Read Online A Caress of Wings by Sylvia Day - Free Book Online Page A

hunt.”
    *  *  *
    Aurelia climbed onto a stool beside Siobhán and muttered, “Who knew the lycans were so much better at hunting than we are?”
    She looked up from the slide of lycan blood she was studying to meet her fellow Sentinel’s discouraged gaze. “Still no luck?”
    “Three days and Malachai, Carriden, and Daniela have nothing to show for it.” Aurelia’s gaze roamed over the lab. “Did you see my suggestions for how we might keep some of the subjects alive while conscious?”
    “I did, yes. You pointed out some challenges I hadn’t thought of. Thank you.”
    “You’ve been distracted.” Aurelia’s fingers rubbed absently into the aluminum tabletop. “Do you miss him?”
    “Who?” But she knew, and she looked back into the microscope to hide her face.
    Yes, she missed Trevor. Missed him in the infirmary, where he’d helped her draw blood and replenish intravenous fluids. Missed him in the lab, where his comments and questions about the samples had sparked theories and ideas. Missed him in her room, where he’d been a great sounding board for her and something very pretty to look at . . . So little time and yet they’d shared so much.
    “You know who. The mortal. Trevor.”
    “I hope he’s doing well,” she murmured, her gaze unfocused as a now-familiar loneliness weighed heavily on her mood. She’d never felt alone in all of her existence until now. She couldn’t understand how it was possible to feel that way when she was so often in the company of her fellow Sentinels. “He certainly deserves it.”
    “I’d like to save someone like that. All the way through. You know, from the time I find them until the time they’re ready to go back to living their mortal lives.”
    She looked up again. The difference between her and Aurelia in that moment was so pronounced Siobhán was shaken by it. Aurelia was still pure of purpose, almost childlike in her inability to perceive or empathize with emotions. That brought home just how much Siobhán had changed and how long that gradual alteration must have been occurring.
    The cracks must have been forming for ages. Trevor had simply slid into one with the precision of a honed blade, widening those cracks and making her even more susceptible to his potent affect on her.
    “Why are you looking at me like that?” Aurelia asked.
    “I’m sorry. My mind wandered.”
    Aurelia’s frown cleared. “I just think it’s great that you know you helped a mortal, because you did it directly. I’ve spent a lot of time wondering if we’re making any difference at all.”
    Siobhán’s cell phone started ringing and she pulled it out of the cargo pocket of her pants. She saw the name on the display and answered, “Hey, Damien. How are you?”
    “As good as can be expected under the circumstances.” Damien’s voice was confident and smooth. It was one of the things she’d always admired about Adrian’s second-in-command—he never got ruffled. “Are you still looking for uninfected vampires?”
    “Yes. Who knew they’d be so hard to find?”
    “That’s the question I’ve been asking recently. It’s been very quiet since the lycans revolted.”
    She straightened. “That doesn’t sound good.”
    “It’s probably not. In the interim, I have three vampires here at Angels’ Point.”
    She thought of Adrian’s home, Angels’ Point, a compound in Anaheim Hills that served as headquarters for all Sentinels. It was only a few minutes’ drive from Gadara Tower, where the archangel Raguel based his operations. And where Trevor had been taken.
    But he probably wasn’t there now. He’d likely been absorbed into Raguel’s network and dispatched to wherever a soldier medic would be the most needed. Raguel had his own battles to fight, after all. Still . . .
    “I’ll head down,” she said, glancing at the clock. “I’ll see you around two.”
    “We’ll be expecting you.”
    Siobhán hung up and wondered what she could wear. Her usual