Total pages in book: 155
Estimated words: 142916 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 715(@200wpm)___ 572(@250wpm)___ 476(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 142916 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 715(@200wpm)___ 572(@250wpm)___ 476(@300wpm)
He looked around him at the trees and brush, the fallen trunks and vegetation in the forest. The sights and smells were familiar to him—felt like home. He was tuned to every network in the forest and mountains. Something old in him connected to the old forests, the underground network, even the creatures. The ancient blood in him called to the trees and was always answered.
“Wasn’t it interesting?” Silke agreed. Her voice was animated as if at last she had someone to share her thoughts with. “I guess Lilith and her mage friends are going to be slinging all kinds of new threats at us. The tried-and-true method of fighting demons isn’t going to work. I’m actually going to have to use my brain along with my skills to keep up.”
She sounded like the idea not only intrigued her but had her looking forward to the skirmishes with demons. He wasn’t certain how he felt about that. He was distancing himself from emotion so that the unfamiliar feelings didn’t overwhelm him, yet he could still experience them. Her willingness to go into battle without being familiar with what the demons could or couldn’t do was concerning.
He studied her carefully and found himself frowning. “You look forward to your battles with demons.”
She flashed him another heart-stopping smile. “I suppose I do.”
“You don’t suppose—you know you do,” he corrected.
The smile didn’t fade in the least. “It’s why you don’t have to worry about me knowing you enjoy your battles with vampires.”
That was an unexpected revelation. He should have been prepared for it. She saw further into him than he thought possible before the lifemate claim. He had been aware from what his brethren with lifemates told him that their partner could access memories at any time. But before? Silke seemed to be quite powerful in her own right. He liked that. He even needed her to be. He wanted a woman at his side he could respect. One he knew would challenge him.
“How is your mother this evening?”
She blinked, the long lashes veiling her eyes. That told him volumes, even more than the flicker of worry in her mind.
“She’s not been well,” she admitted somewhat reluctantly. “Tora has had to heal her several times lately.”
That gave him pause. When a Carpathian healed someone, particularly a human, they generally only had to do so once. The person might fall ill with some other affliction, but not for a long time because their immune system was strengthened.
“Several times?” he echoed. “Recently? How many times is several, and how close together were the healing sessions?”
Silke looked at him sharply. There was no getting around his brisk, all-business tone. They had been finding their way with one another, dancing around each other carefully, and he had gone straight into Carpathian ancient commanding mode.
“In the last month Tora has done four healing sessions with Fenja.”
He heard the soft note of trepidation, of vulnerability, in her voice. That got to him. His woman was strong, a warrior. She stood on her own and fought for others. Fenja was her only family unless one counted Tora. Fenja was her mother. Benedek didn’t know what having a real mother felt like, but clearly, the woman meant the world to Silke.
Silke tried to be stoic, tried to conceal her sudden fear when he had inadvertently revealed there might be a real problem with her mother’s health that couldn’t be fixed. Tora was an ancient Carpathian woman. She was adept at healing. He knew she had to be or she wouldn’t still be alive. That meant something was seriously wrong with Fenja. Tora knew, but she hadn’t disclosed the information to Silke.
“That’s bad, isn’t it?” Silke whispered. She wrapped her arms around her middle, hugging herself. Withdrawing from him.
For the first time, Benedek saw the fragility in her. She didn’t want him to see it, but it was there in her mind. In her heart. She wasn’t prepared to let go of her mother.
Benedek chose his words with care. “It can be.”
Her heart accelerated and she didn’t try to stop it. She just looked up at him with her wide sapphire eyes. If she wept, his own heart might stop.
“You mean it is,” she corrected.
“I would have to examine her before I could say definitely,” he said. “Surely Tora would have informed you if the situation were grave.”
Silke took a deep breath. “Tora would have told me unless Fenja asked her not to. She would honor Fenja’s wishes.”
“Would your mother do that?”
Silke drew in more air, and he realized she was holding her breath for long moments. Her heart still beat wildly. She nodded. “Yes. She would want to spare me the worry if she knew what she had wasn’t curable even by the Carpathian method of healing.”
Benedek reached for her slowly, careful of intruding. Careful of startling her. He found it was imperative to offer her comfort. He wanted to draw her into his arms and surround her with his strength, but he was certain she wouldn’t be accepting of that. It would make her feel even more vulnerable than she was already feeling. Instead, he shackled one slender wrist and drew her hand toward his chest.