Tears of the Fallen Ch. 14

Composing himself, he tried to look less pleased with being in Reasa's company. He really did want to learn what she had to teach him and didn't want to risk having her decide to withdraw her offer to help. Relaxing his arms on his crossed legs, he waited for her to begin.

"This time we're going to be entering my mind so I can show you how to locate someone's emotions. I am strong enough to make small enhancements to emotions without damaging the host mind, which is very easy to do. You MUST concentrate fully, Liam. You have the power to turn me into a drooling mess and I'm not so sure you wouldn't be able to do the same to Freya despite her having one of the strongest minds I've come across. I cannot stress just how dangerous this is. One slipup and you could wipe both of our minds."

Some of Liam's eagerness waned as he saw the seriousness of her expression. Reasa wasn't being overly-theatrical, she meant every word. If he deviated even the slightest from her commands, he could possibly harm two of the women he cared most for in the world. A tremor of fear gripped him and something must have shown in his eyes because Reasa's expression softened slightly.

"I believe your natural protective instincts will not allow you to do any harm," she said in a less acerbic tone. "I'm willing to take the risk so try not to be overly concerned about it. Be careful, yes, but have some faith in yourself."

"What about my aunt? Is she aware of how dangerous this is?"

Reasa nodded. "Of course. All vampires are aware of the risks of another entering their minds. The fact Freya suggested Elina for the task proves her faith in you, Liam. She would not risk her daughter if she thought for one moment you may harm her."

That settled him a little, and he loosened his shoulders to relax himself. "Okay, what do I do?"

"I'm lowering my mental shields a fraction to allow you to come in. Very gently reach out with your mind and try to find the way in. Most people imagine different things when it comes to their defences. They often don't even realise they're doing it. The first step is always to try to determine what they are. Try to work out what my defences are and then the path I'm allowing you to take to enter into my mind."

Closing his eyes because it was better not to have the distraction of looking at his mate, Liam carefully pushed out his mental awareness towards Reasa until he came across a lattice of thick strands of rubber. He tested the thickest part of it, giving a weak mental push and watching the rubber give a little but rebound back into place the instant he stopped pushing. It was fascinating so he did it again and smiled.

Reasa's shields were very strong and he couldn't stop the swelling of pride that rushed through him. When they joined together they would be so strong. Her experience and his strength as a booster would make them a formidable team.

"Liam..."

There was exasperation in her tone so he moved on, following the rubber strands as they began to taper down in thickness until he was at the barest of openings. It was so minute if he hadn't been concentrating so hard he would have missed it. She was very skilled at this and he couldn't stop another smile crossing his face as he accepted her invitation and entered her mind slowly.

It was strange to be within someone else's most private place. It wasn't the same as the mental communication they'd shared. He was more fully inside Reasa's mind, sensing her emotions and being close to her thoughts too. If he really wanted to he could push just a little and he would be able to read her thoughts but he chose not to do that. Instead he concentrated on an area in her mind that closely resembled an overgrown well and sent his physic persona to that place.

"Your touch is very light," Reasa said out aloud, approval in her tone that widened his grin. "Continue with this level of touch and calmness and I may come out of this intact. You've found where my emotions are hidden. Can you determine the different ones?"

Liam didn't speak, he used his mind to conjure the image of a feather which he dipped into the well carefully. She had said to keep his touch light and a feather was the lightest item he could think of. He didn't want to inadvertently hurt her.

Reasa giggled as he stroked the feather over a moss-hewn brick and he laughed at the sound. "This is where your sense of humour lies," he chuckled, dragging the feather over it again so he could hear the wonderful sound she emitted. He could have stayed there all day making her laugh but knew she would tell him off if he tried it.

Moving on, he brushed another brick and felt the first stirrings of irritation within his mate as her breath hissed out. Anger. He tried again and felt a hot blast of desire exude from the woman before him, and he quickly backed away before she could become angrier. "Sorry," he whispered.

"It is fine, just move on," Reasa answered, a breathless quality to her voice.

