Читать книгу The Blood She Betrayed - Cheryse Durrant - Страница 11

There was something evil about Liam McCalden. Not a rough, ugly evil, but the smooth, shiny kind that made her insides crawl even as she forced a smile. `Your son was showing me your home.'

`The architecture is impressive, I do boast. It was built by my great-grandfather, William McCalden. Four generations have added to it and one day it will belong to Hugh.'

`I am sure Max will grow into his destiny.'

His icy gaze gripped her like pincers until her temples stung. `You and Hugh are unsuitable friends. You know this and you want nothing more to do with him.'

`I disagree. Your son is helpful.'

`You won't change his mind, Shahkara.' Max joined them. `My father thinks he's always right.'

McCalden's eyes narrowed. `I just tried contacting your bodyguards. Ike was at home, watching TV. But Jack is not answering his phone.'

`Quit hassling me, and them, Dad. I gave them the night off.'

`I am disappointed in you.'

`Is this something new?'

`If you'll excuse us, Miss Towers.' McCalden tucked an arm around his son and walked him to the far side of the library. It made no difference of course. Shahkara could still hear every hushed syllable.

`What are you doing, bringing this girl here?'

`We're just hanging.'

`The library is off-limits. She could be spying for Findrex. Do you have any idea what would happen if they stole our research?'

`She's not a spy, Dad. She's my friend.'

`And you're not swayed at all by her pretty face and pert breasts? I don't trust her.'

`You don't know her. And nothing you say will stop me seeing her.'

`Hugh, show some sense and discretion!'

`It's my life, Dad.'

`You mean the one you're throwing away?'

The air almost crackled with venom as Liam McCalden strode from the library. Seconds later, Max returned to her side. `Sorry. For some reason, he doesn't like you.'

`The sentiment is mutual. Will you drive me west now, to gauge the Elnara's southerly direction?'

`I'd love to, except—' His breath reminded her he had downed champagne.

`Except you drank alcohol.'

`Just two glasses, but that makes me illegal to drive on my Ps. On my provisional licence.'

He did not even hold a real licence?

`I told you I would not heal you again and I asked you not to drink. Why did you not think?'

`I'm sorry. Dad has that effect on me.'

Tension rippled through her, not because she did not wish to heal him, but because she feared the intimacy. Was that why they were linked, because she had shared her Ainefire, and used her healing energies on him before?

No, she had healed others without evoking desire. Max was different. That was why he should not join her quest.

But with only three days it was unlikely she could retrieve the Elnara in this bizarre world without his help.

Doubt gnawed at her. She must not trust him, especially when desire, not sense, sparked her impulses.

`This is the last time,' she warned. `Healing robs me of energy.'

`I'm sorry. I didn't know.'

Her temples still ached from the caustic exchange with Liam McCalden. `If you accompany me on this quest, you will not drink alcohol and you will do as I instruct.'

`I promise.'

`Indeed. A man's word is his honour.' A little voice inside her whispered, Trust no one. Find the Elnara.

She feared healing Max would deepen their connection, but she needed him sober. Quashing her misgivings, she fanned her fingers across his neck and let her Ainefire creep from her vessels until it sparked through his skin like static energy. She could almost taste it tingling through his veins, scouring away the alcohol, as his fleeting hopes and vulnerabilities also prickled her awareness.

The alcohol evaporated. She whipped her hand away.

`Thanks.'

`That was the last time.' She flexed her hand, as if it had been burnt. `You can drive now. We leave immediately.'

She maintained her distance as they left the mansion. Outside, while they waited for the valet to retrieve their car, she took time to inhale fresh, cool air.

Three days. She could tolerate the effect he had on her for that long. She could distance herself and still remain in control. She must. She had no choice.

They glided through intersections of all green traffic lights towards the Ipswich Motorway. Some cars that crept up alongside them reverberated with jarring music and her hunger stirred as whiffs of fried meat and burnt rubber drifted through her window. Compared to her royal city, Brisbane was a firestorm of random smells, sounds and sights and she had never felt so alive.

