Carpathian 00 - The Scarletti Curse

crackling beneath her skin, beneath his, and it made her distinctly uneasy. His fever was down but not entirely gone. With a little sigh, Nicoletta held the cup of liquid to his mouth. She didn't want to wake him, but he, too, needed the medicaments to ensure his recovery.
    His hand abruptly moved up to trap hers around the cup as he drank, making it impossible for her to let go. He was enormously strong for a man so ill. When he had drained the contents, he lowered the cup but retained possession of her hand. "I wonder how the healer knows which remedy to use. I have heard of her skills; the healer to your villagio is spoken of often with great respect."
    Nicoletta stiffened, her heart thundering in her ears. She tugged, a not-so-subtle reminder to release her, but this time he tightened his grip, not allowing her to escape back into the shadows. There was danger here; she sensed a threat to her. "I… I do not know, Don Scarletti. Her secrets are hers alone."
    Deliberately she stammered and hung her head, shrinking into herself like a not-so-bright servant.
    The don continued to hold her still, regarding her through half-closed eyes. In the firelight he looked a dark and dangerous devil, far too sensuous and powerful to be trifled with. Nicoletta didn't waver beneath the scrutiny, although she wanted to tear her hand free and run for her life. He was so much more dangerous to her than she had first thought. She felt it, as she did everything. Resolutely she stared at the floor.
    The don retained possession a few moments longer, then abruptly let her go, his eyes closing, clearly dismissing her. Nicoletta prevented her sigh of relief from escaping and moved swiftly to put a safe distance between them, curling up on the bed beside the child once more. She breathed slowly, calmly, watching the rise and fall of his chest until she was certain he slumbered once more.
    Several times she attended the child, washing her to keep the fever down, prompting her to drink fluids and the physic. The child seemed to be breathing more easily and each time Nicoletta rested her hand on the distended little abdomen, it seemed to be twisting less, the pain subsiding.
    She was finally drifting off to sleep herself when a movement at the far side of the chamber caught her eye. A bell pull seemed to sway, though there was no breeze. She shifted her gaze to the wall behind it, watching intently. The smooth, seamless panel seemed to waver, as if her eyes were out of focus. She sat up, staring intently. The wall was marble, a beautiful pink and white, yet it seemed to move in the flickering firelight. Shadows danced and stretched, and the flames and curtains leapt as if a draft had entered the room. She shivered as two of the candles suddenly went out.
    For one awful moment she though she saw the sheen of eyes staring at her malevolently from the shadows, but then the child beside her moved restlessly, breaking the spell. Instantly Nicoletta Generated by ABC Amber LIT Conv erter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
    protectively gathered her close, her gaze once more straying to the wall. It was as unblemished as a sea-smoothed stone. The little girl began to cry in her sleep, a soft, pathetic sound.
    Nicoletta rocked her gently and began to hum, then quietly sang a soothing lullaby, a whispered melody for the child. The little girl began to relax in Nicoletta's arms, clinging to her tightly as if she might never let go. The words, thought long forgotten, emerged naturally, a ballad Nicoletta's mother had often sung to her when she was young. Nicoletta's heart went out to the lonely child, who had no one who cared enough to hold her in the darkness when the nightmares came.
    Nicoletta looked around the cavernous room, taking in the heavy curtains and hideous carvings, enough to give anyone nightmares. As she rocked, the little girl snuggled close to her, and they drifted to sleep together, neither noticing the man sitting in the chair observing Nicoletta through half-closed eyes.

Chapter Two
    It was a whisper of movement that woke Nicoletta. She felt the disturbance in the air, the shifting of currents. She lay holding the child in her arms while her heart pounded and she attempted to get her bearings. The fire had died down to a soft orange glow. The last of the candles was spluttering into its own wax with a hiss, its aromatic scent drifting into the air with a thin tail of black smoke. The bedchamber was situated on the ocean side of