Forgotten Read online

  Striding toward them was a tall person—Kate thought it was a woman—dressed all in black. A tight black skirt, high black boots, and a low cut black blouse which showed a fair amount of pale cleavage was Kate’s initial impression. Then the woman came closer and she saw that she also had midnight black hair which was pulled severely back in a tight bun at the back of her neck, showing her pale, angular face. Aside from her paper-pale skin, the only thing about her that wasn’t black was her eyes, which were a deep, vivid violet. Even her lips were painted in black lipstick—at least Kate thought it was lipstick. She supposed it could just be their natural color.

  “Who are you?” Rone had taken a protective stance in front of her, his feet spread, keeping himself between Kate and the newcomer.

  “I am the Madam of Shadows as you will soon learn to your very great regret.” The woman cocked her head to look at him though she was so tall Rone only had an inch or two in height on her. Of course, part of that was probably her boots which had six inch heels on them. Kate was in a unique position to study them since she was still crouching naked on the ground behind the big Kindred.

  “Madam Shadow,” Rone growled angrily. “I’m glad you’re here. Kate nearly drowned in your pool just now.”

  “Why didn’t you let her?” the tall woman asked coolly.

  “What?” Rone demanded. “What in the Seven Hells are you talking about?”

  “I said you should have let her drown.” Madam Shadow gave Kate a look that was colder than the slime she’d just been in. “That is, after all, the purpose of the pool.”

  “What?” Rone’s piercing blue eyes blazed. “Are you saying what just happened was intentional? That you knowingly tried to drown my mate? Because if that’s the case—”

  “Calm yourself, Warrior,” she snapped. “That is the way the pool works. Unfortunately, it was unable to do its job you dragged your mate out before the process was complete.”

  “He dragged me out because I was about to drown,” Kate said, getting shakily to her feet.

  “You were meant to drown, little female,” Madam Shadow said. “How else could the impure part of you die and the wholesome part be reborn? Those who immerse themselves in the Pool of Purification must meet death and be revived for the treatment to work.”

  “So…you put me in there knowing I was supposed to die?” Kate could hardly believe it. “And all that—the way the water turned red and then black—that was all meant to happen?”

  “Of course. The change in the chemicals’ consistency and composition is in direct response to the amount and type of toxins they are leaching from the body.” Madam Shadow made a disgusted face. “I was told that you were completely filled with fear toxins and memory blockers but I have never seen the pool turn quite that color before.”

  “So you actually planned to allow my wife to drown and then you would attempt to revive her?” Rone sounded like he couldn’t believe it. “What if you couldn’t? What if she didn’t come back?”

  “Actually, it’s the Pool of Purification itself which does the drowning and reviving,” Madam Shadow said. “It almost always brings the subject it is purifying back…well, unless they are too polluted for it to cleanse properly. In which case, it will often deem the revival to be unnecessary.” She looked Kate up and down. “I have my doubts that it might have chosen to revive you, my dear. You were most terribly polluted.”

  “That isn’t her fault,” Rone said angrily. “She was infected with fear toxins, as you said earlier. That doesn’t make her a bad person or someone unworthy to live. Goddess, what is wrong with you fucking people?”

  “The only thing wrong here is that you stopped the treatment too soon,” Madam Shadow snapped.

  “But you just said it would have killed me—and probably not even tried to bring me back!” Kate eyed the oily black surface of the pool mistrustfully.

  “Yes, well—at least the treatment would have been complete and the pool could have emptied and purified itself,” the tall woman sniffed, as though Kate’s life meant nothing. “As it stands, it will be unable to self-cleanse unless you get back in and let it finish the process.”

  “Like Hell she will,” Rone growled, his big hands balling into fists. “If you even think—”

  “No, no—I can see how protective you are of her, Warrior. I will not demand such a thing.” Her violet eyes flashed. “What I will demand however is that the two of you finish what the pool started in a more traditional way. We have an excellent success rate here at Frost and Flame and I don’t intend to let the two of you ruin it.”

  “What? What are you talking about?” Kate demanded. “Finish what it started? It didn’t do any good at all! I don’t recall a damn thing more than I could when I got into it. The past three years are still gone—I can’t remember anything.”

  “Nothing at all?” Rone looked at her, and the need in his blue eyes was so great Kate had to look away.

  “Sorry,” she muttered. “Maybe you should have just left me in there.”

  “Of course I couldn’t do that,” Rone growled. “I just thought maybe…”

  “The reason your memory is not restored is because you didn’t allow the Pool to finish its job,” Madam Shadow said briskly. “However, though it was unable to bring back your memory, you may take comfort in knowing that most of the fear toxins have been leached out of your system.”

  “They have?” Kate looked at her mistrustfully. The woman had just admitted that she’d planned to have Kate drowned on purpose—it was kind of hard to trust anything she said after hearing that.

  “Of course they have. Go on—try it.” From somewhere in the folds of her tight black skirt, Madam Shadow produced a long, thin black stick which she slipped between her lush black lips. She snapped her fingers and a small flame appeared, igniting the end of it. It was only when Kate saw her take a deep drag on the flaming thing that she understood Madam Shadow was smoking—smoking what looked like a foot-long, skinny black cigarette.

  “Try what?” she asked, uncertainly.

  “Try to touch him, of course.” Madam Shadow blew a cloud of blue smoke which smelled like burnt rose petals at her head. Kate waved it away, coughing and choking. “Go on—I don’t have all day.”

  Hesitantly, Kate turned to the big Kindred. She still had one arm wrapped firmly around her breasts and her legs tightly closed to conceal her sex but she lifted her free hand and reached out to touch him.

  Rone stood perfectly still for the operation, as though she was a skiddish horse that might spook at his least movement. Kate could see he was trying to conceal his hope but when she caught a glimpse of his eyes it was there—blazing in their glowing blue depths.

  Taking a deep breath, she allowed her fingertips to brush over the skin of his forearm. Of course, they were both still coated in the black slime of the pool but she could feel his skin beneath hers well enough. She waited for the panic response to begin—the feeling that her heart was trying to pound its way out of her chest and that her lungs were paper bags that wouldn’t inflate properly. But though she felt a slight tremble of nerves—the panic was gone.

  Just to be sure, she gripped his muscular forearm in her hand and held it there. Still nothing except the awkwardness of touching a man she didn’t know—or didn’t know intimately, anyway.

  “Well?” Rone’s deep voice was tense.

  “She’s right.” Kate looked up at him. “I can touch you now without freaking out—without feeling like I’m going to pass out from fear.”

  “Thank the Goddess.” He blew out a breath and wiped a hand over his face, putting a smudge of black slime on his cheek.

  “This doesn’t mean I want to immediately jump in bed with you, though,” Kate felt compelled to tell him. “I mean, I still don’t remember you—don’t know you the way you know me. So I’m really sorry but—”

  “No, no—I understand.” He nodded. “I would never ask you to do something you weren’t comfortable with. I’m just so damn g