Dawn Treadway - Dark Dreams - HarperImpulse Paranormal Romance

In response to her questioning this large dark-haired man merely began to laugh out loud.

“I’m sorry, did I amuse you?” She squinted up at him.

“No, hellion, I just find your way of communication different, that’s all, and no I am not a kidnapper, I have not given you drugs, you did not pass out, and you are in California; San Francisco to be precise. As for the way you got here, I transcended us.”

“You what?”

“I transcended us – a process Daemons use to move around.”

“Daemons?” She looked up to take a real, solid look at this maniac…and ran smack into the eyes of the gorgeous man from the physical disturbance this morning in her bookstore. Criminy, I have been abducted by the hottest lunatic ever. Jade looked around her, trying to assess the likelihood that she could escape and outrun him. She saw an open window and on the opposite side of what seemed to be a living room, the front door. Door is further, but I probably won’t break a leg if I go for the door. Door it is. She shoved him away and was up and running!

Before she took three steps, he was in front of her, a giant wall of muscle. She turned on the tips of her replacement stilettos and bolted for the window. This time he gave her five steps. He was in front of her again. Mr. Tall, Dark, and Broody gently picked her up with one of his arms behind her back, swung her legs up and over his other arm and carried her to the divan, where he smoothly sat her down and smiled.

“Can I continue? Or would you like to take another turn about the room? If it’s exercise you’re looking for I can think of much better ways to expend your energy.” He folded his arms, as if daring her to make another run for it. His golden eyes flickered with unmistakable amusement.

“Oh, for crying out loud, fine. I will listen to what you have to say. Only because you outweigh me by at least a hundred pounds, are way quicker than I am, and clearly you are willing to use force to have your way.” She was waving her index finger in the air, much like Matt did when he got excited. “But stop grinning at me; I am a hostage, not a plaything.”

“Pity.” His eyes did a swift head-to-toe assessment of her body. “I can assure you I wish this could be done any other way. Unfortunately the circumstances at hand have forced me into your life.”

“That I can see,” she hissed.

“Jade, I’m afraid our time together has just begun,” he said, squinting his eyes a bit. “I, or rather my family and I, require your assistance, and your gifts. We know you have the ability to sense emotion; we also know you can, in various degrees, affect emotions around you. Also your ability to tell if beings are lying may come in handy as well.”

“How in the world could you know that? Or my name? Who the hell are you?” If it were possible, this conversation was starting to freak her out even more than what had already happened.

“My name is Nias, and let’s just say I have it on the best authority.”

“Well, then, Nias, do you know where this curse came from? Can you tell me?” She wasn’t sure why it had come out as a question and not a demand; maybe it was fear at finally having an answer. What she did know was even discussing its origin made her recall all the pain and sadness it had brought into her life. If there were a way to find out where it came from, possibly there would be a way to get rid of it. She would do almost anything to accomplish that.

“That, I cannot do. I am not at liberty to inform you of any more than you have to know in order to help us.”

“Why am I even having this conversation, then? For all I know, you found out somehow, got Matt drunk, maybe, I don’t know.”

Then it hit her. The strangest thing about this situation was she could tell he wasn’t lying. She always got a feeling when someone lied to her. Almost like a sharpness at the back of her neck and behind her eyes, like a fierce headache was coming on, and she wasn’t getting it from him. So there were only two possible conclusions; one, he believed what he was saying so strongly that it didn’t come out at her as a lie, which meant her half-sarcastic comment was correct and he was insane. Or two, he was being truthful. Surprisingly to her, it wasn’t the possibility of the former, complete insanity, worrying her the most; it was the possibility of the latter, that his story could reflect the truth, causing the bubble of nervousness and trepidation to rise up from her gut.

“Well, can you get rid of it? I want to get it out of me; it is awful, to tell you the truth. You are looking at this thing as a gift, but it isn’t. This thing has made me a freak. My own parents couldn’t handle it. Or I guess it was me who found it hard to tolerate their loathing of my oddity. It wasn’t just them; try making friends when you know their every feeling and lie. It crashes into my head, and did I mention it hurts? Can you, they, who, whatever, make it go away?”

Nias was not completely surprised to see the look of pain in her eyes, but it had an effect on him he did not expect. He had an overwhelming need to make that look, the causes of that look, go away, but he knew it was impossible. He needed the part of her causing that pain.

“No, I can’t. I was asked to find you, explain the situation, and obtain your help. And to be honest, I doubt they would be willing to take away something they find useful.” He couldn’t help but place his hand on her forearm, to touch her, to soothe her. And then, as quickly as he had placed it, and felt the warmth of her skin, her eyes flickered straight towards his own, and he yanked his hand away.

He would not do this. This human would not affect him. He pulled himself together and got back to the business at hand.

“My brother has been kidnapped by some very bad individuals.”

“I feel his pain, as I seem to be in the same situation.” He appreciated her sharp wit and snappy comeback, and smirked despite himself.

“Trust me, Jade, you are not in the same situation. I will not hurt you. If you try to run, I will bring you back. But I will not ever hurt you.” And he suddenly realized he meant every word of it.

Again Jade could feel he wasn’t lying. He meant what he said, and strangely she didn’t feel like she was in any immediate danger.

“I need to get to him, and I need you to use the abilities you possess to help me do it. The place I have to take you is evil beyond your reasoning; it will be like nothing you have ever seen or imagined,” he continued to explain.

Jade shuddered at the sincerity and seriousness in his voice. “Where is this place and who are these people?”

“I cannot give you any more information right now, but we need to start with your training immediately, if I ever expect to see my brother alive again.”

“Why in the world would I get involved with this? It sounds extremely dangerous, and I’m sorry to be harsh, but it just isn’t my problem.” Even as she spoke the words, she thought of the one and only thing that could possibly make her do something so crazy; to actually have a normal life, to be rid of this blasted curse. This man might not know where the curse came from, but even if there was an infinitesimal chance she could find its origin and maybe, just maybe, find out a way to make it stop, she wanted to try.

“Unfortunately, Jade, the moment you came into contact with me you started being watched and it became your problem. The Shaitan have eyes everywhere. They have, no doubt, seen you by now, so you are involved already. You’re just not safe without me or one of the Djinn beside you anymore.” Nias looked into her eyes and she thought she saw a tiny glimmer of regret. Then she experienced a flash of anger that he had put her in this position. If what he said was true, he had already endangered her life.