Eluria's Enforcer (The Argadian Heart Trilogy Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page B

save you now.”
    He pulled back and pinned her beneath a hard
cobalt stare. “Save me? From what? I had purpose. You would take that from me.
You seek to hobble me with emotion and desire I do not need. Memories that
serve no purpose other than to impede my duty.”
    Eluria sighed and then picked up the bowl.
“Your duty? Duty to rulers who kill on a whim for power and greed? Who destroy
your past to make you the perfect killing machine? This conversation serves no
purpose. You must eat.”
    “I will take no food from your hand,
Twilighter. Release me or terminate me. Now.”
    Eluria rose. “Be obstinate, Enforcer.
Eventually you’ll eat, even from my tainted hand.” Devon closed his eyes and
his jaw tightened as he twisted away from her. He reminded her of a small male
unable to have his way. She sighed and turned away.
    “Why did you approach me in stasis? What did
you hope to gain?” His words halted her.
    She whirled back to him. “I don’t have that
power. I never entered your stasis. Explain what you saw.”
    “You. Beckoning me. Calling to me.” He
studied her for long moments. “Different than you are now. Yet the same.”
    He’d had memories of her after becoming an
Enforcer? Was that possible? She’d never heard of that anomaly before. Was the
Nanus process deteriorating in some way? Or was it Devon who was the exception?
    “I never came to you in stasis. As
unbelievable as it may be, it appears you retained a memory from Before. Or one
resurfaced. How long have you been having the visions?”
    “Over the last several years your form has
appeared to me. I felt no emotion attached to it, only the vision. I didn’t
know who it was until I accessed your file.” His gaze arrowed past her, as
though focused elsewhere.
    “Your hair and form were the same, but you
were Maigin.” His eyes refocused on her, seemed to assess the lines of her
body. She felt uncomfortable beneath the fierce look. “Your face was softer,
your eyes held purity.”
    A knife pierced her heart and she turned
away. His vision was of her as she had been before he was taken. Maigin. A pure
young woman eagerly sought by many young Argadian males for Union. Once loved
by Devon. Before he’d been taken. Before she’d discovered the betrayal by her
father. Before she’d made the choice to become a twilight companion.
    “It appears it was the shadow of a memory of
me which haunted you in stasis.” Her voice was husky with suppressed emotion.
She would not let the bittersweet memories of Before hurt her. She’d convinced
herself to move beyond them long ago. It was impossible to go back, and
destructive to yearn for what might have been and would never be.
    “What happened, Eluria the Pure? Your father
is a powerful Tribunal member. Why would you throw away your position and
purity to become a twilight companion? You had no need, you already had power
and wealth.” His eyes darkened, dilated. “Your signature radiance glows scarlet
with sexual fire. Was it fucking you craved? Did you thirst for more Argadian
khout than your father’s position could buy through Union?”
    She pulled inward, attempting to dim her
radiance, knowing it glowed for him and no other. It’s the way it always had
been By Symion, his words cut deep. Pain washed through her. He would never know
what it cost her to become a companion. The enhancements she needed to ingest
faithfully just to be able to perform without illness. He would never see the
deep scars seared in her soul.
     
    *          *          *
     
    Devon saw her flinch at his words. He’d hurt
her. Remorse filled him. It tasted odd. He’d never felt the emotion before and he
was uncomfortable with its weight. He’d seen the pain before, knew its
definition, but it had never touched him. Not like this.
    “I find I hunger. I will eat the food you’ve
prepared,” he said gruffly.
    Slowly Eluria made her way back to his side
and knelt. He found it pleasant to watch her.