Rhyannon Byrd - Primal Instinct 04 Read Online Free PDF Page A

descended from a Merrick bloodline,
then why haven’t you ever been given Watchmen supervision?” He knew that only
the dormant Merrick/human bloodlines had been under strict surveillance, but it
seemed criminal that an exception wouldn’t have been made for a family of
females, even if they were witches.
    “According to Monica, there was never any supervision
because we’re not human,” she said, telling him what he already knew. Before he
could point out the obvious flaw in her statement, she added, “Now that my
father’s gone, I’m the only human Harcourt. But my stepsisters were…are Mallory
witches.”
    “So it’s true,” he murmured. “The child is part
Merrick and part Mallory?”
    She nodded again, then quietly said, “But only half.
Her father was human.”
    “Doesn’t matter,” he said in a low voice. “The Casus
are still going to be champing at the bit to get their hands on her.”
    “But it doesn’t make any sense!” she protested softly,
tightening her grip on the three-year-old. Pressing Jamie’s head to her
shoulder, she covered the little girl’s ear with her hand. “She’s only a child.
She can’t be awakened! And her Mallory powers aren’t even manifested yet.”
    “They’ll want her anyway. Monica said her
Mallory-Merrick blood mix is too strong a lure for them. They’re going to value
her power and her bloodline, even if she hasn’t awakened.”
    Her rage was obvious, the furious blaze in her violet
eyes so intense he could have sworn he felt its heat. “Well, they’re not going
to get her.”
    “That’s where I come in,” he told her, taking a step
closer.
    She tilted her head back to stare up at him, and Aiden
could sense just how badly she wanted to believe him. “You’re really here to
help us?”
    “I really am.” He reached out and ran his thumb over
her lower lip, mesmerized by the sight of his dark skin against that smooth,
glossy surface. Her breath caught, and he pulled his hand away as he lifted his
gaze. “You know, you’re not stuttering anymore. What gives?”
    The look she sent him was suddenly pure teacher, thick
with disappointment and reproach, and the corner of his mouth kicked up with
another crooked grin. “What? Too rude of me to mention? You gonna smack my hand
with a ruler?”
    Jamie wiggled down from her aunt’s arms, then tugged
on the leg of his jeans, demanding his attention. When he glanced down, she
lifted her chubby arms into the air and said, “Up.”
    Praying that he didn’t accidentally hurt her, doing
his best to be gentle, Aiden lifted the little runt off the ground, perching
her small body on his right arm. “Yeah?” he asked, quietly noting the latent
power he could feel humming within her. The keen intelligence burning in her
big eyes seemed almost too sharp for a mere toddler, and he made a mental note
to question Olivia about it when they were alone.
    Acting as though she was about to tell him a secret,
Jamie leaned her face close to his and whispered, “Livie only talks like that
when she’s weally nervous. Or when she’s scared.”
    He arched both brows. “Is that so?” he asked, ignoring
the almost silent curse that Olivia muttered under her breath, her
embarrassment obvious.
    The child nodded, her dark curls tumbling over her
smooth forehead. Looking into her small face made something in Aiden’s chest
hurt, as if he’d been dealt a physical pain. It was unthinkable that anyone
would want to harm something so precious and innocent, but then that was what
the Casus specialized in, things too gruesome and wrong for any normal person
to comprehend.
    He slanted a curious look toward Olivia. “And the idea
of the Casus hunting you down doesn’t make you nervous?”
    She crossed her arms, her voice hard with anger as she
said, “It ticks me off even more.”
    Well, hell, he couldn’t help but admire her spunk. For
a kindergarten teacher, she was pretty feisty.
    “You take care of us now?” Jamie asked,