Her eyes were closed and her face shriveled. Her lips had already turned blue, a stark contrast against the pallid color of her skin.

"Erinna, open your eyes."

The words were accompanied by a silent prayer. He didn't know where he would start if anything happened to her. Erinna was all he had and anyone who thought they could take her away from him just like that, had another thing coming.

She was so cold and her heartbeat was not comforting.

He felt Alexander approaching.

"Don't," he warned him.

The acid clarity of his voice allowed no protest and Alexander knowing what was good for him, did not come any closer to the bathroom door. Sick or not, Erinna's nudity was reserved for his eyes and his alone.

Clutching her to his chest he stood up, took a towel and wrapped it around her to preserve her dignity.

He rushed to the bedroom and put her on the bed, carefully making sure she was decent

"Get out," he snapped at Alexander who was hanging around in the corner uncertainly.

Still, his right hand man did not leave; the younger vampire was growing to gutsy for Vlad's liking and comfort. Soon that would have to be addressed.

"Do I need to repeat myself, Alexander?" He growled, his eyes red; burning with anger and impatience.

That was warning enough for Alexander and he dashed off before Vlad could make good on his unspoken threat.

Vlad telekinetically closed the bedroom door and locked it. He took off his boots and followed his bride onto the bed.

He wanted to hurry but also knew he had one shot at this. He was inexperenced when it came to using his healing abilities, having never needed to take care of someone in that manner. He had to be careful yet didn't want to be too late.

Balancing his weight on his elbows, he lay over her and concentrated his power. He brought his lips to hers and poured all his power, passion and healing energy into that kiss, focusing it all on her revival.

When his lips left hers, she had stopped breathing and her heart had gone still.

No-no-no

It couldn't be, not then.

No.

And then her chest rose again.

He gave a sigh of relief as color returned to her face.

"Vlad?" Her voice sounded so small and she looked light years away from the calm composure she usually presented to the world.

"I'm here."

Tears gathered in her eyes and he rolled onto his side, tucking her into his chest.

"Do you remember what happened?" He asked.

"I was bathing and---that's all I remember. What happened? What did I do?" She asked desperately.

"Hey, it's aright. We'll fix it. But first, I have to know you're fine. Does anything hurt? Can you breathe well?"

"I-I-I am cold," she stuttered with her teeth chattering so much that he had to listen really hard to make any sense of what she was trying to convey to him.

"I know, I'm sorry angel, let me get you inside the blankets."

He started to get up so he could get her inside the warm blankets and send for some warm food for her but she stopped him with a firm hand on his bicep.

"Vlad- what happened?" Her teeth were still chattering from the cold.

By the fear in her eyes he knew this time she had sensed something had happened even though she didn't remember it.

What would he tell her? That every time she closed her eyes her subconcious was trying to kill her and had nearly succeded on two occasions already?

"I'll explain; right now I need you to be warm. Alright?" He pleaded, hoping she would understand.

After nearly losing her for the second time in a row, he needed to make sure she was going to be fine.

She relaxed her grip on his arm and he stood up, drew back the covers and tucked her in.

He used his mindlink with his vampires to summon Alexander who he sensed to be standing just outside the room anyway; the disobedient litttle swine, disregarding his orders at every turn.

"Is everything alright?" He asked when he noticed Erinna under the blankets, her skin a pale colour that edged towards blue.

"Get Leila to make some hot food and bring it up here now."

Alexander nodded and left to find the cook as instructed.

Erinna's body was shaking and she couldn't control it. She felt cold and wished she could call Vlad to come back to her and do whatever he had done before to alleviate her suffering.

But she couldn't even open her mouth, let alone summon the energy to move her tongue. Her strength was being drained second by second and with each moment she felt herself losing her hold on the world and her own sanity.

What had happened in the bathroom?

Why was Vlad looking at her like she was going to break any moment? The last thing she could remember was lying in the bath then---

Again like the time with the knife incident, she reached a mental blockage and failed to remember what else had happened afterwards. Was that what she had tried to do again? Kill herself?

