finished.”
She threw her arms around him, clinging like a burr. “Please don’t send me away. I have to be with you now.” She saw how her plea affected him. All traces of his boyish good nature had fled, and his mouth set grimly. In the shadow, the bones of his face pressed starkly against his skin, making him appear frightening. And the reason they stood on the threshold of her father’s home was terrifying.
“Baby, I won’t allow it. Don’t make me force you.”
“How can you force me?” she asked, holding him tight.
“ Evangeline, take the car and leave me now.”
Too late she understood. When he spoke aloud and into her soul, it forced her to listen. They each held this power, a power she didn’t want.Stripped of will, powerless against his command, she turned for the car. Her anger was hot and bright, metallic in her mouth. She set her jaw against the words bubbling up her throat. When it came down to it, she trusted Will and knew he was right.
* * * *
Driving alone through the familiar streets tormented Evangeline. Leaving Will to murder her father tortured her doubly, and the memory of walking the city with her hand clasped in Sean’s drove her over the edge. Hot sobs made her pull over or risk killing someone. She steered the compact to the curb, jammed it into park and dropped her face into her hands.
For long minutes she let her grief flow unchecked down her cheeks. Torn between the notion of storming back to stop Will, or going forward to seek her former lover, she sat and cried.
A knock at her window made her jerk, and she looked up with her heart in her throat. For the man outside her window possessed an unmistakable luminosity. The glow of an immortal. Heart pounding now, she fumbled with the window button.
“Is it Will?” she cried the instant she came face to face with him.
Adjusting his glasses, he thrust his face into the car. “It is. Hurry.”
Evangeline gave him her hand, and too late felt a needle stab deep in the crease of her arm. Her mind ebbed and her vision blurred. As she slumped in the seat, she felt the pressure of Will’s mind leave hers and then knew no more.
Runes:
Chapter Fourteen
Sean stared from the tiny airplane window at the clouds and pinched the bridge of his nose against his burning tears. Somewhere in the world Evangeline was alone, frightened and possibly hurt. Needing him.
For days he’d walked the streets of Chicago and New York, searching the crowds for the woman he’d fallen in love with, if only to hear her tell him the truth of why she’d left—that she “wasn’t feeling it,” as Olivia had insisted, or that she’d found another man.
But the government agent at his side informed Sean that his help was necessary to keep her alive. They’d rushed through the airport, flashing passports and removing shoes, and all the while the man named Marcus yelled into a cell phone. His orders drained the blood from Sean’s heart, and his cry of, “Dammit. Not another of our men lost,” sent him into a frenzy. He’d stumbled out of his airplane seat and locked himself inside the restroom. He’d vomited into the miniature sink. Then splashed fetid water over his face with shaking hands. He looked into the mirror at his pale complexion. He had to save her. Even if she wanted nothing to do with him, he had to make her safe.
Once they landed, Sean hurled questions at Marcus, but he stoically ignored him. They boarded a private helicopter with Marcus as pilot, and only when they were in the air and soaring over the dense rainforests did Sean’s heart seize with fear. How would they ever locate her under that tangled green canopy of peril? As he stared at the treetops, he wondered if she could have survived the trip into the forest depths.
“Are we getting close? Do you know where she is?” he asked Marcus over the drone of the engine. Marcus kept his gaze fixed grimly on the horizon, but sunlight reflected in his dark sunglasses.
“I know
She threw her arms around him, clinging like a burr. “Please don’t send me away. I have to be with you now.” She saw how her plea affected him. All traces of his boyish good nature had fled, and his mouth set grimly. In the shadow, the bones of his face pressed starkly against his skin, making him appear frightening. And the reason they stood on the threshold of her father’s home was terrifying.
“Baby, I won’t allow it. Don’t make me force you.”
“How can you force me?” she asked, holding him tight.
“ Evangeline, take the car and leave me now.”
Too late she understood. When he spoke aloud and into her soul, it forced her to listen. They each held this power, a power she didn’t want.Stripped of will, powerless against his command, she turned for the car. Her anger was hot and bright, metallic in her mouth. She set her jaw against the words bubbling up her throat. When it came down to it, she trusted Will and knew he was right.
* * * *
Driving alone through the familiar streets tormented Evangeline. Leaving Will to murder her father tortured her doubly, and the memory of walking the city with her hand clasped in Sean’s drove her over the edge. Hot sobs made her pull over or risk killing someone. She steered the compact to the curb, jammed it into park and dropped her face into her hands.
For long minutes she let her grief flow unchecked down her cheeks. Torn between the notion of storming back to stop Will, or going forward to seek her former lover, she sat and cried.
A knock at her window made her jerk, and she looked up with her heart in her throat. For the man outside her window possessed an unmistakable luminosity. The glow of an immortal. Heart pounding now, she fumbled with the window button.
“Is it Will?” she cried the instant she came face to face with him.
Adjusting his glasses, he thrust his face into the car. “It is. Hurry.”
Evangeline gave him her hand, and too late felt a needle stab deep in the crease of her arm. Her mind ebbed and her vision blurred. As she slumped in the seat, she felt the pressure of Will’s mind leave hers and then knew no more.
Runes:
Chapter Fourteen
Sean stared from the tiny airplane window at the clouds and pinched the bridge of his nose against his burning tears. Somewhere in the world Evangeline was alone, frightened and possibly hurt. Needing him.
For days he’d walked the streets of Chicago and New York, searching the crowds for the woman he’d fallen in love with, if only to hear her tell him the truth of why she’d left—that she “wasn’t feeling it,” as Olivia had insisted, or that she’d found another man.
But the government agent at his side informed Sean that his help was necessary to keep her alive. They’d rushed through the airport, flashing passports and removing shoes, and all the while the man named Marcus yelled into a cell phone. His orders drained the blood from Sean’s heart, and his cry of, “Dammit. Not another of our men lost,” sent him into a frenzy. He’d stumbled out of his airplane seat and locked himself inside the restroom. He’d vomited into the miniature sink. Then splashed fetid water over his face with shaking hands. He looked into the mirror at his pale complexion. He had to save her. Even if she wanted nothing to do with him, he had to make her safe.
Once they landed, Sean hurled questions at Marcus, but he stoically ignored him. They boarded a private helicopter with Marcus as pilot, and only when they were in the air and soaring over the dense rainforests did Sean’s heart seize with fear. How would they ever locate her under that tangled green canopy of peril? As he stared at the treetops, he wondered if she could have survived the trip into the forest depths.
“Are we getting close? Do you know where she is?” he asked Marcus over the drone of the engine. Marcus kept his gaze fixed grimly on the horizon, but sunlight reflected in his dark sunglasses.
“I know
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