Free Night's Awakening by Donna Grant Page A

kept what we are secret. We knew it wouldna last, but we were hoping to keep it going a little longer.”
    “Which is why everyone freaked the hell out when Sloan and I were in the mountain?”
    He nodded and looked at her. “There is only one other human who knows we’re immortal.”
    Elena blinked and leaned back a ways. “Human? What do you mean human ? You aren’t human?”
    Guy was opening his mouth to talk, when there was a single knock on the door and Guy’s name was called.
    “Bugger,” he muttered, and began to gather his clothes.
    Elena followed him. “What is it?”
    “Con’s on his way. Get dressed and hurry.”
    Elena let the blanket drop and gathered her clothes before kicking her pants ahead of her in the bathroom. She caught Guy’s gaze before she closed the door.
    There was something about the way he said human that she had a feeling had nothing to do with immortality. Would he have told her had they not been interrupted?
    “Guess I’ll never know,” she said.
    Elena dressed, brushed her teeth, and combed her hair. When she walked out of the bathroom, Con was standing next to Guy at the fireplace.
    Con smiled at her, though much like last time, it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Good morn, Elena. How is your ankle?”
    “It’s improving. Rather rapidly, actually. I can put a little weight on it now.”
    “I’m glad to hear it. Sometimes just resting will heal an injury.”
    She didn’t believe him. There was something in his tone, a look in his eyes. She knew in her gut they had done something to help speed the healing of her ankle.
    Con chuckled while Guy looked at the rug with no emotion showing. Elena put her hands in her khaki pockets and waited. She assumed the interrogation would begin again, though she wondered where Rhys and Banan were.
    “Would you like for me to answer the same questions as before?” Elena asked. She figured she’d be better getting right to the point than beating around the bush.
    Con shrugged with a grin. “We could. Or you could actually tell me the truth.”
    “I’d be happy to take a lie detector test if that’d help. I’m not lying. And regardless of whether you press charges for trespassing or not, you can’t keep me here forever.”
    Her gaze moved to Guy as she finished, and she could have sworn she saw a flash of hurt.
    “I want to believe you,” Con said as he slowly walked toward her. “Too much is at stake for me to accept what you’re saying so easily.”
    “I don’t know what’s at stake, but I can see it’s important. Is there some way I can help to prove my innocence?”
    He studied her for a moment before glancing at Guy. “You said you’re a gemologist.”
    “Yes.”
    “Do you think there are valuable stones in our mountain?”
    She was nodding her head before he finished. “Of course. There are stones everywhere in the world. Below the water, below dirt, beneath rock. You name it, the stones are there. I imagine there are stones that have yet to be discovered.”
    “Do you want to be the one to discover one?”
    Elena thought of the cold, damp cave and shuddered. “No,” she said, and took a step back. “No. That’s not something I ever wanted to do. I’m not daring enough. At all . My idea of running is on a treadmill at the gym, not at a park where some madman might rape or kill me.”
    “Hmm,” Con said, and rocked back on his heels. “You think Sloan might have found something in the cave?”
    “As I told Guy, it’s a possibility. She was in a hurry, that much was obvious. Once we reached that spot, she was fine for me to sit and rest as long as I needed.”
    “Did she have a map?” Guy asked.
    Elena thought back over the ride to the mountains and while in the cave. “No. She seemed to know where she was going. There were a few times she hesitated when the cave branched off, but I just assumed she was trying to determine the best course to take.”
    Con and Guy turned to each other.
    “She could’ve