Harmonia's Kiss Read Online Free Page B

his throat.
    The stranger didn’t look at all like Cassandra. She didn’t speak like Cassandra or carry herself the same way. She wasn’t quiet and mysterious, as Cassandra had been—she was forthright, honest, perhaps too trusting. But her conviction that she could change a situation that appeared to be beyond retrieval reminded him of his lost wife, of the woman who had stolen his heart away, all those centuries before.
    This woman’s determination reminded him of Cassandra’s conviction that she could accomplish deeds that no one else had managed. That extraordinary faith in her ability to make a difference, against all odds, lived on in this stubborn foreigner, who had brought her son a third of the way around the world in a desperate bid for the truth.
    Who was he to doubt his powers when she was convinced she could shape the world to her will? She might be wrong, but he admired her fortitude.
    Her determination made Drake realize that the despondency that had claimed him, this uncharacteristic indifference, was the work of a viper.
    And why not? They were said to breed in darkness, said to bring war and pestilence and famine upon the lands they occupied. Why not here, where all had gone awry? How could he have forgotten to listen?
    Drake listened then. He strained his ears, using the full capacity of his keen Pyr senses.
    And the chant was there. Soft, persistent, but there. He heard the soft murmur of the viper, so well heeded in this place. His eyes widened slightly as he recognized that his despondency—and that of his men—had been wrought by the spell. They had almost been enthralled again, so consumed with their losses that they had nearly lost everything that remained.
    Erik was right. There was purpose in their awakening in this time. They could continue their mission. The Dragon’s Teeth Warriors could do what they did best, hunt and destroy vipers.
    And he would guess his last coin that this woman’s quest was linked to his own. It could be no accident that she had found him, no coincidence that she had touched him in so few words.
    It was fate.
    Drake looked into the eyes of this woman and instead of seeing the past, he saw the future. He would do something for her.
    He would make a difference to this boy.
    He would get her truth, no matter what it cost him.
    And in so doing, he guessed that he would find his own path forward.
    â€œMy name is Drake,” he said, although that was only his new name. His old name was as dust, just as his old life had been. Drake suited him well enough.
    â€œMr. Drake?” she asked.
    â€œGeneral Drake,” the boy corrected.
    Drake felt himself smile a little and the curve felt unfamiliar on his lips. “Just Drake.” She was softer than his Cassandra, this woman, and he was wary of frightening her.
    â€œI’m Veronica,” she said, slipping her hand into his. Her fingers were small, her skin soft, her perfume tantalizing. Something else awakened in Drake, a desire he’d thought never to feel again. “Veronica Maitland.” She shrugged and started to blush, then pulled her hand away quickly. “Everyone just calls me Ronnie.”
    He would call her Veronica in his thoughts, at least. The name was perfect for her, for it meant “little truth,” or “honesty.”
    Just what she had brought to him.
    â€œI will find your husband, Mrs. Maitland,” Drake said.
    Her throat worked for a moment before she spoke. “They say, they say, that his mission was…”
    â€œI will find him,” Drake interrupted firmly. “Take your son home, and leave this to me. I will ensure that you know the truth, whatever it is.”
    â€œI don’t have much money…”
    â€œI will require no compensation.”
    She eyed him, then nodded, her grip tight on her son’s shoulders. “How will I find you, Drake?”
    He felt his sense of purpose grow as he beckoned to