Page 50 of Guardian's Soul

How was that even possible?

The love I felt for either one was overpowering and unshakable, and yet I felt it for both in equal measure.

"Hannah," I said, hating the look of hurt on her face for having called another woman's name in our bed.

"Who is she?" Hannah asked, placing her palm on the side of my face, making me feel guilty. How could I mourn another woman when I was with her? How could I be with her when I had loved Suahaana so much? And I had. There was no doubt in my mind that Suahaana was a real person. She had lived, and she had died.

The thought of Suahaana dead nearly killed me. It choked my throat and made it hard to breathe, and yet all I yearned for was to pull Hannah into my arms.

"I think… I think she was my mate," I told Hannah as more guilt assaulted me.

"Don't." Hannah's thumb moved up and down my cheek. "Don't feel guilty for having loved someone else."

"How can you know me this well?" I asked, placing my hand on top of hers and moving it to my lips so I could kiss her tender flesh.

"I don't know, but it's like you're part of me." She tilted her head to the side.

"Hannah, I don't deserve you." I kept kissing her hand.

"Don't," she repeated. "It's strange. I feel like I know Suahaana through you. And I feel sad as if I'd lost a good friend or sister. It's weird, but I feel connected to her on a level I can't describe. I should be raving mad jealous, but I'm not."

"Hannah." I pulled her into my arms, knowing full well that I didn't deserve her. She deserved a male who loved her and only her, not some phantom or ghost. At the same time, I also knew I could never let her go, just like I would never stop mourning Suahaana. The more I thought about it, the more my head was beginning to throb. The light pain at waking up from the dream was increasing with every passing word.

I knew in my gut that all this was Possedion's fault. He had the answers we sought.

"Let's go talk to Possedion." I held her tight for a moment longer.

She looked so torn that I offered, "You don't have to be part of this, Hannah. I can do this myself."

She shook her head. "I need… want to be with you. Just give me a moment to get over myself."

"Are you sure?"

She nodded bravely. "Yes, I want to find out the truth. I need to know what the Ohrurs did to you."

"You can leave the room anytime you need to," I suggested.

"I might have to." She took my hand and we collected the things we needed before we returned to Possedion's room.

"This cursed drone won't let me sleep," Possedion complained the moment we entered his cell. He looked tired and worn. Good.

"Do you want to make this easy or hard? Give me access to the real database," I demanded.

"I don't know?—"

I raised my hand, staring him straight in the eyes. "Yes, you do."

His face fell. "So she's fully ensnared you then?"

"Wrong tactic, Possedion." I leaned forward, towering menacingly over him. He swallowed. The fear I had been looking for had finally found its way into his eyes.

"Well, go ahead and torture me then," he braved.

"Oh, we will," Hannah said in a hard tone I hadn't heard her use in a while.

Before Possedion could protest further, I grabbed and flung him on the table. He wriggled, but his scrawny body was no match for my superior strength. Within moments, I had him tied to the table. Hannah held out a shirt to me in lieu of what she calledtowels.

I placed it over Possedion's head, whose protests came out mumbled from underneath the shirt. Then I emptied a pitcher filled with water over his head. He sputtered and cursed underneath.

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