She shrugged. “The Oracles claimed that the peace my people sought would be disturbed.”
“That’s it?”
“Yes.”
So, the Oracles create a rift to protect the world from some mysterious evil. Then, instead of letting sleeping evil spirits rest in solitude, they eventually sent Nefri and her clan to the other side.
There was something missing. Hell, there was a whole lot missing.
“Why you?” he abruptly demanded.
Nefri clenched her hands. Was this vampire never satisfied?
She’d revealed far more than she should have. Certainly enough to get her in trouble with the Commission.
Never a good thing.
But was he satisfied?
No.
He had to poke and prod and—
“Nefri,” he repeated, his expression predictably stubborn.
She absently toyed with a lock of hair that had fallen on her cheek and sternly reminded herself that Santiago was risking his life to assist her in finding Gaius.
He deserved the truth.
The whole truth.
“The Commission was aware that I sought asylum for myself and my clan.”
He stepped forward, gently brushing her fingers aside so he could tuck the lock of hair behind her ear. “Asylum from what?”
Her lashes lowered to hide her eyes. “It’s a long and boring story.”
“It might be long, but I seriously doubt that it’s boring,” he said dryly. “Tell me.”
A tiny shiver of pleasure raced through her body. “As you’ve so kindly pointed out, I’m ancient even by vampire standards.”
“You can’t make me believe you’re sensitive about your age, cara,” he protested, his fingers tracing the line of her cheek before moving to outline her lips. “Not when the years have given you the regal beauty of a queen and the powers of a goddess.”
She pulled away from his touch. How could she concentrate when his lightest caress was sending distracting jolts of arousal through her body?
“Very pretty, but not entirely accurate.”
A knowing smile curved his lips at her revealing retreat.
Aggravating vampire.
“No?”
“My powers haven’t come with age,” she corrected him. “They were a part of me from the night I was made into a vampire.”
His smile disappeared as his eyes darkened with astonishment.
Not surprising.
Most vampires gained their powers in a slow evolution over their foundling years. Some gained more than others, but it was a fairly predictable progression.
She, on the other hand, had been blessed with a profound excess of power from the night she’d been “turned.”
At least she was told she’d been blessed.
It had felt more like a curse.
“Dios,” he murmured. “That must have been a shock to your sire. Always assuming he stayed around.”
It had happened so long ago Nefri barely recalled awakening alone and naked on the banks of the Euphrates River. She had a vague memory of roaming alone and disoriented, unable to recall her former life, before a man had appeared in the cave where she was hiding and carried her away.
At the time she’d been relieved to have someone explain what and who she was. But that relief hadn’t lasted long.
“He returned for me once he realized I could be of use.”
Santiago’s features hardened. “I can imagine.”
“Yes, I’m fairly certain you can,” she said softly, struck by a sudden revelation that he was one of the few who truly could understand.
Was that why she felt so drawn to him? Because they shared similar scars from their past?
Well, that and the fact that he was insanely gorgeous, sexy, powerful, and fiercely loyal.
“Nefri?” he prompted, frowning in confusion.
“I wasn’t placed in the pits,” she said, turning to glance down the shadowed hallway. More to hide her expression than to make sure they were alone. Although the fear swirling through the air was muted as Melinda remained in a deep sleep, it was still potent enough to prevent any unwelcome trespassers. “But I was trained to become a weapon for my clan chief.”
“You defended the clan?” he easily guessed.
She nodded. “When we were being attacked, but more often I was used in our battles to conquer other clans.”
Santiago muttered in sympathy as he cupped her face in his hands, gently urging her head back to meet his searching gaze. In that moment, Nefri’s earlier speculations of why she found this man so fascinating were instantly dismissed.
Yes, he was gorgeous and sexy and loyal. And yes, they both had suffered.
But it was his swift empathy that truly touched her heart.
What other vampire would so easily understand that far from taking pride in her battle prowess, she was horrified by what she’d done?
“You were forced to kill?”
Disjointed memories of bloody battles and mangled corpses flared through her mind, making her wince. “More times than I can count.”
His fingers skimmed down her throat, his touch offering a blessed comfort. “It’s no wonder you’re so desperate for peace.”
She knew she should push away his hand. His ability to offer her a sense of safety was as dangerously alluring as his potent sensuality.
Instead, she leaned into his lingering touch.
Foolish.
So very foolish.
“That wasn’t even the worst,” she said, the ancient pain a dull throb that never truly went away.
He scowled. “You don’t have to go on.”
“No, please.” She stiffened her spine. She knew herself all too well. If he allowed her to scurry behind her defensive walls, then she’d never crawl back out. “Let me finish.”
He gave a slow dip of his head. “Okay.”
“The fighting was something I learned to endure, simply because I had no choice.”
“Survival can be a bitch,” he said. He, of course, understood exactly what she meant.
“Yes.”
His thumb rubbed the sensitive hollow just below her ear. “What was your breaking point?”
“When my chief started hiring me out as a weapon for other clans.”
“He pimped you out?” He made a sound of disgust, although it hadn’t been unusual in the past for the chiefs to use their people for profit, whether it was as soldiers, whores, or just for sport.
“I was always available to the highest bidder,” she said. “No matter what they wanted me to do.”
He shook his head, his thumb stroking the line of her tightly clenched jaw. “It wasn’t your fault, cara,” he murmured. “You were at the mercy of a man consumed by greed and ambition.”