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Lucan stepped forward and withdrew a terrible, serrated knife dangling from a strap around his hips that she hadn’t previously noticed "Why don’t we grab his sewer-shit blood now and leave the carcass?"

Bram stood between him and Mathias with a raised brow "The blood has to be fro descendent of Nimue Back off"

Anka stared Lucan had never been one for aggression or violence He’d also never been anything less than solicitous and tender with her But this other side of him… She watched hi had changed hi of a century old bond been so a heart?

Shock lifted his head to glare at her in a stern warning Yes, she supposed there would be punish harder to bear, she’d need it

Mathiasrelative of Nih"

"Not quite Unfortunately, we also need a banshee Know one?"

Those pale blue orbs fell on her, agloith lee, and Anka’s heart froze "Most think they’ve been exterminated, but there must be one nearby I’m sure of it"

It was all Anka could do to reive herself away She sed and stared at a bare spot on the wall across the roo heart to slow

Bram looked to Felicia for confirmation, who nodded Frustration crawled across the Doomsday Brethren leader’s face "Do you know one or not?"

Anka resisted the urge to wring her hands Mathias couldn’t lie with Felicia in the rooive her away? Would Lucan look at her in horror?

Shock stood and shot her a furious stare before getting in Bra, aren’t they? We could all know one and have no fucking idea"

Bram’s expression said that he didn’t believe either one of theain, she wondered if she should confess She tapped her toe nervously and reviewed all the reasons she’d already considered, then ca when she couldn’t make a difference Unless she became a mother, her bloodline was useless to this cause

"If you run across a banshee on the next street corner, send her this way, yes?" Brahtly, then turned back to Mathias "No ideas where Morganna’s fatal potion ht be hidden?"

Mathias shook his head "Unlike Merlin, Nimue didn’t like to hear herself pontificate She left als I’ll check what I have, but I expect there’s nothing"

Another dead end How long would she have to endure Mathias’s presence at Brethren gatherings under this pretext of killing Morganna when no one had all the right tools? Bloody farce And for what? So he could taunt them all? Get closer? Earn the trust of someone foolish and maybe break theullible?

"You look at your records I’ll keep searching through what I’ve got You letof use I’ve shown you oes, so you can show me yours If I discover that you’ve leftin the wind, there will be hell to pay"

Mathias laughed, so da the Doo an up close and personal view of everyone involved They all knew it That they had to let the terrible scum employ them to help with a joint cause that benefited therier

"Of course I’ll keep tabs on Morganna so the slippery witch doesn’t get too far fro place In theout that banshee She can’t be too far" Mathias stood, his grin a bit too chipper and a Stay in touch"

Braave him a sharp nod, then dismissed him without a word No love lost there Everyone else watched hie in their eyes Shock followed, and Anka mentally screamed at him: If you care for me at all, how can you pal around with the wizard who nearly killed me? Shock turned his head sharply in her direction Behind those shades she kneell, she sensed hi as he followed Mathias out the door Once outside the hter once they were gone, and everyone breathed an audible sigh of relief

Except Anka

She stor rooloves, and it didn’tbag, she siht

A strong hand clah her body,up her heartbeat Anka wanted to screalare at Lucan over her shoulder "Don’t try to stop me"

"You could hurt yourself if you do that without gloves"

"I don’t bloody care! I can’t hurtin that roo forced to look at his s…" She choked back a sob, then caught herself No weakness now When she was here, she was a warrior and she had to act like one

She tried to punch the bag again, but Lucan threw himself in front of it

"Hit me instead," he de like he’d lost his ry, and you have every right to be"

Pressing tre emotions She could not fall apart, could not cry, could not screa herself under control again

"Hit Me"

The snap in his voice whipped her with demand She would never want to hurt him, but he stood there and offered his body so that she would have the er

"Anka, now"