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“Which is why you’re doing the big show?” Again she gestured at his fake physical form. Despite her bravado, she continued to struggle against the stupor threatening to drag her down into its embrace.

“He’s limited in this form, too,” Bianca dared to say. “And he can’t maintain it for long periods of time.”

“Ah, there you go. Telling secrets, Bianca.” The Summoner gave the blonde a sharp look. “What did I tell you about that?”

“She’s one of us,” Bianca answered, defiance in her eyes. “Isn’t she? So why not tell her?”

Stepping closer to the women, The Summoner towered over them, forcing them to look upward to meet his gaze. The penetrating blue eyes slid from one face then the other. “Yes, she is. Aren’t you, Amaliya?”

The lethargy slipping into her bones and muddling her mind frustrated her. It reminded of her being drunk, or feverish. The world was hazy and didn’t feel quite real.

“Amaliya, aren’t you?”

The sharpness of his question focused her. The answer she wanted to say was not the one she actually uttered. Blowing out a plume of smoke in his direction, she said, “Yes. I am.”

The Summoner plucked the cigarette from her trembling fingers and extinguished it by crushing against the tiled floor. “Your defiance always intoxicates me.”

“I never wanted to destroy the world,” Amaliya retorted. “That’s your dream. I just want to live my own life.”

“You’re my dream,” The Summoner answered. “My death goddess.”

The kiss he pressed to her mouth was hungry, demanding, passionate, and full of lust. Again, he didn’t feel quite like flesh, but she could feel his tongue darting into her mouth, claiming hers. Sharp teeth grazed her lips and she tasted blood. His elegant fingers wound into her hair, pulling her tighter to him. A

maliya attempted to keep her necromancy tightly bound inside of her, but it began to unfurl as the pleasure in her body began to build. Cold tears seeped from her clenched eyelids as she recognized that a part of her never stopped craving him. She had been created to stand at his side and rule a dark world.

But so had Bianca...

The Summoner’s lips abandoned Amaliya’s to kiss his other progeny. His fingers continued to caress Amaliya’s neck, pulling her against his naked form.

A vivid vision filled her mind’s eye. The Summoner stood between Bianca and Amaliya as their army of zombies ravaged a darkened world, blood spilling onto the ground. Among those dying were all the people who had ever hurt her, mocked her, and dismissed her as nothing more than a failure. A terrible delight filled her.

“They never knew what you were.” The Summoner gripped both women by their hair, pulling their heads back so he could gaze into their faces. “But I did. I saw what you both were and I took you. You are mine.”

Dizzy with the low humming power of the rings, Amaliya struggled to regain control of her magic. But death called to death, blood to blood, and it was entangled in the magic of the other two beings.

“Do you feel it?” The Summoner demanded, his gaze capturing hers. “Do you feel it, Amaliya?”

With a shuddering sob, Amaliya nodded, then met his hungry kiss with her own. She had always felt that she belonged with him. That is why she’d destroyed him before and would again.

Chapter 24

Samantha stared at the air mattress on the floor of the attic. The battery for the air pump was dying, so it had taken her forever to blow it up. It was a twin size, so she’d folded some of the king-sized blankets Jeff owned and tried to make a decent bed for Cian. It was a far departure from his usual sleeping chambers.

The sound of the hammer striking the nails being pounded through boards and into the window frame gave her a headache. Jeff and Cian were almost done with covering the small windows of the long narrow space filled with boxes of holiday decorations and old family heirlooms. Samantha had tucked the small bed into an area behind a huge stack of boxes. Though she was still peeved at Cian she didn’t necessarily want him bursting into flames if sunlight somehow found its way into the attic.

“This should be sufficient,” Cian said finally.

“I’ve never had a vampire stay over before.” Jeff cast nervous look in Cian’s direction. “I’m sorry about the loss of...” Faltering, Jeff closed his mouth. There was really nothing to say that could possibly offer Cian a bit of comfort.

Cian strode away from the human, his fingers raking through his long hair. His goatee was now more of a beard. The vampire looked tired and a bit lost.

“Here’s your bed,” Samantha said, pointing to the air mattress. “It’s not much.”

“It’ll do.” Cian gave her a slight hug. The distracted air about him was disconcerting. He’d never seemed so lost before.

“Cian, I’m really, really sorry I yelled at you earlier. And hit you.” She attempted to look as apologetic as possible, but wondered if she was successful because she was actually still peeved at him.

“It’s all right.”