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It was a long while before Tohr and Autued frooing to go into that place again without thinking of it as "theirs"

Holding open the door into the corridor for her, he took a deep, easing breath Autumn the perfect na side by side, theywet prints, because the da at the hems She, on the other hand, left no trail, as her robe was dry

Last ti

Shit, her hair looked good all loose around her shoulders Maybe he could get her to lose the braid, too

When they stepped out into the tunnel, he put his arainst him She fit well She was smaller than Well, Wellsie had been much taller Autumn&039;s head was lower on his pecs, her shoulders not as wide, and her gait was uneven, whereas his mate&039;s had been smooth as silk

But she fit Differently, yes, but the lock and key of their bodies was undeniable

Approaching the door that led up to the o up the stairs first At the top, he reached past her, punched in the code, and opened the way into the foyer, holding the heavy panels wide for her

As she pased through, he asked, "Hungry?"

"Fao upstairs and letin the kit - "

"Nope Don&039;t think so I wait on you" He took her around the base of the grand staircase "You go up and get into bed I&039;ll bring the food"

She hesitated at the bottom step "That&039;s really not necessary"

He shook his head as he thought of all the exercise they&039;d gotten poolside "It&039;s very necessary And you&039;re going to hu in between the sheets naked"

Her smile started out shy ended up spectacular

And then she pivoted and flashed hi her hips sway as she ascended got hiainst the carved banister, he had to look down at the carpet and coht his head around

Bad word, good ti across the mosaic of an apple tree in bloom, he leaned into the billiards room Lassiter was on the couch, focused on the wide-screen over the fireplace

Even though Tohr was half-naked and half-wet, he strode over, getting in between the angel and the TV "Listen, I - "

"What the fuck!" Lassiter startedto flap them free of flames "Get outta the way!"

"Did it work?" Tohr deel jacked to the side in an atteive me a minute - "

"Is she free?" he hissed "Just tell me"

"Aha!" Lassiter pointed at the boob tube "You motherfucker! I knew you were the father!"

Tohr fought the urge to slap some sense into the son of a bitch His Wellsie&039;s future was at stake, and this dumb-ass orried about Maury&039;s paternity tests? "Are you kidding me"

"No, I&039;m damn serious Bastard has three kids by three sisters - what kind of man is that?"

Tohr sel&039;s "Lassiter come on, man - "

"Look, I&039;uyup and down on Maury&039;s stage "As long as I&039;m still here, there&039;s work to be done"

Tohr let hi his head in his hand, he bit down on his et it Destiny wants blood, sweat, and tears - well, I&039;ve fed from her, we&039;ve - ah, sweated, for sure Shit knows I&039;ve cried enough"

"The tears don&039;t count," the angel said

"How is that possible?"

"It just is, er do I have to get my Wellsie free?"

"Your dreao feed your feave her a helluva workout"

The words, She&039;s not mine, rose up automatically into his throat, but he cla theel just shook his head back and forth, as if he ell aware of both the sentiment that had remained unspoken and the future that was as yet unknown

"Goddaot to his feet and started for the kitchen "Goddamn me"

Some thirty miles away, at the Band of Bastards&039; far drifted up into the stale air of the cellar, rhythed, wretched

As Throe stared into the candlelight aiood about where his leader was

Xcor had been in one hell of a hand-to-hand contest toward the end of the engagement at Assail&039;s house He had refused to say hom, but it must have been a Brother And naturally, he had had no medical attention since then - not that they hadto himself, Throe crossed his arms over his chest and tried to rein Scribe had it been back in the spring with those three prostitutes? No wonder he wasn&039;t healing up and he wouldn&039;t until he was better nourished -

The wheezing shifted into a rough cough then resuoing to die

That dire conclusion had been dawning with relentless vigor ever since that breathing pattern had changed hours ago To survive, the s, preferably both: access to medical facilities, supplies, and personnel the likes of which the Brotherhood enjoyed; and the blood of a fe hie over the last few months The va, but since the raids, feher pre to service theh he was able to pay handso Xcor&039;s condition, h What they needed was a e of that spectacular Chosen he&039;d fed from at the Brotherhood&039;s facility caht now Literally Except obviously it was not obtainable on so many levels Hoould he be able to reach out to her, for one thing And even if he could connect with her, she would undoubtedly knoas the enemy

Or would she? She&039;d called him a soldier of worth to his face - mayhap the Brotherhood had kept his identity from her to insulate her delicate sensibilities -

No

"Xcor?" he called out as he sat up in a rush "Xcor - "

At that point, there was another round of coughing and then the labored breathing resuin Scribe, he had no idea how the others slept through all this Then again, they had been fighting for so long on nothing but human blood that sleep was their only chance for any kind of recharge Throe&039;s adrenal gland had overridden that imperative as of two in the afternoon, however; whereupon he had begun his vigil over Xcor&039;s respiratory process

As he reached for his cell phone to check the tiled to focus on the numbers that were displayed, his mind frantic

Ever since that incident between them in the summer, Xcor had been a different , and full of calculations that could shock and stun but his stare was different when he looked upon his soldiers He was more connected to all of the, the likes of which he hadn&039;t appeared to have been aware previously

Sha his eyes, Throe finally got a read on the hour: five thirty-eight The sun was probably just below the horizon, the dusk no doubt lingering in the sky to the east It would be better to wait for the darkness to truly arrive, but he had no iven that he wasn&039;t sure what he was doing

Shifting off his bunk, he rose to his full height, walked across the way and shook the mound of blankets Zypher was under

"Go &039;way," the soldier mumbled "Still have thirty et the others out of here," Throe whispered

"Do I"

"And you must stay behind"

"Must I"

"I&039; to try to find a feot the soldier&039;s attention: Zypher&039;s head lifted - down at the other end "In truth?"

Throe shuffled to the foot of the bunk so they could meet eye-to-eye "Make sure he stays here, and be prepared to drive him to my coordinates"

"Throe, whatever are you about?"

Without reply, he turned away and began pulling leather upon his personage, his hands shaking from Xcor&039;s treacherous state and the fact that if his prayer was answered, he would be in the co down at his fighting clothes, he hesitated dearest Virgin Scribe, he wished he had so hich to clothe himself other than leather A lovely suit of worsted ith a cravat Proper shoes with laces Underwear

"Wherever are you going?" Zypher asked sharply

"It "

"Tellweapons"