Inferno Read Online Free PDF Page B

in less than a second. “You shouldn’t have jumped in front of that fireball.”

    “You’d rather I let you get killed? Fine. Next time I’ll just mind my own business.” He stroked her hair back from her face. “You saved my life, sweetheart. Thank you. But I couldn’t have lived with the guilt if you’d died to save me.” Duncan wondered if Dante realized the serious nature of that statement. It sounded almost like a declaration of…something. Still, there was no way they could be mates. They weren’t even close to the same species. Weres hadn’t mixed with immortals since the Dark Ages.

    It was one thing for a bloodletter to find his One among mortals. Humans could be turned to become like their mates. Weres were already magical in quite a different way than vampires.
    There were tales of weres who had been turned to vampires back during the black times of the Venifucus , but such power hadn’t been needed—or wanted—in the peaceful times since Elspeth, Destroyer of Worlds, leader of the Venifucus , had been banished to the farthest realms.

    Dante tugged the blanket from under the girl, jostling her as little as possible. It was as he rose to lift her legs and slide them under the cover that he stilled. Duncan sensed something amiss and froze as well.

    Dante’s eyes rose to his and back down to Megan’s thigh. There was a mark there, and it was obvious Dante wanted Duncan to see it. He moved closer, noting that Megan was likely in too much pain to tell that something was up. He stared at the smooth flesh of her muscular thigh and had to stifle his reaction.

    There, clear as day, was the ancient mark of the Altor Custodis . It wasn’t a tattoo in the traditional sense. It was a magical mark they sometimes used on creatures that owed them allegiance for one reason or another. It was a rare thing, but Duncan had seen it once before.
    Many years ago.

    Yet another piece to the puzzle that was Megan.

    He nodded to Dante and left him to settle her beneath the blankets. He had a lot to think about.

    “She’s sleeping.” Dante strolled into the living room minutes later heading straight for the sideboard that held a large decanter of his favorite wine. He poured two glasses, bringing one to Duncan as he claimed the opposite chair.

    “That’s good to hear. With her were constitution, she’ll most likely be up and around sometime tomorrow. I’ll keep an eye on her during the daylight hours.”

    “Much appreciated, my friend.” Dante toasted him with his glass before drinking the deep red burgundy with a modicum of relief. “What I still can’t figure is how that first fireball missed me.
    I felt it brush by, and saw the remnants of it drip past me—right in front of my face. It didn’t even singe a single hair on my head. I just don’t get it.”

    “That, perhaps, is due to me. Or at least, the remaining power of my blood in your system. I believe it deflected the worst of that magical blast, though I don’t believe it would have protected you from the second one. You have your lady wolf to thank for saving your hide from that one.”

    “I just don’t understand why she did it.”

    Dante was filled with residual anger and frustration that hadn’t left him. It had hurt more than he expected to see the girl go down in a fireball that was meant for him. It was too much like his past. Too much like the tragedy that seemed to follow everywhere he went. If he didn’t know better, he’d think he was cursed.

    “You should know something. She isn’t entirely were .” Duncan sighed and placed his wine glass on the table in front of him, looking troubled. “When I was coaxing her back, I saw inside her soul. The wolf was there, but it was very separate from Megan herself. I’ve never seen that before.”

    “What do you think it means?”

    “I’ve been sitting here pondering that as a matter of fact.”

    “If she’s not fully were , what’s the other part?”

    “Human, most