#1 New York Times bestselling author Christine Feehan freezes the blood in this fiercely sensual Carpathian novel...   Born into a world of evil and ice, Dragonseeker Lara Calladine is a child of three species yet belonging to none. She walked her chosen path alone, trusting no one. For beyond the frozen hell of her youth were even greater dangers.   Today, an expert in the study of ice caves, Lara searches for the source of her nightmares. Nicolas De La Cruz can help her. Though centuries of hunting and killing have taken their toll, he longs to feel sensual love without the hunger for blood. As Lara and Nicolas search the treacherous Carpathian landscape, their tenuous trust shifts into an undeniable passion. But their mysterious pasts share a secret that could destroy them both... INCLUDES BONUS CONTENT! Praise for Christine Feehan and her Carpathian novels “The queen of paranormal romance! The one who started it all! The erotic, gripping series that has defined an entire genre. I love everything she does.”—J. R. Ward, #1 New York Times bestselling author  “After Bram Stoker, Anne Rice and Joss Whedon (who created the venerated Buffy the Vampire Slayer ), Christine Feehan is the person most credited with popularizing the neck gripper.”— Time “Feehan has a knack for bringing vampiric Carpathians to vivid, virile life in her Dark Carpathian novels.”— Publishers Weekly “Red-hot romance and great storytelling...a treat you can’t refuse...Thrill-a-minute fantasy with complex characters and a story that captivates from beginning to end.”—Fresh Fiction Christine Feehan is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Carpathian series, the GhostWalker series, the Leopard series, the Shadow Riders series, and the Sea Haven novels, including the Drake Sisters series and the Sisters of the Heart series. Chapter 1 "Lara, let's get out of here," Terry Vale said. "It's getting dark and there's nothing here." He shouldered his caving equipment, not surprised that they hadn't found an entrance to an ice cave. If no one had discovered the cave by this time in the Carpathian Mountains, he doubted if the place existed. Lara Calladine ignored him, continuing to scan the mountainside for the smallest crack that might signal the presence of a cave. She wasn't wrong—not this time. Power had surged and crackled the moment she set foot on the upper slopes of the mountain. She took a deep breath and pressed a hand over her pounding heart. This was it. This was the place she had spent her life searching for. She would recognize that flow of energy anywhere. She knew every weave, every spell, her body absorbing the gathering power so that veins sizzled and nerve endings burned with the electrical current building inside of her. "I've got to go with Terry on this," Gerald French agreed, backing up the other member of their research caving team. "This place gives me the creeps. We've been on a lot of mountains, but this one doesn't like us." He gave a nervous laugh. "It's getting dicey up here." "No one says ‘dicey,' " Lara murmured, running her hand along the face of the rock about an inch from it, looking for threads of power. The two men were not only her climbing partners, but her closest friends. At that moment she wished she'd left them behind, because she knew she was right. The cave was here, she just had to find the entrance. "Whatever," Gerald snapped. "It's getting dark and there's nothing here but mist. The fog is creepy, Lara. We've got to get out of here." Lara spared the two men an impatient glance and then surveyed the countryside around them. Ice and snow glittered, coating the surrounding mountains with what appeared to be sparkling gems. Far below, despite the gathering dusk, she could see castles, farms and churches in the valley. Sheep dotted the meadows and in the distance she could see the river running, filled to capacity. Overhead, birds cried, filling the sky and dive-bombing toward her only to break off abruptly and circle again. The wind shifted continuously, biting at her face and every bit of exposed skin, tugging at her long, thick braid all the while moaning and wailing. Occasionally, a rock fell down the slope and bounced off the ledge to the hillside below. A trickle of snow and dirt slid near her feet. Her gaze swept the wild countryside below. Gorges and ravines cut through the snow-capped mountains, plants clung to the sides of the rocks and shivered naked along the plateaus. She could see the entrances to several caves and felt the strong pull toward them as if they were tempting her to leave her current position. Water filled the deeper depressions below, forming a dark peat bog, and beds of moss were a vivid green in stark contrast to the browns surrounding them. But she needed to be here—in this spot—this place. She had studied the geography carefully and knew, deep within the earth, a massive series of ice caves had formed. The higher she climbed, the smaller everyt