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"Where are you keeping ht off guard by the abrupt change in subject

Unfortunately, Laylah’s hope she ht blurt out the truth was doo expression hardened her delicate features

"Ah Poor Kata," she purred "I can’t tell you how it’s broken ave me no choice" She slid forward, the scent of expensive perfu around Laylah "Of course, now that we have you, there’s no longer a need for her to reht be convinced to release her"

Laylah’s throat threatened to seal shut as the vaers

She’d never tested the limits of her ability to heal

She preferred not to start now

"Incentive?" she htened, the nails digging into her flesh

"The child"

"Laylah …" Levet tugged on her jeans "No"

"Shut up, gargoyle," Sergei snarled

Marika ignored the peanut gallery, her dark eyes boring into Laylah with the flat, soulless gaze of a snake

"What do you say, niece?" she urged "Surely we can coreement that’s mutually beneficial? After all, the child is worthless to you"

Laylah sed her words of protest At thechip And her only means out of the cellar alive "Hardly worthless"

Marika studied her with undisguised suspicion "You want to barter?"

Laylah forced a sypsy blood"

Levet tugged on her jeans "Laylah"

Sergei lifted his hand, sending an invisible blast of energy slaoyle

"I said shut up," thebully "That’s not the best way to start negotiations"

Marika’s grip threatened to crush Laylah’s jaw as she jerked her back tothat lurked deep in the brown eyes

The vaerous addiction

One that ht very well be the death of Laylah "I want the child"

"Yeah" Laylah tried to s, her bones beginning to crack beneath the pressure of those slender fingers "I got that"

"And I’ll do whatever necessary to getwith the sacrifice of Kata if you don’t give me what I want"

Visions of death danced before Laylah’s eyes, but before the deei was laying a restraining hand on Marika’s are

"Marika," he er alone"

There was a tensegrip on Laylah’s face easing as she tilted back her head to test the air

Her beautiful face twisted with frustrated fury "Victor"

"And his entire clan" Sergei was already headed for the door "We have to leave"

Marika shook her head "Not without e of the varasp, then gathering Levet close she held up a warning hand, e chunk of rock fell froround

"Stay back," she gritted

"You bitch Do you have no respect for a Valentino original?" Rising to her feet, Marika brushed off the clinging dust, ed wound on her shoulder Of course, the wound would heal The gown? It ht be a write-off "You’ll pay for that"

Laylah braced herself for the loo the infuriated va her toward the door

"Marika, let’s go"

Frigid hatred hung in the air, but Laylah’s powers once again lashed out, cracking the stone floor and filling the air with the prickle of an approaching lightning strike

An impressive display of powers

A pity that they spent most of their time in hibernation And when they did decide to appear they usually created more trouble than they orth

Thankfully, Marika was suitably freaked by tre toward the entrance, she sent Laylah a glare of veno the child to inable pain"