Keeper of the Dawn. Heather Graham

      Alessande winced, her lashes veiling her eyes. Yes, she admitted to herself, it was true. She herself had been down on Mark Valiente for being a vampire.

      “Do you think they hid their relationship, afraid of what other…Others might think?” Barrie asked.

      “My mother died when I was seven. Maybe she meant to tell me when I was older,” Alessande said. “Maybe she didn’t want me knowing—afraid of how I’d be accepted in the Elven world if I let it slip.”

      “If you think about it, this is really a great thing,” Barrie said. “You have the power of the Elven and the power of shifting, too.”

      “I can’t shape-shift. Whatever happened was a total accident. And that’s bad—really bad,” Alessande said.

      “No, we’ll work on it. You need to practice, learn to concentrate,” Mick told her.

      “You have Mick, Declan and me. We’ll help you,” Barrie assured her.

      Alessande looked at them. And then the magnitude of what was happening slowly swept over her. She hadn’t known how to mind read or teleport as a small child; she’d learned from her mother and then from her stepparents. It was like learning to walk, to talk… .