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      NO GOING BACK. NOT UNLESS SHE DEMANDED IT.

      Right then, however, the only thing she was demanding was his attention. She had unwittingly relaxed back against him, her spine tucked snugly up the center of his body as she became like liquid. Without even realizing he was giving in to the impulse, Magnus bent forward and brushed a kiss up along the slope where her shoulder joined to her neck. For a moment she went taut, her closed lashes lifting as she tilted her chin to look at him.

      Daenaira quieted again, that liquid quality pervading her once more and her head drifting to sweep back against his shoulder where she remained resting with sultry blinking eyes that spun a knot of raw need in his belly. Not for the lust that fired his soul, but for that empty place that had craved the warmth and acceptance of her permission to touch and to hold her like this.

      Also Available from Jacquelyn Frank

      The Nightwalkers

      Jacob

      Gideon

      Elijah

      Damien

      Noah

      The Shadowdwellers

      Ecstasy

      Published by Kensington Publishing Corp.

      RAPTURE

      The Shadowdwellers

      JACQUELYN FRANK

      

ZEBRA BOOKS KENSINGTON PUBLISHING CORP.

      http://www.kensingtonbooks.com

      For Laura.

       I know this one is your favorite, so it’s all yours.

       You’re my very best beloved friend.

       I don’t know what I would ever do without you.

      Contents

      Vocabulary of Shadese Terms

      Prologue

      Chapter One

      Chapter Two

      Chapter Three

      Chapter Four

      Chapter Five

      Chapter Six

      Chapter Seven

      Chapter Eight

      Chapter Nine

      Chapter Ten

      Chapter Eleven

      Chapter Twelve

      Chapter Thirteen

      Chapter Fourteen

      Chapter Fifteen

      Chapter Sixteen

      Chapter Seventeen

      Chapter Eighteen

      Epilogue

      Vocabulary of Shadese Terms

      Please keep in mind no translations are exact. These are meant to guide you to the general implied meaning.

      Ajai: Ah-ZH

(The “j” is always pronounced as in déjà vu): My Lord, Sir, Master

      Anai: Ah-N

: My Lady, Mistress, Madame

      Aiya:

-yah: An exclamation of frustration or exasperation. (Oh my! Oh yes! Oh no! Oh boy!)

      Bituth amec: Bih-TOOTH AH-meck: son of a bitch (or stronger)

      Drenna: Drehn-NAH: Darkness (Heaven). The goddess of Darkness.

      Frousi: Froo-S

: A sectioned fruit that grows only in darkness. It carries a great deal of water and plant proteins, making it a good source of energy.

      Glave: GL

V: A dual curved throwing weapon that folds for carrying and when extended (like a butterfly knife is extended) is in the shape of an “S.” The blade has boomerang properties in the hands of an expert.

      Jei li: ZH

-l
: (roughly) precious one, sweetheart, honey

      K’yatsume: K

-at-soo-ma: Your highness (female), My Queen

      K’yindara: K

-en-dah-rah: wildfire, firestorm (feminized)

      K’jeet: K

-zh
t: a nightgown/caftan

      K’ypruti: K

-prew-t
: Bitch! Whore! Derisive feminine insult.

      K’yan: K

-yahn: Sister (religious)

      M’itisume: Mmit-

-soo-m
: Your highness (male), My King

      M’gnone: Mmig-no-n

: Light (Hell). The god of Light

      M’jan: Mm-zhan: Brother/Father (religious)

      Paj: Pazh: A pair of light silk or gauze cotton trousers with cuffs tight to the ankles traditionally worn under any skirt that flows away from the body with movement.

      Sai: S

(sigh): A triple-pronged steel weapon used mostly for defense.

      Sua vec’a: Swah VEHK-kah: Stop! Cut it out! Desist!

      Prologue

      Magnus understood the nature of evil sometimes a bit too well. There were times like these when he felt as though he had become a mirror for it, his own soul a distant reflection now as other things crowded it out. It was a thick and unwelcome feeling, a little too much like losing faith. At the very least it was a jaded perspective, and because of who and what he was, it simply would not serve.

      The priest took a breath and instead focused on the grim task at hand.

      Magnus drew the sojourn blade he held in his scarred and callused hand over the carefully laid granite pentagons decorating the plaza. Sparks were shorn from its angular tip as he drew an arc of challenge before himself. Blade makers far and wide would have cringed at the rude misuse of the painstakingly crafted metal, but sometimes evil needed a special invitation. Magnus engraved

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