Adam's Pulse

Part 17

Chapter 17

Adam stared at her, knowing that she thought she was ready to hear all that he had to say.  He didn’t know if she was though.  She was a strong woman for being able to handle the oddities of the night, but after all that had happened, he knew he needed to tell her the complete truth.  Which meant that he would have to tell her exactly why Ally had befriended her to begin with, why they had both sought her out. 

Would she run?  Even if she did, he didn’t know if he would let her.  He had promised to let her leave, and he was being honest at that moment, but the more he thought about it, the less he liked the idea.  Ally would be leaving in the morning.  She would be close enough to keep her and Adam alive and connected, but she would be far enough away as to not be in the danger of it all.  He could not afford to allow Sloan to tell anyone of their location, not if Ally was going to be so near. 

For some odd reason though, he trusted Sloan.  He didn’t think she would sell them out, didn’t think she would put Ally’s family in harm’s way.  As much as he trusted her, he needed to be sure.  He had to make sure she realized how much her words could harm them.

“I will explain,” he promised, “but you have to swear you will never speak of this to anyone other than me.”

She nodded along with his words, making him let out a relieved sigh.  “Ally and I are connected, which is something not many people know.  They knew that I have taken her blood, but they do not realize that in order for me to live, I must be near Ally at all times.  Her heart beats to keep mine pumping, and if I am too far away from that connection, I’ll die.”

“Why?” she asked with a quiet tone.

Adam smile slightly.  “A while back, I was at the wrong place at the wrong time.  Ally saved me, bound the two of us together to keep me alive.  The only problem was that she was bound to two others.  Having a third did nothing but hurt us all.  It was unnatural, and we knew that it would not last.  When her second died, we had all thought that I would take his place as Ally’s second, but it did not happen that way.  It was the same.  I still had to be near her to live.”

“Her other,” Sloan hesitated, frowning over her next word, “second did not have to be near her?”

“No,” Adam answered.  “Blake was destined to be her second.  When they bonded themselves together, it was meant to be.  My connection with her was not.  It defied fate itself; it was unnatural.”

Sloan nodded along with his words as if she understood, but he knew she couldn’t, not really.  “Can you break that bond?”

“Yes,” he said slowly, “by finding a mate.”

She swallowed.  “And you have not found this, ah, mate?”

“No,” he answered as he glanced away from her.  “I had thought I did long ago, but it was a lie.”

“Adam,” she said, making him look back towards her.  “What are you?”

“A shifter,” he answered as nonchalantly as he could. 

A choked noise escaped her throat, and Adam had to force himself to stay where he was, to not touch her.  “What do you shift into?”  Before he could answer the question, understanding flashed in her eyes.  “A leopard?” she asked in wonder.  “That is why I saw that leopard so far away from where it was meant to be.”

“That was Barron,” Adam mumbled with slight anger in his voice.  “The man wanted to speed along the process of you finding out.  So, he did what he thought was best.”

“Are,” her voice cracked before she cleared it.  “Are all of you shifters?”  He nodded.  “Even Ally?”  Another nod.  “Her children?”