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Chapter One
    Mary awoke with a shiver, cold beyond imagining. She needed to open her eyes but they were heavy, and her body was sluggish to respond to her commands. With great effort, she managed to shake her head and concentrate on the cold surrounding her. When she finally got her eyes opened, she wished she could close them again and forget the sight she saw.
    Her head lolled backward so the view was disorienting. When she turned her head to the side, she saw she was, indeed, flying through the sky. Perhaps she was dreaming. The cold, cold breeze blew at her back and bit into her flesh. Clouds and moonlight were all that surrounded her. She snapped her head up and it was then she saw the real peril.
    Fallen !
    A creature of the night. One of the Darkling from the ancient realm held her securely to him as he raced through the sky. Had she not so naively researched them only two days before, she'd never have believed what was happening. The book had warned that once she'd embraced the knowledge it held, there would be nothing to protect her from the Darkling. She'd foolishly brushed aside the warning as dramatic and only there to further entice the reader, but once she'd opened and began to read, she knew.
    She's slammed the book shut and fled home before dark. When nothing happened that night, she'd laughed at her overactive imagination.
    She wasn't laughing now.
    With a start she realized that not only was she being taken prisoner by a monster, but she was also naked. Cold mist from the cloud cover bit into her flesh like a million pinpricks, and she cried out in both pain and fear.
    Only a few moments longer, my love. We'll be home soon .
    The words were whispered directly into her mind and as gentle as a caress, yet she shivered. This sounded exactly like what the book had warned about. She'd been claimed by a Darkling. The likelihood that she'd ever be able to return to her old life was remote. She could almost feel everything she'd ever known slipping away. What awaited her was uncertain, but if the writings had been correct, the Darkling would never allow her to leave.
    True to his word, it wasn't long before he landed them gently in the courtyard of a gothic villa. He held her fast, though, not letting her pull away from him. His skin was a leathery dark green, and his features were harsh and angular. No one could say he was handsome, but he treated her gently enough. Muscles bulged beneath unearthly skin, and Mary marveled at the power of his body. His nails dug into her flesh, but not painfully so. He seemed to examine her just as she did him.
    "You'll learn to love me in time, Mary. You'll also learn to speak to me when I'm not with you."
    "Why me? What if I want to go home?"
    "You can never go home. I've claimed you. I'll never let you go."
    Mary didn't know what to say. She knew she should be frightened, but for some reason there was no fear. Instead, she found she was oddly curious. The Darkling was a magnificent creature. Leathery wings that matched his body color and texture rose magnificently from his back and shoulders. He stood before her proudly. Muscles flexed and bunched beneath his skin making her itch to reach out and touch him, but she wasn't altogether sure he'd allow her touch.
    "Of course you can touch me, my love. I've claimed you and, as such, you have the same claim over me. I am yours to do with as you please."
    "And you? Will you take liberties with my body I'm not willing to allow?"
    He frowned at this, as though the question displeased him. Did he take for granted she'd welcome his touch? He wasn't human. By human standards, he was a monster.
    "I will not take what isn't freely offered, but it disturbs me that you find my appearance so hideous as to think of me as a monster. I'm a Darkling. My purpose is to look over humanity and keep the real monsters away. My reward is one human who can accept what I am and allow me to find pleasure in her body and take her own pleasure in mine. By opening