One Down: Bayou Heat (Pantera Security League Book 1) by Alexandra Ivy, Laura Wright Read Free Book Online

bury her face in his neck. But she didn’t dare. Firstly, because she didn’t want him to continue to see her as that victim in the cage. She wanted him to see her strong and capable. And also because maybe…maybe he had someone. Maybe there was a lucky female waiting for him back in the Wildlands, and she had no right…
    Just the idea of it made her belly clench painfully. And there was something else too…something that lived beneath her ribs that disliked the notion of Cerviel and another female even more than she did.
    Was it possible that she had more than just Pantera blood? Was it possible that a real and true and fierce cat hummed beneath her breasts?
    “Talk to me,” Hallie said with gentle sincerity. “I’d love to know about her.”
    He glanced up, his eyes betraying a soul-deep vulnerability. “Yeah?”
    She nodded.
    He took a moment, as if gathering his thoughts. “Her name was Evie,” he started, his expression melting with a fond affection. The sort of affection that Hallie deeply envied. Had anyone ever thought about her with such love? She gave a small shake of her head, forcing herself to concentrate on Cerviel’s low words. “She was a pesky, crazy, fun, incredibly charming thing who was always tumbling into trouble.” He laughed, but it was a melancholy sound. “There was no dare she wouldn’t take, and no lengths she wouldn’t go to, to make people smile. She was like a ray of sunshine whenever she appeared.”
    “She sounds amazing,” Hallie breathed.
    His eyes connected with hers. “She was.”
    Long seconds passed. “What happened?” she at last prompted.
    “Our homeland is deep in the bayous of Louisiana and heavily protected by magic,” he said, his eyes darkening with emotion. “Or at least we all assumed it was protected. What we didn’t know at the time was that a jealous goddess had been secretly destroying the layers of protection we’d taken for granted forever.” He released a harsh sigh. “Evie was at the edge of the Wildlands when she was shot by poachers. She should have been able to heal, but the bullets tore straight through her heart and she bled to death before I found her.”
    Horror flooded through Hallie. Not only for the young girl whose life was ended way too early, but for the family left behind to mourn her loss.
    She glanced up. Into the face of the male before her. He was all sharp angles, and misery swimming in the dark depths of his eyes. He blamed himself. Still. And she could see that the guilt of failing his sister had clearly shaped his life, defining him in a way he probably didn’t even realize.
    “Oh, Cerviel.” She impulsively leaned forward to place a kiss on the hard line of his jaw. “It wasn’t your fault.”
    When she pulled back, his eyes met hers. “It doesn’t matter if it was or wasn’t,” he said, the threads of sadness in his voice tugging at her heart. “It feels like it’s my fault. Every minute of every day.”
    “I’m sure your parents helped you—”
    “They believed it, too.”
    Shock flew through her. “No…”
    “It’s all right. It’s done. It’s why I left, accepted our leader’s call and became…this.”
    “This? What is this ?”
    He shook his head, and she thought she’d lost him. That maybe he was going to shut down, shut off and tell her he couldn’t tell her anything. But when he found her gaze again, his eyes betrayed not only a deep pain, but a desperate need to connect. If just for a moment.
    “I’m essentially a ghost, Hallie. To everyone, my parents included. I don’t exist.”
    Her brows knit together. “What do you mean?”
    “To everyone, except a select few, I’m dead.” His jaw hardened. “That’s all I can tell you. Frankly, it’s more than I should be telling you.”
    She gaped at him. He wasn’t serious. Why would he seek out something like that? A position like that? Even as she thought the question, she knew the answer. His sister was dead. It was only fitting