Chained (Brides of the Kindred) Read Online Free PDF Page B

spa.”
    Her words brought the other part of
Maggie’s dream back.
    “But…what do you mean thirst? He’s right
beside a stream—within easy reach of the water.”
    “Indeed, but the verium keeps him from ingesting
it. Speaking of which…” Lady Pope’nose walked over to a small wooden barrel
which was directly under the hook with the strange round, knobby key. She
pulled on a glove which was obviously provided for the purpose and scooped up a
handful of silvery-gray dust from inside the barrel. Then she took two careful
steps forward, reached out and sprinkled the dust over the top of the
prisoner’s head.
    “Why did you do that?” Maggie looked at
her doubtfully.
    “It wears off in time.” Lady Pope’nose removed
the glove carefully and dusted her hands together. “Verium is extremely useful
for sapping strength and suppressing power but you can’t forget to renew it
from time to time. That should hold him for a week, while I’m off to the spa.”
She gave a decisive nod. “Well, let’s go see if Jonas has managed to find that
remote yet. I swear I’ll have his hide nailed to my front step if he hasn’t.”
    Maggie reflected that before the savage
display she had just witnessed, she would have thought that Lady Pope’nose was
joking. Now she was pretty sure the sadistic mistress was speaking literally.
If the hapless Jonas couldn’t find the remote, he was literally going to be
skinned—probably while still alive. But if he did find the remote, the
prisoner who was also the man in her dreams was going to live out the rest of
his life in unspeakable agony.
    I have to do
something, she thought as she
followed Lady Pope’nose out of the dungeon. I can’t leave him like this—can
I?
    Turning her head, she cast one last look
behind her at the chained man. To her dismay, she found that he was staring
right back at her, his pale blue eyes fixed on her every move. As she watched,
he nodded at her gravely, a look of respect on his strong features.
    Maggie gave a quick, jerky nod in
return—she didn’t know what else to do. Then she turned back to the door and
fled.

 
    * * * * *
    She wept for me.
    For a long time after the dungeon door had
clanged shut, the prisoner continued to stare at the place where the girl in
his dreams had stood. He couldn’t tear his eyes away from the spot where he’d
last seen her any more than he could stop the endless circle of his thoughts.
    She shed tears for my
pain. She tried to save me—to help me. She even shared my torment.
    No female had cared for him in such a way
in more years than he cared to count. Not since before he had become the trained,
deadly killer he was today. Pope’nose had told her all that—had told her about
his past, his kills—and still she had defended him.
    Why? he thought, remembering the look in her big eyes. He
longed to know their color. Why did she care? Was it because she dreamed of
me too? Will she ever come back?
    But even if she did, what good would it
do? He was nearly at the end of his strength—his power and stamina completely
sapped by the damned verium. In fact, the extra scoop Pope’nose had sprinkled
over him before she left might well mean his death. As strong as he was, the
thirst and weakness were stronger—slowly they were killing him.
    He was already on his knees but now he
sank lower, ignoring the jolts from the pain collar as he went. Finally, he lay
on his back with his head in the stream. He could feel the cool water running
through his hair but it did nothing to wash away the deadly verium. Nothing
could do that until the seal was broken. Until he got at least a mouthful of
the life-giving water past his lips, the barrier of the dust was complete and
unassailable.
    And since there was no way to break the
barrier without someone willing to help him—to give him the kiss of life—he was
probably going to die.
    As his eyes closed, his last thoughts were
of the lovely girl with the sad eyes and the honey blonde