Heart's Lair Read Online Free Page A

Heart's Lair
Book: Heart's Lair Read Online Free
Author: Kathleen Morgan
Tags: Fiction, General, Romance, Historical
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his head to rid himself of the noise, but it did little good. The noise became painful, as the high-pitched sound waves relentlessly bombarded his ears.
    Karic grimaced. Necator said the machine would turn him into a mindless idiot. Excruciating pain could do that to a man, but Karic doubted the Guide's purpose was quite that simplistic. There had to be a way to plumb the secret workings of the machine and divine its true abilities, if only there were time.
    The effects of the Guide upon the Cat Man were not lost on Necator. He smiled in satisfaction. Things were progressing exactly as planned. The Cat Man's mental resistance would soon be destroyed. In a matter of secundae, the prisoner would be psychic putty in his hands. Then he'd extract the whereabouts of the secret Cat lair and have his victory at last.
    He had considered executing the Cat Man as soon as he had his information, but now he hesitated. The full extent of the Guide's effects on the rebels might be worth delving into. If the machine could be programed to overcome all their psychic powers, its potential would be unlimited. Why, it might even rival the purported abilities of the Knowing Crystal, and then he'd have his revenge on the arrogant Teran Ardane as well.
    Yes, Necator mused, further study might well be of use. He liked the idea of delving into the soon-to-be pliable mind of the proudly defiant Cat Man, molding his thoughts and feelings into whatever form he Chose. An abject slave, groveling at his feet, was a particularly pleasing image.
    The fevered actions of the scientist working the Guide's controls drew Necator from his pleasant contemplation. With a frown, the Lord Commander strode over to the machine. The waves on the screen fluttered erratically and red warning lights flashed.
    He grabbed the scientist's arm to get his attention. "What's wrong?" he mouthed to the man.
    The scientist frantically waved at the machine, then in the direction of the Cat Man. "He's doing something to the Guide," the man mouthed back. "I can't keep it calibrated. It's like he's controlling it now."
    With a low growl, Necator swung toward the Cat Man. There was indeed something untoward happening, for the prisoner no longer wore a look of twisted agony. Somehow, someway, he must have discovered the proper wavelength to communicate with the Guide.
    Necator lifted his hearing protectors. Yes, the piercing sounds had muted to a low, almost pleasant hum. He inwardly cursed. The Cat Man had indeed found a way to manipulate the machine. Necator turned back to the Guide.
    ''Turn it off!" he screamed. "Shut it down before he has a chance to totally destroy it!"
    The humming died as the scientist snapped off the various dials and switches. Necator wrenched away his hearing protectors, sending them flying across the tile floor to slam into the nearest wall. For a long while he stood there, his body trembling With the depth of his rage.
    The Guide was useless against Cat Men. His precious machine, developed to destroy mental resistance and open its victims to reprograming, was not only useless but in danger of psychic sabotage at the hands of the one race of Agricans that Bellator had yet to subdue. And now he was no closer to discovering their secret lair than he was before. Curse them all!
    He stalked over to where the Cat Man knelt, his arms still painfully suspended in the air. Once more Necator wrenched back his head. The glimmer of triumph in his prisoner's eyes nearly made him choke on his impotent rage. He jerked the Cat Man's head back so far that only the strength of the muscles bulging in the man's neck kept his spine from snapping.
    "You've won nothing," Necator hissed through clenched teeth. "Nothing, do you hear me? You've only given me further reason to hasten the extermination of your race. Your people are all that stand between me and complete Imperium control. And I'll find thembelieve me, I willwith or without you, that simpering little Sententian or my
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