The Hunted by Heather McAlendin Page A

nature, I trusted him to protect us.
    I awoke a few hours later to find Drake pacing back and forth like a caged lion at the zoo. His brow was creased and his face muscles were tense. I didn’t need psychic abilities to know something was bothering him.
    Making sure I did not wake Marie, I rolled away from her and onto the floor. I stood up slowly and approached Drake very cautiously in case he was in one of his moods.
    Drake stopped pacing and grimaced. “I don’t understand it,” he said. “The little one was right; you were right. I can’t feel or hear Set anymore. I’ve lost my edge against him. It was the only thing that kept him from taking Yaqui from me. What is happening? The silence in my mind is disturbing.”
    I reached forward and touched his arm, he didn’t shrink back as I had expected. Instead, he drew my hand to his chest and held it fast.
    “Drake, I...” My voice trailed off as Marie interrupted us with a loud cry. I drew back and rushed to her side as she bolted upright from her sleep.
    “Horrible torture. Such an evil creature.” Marie mumbled almost incoherently. Her eyes rolled upward as if she was having a seizure.
    “Marie!” I shouted as I shook her. “Marie, wake up now. Drake. She’s not waking up.”
    Panic surged through me as I shook her harder, hoping it would jar her awake. Drake gently took her from me, placed a hand on her forehead, and closed his eyes. He drew deep even breaths and mumbled quietly. Finally, he lay her back on the bedding where she trembled and then slowly opened her eyes.
    “Thank you,” she said weakly. “I feel so cold and hungry.”
    “What did you do?” I asked Drake as I briskly rubbed Marie’s arms and back, trying to warm her. I watched as Drake moved slowly across the room and brought back a blood bag for Marie to feed on. “Well?” I asked again.
    Drake shrugged his shoulders. “It’s hard to explain and I am not even sure I can, at least not very well. When I bonded with Yaqui, it enhanced everything. Somehow, I can reach out and assist someone when they need it. I can take the pain away, so to speak. Maybe because I can physically handle it, I just don’t know. Set had control of Marie for a brief moment. She is strong mentally but I think losing Andrew has had an effect, a crack in her mental abilities that Set was able to momentarily abuse. I will keep my attention on her for any further changes that you may not be able to notice.”
    “Thank you.” It was a weak statement but all I could think of. Marie was my last connection to my lost love and it would destroy me if Set took her as well.
    “I’ll be fine now, Silver, trust me. Drake has strengthened me and the feed has helped. You need to drink too. I didn’t know Set could be... is such an evil abomination. He has many fooled many into thinking he is the only way the vampires can survive. His greed and lust for power will destroy us all. There is nothing more dangerous than a crazed Ancient vampire.”
    Drake had yet to rest so I forced him to lie down while Marie and I cleaned ourselves up as best we could with limited supplies. I managed to drain two bags of blood before I abated my thirst. My heart sank at the thought of Set forcing my beloved Clan to follow him or be tortured.
    I had to go back and face him. Somehow, I needed to contact the remaining Ancients and ask for their help.
    “Akita!” I said aloud. “Why didn’t I think of this before?”
    “Ancient Queen Akita was the one who made you her first blood? She made you Queen?” Marie asked.
    I nodded in acknowledgment. Queen Akita had gone to rest as many Ancients do once they give up their reign. She made me who and what I was. She believed in me and loved me more than any other I had ever known. I had not recently sought her out but with Marie’s help, perhaps she would hear me. We had to try.
    “Are you up for a challenge Marie?” I asked.
    The young fledgling rubbed her arms and slowly walked toward me