Embrace Me at Dawn

Page 24

“I’ve no doubt,” Anka broke in, speaking the truth. “But I understand that you’re interested in finding people of a certain bloodline who can help you with a quest. I know where to find one of them.”

Not for anything would she give over Sabelle’s location. Yes, she might envy the beautiful witch, her perfect mating and her past intimacies with Lucan. Sabelle might be from a better bloodline and her magic might be more unique than her own—but Anka wasn’t about to let her envy change the fact that Bram’s sister was still her dearest friend.

“Do you?” Morganna didn’t bother to walk away from the Land Rover, but merely teleported across the distance until she leaned into Anka’s face, nearly nose to nose. “How would you know whose bloodline is of interest to me?”

“I live with Mathias’s second-in-command, Shock. I hear things.”

“The big, dodgy one with those dark contraptions covering his eyes?”

Anka nodded. “The very one.”

“Whatever they’ve sent you to say is of no interest to me. I don’t trust either of them,” she drawled.

“Of course you don’t,” Anka assured the pale witch. “They’re men. Why should you?”

Morganna’s gaze sharpened. “Who is it you think I wish to find? And why, pray tell, should I trust you?”

“Well, it made sense that you would want to have a bit of a…chat with Bram Rion. But if not, I’ll take myself away. It was an honor meeting such a legend.” Anka backed away, praying the other witch would take her bait. If not, she’d have to find some way to free those hostages.

Not two steps later, Morganna grabbed her wrist. The witch’s power, sizzling like an electrical current under her skin, nearly knocked Anka on her arse. She struggled to stay upright and not shudder from all the might coursing under the other female’s skin.

“I want Bram Rion,” Morganna hissed. “He alone can tell me where I can find something...” The witch weighed her words carefully. “Of value.”

“After he tells you, will you let him go then?” Anka tested the waters.

“Of course.” Morganna smiled.

Anka didn’t believe her for a moment. “Pity. I rather think someone needs to finish the prat off and put the rest of us out of our misery.”

A slow, devious smile crossed Morganna’s face. “’Tis something I can arrange with minimal effort, little witch. Can you bring him to me?”

If she promised to deliver Bram to Morganna on a silver platter, the bitch would surely suspect a trap. No one got anything for free, and Morganna knew she had made many enemies over the centuries. This parody of politeness was a façade, and if Anka failed to play the game correctly, Morganna would rip her throat out magically and pull the heart from her chest while it still beat. And it would mean nothing to her. It would certainly cost her very little effort. No, Anka knew she had to be coy.

“Maybe. Eventually. But the way I hear it, you don’t want to just kill him immediately. Eventually, yes. But you need information first.”

Morganna looked just a bit impressed, despite herself. “You are quite well informed. Been eavesdropping? Or does that big brute tell you things when he’s between your thighs? Men are, after all, so often led by their cocks.”

Anka forced a conspiratorial smile. “They are, but in this case, I’ve been digging for information myself. You see, I’m with him somewhat against my will.”

The half-truth fell out, and she had to stop herself from wincing. Anka wasn’t exactly sure where this conversation was going, but now that the die had been cast, she had to play her part to the end.

Sidling closer, Morganna examined her carefully. “Really? You can’t leave him?”

“I could,” she corrected. Something in Morganna’s tone told her the other witch would lose all respect for her if she sounded helpless before a mere man. “Let’s say he has something I need, and I’ve purposely ingrained myself in his life until I get it. Then I’ll have no problem whatsoever cutting him loose.”

That made her smile. “Excellent. So, ’tis been your idea to find information to help me because…?”

“Because I’d hoped that in exchange you could help me as well.”

Morganna would be suspicious of anyone simply offering to help, but the reluctant respect dawning in her slow smile said that she understood a good barter. “Indeed? What have you to offer?”

“I will find all the information pertaining to that item you seek and—”

“Item?” she asked sharply, dragging a long white claw across Anka’s cheek. “What do you know about it?”

Time to lay her cards on the table. “I know it’s a potion that will kill you. I know that Merlin made it and hid it. I know a few things about extracting it that you probably don’t.”

Bram was probably going to kill her for this, but since he wasn’t here to consult, she had to play this her own way and repair any damage later.

“Such as?”

“Not so fast. I need something in return for helping you.”

“Step carefully. I can kill you instantly.”

“You can,” Anka agreed readily. “But then my information dies with me.”

Petulance crossed Morganna’s smooth face. Anka had no trouble understanding why Marrok once found her desirable enough to bed. Despite the centuries of life and exile, she was beyond beautiful. Her violet eyes looked so much like Olivia’s but lacked all the warmth and compassion her friend’s possessed. Instead, they gleamed with cunning and conceit.

“Perhaps ’tis a deal we can strike. You will tell me where to find the potion and how to extract it, and I will grant whatever little request you have.”

“Shouldn’t you hear my request first before you decide you can, in fact, grant it?”