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from the Companion in his blood. He lived so intensely! He drank blood because the Companion
demanded it, but he did not kill when he drank. She looked back through the ages. Once he had taken
too much and drained someone. But he was devastated by it. She could forgive him that. She wondered
that she did not despise the drinking of blood. But she had felt what it was like, through him, and to him it
wasn't horrible.
Stephan Sincai had killed, though, on purpose and recently, in a ghastly way. She had experienced that
nightmare. The scene at the lodge flickered through her mind. It made her suck in her breath convulsively.
He had done that? She felt the pain of his wounds, the excruciating guilt at his deeds, the certainty that he
was damned for it, the suppression of his emotion. But he thought he was protecting his kind and humans,
as well. Regardless of the cost to his soul, he meant to kill again.
She was too tired to think about what that meant to her. She returned to the fact that he might have sat
three nights by her bedside. Why? What was she to a man like Stephan Sincai that he should do that for
her?
Ahhh. The guilt. Guilt was his driving force. He was killing others of his kind to atone for crimes, crimes
she didn't understand. Did he feel guilty for causing her illness? Was that why he sat here? For it was
certainly the rush of his experience which blew out her consciousness.
She turned her head as he strode out of the darkness. He came bearing a bowl.
"Your uncle is resting peacefully," he said.
Relief washed through her. She took a deep breath and smiled at him. He tightened his mouth for some
reason. He looked down at the bowl. "I brought you some broth from the kitchen. If you could& uh&
take some, it would help you regain your strength."
She nodded. She did feel better. She might be able to push herself up to eat. And she owed it to her
uncle to gain strength quickly. He set the bowl down and adjusted the pillows behind her. But the effort
of sitting was too much. When he handed her the spoon, it trembled in her hand. He took it gently back
and sat beside her. "Let me help."
She shook her head. "I don't& "
He held up a hand. "I won't touch you." He let a small smile escape. "Just feed you."
She let him. He was gentle with her. Surprising, considering how strong he was. He had lifted a boat out
of a raging river once and rolled away the stone from a tomb in Jerusalem. Dear God! Was it the tomb?
Had he& ? Had he been there? Her glance stole to his face.
The spoon paused on the way to her mouth. "Don't be afraid of me," he said. The voice was a low
rumble, filled with pain. "Difficult with what you saw, I know. But truly, there is no need. I will not hurt
you."
She rolled her lips between her teeth. You know what kind of& man he is, she told herself. Man? Yes,
man. She searched his face. A good man, in spite of almost impossible circumstances, A man of
principle. She took a breath. She nodded. "I know that."
He looked surprised. He examined her face. Then she saw him swallow once and offer his spoon again.
She sipped the broth. It was a simple beef broth and only lukewarm, but it tasted better than anything she
had ever eaten. He scraped the last of the bowl. She sipped the final spoonful and he set it aside. "Can
you sleep now?"
She looked around at the dark nursery. What if I don't wake up?
"I'll stay with you and wake you at dawn, if you like."
Had he read her thoughts? But no, she knew he couldn't read minds. Was she so transparent? Or was it
that one of his immense experience could guess what she was thinking? His experience was now hers in
some ways. Could she use it as he did?
She slid under the bedclothes. He sat back in his chair and picked up his book. She could tell he was
only pretending to read. That made her smile inside. She closed her eyes.
Stephan stole down to the kitchen well before dawn and washed the bowl. She was alive. She was
awake and might be none the worse for wear in time. He had never felt so relieved. He hastened back up
to her side. What he did not know was just how much she knew about him. She remembered what she
had seen in the cave she had asked him if he was well. Maybe& maybe she just remembered the
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