Catastrophic Attraction - Eve Langlais Page 0,54
honestly believe they could take her and not have him retaliate?
“Someone very rich.” Over her shoulder, she said, “Take the girl.”
That more than anything caused him to snap. “Don’t you touch my princess.”
“The princess has a new owner she can call Daddy.” Theona’s evil smile was peppered with the sound of weapons firing.
Instinct made him fling up power to form a shield. All the projectiles clattered to the ground, the vial of sedative on one dart cracking enough to leak on the ground.
Theona gaped. “I didn’t know you could do that.”
Turned out she didn’t know a lot of things he could do. Weaving small, short shields, he managed to get close to the Centurions, which were harder to kill than the average swamp beast. But once reinforcements arrived in the forms of the people who’d declared him king, they gained the upper hand.
Soon the soldiers—the two left alive at any rate—hit their knees with metal-covered hands laced over their heads. Theona looked astonished and angry.
He saw it the moment the calculation took in the situation and adapted to it. Her expression turned frightened and teary eyed, much like the first time they’d met. Only this time he saw through it.
She came to him with a trembling lower lip. “Please, Roark. Don’t kill me. I had no choice.”
“Liar.” He glanced away from Theona to see Charlie tottering toward him. The shield he’d maintained around her collapsed as his strength ebbed.
Looking at his daughter, he knew he couldn’t kill the mother. Until she left him no choice. When she pulled that knife and held it to her own daughter’s throat…
There wasn’t a mind shield strong enough to keep him from saving his little girl.
Chapter 13
Roark ended the story with the death she’d seen coming from the moment he started. Casey eyed him, her words soft given his daughter slept across the room. “You were the one who killed Charlie’s mother.”
He hung his head. “She didn’t give me much choice.”
“I’m not disagreeing with what you did. I’d have done the same. She played you. She would have betrayed you again if given a chance. I’m going to guess Charlie doesn’t know.”
He shook his head. “She was a baby when it happened. It served no purpose to inform her that her mother was evil.”
“Sounds like the Enclave I know in Emerald.”
“To this day I don’t know how I didn’t realize she was Enclave born. Highly placed in the Sapphire court, too.”
“Could the attacks be a form of belated revenge?” Her mind worked through the possible ramifications.
“It’s possible, although I would have expected it to come much sooner before we got so strong.”
“Who might have taken offense at her death? Could it be the Sapphire king?”
“She and her family weren’t well liked by him.”
“Who is she related to?” Casey asked.
“They might not be involved.”
“And if they are? Give me the names.”
“To do what?”
“Put a stop to it.”
“Even if it turns out they’re behind the attacks, eliminating them won’t stop the threat. I’m king. I’ll always have enemies.”
“Unless they fear you.”
“They already do. I’ve got a reputation.”
She eyed him. “How much of it is true?”
“Depends what you heard.”
“You wrestle swamp monsters bare-handed. Took on a squad of Centurions on your own and sank them in the marsh. Sweet talked pirates into smuggling goods over the cliffs.”
“All true.”
“So what’s false?”
He ticked off a finger. “I wasn’t born in the belly of a Reed Beast. I don’t drink the blood of my enemies, unless it’s something I’ve hunted on four to eight legs. Then I use it to make a gravy if we’re camping outside overnight.”
“You can make gravy with blood?” she mused aloud. “I wonder if Benny’s tried it.”
“Aren’t you going to ask about the magic? How much of it is exaggerated?”
She waved a hand. “No need. I’ve seen what you can do. And I have a feeling there’s more still that I haven’t.”
“You’re astute.” He yawned, fatigue in his features.
“Go to bed.”
“A good plan. We’ve a long road tomorrow.”
He rose and moved across the room, only to stop by the edge of the mattress. He glanced at her. “Where are you sleeping?”
“Right here.” She snuggled in the chair.
“That’s not a bed.”
“I’m fine.”
“You are not fine. You’ll be sore in the morning. Come,” he ordered.
She smirked. “I am not sleeping with you.”
“Don’t be stubborn. The bed is huge. If you’re worried about your virtue, then might I remind you Charlie will serve as the perfect buffer.”
The offer tempted. How long since she’d slept in a real bed?