Free Corinne (Book One of The Red Diamond Saga) by Jennifer Janne Page A

Aaron, but after a moment of thought he let his fist fall back to his side.
    “I could feel her.” Aaron confessed as his body tensed in expectation of physical punishment.
    Conner's anger abruptly diminished at those words. “You what?” He asked in a hopeful tone.
    Aaron hesitantly lifted his gaze from the floor, but he did not meet Conner's eyes. Beside him Lisa glanced between the two with concern. The tension between them had been building over the past few years, as Aaron questioned more and Conner grew impatient with his subtle rebellion.
    Lisa had become somewhat of a peacemaker between the two, though she struggled with empathy for others, she had a special affection for Aaron.
    “She was in so much pain.” Aaron breathed as he recalled the heat that had burned through him, as if he was Corinne. “Was I supposed to let her suffer?” He asked, though he already knew the answer to the question.
    “I told you she would return to us, the easy way, or the hard way.” Conner said firmly. “Because you decided to interfere, now we may have to take more drastic measures.”
    “She was going to die.” Aaron insisted as he finally looked directly up at Conner. The moment he met the older man's eyes he regretted it. They were ice cold with dominance, and at the same time a heat brewed deep within them that warned of consequences for his defiance.
    “No, Aaron, she was going to beg.” He spoke in a soft tone, but his voice was so controlled that it seemed as if he had never felt an emotion in his life. “She was going to need me, us, to help her. I knew once the injection Lisa gave her awakened her senses fully she would grow violently ill.” He ran his hand along the curve of Aaron's cheek as he looked more deeply into the man's eyes.
    “What I did not plan for was you ruining it all.” He lifted his hand and let it fall in a swift but forceful smack along the man's cheek.
    Aaron ducked his head to the side in reaction to the pinpricks of pain that rose in his cheek, but he instantly returned his eyes to Conner's.
    “You did something wrong.” He insisted, despite the fear that he felt for Conner. “The pain was killing her.”
    Conner smirked faintly as he glanced from Aaron, then to Lisa. “He's not the smartest, is he?” He asked Lisa, keeping his gaze to her, though his entire focus remained on Aaron. “Well that's something you have in common with your sister.” He sneered, and the force of the back of his hand swung into Aaron's cheek, knocking the man off balance with the surprise strike and sending him tumbling to the floor.
    When Aaron moved to stand, Conner was already towering over him. He gazed down at Aaron with such intense disapproval that Aaron felt as if he was being crushed by the glare that fixed upon him. He managed only to get to his knees before Conner lowered his hand to the top of Aaron's head, and with no physical pressure whatsoever was able to restrain him in that position.
    “You do not tell me, what I do right or wrong.” Conner explained in a patient tone as Lisa watched anxiously. Though Conner usually did not allow his emotions to overcome him, when it came to Aaron he sometimes grew so furious that Lisa worried he would do more than hurt him.
    “If you had not given her a dose of the medicine to ease her pain, she would have had to turn to us. She would have realized that she does not have a choice but to be part of this family.”
    He paused and glanced over at Lisa as he sensed her displeasure at how Aaron was being treated.
    “Lisa understands that, don't you Lisa?” He asked the young woman gravely.
    She was younger than Corinne and Aaron by two years, and though she had been a twin as well from different parents, both babies had not made it to full term. Her twin had died during birth and she was left. As a result she had formed a strong bond with Aaron, which was often tested by Conner to be certain of who she was most loyal to.
    “Of course.” She responded