Scenting Hallowed Blood Read Online Free PDF

had not been
afraid or filled with disgust, as Meggie might have been. No.
Curiosity and excitement had bubbled up within her, and the tall
woman had nodded at her, as if recognising an affinity between
them.
    ‘You are Tamara Trewlynn?’ Her
voice was low, beautiful. When she took off her glasses, her eyes
would be large and deep as ocean pools.
    Tamara’s mouth had gone dry.
She rubbed her soil-seamed hands on the front of her jacket. ‘Yes.
What can I do for you?’
    The woman laughed — a full,
secret sound. ‘May I come into your garden? I’d like to talk to
you.’
    ‘All right.’ Tamara wasn’t sure
if the gate opened, or if the Grigori woman walked through it, but
suddenly she was looking up into her face, only inches away from
the heat of her body. The dark glasses were removed, and there were
the eyes: full of history and forbidden knowledge. Tamara felt
sucked of breath.
    ‘We have lot in common,’ said
the woman. ‘My name is Barbelo.’ She held out her pale hand, a
giant’s hand, which enfolded Tamara’s grubby fingers like a
muscular team of serpents. ‘I don’t want to waste time. Let me tell
you the point of this contact. My people know of the Pelleth, as
they know of us. We all know the Shining One is coming to us. The
Grigori look down upon the Pelleth, and the Pelleth despise the
Grigori, yet we should be working together at this time. The
destiny of the Hanged One affects humanity and Grigori alike. Old
quarrels should be buried now. This is a crucial time.’
    Tamara knew her face had gone
red. ‘But that’s exactly what I feel!’ she exclaimed.
    ‘I know. That’s why I’m here.’
Barbelo coiled an arm around Tamara’s shoulder and began to lead
her towards the cottage door. ‘I know we will be friends.’
    Inside the cottage, Tamara made
tea while Barbelo sat at her kitchen table, seeming to fill the
room with her body and her presence. She spoke openly about how she
felt the Grigori had become stale and staid, almost to the point
where they had forgotten the reason why Shemyaza would return.
‘They are obsessed with conspiracies and politics,’ she said. ‘Smug
little cabals of pompous power-mongers, whose magic is bled of
life.’
    Tamara interjected excited
remarks to illustrate how her own opinions of the Pelleth mirrored
Barbelo’s of the Grigori. ‘They live in the past,’ she said, waving
her arms for emphasis. ‘They hate and fear change. It is absurd,
for that is exactly what Shemyaza represents.’
    Barbelo smiled a long, thin
smile and nodded. ‘Oh yes! I heard your dreams, Tamara Trewlynn. I
heard your lonely call. We are both renegades, and I respect your
abilities. However, I do have more knowledge of this subject than
you, and am prepared to help and guide you. We must work together,
as outsiders in the dark.’
    Tamara warmed to the image
conjured by these words. A Grigori woman was sitting here in her
kitchen, talking to her as if they’d known one another for years.
She could hardly believe it was happening. ‘Nothing would please me
more,’ she said.
    Barbelo put her head on one
side. ‘Of course, our association must remain secret from both
sides... for now.’
    Tamara nodded.
‘Absolutely.’
    ‘We must use them without them
knowing it.’ Barbelo delicately took a sip of tea. ‘We work only
for the good of the land.’
    Tamara’s trust in Barbelo had
been instant and all-consuming. After the woman had left, Tamara
had felt as if she’d met someone with whom she was destined to fall
in love. She’d been unable to relax, pacing her cottage like a
restless cat.
    Now, Tamara knew instinctively
that the voice that had spoken through Delmar Tremayne that night
had been the voice of Barbelo. The Pelleth, in their blind faith,
hadn’t even questioned where it might have come from. Meggie’s talk
of dead ancestors was pathetic. The Pelleth lived on the same land
as Grigori, yet seemed to think they were invisible to them.
    Tamara parked her car