Devils Kiss (42 page)
“As well as the Hellraisers’
gemini
,” Whit said, grim.
gemini
,” Whit said, grim.
Zora had not considered that. Her heart sank.
“Our small army ... needs allies,” said Livia. “Gather them. But my strength ... fades. Too much. I need—”
Her words abruptly stopped as her image flickered. She tried to speak, but no sound came from her. Another flicker, and she was gone.
They waited many minutes, but Livia did not reappear.
“Do you think ... ?” Zora could not finish the question.
“I don’t know. But I do know that I want to get you far away from this place.”
Holding hands, they walked through the streets of Manchester. Darkness lay thick over the streets, and things lurked in the shadows. Zora kept her fire magic close. Whit did not sheath his sword, but had it out and ready.
Finally, they made it to the edges of the city, then continued warily onward until it was well behind them. Seeking safety, they made their way back to the glen. It had been but a few hours since they had lain here, made love here, willfully pushing the coming threat from their minds.
They had met the threat, and survived. But the fight was far from over.
She could not think of that now. She wanted only him.
In the protective shelter of the glen, they reached for each other. They kissed, deep and long. They were bold together. Tender, too. Everything she wanted. She was exhausted, wrung out, yet he renewed her spirit with his own.
“I have something of yours,” she murmured.
“My heart.”
“And I will treasure it, always. But this belongs to you.” She pulled back slightly and pressed an object into his hand.
For some moments, he simply stared at the pocket watch. Then he closed his eyes and gripped it tightly.
“They would be proud of you,” she said.
“I think ... they would, too.” He slipped the watch into his waistcoat pocket.
She reached for his hand. “There’s something I need to see.”
Summoning her fire, she brought forth just enough to illuminate his skin. What she saw made her heart lift.
“Gone.” He tugged at his clothing, pulling off his coat, his waistcoat and shirt, casting them all upon the ground like discarded regrets. Wonder and relief shone in his gaze when he beheld his flesh, marked only by the wounds he’d taken in his many battles. But the flames that had marked him as the Devil’s possession, those had vanished.
Zora pressed her lips to his shoulder. He was hot satin, tasting of sweat, blood, and him. This sinfully handsome gambler. The man who had ridden into the Rom encampment, the man whom she had cheated at cards, and desired upon first sight. He was the same, yet entirely altered. As was she. They had traveled together and changed together, and with each stage of their transformation, they became precisely who they needed to be. For themselves, and each other.
A perilous journey lay ahead of them, and she would not deny her fear. She thought of all their adversaries, all the hazards: the
gemini
, demons, the Devil, the Hellraisers.
gemini
, demons, the Devil, the Hellraisers.
She gazed up at him. “To love you in the midst of danger means I have everything to lose.”
“I will always be with you,” he vowed, framing her face with his hands. “Fighting beside you. Loving you.”
“If I have that, if I have you,” she murmured against his lips, “I gladly take the gamble.”
Have you tried Zoë’s Blades of the Rose books?
Go back and read them all!
In September, we met a WARRIOR in Mongolia ...
To most people, the realm of magic is the stuff of nursery rhymes and dusty libraries. But for Capt. Gabriel Huntley, it’s become quite real and quite dangerous ...
IN HOT PURSUIT ...
The vicious attack Capt. Gabriel Huntley witnesses in a dark alley sparks a chain of events that will take him to the ends of the Earth and beyond—where what is real and what is imagined become terribly confused. And frankly, Huntley couldn’t be more pleased. Intrigue, danger, and a beautiful woman in distress—just what he needs.
IN HOTTER WATER ...
Raised thousands of miles from England,
Thalia Burgess is no typical Victorian lady. A good thing, because a proper lady would have no hope of recovering the priceless magical artifact Thalia is after. Huntley’s assistance might come in handy, though she has to keep him in the dark. But this distractingly handsome soldier isn’t easy to deceive ...
In October, SCOUNDREL whisked you away to the shores of Greece ...
The Blades of the Rose are sworn to protect the sources of magic in the world. But the work is dangerous—and they can’t always protect their own ...
READY FOR ACTION
London Harcourt’s father is bent on subjugating the world’s magic to British rule. But since London is a mere female, he hasn’t bothered to tell her so. He’s said only that he’s leading a voyage to the Greek isles. No matter, after a smothering marriage and three years of straitlaced widowhood, London jumps at the opportunity—unfortunately, right into the arms of Bennett Day.
RISKING IT ALL
Bennett is a ladies’ man, when he’s not dodging lethal attacks to protect the powers of the ancients from men like London’s father. Sometimes, he’s a ladies’ man even when he
is
dodging them. But the minute he sees London he knows she will require his full attention. The woman is lovely, brilliant, and the only known speaker of a dialect of ancient Greek that holds the key to calling down the wrath of the gods. Bennett will be risking his life again—but around London, what really worries him is the danger to his heart ...
is
dodging them. But the minute he sees London he knows she will require his full attention. The woman is lovely, brilliant, and the only known speaker of a dialect of ancient Greek that holds the key to calling down the wrath of the gods. Bennett will be risking his life again—but around London, what really worries him is the danger to his heart ...
In November, we got lost in the Canadian wilderness with REBEL ...
On the Canadian frontier in 1875, nature is a harsh mistress. But the supernatural can really do you in ...
A LONE WOLF
Nathan Lesperance is used to being different. He’s the first Native attorney in Vancouver, and welcome neither with white society nor his sometime tribe. Not to mention the powerful wildness he’s always felt inside him, too dangerous to set free. Then he met Astrid Bramfield and saw his like within her piercing eyes. Now, unless she helps him through the harsh terrain and the harsher unknowns of his true abilities, it could very well get him killed ...
AND THE WOMAN WHO LEFT THE PACK
Astrid has traveled this path before. Once she was a Blade of the Rose, protecting the world’s magic from unscrupulous men, with her husband by her side. But she’s loved and lost, and as a world-class frontierswoman, she knows all about survival. Nathan’s searing gaze and long, lean muscles mean nothing but trouble. Yet something has ignited a forgotten flame inside her: a burning need for adventure, for life—and perhaps even for love ...
And in December, STRANGER brought the adventure back to London ...
He protects the world’s magic—with his science. But even the best scientists can fall prey to the right chemistry ...
LOOKING FOR TROUBLE
Gemma Murphy has a nose for a story—even if the boys in Chicago’s newsrooms would rather focus on her chest. So when she runs into a handsome man of mystery discussing how to save the world from fancy-pants Brit conspirators, she’s sensing a scoop. Especially when he mentions there’s magic involved. Of course, getting him on the record would be easier if he hadn’t caught her eavesdropping ...
LIGHTING HIS FUSE
Catullus Graves knows what it’s like to be shut out: his ancestors were slaves. And he’s a genius inventor with appropriately eccentric habits, so even people who love him find him a little odd. But after meeting a certain redheaded scribbler, he’s thinking of other types of science. Inconvenient, given that he needs to focus on preventing the end of the world as we know it. But with Gemma’s insatiable curiosity sparking Catullus’s inventive impulses, they might set off something explosive anyway ...
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Copyright © 2011 by Ami Silber
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ISBN: 978-1-4201-2532-0
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