Max shared information on laws, culture and technology as they journeyed west. Eventually, unable to keep up with her questions, he pulled over and showed her how to use his wondrous iPhone. She hungrily flicked through `webpages', finding hundreds of references about the supposedly mythological Taloners. She already knew they had been created by the evil god Balor three thousand years ago as a dark army set against Danu's Tuatha Dé Danann. But she also discovered old newspaper files documenting murder victims with missing hearts, or criss-cross scars marking their chest. The Taloners had been hunting this world too for a long time. How odd that humans had not yet exposed them or their secrets.

She grew worried though when she could find no reference to the Elnara. What if the Keeper was wrong and the lantern did not exist? Her journey would be for naught.

But if the compass key existed, surely the Elnara did, too.

She rubbed tired eyes and glanced at Max. `Tell me about that blonde-haired officer who commanded Ryan tonight.'

`Detective Sergeant O'Neal? What about her?'

`Her enunciation was different.'

`I think she's Irish, but she's been in Australia for quite a while. Her accent's not overtly foreign.'

`Unlike mine.'

`Yours is stronger, yes, but I think it's cute.

`Cute is unacceptable. I must work on my inflections. I do not wish to stand out.'

`I'd be more worried about what you say, than how you say it — and how you dress.'

`Is my garb not appropriate?'

`For a costume party, like tonight, it's perfect. We'll get you some real clothes tomorrow, something that'll blend in.'

`Only if you consider it necessary.' Precious minutes were ticking away. She did not wish to waste time on finding new garments, unless it aided her safety or her mission. `I have brought gems to pay for any necessary goods or services.'

`No one's going to exchange jewels for jeans in Brisbane. We'll need to visit a broker.'

`Will this take time?'

`Probably, but I have cash and plastic. I'll lend you whatever you need and once we find the Elnara, we can visit a broker then, if we still have time.'

`Agreed.'

`Actually, I think it's kind of funny that my Dad's money is helping fund your quest.'

`I do not share your amusement.' She loathed being indebted to anyone, but time was shrinking away. `Do you believe we can find the Elnara in three days?'

`Depends on where it is, but we've a good chance, Shah. We'll give it all we've got.'

She bit her lip. That was the second time he had shortened her name. Hugh, whose friends branded him Max, was now calling her Shah. He had initiated her into his circle.

Nothing today had scared her more.

Only the steady rise and fall of Shahkara's chest in the passenger seat stopped Max's heavy eyes from snapping shut during the stretch of their journey to Gatton.

Sleep added a tender innocence to her cheeks and lips that stirred his protective instincts. She was too young to be traipsing foreign worlds and hunting demons. She should be hanging at cinemas and shopping malls — not that she had those where she came from.

He eyed his fuel gauge as he parked at Gatton's Golden Arches and was wondering how best to wake her when her dark eyes fluttered open.

`Where are we?' Her fingers touched the sunroof as she stretched within her seat.

`An hour west of Brisbane. Can we check the compass to see if it's made a dint?'

She scooped her pendant over her head and slipped it into his hand.

Max checked the miniscule change in the needle's angle. `I think the Elnara is a long way south. If we fly west tomorrow, we'll get the southern coordinates more quickly.'

`Can we not fly tonight?'

`It's too late to hire anything now. We'll drive back to my place and organise the plane first thing in the morning. I need to fuel up. Do you want a burger or drink?'

`I am hungry, yes please. But I need to take a walk.'

`At this time of night?'

`The car travel is restrictive. Besides, this town has interesting views and fresh air. Is there anything I should be wary of?'

`I don't think so.' Her talons and strength would be protection enough. `Oh, be careful crossing the roads. Cars drive fast.' Great. Now I sound like a school teacher. `I'll meet you back here in fifteen minutes.'

`I will take your phone to determine the time.'

