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"What kind of protection?" Nathan asked
Zael indicated the silvery crystal he wore on the leather thong at his wrist "This is crafted fro to our people The colony has one, and so does Selene At one tio, the realer than this small, harvested piece The crystals are sacred to the Atlantean people They shielded us from the world outside and kept the realm safe from enemies ould want to destroy us"
Beside Jordana, Nathan studied Zael’s bracelet with narrowed scrutiny "Thatfound on this Earth"
"No," Zael said "My people, like the Ancients who fathered your kind, the Breed, were from somewhere else The two races were at war, in fact Even before fate brought them here"
Nathan swore under his breath "Is that why another of your kind, Reginald Crowe, recently boasted before he died that the Atlantean queen has been plotting a near--one against both runted "Worse, she’s a scorned wo, but it’s rare that she’s not looking for reasons to fight or enemies to destroy It wasn’t always that ith her"
"What happened to make her that way?" As much as Jordana feared the woman who had driven her mother to suicide and ordered her soldiers to hunt down and execute Jordana’s father, she felt co about the queen if she could
"Selene changed after our first settlement was destroyed," Zael explained "Two of the realm’s crystals were stolen, and our enemies--your Ancient forebears," he said to Nathan, "used the crystals’ power to annihilate us Selene fled Atlantis with as many of our people as could escape the destruction of all we’d built and the giant wave that sed up the rest"
"Just like the myth," Jordana whispered "That story has been in place for thousands of years"
Zael gave an acknowledging shrug "More or less And Selene’s had little but mistrust or hatred for anyone since that day"
Nathan frowned "So the colony has a crystal, and the queen has one also Tere stolen before the attack by the Ancients And the fifth?"
"No one knows for certain It vanished about twenty-five years ago" Zael glanced at Jordana "There were rumors Cassianus had taken it with him when he fled with you …"
"But you don’t believe that?" she asked
Zael’s brows lifted in conteiven But to nitude of power? To keep it hidden all this time would’ve been quite a feat He’d have had to shield it somehow"
"The way he wanted to shield my poith a blood bond," Jordana said "Would he have any reason to take so like that with him when he left the realm?"
"Anyone who understood how valuable the crystal ould have reason to want it for hiht for a moment, then chuckled softly as he looked at Jordana "Or for soht prove useful in soested "Leverage against the one other person anted it the runted "Well, even if Cass did take it, he can’t tell anyone where to find it now The ardless of whether Cassianus escaped with a valuable Atlantean treasure or not, and regardless of any motivation he may have had to do so, Jordana felt a wave of renewed sorrow for the father she never knew She mourned her mother too, for the love she lost and the family she never had the opportunity to enjoy
There was even a srand emotional pain , destructive monster Selene seemed to be?
Nathan looked to Zael in question "If Cass worried so much about Jordana and her safety, why not take her to the colony as an infant and stay there with her? Why would he risk her future--Jesus, why risk her life--by leaving her to grow up aht her to the colony, Cass understood that like the others who live there, she’d have to remain under its veil for her entire existence He didn’t want to make that choice for her Exile to the colony was a last resort, only if the worst should happen and tihter the chance to find her own path"
Nathan’s dark gaze settled on Jordana He’d never seemed uncertain, not in all of the time she knew him But now there was a hesitance in his eyes A quiet dread in his voice "If I hadn’t coht, ould you choose?"
"She already had chosen," Zael interjected gently "Jordana decided even before you arrived We were preparing to leave around the sahtly, doubt flickering across his typically cool, controlled features "I ca you?"
She shook her head, ethat ht here in front of me"
His exhalation sounded heavy with relief "I ca that h, Nathan pulled her into his arms
When he spoke next, his voice was reverent and solemn, his hands on her the tenderest they’d ever been "I will protect you with my life, Jordana Always And I’ll protect you with my blood bond, here and now, if it ht will never find you again"
That he would make such a promise moved her deeply She loved him for that alone
God help her, she loved Nathan for that and a thousand other reasons
Jordana could hardly suaze flecked with a galaxy of a this out of duty or anything half as noble You know I’o his way I don’t settle for anything less than what I want And what I want right now, forever, is you" His eyes glowed bright with tender eaze with an intensity thatmy bond because I love you Because I need you, Jordana, and I don’t want to knohat life without you will feel like ever again"
He kissed her hard and deep, so passionately she lost herself to the overwhel power of the moment, unaware that Zael was even still in the room until the Atlantean aardly cleared his throat
Nathan released her, only to utter a growl and take her hing as they separated and both turned to face Zael
While they’d been caught up in passion, he’d collected the soldiers’ remains and now belted their sheathed blades around his waist "I low "I’ll take the dead with h away from here or Boston to throw anyone else off their trail Whoever Selene sends next will have to start all over again And if you’re blood-bonded by then--"
"She will be" The dark confidence in Nathan’s voice sent a jolt of fire through Jordana’s veins
Zael smiled He held out his hand to Jordana In his paluards washis "For you, should you ever need it If you’re ever in trouble, it will take you anywhere you can picture in yourthat he’d explained the crystal would only transport those of Atlantean blood She glanced up at Nathan, before looking back to Zael and giving a shake of her head "There’s nowhere I’ll ever need to go if not with Nathan"