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buzzard to carry her away.
 May I ask where I am?
 Someplace safe. Someplace where you ll be well looked after. Don t worry. Your health and the
health of your unborn child are of paramount importance to me. Overton smiled even wider and reached
out to rest his hand on her flat belly.
Her skin crawled beneath his touch, but she didn t shy away. So, he knew about the prophecy. In that
case, why hadn t he killed her and stopped any threat to his master plan? Maybe there was more to the story
than Valarian had told her, perhaps more than he even knew. She must get Overton to talk to her.
That turned out not to be at all tricky.
 Please, sit down. He ushered her to the sofa and dropped into the armchair across from her.  You
must have so many questions. I ll answer the ones I can.
 Why am I here?
 So I can keep you safe and secure. Try not to think of yourself as a prisoner. You re my guest.
 Then I can leave any time?
He dipped his chin and smiled.  Well, I wouldn t exactly say that. But as you can see, I m not keeping
you chained in a dungeon or sucking you dry, so definitely more of a guest than a prisoner.
He lifted his face and now his smile revealed two sharp fangs. The friendly persona had folded like
origami to reveal his true, predatory face. His gaze focused on her belly and he nodded toward it.  That
child you carry could be the downfall of the empire I plan to build. But such a powerful creature as this kid
is supposed to be, I started thinking I could use his special qualities rather than destroy him. Turn the boy
into my own son, train him to be my right hand, a general in my army.
 Uh-huh. Akila s shivered as she put two and two together.  So you ll hold me here and keep the
baby after it s born.
 Exactly. I assume Valarian has done his part by now, although how he managed to produce viable
swimmers, I ve no idea. But he foolishly let you go. Just when I was beginning to think I d have to storm
his fortress and get you out, lo and behold, you simply went home.
 Where you had people waiting for me. Have they been watching my place while I ve been gone?
Overton chuckled and leaned in to speak sotto voce, as if to keep the men by the door from
overhearing, although obviously they could.  Loyal minions will do nearly anything you tell them to. Set
them a task and no matter how long it takes, they ll perform it.
She wondered if he d had others staking out the island and, if so, why they hadn t nabbed her at the
airport. But she didn t ask.
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Bonnie Dee
 By now I m sure Kaspan has told you something of my plans for the future. The vampire leaned
back in his chair, one leg crossed casually over the other.  For too long, our kind has skulked around in the
shadows, disorganized, each intent on his own pleasures and his own kills, relegated to being a boogeyman
in a human-run world. Well, we will no longer live on the fringe. It s time the superior race assumed its
proper place in society.
 In charge, with humans doing your bidding. Akila couldn t keep a note of contempt from her voice.
 Do you honestly believe such a small segment of the population can control everyone else?
 Absolutely. Overton beamed with the strength of his conviction.  For a time, a handful of Nazis
under the guidance of one strong man upset the balance of power in the world. I m certain hundreds of
powerful vampires can shred the opposition starting with my election into the House of Representatives.
A key appointment here and there, and soon we ll have a firm foot on Capitol Hill.
 And then you ll take over the world. Giddy with nervous tension, all Akila could think of was a
childhood favorite cartoon, Pinky and the Brain. The would-be Representative from New Jersey would
have been laughable if he wasn t so damn scary.
He chuckled.  I know it sounds a bit overambitious now, but in time you ll learn I m not a starry-eyed
idealist. When humans are nothing more than rolling bloodmobiles to cater to our needs, when the sheer
numbers of this overpopulated world have been pared down to a reasonable size, you ll know I was right.
The world will be a cleaner, better place to live for some of us. But then life has always been polarized
between the haves and the have-nots.
Akila cleared her throat. She no longer felt like laughing. In fact, she very much wanted to cry and
yell at him that Valarian and Jacob would be coming for her. But she doubted that was true. Neither man
even knew she was missing. And if by some remote chance they did figure out she d been kidnapped and
tried to save her, she certainly didn t want to tip off Overton by yapping about it.
 So you plan to keep me in this room until the baby is born? Better to play along with her captor, [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]