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She ignoredafter us Our ain"

Her words sank like a dagger into mybehind ainst the barrier "Mo about?"

"Frohter, and my parents You, him, and your demon blood are to stay away fro to find us, I’ll formally request Teainst the barrier for support and felt the hot sting of tears as they broke through the da with you, Mo her, or else this was an illusion This was not the woman who’d raised ainst the invisible wall I stu on the asphalt when the barrier abruptly dissipated

She walked to ry "I am your mother" She pressed a hand to e I didn’t understand A tingle gathered at her fingertips and worked its way down h my body Her voice lowered to a whisper "I’m sorry, Justin but it has to be this way Give David e, please" She kissed my forehead "I have no choice" Fear blossomed in her eyes "No choice" With that mysterious state to warn me about when you called me? You said, ’whatever you do, don’t,’ and I lost the connection"

She answered without turning around "The sa I just told you Whatever you do, don’t try to find us, Justin" She wiped so off her face Slid into her car and left

I tried to move, tried to follow her But whatever she’d done to me had locked my muscles in place, and all I could do was follow her car with ht Elyssa appeared before me moments later, eyes ith alarm She patted my face and spoke to me, but it was several minutes before my muscles responded to coed in my chest

"What happened, Justin? Who was that?"

I sucked in a breath to overco in my heart and scanned the area Before I could ask which way the car had gone I felt a sudden release of pressure in hdriveway toward aat a birthday party Chocolate cake Mo in the corner of the roo Her shoulders tense and then slulimpse of the other person’s face A man’s face He smiles But the smile has no kindness to it It’s the ss off flies or torturing ani nearly overwhelms me as I stare into that very familiar face If he had his way, I would be that tortured animal

"Justin?" Elyssa’s face snapped into view

I yankedondesperately to remember the o?" I asked

"Where did who go?" She looked around, her forehead creased "Who were you talking with?"

"My ht like steel barbs in my throat and it was all I could do to keep back the furious tears threatening to break free I was so angry I could hardly think straight I wanted to destroy so Take the Conroys and break them, one over each knee I didn’t even knohat they looked like, for god’s sake My only randfather was the horrible recollection of hi away my baby sister

Elyssa’s eyes lit with excitement "She came to see you? What did she say?" The joy in her eyes flickered out when she saw the sorrow branded ondrowned the joy on her face "Oh, Justin, I’e to my dad She doesn’t want either of us in her life anymore and she’ll call on the Templars if we try to find her"

Disbelief washed across her face "Are you kidding me?"

I shook my head and squeezed ht it wasn’t her That it must be a trick But then she touchedher" Had she released the strange ht after she left, I had another memory return"

She inhaled a sharp breath "Tell h it seemed hard to express the details in words "I saw the man’s face so clearly the first tiers inme "Eye color?"

"Gray"

"Hair?"

"Silver Slicked back"

"Glasses?"

"Yeah, he had on round spectacles" As if those few ingredients were enough, the round ht I knehere I’d seen his face before "Reolems?"