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He carried her outside, ignoring her , and presented her to the horses--and tried not to resent the cooing and petting they received Then he settled his bundle of witch on the driving seat, tucking the blankets around her to his satisfaction

"Well, that was sih," Blaed said as he and Jared watched the happy horses and Thayne set off at a brisk walk

"Si a hand on Blaed’s shoulder "Especially since you’re going to keep her company"

"But--" Blaed looked wistfully up the road

Jared followed the direction of Blaed’s attention "Itwas your idea to have Lady Lia sit out here, Blaed Not that I told her that So there’s no reason for her to feel annoyed withyou " He gave Blaed a friendly punch in the arm and smiled too innocently "Tell you what You look afterthere was nothing Blaed could say to that, Jared jogged up the road to join Thera, leaving Blaed to entertain Lia

Frustration felt so much better when shared

"Want soht up to Thera

"No"

"Too bad" Knowing Blaed atching, Jared threw one arm around Thera’s shoulders

Thera turned her head and stared at the hand so close to her teeth

Resisting the instinct to jerk his hand away, Jared hoped she’d let hiers

"I have an idea," Jared said cheerfully "Why don’t you just think of me as another older brother?"

"I don’t have a brother, older or otherwise"

"I don’t have a sister Let’s pretend"

Her huff turned into laughter

It jabbed his heart

He’d thought she was in her late twenties, about his own age Noith her face softened by humor, he wondered if she was even close

"Where are you frohter died The softness disappeared froain

"Nowhere," she said tightly

He heard the pain in her voice and wanted to ease it without betraying Lia’s confidence about their being set free "Perhaps, e reach Dena Nehele, you can persuade the Gray Lady to let you return to your farief that flashed through her before she was able to lock it away again

"I have no faainst a heart-wound, Jared tried to find so else to talk about "Blaed likes you"

"Blaed’s a fool," she snapped

Thinking of how Blaed looked at her, with too much of his heart in his eyes, Jared’s sympathy for Thera rapidly faded

"Tella bitch come naturally to you, or do you have to work at it?"

He’d expected her to lash out at him It unnerved him to see tears fill her eyes and spill over

"Thera," he said softly, trying to hold her close to coled to break away froainst his chest "It’s safer to be a bitch Can you understand that?"

"Yes, I can understand that," Jared said, gently wiping the tears aith his hand

"It’s hard to let go of a useful weapon Hard to trust"

"I know" He hugged her once, then eased back, pleased when she didn’t shake off the arm draped co for several ed at hi at Raej, Thera? Why was a Green-Jeweled, unbroken Black Widow sub to the humiliation of the auction block?"

"To escape Why else?"

Dry, sharp areen eyes for a moment When it faded, Jared looked into a spiritual desert

Thera took a deep breath, let it out slowly "My ed with bitterness "The landens always think being Blood and using Craft has to ent It doesn’t necessarily s We’re just Blood

"She was pretty and gentle and had an innate sweetness that made her shine Or it would have if she’d stayed in her ho a life that suited her But one day, a Warlord froe and saw her Courteous and ad heras if he’d never seen anyone quite so wonderful Then he rode back to the court, and she was pleased to have been adle" style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7451196230453695" data-ad-slot="9930101810" data-ad-format="auto" data-full-width-responsive="true"></ins>