Codename Spring by Aubrey Ross Read Free Book Online Page B

catastrophe.
    “How long were you able to avoid Protectorate hunters?”
    “Almost two years.” She blinked back the tears and took a shuddering breath, her voice growing stronger. “We’d heard their hunters were empathic, so we tried to feel nothing, to shut down and just go numb.”
    Which explained her inherent shields. It was a survival mechanism. Whenever she felt threatened or overwhelmed she went numb. It was a common enough tale, yet his heart ached and the need to avenge her ignited deep within his spirit. “What happened when you were caught? How was Noirte involved? Hunting stray females is way below his pay grade.”
    “We didn’t give up without a fight and one of the hunters was badly injured. I offered to save his life if the team captain ensured our safety and merciful treatment.” Another deep breath seemed to calm her further. “The captain didn’t think I could do it, but the injured man was his younger brother. He said he was only allowed to offer his protection to one female.”
    “Did he make you choose?”
    She nodded. “I wasn’t even sure I could save his brother, so I just concentrated on my work. By the time the injured man was stable, the others were restless and I was terrified. I…no matter who I chose the others would resent me, and I didn’t want to be raped. So I took the coward’s way out.”
    He framed her face with his hands and captured her gaze, needing her to accept his words. “No one can blame you for protecting yourself. You tried to save everyone first and he rejected the offer. We’re all doing what we must to survive.” She didn’t respond to his reassurance and he still felt no hint of emotion from her. With a heavy sigh, he shifted his hands to her hips and asked, “How did you end up with General Noirte?”
    “The captain had no use for a female no one could touch, so he decided to give me to General Noirte as a gift. Ra’jen didn’t want me, so he—”
    “Noirte didn’t want you? That’s insane.” His vehemence seemed to please her, and Evard began to relax. Her hands still rested on his shoulders and her warm body literally surrounded him, or at least strategic parts of him.
    “He was far more impressed with the fact that I had saved one of his men than he was with my naked body.”
    “Naked body? The captain presented you to him naked?” His gaze swept down to the gentle swell of her breasts, which were all he could see at the moment.
    “I was draped in scarves and the captain made a great show of ‘unwrapping’ me for the general. Ra’jen seemed annoyed until he learned I was a surgeon. Then he dismissed the captain, tossed me several of the scarves and asked me all sorts of questions. He assured me that no one would harm me and I was transferred to the medical center the following day.”
    “And no one has approached you since?”
    “I’m under General Noirte’s protection and I’m best friends with his sister. Who would dare?”
    “That’s why you hadn’t had sex since this thing began,” he mused, ridiculously pleased by all he’d learned. Despite the chaos surrounding her, Jocelyn was remarkably untainted by the Gathosian scourge.
    Her gaze clouded and challenge crept into her voice as she said, “Now you know all my secrets. How did you end up hosting one of them? Without you to anchor her, Inwatta couldn’t function in this dimension.”
    He wanted to defend himself, to explain how long he’d resisted and how much he’d suffered before he gave in. But the disdain in her expression held him silent. All his efforts hadn’t made a difference in the end. Just like all the others, he’d given in to their manipulation and become a corporeal pawn.
    “It’s always the same,” he muttered. “Especially for the Bartonese. Our ability to regenerate makes us one of the few races that can tolerate their energy. At times they inhabit us completely, take full control of our bodies so they can participate in the physical world.