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.The voice that followed it struck his soul, at once balm and dagger. Braelan! Oh, God& Á
He could not speak.There was River, a few feet inside the room shirtless and thoroughly battered, clutching a length of black metal in both hands.He wore thetwo enchanted bands on one finger.Whatever magic they held, it was not permanent, for he seemed to pulse between solid and transparent like a spirit not certain ofleaving this existence. Keys.Á
River stumbled a few unsteady steps, his gaze darting about the room, the metal bar cocked and ready to strike. Where are they?Á
A shadow loomed in the open doorway. Behind you!Á
The scream scraped like nails up his throat.River reacted immediately.He whirled and brought the bar down hard on Mac s extended hand that clutched the gun.Mac screamed.A sharp blast erupted, but thebullet plowed into the floor, and the gun clattered after it.River drew back for another blow.Mac ducked beneath the swing and rolled into the room, clearing the enraged River. No!Á
Braelan grabbed the bars, ignoring the way they seared his palms, and hauled himself to his feet.He pressed against the poisonous metal.He could smell hisflesh burning.Gritting his teeth, he shoved a hand between two bars and began working toward the padlock.It was a tight fit.Swathes of skin bubbled and blisteredalong his arm as he forced it through.Mac snarled at him, pressed the button and then crunched the controls into fragments beneath a foot.Anguish eclipsed the world.With his arm caught firmly between the bars, Braelan could not escape the punishing electricity, even for a second s respite.AndUnforgiven173with the controlling device broken, it would never stop.He could pull his arm back inside and take another thrashing, one stronger than any he d received.Endless.Itwould still be faster, less painful than staying here with every inch of him burning and vibrating on the edge of destruction.Or he could keep pushing.Endure the agony.And possibly achieve freedomor fail completely, if the lock proved to be cold iron as well.He chose to endure.Prolonged contact with the cold iron drained his spark more rapidly than he d suspected.As he strained to close the final gap between his hand and the padlock, hisglamour spell weakened.He d seconds before he lost control completely.With a scream that scraped his throat raw, he pushed forward hard.His fingers closed around the lock, and he sent the final dregs of his spark into it.The click of itsrelease was musical, miraculous.On the heels of the click came the deafening roar of a gun. River!Á
Through blinding tears, he fumbled the lock free, released the latch.He jerked loose from the bars and rammed into the cage door.It flew open, spilling him onto the hard floor below.His vision cleared by degrees as the effects of thepoison and the electrocution began to abate.He saw a dark-haired, shirtless figure flung against the far wall like a rag doll, bloodied and motionless.Sheer fury brought Braelan to his feet.He did not speak.Would not waste breath on the murderous human who had engineered this hell.His gaze found Macstumbling up from the floor, features etched in a snarling mask.The arm River had struck with the bar was drenched in blood. Damned creature!Á
Spittle flew fromhis lips as he advanced.Sneering, Braelan snatched the camera from its stand and dashed it hard on the floor, where it cracked in several places.The video on the computer s screen wentblack.174S.W.VaughnAnd then he dropped his glamour.Mac froze.His eyes grew impossibly wide, until they bulged from his head.He looked from Braelan to the ruined camera and back up. No& Á
He took a stepback. You ve ruined everything.Foul beast!Á
 I am Braelan, Prince of Arcadia.Á
His voice thundered through the room, and strength flowed back to him as he moved toward the cowering human, away fromthe still-buzzing iron. And you will threaten my people no more.No Fae, Seelie or Unseelie, will ever fall prey to the likes of you coward, skulking about inshadows, concealing your black heart behind a false representation of law.I judge you guilty of murder and sentence you to die.Á
Mac remained motionless and quivering until he d almost reached him.Then, with nearly inhuman speed, he dashed aside and grabbed the gun from the floor. You will die,Á
he rasped, attempting to aim. And your brothers.And every last one of Á
Braelan snatched the gun and hurled it across the room.This mortal was quick but the Fae were quicker.While Mac screamed and hurled obscenities, Braelan seized him and dragged him back toward the electrified cage, where the buzzing had grown louder than ever [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]