Eternal Sin

the male he used to call father—what did Cruen want now? What was he working on? What schemes, what manipulation?

After being held and tortured in Erion’s dungeon by Syn, getting his ass kicked out of Hell, losing his place on the Order, one would think—and hope—that the mad vamp had learned his lesson about playing with the lives of others. But Phane knew him well enough to believe that no doubt the only thing he’d learned was how to deceive better, cheat better, manipulate better.

“The Order is adamant about seeing Synjon,” Dillon said, her tone clearly displaying her frustration.

“We can’t take him away from Petra and the baby,” Wen said in an equally irritated voice.

“It’s only for a moment,” Alex added calmly. “Then they will return him.”

Wen looked first at Alex, then at Dillon. “You can’t guarantee that. You said so yourself.”

Showing her irritation and frustration at the situation she had no choice but to facilitate, Dillon released a weighty breath. “I understand how you’re feeling. Wanting to protect your child.” Dillon’s eyes flickered in Cruen’s direction, then returned to Wen. “But you will have a war here. They’re not kidding or bluffing about that.”

Wen shrugged. “If that’s the price of keeping Petra and the child safe and satiated, then so be it.” She looked down, thoughtful for a moment. “I’ll just have to go and see the faction leaders.”

Another voice, a truly unwelcome voice, entered the conversation. “Let me speak with Synjon and Petra.”

It was Cruen. He straightened against the boulder at his back and continued, “Perhaps the Order might forgo their battle plans if I assure them that both Purebloods are here of their own free will.” His gaze rested on Wen, and he said in the gentlest of voices, “Where are they?”

The female shifter’s jaw twitched. No matter what had happened in the past, how Petra had come to be her daughter, it was crystal clear that the lion shifter felt nothing but hatred for the male now. In fact, Phane was pretty sure that if she had the chance, the female might challenge Cruen to a fistfight. Or a fang/canine fight. Phane grinned as that image flashed through his mind. Petra’s lion of a mother seemed pretty damn tough.

“No one is seeing Synjon Wise,” Wen said with complete and total rigidity. “You can tell your Order that.”

Gone was the gentleness. Cruen’s upper lip trembled into a sneer. “So he is here against his will.”

“No one said that.”

“No one had to. Who took him?” He leaned forward and hissed. “Who guards him?”

Before Wen could answer, the sound of a large and pissed-off bird rent the air. Phane glanced up, as did the others. Coming in for a glorious moonlit landing was his sexy hawk shifter female. She carried two males on her back. And Phane’s own hawk scratched at his insides in warning until he realized they were Petra’s brothers.

Both males leaped off her back the minute she touched down and came running toward them. Phane watched, waited, for the hawk to shift into her glorious female form, but she didn’t. Instead, she stretched her wings and tossed her head, while remaining grounded.

“We screwed up,” Sasha said breathlessly, not noticing their newest guest. “Wise got away, and Petra went after him.”

Everyone within the gathering rocks turned to stare at him. The Roman brothers came to their feet.

“Are you kidding me?” Alex growled. “How did that happen?”

“Oh, shit, this is bad,” Dillon muttered.

“Do you know where?” Lucian asked, eyes narrowed.

“Dani does,” Val said, running a hand through his blond hair. “The caves, I think. But Petra didn’t want anyone following her.”

“Well, she can forget that request,” Lucian said.

“Your daughter is very stubborn, Wen,” Nicholas remarked dryly.

“Tell me something I don’t know,” she answered with a worried look at her sons. “You should’ve followed her anyway.”

“Dani took her,” Val said. “It was impossible to track her movement at night.”

“So they’re still in the Rain Forest,” Helo said. “That’s something.”

“She shouldn’t be running after anyone,” Wen said miserably. “She’s pregnant. Oh, my baby, my cub. I’m going to find her.” She started toward Dani, then glanced over her shoulder. “Who’s coming with me?”

Alex and Nicholas were at her side in seconds.

“We’ll follow on foot,” Sasha said, then quickly shifted into his lion form, as did Val.

“We could use another Avian,” Dillon said as they reached Dani, who was waiting impatiently, fluttering her feathers. She gestured to Phane. “Take me, Helo, and Lucian?”

The hawk shifter instantly turned her sharp gaze on him.

Striding forward, Phane gave the female a quick wink, then stripped out of his clothes and shifted into his hawk.

As all three of his passengers climbed onto his back, Phane ventured a glance in the direction of the female shifter. Intrigued, she was checking him out, her bird eyes moving over him, from feather to head to beak, then finally to his eyes.

He cocked his head at her, letting her know he was ready to follow her lead. She narrowed her eyes at him, then gave a glorious screech, and with wings spread, kicked off into the starry sky.

Yes, she would belong to him someday, Phane thought, taking off after her, reveling in her strength, her soar, and her steely beauty.

Below, on the ground, no one had noticed that the gathering rocks were now silent and empty and Cruen was gone.

9

She’d allowed him to touch her.

No.

She’d practically begged him to touch her.

As she stood in the mouth of the cave, staring at Synjon, trying not to follow the path of moonlight that washed over his naked chest and the hard waves of abdominal muscle, she realized that no matter what she told herself about him, what she knew to be true about him, she would never stop wanting him.

It was her curse. One she would take with her into any subsequent relationships. She just prayed that when her baby was born, the hunger she had for his blood would subside. Maybe with that need gone, there was a chance for love and desire with another.

With Brodan.

She looked up then, locked eyes with the male who tormented her in so many ways. She couldn’t allow it. Couldn’t let him stand there after he’d touched her, called out for her climax, then declared that her balas would have only his blood. It wasn’t fair. Or right.

“Try again,” she said.

His brows drew together. “What?”

“To flash home.” She swallowed thickly. “Try again to flash home.”

His jaw tightened and he raised his chin. “You don’t mean that.”

“I do.”

“My blood . . .”

“I want it,” she said, tasting it even now as she spoke. “But the price is too high.”

He moved toward her, long, hard, muscular limbs, ripped stomach muscles bunching, flexing. Again she swallowed.

“You don’t worry about the child now?” he said.

“I’m starting to think it might be more dangerous for the child if you stay.”

He came to stand before her. “For the child or for you?”