Page 88 of Crimson Oath
“A lover should be possessive,” Katrina said. “But they should also know they’re not the center of your world. We have lives, yes?”
“Exactly,” Tatyana said. “A person should have their own identity.”
“If you’re young, that’s harder,” Rumi said. “Give it time.” She looked at Tatyana. “You have a lot of that now.”
Chapter 19
Oleg
It was three weeks after they started that Oleg finally felt a stir in his amnis.
“South.”
Lazlo was driving. “What?”
“We need to head south.”
He’d taken Tatyana’s blood multiple times before she left him, both for greed and for her own good. He could use that blood bond to find her. He could also use it to protect her.
He’d used it to pull the pain of her sire’s death from her and keep her alive. He’d gathered the pain of Zara’s death into his own body as he felt her amnis die in his own blood.
The combined pain of his and Tatyana’s loss had sent him to his knees.
Tatyana’s blood had tormented Oleg when she left and comforted him when she was near.
Now he could feel it stretch and reach out, the amnis he carried with him searching for her elemental power and drawing Oleg closer to her physical location.
He was so sure of her whereabouts, Oleg felt that ifhe looked over his left shoulder, he’d catch a glimpse of her from the corner of his eye. “We need to drive southwest.”
“We just came from there, but if you say so.” Lazlo pointed to the map in the dashboard. “Look at that and find me a route.”
The first week of searching, they’d left the paved roads and driven through the wilderness, traversing gravel and dirt paths, exploring remote farming regions, forests, and isolated river valleys.
The second week, he started to feel hints of her blood in the air as Tatyana’s amnis stirred to waking in his veins.
But now…
“I can feel her.” He grabbed the map and looked for a route that would take them closer. They weren’t traveling off road yet, but they would. Eventually they would be on foot.
“When we get close enough, we’ll have to park the vehicles,” Lazlo said. “The Hazar will be patrolling.”
The Hazar—Poshani wind vampires famed for their keen sight and martial skills—were Oleg’s greatest threat through this endeavor. They would attack first and ask questions later if they deemed an immortal a threat.
The Poshani planned their routes carefully, threading their way through isolated villages and getting near enough to urban centers to restock their supplies without drawing an excess of attention to their people.
It was an intricate puzzle as complicated as one of their traditional dances, and Oleg had always respected them for it.
Unfortunately, that caution and stealth was standing between him and his prey.
Mika, Ludmila, and Oksana were in the rear vehicle, leaving Lazlo and Oleg in companionable silence.
Lazlo kept his eyes on the dark road as they bumped through a forest. “Is she worth this, brother?”
“What does that mean?”
“You know what I mean,” Lazlo grumbled. “We’re risking the anger of an old ally so you can find thiswoman.”
“Despite what you all think, I am actually concerned that Vano could attempt a coup within the Poshani clan.”
