Blood Possession Read Online Free PDF Page B

Silivasi was strong and alert—clearly bright, and unnaturally handsome, even for a vampire—as Marquis was quick to remind anyone who would listen. But the truth remained—he was not the only baby ever born to the descendants of Jadon, he was clearly far more interested in cutting his teeth on his rattle than strategizing on how to organize teams of executioners to hunt Dark Ones, and Marquis would have to come back to earth soon or they would all lose their sanity.
    “Do not worry. You’re perfectly sane!” Marquis argued, inadvertently reading Napolean’s thoughts.
    Napolean growled a subtle warning—purposeful or not, the mind of another vampire was sacred ground, not to be tampered with—to which Marquis simply waved a dismissive hand. Napolean stepped back, more than a little surprised by the casual license his subject was taking with him: Had the entire world gone mad?
    “Marquis! You will do well to remember your place, warrior; and you will take your son home to—”
    “Milord …” A soft voice interrupted the exchange before it could become heated, not that Marquis—or any other male in Dark Moon Vale for that matter—would dare to openly defy the ancient ruler.
    Napolean looked up just in time to see Ciopori Demir-Silivasi saunter into the chamber and make her way down the narrow, center aisle toward her mate, a look of solemn purpose and apology on her face. “Greetings,” she sighed as she stopped before the two of them. “How it pleases me to see you this night, my king.” She kissed Napolean softly on the cheek.
    In front of his men.
    In front of Marquis.
    Marquis’s eyes flashed red, and Napolean groaned inwardly. True, it was an instinctive male reaction that Marquis—or any other male vampire, for that matter—could hardly be expected to restrain. They were territorial creatures to put it mildly; nonetheless, the room full of warriors perked up, watching with apt fascination and more than a little amusement as Napolean hissed beneath his breath, warning Marquis to control himself.
    Truly, the world was out of alignment.
    “Please forgive me,” Ciopori continued, seemingly unconcerned by the not-so-subtle displays of dominance and aggression. “I asked Marquis to keep Nikolai for the afternoon while I went out to do some shopping. I’m afraid I lost track of the time—”
    “And refused to answer your cell phone!” Marquis snapped, feigning irritation.
    “Now, Marquis,” Ciopori said in a sweet, cajoling voice.
    “Don’t Marquis me!” he replied. “You also failed to answer my telepathic calls, woman. This is not acceptable.”
    Ciopori laughed, a carefree, lyrical sound, and smiled. “Oh, stop your grumbling, warrior. You seem none the worse for the experience. Besides, sometimes a woman needs a moment to herself.” With that, she reached down and scooped up the baby, who immediately began to wriggle his arms and legs in excited anticipation of his mother’s embrace.
    Napolean felt the energy around them stir and knew that the two of them were finishing their conversation telepathically. He had no intention of interfering—Ciopori was perhaps the only individual in the valley who was a true match for Marquis Silivasi and his… socially challenged …personality. She could give as good as she got.
    Once the energy settled down, Napolean nodded at Ciopori, conveying his understanding. After twenty-eight hundred years, he was not a male of infinite patience—and the order he kept in the house of Jadon was not a small matter—however, he had a hopeless soft spot for the surviving female children of King Sakarias, and there was no point in pretending he did not. Truly, after so many years of believing all females of their race to be extinct, all the males in the house of Jadon treated the princesses with infinite respect and awe. It was still hard to believe the two females had survived that terrible time.
    Napolean blinked, bringing his thoughts back to the present. “I