Free Vampire Apocalypse #2 Cataylst by H.M. Ward Page A

got away too, because of the dead guard
at the door. Kahli wouldn’t have killed him on the way into the
room.”
    “And what of William? Did you see him last
night? Do you think he aided her?”
    Cassie shook her head, her blonde curls
swaying as she did it. “No. Will doesn’t fight like this. If this
was his mess, no one would have found it.” The Queen’s dark brow
lifted. “It would have been cleaned up before sunrise.”
    “So he did something else, and then fled
along with Kahli?”
    “I didn’t say that,” Cassie blanched. “You
think Will attacked the King and kidnapped Kahli? That doesn’t
sound like him at all. He’s served you forever. He defends you when
people speak poorly of you. He risked his life the night your
brother gifted Kahli to you. She stabbed him and he didn’t even
fight back. Will could have punched Kahli in the face and knocked
her out. He didn’t. Other Handlers would have. He knew what she was
and how much she meant to you. Will’s no traitor.”
    The Queen stared at Cassie, as she spoke. Her
lips formed a thin line, as she listened to this little twit defend
her most faithful servant. When the girl finished, Cassie realized
that she spoke too freely, too plainly. Cassie lowered her gaze and
bowed, saying, “Forgive me. I meant no disrespect, my Queen. You
asked for my gut impression and that was it. Whatever happened
here, Will was not involved.”
    Sophia stopped in front of the girl and bent
at the waist. Taking Cassie’s chin in her hand, Sophia tilted
Cassie’s face up. When the frightened girl met her gaze, Sophia
asked, “Then, where is he?”

CHAPTER 12

    Kahli swallowed hard. Looking up at Will, she
said firmly, fighting to control her voice, “I don’t know what you
mean.”
    Will stepped back. His dark gaze left hers,
as he glanced at the floor, and then at his hands. This was insane.
Even saying it sounded too surreal, but it was necessary before
they returned to the palace. He breathed deeply and looked up at
her. Their connection was weak. It needed to be stronger. They
needed to douse the King’s pull on her. No matter what he did, Will
would lose her if the King got to Kahli and Will wasn’t there to
protect her. This request was like putting a piece of glass in the
way. It was an invisible barrier that would shatter when pressed
hard enough, but it would slow the King down, and that was all Will
could hope for.
    Will pressed his lips together, deciding that
the best thing to do was to say it directly. He glanced up at
Kahli, his heart hammering in his chest. “There’s a rule forbidding
vampires from drinking directly from humans. No single vampire can
be pair-bonded to a single human. The Queen forbids it. It weakens
the humans too quickly and there aren’t many left who can endure a
direct bite and live.”
    Kahli’s chest rose and fell as he spoke. The
room felt warmer than it was. What was he saying? She didn’t want
to leap to the conclusion. Shaking her head, she stiffened, folding
her arms over her chest and squeezing tight. “Why are you telling
me this? What rule do you want to break, Will? You’ve already had
my blood and I had yours. We’re bonded, which I’m pretty sure means
you’re dead if we don’t kill the Queen.”
    Will smiled forlornly, but he didn’t step
toward her. “The King drank directly from you, but you haven’t been
bonded to him. Yet. He will force it on you, as soon as you’re
within reach. If that happens, Kahli—there’s nothing I can do to
save you. You’ll be his.”
    She blanched as Will spoke. He tried to
maintain eye contact, but she looked away. Kahli’s fingers were
clutching her arms so hard that her knuckles paled and turned as
white as her bodysuit. Finally, she asked, “And if we break a rule,
it can prevent that?” Will nodded. “What rule?”
    “The same one the King broke.”
    Kahli’s jaw twitched. “What are you
saying?”
    Will watched her from across the room. He
didn’t want to