Silk Over Razor Blades Read Online Free

both
to the ground.
    Pounding footsteps reverberated
through the grass.
    Silence.
    It seemed like hours before
Nick allowed her to sit up. He gazed at her, blinking away the
blood dripping into his eyes from a cut on his forehead. A swelling
on his cheek signalled the start of a bruise. His lower lip
swelled.
    ‘You okay?’ He touched her
cheek.
    She whimpered.
    Her last clear thought before
unconsciousness claimed her, was that neither of them would be in
any state to pose for wedding photos.
    Maybe she would wear make-up
after all.

Chapter
Three
     
     
    31 July 30 BC
    Screams of wounded and dying men rang
out across the sand.
    Golden grains, once dry and loose
underfoot, clumped into red-soaked clods, as if the earth itself
wept tears of blood. Beyond, shrouded by clouds of dust, a shape
hundreds of cubits tall stabbed into the air like an accusing
finger.
    Saar wiped blood from his eyes and
cleaned his sword on the body of the dead man at his feet.
‘Forward,’ he cried. ‘Drive them back to the river.’
    As if his voice gave strength to those
still standing, he watched his men pierce the Roman forces and
continue until the first line broke and scattered.
    ‘ Use your gifts, blessed sons and
daughters. Show them the true power of we who are god-touched.
Offer mighty Set his rightful tribute.’
    The change in atmosphere was palpable.
The excited energy of his soldiers lifted the hairs on his arms and
neck. A prickle of warmth rushed over his skin. Fangs lengthened
from his gum line to brush his tongue.
    Many of his men tucked their swords
away. Others tossed down their weapons and formed tight fists. None
stopped fighting.
    Stares and whispers among the enemy
quickly changed to screams as Saar’s chosen soldiers exposed their
deadly fangs. Men and women alike attacked like animals: biting,
scratching, pulling, kicking.
    Saar threw down his own sword, flexed
his fingers and attacked. His first victim shrieked as he gripped
the man’s head, yanking it to one side. A quivering expanse of
naked flesh showed above his breastplate.
    In that straining throat, Saar saw a
pulse, beating against the skin like a trapped butterfly. Hunger
swelled within him, moistening his tongue. With effort he tamped it
back and closed his lips over the jumping flesh. He bit down in one
smooth move.
    Blood spurted into his mouth, hot and
smooth, tinged with a sweet edge that characterised the taste of
fear.
    Two swallows later he let the man fall,
unwilling to let the pleasure of feeding distract him. Instead, he
moved on and saw, all around him, others of his men performing
similar savage acts.
    Even Kiya, after hurling her daggers
into the back of a fleeing soldier, leapt on his flailing body and
rode it to the ground. She bent over his throat and bit deep to
access the blood beneath.
    A rush of pride tingled through him as
he watched her. Her beauty, her skill, her deadly accuracy. Never
before had women fought at his side, but today, he could think of
nothing better.
    Despite the change in hand-to-hand
tactics, Octavian’s men displayed an impressive level of
discipline. After recovering from the initial shock they resumed
their attack and several Alexandrian soldiers fell.
    Saar smiled.
    Those soldiers unmarked by his blood
fell and quickly died. Others touched by the power of the mighty
god Set, healed within moments. Though they bled and screamed like
all others, they resumed battle after a brief rest, most of them as
if untouched and often with renewed ferocity.
    Through the heat of battle Saar felt a
new tug on his senses. He had no other way to describe it. Deep
inside, where he felt the minds of all of his God-Touched children,
he recognised the touch of one he feared he’d never feel again.
Hope soared within him.
    His lungs tightened. ‘Mosi? As he spoke
the name he saw the man approaching from the city, sword in hand.
He laughed. ‘Mosi! In my hour of greatest need you return to my
side.’
    Anger crackled across the bond