Timeless (Pandora Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page B

few years—just a blink of existence for him—she’d be gone, defeated by age and claimed by death.
    “Vane?”
    “Hmm?” Blinking, he pushed away his morbid thoughts and tried to focus. “Did you say something?”
    “I asked if you’d like something to drink.” She pointed toward a swinging door at the back of the room behind the counter. “I was going to make coffee. I also have water and milk in the fridge if you’d prefer.” She tapped the center of lips while her brows pinched together. “I think I have some sodas upstairs.”
    “Coffee will be fine.”
    Like the cinnamon rolls, he’d never tasted coffee, but Earthlings seemed to love the damn stuff. They’d created entire industries around the drink, and even something called a Starbucks, which surprisingly, had nothing to do with stars or deer.
    Sliding Vane’s jacket off her shoulders, Charlotte held it out to him, combing her fingers through her damp locks when he took it. “I’m going to run upstairs and change out of these wet clothes. I’ll just be a minute.”
    Vane draped the jacket over the back of a chair that sat near one of the circular tables and turned to follow. “Lead the way.”
    Her pink lips parted, but then she pressed them together again and shook her head. “I won’t take long.”
    “I need to make sure it’s safe,” he explained. He doubted the Morphling would return so soon, but he wouldn’t leave anything to chance.
    “Right, of course.” She tilted her head toward the double doors behind the counter. “This way.”
    He should have been out tracking his adversary, but that would require leaving Charlotte alone and unprotected. On the other hand, he had no doubt the Morphling would return for the female, and when he did, Vane would be waiting.
    The female led him through the swinging doors and past a small kitchen with gleaming stainless steel counters and appliances. When they reached the staircase in the back corner, Vane stopped her with a hand on her shoulder and eased her behind him.
    Taking the lead, he crept up the steps, cursing internally when the wood creaked beneath his boots. Vibrating with impatience, he strained to hear anything out of place inside the apartment while he waited for Charlotte to unlock the door.
    “Stay here.” It took him less than two minutes to search the tiny one-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment and declare it safe to enter. “Go ahead,” he said when he met her back at the door. “I’ll wait downstairs.”
    He didn’t like leaving her alone, but he hadn’t done a full check of the lower level yet. Not for the first time since his departure from Nekron, he wished Xavian had been well enough to accompany him.  Vane couldn’t be in two places at once, couldn’t watch over Charlotte and track the Morphling.
    Plus, his friend knew far more about the humans than he did, which made his assistance in capturing their target invaluable. However, it wasn’t his first solo mission, and he’d make do with the resources at hand.
    After doing a sweep through the kitchen on the lower level, and then another through the front part of the store, he ducked out into the rain to do a quick perimeter check. Satisfied when he found everything quiet, he returned inside to wait for Charlotte to finish changing.
    Lowering himself into the chair he’d draped his jacket over, he leaned back and studied his surroundings. The pale pink walls with depictions of brightly colored candies reflected Charlotte’s personality so perfectly, he couldn’t help but smile.
    Above him, the support beams creaked under Charlotte’s muffled footsteps as she moved around in her apartment. The overhead lights buzzed, just a quiet hum, and from the far wall behind the counter, the ugliest clock he’d ever seen ticked down the passing time. Somewhere in the distance, thunder rolled across the sky, heralding the coming storm. Wind battered against the front door of the shop and whistled through the cracks, while fat