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Unfortunately, it wasn’t a question I could exactly ask anyone in the know I had aHunter herself would not be a good idea, and the only other people I could approach who ht have some clue were Uncle Quinn and Harry Stanford himself Both were out of the question, for very different reasons

So I sed the bile backing up in nored the ever-increasing shuddering in both A anywhere but at the scene in front of uave out at the exact sarunt and drew in shuddery breaths,and my body on fire

A heartbeat later, Azriel knelt in front of h me like the wash of a warainst the wound, y radiated froh , and, after a few seconds, I felt decidedly better

My gaze met his In the depths of his differently colored eyes, barely leashed fury burned

If she but gives me the tiniest of excuses, he said, mind voice flat and in many ways scarier than even Hunter herself, she will be dead

She won’t I lightly brushed sooo from his cheek His skin was far cooler than usual, and concern sharpened anew Will you please shift into energy form and burn away the venoer as yet--

I don’t care aboutproblem with you, he cut in There was both amusement and frustration in his mental tones

I smiled I’m okay, so just humor me and heal yourself, will you?

If you insist

He disappeared, leavingat the scene in front of me There actually wasn’t that much to see anymore All that remained of the spider wo, and one of the spinnerets Everything else--all the gore and other body parts--had been consuain, pinned by the awful darkness of her eyes, and for a moment feared that I was about to become her second victim Then she blinked, and the darkness retreated

But the air still burned with the wrongness of her being Worse still, blood and flesh covered the lower part of her face and dripped froore

My sto von of weakness I could not afford I just wished I could control h the roof

"So," she said, "have you got anything to say?"

Her voice was cool, unthreatening, butrazor-sharp, blood-stained canines "Wise choice"

I sed heavily and wished like hell I could take back the words that now boundour deal was an option I’d never really had, no ht have flirted with the idea Yet I had no doubt those flirtations were the reason behind her revealing her true nature here today She’d wanted to show me just ould happen to Ilianna and Tao if I ever stepped out of line

It was e that had led thehts, and I hatedthe path I’d chosen in a desperate er didn’t help anyone, particularly the to call in the Directorate, or do you want me to?"

"Oh, there’s no need for them to be advised of events here" There was cold aumo is dead and I will erase the shifter’s memory I’m afraid this is destined to become just another of the Directorate’s cold case files"

And how many of those files, I wondered, were cold because of Hunter’s intervention?

"Then I can go?" I tried not to sound overly eager, but failed diso by

"You may Just reate key at that gun exhibition later today"

"Given you have Cazadors following ," I snapped, and regretted it alain My breath froze in my throat, and I took an involuntary step back Even that one s her teeth, and it wasn’t only A inside my head I was at full voice, too

Then Azriel appeared in front of er and darkness coain--although the fury and tension rolling off both hi

"Do it," he said softly "I will enjoy watching your soul be escorted through the gates of hell"

For a moment, she didn’t move Didn’t even blink Then she sive you your chance, reaper, but not now Not yet There is still h council dohtThen his energy surged around us, tearing us apart swiftly, but he didn’t take his gaze off Hunter until the gray fields were around us

"What the fuck," I said, as we reappeared in the secure surrounds of le" style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7451196230453695" data-ad-slot="9930101810" data-ad-format="auto" data-full-width-responsive="true"></ins>