Liam didn't brush anymore bricks with the feather; he let it melt away and just viewed the bricks. He was quickly recognising each emotion and he didn't want to touch the ones that would cause her pain or induce her to cry. He spent a few more moments staring into the well before he backed away. "I feel confident I know what I'm looking for now, Reasa."

His mate let out a slow breath and he opened his eyes to see her watching him intently. "You learn so fast." There was an accusation to her tone.

He shot her a rueful smile. "The book has a section solely on this," he admitted.

Her green eyes bore into him as her lips tighten a bit in disapproval, but she didn't call him on the fact he'd kept that to himself. "Fine. Let us see if you can narrow in on individual emotions now you know what you're looking for. Lower your defences until you can feel both Freya's emotions and mine. Don't open too wide to the entire pack or you may be overloaded. Start small."

He did as she asked, keeping a light presence in her mind in the region where her emotions were and then reached out psychically to the other room to sense his aunt. Freya was concentrating on her paperwork task, irritation wafting from her in spades. He stayed still, sensing the difference in wavelengths and noting that each had a distinctive pattern, an individual signature.

It was something akin to what he did with the Vârcolac. Before today, he had only been able to do this with the Vârcolac because they were more prone to speak telepathically. In hindsight, he could see that he'd automatically learned their signatures at an early age. This was the first time he'd ever noticed it with anyone else in the pack and it was a heady feeling.

It was enough to make Liam smile again and he couldn't resist testing his aunt's mental defences to see if he could easily enter her mind. He was immediately brought up short by a hedge so dense it was a solid wall. As if that wasn't bad enough, it appeared to be encased in a mesh of barbed wire. Stunned, he could only gape at it in stunned shock. Surely she had to have the most impressive defences of anyone he knew, and if she did, he could only imagine the depth of emotions she kept hidden from the world.

He began to test each section, keeping his touch light as he sought a way in. Liam knew he was probably powerful enough to force his way into Freya's mind but that wasn't the object of the lesson. He just wanted to test if he could slip inside. He didn't want to do anything while he was there, he was just overcome with the need to know...

"Liam!" Reasa's scolding tone startled him and he hastily backed away, his expression sheepish when he opened his eyes to look at her.

"Freya did not give you permission to trespass in her thoughts."

"Sorry, I got a little carried away there." His tone was meek and he gave a small smile that turned into a large grin when she rolled her eyes.

"Somebody save me from foolish males who think a cute smile will get them out of trouble," she grumbled under her breath, but he could see a smile threatening to tilt her lips upward.

He beamed at her until she rose from the bed and began pacing the room. As the silence stretched, he watched her move with a rapt expression. She had no idea how graceful she was, how the sunlight shining in the window bathed her caramel skin with a soft glow that made his mouth go dry. He ached to brush his lips against that skin, to run his tongue over her softness to see if she tasted as good as she looked. He wondered what she'd do if he tried.

Liam knew she wasn't anywhere close to being ready to mate with him, but she inspired such emotions within him, keeping his distance was difficult. Would she let him have just one kiss? Having her in his mind and sharing hers was such an intimate thing. Surely that was more intimate than a simple kiss? If she trusted him enough on a psychic level then perhaps she would trust him a little further? Rising slowly from the bed, he moved into her path so when she next turned to resume her pacing he was blocking her way.

Reasa uttered a startled squeak as she unexpectedly came up against the brick wall of his chest. "What are you doing?" She stepped back quickly, scowling up at him.

"You are the most exquisite woman I have ever seen." His words appeared to catch her even more off-guard and she stared at him mutely for a moment before she backed away further.

"We are here to work on a way to treat the injured vampires. If you are unable to maintain that task then you should leave."

Her words were as frosty as the glare on her face but it didn't faze him. Liam stepped closer, inhaling Reasa's heavenly scent, his heart beginning to kick up a beat. She smelled so good, so tantalising that his mouth was starting to water at the thought of tasting her. Reasa's tongue snaked out nervously, brushing her bottom lip as she came up against the immovable object of the wall and her fierceness turned to uncertainty.

"Liam..."

Placing both hands on the wall either side of her head, he had the presence of mind not to press his body against hers even though he dearly wanted to. One kiss. That was all he wanted and all he would tease from his beautiful mate...this time.

