"Alexis Morgan - Dark Protector" - читать интересную книгу автора (Morgan Alexis)

Copyright ┬й 2006 by Patricia Pritchard
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever.
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I would like to dedicate this book to the best
and brightest that America has to offerтАФthe men
and women in uniform who serve our country,
both at home and abroad. With prayers for your
 safety and my profound thanks, this book is for you.
Acknowledgments
I would like to acknowledge the following women for their roles in bringing my Paladins to life:
Michelle Grajkowski, my agent and friend, who listened to me nervously describing the initial idea
and embraced the possibilities. I donтАЩt know if Mount St. Helens choosing that moment to blow her top
helped or not, but you have to admit it made for an interesting discussion.
Micki Nuding, my editor, whose enthusiasm and encouragement have been a real joy. I know
Devlin, Trahern, and the rest of the boys appreciate it.
And finally, Lorraine Pritchard, my wonderful mother-in-law, whose eagle eyes find all those nasty
little typos for me.
Thanks, ladies.



Prologue
M any opposites rule the ebb and flow of our lives: night and day, winter and summer, youth and age.
Throughout history, men and women have drawn comfort from the natural way of things. But we also
know that wherever the grasping fingers of darkness reach out to the bright beauty of the light, shadows
lurk.
Deep within the Earth, our world shares a border with another: a world filled with darkness and
evil. Its pale citizens covet the light that man takes for granted. A fragile barrier keeps the two worlds
separate, but when the continents shift or a volcano erupts in fury, that barrier is breached. Then the
Others pour through, bringing their darkness with them, tainting all that they touch.
As in days of old, Paladins stand ready to turn back the Others, driving the darkness back to
where it belongs. These knights are the champions of light, fighting at the sharp edge of darkness for the
sake of us all. This is their story.
Chapter 1
H e fought free of the mists, drawing in painful gulps of precious air, vanquishing the last fetid vestiges
of death. Slowly his heart began to beat again, taking its own sweet time to fall back into a remembered
rhythm. Breathing in, breathing out, each sip of oxygen reluctantly sending life back into his limbs.
Damn, he hated this. HeтАЩd already died too many timesтАФsometimes for a worthy cause, and
sometimes for no good reason at all. Every time he came back from the edge was an agonizing process.
And every time he brought back a little less of his humanity, until he barely remembered what it felt like to
simply be a man. Over the decades, the shadows death had left on his soul made him stronger, but hard
and edgy and angry.
тАЬHeтАЩs back.тАЭ The familiar voice was not a welcome one.
тАЬHe needs to rest before you order him out again, Colonel,тАЭ a female voice stated.
тАЬHeтАЩs needed now.тАЭ The words had the clipped cadence of a man used to barking out orders and
having them obeyed without question.