook her head. "But we must try."

Erin's acquiescence came in the form of a sigh, and Clarissa could see that despite her friend's qualms, she knew they had to stop the ancient one or die trying. "All right, let's go."

Unable to feel genuine fear of Jim anymore, Clarissa reached out and squeezed his arm.

"You probably saved my life and Erin's. Now help us save Pine Forest. Find Ronan and Lachlan and tell them we're going to the community center to stop the ancient one."

Looking broken, he nodded. "I'm sorry, Clarissa. You know I never meant this to happen."

Her heart aching, she turned to look back at him. "No, I'm the one who's sorry. Despite our past, I never would have wished this on you."

He gave them directions and which way they should head to find the community center.

Erin touched Clarissa's shoulder. "Come on. We haven't got much time."

As Ronan searched the tunnels under the crypt in the graveyard, he tried making contact with Clarissa. There was no sign of her and he couldn't connect with her on a mental level. That worried him more than anything else. Would he know...could he stand the pain if she was dead?

"No," he said as he kept moving. He refused to believe it. "She's alive."

He inhaled and pushed back staggering pain, knowing it came from loving her and wanting her safe. It also came from the responsibility he felt for her welfare. If anything happened to her, the accountability fell on his shoulders.

Ronan.Lachlan's voice came into his head like a stab, a sharp call.Any sign of them?