Page 47 of Camriel
Cam put his hand on Amaros’ arm when his boss started towards the females.“She’s not going to hurt Grace,” he said confidently.Victoria had dropped her sickle and was grinning widely.Amaros relaxed and remained concealed behind the trees they were using for cover.
“That was amazing!”Grace said when the wrestler put her down.“Victory, this is Zoe Zayden and I’m Grace Doblin.”
“Hi,” Zoe said and waved, staying where she was.The container of venison sloshed with blood.She could sense Victoria’s soul was the same as hers.She was mostly good, but had a very dark spot that was worrisome.
“My name’s Victoria Tudor, but you can call me Vic,” Victoria said.She looked at the pair shrewdly.“I’m starting to think you’re not slaves after all.”
“As if,” Grace said with a smirk.“The knights are big teddy bears, when they’re not murdering bad guys.”
“I should fit right in, then,” Victoria joked.
“You’re probably wondering who Camriel is,” Zoe began.“By the way, he wants you to have this venison.He thinks you’re too skinny.”
“Uh, tell him I said thanks,” Victoria said, gesturing for her to toss the container over.She caught it and put it down next to her reaping hook.“I know he’s an alien,” Vic reminded her as she straightened up.“I think I’m half-alien,” she added.“My father looks a lot like me, but he’s got a weird red tint to his eyes, just like the other extra-terrestrials.”
Amaros wasn’t about to be held back this time.He ignored the warning look his second in command gave him and strode forward.
Victoria snatched up her sickle and went into a combative crouch.“Here comes the head alien,” she said more to herself than to the girls.“Is he going to kill me?”she asked.
“Nah,” Zoe said dismissively.“Amaros just wants to know what you know about our enemies.”
Cam hurried to catch up to Amaros.They stopped next to Zoe, leaving a wide gap between themselves and the newbie.Grace stood between them all, acting as a conduit of trust.Her head was still reeling slightly from being whirled around so fast.
“I’m Amaros, commander of the Knights of Order,” Amaros said in formal introduction.“If you’ll permit me, I need to scan your soul.”
Victoria blinked at him, then flicked a look at Grace for an explanation.
“He has to do that with all of us cambions,” she said with a shrug.“None of us have pure souls, but he just has to make sure you’re not entirely evil.”
Zoe noted the guilty look on the wrestler’s face.“We’ve all done bad things, Vic,” she said gently.“Grace and I have taken lives to save ourselves.”
“Why are you here?”Victoria asked.“I don’t mean here at the lake, but what are your goals?”she queried.
“Fate told me humanity is counting on us to save them,” Zoe replied.
Victoria blanched and backed away from Amaros.“Uh, oh,” she said uneasily.“I guess I’m screwed, then.I’ve been killing people left, right and center.”
“Only the bad ones, though, right?”Grace said before she could bolt.
“I don’t know how to break this to you, but there areonlybad people left now,” Vic said.She halted when she realized they weren’t going to chase her down and try to murder her for her crimes.
“Have you killed anyone who hasn’t tried to attack you first, mate?”Camriel asked.She was fully clothed now, but he still drank her in with his eyes.
“I’m not your mate,” she denied, but shook her head.“I’ve only ever acted in self-defense,” she confirmed.
“Then why do you look so guilty?”Amaros asked.“It’s obvious you feel you’ve done something wrong, or you wouldn’t be so reluctant to allow me to scan you.”
“We won’t hurt you, Vic,” Grace promised.“One of our talents is to sense whether people are good or bad.I can sense you’re not a saint, but I can’t feel true evil inside you.”
Victoria gulped in trepidation and looked at Camriel.His eyes were locked on her.He didn’t look concerned and gave her a supportive nod.So did Zoe.Amaros was impressed when she straightened up from her crouch and tied her reaping hook to a belt loop.“Go ahead,” she said and crossed her arms.
Amaros closed the distance between them and placed his hand on her shoulder.He felt solid muscle beneath his palm as he swept his magic through her.Like his bonded, he sensed a dark stain on her soul.She’d done something she considered to be terrible, but he didn’t know what it was.“You’re welcome to join our family,” he said, dropping his hand.
“Is that it?”Victoria asked incredulously.
“Yep,” Grace said.“I told you we wouldn’t hurt you.”
“There’s one more thing,” Zoe said and strode over to offer the cambion her hand.
