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joy, smiling to include each person as if it was a private concert.
    His admiration grew at her ability to find the notes, to lift them over the people, to share her joy, her happiness, her hope and faith with each person. She was putting all of herself into the music. He could feel it, feel her in a way he had never experienced, before or after his dark life had begun.
    Diego studied the beauty onstage a little more closely. Her voice carried easily between the walls, amplified but not blaring. Wave after wave floated outward from the stage, sifting, drifting over the people.
    He focused to follow the tones with a shocked gaze, amazed at what he was finally seeing in the air that normal eyes never would. She was not just singing; she was sharing. She was broadcasting emotion to the crowd, uplifting feelings of hope, love, and faith. A strength he had never felt radiated from her as he discovered the glow of the golden notes rising to the ceiling, to fall to the crowd like lyrical rain.
    The songs were not religious; the music was not gospel. Diego had already sought God, trying to be released from his curse. God was not to blame, and he had not been freed for his prayers either, so he had let it go. This woman’s music sounded as normal to the ear as any heard in recent decades.
    It was the woman who was incredible. Curiosity winning out, he dared a delicate mind merge, only to be shocked at the amount of energy she willingly spent to do this show, to share of herself. It was draining on her, but she would never quit. To her, the sharing, the music, was her life. The lightness of his searching only gave him a shallow view into her. She knew her talents set her apart, knew she would be in danger if she was ever discovered, yet refused to let the ignorance of others rule her. She was brave as well as endlessly compassionate.
    This woman was different, very different from the majority of humans he encountered. Her mind was complex, with barriers, blocks and numerous links he could not even begin to understand. She was, in short, remarkable for a human woman.
    She was also strikingly beautiful, with waist-length ebony hair, shining in the stage lights as if it held the very stars of the midnight sky. She wore dark jeans and a cream-colored tank top, dressed as casually as the crowd to make herself one with them. Something new invaded his blood as he studied her. Suddenly the loneliness he had been battling for so long did not feel so ruthless. Who is she? The question echoed repeatedly through his thoughts.
    Diego cocked his head, listening, desiring to hear more. He made himself comfortable, crossing his arms over his chest as he propped himself against the bar.
    It was only a few minutes later when he felt them both. A warning, a feathery touch against his skin, and a guttural threat. Brakka was slicing through the crowd in his direction, having discovered Diego. The trap had been sprung. It surprised Diego that it took Brakka that long to realize he was there, but accepted the discovery as inevitable. Brakka would not have slipped past him regardless. Diego’s gaze shot to the stage for a split second and found hers, wide and fearful. Dark blue eyes flashed in the stage lights, and in an instant, he knew it had been her intention to keep this from happening.
    He did not know how to tell her the confrontation was unavoidable and had been played out too many times to count. He trailed Brakka through the mass and out the doors after one final glimpse of her—watching him.

Chapter Two
     
     
    Titania wavered onstage. No! The scream echoed silently, bouncing off her mind and soul. She couldn’t let this happen. How could she stop them? She forced the notes through her throat, made herself concentrate on the music, the only thing keeping her glued to the stage.
    As the last notes of her first set faded, she took a quick bow and jerked her headset free. She threw it on the nearby table, sprinting for the rear exit of the club