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her bloodied body, high in the air, and pitched him forward with every
ounce of preternatural strength he possessed.
The grin on Angel s lips made Preston shudder, but he didn t give a
damn what the vampire did to his brother. He had to reach Gabrielle.
Galvanized by fear, he lurched forward. Please don t let her be dead.
The phrase kept going around in his head, making him sick with
despair.
 Dear God, let her live and I ll gladly walk away from her.
Anything you want, I ll do, but please let her live, he moaned, his
knees buckling. He dropped to the pavement at her side. His heart
nearly exploding with the need to have her alive and well vampire or
human, he didn t care as long as she lived.
Preston reached beneath her with trembling hands, cradling her
head in his arms. He smoothed back her long, dark hair and he knew
the truth. He could no longer deny that she was dead.
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He threw back his head, screaming out his pain and grief to the
heavens, the moon and the stars. A droplet of water stuck his face, and
he knew nature itself was sharing his pain. Numbness gradually settled
over him as the rain beat down upon his upturned face.
For he also knew with an utter certainty, that his heart had died with
her.
That s when the screaming began &
* * *
Cameron s mind went blank when Angel lifted him so abruptly and
tossed him into the air like so much garbage. When he landed, a sharp
pain tore at his ribs, and every time he took a breath, the agony
intensified. He knew, without looking or examining his rib cage, that
several were broken. It wasn t the first time he d broken his ribs, and
he doubted it would be the last time. At least he was still breathing,
albeit painfully.
He felt the presence of someone else and looked up, arrogantly
expecting to see his brother expecting him to be apologetic for the
hell he d put him through, not to mention the rest of the clan. He d let
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him blubber for a while, he decided, and then maybe he would forgive
him. Or make him think he was forgiving him, and then catch him off
guard, and stick it to him the same way he d stuck it to his interfering
girlfriend.
His eyes widened as the tall, dark figure of the vampire that had
treated him so abominably loomed over him. A tiny trickle of
uneasiness coiled into the pit of his gut. He tried to dispel it. He didn t
have anything to worry about. Didn t he wear the medallion? No
vampire could strike a killing blow to the wearer.
He fumbled for it, telling himself he just wanted to feel it under his
hand. His hand groped the skin of his neck. His fingers grasped
nothing except thin air.
His only protection against the wrath of the creature who stood
before him was no longer around his neck. For the first time in his life,
Cameron Adams felt the faint stirrings of fear.
The vampire grinned a savage grin, oddly enough bringing more
beauty into his perfect features. In his anger he was magnificent,
Cameron had to admit. A fierce and loyal warrior, something Preston
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knew little about, he thought with a great deal of rancor.
 Looking for something, vampire hunter?
 No & uh, nothing at all. Cameron erased the anxiety from his
face. He d show this soulless creature not a smidgen of fear. He was
an Adams and he would damn well die like an Adams, with grace and
dignity.
 Perhaps you lost something? Angel held up his hand. Dangling
from a slender index finger was the medallion on its thin strand of gold
links. It swayed in the rising wind, the dim lighting overhead
illuminating its shininess.
 Give it to me, Cameron demanded. He braced his ribcage with his
left arm and jumped to his feet. He reeled slightly as a white-hot lash
of pain whipped his upper body. He didn t let it stop him from lunging
for the necklace.
 Oh no, you don t, Angel said, jerking it out of arm s reach. He
leaned nearer.  I want you to know how close you are to the means of
your deliverance as I do unto you what you have done unto others. I
am going to make you suffer the way you ve made my kin suffer in
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their final hours. He leaned closer.  I want you to feel what they felt,
see what they saw, and know you are dying.
Cameron shrunk away from the vampire s venom, his hands going
to his neck in an automatic gesture of protection.
Angel threw back his head and laughed.  I don t plan to let you off
that easily.
Bells of warning went off in Cameron s mind. Okay, if he didn t
intend to turn him into a bloodless husk, what did he intend to do?
Cameron ticked off the remaining possibilities. He could think of
nothing worse the monster could do to him. He decided he could
afford a display of bravado.
 Are you too afraid of reprisals against you and yours from my
family to risk killing me?
Angel said nothing.
Cameron let out a hoot of delight.  That s it. You don t want to
mess with my family. He lowered his voice to a conspirator level. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]