"Liam..." This time his name sounded breathless, a slight tremor in her voice as Reasa's hands came up and she mistakenly touch him on the chest.

Heat flared through him the instant she touched him. It wasn't a slow burn but instead an inferno of need racing through his veins until he thought he would surely turn to ash from the intensity. Liam didn't recognise the harsh growl that uttered from his lips as he swooped down and took her mouth in a blistering kiss, stroking her lips with his, running his tongue along her bottom lip as she had done only moments before.

Colours exploded behind his closed eyes, hot reds, flickering yellows and a blinding white so intense it threatened to consume him. She tasted divine, like hot caramel layering through molten chocolate with a hint of spicy cinnamon. She was heat and passion, soft and yet strong, her lips moulding to his desperately as she kissed him back with a fervour that bordered on wildness.

Reasa's fingers curled into his chest, resting against his racing heart as he fought to keep some distance between them when all he wanted to do was press his aching body against her softness. He had to maintain some control though, because she was so very fragile now and he could easily hurt her with his passion. He contented himself with the kiss, with stealing her breath away when he dipped his tongue inside her mouth to taste her more fully.

Liam couldn't ever remember feeling this alive, this intensity of emotions without there being pain. Before Thereasa, he would have been projecting everything to the pack but not this...not these emotions. These were solely for him and for his mate. These were the most intimate and private of emotions that he would never share with anyone other than her. She was his, his exotic mate, his fierce little bundle of conflicted feelings and messed up thinking. Thereasa was his enigma to solve as she worked to save his soul without truly knowing that was what she was doing.

Liam finally dragged his mouth away, his breathing harsh as he stared down into dazed green eyes that for once weren't flashing at him in irritation. He gave into temptation to run his fingers over her warm brown skin, trailing them across one cheek slowly until he rubbed a thumb against her swollen bottom lip. "I guess the lesson is over now," he sighed softly, a rueful smile tugging at his lips as he watched awareness creep back into her gaze and her hands pushed at his chest.

"Get out!

He knew she needed time and space, so he backed away, moving to the closed bedroom door. "I'll leave the book for you to read. I think tomorrow we can go up to the Praetorian Compound and see if there is anything we can do to help the injured. Rafe should have had enough time to arrange an escort by now."

Reasa stared dumbly at him as he left the room, closing the door quietly behind him. The instant he did, she moved back to the bed, hugging her knees as her heart beat a wild tattoo in her chest. Dear God, the heat in his kiss had been electric. He had sucked her down and turned her inside out with that one meeting of lips. There was an ache in her stomach so intense it was almost physical. What the hell had he done to her? He had to have projected his emotions onto her for her to respond the way she had. He had to!

Reasa stared at the door, her thoughts in chaos as she tried to convince herself of that and reluctantly had to be truthful with herself. Liam had maintained his shields during the kiss. Her reaction had purely been her own, she couldn't deny that. She had wanted him, had needed him with a passion so intense she'd been disappointed when he'd stopped kissing her. She was attracted to Liam Eriksson despite of what he was. She had come here to kill him and his kind and now she wanted to lay with him, to feel his hands stroking her body, to feel his lips...

Burying her head against her knees, she fought not to think any further down those lines as the ache in the pit of her stomach grew worse. She had to stop thinking like that. She had to put Liam back in the box she'd constructed for him. He was an abomination. He shouldn't have been born.

But she found the strength of her convictions was weaker than it had ever been before. The box wouldn't close within her mind, instead it remained cracked open and twinkling brown eyes peeked out at her. Reasa swallowed back a strangled sob as wicked lips grinned at her...playful, teasing and so full of heat they were ready to burn her up. She was in trouble and she didn't know how to get herself out of this one.

*****

"Cassia, I need to head into the city to pick up some supplies for the lab that Mallen's ordered in. I'm supposed to have an escort."

The Vârcolac halted in her tracks on her way over to see Pietro, mild annoyance overcoming her at the interruption. She turned around to look at Trish and the annoyance melted away in an instant. At seventeen, the youngster already looked older than she was, but lacked the usual confidence of most of her peers. It was why the tall dark-haired girl had been scheduled to help at the lab, to boost that confidence among some of the more empathic pack members.

