Forget Me Not Read Online Free PDF Page B

knowledge would affect you like that. I am sorry.”
    She started to sit up, out of his embrace, but seemed to lack the strength. After a moment, she relaxed back against his body.
    Her breathing was fast, drawing his attention to her breasts. The clothing she wore skimmed over her curves, molding to them. He knew it was dishonorable of him to stare, but it was not every day that he was greeted with such an alluring sight.
    The edge of her shirt had crept up, revealing a narrow ribbon of skin above her blue pants. The temptation was irresistible, and he was already fighting his natural urges to tap into his power. Combatting the urge to touch her as well seemed too much to ask of himself.
    Toren traced that band of skin with the tip of one finger. The silken softness that greeted him had a magic all its own. Even the slightest pressure shaped her flesh.
    The women of his kind were not so malleable. Their skin was as firm as his, protecting them from the harsh elements that surrounded them. One single diamond storm would tear the fragile skin from Adreeahbenwah’s body.
    It struck him that she could not survive in his world, just as everything important inside of him would die if he stayed here. As strong a warrior as he was, he was not powerful enough with strands of magic to construct a shield that would protect his mind from this place, even for a brief time. His skill lay more in speed and aggression, rather than the more delicate intricacies of protection and defense, like others of his bloodline.
    “How did you get here?” she asked.
    Toren debated telling her, but if he conversed with her, she might stay in his arms—an idea he found too compelling to resist.
    “My brother in marriage cast me here so that I could not give testimony to what I had witnessed. He was the one who killed Elina.”
    “That’s the guy I saw with the knife, right?”
    “Yes.”
    “Why did he kill her?”
    “He wanted a child. Elina confided in me that she worried about his lack of control. He was becoming angrier as time passed—as he tapped into more powerful threads of magic best left to those with decades more practice than he had. Elina knew he was behaving in a dangerous manner and did not want to subject a child to his anger. She wanted him to seek peace, to be content with his inherent power, but he found it inadequate. She said she was going to tell him her decision this morning. I went to her home to protect her from any backlash, but I was too late.”
    “You showed up just in time to see what he’d done. Why didn’t you report him to the police?”
    Thinking about those moments was difficult, but at least he could still remember them. He took solace in that, knowing that even his darkest memories weren’t eroding. “He is an enforcer of our laws—the one who oversees justice in our area. It is his job to punish the guilty, and until now, he was praised for his fair and even hand. He knew all would believe I had killed Elina if he said it was so. No one would question his authority without reason.”
    “And with you here, who would do the questioning?”
    “Precisely.” He turned his face away to hide his shame. “Elina and I had argued the night before her murder. Our parents heard the quarrel and knew I was furious. I wanted her to wait for me to arrive before she told Grynar she would not have his child. She refused, saying it was a private matter between her and her husband.”
    “So he set you up to take the fall for what he did?”
    Toren searched for the meaning of her words. “When he saw that I had entered the room and witnessed what he had done, he opened a rift and sent me here before I could raise any kind of alarm. He knew I was newly home from battle and not yet restored. He thought my weakness would prevent me from finding a way home. He underestimated me.”
    “So you go home and then what? You tell the police what you saw?”
    It took him a moment to translate the word police . “Grynar is