Total pages in book: 131
Estimated words: 118860 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 594(@200wpm)___ 475(@250wpm)___ 396(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 118860 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 594(@200wpm)___ 475(@250wpm)___ 396(@300wpm)
“But Zacarias doesn’t take his lifemate.”
“No, he won’t risk her. She once told Riordan’s lifemate that she knew Zacarias was safer hunting without emotion. She’s right. When I’m in the rainforest without you close, I shut down all ability to feel. If I were battling a vampire, I wouldn’t want him to even know about you. The risk would be too great.”
“But you intend to leave here.” Sarika finally got to the subject she was very afraid of. Strangely, leaving the rainforest felt more difficult to her than accepting that she would become Carpathian. She wanted to ensure that her jaguar was safe, the way Solange’s had been. She intended to talk to hers and explain every step of the way. If it became apparent that she would lose that well of feminine magic she attributed to her jaguar birth, she wouldn’t go through with the decision to become Carpathian.
“Yes, we can’t stay. I promise to bring you back as soon as the situation with Justice is resolved.”
There was that name again. Justice. He was the reason the Carpathians were on edge. He was the person they believed was planning to kill the prince and destroy the Carpathian people. He wasn’t vampire, but he was more. She knew he had escaped the underworld after being held there for centuries. He was feared by those above- and belowground. The strange thing was, she could never actually catch a glimpse of him in any of their minds. As if he were a phantom they all chased.
“You don’t think Justice is vampire, yet he somehow is able to get vampires to do his bidding?” She caught glimpses of the battle with Gustov and Tomas’ conclusions.
“If Justice has turned vampire, there would be the kind of brutality that you saw with Mitro.”
“But Mitro was still Carpathian, not vampire, during the time he was committing such atrocities.” Sarika struggled to understand. She also realized the conversation was making Tomas increasingly uncomfortable. Was he hiding something important from her? He had been careful to tell her the strict truth and answer any question she’d asked. It occurred to her she hadn’t asked the right questions.
“He had not turned vampire, although many said he was acting like a vampire.”
She listened carefully to his neutral tone. He wasn’t giving anything away. “But he wasn’t yet vampire.” The jaguar amulet grew warm against her skin. Her hand crept up to cover it, to hold it against her. “What is it that you’re not telling me, Tomas? I know you’re holding something very important back from me.”
His arm tightened around her, an involuntary movement, as if he thought she might run from him when he revealed the important detail he had kept hidden.
“A Carpathian leads a very long life. It isn’t true that we can’t be killed. We can. It is just extremely difficult. Most hunters who do not find their lifemates seek the dawn rather than risk turning vampire. It is an accepted practice.”
“By seeking the dawn, you mean they stay out in the sun, and that kills them,” she clarified. She tried not to think of those honorable hunters living centuries and then choosing such a horrific death to ensure they kept that honor. It hurt.
The amulet pulsed in her palm, grew hotter as if trying to protect her from the overwhelming wave of empathy she experienced. She didn’t know any of the men who had faced that decision, but the grief overpowering her made it seem very personal. It took her a few moments to realize it wasn’t just her empathy; she was feeling Tomas’ grief. He didn’t seem to be aware he felt so deeply about those lost brethren.
A part of her acknowledged that she felt even more for Tomas, knowing he was grief-stricken losing so many of his friends.
“Yes, that is how they die,” Tomas acknowledged. “Not all of us believed that was the right thing to do if we truly had a lifemate. It was our duty to find our lifemate even if she was reborn several times throughout the centuries. That meant finding ways to stay alive and keep our honor no matter how difficult. A number of us chose to continue long past the time we should have ended our lives.”
Sarika listened to every nuance of his voice. He sounded matter-of-fact. He always spoke in a low, velvety tone. The way he talked appealed to her. Everything about Tomas appealed to her. The reluctance to continue was there, but she felt she knew him far better than either of them realized. He would tell her the things he would prefer she didn’t know, and he would do so honestly. It was something that was desperately important to her in their relationship. She could handle bad news as long as her partner shared with her and allowed her the necessary time to process. She wanted to be heard in their relationship. And respected. Tomas, despite the advice from his brothers and Luiz, seemed to do both.