Erinna who had never wronged anyone alive let alone dead couldn't fathom why anyone would want to possess her and make her kill herself or whatever this was.

An involuntary shudder passed through her, jerking her as her body temperature continued to dramatically drop.

Her head began swirling and the pain caused by the images flashing through her mind made her cry out but it only came out as a whimper. The sound had barely left her lips before Vlad was on the bed, sitting beside her, his hand cupping her face.

"Hey, hey talk to me," he urged her gently.

She tried to talk but could not move any part of herself successfully.

"What is it, angel? What should I do?" He asked, his voice pure anguish and helplessness.

"Where does it hurt?" He asked, wiping a tear on her cheek. Erinna had not even realised she had been crying.

The worst part of everything that was happening was not the physical pain; it was the inner turmoil and mental confusion that her mind was being subjected to. And she couldn't even tell him what was wrong.

'Vlad,' she tried calling him mentally but the message was too weak to be coherently transmitted. She closed her eyes, tired of trying. Her mind was closing in more than ever and she could not hold off the inevitable darkness any longer.

"No, no, no. I won't let you do that; not now. Come back to me," he said getting into the bed with his boots and pulling her up so that she was half sittting, half resting against his chest.

"Erinna open your eyes, you don't want to know what I will do to your precious Angelica and father if you dare to let go," he threatened.

She opened her eyes to see if he was joking or not because she could never tell with him. She tried to glare at him but failed.

"What do you want? What do you need? Food? Should I call Miya? Someone from Ellingsdale?" He asked, helpless reflected in his anguished, dark eyes.

She had just closed her eyes again when a distinct image and foreign energy invaded her mind. It was that of a woman with four vertical scars; one on her chin, another on her right cheek, the third on her left cheek and the last on her forehead.

It was not Aurora, Vlad's sister she had been dreaming about these past weeks. No, this woman was older, darker and more sinister. Everything about her hinted at a malicious nature. Her very presence chased away all warmth from Erinna's body.

It was the same feeling Erinna had gotten when she had met Dracula for the first time.

"You failed me," she growled and Erinna was astounded at the amount of hatred, anger and animosity poured into that one statement.

"Who are you?"

"Kill him now!"

"No," Erinna replied without hesitation.

"I made you who you are and just that easily can I break you, you want not to cross me. I am more powerful than you can ever imagine. End him now!"

And just to demonstrate some of her powers, the woman twisted Erinna's arm in an unnatural angle that made her scream until her throat felt raw. When she felt she had made her point, she relinguished her telekinetic hold.

"Do what you have to do, I'm not killing anyone," Erinna said breathlesly, tears falling down her cheeks and red hot pain making every part of her vibrate in agony.

"That was not the begining of what I can do. I'm giving you one last chance."

"No."

"Kill him!" She shouted, advancing towards Erinna. She put her hand up and flames appeared above it, ready to send them Erinna's way any moment.

"No. If you touch him, you will have me to deal with."

"Then you both die."

The woman held out both hands and the fames increased in magnitde. She pulled her hands backwards towards her chest before projecting them forcefully at Erinna, sending the malevolent flames her way.

Erinna was not ready, didn't know what to do but from somewhere, a deep part of her that consisted purely of survival instincts, she withdrew power she didn't know how to use or channel.

Vlad had told her magic was a physical expression and projection of one's strongest will and emotions. She focused on the anger and fear she was feeling and sent forth a forcefield of energy that covered the room in blinding white light. The last she heard was the woman's scream before everything turned to nothing.

💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥

Vlad had seen his bride slipping away from him and had not been able to do anything to stop it. For all his powers, he coldn't save the one person who mattered to him. He continued holding her hand at a loss of what to do as her heart rate doubled and temperature shot up.

Her arm twisted and a high tormented scream left her lips. He jumped up, unsure what to do and clueless about what was happening.

