Yield the Night by Annette Marie Read Free Book Online Page B

definitely want to kill me.”
    “Not at all,” the woman replied coolly, clearly unimpressed by Piper’s attitude.
    “We have devoted an entire team to researching your unique situation,” Mona said earnestly. “We discovered three other female survivors of haemon parents: Calanthe Nikas, Natania Roth, and Raina Golovkin. They lived at least a hundred years ago but we were able to dig up some records on all of them. Calanthe in particular was the subject of an entire research paper by a Consul.”
    Mona leaned toward Piper. “Calanthe had all her magic. She was more powerful than any haemon and rivaled daemons with her abilities. You could be that strong too.”
    Piper froze in her seat, not daring to let hope take hold. To be as powerful as a daemon ...
    “But how did she survive?” she asked.
    The other woman replied before Mona could. “Calanthe did not have magic as a child. Hers may have been sealed off like yours, or perhaps she developed it later than usual. Either way, our theory is that the dual magic is dangerous only to children because they do not have the control needed to manage it.”
    Piper looked between them. “But you’re just guessing.”
    “Raina, Natania, and Calanthe all survived,” Mona pointed out. “You’re past the danger point. You’re old enough—”
    “Hold on,” Piper cut in, desperation making her voice go high. “You’re just leaping to conclusions based on some sketchy old documents. You have no idea what—”
    “Don’t you think it’s worth finding out?” Mona asked, her stare intense. “Do you want to spend the rest of your life powerless, or do you want to take a chance and find out if you can be the most powerful one of us all?”
    “A chance that could kill me.”
    “You risk your life on a daily basis. You take chances all the time that could get you killed. How is this any different?”
    “I take calculated risks to defend myself when my life is already in danger. I’m not deliberately taking life-threatening risks for nothing more than—than ambition.”
    Mona made a sharp gesture with one hand. “Your life is in danger every day as an Apprentice Consul. Claiming your magic would be proactive self-defense, giving you the power to go head to head with daemons instead of being at a constant disadvantage.”
    “We understand it’s a risk,” Walter said. “But consider your options. Your goal is to become a Consul, but I think you already doubt the effectiveness of the system. The title of Consul would not always protect you and you’re defenseless against all but the weakest daemons. That’s assuming you can become a Consul without magic.”
    “If you don’t become a Consul,” Mona said, “what will you do? What future do you have? Will you move out of the city and join a rural community? Marry a farmer and raise his children?”
    “With us,” Walter said, “you have a future where you can shape change. With your magic, you can help us create an effective system to control daemons. This is your chance to make a difference, to change the world for the better.”
    Piper’s head swiveled between Mona and Walter. She shrunk in her chair. Having a larger purpose in life was one of the big attractors of the Consul job, but she’d already lost her apprenticeship. Was this her chance to start over? Instead of being the weakest member of a flawed system, she could spearhead something new, something effective. Something with real power.
    But removing the seal on her magic? Yes, she’d daydreamed about it since the day she found out she had magic locked inside her. How could she not? Being a magic-less haemon had made her a second-class citizen in the Consul world. But the chances were high, very high, that removing the seal would kill her. She hadn’t forgotten the debilitating headaches from her childhood, the pain so terrible she would vomit or have a seizure. Maybe those other women had found a way to live with their magic, but Piper had no