Lies in Blood Read Free Page B

for nothing.”
    “ I know. But . . . please wait. David will journey to Elysium this weekend to free the prisoners, you can do it then.”
    “ Why then?”
    “ If he’s around when you. . . if you were to discover that you were pregnant, and he, with his ability to read your thoughts again, discovered this, he would not waste time. He would leave immediately to kill Drake.”
    “ You think?” I looked at the test.
    “ I am sure of it.”
    “ Okay.” I handed the test to Arthur. “Hold onto this for me then. I’ll do it on Saturday.”
    Arthur smiled, bowing a little as he backed away.
    “ Oh, and, Arthur.” I reached out for him.
    “ Yes, my dear?”
    “ Um, there’s been a new development.” I folded my arms and walked closer, half checking for sly ears. “With. . . With that new power I told you about.”
    He cleared his throat, stepping close enough to be accused of wanting a hug. “David’s mind reading ability?”
    “ Yes.” I checked over my shoulder then leaned in to whisper in his ear. “He can read Jason’s projected thoughts.”
    Arthur’s spine straightened. “Good God.”
    “ Yeah. He’s pretty damn powerful.”
    He leaned on the railing again, looking down at the test before tucking it in his back pocket. “The left-handed child.”
    “ Huh?”
    “ David. He was always the left-handed child, so I wasn’t surprised when Jason—the right-handed—turned out to have a broader range of skills than his brother upon being turned. But with David having taken his oath, the added power of Mother Nature is like gaining another layer of immortality. His left brain will be developing at a rapid rate, giving him skills on equal to, possibly greater than, his brother.”
    I laughed. “Only half of that made sense, Arthur.”
    His lips spread in an easy grin. “The powers one gains when becoming immortal are based greatly on which side of the brain they use more.”
    “ So, left-brained people get more power?”
    “ No. It’s not about greater or weaker powers, but which powers. I was ambidextrous in my human life.” He held out both hands. “When I turned, the function in my brain which allowed me to use both sides simultaneously also gave me the ability to think at a higher level of consciousness—to see past the impossible, bypass the rules of physics and control things others couldn’t.”
    “ So, if David’s brain is essentially becoming ambidextrous, could he end up with powers like yours?”
    “ I’m not sure. The strength of his coronation cannot change his brain’s imprint. He cannot suddenly gain power that was never possible; it will merely open his mind to what it was capable of before. Whatever Jason is capable of—” His eyes narrowed, his gaze distant. “David may be very soon, also.”
    “ So I should watch to see if he starts writing with his right hand?” I laughed.
    “ No. Watch your thoughts, and I will make sure I watch mine.”
    I felt a chill pass through me. “What if he found out about. . .”
    “ He can never find out what happened between us in that training hall, Amara. Ever. Because it will not just be my head on a spike—” He turned and looked at me. “It’ll be yours.”
    I wanted to object, tell him David would never do that to me. But Arthur was right. He did it to Pepper, he tried to do it to Jason, and being his wife did not place me above the law in David’s mind. He’d even said as much. If I broke the law by fornicating or even plotting to fornicate with his uncle, he’d punish me to the full extent of the law. Unless. . .
    “ Wait! Aren’t I allowed to have more than one husband?”
    “ Yes. But that won’t protect you from what we’ve done in the past, my dear. And, in order to marry another man, you must submit your intent to marry with the Lower Parliament and it must be approved by the people before you can so much as think about touching him.”
    “ Really?”
    “ Yes. Our laws on fidelity are ironclad.”
    “ Do