mythean arcana 06 - master of fate Read Online Free PDF Page B

speed up and laugh, her earlier tension evidently forgotten. The sound made his chest ache and his hands tingle, reminding him of how things used to be. How they used to be. How he used to be.
    Before the Seer had gotten her torturous hands on him.
    He shook his head hard, banishing the memories that clawed at his mind. He’d vanquished that demon and he’d sure as hell make sure it stayed down. 
    It had no place in his life, especially now that Aurora was back. The woman he’d wanted more than anything, and the one who had been the reason his life had been torn apart.
    Did she know it? The role she’d played in his downfall?
    Unlikely. The girl he’d known, though wild, had been kind. She’d not have been able to look at him normally tonight—at least somewhat normally—if she’d known what had happened to him after she’d left. He’d have seen it in her eyes if she’d known.
    He shook the thoughts away and focused on the cold night. The moon set the snow to glowing. It stretched as far as he could see, a pristine white canvas. The Vatnajökull Glacier was the largest in Iceland. He’d made his home at the edge of it since he’d left Scotland, but this was the first time he’d had anyone from that old life here with him.
    “I think I see it!” she called.
    He dragged his gaze from her and looked toward the horizon. The glow was faint, but discernible. It was stronger than before, and they were still several miles away.
    He glanced back at her. She’d sped up her machine. “Slow down!” 
    He hit the throttle on his own, but had gone no more than a dozen feet when the hum of her engine cut off abruptly and the machine died.
    He yanked his vehicle to the left and killed the engine, then leapt off and raced the short distance to her. He didn’t want whatever had hurt her snowmobile getting his too. It was a long walk back. For small bursts, his wulver speed rivaled that of the snowmobile. Wulvers, his father’s people, shared the spirit of the wolf. With it, they possessed the wolf’s speed and heightened senses.
    “Damn it!” Aurora said as she climbed off. Mouse hopped out of her carrier and landed lightly on the snow. “It just died.”
    He grunted and tested the controls. Nothing. He popped the hood in the front and looked at the engine. “Looks normal.”
    Aurora frowned at the horizon. He followed her gaze to the glow that emanated from the now visible soulceress city. They were still a couple of miles away, but he could see the barest hint of the tall, gray stone walls that surrounded the labyrinthine city built by long-ago soulceresses. If his clan had built a place that strong, they might have survived. As it was—
    He shook the thought away. Her arrival seemed to have dredged up all his demons. He hadn’t had these thoughts in years. Centuries. 
    “I can feel the magic of the city even here,” Aurora said, a shiver in her voice. “Do you think it killed the engine? Some ancient spells kill modern devices.”
    “Aye. The glow is messing up the soulceress wards.” Soulceresses had been fierce about defending their home. They’d have put wards on it that limited the advantage of an approaching enemy. Technology they couldn’t understand would have definitely been a threat. “It’s been expanding, but this is even worse than I expected. We should have been able to get much closer before the wards stopped us.”
    She shivered. “Did it kill your machine too?”
    “No, I was behind you. The magic hasn’t reached quite that far yet.”
    “But it’s getting stronger, isn’t it? Whatever is wrong with the portal is warping.” 
    “Portal? How do you know it’s a portal?” The university hadn’t given him any details. 
    “Long story.” Her tone was dark.
    “Shit’s getting worse here. I think I ought to hear it if we’re going up against it.” Even he could feel the unnatural magic vibrating on the air. It had an oily, evil quality that made the wulver part of his soul