Page 18 (1/2)

"It was all a lie," Evgenii said finally

"I call it subterfuge, but yes, in essence, theI was Yulya I was also Siren and Alyssa, so if you decide to visit that particular house of ill repute again, don’t look for either"

Oh God

The glow vanished Saiman turned to h to risk his own neck to negotiate your release You just destroyed hi, because you were in a hurry And you want to knohy If you did that to hi what you’d do to me Sex is about physical attraction, yes, but it’s also about trust I don’t trust you You’re co I want"

"Sex is driven by physical attraction Given the right stimulus, you will sleep with me I simply have to present you with a shape you can’t resist"

Saiman jerked, as if struck by a whip, and crashed to the floor His feet dru ferns Wild convulsions tore at his body A blink and he was a ave up and I vomited into the sink

Ordinarily I’d be on top of hi hied shapes like there was no to his mouth was a bit problematic

"Saiman? Talk to me"

"The acorn It’s co Must Get Roof"

Roof? No roof We were in the apart ducks "We can’t do that"

"Oak Large Cave-in"

Oh hell Would it have killed him to mention that earlier? "I need you to walk You’re too heavy and I can’t carry you while you convulse"

Little by little, the shudders died Saiered to his feet He was back to the unremarkable rown to ridiculous proportions If he were pregnant, he’d be twelve

"We’ll make a run for it," I told hi outside the , suspended on a rope Gaunt, his white beard flapping in the wind, he peered through the glass straight at me In the split second we looked at each other, twelve narrow stalks unfurled fro into a corona around his head, like a nimbus around the face of a Russian icon A bulb tipped each stock A hovala Shit

I grabbed Sai light flooded the apart the world in a white haze Thebehind me exploded I could barely see "Stay behind h the haze

I slashed Slayer connected, encountering resistance Sharp ice stabbed ain The shape before ed left, on instinct and stabbed my blade at his side Bone and muscle Got him between the lower ribs A hoarse screaans, and withdrew

The hovala hissed at the as still blind

Behind roped for Saiman and hit my forearm on the open door He ran Into the hallhere he was an easy target I lostto blink the haze frorabbed the door, and dashed up the stairs

The blinding flare finally cleared I hit the door, burst onto the roof, and took a kick to the ribs Bones crunched I fell left and rolled to my feet A woman stood by the door, arht, an older rappled with Sai into a kick It was a lovely kick, strong with good liftoff I sidestepped and struck By the time she landed, I’d cut her twice She fell in a crumpled heap

I flicked the blood off my saber and headed for Saiman

"You’re Voron’s kid," one of the men said "We have no problem with you Pavel’s entitled His son just threw himself off the roof"

Ten to aThe twolike tild animals I was five feet ahen Pavel head-butted Saied, and saw Pavel slice across Saiht it with ic punched low erupted fro at Pavel’s right eye The volhv stu froaping, and then toppled like a log Sai, knitting together, turning into a flat washboard wall

The whole thing took less than three seconds

I opened olden shell cracked A sliver of green thrust its way up The acorn rolled off her and higher The air roared like a tornado Saied him with e of the roof

The shoot grew, turning dark, sprouting branches, leaves, and bark Magic roiled

"It was supposed to beceased

A colossal oak stood in theitself, its roots spilling on both sided of the high rise Tiny lights fluttered between its branches - each wavy leaf as big as e metal chain bound the enormous trunk, its links so thick, I could’ve laid down on it A feeling of complete peace came over me All my troubles melted into distance My pain dissolved The air tasted sweet and I drank it in

At the other side of the roof, the volhvs knelt