Enchantment (95 page)

With
his
e
y
es
ful
l
y
open,
he
looked
down
into
her
angelic
face.
She
deserved
s
o
m
uch.
She deserved
to
be
w
orshiped
like
a
princess.

D
ried
blood
covered
her
upper
bo
d
y
.
Kerrigan
waved
his
hand
over
her
bo
d
y
,
cleaning
and re
m
oving
all
traces
of
dirt
and
blood.
He
placed
her
under
the
covers
and
l
a
y
down
beside
her, waiting
for
her
to
awaken.
This
t
i
m
e,
he’d be
with
her
when
she
woke
up.

The
door
to
the
bedroom
flung
open
as
Catz
entered.
Kerrigan’s
head
turned
toward
the intrusion.
“
D
on’t
y
o
u
knoc
k
?
”

“No,
I
don’t.
Not
when
Meeka’s
been
hurt.”
Catz
growled
with
anger. “Yes,
s
he’s
healed.
I’ll
stay
with
her
until
s
he
wakes.”

“What an
idea!
You’d
think
y
o
u
could
have
tried
at
least once
before.”
Catz
turned
to
leave. “I’ll
be
in
the
den.”

“Don’t
y
ou
ever
feel
fear
?
”
His
barb
hit
ho
m
e;
Catz
paused
in
the
doo
r
w
a
y
,
her
e
y
es
m
ee
t
ing
his
with
s
o
m
e
understanding
before
she
vanished
into
the
hallw
a
y
.
He
hadn’t
m
e
ant
to cause
Meeka
pain.
The
truth
was,
he’d
been
running
from
his
feelings
for
her.
It
scared
the
crap out
of
hi
m
.
It
all
just
seemed
s
o
i
m
possible.
Th
e
y
weren’t
m
e
ant
to
be
together,
and
it
hurt
like hell.

Kerrigan
turned
onto
his
side.
Her
skin
was
silkier
than
satin.
Leaning
over,
he
placed
a gentle
kiss
on
her
cheek.
H
i
s
bo
d
y
responded
to
her
closeness.
Unable
and
unwilling
to
forget,
he closed
his
e
y
e
s
r
e
m
embe
r
ing
the
taste
of
her
m
outh.

It
took
eve
r
y
bit
of
his
strength
not
to
pull her
into
his
a
r
m
s.
S
he
needed
rest.

But
God,
I
want
her
over and
over
again.

Chapter
T
w
enty-
S
ix

T
o
rtured, deep-throated,
agonizing
screams.
W
himpers
and
m
oans,
the
c
rumpled
figure in a corner,
s
houlders
shaking
with
her
so
b
s.
“Mom?
I
hear
you!
Please
don’t
cry.
Everything’s going
to
be
okay.
Please
stop,
please stop
it.”

She
w
a
s
s
pinning, tumbling through
a
d
a
rkened
tunnel,
the
stench of
decay
and
r
ot
strong
in her
n
o
se. Suddenly,
the brilliant colors
of
Enchantment
skies
shone
down
on
her.
G
argoyles flew overhead
circling
one
larger,
m
ore
powerful
figure.
Terr
o
r
blanketed
her.
O
h
God!
It
was
the Enforcer,
the
drago
n
—Kerrigan.

Lifting
her
pal
m
s
to
the
sky,
s
he
sobbed.
Red
streaked
through
the
sky,
falling
on
her
flesh,
s
mearing
in
g
reat,
ugly
s
watches
of
destruction
and
death.
Bodies
upon
bodies
of
dead g
a
rgoyles landed
at
her
feet, and
finally, the
glorious
dragon
fell
in
a
broken
heap.

No
matter
how
s
he
struggled,
s
he
just
stood
there,
unmoving.
Unfeeling.
W
h
a
t
had
she done?
W
hy
did
she
do
it?
Her
anguished
scream
filled
the
air,
m
uffling
the
slithering
chuckle behind
her.
“Kerrigan!”
She
scre
a
med
louder
and
louder,
fighting
to
reach
him,
crawling
over the
dead
g
a
rgoyle
bodies.
Every
time
s
he
looked
at
his
body,
she
found
herself
standing
in
the
s
ame
spot,
her emotions
s
hredding her
with
bitter self
-
r
ecriminations.
Meeka’s
scream shattered everything
around
her.

* * * *

Kerrigan’s
e
y
e
s
flung open, and
he caught
her
flailing
ar
m
s.
He
s
poke softly to her.
“
Meeka, it’s
all
right.
H
on
e
y
,
wake
up.
It’s
all
just
a
bad
drea
m
.
Co
m
e on,
precious,
y
o
u
’re oka
y
.
S
shhh.”

Meeka’s
e
y
e
s
flew
open,
and
tears
ran
down
her
cheeks.
Her
ar
m
s
desperate
l
y
reached
out, circling
his
neck
and
holding
him
tight.
Sobs
w
racked
her
bo
d
y
.

“I’m
sor
r
y
. I
didn’t
m
ean to
hurt
y
o
u
.
Please
don’t
c
r
y
.
”

“Bad…bad…dre
a
m
.”
S
he
s
niffled,
clinging
even
m
ore tight
l
y
to
his
war
m
th. “I’
m
…I
was… terrible.”
S
he
continued
to
c
r
y
.

He
pulled
her
closer,
whispering
in
her
ear.
“You
j
u
st
had
a
bad
dre
a
m
.
There’s
no
way
y
o
u’
r
e
terrible.”
He kissed
her
tears
aw
a
y
,
his
fingers trailing
up and
d
o
wn her
arm in a
m
in
d
less
m
otion.

She
shivered
at
his
touch,
awakening
the
slow,
burning
desire
deep
in
his
sto
m
ach.
Biting his
lip,
he
willed
hi
m
self
to
stop
his
traitorous
body
from
betr
a
y
i
ng
her
a
s
he
felt
the
heat
gather and
pool.

Slowl
y
, Meeka
lifted her
head,
looking
up
into
his
e
y
es. Her
next
words
s
hocked
hi
m
. “I
need
y
o
u,
K
errigan,”
she
i
m
p
lored.

“You’re
not
well
enough.”

Like
a
feather
dancing
over
his
skin,
her
fingers
traced
a
path
over
his
chest.
Kerrigan
knew he
was
lost.

He
needed
her
as
m
uch
as
she
needed
hi
m
.
Her
lips
sl
o
w
l
y
and
gent
l
y
found
his.
They bare
l
y
touched
but
the
elect
r
ic
it
y
arced.
N
othing else
existed
except
their
hearts pounding together as one.
Their
e
y
e
s
locked, and
t
i
m
e
stopped.
N
othing would
ever be
the
sa
m
e again, and Kerrigan
knew
it.

P
a
ssion
exploded
as
their
lips
collided,
each
of
them
searching
for
so
m
et
h
ing
so
deep,
th
e
y
w
ould
never
be
able
to
part
from
each
other.

* * * *

Meeka
pushed
Kerrigan
over
and
straddled
his
hips.
She
would
never
tire
of
this,
of
hi
m
. With
a
y
a
n
k
,
s
he
pulled
his
shirt
off,
and
covered
his
broad
chest
with
kiss
after
kiss.
Desire engulfed
the
m
.
S
he
needed
and
w
anted
m
ore.
Her
teeth
grazed
the
flesh
on
his
neck
again
and again.

A
growl
sounded
deep
within
his
throat.