He looked around the room but couldn't detect anything or anyone who was the source of his bride's anguish and agony. Alexander appeared at the door in a microsecond and they looked at each other, not knowing what to do as the agonized screams of his bride continued.

The window in his bedroom cracked and then shattered to the floor.

"Erinna!" He shook her shoulders, trying to wake her up but she just continued screaming, her eyes tightly shut.

"What should I do?" Alexander asked, hovering uncertainly.

"Call Miya. Now!"

He was gone in a heartbeat.

Suddenly the screams just ceased, but her body continued shaking. He could feel all her physical pain and it tortured his very soul, but he would take all of it any day to spare her from feeling any of it.

He got into the bed again and drew her into the chest. Using his telekinesis, he opened the balcony curtains to let in some air to cool down the temperature of the room for her sake.

He was unprepared when in the next minute the bookshelf in the room caught fire. Unwilling to leave his bride, he summoned guards who poured into the room and fought down the flames, preventing them from engulfing the whole room.

After the fire incident, Erinna's eyes opened...too wide.

"Erinna!" He called her but she didn't move, not a muscle.

He waved his hand over her seemingly petrified eyes but they remained unblinking. A sick cold feeling of dread settled at the bottom of his stomach.

He listened for her heartbeat but couldn't hear anything to ease his worries. It was after a whole minute that the single dull thud finally came, followed by another weak one a minute later. A sigh of relief he hadn't been aware of witholding, left his lips.

"What happened?" Miya inquired urgently, rushing into the room.

She headed straight for Erinna and was about to touch her when Dracula jerked his bride away from her touch on instinct. Miya looked up at him pointedly.

"I need to see what's wrong with her Vlad."

He didn't have a choice, Erinna did not have much time if her hertbeat was anything to go by.

"Give me space," Miya said. Even when everything in him cried out no, he placed Erinna carefully on the bed, sent everone from the room except Miya and Alexander and withdrew a litttle from the bed.

Miya closed her eyes and placed her examining hand on Erinna's forehead. She kept it there for a few minutes. When she removed it and opened her eyes, she looked at Vlad.

"I can't feel her spirit."

"She's not dead," Dracula was quick to defend.

"No, she's not," Miya agreed.

"Then what the hell do you mean you can't feel her spirit?" He barked.

She gave him a look and he sighed, turning around and combing his hand through his hair in frustration. He knew he was being unfair on Miya but damn it, he wanted answers. All his years he had never encountered anything close to what was happening.

How was he even supposed to fight an enemy he didn't know in a game with rules he didn't know?

"What are we going to do?" He asked.

''Bring me rosewood and smelling salts, Alexander."

When Alexander came back five minutes later, Vlad was still pacing up and down.

Miya quickly took the rosewood and sprinkled it in a circle around the bed. She recited an old Gaelic chant under her breath then put the smelling salts at Erinna's nose.

They all watched with crossed fingers and abated breath. Anticipation faded to hope and hope to anxiety, which quickly gave way to desair as nothing happened.

After ten excruciating minutes, Miya stood up defeatedly and faced Vlad.

"It's not working," she stated the obvious and waited patiently for the inevitable blowup.

Erinna was now looking as deathly as a corpse, her complexion had paled further into a ghastly white. Her body was still and unmoving and her eyes were glazed, staring at the ceiling unseeingly.

"So what happens now?" Vlad asked calmly and she was surprised he had managed to rein in his temper.

"I don't know," she admitted.

"Well, do something!" He exploded.

"Do what? I don't know what's happening!"

"I allow you to live here even though you are a witch and I hate your bloody kind because you swore me your service but now that I'm actually calling on your powers you dare...defy me?" His deceptively soft voice had the mildest anger tremor as he stalked Miya slowly, the same way a lion does its prey.

Knowing that challenging him at that moment would have be fatal, Miya remained still and silent, waiting for his anger to run its course.

