“Her heart pounded as [Cam's] lips bypassed hers and came to a stop, whispering in her ear: 'Don't let him flip you off next time.”

“At last." He breathed into her, finding her lips. "You found me," she whispered. "Always.”

“Don't worry," she whispered. "You're going to make it.""I know." His whisper came so quietly, and sounded so impossibly sad, that Luce wasn't sure she'd heard him right. Until then,she'd thought he was unconscious,but something in her voice seemed to reach him.His eyelids fluttered. Then, slowly, they opened.They were violet.The jug of water fell from her hands.Daniel.Her instinct was to crawl in next to him and cover his lips with kisses, to pretend he wasn't as badly wounded as he was.At the sight of her, Daniel's eyes widened and he started to sit up. But then the blood began to flow from his neck again and his face drained of all its color. Luce had no choice but to restrain him."Shhh. She pressed his shoulders back against the stretcher, trying to get him to relax.He squirmed under her grip. Every time he did, bright new blood bloomed through the bandage."Daniel,you have to stop fighting," she begged. "Please stop fighting. For me."They locked eyes for a long,intense moment=and then the ambulance came to an abrupt stop. The back door swung open. A shocking breath of fresh air flowed in. The streets outside were quiet, but the place had the feel of a big city,even in the middle of the night.Milan. That was where the soldier had said they were going when he assigned her to this ambulance. They must be at a hospital in Milan.”

“The footsteps behind her stopped. A warm brush of fingertips traveled up her arms as a firm chest pressed against her back. Daniel. She could sense his glow without even turning. She closed her eyes. His arms wrapped around her waist and his soft lips swept across her neck, stopping just below her ear."I found you," he whispered.She turned slowly in his arms. The sight of him took her breath away. He was still her Daniel, of course, but his skin was the color of rich hot chocolate,and his wavy black hair was cropped very short. He wore only a short linen loincloth,leather sandals, and a silver choker around his neck. His deep-set violet eyes swept over her, happy.He and Layla were deeply in love.She rested her cheek on his chest and counted the beats of his heart. Would this be the last time she did this,the last time he held her against his heart? She was about to do the right thing-the good thing for Daniel. But still it pained her to think about it. She loved him! If this journey had taught her anything, it was how much she truly loved Daniel Grigori. It hardly seemed fair that she was forced to make this decision.Yet here she was.In ancient Egypt.With Daniel. For the very last time. She was about to set him free.”

“I'm sorry," Lucinda said,pressing her hands over her heart. "I don't know what came over me.I've never done anything like that..."Daniel wasn't going to argue with her now,though she'd slapped him so many times over the years that Arriane kept a tally in a little spiral notebook marked You're Fresh.”

“Of course,there had only been one place to find her.The first one.The beginning.Daniel tumbled toward the first life, ready to wait there for as long as it would take Luce to make her way there,too. He would take her in his arms, whisper in her ear, At last. I found you.I will never let you do.”

“The best part was now. That was what she would take with her from her journeys through the ages: He was worth everything to her and she was worth everything to him. The only way to experience that deep level of their love was to enter each new moment together, as if time were made of clouds. And if it came down to it these next nine days, Luce knew that she and Daniel would risk everything for their love.”