Malachi Read Online Free PDF Page B

against it, slamming his head back against the tree and grinding it against the rough bark.
    He almost gave into it.
    But even as he started to drop from the tree, he felt something in the air. A tightening, like the air before a storm. But the sky was clear. The change was followed by a rush of anger. It flooded him, drew his skin tight, and the despised fangs dropped down. He wanted to bite something—to tear something apart.
    Evil.
    The stink of it began to taint the air.
    Hearing the soft sound of footsteps, he looked down to see Alys creeping from the cave.
    “He is coming,” she said stiffly, her lips barely moving. Her eyes were dark and wild with fear, but as she stared at Malachi, she tried to force a smile. “I do not know why you did not kill me—nay, I know why. A valiant warrior I found indeed. Though you have much hatred of me in your heart, you cannot simply kill me. But him, you will…”
    Her voice trailed away and Alys clapped her hands over her ears, moaning.
    And the evil in the air seemed to draw even closer. It took on a scent. Malachi could smell him. It was a man and the very air around him seemed to be painted with the stink of blood, sweat and fear.
    Malachi moved closer to Alys, watching as she wrapped her arms around herself and rocked backed and forth on her heels. “No…he calls me…please no…”
    The anger he felt for her seemed to melt away as he saw her standing there, so terrified, so pale. She looked helpless. Even though he knew exactly how strong she was physically, the evil beating at the air around them seemed to batter at her, nearly driving her down.
    And then she was on the ground, blood pouring from her mouth and nose and eyes. Her screams sounded wet and garbled as she choked on the blood.
    “What is wrong?” he demanded, sliding an arm under her and lifting her body so he could cradle her to his chest.
    But she had no answer. She did not even seem to realize he was speaking as she began to struggle against him. “Let me go! I have to go—he calls me.”
    There was a soft, deadly whisper in the air as she spoke. Come to me, little toy. Where are you now?
    As the man spoke, Malachi could sense a power there, but like a distant thunderstorm, it did not affect him.
    Alys, though, she was terrified. It was though she was compelled to listen to the summons. The frightened woman would have gone running off into the woods had he not been clutching her to him.
    “Let me go. I have to go. He is calling me,” she pleaded, clawing at his arms. Blood painted garish, dark streaks on her face, trickling down her neck.
    Mindless of it, he caught her face in his hands. He fisted his fingers in her hair and forced her to look at him as he quietly said, “Look at me.”
    For a moment, she stilled and he thought he saw some semblance of sanity in her eyes. “I cannot deny him—he is too close.”
    “You have denied him. You left him; you came here. Do not let him break you now,” he said gently. Broken—yes, she is broken, he realized. Anger once more swirled inside him, but it was self-directed. He had been so caught in his own rage he had not seen that she was little more than he.
    A slave.
    Enslaved by fear to a creature Malachi knew in his gut was far more brutal than any Malachi had ever known. He sensed once more that compulsion that rippled through the air as yet another whisper came from the dark. “Does he force you to come?”
    Tears began to leak from her eyes, mingling with the blood on her face. “Yes—he is my sire. He created me. He can destroy me. As long as I hear his voice, I cannot deny him.” Her eyes closed and she started to whimper once more, tugging against his hold. “Please—let me go.”
    Malachi rose, bringing her with him, supporting her body with his. “And if you cannot hear him?”
    Alys sobbed. “Then he cannot touch me. But I cannot outrun his command. I had to run for days to escape him before.”
    “Forgive me,” he said quietly. He