Shadow of Hope by Elizabeth Rose, Tina Pollick Read Free Book Online

his weakness. Weakness was shown to the more foolish gods who cared not for efficiency of strength. Aries would not, could not , tolerate weakness. It was not in his very nature to do so. Lucian would bear it out to the end without complaint or cry. It was what made him better, faster… stronger. And this strength would make him immortal.
    But this time, it didn’t stop there. After the lashings came a new burst of pain as Aries shuffled around with the musty scented item. He then threw crystalline fire at Lucian’s raw back. Grabbing handfuls of substance from the burlap bag, Lucian figured Aries was throwing, shoving and pressing coarse salt into every open wound on Lucian’s back. Blood streamed from Lucian’s lips as he bit them to avoid crying out.
    The pain saves us, Lucian, Aries once told him. By overpowering pain, we are indestructible.
    And I will be indestructible, Lucian repeated over and over again with each new burst of fiery torment. It was his mantra and he believed it with every fiber of his being.
    Aries moved into Lucian’s line-of-sight and crouched down before him. He placed the butt of the Cat under Lucian’s chin and raised it until Lucian’s eyes met his , much as he had that day so long ago. So long ago. “We will deal with Gaia’s trinket later. You need to start breaking the threshold. Am I understood?”
    Lucian stared into Aries’ deep, dark eyes. “Yes, my Lord.”
    Aries stood. “Do not fail me again, Lucian. This lesson was gentle chastisement indeed.” 
    For all his discipline and understanding of what he went through, a slow, cold shudder coursed through Lucian’s frame as he remembered the last time Aries was ‘gentle’.

Chapter: Five
    Zoe rolled over and opened her eyes. She looked around and her heart beat faster. She was…somewhere she didn’t recognize. She sat up and her head began throbbing. She smacked her lips and grimaced at the bitter taste in her mouth. Her mind foggy, she started to stand, but the room started to spin…again. She fell back onto the couch, grasping her head. She closed her eyes, but that only made things worse. She tried to find something to focus on; the room was bare except for a sword and plaque. She focused on the sword.
    It appeared to be old, but with all the forgeries out there , she couldn’t be sure. However, she suspected it was the real thing. The handle was made of steel, with a black leather grip. The hilt had Celtic crosses on either end. In the center was a raised red cross. Her stomach began to settle and the throbbing subsided. She laughed then jumped when the door slammed shut.
    “What’s so funny?” Evan asked.
    “Where am I and what did you do to me?”
    He waved his finger back and forth. “I asked you a question first. It would be rude not to answer.” He handed her a brown bag and a bottle of water. “I brought you some breakfast.”
    She set the bag to the side. “Rude? That’s funny coming from someone who obviously drugged me, but if you really want to know, I’ll tell you. You know what they say about men with big swords. They’re compensating for the little one.” She lowered her gaze to his groin. “It’s okay Evan, not all guys have big swords naturally.”
     
    Evan shrugged. “Since I’m not inclined to care what you think, it doesn’t matter what you think about my sword.”
    “Yeah sure it doesn’t.” She opened the bag, and the aroma of cinnamon and butter assaulted her senses. Her stomach began to growl. The cinnamon roll looked delicious, but she closed it back up. There wasn’t any way she was going to eat anything he had to offer again.
     
    “I figured you were hungry. You were out for a bit.”
    Zoe glared daggers at him. “Good guess. Now you know why I won’t eat your food.”
    “What’s that supposed to mean?” He flopped down on his chair, lifted the footrest and kicked back.
    “Are you serious?”
    His face remained blank.
    “You know what. Thanks for the water and the