Free OnsetofDanger by Aubrey Ross Page B

she was his enemy, but dread
passed its icy fingers over her soul. If Tara sensed any weakness or betrayal,
even in her adopted daughter, she would react without mercy or regret.
    “Your mother will never know.”
    His casual dismissal of a very real danger stung. She
splayed her hands against his chest and pushed, but he didn’t seem to notice.
The room swelled and swayed with her slightest movement. Why did she feel
so…odd?
    With practiced ease he unfastened the back of her gown,
creating enough room for his hands inside the stiff fabric. He stroked her back
and shoulders then slipped one hand inside the bodice and cupped her breast.
“Oh yeah.” His mouth found hers again as his hands boldly explored. He squeezed
one mound and then the other, pausing long enough to tease her nipple before
switching sides.
    Her head spun and her fingers tingled. She felt drugged,
sluggish and overly warm. Was she weakening from whatever the Levari had done
to her or had there been something wrong with the blood Bronik had given her?
    Turning her head to the side, she drew in a deep breath, but
it only made the dizziness worse. “Bronik,” she whispered.
    “I’m right here, sweetheart.” He pushed her bodice down,
exposing her breasts to his hungry eyes. “So beautiful.”
    His mouth latched on to her breast and her head rolled back,
the room spinning around her. “I feel… Something’s…”
    He released her nipple and pulled her toward him as
everything went black.
     
    Bronik forced his hunger under control as Eloise went limp
in his arms. For a millisecond he’d thought she was pretending, surrendering to
her uncertainty. But this was no act. She was unconscious. Her warm breath
against his neck assured him she was breathing, so he quickly refastened the
back of her gown then lifted her into his arms. She felt shockingly
insubstantial despite her height and alluring curves. Were humans all this
fragile?
    Dismissing the tangent, he deactivated the shields
surrounding the house with an urgent mental pulse. Then he flashed outside and
reactivated the shields before locating the psychic beacon that would guide him
back to Strigo headquarters.
    Sire, something’s wrong with the female. Is Simone
available? The Vladya healer had asked for sanctuary in exchange for her
assistance in rescuing Prince Alexi’s crew from the Vancouver compound. No one
was ready to trust her completely, but she was being treated as a guest, not a
prisoner.
    Is she ill or injured? Edrick Yeager, Alexi’s uncle,
responded to Bronik’s page . Edrick had been head of Strigo strain before
Prince Alexi arrived on Earth.
    She’s unconscious and I’m not sure why.
    Take her to the gatehouse. I’ll send Simone there.
    Yes, sir. It was a wise precaution. Unconscious or
not, this was Tara Kovac’s daughter.
    Slowly expanding his seeker pulse beyond the psychic beacon,
Bronik located the gatehouse. He clasped Eloise tightly to his chest then
dispersed their corporeal bodies. His symbionts took over from there,
projecting him and his passenger toward their destination in upstate New York.
    Bronik had teleported for the first time at thirteen, so the
disembodied rush and utter dependency on the skill of his symbionts was nothing
new. He had even teleported with other people before, so why did he feel so
antsy? He had the irrational urge to scream cautions to his symbionts and
insist they pay special attention.
    He materialized smoothly, Eloise cradled in his arms. After
communicating his thanks, he felt a tingling ripple of amusement. Not willing
to think about the implications, he looked around the room. Apparently they
were the first to arrive.
    Exposed trusses and bold stonework suggested that the
building belonged to a previous era. According to Edrick, the main house had
been built twenty-seven years ago. The gatehouse looked at least a hundred
years old.
    Arranged like a studio apartment, the living room and
bedroom shared the same open space. Bronik