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Marina, Queen of the Demons, studied the vast expanse of the forest, her extraordinary gaze cutting through thick foliage and mounds of dirt and rocks Fla fire illuht in every direction S, scented streanawed at her with the deter human was nowhere to be seen More importantly, her favorite slave was no where to be seen
"Da into fists, sharp claws biting into her skin
Calling a halt to the search and co her army to make caain possession of the girl Yet with every irl&039;s scent Morning was due to arrive at any moment, and while the harsh rays of daould not kill her, her people hunted best in the dark, their eyes too sensitive for the day
Now she would have to wait, and the knowledge curled her lips in a scowl Where was the slave? Where had the huods a the ensuing chaos But one human should not have been able to steal her slave
Where were they?
Would the pair beg protection from another race? she wondered, but discarded the idea almost instantly Her slave always lauded the merits of freedodonized as she was, she would have to avoid the cities
Which hy Marina was so far fro out of the ordinary She uttered a low snarl in the back of her throat, the sound of it reverberating throughout her entire body Where were they?
A gentle, metallic breeze kissed the back of her neck and Marina whipped around, knowing her solitude had just been interrupted Her eyes narrowed at the handso before her
"Hello, Marina" The silky male voice floated across the short distance
"What do you here, Layel?" The question erowl Had this been one of heran answer
The vaerously seductive slant "That is no way to welcome an old friend"
Old friend? Ha "You didn&039;t answerto strike Why not strike him down? While the demons and vampires were not enemies, they were not friends, either And she&039;d wanted to destroy this shty bloodsucker for many years Every tiged him to love her - and he had denied her
Vampires were fast, unnaturally fast She&039;d have to take hiaze drank him in He was tall and lithe, a creature who radiated power and sex A lethal combination Many an Atlantean queen, no matter her race, had fallen prey to his deadly charms He possessed pale skin, perfectly sculpted features, and crystalline eyes that usually revealed only ht stalker
"You are not welco another inch closer
"Of course I aht "This is aze moved as she reassessed the milieu The trees were taller than those on her own land Lusher Greener The sweet scent of ash and sulfur so prevalent to her kind did fragrance the air, but underneath it was the scent of flowering blooms and sea salt
It was his land, which meant the vampire&039;s own ar
Her claws retracted into her nailbeds, and she scowled How had she missed them? Another failure on her part, obviously Her scowl deepened She ht now, but she wouldn&039;t live long enough to gloat; no, his arhter
"Well?" Layel pro, the expression made him appear all thefor a hurinned "The human who deciuards?"
She gritted her teeth at the reminder She didn&039;t understand how one man, a human at that, had wreaked such desolation All she kneas that she would not rest until she caught him And when she captured that hu his suffering and enjoying every moment of it
"How do you know of his actions?" she delass "Word travels fast here That, you should know"
A ht her attention, and Marina relided toward her The de tents Sharpening weapons Consuuard, a handsos, and long raven hair that cascaded down his back, held a goblet in each hand
He offered the first to Marina, then presented the second to Layel with an alluring smile Her jaitched Even her males were susceptible to the vaht be thirsty," he said, his words for Marina, but his gaze on Layel "Do not coain," she snapped "Remain at camp or it will be you the army has for dessert" Expression panicked, the de erratically Leaves and twigs floated and danced in his wake, before dropping back onto the dirt
Alone with the king once again, she gripped her goblet, watching hi He was so pale, so exotic She sipped the rich, cri the aniin has a new bride," she said, leaning against the rough bark of a tree trunk The tips of her horns pierced the top layer An idea began to for
Layel arched a dark brow "I know I have seen her" "Then you know she is huaze never leaving hers, and unceremoniously dropped the cup He slowly closed what little distance there was between the over the dirt and limbs in his path When he was just within reach, he stopped, his cool breath caressing her cheek "What does she have to do with the hule drop of blood trickled from his lips She leaned forward and captured the droplet with her fingertip She brought her finger to her lips and licked away the drop with relish
Perhaps she and Layel could help each other For the ti her sense of failure Yes Together, they would be all-powerful Together, they could destroy anything Destroy anyone
She dropped her cup to the ground, letting it clatter against his Instead of answering his questions, she asked him one of her own "What do you know of a portal that leads frohed, his husky a her She scowled Marina was not a woods would not be so stupid as to place a doorway to their precious surface kingdootten"
"Of course they would erect a doorway to the surface If there is a way in, there has to be a way out"
"True, but a doorould place the huods would never do such a thing" His words dis his huods My spies claiht her here"
Layel frowned and stroked two fingers over his jaw as he considered her "The portal is not for your use, Marina"
She jerked her chin up "So you know it&039;s there? You know it exists, and yet you tried to pretend it does not?"
He gave a negligent shrug "I know everything And yes"
"You are not the Jewel of Duna "You cannot possibly know everything"
"Ah, Dunaed out each syllable as if they were a caress to his senses "A thing no longer yours to command," he said with a sether Every sovereign in the land had owned the jewel at some time or another, and Marina had possessed it all too shortly "I will get it back, I assure you"
His wide shoulders lifted in another shrug "I do not have to be Dunas only death to Atlanteans If you enter, the gods will kill you"