Page 46 of Immortal Burden

Cornelius lunged at me, wrapping his hand around my throat. “Fool!” he yelled, hauling me off the ground, his constricting hold tightening even more so, making me choke and fight for air. “There is no more time! Draco is here now!”

A sudden rush of cold air ripped through the area.

Jeez, was he not satisfied with a regular storm, that he was about to conjure a damned snowstorm, or something?

His hand was ripped from me a split-second later, a blurred figure slamming into him, knocking him to the ground. He grunted as someone landed on top of him, then rolled off swiftly, coming up into a primed crouch right in front of me.

I hit the ground in an ungraceful heap, choking and spluttering. Barely able to breathe steadily, I concentrated on the adrenaline surging through my system and managed to scramble to my feet, hurriedly trying to gauge what the fuck was happening.

And that was when I saw him.

Lucian.

He blocked the Immortal’s way to me, snarling, his talons extended, fully vamped out.

“Stand aside,” Cornelius ordered, rising to his feet and brushing down his muddied clothes.

“Your fear of Draco’s return is clouding your judgment. You are not yourself,” Lucian spoke.

“I am merely educating the boy of his duty.”

“You are bullying one weaker than you, breaking one of your esteemed vows.” Lucian eyed me in a blur of movement that I could barely make out, before returning his attention swiftly to the volatile being before him. “You were killing him.”

“I was close, nothing more.”

“You have forgotten your words to me so easily? Being on the verge of taking a life is a sin barely removed from actual murder. The intent is the same.”

Lucian, professional persuader that he was actually had Cornelius stilling, his words clearly hitting home in a big way, as the old bastard nodded and took a step back.

He shot a glance at me, regret in his eyes, before unceremoniously disappearing in a silver flash of light.

I heard a curse from Lucian, a sharp intake of breath, and then he turned around to face me, his vampiric form retreating.

“That was some risky shit,” I said, still more than a little taken aback by what had just happened.

Not just the threats and brutal actions, but the fact that Lucian had actually shown up out of the blue and saved my ass.

He didn’t respond, instead stepping into me and easing the collar of my jacket aside, his fingers tracing my throat, those vibrant red eyes of his inspecting what I suspected was one hell of a red raw ring circling my skin. “Once you have calmed, you should heal this. Or, allow me to,” he announced, releasing me, concern all over his face. “If you don’t, it’ll hurt to swallow for a while.”

He smirked when he realized his inadvertent double entendre.

I looked away, suddenly really uncomfortable and very aware of his close proximity.

“Ah, so my suspicions were correct,” he said, running his fingers through his wavy, jet black hair. “You have been avoiding me.”

I shifted my weight, my boots squelching in the mud, making me cringe, knowing the designer leather was very likely done for. “I… uh… how did you… how are you here?” I stumbled out, completely uncharacteristically.

I didn’t fluster. I was sure of myself. Arrogant, even.

But, he just… did something to me.

“Mia and I were concerned about the Immortal’s intentions when it came to you. Concerns that were clearly most definitely warranted.”

“You… what? How were you around Mia? At the Guardian Compound?”

“No. I went to her estate to enquire about Cornelius’ manipulations and find the root cause.”

Well, that was a lot to absorb. I looked around, scanning the immediate area. “She didn’t come with?”

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