`What burger do you want?'

`You choose. I do not know what a burger is, but I am sure I will eat it.'

He worried for a moment as she wandered off, that she was tired of his company and needed space rather than needed to stretch her legs. But she'd slept for the past half hour and couldn't think of anything he'd done to rile her.

Oh. She was hungry, she needed to hunt. That's why she wanted to walk. Would she be safe? Would others?

A shiver crept up his spine, but he was hungry too so he went in search of fries and a Mac. By the time she returned to the car, all that remained of his meal deal was a scrunched up paper bag, but her eyes were brighter than amethysts and her skin glowed like sunlight on snow.

She had fed.

Max wondered if she'd caught a wild animal, or a local farmer was going to find a dead cow in the morning.

`I got you a burger but you probably won't want it since you,' — what was the polite term? — `hunted.'

Her cheeks flushed. `That is not your concern.' She slammed the door, cutting the automatic interior light and darkening the cabin.

`I'm sorry if that came out wrong. I just wanted you to know that I understand.'

`I do not need your sympathy, Max.' Her chilled voice cut him to the bone.

`Sympathy? I wasn't… Did I say something wrong?'

`Please drive your car and let us discuss this no further.'

He would have left it there if he didn't sense hurt amidst her haughtiness. `Did something happen during your hunt?'

She turned and the reflected light of the servo illuminated her scowl. `What gives you permission to be so familiar with me? First it was the pendant, then your persistence in joining me on the quest. Now you want to know about my feeding habits? For an unexceptional male, you are exceptionally annoying!'

Unexceptional! `Wow! Do you morph into a violet-eyed, spitting monster every time you feed or am I just lucky?'

`On my world, I would have your head for such rudeness!'

`Why have my head when you can rip out my heart?'

She froze to her seat. Air hissed from her lips.

Regret cut him deep. `I'm sorry. I didn't mean that. You've done so much to protect me. I just need you to know we're friends. I'm here for you and we're in this together.'

`We are not in this together and how can you claim me as your friend when we have known each other less than a day?'

`Sometimes you just know.'

`You think you know, Max McCalden? Do you know what it is like to rip out a heart and eat it while it's warm? To recoil because the blood on your hand rouses, not repulses? To know even a horror of killing will yield to pleasure and gratification?'

His stomach roiled, not because of her savage analogy but because of the hatred smoking her eyes. And not hatred for him but herself. `It's okay. I understand.'

Did he glimpse tears in those glassy eyes?

`If I took my own life, it would end. I would never need to resist the temptation again.'

`But you pray to a god. I've heard you. What's his name?'

`Danu, the Mother Goddess.'

`You live your life according to a goddess and you're trying to save your kingdom. That's more than most humans do and you're only half-human. You will find the Elnara and save your people, but you can't do that if you're dead. I really believe you will achieve this.'

As her lips parted, their eyes met and he felt her fear. He knew she'd never admit it, but she was scared of failure, of who she was and of the monster she could become.

`You've a courageous heart, Shahkara, stronger than most humans I know.'

She blinked and her vulnerability fled.

Uh-oh. The warrior girl was back and ready to whip him for sneaking behind her defences.

`Are you finished?' Her venom no longer rattled him. He knew her poise and sharp tongue masked her own fear.

`Absolutely.' He flashed an accommodating smile. Two could play at this game, and he didn't mind if she set the rules. `Do you need help with your seatbelt?'

`No.'

`Have you still got my phone? You can use the internet on the way home.'

`I'd rather you taught me how to drive.'

`No can do. You need a licence which would require a birth certificate and you weren't born in Australia. Or anywhere here.'

`But foreigners must be allowed to drive on your roads.'

`Funny that. They all have documents from their country of birth, because they were born on Earth.'

`Can you not procure me false documents? It has been done on my world before.'

`Me? I don't even know how to photocopy my school grades. There are people who can forge that sort of stuff, but it's illegal.'

