11

Someone on the Council had committed murder to possess it, and if she weren’t careful, she’d be next. Stealing was the least a man could do with the gate at his disposal. Murder would child’s play if he could learn to set it. Imagine the devastation if the Bell fell in the hands of an assassin. She wasn’t blind to the potential disaster.

Unfortunately, she couldn’t destroy it; physically couldn’t do it. Her nerves went weak every time she thought about smashing it…the thing had become her lover. The resonance bound even as it gave sweet pleasure, and like a puppet, she danced attendance. God forbid a man should ever have such sensual power over her.

Shivering at the final whisper of notes, she closed her hand over the Bell. Br