Blood Eternal Read Online Free PDF Page B

Peruvian sources say several scattered villages have been destroyed by the shock itself and by subsequent landslides and avalanches, and it’s possible casualties will still be discovered beneath the rubble by the rescue workers already on the scene. But, as our correspondent in Peru reports, there may be more than a miracle involved for the survivors of this earthquake.”
    The screen switched to a shot of carnage, dusty men digging through rubble that appeared to be all that remained of a village. Although a few poorly dressed people stood by, some picking through their demolished homes as if looking for valued possessions, there was, strangely, no grief-stricken wailing, no urgency or desperation about these people’s searches. They were almost frighteningly calm, considering what had just occurred to their village, their families and neighbors.
    How could there possibly be no casualties?
    The camera homed in on a woman smiling and nodding, with a thin child in her arms. Smug, Elizabeth thought. She actually looks smug .
    “The few villagers we’ve met here tell us that no one was left in the village when the earthquake occurred,” the reporter went on. “And the reason for that, they say, is this man.”
    A photograph flashed up on the screen, causing Elizabeth’s heart to lurch into her throat. After which it seemed to cease beating altogether. The photograph was of a young, extraordinarily handsome man with long, thick black hair and stunning dark eyes. A faint, sardonic smile played about his full, sensual lips. He looked as if he knew everything and cared for nothing.
    “Saloman,” she whispered. “Oh, God . . .”
    There were no casualties left in the village because he’d killed them all beforehand? Would he really regard them as of so little account? Her alien, unpredictable lover . . . Jesus, could she really love him after this? Gagging, she covered her mouth with her hand.
    “Eccentric Hungarian millionaire Adam Simon,” the reporter said. “He appeared in these remote mountain villages a week ago and somehow persuaded everyone in them to leave before the earthquake struck. One of the young men from this village took video footage at the time, using his mobile phone.”
    Saloman disappeared from the screen, and, as if this granted her permission, Elizabeth began to breathe again. Now a grainy, shaky picture filled the television, showing a ragged line of people, many of them in native Peruvian dress, all carrying small bags, trailing down a mountain track. And there, carrying an old lady on his back and several rucksacks over one arm, was Saloman.
    Stupidly, it took several moments to penetrate.
    “You didn’t kill them,” she whispered. She wanted to sing; she wanted to throw her arms around the television and hug it. Tears forced their way up her throat, spilled from the corners of her eyes, and trickled over her smiling lips. “You didn’t kill them; you saved them. You saved all of them. My God . . .”
    My people had an affinity with the earth that gave them senses way beyond those of humans. . . . The world could use that.
    He’d spoken those words in New York during their pursuit of Dante, and only now, at last, did she understand at least some of what they meant. An affinity with the earth . He’d predicted this earthquake and somehow persuaded the people to believe in him and flee their homes.
    The reporter’s words broke briefly into her chaotic understanding. “A spokesman for Mr. Simon, whose whereabouts now are unknown, said his boss has opened a charitable fund to help rebuild these people’s homes. Apparently he has also donated a large sum to seismic research.”
    This was huge. Bigger than anything that had come before. Saloman was ruthless, pitiless in his extermination of those whose deaths he perceived to be necessary for one reason or another. The reasons weren’t always clear to Elizabeth, but she should have known by now that he would care for the innocent, not