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Wilhel afterward it had been Claire’s turn to offer hiue vampire attack Claire had known even then that co as love Wilhelm hadn’t see for Andreas when he pressed her to be his ain, it wasn’t even a week after they were blood bonded and mated that Wilhel What a terrible, foolish mistake she’d made She knew that now--a bitter lesson when her head was filled with doubts about Wilhelain for Andreas Claire was still reeling fro as a black SUV screeched to a halt at the curb below her

Two heavily arht her in the blinding beaht "Frau Roth?" one of them asked, clearly surprised to find her there "We were alerted by silent alarht?" She didn’t know if she responded or not She felt nu?" the other guard asked her "Are you alone here, Frau Roth? How did youbloody havoc the past couple of nights?" Claire had no answers for the, well-arents kept her close as they ushered her back inside and began a search of the place "Don’t worry," one of the with Director Roth, are going to get the bastard who attacked your hoht," agreed the secondas if to reassure her "You’ll see Soon you’ll be sohts ever happened" Claire excused herself to the bathroo not to screaround facility hidden below an unspoiled forest in southern New England, a creature that did not belong to this age-- or, in fact, this Earth--bared its enor roar Seven feet tall, hairless and naked except for the thick tangle of undulating skin s that covered it froht to behold All the more so as it paced the cylindrical UV prison that confined it,fro froh-tech laboratory wing, Wilhelm Roth was distracted by a sudden, si him with Andreas Reichen Roth’s senses told him the instant she’d bled for Reichen The taste of it was acid on his tongue Like the captive Ancient in the other rooe, but he claether and bit back his fury Even now he could feel Claire’s torment, the spike of her e in his own veins That she still pined for Reichen came as no surprise to his for him all these years, but her eak and her blood had easily given her away Not that Roth had ever particularly cared about Claire’s faithless heart Love was a fleeting, fickle emotion that he’d never hadthese were the things he valued And he was a da for twenty-one days," said the Breed male atched with Roth froos, although he’d gone by another name, one of several aliases, when he first approached Roth about joining his revolution Or, rather, his evolution, as Dragos’s plan was intended to elevate the Breed from the shadowy underworld they were forced to inhabit now, to a place of supreos and a few of his hand- picked associates at the heled lack of sustenance is painful, of course," Dragos continued, "but in another few days, his bodily functions will begin to slow to a suitable level We’ve been adular doses of sedatives to speed the process along, but unfortunately with this type of operation, time is the only proven,you, Herr Roth" Roth snapped himself out of his distraction He inclined his head in a nod that was full of careful respect "Not at all, sire" It was suicide to piss Dragos off, and based on the Breed"You’re beginning to concernlately with that pest back ho your attention away frorated, he lowered his head even farther "No, sire Not in the least" Dragos knew about the destruction of Roth’s Darkhaven in Ha and the country house He knew Roth’sof the fact that she and the one perpetrating the assaults had a history together Roth had his own history with Reichen, too A hatred that began h he often wondered if Reichen understood the depth of his eno in order to see Reichen suffer for it He had to rein in the current situation back ho sure that Andreas Reichen met a swift, certain, and preferably painful, demise Roth lifted his head to meet the hard stare of his commander "You’ve no cause for concern whatsoever, sire Our aze drilled into him "See that it is, Herr Roth" On the other side of the vie, the Ancient let loose with another agonized howl Dragos watched, unflinching, as the creature as his father’s father clawed at himself and shrieked in pain "I’ve no further need of you at this ti at Roth

"I will look for a report of your current status later this evening" "Yes, sire," Roth hissed through a tightly held smile That smile turned to a sneer as he exited the lab and headed out to attend his business for Dragos

When his cell phone rang in his pocket, it was all he could do not to crush the thing in his fist as he storh the bunker "What is it," he snapped into the receiver He listened, blood boiling in his veins, as an Enforce informed him that they had his Breedmate safely in custody "Is she alone?" "Yes, Director Roth And by some miracle, she appears to be unharmed We have her with us here at your office in the Speicherstadt" "Excellent" Roth turned into an unoccupied supply room and closed the door behind him "Put her on the line I would have a ith her"

Claire wanted to ignore the Enforce on the bathroom door, but she couldn’t hide in there forever Noto Wilhel to speak with her "Frau Roth," called the agent "Is everything all right in there?" She got up fro and went over to open the door As she caent thrust his cell phone toward her She took it Slowly brought it up to her ear As soon as she heard Wilhel hotly across the receiver, she knew that he was furious with her Her veins jangled a warning that she had no patience to acknowledge "You lied to"But then, you’ve lied aboutscoff was as sharp as a blade "What the hell are you talking about?"

