A snippet to wet your appetite.
“Cyd, we have a
problem,” Stihl said into his ECD. With Marohka in his arms, he dropped into
the hard seat of the IPT car.
“What happened?
Marohka skipped out on you again?” Cyd answered with a laugh.
“No.” Stihl
shook with fear. “I think she’s been poisoned.”
He stroked her
hair where she lay on his lap. “Her tongue has several green spots like
Dusty’s. Call Harrigun. Get him over there right away with the antidote.”
“Right, how
long until you arrive?”
“We’re on our
way. We’ll be there in a few itons,” Stihl grumbled, “if this car would travel
a little faster.”
“Harrigun will
be here by the time you arrive,” Cyd ended.
A cold sweat
dripped down Stihl’s back. He debated whether to take her to a medical
facility. He didn’t believe they’d be able to diagnose her problem. When his
dog, Dusty, got sick, they figured out what happened after he died. Better
prepared this time, Stihl felt confident he could arrange the right kind of
help.
A warning? Or
did someone miss the mark, and he should be the one out cold?
He scanned
Marohka, and a strange emotion bloomed inside him and poured through his cells.
He wanted to identify the gut-wrenching pain.
Anger.
Yes, but it
didn’t explain the ache around his heart. Outside of beating someone senseless
in some barroom brawl or fighting with his father, Stihl rarely experienced
this type of deep twisting reaction. And he disliked the feeling.
Why would
someone wanted to hurt her?
He knotted his
hands.
Protective.
Maybe, a part
of what he was feeling was that he should’ve shielded her from any type of
attack. The fear, which had consumed him when she’d fainted in his arms, still
rumbled through his nerves like sharp knives. He’d admit blending with Marohka
offered a certain level of excitement. And she might prove to be useful for his
new adventure, but any deeper feelings like fear or grief were unrealistic.
A means to an
end, a useful partner, a possession, nothing more could exist. Nothing more was
feasible. He lacked the time for the love and commitment routine.
The twitch of
her hand against his forced him to question his callous thoughts. A beautiful
person with feeling and desires he’d only just begun to understand, she’d won
his respect. Devoted, she’d fought to protect her family and also to maintain
her career.
As his
responsibility, he sought to secure her safety and convince her, their marriage
could work. But . . .
Read the first chapter on my website. http://www.tinagayle.net/mrchapter.html
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Tina
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