Feehan, Christine Leopard Series (1 2)

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contacted the elders in mine and asked them to aid in carrying out a death sentence, it's possible the
elders here would agree.
They don't know you and our laws are very strict. Some might think harsh."
"You really think I'm some sort of a shape-shifter, don't you? I can't change my form. I've thought about
it and tried, just to see if you're right, but nothing happens. I'm still me."
"Just hear me out for a moment, Rachael. Suppose your mother took you and your brother away from
her village. She didn't want to upset the balance in the village but she decided she was too young to live
the rest of her life alone so she chose to give up her heritage and live entirely with her human side."
Rachael rested her head against the back of the small tub he had carried up from a locked shed nearby
and painstakingly filled with water he had heated. Darkness was slowly falling in the forest. The night
creatures were stirring to Me. "I suppose she might have thought that way."
"She met your stepfather."
"Antonio."
"She met Antonio. He was handsome, wealthy and very nice. He courted her, she fell in love with him
and married him. His estate was on the edge of the forest. Every night it called to her. Night after night.
The Han Vol Dan, the way of the change, whispered and tempted. Finally she began to steal away and
run free in the forest in the way our kind is meant to do. Antonio wakes up night after night and his
woman is gone. He's alone in his bed. What do you suppose this good man thinks?" Rio helped her stand
and wrapped a towel around her. Lifting her from the tub he leaned into her, catching a bead of water
that was running down her neck, lapping with his tongue. "He would think what any man would think. His
beautiful wife was stepping out on him. And he would follow her."
Rachael shivered at the tone of his voice. "Okay, you don't have to add any drama in. You're a very
scary man when you want to be."
"I was just thinking how I'd feel if I thought you were sneaking out of our bed to go meet with another
man."
"Well quit thinking about it. You obviously have a very vivid imagination, and in case you haven't noticed,
your claws are bursting through your fingertips."
He looked down with some surprise to find she was right. His hands were curled and stiletto
switchblades thick, curved and dangerous had emerged with his rising temper.
His claws could be rapidly extended through muscles, ligaments and tendons when needed or retracted
when not in use. His frown gave way to a wry grin. "I'm not too civilized, am I?"
"I guess we can't take the jungle out of the man." "But you weren't afraid of me, sestrilla, that should tell
you something right there. Any normal woman would be terrified to see claws on a man."
She sat on the edge of bed, laughter in her eyes. "Are you saying I'm not normal? I think you've managed
to mention that a couple of times now. It's rather like the old saying, 'the pot calling the kettle black'. In
comparison, I'm perfectly normal."
"I think being what I am is perfectly normal, Rachael, and I'm more and more convinced that you're like
me. I think your stepfather saw your mother shift shape. He loved her and it didn't matter. He may have
even thought it was extraordinary. But if the elders in her village found out that he knew, that a human
knew, they might banish her or worse, sentence him to death." "Kim and Tama know."
"They're tribesmen. They live in the forest and have a deep respect of nature and other species. Not all
men do." "So my stepfather moves us in the dead of night into the city and we immigrate to the United
States."
She obviously didn't realize how much that single sentence told him. Her stepfather had been afraid for
his family, moving them at night to the States. "Where he has family and an estate in Florida on the edge
of the Everglades. Where your mother can continue her nightly runs without fear of reprisals. I think he
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moved to protect your family." He watched her closely, with sharp, piercing intelligence shining in his
eyes.
She averted her face, tossed off the towel and reached for a shirt. "Well he didn't do a very good job of
protecting us. Or himself. His own family isn't so very hot. Not in the rain forest and not in the States.
They're probably every bit as rigid or worse than your elders. You're on the wrong track, Rio."
"Maybe. It's possible. Didn't his family accept you and your brother?"
She shrugged casually too casually. "At first they pretended they did."
"He came from money," Rio guessed.
"He had money. A lot of it. At least his family did."
"What family? Did he own the estate near the forest outright, or did it belong to his family?"
"His brother owned it with him." Her voice was without any inflection whatsoever, but he felt the distaste.
Revulsion even. It was almost tangible in the room between them. "They shared all the homes, even the
ones in the States."
Rio's radar went off immediately. "So they are very wealthy. They really can afford the million-dollar
reward. Rachael, has it occurred to you that the reward is only to be paid if you're returned alive? The
sniper wanted you dead. Could there be two factions at work here?"
She swung her head around to look at him, some emotion flickering in the depths of her eyes. "I didn't
think of that."
"So it's possible."
Rachael nodded reluctantly. "Yes. And both sides have a great deal of money. My brother and I
inherited my stepfather's share of the estates and his part of the businesses."
"How did your stepfather and your mother die?"
"They were executed. The official police report said they were murdered."
"Then there were autopsies performed."
She shook her head. "The bodies disappeared out of the morgue. They were stolen. It was a big scandal.
I was still young and it was a terrifying time."
"So where did you and your brother go after your parents died?"
Her shoulders were rigid. "To our uncle, my stepfather's brother. He shared the estates and businesses
and took us in."
"So it's your uncle who is either paying to keep you alive or wants you dead."
"He would never pay to keep me alive." She struggled to keep bitterness from stealing into her voice.
"Why are we talking about this, Rio? Just the thought of him makes my skin crawl. I left that place. I left [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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