Survive the Dawn by Kate Sweeney Page B

into whatever and fly through the woods,” she said aloud. She pulled her sweater around her and gazed into the night. The moon was full in the cloudless sky.
    “Sebastian, I know you can hear me,” she said in a steady sure voice. “This ain’t over. You have to be back before the dawn breaks. So stop running or flying and come home.” She turned away, then stopped and added, “And I love you.”
    She slipped into bed, reaching for Sebastian’s pillow. “Big idiot,” she mumbled, hugging the pillow close as she drifted off to an uneasy sleep.
    When she opened her eyes, she had no clue how long she’d slept, but she knew Sebastian was in the room, even though she couldn’t see her.
    Out of the shadows, Sebastian stood by the bed.
    “Come to bed, Sebastian.” Sebastian slipped out of her clothes. In the soft moonlight, she gazed at the lean body before her. “You are beautiful.”
    Sebastian grumbled as she slipped under the covers. “A while ago, I was a big idiot.”
    Alex chuckled and snuggled close. She felt her strong arm around her shoulders as Sebastian kissed the top of her head. “Well, you pissed me off,” she said through her yawns.
    “I suspect that will happen from time to time.”
    “What happened tonight? Please tell me,” Alex whispered as she lazily ran her fingers around Sebastian’s breast.
    Sebastian hesitated, then realized Alex would nag her until she talked. She scowled into the darkness. “I doubt Nicholae will leave us alone, love. Something is happening. I can feel it, sense it. He may not know where I am, he may not care, though I sincerely doubt that. Nina’s whereabouts worries me, as well. I’m feeling stronger. The power of knowing and sensing everything around me is getting stronger. However, at the same time, I’m stymied that I cannot sense Nina. If she were truly there to help, why is she not here now? Where did she go? It worries me.”
    “Maybe she’s laying low?”
    “Possibly.”
    “Sebastian, I’ve been thinking—”
    “Now why would you want to do that?”
    Alex laughed at the interruption and continued, “I’m not sure now the cellar is a good idea for a lab. It may be too small. We need someplace larger so I can do my work. You must know someone who has a place.”
    “There are many vampires in London. Gaylen knows of them. He’ll find a place, a safe place.”
    “Are there many vampires all over the world?” Alex asked and shivered.
    Sebastian pulled her close. “Yes, love. We’re in every corner of the world. In great numbers and in small gatherings. I fear with Tatiana’s death the balance has shifted. Nicholae wanted it all while Tatiana wanted to pass the torch, as it were, to me. This is Nicholae’s fear.” She stopped for a moment, calming her anger again. “And he destroyed her. When I heard Tatiana’s call to avenge her, I knew it was Nicholae’s doing and he sent Leigh to Chicago. I wonder what the other elders have to say about this.”
    “How many elders are there?”
    “There are three others beside Tatiana and Nicholae . Kasandra and Marcellus came with Tatiana from Rome. Daciana came with Nicholae , she is from Romania. The problem now is there’s great dissension among them. I feel the discord getting stronger every day.”
    “I hope nothing happens until we find that damned lab and I can get to work,” Alex mumbled.
    “I do, as well, love. Now sleep.” Sebastian kissed her head.
    It wasn’t long before Alex was snoring and Sebastian was staring into the darkness. She thought of Tatiana, her creator. She had forgotten so much. Five hundred years was a long time to remember.
    Visions of a night flashed through her mind. She closed her eyes; the image was clear. It was Tatiana and a summer night in Rome.

    Tatiana lay in the long chair, her white hair pulled up and adorned with gold ribbons, and her white toga blew lazily in rhythm with the cypress trees that lined the courtyard. She lazily dipped her hand in the