Despite her desire to see her mate, Cassia wasn't able to ignore the needs of one of her more vulnerable pack mates. "You and me both," she commented, giving her a reassuring smile.

"Really?" Trish's eyes were huge, her surprise evident.

"Yes...unless Rafe has rescinded the order." Cassia spotted Aaron leaving the Alpha's house and waved to the pack's second-in-command. "Aaron, we need to go into town to pick up some supplies. I was thinking about asking Pietro to accompany us. Will that be sufficient?"

Her uncle wandered over, a thoughtful expression on his face as he regarded them. "I don't think that will be a problem, honey," he said, giving his niece a hug before ruffling Trish's hair. "It will do you all some good to get away from the pack for a bit. I'm sure you'll be able to keep everyone in one piece, Cass."

For a moment she blinked at him in surprise and then a wide smile crossed her face. Aaron was putting her in charge of the outing, not coddling her, as was the norm. Her expression must have been something to see because her uncle laughed loudly and shook his head.

"We learn from our mistakes," he winked, his sunny smile automatically making them both smile back at him. Aaron's easy-going personality hid a core of steel but it made him the first person most of the pack went to when they had a problem. "You will see more of our pack and the Hanlon pack in the city than normal but that's only because we're stepping up a presence there to see if we can locate any strangers to the area. If you see anything out of the ordinary let me know. Jared's informed us he's detected some unknown wolves in his neck of the woods recently. They've come close but so far haven't trespassed on pack lands. It's unusual behaviour though and with the current threat level from the European vampires we'd be foolish not to pay close attention to these random wolves."

Cassia's surprise instantly turned to wariness and she couldn't help the feeling of pleasure that also washed over her. Her uncle was treating her like one of the pack soldiers, and that pleased her wolf no end. This was the first she'd heard of these unknown wolves and she knew it was probably on a need to know basis. The fact she was entrusted with the knowledge was a huge source of pride for her but she tried not to show it too openly.

"If we see anything we'll let you know," she answered.

As Aaron nodded and walked away, she became aware of the scent of fear from Trish and turned her gaze back to the girl. "It will be okay. I'm sure we won't see anything untoward while we're picking up the supplies."

Wary blue eyes met hers as Trish shifted nervously from one foot to the other. "It's not that, Cassia," she murmured, her gaze flitting towards Andrei's home. "Do we really need to take the vampire along with us?"

It took a few seconds to realise that the younger woman truly was terrified of Pietro, not that he had done anything outwardly aggressive towards the girl. It would appear this trip to the city was going to be educational for all involved. Trish had to overcome her lack of confidence, and overcoming her fear of Pietro would be a good start in that direction. Pietro needed to interact with others more, and she hoped Trish's vulnerability would spark his protective instincts.

"Come on," she smiled, linking her arm with Trish and marching her over to Andrei's house. "Pietro isn't half as scary as he looks and he's really a very nice vampire. We're also doing some healing here too, Trish. We're helping him to become accustomed to being in the presence of others." Her final words appeared to encourage the healer inside Trish as the girl straightened a bit and her steps held a little more confidence. Smiling, Cassia knocked on the door.

"What?!" Pietro barked swinging open the door, his mood still black from Demetri's visit. He hadn't even paid any attention to who was calling, his mood was that bad. The young girl from the lab earlier uttered a frightened cry and stumbled backwards while Cassia's expression turned from cheerful to scowling in less than a second.

"Who pissed on your parade?" Her tone was icy as it washed over him but that didn't stop his hungry gaze roaming over her exquisite face as if he hadn't seen her for days.

The blackness lifted in an instant and he felt his lips tugging up in a half smile. "Demetri."

Cassia nodded, her own expression clearing a bit. "Ah yes...he can do that to most people." She turned to her companion and held out a hand for the girl to come closer. "Trish, this is Pietro. You'll have to excuse his lack of manners just now. He's male," she said the last in a stage whisper and winked at her.