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offered.
The only noise she heard was the sound of her own breathing and the
lighter short breaths from the man with the rusty voice. Her mind shot
to
the visions with the ghosts and she wondered if she had misread them.
Was Kylie the person who would be tortured?
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Taking a deep breath, she pulled against the chains. She couldn t free
herself. Where was her strength? What do we have to talk about? she
asked.
The light flickered on with blinding brightness. She blinked and on the
second rise of her eyelids she saw him. He wore a strange robe, like a
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monk. His skin was wrinkled, leathered. She tightened her eyebrows
and
saw his brain pattern. As she suspected, vampire.
An old, weird vampire like Miranda s enemy Tabitha had described.
Kylie s gut had tried to tell her not to ignore it. She hoped this didn t
turn
out to be her fatal and final flaw.
You were watching me.
You have keen instincts. He stepped closer, frighteningly closer. His
eyes were cold and gray. Dead gray. Do you purposely keep your
mind
closed? he asked.
She wondered how much she should tell him, or if she should tell him
anything at all. Then again, if he thought she was blocking him on
purpose,
he might get angry. And she had to remember not to lie.
I don t know how to open up.
The sound of metal scraping concrete rang out. Kylie looked behind
the old man to a door being pushed open. Her heart stopped and her
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throat ached as she remembered the newcomer s hand cutting off her
airway.
I told you to wait, the old man scolded.
But, Gramps, I m just eager to see my new bride. The rogue moved
closer.
Bride? Kylie yanked at the chains, repulsed by the idea of being his
bride.
Leave now! the old man roared. His voice might be rusty and worn,
but his tone demanded obedience. Frightening obedience.
The rogue stopped two feet from her. His auburn hair wasn t soaked
in blood this time, but she could still see it in her mind. She knew the
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minute she looked into his cold, gray eyes, he was the same vampire
who d slipped into her dressing room and the one who d crashed
through her windshield. She s so pretty. Don t keep her from me too
long.
He shot off. The sound of the iron door slamming shut echoed
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throughout the room.
Kylie glared at the old man. He murdered two young girls.
Yes. He hung his head as if ashamed. My grandson made many
mistakes. But he will grow wiser.
The Vampire Council was supposed to& Kylie remembered
something Della had said about the Council, namely that they were all
old, and just like that, she knew. You are part of the Council. You lied
to
them.
He looked up. I did not lie. I said I would deal with this. You are part
of my plan.
He kidnapped me. Could she shame the old man into letting her go?
On my orders.
So much for that hope.
He moved closer. A sense of power moved with him. In my day, when
our young men acted out, only one thing could tame them. A woman
strong enough, pretty enough, to give them a reason to settle down.
He can t be saved. Her pulse raced as the old man inched closer.
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He s wild now, but you fascinate him. Do you have any idea how
many hours he spent in those woods by your camp, risking being
caught,
and for nothing more than a chance to see you?
She shivered with disgust, knowing it had been him all those times.
I was curious about who had stolen my grandson s heart and I
followed
him. Once I saw you, I could understand what drove him. You are
very fascinating. He leaned down, his face inches from hers. His
breath
came against her cheek and she felt sick that they shared the same
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airspace. What are you, Kylie Galen? Do you even know? Is there
vampire
in your blood?
He s a murderer. I would rather die than let him lay a finger on me.
His right eyebrow arched. Death is always an option. Not one I
recommend,
though.
The panic started to claw anew in her chest.
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I saw you drink the blood. His cold touch on her arm made her skin
crawl. But you are still warm. I saw the strange wolf befriend you, but
you did not turn on the day of the moon. Normally, I would seek a
vampire
as his mate, but you & my grandson is right. You are special.
She pulled again at her chains. Let me go.
You seek a family, Kylie Galen. We shall be that to you. You will bear
me great-grandchildren, and with my genes and yours, they will be
even
more powerful. And you will teach my grandson to be a man.
Not happening, Kylie sneered.
We will convince you.
I m not easily convinced. And if your grandson isn t a man, maybe it s
because he s lacked a role model.
The old man s eyes tightened. I will tolerate much, but I demand your
respect.
You have to earn respect. It was her mom s favorite saying, and it
never rang so true as it did now.
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He shook his head. In our world, respect is won by the person who
has more power. Right now, my dear child, I hold all the power.
He disappeared. Vanished. Kylie didn t even see him turn into a blur.
What was he? She remembered Tabitha, the witch who Miranda
caught
snooping around the cabin, saying he was more than vampire, and
Kylie
feared the girl was right.
He might have power, Kylie thought, but she still didn t respect him.
And by God, she wouldn t bear his great-grandchildren either.
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She yanked at her chains again, sought the strength within herself to
get free. The strength didn t come. She considered screaming but
something inside her said it would be a waste of energy. She needed to
think. She needed to use her brain to get out of this.
She called out for Daniel. He was a no-show. Would the death angels
or whatever it was at the falls come to her aid?
She closed her eyes and asked for help. Begged, actually. The thought
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of being touched by the rogue meant she wasn t above begging.
In the deep corners of her mind, a voice whispered, You have the
power within you.
Please, that sounds like an old Star Wars movie! When only silence
answered, she continued, This isn t any time for self-discovery. She
yanked again at the chains, thinking the power she had was to break
loose. She struggled until she felt her wrists and ankles bruise. He
wants
me to bear his great-grandchildren. I could use some help here!
Trying to remember to breathe, she considered what power the death
angels meant. She was a ghost whisperer, she could run fast, and
occasionally
found unknown strength to toss werewolves long distances. And
she had special hearing that came and went. There was also a
possibility
that she could heal she hoped so for Sara s sake and she could
dreamscape.
I can dreamscape! Wasn t that as good as a cell phone? If she could
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get Lucas, Lucas could get Burnett. Burnett would get her out of this.
He
would. He d bring the whole FRU down on this old dude s ass.
* * *
She counted sheep. One hundred, then two. Every noise and
sometimes
the lack of noise kept her awake. Her eyes grew tired. She eventually
grew
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