Sacrifice (Absent Shadows Trilogy Book 2) by S.M. Spencer Read Free Book Online Page A

Crystal. So, what happened?’
    ‘It was my tears—the tears of a dhampira. You knew that dhampiras are rare, didn’t you? Well, not only are we rare, but it seems some of us also have rare powers. This was very old magic, and something that is not well known, even in our world. As I said, I’m pretty sure Michael knows nothing about it, and so I can only put it down to Erranase. He has lived many thousands of years, so it is possible that he’s come across this before.’
    ‘And Sam has been spending time with him.’
    ‘Yes, Sam has been spending much more time with Erranase than ever before.’
    ‘But if you can … I mean, if he can be human, then …,’ I couldn’t even bring myself to say it.
    ‘Lili, that mother was going to die of a broken heart. And the boy would never have been able to understand his condition. He was truly pathetic. That was what brought me to tears. That was what saved him—his own pathetic condition, and his mother’s heartache.’
    ‘Oh, so you can’t just cry any old time … so you couldn’t just, you know, sit down with Sam and change him?’
    She shook her head, and looked down at the table.
    But she could at least try, couldn’t she, for Sam’s sake? I mean they were such good friends and all. I took a deep breath, and tried to keep my voice calm. ‘So, Sam found out about this power, and asked you to help him become human.’
    ‘Yes, Lili, Sam asked me to make him human so he can be with you and lead a human life,’ she said, looking at me now—her eyes wide.
    ‘And why … I mean, does this scare you? So, maybe it won’t work in every case. Is that what you’re worried about? But you could at least try, couldn’t you?’
    ‘I’ve only ever done this twice in all my years, Lili. And the second time was very much like the first—a young girl—she was only thirteen.’
    ‘And you’re afraid because … Sam isn’t as young as they were?’
    ‘I’m afraid because both those times, the change had only just happened. With the boy, it was weeks. With the girl, it was a few months. But with Sam, if I remove the contagion, his body may be cleansed but it may also be a body that is ... I mean, the vampire contagion is what keeps him looking as he does, as he did when it entered his body. If the contagion is cleared from his blood, his human body could simply turn to dust.’
    The significance of her words hit me like an avalanche. He could die. Really die. Cease to exist. Now I understood why she was frightened. But she was only guessing, right? It mightn’t work that way at all.
    ‘Crystal, have you spoken to Mladen to see what he knows?’
    ‘Yes, of course I have. I went to see him immediately. He doesn’t know any more than I do. Like I said, this ability is extremely rare. Mladen had never seen it before I cured the boy, he had only heard of it. He was nearly as surprised as I was when that boy opened his eyes and they were blue again.’
    Her distress unsettled me. I was used to her being the calm one, the one that took everything in her stride. ‘So, what can I do, Crystal? You want me to talk to Sam, and talk him out of it?’
    ‘Yes. That’s exactly what I want. He has been pressuring me, begging me. Seeing him in such a distraught condition pulls on my heart strings. Then, knowing that he could die, well, it might be enough to bring me to tears. I can’t discuss this with him; in fact I try not to be alone with him. I’ve been careful, but he’s so determined.’
    ‘Okay, I’ll speak to him. Don’t worry, it’ll be fine. He’ll listen to me.’
    My words sounded much more confident than I felt, but I would certainly do everything in my power to make him see reason.
    ‘I hope so. I mean, if he’s going to listen to anyone, it will be you. It’s been so hard. And to be honest, I think he’s been getting encouragement from Elizabeth.’
    ‘Elizabeth? What makes you say that?’
    ‘Well, it’s just something he mentioned once. He said