"The ht They had no intention of taking Andreas out of there peacefully You sent a death squad to kill hierous inpidual," ca of your safety, Claire" "Really?" Her voice clih to draw anxious looks fro of an issue to you, then why did you insist that I stay there with him? You practically thrust rated across her nerves "Truthfully, I don’t see the point of your distress, darling

You did e to come out of the situation with your pretty neck unscathed, I assuhted co to let hier and revulsion and not a little fear "What about the girl from Aphrodite, Wilhelm? Did she walk away from you unscathed?" Silence stretched on the other end of the line and it gave Claire the courage to keep going, to lay everything out in one rush of breath "What do you know about the attack on Andreas’s Darkhaven, Wilhel to do with that?" She practically choked on the aords "Did you send a Minion into his home with a death squad on orders to kill everyone inside? Are you the cold-blooded murderer he says you are?" "For Christ’s sake, Claire Listen to yourself You are spewing a lot of paranoid nonsense" "Am I?" She heard the hesitancy in his voice She could practically hear the wheels in his shrewdhis errors and how to s between you and Andreas? Has he threatened to expose you in some way, or is this personalbecause of the past?" "I could care less about the past," he replied, utterly devoid of e between Reichen and et just a short tio What kind of mate would I be to you if I let him defile the sanctity of our bond and simply walk away uncontested? There’s not a male alive in the entire Breed nation ould deny ht If the violence Andreas had orchestrated the past feeeks was not reason enough, in drinking from her, a blood-bonded Breedmate, he had just written his own death warrant Claire sed the lump of dread that crawled into her throat "You’ve never loved me, Wilhelm Have you? Why did you want me for your mate? Why do you care what I do nohen I have never truly been a part of your life? Our bond has never been anything but a farce--" "If you are looking for a way to justify your actions, Claire, you are sorely et hts due er in his tone and knew from the sharp way he’d cut her off that she would find no mercy in hiht of hi more of his death dealers into the city after Andre made her heart squeeze like it was in a vise "Wilhel me, Claire Not for hient back on the phone now You’re going to go with the Enforceents to their headquarters and help them in their pursuit of thisanioddauards’ attention

Both of theaped at her as Wilhelm’s furious outburst ricocheted across the rooents carasp He listened for only a uard over to Claire and instructed hied in her chest as the agent wrapped up the private conversation She could see the confusion and sy up and came toward her with the steady cal difficult situations "You need to coently but firmly "We have orders, Frau Roth I’m sorry"

"No" He reached for her and Claire’s panic spiked "I won’t go with you Take your hands off rave "Let’s not ht?" Claire wrenched her ar steps away from them, fully prepared to bolt if she could just reach the door She didn’t even couard was there before she had a chance to blink

The other caainst the s bite of the taser for only an instant before the shock took her legs out from under her She crashed to the floor on a broken screah her "Pick her up," she heard one of theo open the vehicle" Claire felt large, hard hands hoist her to her feet She heard the apartht air skate across the floor frorunt and a sick, sodden sound of soent holding on to Claire let go as he faced whatever it was that now stood on the threshold of the open door "What the fuck!" Claire lifted her head and couldn’t hold back her cry of stunned relief Andreas

Oh, God he ca body blocked the doorway, his eyes blazing, fangs glistening white with ent who’d tasered her, his throat brutally skewered and all but severed by a length of twisted black wrought iron As the second agent drew his weapon and prepared to fire, Andreas stalked inside and fired on hi him with the swift, deadly ai else existed "ClaireJesus Christ," he said, his voice gruff, his expression as grave as she’d ever seen it He s every inch of her as if he feared she was broken His strong fingers treht--desperately hoped--he ain "Are you hurt?" She shook her head, feeling wobbly and unstable until Andreas wrapped his aruided her away frole" style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7451196230453695" data-ad-slot="9930101810" data-ad-format="auto" data-full-width-responsive="true">