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She pressed the back of her fist against her mouth All the ain He would only try to use her power to free et Paenther, too, he’d search for another way until he succeeded in freeing more

And she’d die before she helped him set loose another of those monsters

Slowly, she sank to the floor, cold from the bleakness of the future before her Her old life was over And she had none to replace it She could never go back Yet trapped in the Ferals’ prison, there was no way to go forward Was this it, then?

She pressed her head back against the wall, tears falling freely as Paenther’s words replayed in her head Whether we choose to let evil live, or we fight to destroy it, defines our lives Choose, Skye

She snorted softly She had no choices

But she’d made one, hadn’t she? She’d freed Paenther and accidentally removed herself froht choice, no matter what happened to her

When the Ferals ca she knew Maybe, in some small way, she could help them defeat Birik and his Daemons Maybe in so she’d caused with her gift

Then, if they still felt they had to destroy her, so be it What was one life when so many would die, when so many creatures had already died, because of her?

With a hard shudder, she pulled her knees up, wrapping her arht around them

So be it

But, dear Mother, I don’t want to die

As Paenther descended the stairs with Evangeline, Lyon opened the front door to the Shaman To all appearances, the man who stepped into Feral House was little more than a boy, a fifteen-year-old dressed in costuone era He nodded to Lyon, then looked up to aze, his eyes ancient in his youthful face

The Sharowl rumbled in Paenther’s throat "Get me out of these shackles"

"I’ll do what I can"

When he reached the foyer, Paentherroom Like every rooinal oil paintings,from the midnineteenth century

While Paenther took a seat on one of the deeply cushioned chairs, the Shaman pulled up a footstool and took hold of one of Paenther’s ar his eyes, he began to chant, e Paenther had heard him use before, one he hi, tense ot to breathe, histhe Shaic to work

When the Shaether unhappily, Paenther wanted to yell his fury

The Shato have to do more research to see if I can find another way"

Paenther closed his eyes, wrestling down the fury infla as he wore these shackles, he ree

He speared the Shaaze "The witch is in the prison Lyon wants you to bind her htened the Shaman’s mouth as he nodded Like his own, the Shae attack He’d been a youth at the tih he was one of the oldest Therians alive, he looked like a young teen and alould

Paenther rose and led the s, his arrim as he eyed the manacles still on Paenther’s wrists

"No luck" Paenther’s tone was clipped

"Bring the witch to the war room as soon as the Shaman’s bound her"

Paenther nodded "Then, Roar? She needs to be soot her claws in ot yourself cleared"

"I did That’s why I know someone else has to see to her after this"

Lyon eyed hihtfully, then nodded

Paenther led the Sharound chambers When they reached the prison cell, Skye rose with that fluid grace of hers and faced hiht, her chin raised In her eyes he saw a e and hopelessness, as if she expected the worst but was prepared to face it all the sa to reach out to her, to reassure her nothing bad was going to happen to her But he couldn’t reassure her even if he wanted to Mage witches didn’t live long in Feral House For good reason

"She’s not tied" The Sha near her unless she’s tied"

Skye pressed her lips together and turned her head Paenther opened the cell and grabbed one of the lengths of rope he’d originally intended to stake her out with Skye put her hands behind her back, allowing him to tie her without effort

As he looped the rope around her wrists, his body began to react to her nearness as it always did, rising, hardening as if he hadn’t just jerked hiainst her soft hair, to rub his body against her softer curves His hands itched to slide over the parts of her only his eyes had ever touched

He gripped her wrists harder than necessary Just the touch of his flesh on hers had desire flowing through him, raw and hot Goddess, what she did to him She turned her head, and it was all he could do not to press his th of her neck To lick, to nibble

With a growl of deep frustration, he finished tying her and stepped out of the cell, allowing the Shaman to take his place The Shaht reserve for a hissing cobra Repugnance darkened his eyes as he circled the witch, chanting the binding spell

Skye looked down at her bare feet

Syotten place inside hie He would not feel sorry for a witch

The Shaman stopped abruptly "You haven’t removed her cantric"