Traveling by night, he made his way north, to the mountains. The countryside was everything Katlaina had said it was. Beautiful and green, lush with trees and grass and flowers.
He walked down a narrow lane. Cottages lined the roadway, their windows dark at this time of night. The air was cool, fragrant with new-cut hay and the scent of damp earth. A dog barked asNavarre passed by, but he silenced the animal with a glance and moved on, drawn toward a small, vine-covered cottage at the end of the lane.
He placed his hand on the narrow door, closed his eyes, and concentrated on the dwelling's inhabitants. And knew that this was where Katlaina lived.
Her scent drew him toward the back of the house. Peering through a small square window, he saw Katlaina. Clad in a long white sleeping gown, she sat in a rocking chair, singing a lullaby to the child cradled in her arms.
Katlaina. His voice whispered to her mind.Katlaina .
Slowly, she looked up, a frown drawing her brows together.
Do you ever think of me?
"Navarre?"
I have missed you.
Rising, she placed the sleeping child in its bed, then stood in the middle of the room, her hands clasped to her breasts. "Navarre, where are you?"
I am nearby, waiting for you. Will you come to me?
He saw the doubt reflected in her eyes, and it cut him to the heart.
I will not hurt you.
She shook her head, and when she spoke, he heard tears in her voice. "I cannot. I... I am afraid. Please go away."
I must see you. Come to me, Katlaina.
Slowly, she took a step toward the window.
She was more beautiful than he remembered. Her hair fell over her shoulders like a waterfall of ebony-hued silk. Her skin was smooth and unblemished. She stared at him through eyes as green as new grass; eyes filled with the memory of the love they had once shared. Eyes filled with fear as she recalled their last meeting.
I will not hurt you. He stared at her, wanting her, unable to enter the house unless she bade him do so. Katlaina, please ...
He saw the hesitation in her eyes as she opened the window, then took a wary step backward. "Navarre..."
In a single fluid movement, he was over the sill. "Katlaina, I have missed you. Longed for you..."
"You should not be here." Her gaze moved over him, wary and confused, hopeful and fearful.
"Come away with me."
"I cannot."
"Why?"
"I... I have a husband." She placed a hand on her stomach. "We are to have a child."
He stared at her in disbelief, the hurt cutting deep into his heart and soul. "No."
"I am sorry,Navarre . I thought never to see you again."
"Do you love this man?"
"Yes."
"As you once loved me?"
Katlaina lowered her gaze, unable to bear the pain she saw in his eyes. And behind the pain, she saw death. It frightened her now as it had frightened her before. Unaware of what she was doing, she took a step backward, instinctively placing herself betweenNavarre and her son.
The move was not lost onNavarre . His eyes narrowed with suppressed fury.
"Do you think I would hurt my own flesh and blood, Katlaina? Do you fear for your own life, as well?"
She lifted her chin defiantly, but said nothing.
"I want to see my son."
She hesitated, andNavarre clenched his fists, waiting. He could bend her mind to his, force her to let him see the child, but he wanted it to be her decision.
"Very well," she murmured, and stood aside.
Navarrecrossed the room to stare down at his child. His son. The only son he would ever have. The boy was pink of cheek and fair of face. His hair was black and curly, like his mother's. He made a soft sound of contentment as he sucked his thumb.
"He seems a fine boy,"Navarre remarked.
"He is."
"What name did you give him?"
"Navarre." Her answer was barely audible.
"Will you tell him of me, when he's older?"
"Of course."
He looked up at her, the tender feelings he had experienced while looking at his son swallowed up in bitter fury as he imagined Katlaina in the arms of another man, bearing another man's child when she was his.
His fangs pricked the inside of his lower lip; his hands curled into fists as he contemplated storming through the house, finding her husband, tearing him limb from limb. It would be so easy. So easy...
As if she had read his thoughts, Katlaina stepped forward and grabbed him by the arm. "Navarre, no!"
"You were meant to be mine," he said, his voice filled with anguish. "I loved you. I still love you."
"And I loved you," she whispered. "But you are no longer the man I loved."
"I am!"
"No. I do not know what happened to you in theTempleofShaylyn . I thought you had been killed, yet you came back to me. But the man I knew is dead, and the man before me looks at me through soulless eyes."
She choked back a sob as she moved away from him. "I wish I could still love you,Navarre . But I cannot. I cannot! Please, I beg of you, go away from this place and never return."
"Katlaina..."
"Please,Navarre , for the sake of the love we once shared, for the child born of that love, I beg of you, go away."
Loneliness knifed through him, cutting his heart from his flesh, destroying whatever was left of his soul, until he felt as though he were lying naked upon Shaylyn's altar once again, his blood draining from his veins, leaving him cold and lifeless.
"Katlaina..." He held out his hand, silently begging for her to touch him, to make him whole again.
Tears streamed down her cheeks. "I'm sorry,Navarre ," she whispered hoarsely. "I wish I could help you. I wish I could go with you. But I cannot. I cannot..."
She stared at him, remembering how tenderly he had loved her. Aching for him, she took a step forward and wiped a tear from his cheek, then stared, in horrified confusion, at the blood-red drop on her finger.
She looked up at him as he reached for her.
"Kiss me, Katlaina," he begged, his voice hoarse. "One last kiss."
She could not refuse him, even though her heart pounded with fear and every instinct she possessed urged her to flee, to run before it was too late.
"Please do not hurt me," she pleaded softly. "My son... our son... needs a mother's care."
He gazed down at her, the ache in his heart beyond pain. "I will not hurt you," he promised. "I ask only a kiss of farewell, one kiss, to warm me through eternity."
She could not refuse him. His lips were cool against her own. Her eyelids fluttered down as he deepened the kiss, and she felt his loneliness, his need, the bitterness that welled within his soul.
It was a kiss that branded her soul. And then, like a shadow running from the sun, he was gone, and she knew she would never see him again.