[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
expression shone with rage.
I shook my head solemnly. I didn t want to tell him the next part. I ve killed two werewolves. The
first was the pet of a rogue vampire, and he tried to rip my throat out when I came for his master.
Lucas sat on the edge of his desk. It did not escape my notice that he was now outside my reach. And
the second?
The second& I looked around the room, like I might find the right words floating overhead. I told
you earlier I d met another werewolf who knew my name. That s part of what makes the second kill so
difficult to explain. I want your word that what I tell you doesn t leave this room and you won t retaliate. I
could tell he didn t like it, but he nodded, his mouth fixed in a grim line. My second werewolf kill came at
the request of an alpha in Albany.
Marcus? Lucas was taken aback at this. I, for my part, was shocked he immediately knew the man
who had hired me, though I suppose any good king would know who worked under him.
Yes. He came to me because a new wolf within his territory wasn t abiding by the laws. Your laws.
This wolf was using his newfound strength in human form to force himself on local women. Marcus was
worried it would bring your people to the attention of local authorities. When the boy attacked Marcus s
human daughter, things came to a head.
Oh God. Lucas looked away from me. Why didn t he come to me? We have ways to handle these
things.
Marcus didn t ask me to kill the boy, I need to make that clear. He asked if I could use my unique
abilities to make the boy leave the Albany territory. The boy sealed his own fate by thinking he could best
me in a fight.
The tension in his jaw and the furrow of his brow told me my news had hit him harder than either of
us had anticipated. I had been killing my own kind for six years. I d seen the look of betrayal and grim
determination on the faces of the council as they placed death warrants in my hands and sent me to kill
their brothers. I was a suitable means to an unhappy end, but everything was handled in a businesslike
fashion.
When Marcus asked me to deal with the werewolf in his territory causing such trouble, I didn t see it
as a business arrangement. I had only seen the father of a ruined daughter. Not until now, looking at the
despair on Lucas s face, did I realize the death of one wolf could impact the entire pack. That the king
himself would mourn the death of one. Or that Marcus s vendetta would hurt him as well.
Neither of us said anything for a long time. Muted tones of early sunrise had started to filter in under
the blinds, and I was thankful they were closed. The sunlight wouldn t kill me the way it did a real vampire,
but it would be difficult to explain why I had third-degree burns rather than a tan.
44 www.samhainpublishing.com
Something Secret This Way Comes
In spite of the drawn curtain I felt a familiar sense of panic. I needed to go home. I had to get back to
the safety of my basement apartment, with its thick gloomy shades, where daylight never penetrated.
Lucas&
He raised a hand to silence me. I could imagine what he was thinking. I had the right smell, the right
taste and the right name. For all intents and purposes the only thing keeping me from being his perfect soul
mate was my own stubbornness. Then I dropped the bomb Oh by the way, dear, I kill monsters.
Do you remember his name?
Pardon?
He fixed a hard glare on me, his sorrow overcome by anger, and his voice quivered with an uneasy
mixture of the two emotions. The boy you killed. It sounded so filthy the way he said it. Do you
remember his name?
The way he asked it told me a lot rested on my response, possibly my very life. I might not be
human I was paid to be a killer and I could be more of a monster than those I killed but I was not
without a soul.
William Reilly. His name was William Reilly.
Lucas nodded. He must have already known the name. I didn t remember the names of everyone I d
ever killed, but I remembered the ones I felt bad about.
This had gone from precoital intensity to feeling like after-school detention in the span of seconds. I
for one was ready to be done with it.
If there s nothing else, I mean, if you re done with me& I inclined my head towards the door.
For tonight. He kept watching me as I rose to leave. I m sure this has been more than enough for
one evening. His phrasing implied he hadn t totally written me off, but I was going to get out of here
while I was still in his good graces.
Secret? He apparently wasn t quite done.
I stopped halfway to the door, turning to look at him. He padded towards me, and I admired the
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]