Free Dark Salvation by Katie Salidas Page B

of his power; but sadly, Alyssa shut her mouth and took a step backwards. She was no match for him and she knew it. They’d tangled enough times in training for her to know the extent of his mental abilities.
    “That’s what I thought.”
    Lysander retrieved his pants and quickly dressed. “So, she may not know the true extent of her powers, but the Saints must if they came out after her.”
    “Which means that boyfriend of hers, if he is still alive, told them what she is. Time to come clean, sweetheart. Why did he leave you?”
    “Look, I’m pagan; I pray to a different set of gods than most people. But that doesn’t make me a witch.”
    “You say that like it’s a bad thing. Witches are good,” Alyssa said. “Well, most of them.”
    “Not according to Jeremy.” She hung her head, ashamed. Nicholas picked up the way her heart lurched at the mention of her former lover.
    “Well, Jeremy is an idiot.” Alyssa stole the words out of Nicholas’s mouth.
    “He never cared about my faith before the Saints came along. He just kind of laughed at me a little, but that was it.”
    “When did it change? What happened?” Alyssa asked.
    “He went out with some drinking buddies. There was a brawl. One of his buddies died. He swears it was a monster who killed his buddy. Says he was next to be killed, but this Saint stepped in. He saved Jeremy and then recruited him. After that, it all went downhill. He started taking all of these self-defense classes. He stopped hanging out with his regular buddies. And then finally, he started getting on me for my faith.”
    “I’m surprised he let you live, knowing what you are.” Nicholas didn’t mean it to come out so harshly, but it was the truth. The Saints never suffered a witch to live unless they served a purpose, and then once that purpose was finished, so was the witch.
    “Jeremy would never hurt me.”
    “You say that now.” How could she defend that man? It was beyond Nicholas’s understanding. And angered him in a way it shouldn’t.
    “You’re such an asshole!”
    “Enough with the compliments, you’ll give me a big head.” Nicholas tried to suppress a smile.
    “That’s not something to be proud of.” The angry flush in her cheeks was hard to ignore. Her heart pumped so fast in her chest, it was almost calling out his name, Nicholas, Nicholas, Nicholas .
    “You have to face reality. Whatever the reason, he’s gone, and never coming back. You chasing him down though, that’s just asking for trouble. They know what you are, even if you don’t fully know it yourself.”
    “Which brings us to the matter at hand,” Lysander said. “Why are they poking around at the church again?”
    “That’s exactly what I wanted to find out. But before I could do that, I got sidetracked.”
    “What do you intend to do with her?” Lysander asked.
    Kitara gasped.
    “No harm will come to you here,” Alyssa tried to reassure her. “Contrary to Jeremy’s belief, not all vampires are bad. In fact, some of us are very good.” Alyssa shot a lusty gaze to her shirtless man and mouthed the word later .
    “Says the woman who still has blood at the corner of her mouth,” Nicholas laughed. 
    “Jealous?” Alyssa teased.
    Nicholas ignored the taunt. “She’s got no friends or family here. I think it best we keep her until we know what’s going on with the Saints.”
    “Did anyone think to ask me what I wanted?” Kitara asked.
    “No,” Nicholas replied.
    “Well, I’m not staying in a house filled with vampires.” She crossed her arms and all but put her foot down. Not that it would do her any good, but it was a cute attempt at stubbornness.
    “You’re safer with us than you are out there.”
    “You’re kidding, right? I’m human, you’re vampires.”
    And just like that, she was back to the anti-vampire campaign. “Oh, don’t start. How many times have I saved your life… this week?”
    She held her tongue in puzzled silence as if trying to find a way