As always, Christine Feehan owns the Carpathian universe and all her characters. I just like to play with them a little.

Dark Deliverance

Chapter 7

The small plane was buffeted by the sudden squall that had come in from the ocean. Its wings dipped several times as the pilot lowered the wheels and prepared to land. The wheels bounced several times on the pavement before settling down. The plane taxied to an open area just outside the hanger. There was no one to be seen in the area.

The door of the aircraft opened to reveal a sandy-haired man with a friendly face. He lowered a series of folding steps and reached back inside to help a young dark-haired woman descend. Behind her a man with long, dark hair stepped down, holding a small boy in his arms.

The storm increased in intensity, the rain becoming a downpour as the people ran into the hangar. There was little light inside and the shadows had a sinister feel. As the people walked toward the door to an office, three figures walked out of the darkness.

At first glance, they appeared to be tall, handsome men who bore a resemblance to the man holding the boy. The people from the plane stopped. The woman looked frightened and the child began to cry.

"You have something we want, Andre," said one who appeared to be the leader. The other two moved to surround the small group.

"I have nothing of yours, Raimondo," said the hunter, "You overstep yourself."

"We will kill you and drain the man and the boy," snarled Raimondo, "the woman will be ours."

"I do not think so," Andre responded. Then he did something totally unexpected. He threw the boy at Raimondo.

The blow to his chest knocked the vampire to his back and he looked to see a fist-sized rock imbedded in his sternum. He dugged the rock from his chest howling and cursing as he got to his feet. With a shout to his companions to attack, the battle was joined.

Raimondo leaped at the woman with the intention of using her as a shield. He was shocked when her tiny fist thrust through the wound in his chest and wrapped around his heart. The woman's body increased in height and breadth of shoulder, and her hair changed from short and black to long and blonde. The vampire shrieked as Aidan, with a grim smile, tore his heart from his body.

Andre moved like a dancer between the other two vampires. He pulled lightning into the building and through the heart of one of them. The other one shrieked and raked his claws down Andre's chest. Andre clubbed him in the throat, breaking his neck. The creature screamed as his head flopped around, but his screams were cut short by Andre's fist in his chest. With one pull, the shriveled heart was extracted.

The two hunters nodded at one another. They and the dead vampires were the only ones in the hangar. They piled the bodies outside and used more lightning from the storm to reduce them to ash, which was rapidly washed away by the rain.

"Please allow me to heal you Andre," Aidan said. At Andre's nod, he sent his spirit into Andre's body, closing the wounds from the inside out and destroying the tiny organisms left by the vampire's claws. When he was done, he offered his wrist to Andre. Andre accepted gratefully.

They searched the hangar area and found two employees unconscious in the office. They were surprisingly uninjured. The vampires obviously hoped to avoid attracting Aidan's attention when they went to capture Marnie.

"That went well," Andre said, "I am in debt to you for your help."

"It is my duty and my pleasure to aid fellow Carpathians. Come, we must tell the pilot that his plane is still intact and we have loved ones waiting anxiously for us."

After a side trip to a night club where they fed on a group of university frat boys, they made their way to Aidan's home. The sounds of laughter were like music as they entered the house.

Both men found their arms full of warm woman. Stefan beamed at them.

"I take it the trip home from the other airstrip was uneventful?" Aidan asked.

"Absolutely," said Stefan, who turned to Andre. "You have a lovely family, Andre."

"We are so glad to have you here," said Alexandria, "The boys have been playing games on the Xbox since they arrived."

"I hope Jordan isn't playing the vampire game," Aidan admonished.

"Of course not, he's much too young for that. We have games more suited to a child his age. I think Josh has adopted him as a younger brother." She looked at Marnie. "And having Marnie here is like having a sister." The women smiled at each other.

Marie walked through the room and into the game room with a tray of hot chocolate and cookies for the children. She had a huge smile on her face.

"Marie loves having another child in the house," said Stefan as he watched her fondly.

Marnie stood with Andre's arms around her, watching all of them. A large, beautifully decorated Christmas tree stood proudly in a corner near the fire place, it's lights twinkling. A pile of gifts surrounded the base and included the ones she had brought for Jordan. She was at peace for the first time in months. These people were her family now and she would never be lonely again.

Several months later:

The sun had not been down very long and the summer nights were too short. Marnie and Andre had just risen from their daytime rest. After several intense bouts of lovemaking they had moved into the living area to greet Jordan. He was adjusting well to their new circumstances. It helped that they lived near Aidan and Alexandria. Stefan and Marie watched him during the day and they had him at night.

The conversion had been awful. He had known that is would be painful because of the stories told to him by others who had found their mates among human women. But the reality was so much worse. He had wept bloody tears at his inability to keep all the pain from Marnie. Aidan and Alexandria stayed with them, sharing the pain and giving them strength, until it was safe to send Marnie to the deep Carpathian sleep. Andre was thankful she would never have to endure that again.

The night was clear and cool next to the Pacific Ocean. Marnie sat on the steps leading down into their back yard and watched her husband and son rolling around on the grass. Andre lay on his back and picked Jordan up over his head, both of them laughing in their joy.

He suddenly realized this was the vision Belle had given him back in December. For a creature who had never celebrated Christmas he had been given the best gifts ever.

End.

Well, that's it. I hope you all enjoyed it. I'm hoping that, as I write more, I will become more descriptive. Ms. Feehan's descriptions seem like I'm there, but I have a long way to go.

They next story should be Belle's and I have several scenes written. I'm just having trouble with the opening scene. Plus, I have another story begging to be written. Hmm, I wonder if I can do two stories at the same time. Ah well, we will see won't we?