Read Online Taboo (A Tale of the Talhari Book 1) by Heather Elizabeth King - Free Book Online

quickly. The man was gorgeous. “What about you, Alaric. What are you? And what’s that place you took me to today?”
    “I’m a man.”
    “You’re no ordinary man.”
    She took the cut up onions and garlic and dumped them in the pan where the soy sauce and oil sizzled. She stirred the mixture and made herself look at him. “There’s more to your story than that.”
    “If I told you, you wouldn’t believe me.”
    “How can you say that? I think I’ve proven that I’m more than open to believe the unbelievable. I’ve seen what you can do, so I know your story isn’t ordinary.”
    “I’m Talhari.”
    “What’s a Talhari?”
    “It’s an ancient order that was created to protect mankind from…” he smiled. “…things that go bump in the night. As you’ve seen for yourself, it’s a strange world out there. Evil exists. It’s real and it’s deadly. Humans aren’t capable of going toe to toe with these creatures, so the Talhari order was created.”
    “And what exactly is the Talhari order?” She stirred the onions and garlic until they caramelized, then began adding chicken parts. She sprinkled the mixture with rosemary, thyme and dill, then added a bit of water. She let the mixture come to a boil as she talked. “You might as well be speaking another language.”
    “Talhari are a sort of super soldier, but we weren’t created by any government. We were created as a means to maintain the balance. Talhari warriors are specially trained to fight vampires and werewolves, and all creatures who lurk in the shadows. Long ago a Talhari warrior had martial arts and weaponry training, these days we have those things, but we also have enhancements.”
    “What kind of enhancements?”
    “I’ve got Intel S—smart steel—built into my skeleton. The technology is military, but that’s the only thing about us that is. We stole their technology and made it better.”
    “Like Wolverine?”
    “You could say that. And we’re hard to kill. In fact, we’re nearly impossible to kill.”
    “Unless you’re decapitated or burned?”
    “Exactly. You’re learning. When we are injured we heal quickly. We don’t catch colds or anything like that, we’re essentially super humans.”
    “Were you ever human?”
    “I was, once.” He began cutting green beans. “But that was a long time ago.”
    She let that sink in.
    She looked at him, his long blonde hair, the ropes of muscle on his arms. He looked like a warrior. Beautiful, but hard; kind, but determined.
    “How old are you?”
    He grinned again. “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”
    “Try me.”
    “I began life as a Visigoth.”
    “A barbarian. You were a Germanic—I know Germany didn’t exist at that time—but the Visigoth are ancestors of Germans. That would make you…” she calculated. Possibly—”
    “I was born in 389 A.D.”
    She set the spatula on the stove and sat down. “I can’t even get my mind around that.”
    “I’m the oldest of my team.”
    “I guess so. That’s why you’re the leader.”
    He inclined his head at this. “I’ve seen the most battle. I’m the most experienced, but Intel-S makes a world of a difference when you’re
    down a werewolf, let me tell you.”
    “So how were you selected?”
    “It was chance. The way it happens for many of the Talhari. I came face to face with the supernatural one day.”
    The meat began sizzling on the stove. “Crap, it’s burning.” She rushed to the pan, put the heat on low and let it simmer. She took the rest of the chopped vegetables from Alaric and dumped them into a smaller pan and stir fried them.
    “Tell me,” she said.
    “It’s nothing daring or impressive. It was late. Very late. I’d been out in the field with my father all day. I was tired; exhausted. That smells good. How much longer?”
    “It has to simmer.”
    “So come sit for a while.”
    She lowered the heat on the vegetables and covered them, flipped the chicken then recovered them as