Alexander put a calming hand on his maker's but the presumptuous action made Vlad angrier. He looked down at the offending limb, resisting the urge to tear it right out of its socket. His eyes moved up to Alexander's pointedly.

"You don't want to do that," Alexander said.

"Remind me when I made you my advisor," Dracula growled.

"Your mate needs you right now. Are you sure the thing you want to be doing is murder people you know she'll never forgive you for killing when she wakes up?"

He hated it that for all his goody two shoes, Saint Alexander was right. Too angry to just let go of his anger, Vlad glared at his right hand man then tossed him across the room to satisfy his temper.

Miya winced but didn't comment, already too used to his tantrums and Alexander having to bear the brunt of most of them. Instead, she asked Vlad about everything that had happened with Erinna prior to her arrival. In a brief summary, he put her up to date with what had taken place.

A frown rested on her beautiful face when he was done.

"So she has been trying to kill herself?"

He nodded, "But she didn't remember doing it."

Miya looked across the room at Alexander who was getting up from the floor and picking bits of wood and debris from his hair and clothes. Around him, splinters of the chair Vlad had slammed into him lay carelessly discarded.

"This was why you were asking me about possesion?" She asked and realised her mistake when Alexander shot Dracula a terrified glance.

"What do you know about this?" Vlad growled, moving across the room and lifting Alexander off the floor by his collar.

"I didn't mean to keep it from you-"

"Five seconds."

"She tried to kill herself."

"And you chose to keep this to yourself because-?"

"She made me promise."

Dracula glared at the younger vampire, unsure what to do with him but ended up tossing the piece of trash aside. Delivering punishments seemed trivial and mundane when the one person he cared about was dying and he had no clue on how to stop it.

"So we know three occasions she tried to kill herself ," Miya said thoughtfully.

Dracula grunted a reply. His irritation was escalating with each passing second that Erinna remained unconscious.

"And she remembered nothing on all three occasions," she continued.

"Is it possession?" Vlad asked.

"I would have thought so before today."

Vlad frowned to communicate his confusion.

"From what you said, she wasn't projecting anything. Whatever happened was going on in her mind," Miya explained.

"The room caught fire, isn't that an outward projection?"

"No, that happens when there is an large energy build up around a person of power. It's the same thing that happens when you get angry and my windows break or it starts thundering, the energy is passed on to the surroundings."

"So what is it?"

"That's hard to deduce; too many forces are at hand. Not counting the fact that Erinna is a Pure Being and I've never come across one. She also has powers and abilities that you and I can't even begin to comprehend and with power comes weaknesses."

"No, this is not because of her powers Miya. I know about Pure Beings and this is not a trait I've ever seen in one."

"Well there is one thing, probably the most important," she began hesitantly.

Miya never hesitated, she just dived in and the fact that she was hesitating was alarming.

"What?" He asked.

"The Curse of the Union. "

"No--" He began protesting but she didn't let him finish.

"Vlad you knew this was bound to happen sooner or later, curses don't go away in a few hundred years."

"But I haven't even mated with her," he said, swearing out loud and running his hand through his hair.

She looked at him in a way that told him she wasn't believing him at all.

"Honestly, I haven't; the full moon is on her birthday."

Why would he disrespect the woman he had waited his whole life for in such a way? Erinna deserved the best and she would get it. He would not compromise her until they were officially joined. It was the only way he felt he could differentiate her from the countless women he had taken in bids to sate his bloodlust and primal urges.

''The mate bond is hard to resist."

Miya spoke as if Vlad himself did not already know that. It was torture touching Erinna and having her beside him but knowing he could never go the full way. At least not until she bore his mating mark.

"I know that. We have done other things but we haven't consummated the bond so I don't think the mating factor applies here. Whatever is wrong it can't be because of our bond," he said but his heart was pounding at an abnormally fast rate.

Could it be possible the Curse of the Union was descending on them already? He had taken care not to overstep boundaries, tried to do the right thing by her and had taken pins to make sure he didn't slip up, that there would be no mistakes.