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"Da the aard her with open concern "It’s too dangerous for you to be running off"

She wrapped her arms about herself "I’ off while there is still so ed "Tellmoment when Viper feared she would refuse to answer hier kne to trust others, "It’s from my father,"

Chapter Sixteen

Shay had every intention of being furious with Viper For all his proh to use the leash that held her to him

He was no better than the witches, she had told herself

She had wanted to be alone She had wanted to battle through her maze of raw eht to yank her to his side against her will And yet theIn fact, she discovered herself longing to lean against that hard body, as if being in his ar better

Da Unfortunately she was simply too overwhelmed at the moment to conjure the proper horror Instead she wrapped her own arms about herself and watched as the inevitable shock rippled over his pale face

"Your father?"

"Yes"

He see with a nut And maybe he was

"Surely that should please you?"

She sed past the thick lued in her throat "He had the curse placed upon me"

He reached up to cup her face, his cool touch ridiculously easing a portion of the pain clutching at her heart

"You cannot be certain, Shay This could be a trick"

"No It’s no trick The letter says that he did it to protect htened to a near painful level "What?"

"He knew that he was being stalked, although he didn’t knoho or as chasing him He says that the curse is intended to hide me from his enemies"

"Hide you?"

"The curse was like a barrier that kepted to do that There hasn’t been even the whisper of a Shalott in over a century Still, it was a rattier dangerous and desperate gamble He left you at thehih

"He never intended to leave me at the mercy of anyone" she said More to convince herself than Viper "Once the danger was passed the witch was pledged to break the curse and reveal the truth to me"

His beautiful features were unreadable "But she was killed before she could do so?"

"Yes"

A beat passed A beat where Shay had no idea as going through hishis e to protect you, Shay," he at last said softly

The stupid tears she had been ste for the past hour burned hot in her eyes as she abruptly turned to hide her distress

"I know that, it’s just"

With a speed she could never match, he had moved to stand directly before her

"What?"

She blew out a heavy sigh, accepting there was no way to hide from him

"All these years I’ve blamed my rotten fate on whatever horrible monster had put this curse on me Now I discover it was my own father"

"He obviously did it with the best of intentions"

"That doesn’t change the fact that I’ve spent over eighty years as a slave" Her teeth clenched as the memories threatened to rise up Memories she kept locked away so they didn’t drown her "I’ve been beaten, chained, and sold like an animal"

"I know it’s been difficult--"

"Difficult?" She gave a short, huh "There hasn’t been a moment when I haven’t been at the mercy of some master Not aNot a led just to survive"

"Shay"

The pity on his face had her angrily swiping at the tears "I’m sorry I’m not usually a whiner"