"Okay, so I didn't tell you," Valdemar said as he stood before her.

"You should have." It was not a small detail that he should have left out. It was life- changing stuff and to forget to mention it was dramatic.

"Would it have made a difference?"

"Well...yes...no...I don't know, but the thing is you should have told me, prince."

Valdemar raked his hand through his hair. "You are the most frustrating woman, Aureliann."

She rolled her eyes at his words. "You're no walk in the park either. Besides, if you love me as you say you do, then you'll put up with me." Aureliann was aware how totally selfish that came across but his news had caught her off-guard.

"As will you."

They stared at each other. Both wrong, both right and both in love and apt to say or not say something they should.

"I'm sorry, lovely."

The look in his eyes made her melt. Valdemar was so d.a.m.n s.e.xy and sweet. Aureliann found it impossible to remain angry with him. "Well..."

"I was scared you would not come."

Before they left Brisbane she had suggested inviting the vampires they had met along to aid them in the upcoming struggle with Victor.

"No need for that. We have a strong power base in Serawych," Valdemar had said.

"But Marlow and Asher seem pretty switched on and-"

Valdemar interrupted Aureliann. "They may not be able to go back, lovely."

She had stood gobsmacked as he explained in some cases people from other worlds had been trapped in Serawych. Apparently, as dimensions went, it was sometimes reluctant to let travelers pa.s.sing through leave. Aureliann may not have come with him if she had known there was the chance she would not get back home.

She looked at Valdemar. Despite his momentary lapse, the man was strong, smart and loving. So where was home now? In Brisbane or with him?

"What?" He reached for her hand and linked it with his own.

"I don't know." I thought I used to know stuff but more and more I am out of my depth.

Valdemar pulled her to him. "It will work out."

Aureliann knew she should have been more upset at him but she was helpless to do anything but mold herself to the heat from his hard body.

"It had better." She stopped when she realized how that sounded. Aureliann did not want to come across as a harpy but she was scared of not being in control. She seemed to be losing it a lot with Valdemar around.

"I'm sorry, Val." Aureliann reached up and stroked his face.

He caught her hand and kissed it. "Lovely, you never have to be sorry. d.a.m.n..."

"What? Did I stand on your toe or something?"

"When you call me Val and look at me that way..."

Aureliann knew what he meant. There was a fierce hunger for him that she doubted would ever be quenched. "You have to go do prince stuff, remember? The whole 'save your people and the kingdom'." A week ago that statement would have made her snort in amus.e.m.e.nt. It was so soap opera. And yet I seem to have walked into one.

"Yes, I do." Valdemar's mouth descended onto hers and kissed her with the hot, needy pa.s.sion of a man in love.

They walked out to the forecourt of the castle. Aureliann had not seen much of her surroundings but what she had seen was mind-boggling. The building they were in was a huge gothic castle set on the rise of a hill.

The city below seemed to spread out for miles. She had to admit she was eager to further scope out new surroundings.

"Wow." She watched in amazement as what seemed like a battalion of elves stood ready, waiting to serve the heir to throne.

"They are very loyal men." The original three elves who Aureliann had taken to calling Bob, Bill and Binky appeared. "They will look after you."

Aureliann liked these men and enjoyed battling wits with them. "What do you do?" She arched her eyebrows and looked at them with mock interest. "Bite people's ankles if they attack? Maybe gnaw on an enemy's toe?"

"You're a b.i.t.c.h," one of them retorted with a reluctant smile.

"But we kind of like you," another one added.

"Ah, you're just saying that to get on my good side." It was nice to have someone other than Valdemar in this strange land. While she loved him, she knew he had his duties to perform. She expected no less of him.

But having someone else to talk to, albeit a challenge, was a bonus.

"Maybe we are, maybe we aren't."

Aureliann put her hands on her hips and looked down at them. "Listen, don't try to do inscrutable with me." They stamped their feet. She stamped hers back. "You're not going to rattle me, lads. I'm a bigger pain in the b.u.t.t than all three of you combined."

Valdemar shook his head in amused confusion. "Are you all going to play nice?" "The gnomes-I mean elves-and I are just having some fun." Aureliann stuck out her tongue at them.

"Yeah, she'll be fine with us, your highness." All the elves nodded. "We'll show her where she can swim in the tar pits and maybe let her play in the snake house-"

"Oh boy," Valdemar murmured in concern. "Maybe I had better stay."

Aureliann put her hand on his arm. "Bill, Bob, Binky and I will be fine, Val." She leaned in and kissed him, savoring the taste of pure male on her lips.

"Oooh Val," the elves all cooed in girly-sounding voices as they made smooching noises and hugged themselves. Aureliann pushed him away. As she watched him go, she wanted him back already. Yeah, I'm in love. She turned to the trio. And I have smart-a.s.s elves. What more could a girl want?

Valdemar did walk away but stopped and turned back to stand behind a pillar. While he trusted the elves, if anything happened to Aureliann it would kill him. He smiled as he heard Aureliann's voice.

"So, do you lads have girlfriends?"

Valdemar smiled. Few people understood elves straight away but she did. Elves liked to test people.

They came across as nasty and a pain in the a.s.s to some. But others, like Aureliann, understood right from the start that it was all an act on their part. Once an elf gave you loyalty, it was forever. Valdemar admired her more than he could put into words. He had given her the shock of her life and yet here she was ready to stand beside him and face whatever would come.

"We have hundreds of women."

"Of course," Aureliann responded cynically.