`Your kingdom chokes on its laws.'

`Don't worry. When you see what our roads are like, you'll be grateful you can't drive.'

You're trying to save your kingdom. That's more than most humans do and you're only half-human.

His words stayed with her long after they returned to his house where, thankfully, they found no intruders lurking. Max offered her a guest bedroom to sleep in, but she refused, insisting the lounge was more central and would allow her to hear any disturbances.

His face pale from fatigue, he fetched a pillow and blanket for her and cleaned up the dusty remains of what had been Jack's blood, before retiring to his room.

Shahkara stayed awake for a few more hours, reading information on his phone, eating meat from his refrigerator and contemplating this boy-man whom she had snared for selfish needs. She had thought him weak, possibly incompetent, when they first met but her opinion had shifted within the space of a few hours.

She had lashed out at him after returning from her hunt, when her senses were heightened by feeding and her conscience was strangled by the guilt that assailed her whenever she took a creature's life. But her feeding had induced neither fear nor pity in him. He had thwarted her temper with patience and sage advice.

A frown twinged her forehead. Despite his weakness for liquor and his limited abilities, he demonstrated wisdom. Could it be that the years he endured in his father's household had forged an inner strength, a resoluteness?

Now, more than ever, she needed to keep her distance. The possibility of friendship could only lead to danger or, worse, death.

You've a courageous heart, Shahkara, stronger than most humans I know. If only he knew! Jada's scent haunted her like a punishing wraith and she yearned for absolution.

A tinny melody blasted through the room and she reached for Max's phone before realising the tune was generated elsewhere — from beneath the couch. She bent down and discovered a different phone. Blocked call flickered across its screen as she retrieved it. She pressed the green receive button as Max had shown her earlier and waited for the person on the other end to speak.

`Jack?' The Australian male accent sounded vaguely familiar. `Is that you? Is Max there?'

`Who are you?' she asked.

The phone clicked off. The screen beeped: Five missed calls. This was the the dead Taloner's phone. She must have knocked it from him during their fight. Come the morrow, Max might be able to use it to discover the caller's identity and pinpoint his potential killers.

No. Her spine stiffened. His assassins were not her primary concern, and wanting to protect him complicated her mission. The sooner they left the city, the better. She did not want Max dead, but he could not disrupt her plans. He would be safe if he came with her, but if he proved difficult and she was forced to discard him, it would be his fault. She could not forsake her people just because of his tawny eyes, kind words, and his rich, thudding heart.

His life-force.

Even from the living room, she could hear its beat and sense the pleasure it promised. A human heart was like a fingerprint: intricate, unique. She had sensed the goodness in him long before he saved her from Jack's talons.

She tiptoed towards his partially-open door and inhaled his scent. Closing her eyes, she imagined his heart beating against hers and blood rushed through her veins. She trembled as her heartlust swirled like a heady potion and she imagined touching his skin, tasting his blood…

Beg Danu! No!

Her talons snapped out from beneath her knuckles, ripping her skin and firing her desire. Frustration stabbed her. It was her curse. Every time she unleashed them, they cut her skin and drew blood, but the physical pain was nothing to the emotional toll. She had learnt to live with claws, but not the darker instincts lurking within. She had to be more disciplined. She refused to make the same mistake twice.

Maybe it was better to escape tonight, to ditch this boy-man before complications arose. She could find another.

But not in three days. She was loathe to admit it, but she needed him. After all, it was not her life but her people's lives at stake.

Her hatred for the Taloners burnt brighter at the thought of her own sacrifice. Since her escape from the dungeons on Gorias, she had embraced this quest as one of redemption, and almost craved the release that her ultimate death would bring. But now, for the first time since Jada's passing, she wished she could expel her death-wish and savour her life through to old age.

All because of this boy-man.

Bone weary, she curled up on the large, padded couch and prayed herself to sleep. He would not distract her. Too much was at stake.

Trust no one. Find the Elnara.