Total pages in book: 207
Estimated words: 196971 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 985(@200wpm)___ 788(@250wpm)___ 657(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 196971 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 985(@200wpm)___ 788(@250wpm)___ 657(@300wpm)
Mm.
Zari couldn't help feeling wary when she saw her Master's expression turn brooding.
"I'm sorry, pet."
His tone was rather subdued all of a sudden, and her wariness quickly turned into concern. What's wrong, Master?
He deliberately held back from answering and instead stepped out of the lift as soon as the doors opened to their floor. Zari soon caught up with him and looked rather anxious as she tugged on his sleeve. Alexandru?
I'm sorry, he made himself say again. It's the time we've been apart, I suppose. I only make a joke of it so you wouldn't notice anything amiss, but the truth is...there are still times when I have a hard time believing I finally have you back in my life again.
Oh, Master.
His steps slowed, and when he turned to face his pet, the look on her lovely face told him she was just about ready to do anything for him.
But I would never want you to force yourself to bear my touch—-
No, no, Master! You can touch me anywhere anytime-—And to prove this, she quickly reached for his hand and placed it on her breast. "See?" she asked eagerly. "I was...I was joking, too, but I truly always love your touch—-" But then she felt Alexandru trying to gently pull his hand away, and Zari panicked. "I'm serious, Master,” she insisted. "If you want, you can even, um...you can even p-pinch my n-nipples—-" Zari's tongue ended up all twisted by the time she got the last words out. "And I would never..." She stopped speaking.
Because right now, her Master's broad shoulders had started to shake...
Oh my God, he had done it again!
Alexandru threw his head back with a laugh even as he easily avoided Zari's subsequent attempts to kick and knee him.
"BULLY!"
"I'm sorry, my love. I just couldn't resist—-" It was his turn to suddenly stop speaking. "Zari?"
But his pet's eyes had already rolled back, and he had to lunge forward to catch Zari in his arms as her vision sucked her in, and she started to see.
The Truth Always Burns
Chapter Sixteen
ALEXANDRU KEPT A TIGHT leash on his emotions as he carefully lowered a still-unconscious Zari on the couch in his apartment. It always killed him to see his pet like this, and it killed him even more, knowing that he was still powerless to keep her safe while she was lost in one of her visions.
The thought of this happening while she was hunting down some poltergeist or ghost chilled his blood—-
Thank fuck for Elsa and Martin, he found himself thinking while running his gaze over Zari's form, just to make sure that she wasn't suddenly injured or bleeding anywhere. If this were to happen when Alexandru wasn't around to help his pet, he could at least be certain those ghosts would protect her at all costs.
Zari. He tried reaching her through their blood bond, which he had successfully done numerous times in the past. Can you hear me?
He waited tautly for her response, and Alexandru's powerful form grew increasingly rigid with every second that passed in silence. Thanks to demons burning down entire libraries about heartkeeping and soul seer magic, every one of Alexandru's attempts to learn more about how Zari's powers worked had been a frustrating waste of time. What little he knew was based on his own observations of Zari alone, and that much told him the longer Zari remained out of reach, the more dangerous—-
His pet's slender body suddenly jerked.
And then she was crying and choking, her terrified expression like that of a prey being hunted, and when Alexandru reached for her—-
A curse almost slipped past his lips.
Her temper was beyond feverish, her body seemingly burning from within, that the barest touch on her skin nearly scalded him.
Zari!
The harsh command of Alexandru's voice thundered in her mind, and instead of terrifying her, the sound was exactly what she needed, the familiar note of authority in her Master's voice snapping Zari back to her senses.
M-Master?
Focus on my voice now.
His words wrapped itself around her like a cloak of protection, and she found herself clinging to them as the fiery images from her vision raged around her.
You're safe.
She knew what he was saying was true. She knew, just by hearing his voice, that she was no longer in danger. But with the grotesquely vivid world around her refusing to go away, she couldn't stop herself from reacting, and she felt herself start to burn—-
No, her Master growled. Stop that! Come back to me!
Her Master's furious growl ripped into the veil that separated reality from her visions—-
NOW, ZARI.
The words turned into a steely rope that locked around her wrist, and just as everything around her roared into flames that starved for her flesh, Alexandru's love became Zari's harbor, the chains of her Master's possession yanking her out—-
Everything disappeared in a blink of an eye, and the first thing she saw was Alexandru's beloved face gradually coming into focus.