"Elves are highly prize for their s.e.xual prowess."

"Wanna know why?"

"Gee, no thanks."

Valdemar could almost see the look of amus.e.m.e.nt on his beloved's face. He suspected Aureliann was unaware of how expressive her features were and how they often gave away what she was feeling. That was how he knew she loved him.

"So you read the book and fell in love with the big guy."

Valdemar was about to move off but stopped when he heard the elf's words. He needed to hear her response. In fact he longed to hear the words from her lips. That Aureliann loved him he did not doubt.

Women like Aureliann did not throw themselves at any man. They had too much pride and cla.s.s to be with just anyone. Women like Aureliann wanted more than a meaningless fling.

"Why do you want to know?" Aureliann asked.

"Because he's our prince and if you mess with him you mess with us."

"Well that just scares the c.r.a.p out of me-not."

Valdemar held back his laughter.

"You talk tough," an elf pointed out.

"So do you," she responded.

"Well?"

There was a moment's silence before Aureliann spoke. "I love your prince."

Valdemar felt like he had been given the greatest gift in the world. He wanted to rush back and hold her to him and never let go.

"You're a big softy." The elf's voice, although harsh, sounded pleased.

"So you'll be our queen."

"Yeah and you'll have to obey my every command." Now Aureliann sounded pleased.

The elves all laughed. "Yeah right. Sure."

"Let's go see these tar pits," Aureliann interrupted their mirth. "I'll jump in after you do."

"But you're our guest, you must go first..."

As they walked off Valdemar shook his head. "I love my life."

Chapter Ten.

Victor looked at the thirty or so mercenary vampires he had collected from Brisbane and sneered. They were an indolent lot but then what could one expect when you sought out the sc.u.m of the earth? He had virtually no followers of his own in Serawych that he had not paid dearly for. It angered him that his cousin was the popular one. How could the people mistake his kind, calm words as strength? He was exactly like the old king and he had never capitalized on the great wealth that could be used for the benefit of their family.

Instead they lived in an old gothic monstrosity of a castle that sucked the money out of the family purse because his uncle had not wanted to burden the people with the repair of the castle. One of the first things Victor planned to do once Valdemar was dead was to knock down the castle. Neither his cousin nor the castle would remain. They were symbols of the past and Victor saw his future very differently. He was going to use every single a.s.set that Serawych had for his own pleasure. That was what kingship was about, otherwise what was the point of the crown?

Since these mercenaries had arrived they had lolled around, argued with each other and made spectacles of themselves with the wh.o.r.es of Serawych. They were not like the vampires Victor knew. Vampires were lords in his town. They had cla.s.s. They had breeding. This lot had no self-control but then they did not have a kingdom to conquer. Victor did not have time for indulgences. Already Valdemar was back and ama.s.sing his army. Many were loyal to him including those vicious elves who knew how to fight and win despite their size.

"If only I had them on my side," Victor muttered to himself. Elves unquestioningly followed their leader.

They were also skilled in war and if called upon knew how to make a human suffer unbearable pain. "Out!"

he ordered as his surveyed the half-dressed women. The vampires of Brisbane narrowed their eyes at him as the women fled. If Victor had been a lesser man he would have been afraid of these men but he wasn't. There was no time for fear. He was on a timetable to take the crown. Victor had been planning this since he was old enough to know he would never inherit and Valdemar would. But for the fate of his father being the younger son, he would have been the heir. It still galled him that he both missed out on the crown and had the misfortune to look like Valdemar. It was a queer genetic trait that often happened in their family. Some thought the likeness was cute. It only reminded Victor of what he did not have and what he planned to take.

As Victor and Valdemar were the last ones standing he planned to obliterate his genetic compet.i.tion. "You know what I want from you."

"To cause chaos," one murmured lazily as if it seemed fairly obvious to him.

"Yes," Victor hissed, the anger inside him making that one word sound snakelike. He knew Valdemar would strike soon and he needed a comparable force to match that of his cousin's.

The vampire called Arrow approached him. "And we want blood. So far we have not been allowed any."

He did not look pleased as he flashed his fangs at the prince.

Victor was not worried by those pointed weapons. Vampires never sucked the blood of their own kind. It made them sick. "You will get it when the job is done." Not that Victor planned for them to stick around and indulge in an orgy of blood. He would have them staked through the heart by then.

"The thing is, prince, we cannot survive without blood." Arrow's eyes were cold on his. "As you need us more than we need you, we can quite easily get rid of you."

A threat. This was more like it. He wanted evil b.a.s.t.a.r.d vampires not Lotharios intent on getting their c.o.c.ks sucked by wh.o.r.es. Victor smiled at them. Fine. He would give them blood. He needed them strong. What he planned to do would also serve as a warning to Valdemar.

"Follow me and I will allow you to feed." The vampires stood. "But after that you must do as I bid."

Arrow nodded. "Where are we going?"

"To a little place I know." They would get no resistance there. It was a place of spiritual contentment and peace. The dwellers did not believe in aggression. They would be like lambs to the slaughter for these vampires. "I promise you much blood."

Aureliann was impressed by all that she saw on her wanderings with the elves. They had shown her much and, despite their initial pithy reluctance, had patiently answered her many questions. The book, The Vampire's Kiss, did not do justice to the land, the castle and the people of Serawych.

"The people are so friendly," Aureliann had said as she was greeted with great interest everywhere they went.

"That's 'cause you're the prince's main squeeze," the elf she had chosen to call Bob replied.