Over the next three days, Anna discovered the true pleasure of being a vampire’s mate. Never in her long existence had she been so pampered, so loved, so happy.
And it was more than just Cezar’s tender attentions, although they were enough to fill the heart of the most demanding woman. What female in her right mind wouldn’t adore having a mouthwatering, drop-dead gorgeous man indulging her every whim? It was the stuff of fantasy.
But there were also days spent shopping with Abby and Shay and Darcy, along with evenings surrounded by Viper’s clan, who readily treated her as one of their own.
This is what it was to have a family.
It was…astonishing.
Of course, for all her happiness, Anna knew that there was still something troubling Cezar.
He might be a master at hiding his emotions, but she was his mate. There was no way he could disguise his aching pain when he denied himself the temptation of her blood. Or the brooding fear she could occasionally sense deep in his heart.
That vague, annoying destiny that everyone and their freaking dog seemed to know about, except her.
Perhaps foolishly, Anna refused to dwell on the future.
If she had learned anything over the years, it was that these moments of contentment were all too rare. And all too fleeting.
She intended to enjoy this time while she could.
A wise choice as it turned out.
Snuggled in Cezar’s arms in one of Viper’s countless bedrooms, Anna was deeply asleep when a sudden explosion of light had her sitting upright, her powers already filling the air with a hot, threatening prickle.
Half expecting a horde of ravaging fairies, she was startled to discover a…well, she wasn’t exactly sure what it was.
The creature looked human. Actually she looked like a little girl, her short stature and slender body covered by a white robe. But there was nothing human about the strange oblong eyes that were solid black, or the ancient wisdom that was etched on the delicate features.
Oh, and then there were the sharp, pointed teeth.
Yikes.
Obviously sensing Anna’s power, the intruder held up a gnarled hand in a gesture of peace.
“I am no enemy, Anna Randal,” she said, her voice low and strangely hypnotic.
Unnerved by the unexpected appearance of the woman, not to mention the fact that Cezar had yet to stir next to her, Anna tugged the covers up to her chin.
“Holy crap. Doesn’t anyone know how to knock in the demon world?” she muttered.
The tiny head dipped, the long gray braid slipping over her shoulder and nearly brushing the ground.
“Forgive me. It was not my intent to frighten you.”
Not her intent? Then maybe she shouldn’t be popping into private bedrooms, Anna silently acknowledged, smart enough to keep the thought to herself. She was learning that size had no bearing on how much power a demon might possess.
“Who are you?”
Straightening, the demon regarded her with those strange, unblinking eyes.
“I am Siljar.” Her head tilted to one side. “No, I have no relationship to Morgana or the fairies, nor did I bring harm to your vampire.”
Anna’s breath caught in her throat as the woman answered the questions that burned through her mind.
“How did you…”
“I am capable of reading your thoughts,” the woman interrupted.
“Oh.”
Sensing her discomfort, the woman shrugged. “Yes, it is quite disconcerting for those not accustomed to my talent.”
It was more than disconcerting, but Anna had greater things to worry about than what random thoughts the woman might be reading.
“What have you done to Cezar?” she demanded, her gaze shifting to the unconscious vampire at her side.
“He merely sleeps,” she soothed. “I assure you, he is not harmed.”
Returning her attention to Siljar, Anna reached out to place a hand on Cezar’s arm. Sleeping or not, he provided her comfort just by being near.
“Is that your doing?”
“Yes.”
Anna swallowed an impatient curse. She just wanted to be left alone with the man she loved.
Was that too much to ask?
“What do you want?”
The woman pressed her hands together in an oddly formal motion. “Anna Randal, you are summoned to appear before the Commission.”
She was going to be hauled before the all powerful Oracles?
Shit.
“Why?” she rasped.
“All your questions will be answered in time. For now you must come with me.”
Anna pressed against the headboard, her hand ridiculously clutching at Cezar. This was bad. This was really bad.
“Maybe I don’t want to be summoned,” she breathed, her heart lodged in her throat.
The oblong eyes held a cold, ruthless glitter. “That is not an option, Anna Randal.”
“I’m not a demon. What authority does the Commission have over me?”
Moving toward the bed, Siljar reached out her hand toward Anna. “The first thing you must learn is that an Oracle is to be obeyed, not questioned.”
“No,” Anna whispered, but there was no avoiding the fingers that grasped her wrist.
At first she felt nothing more than the painful grip of the woman’s hand. The gnarled fingers dug into her skin, too strong for such a tiny creature, and just a breath from cracking the bones of her wrist. Then slowly a cold chill spread over her skin. It wasn’t the weird prickles of a portal, but something similar. Her lips parted in a scream in the same moment that there was a brilliant flash of light that scorched her entire body.
Anna wasn’t certain if she had passed out, but when she opened her eyes she discovered that she was standing in a dark, dank cave wearing nothing more than Cezar’s T-shirt, which she had pulled on before falling asleep. At her side the tiny demon was regarding her with that unblinking gaze.
“Good…God,” Anna breathed, a combination of fear and fury beating through her body. Dammit, she’d been kidnapped with annoying regularity over the past week. There surely had to be some law against it. “What the hell did you do?”
Siljar shrugged as she headed toward one of the numerous tunnels. “I brought you to the Commission.”
For a stubborn heartbeat, Anna remained planted in the middle of the cave. She wasn’t some stray dog to be plucked from the street and expected to follow behind her new owner with pathetic gratitude.
On the other hand, she wasn’t overly eager to be left alone in the dark cave.
If the great and mighty Commission was near, then there were bound to be all sorts of nasty things guarding them. Things that Anna didn’t want to meet without some sort of protection.
Muttering a few of the French curses she had picked up from Levet, Anna scurried after the retreating form of Siljar.
“That wasn’t a portal,” she accused, wincing as she stubbed her toe on an unseen rock. Jeez, would it have hurt to have poofed her here with shoes and a few more clothes on?
“My powers allow for teleportation,” the demon said, her hand lifting to light the narrow tunnel with a soft glow.
“You could at least warn a person before you do something like that,” Anna muttered.
Ignoring her, the demon turned into a tunnel that was not only wider, but decorated with heavy tapestries on the dirt walls and a long crimson rug on the floor.
Thankfully there were also a number of torches that offered far more light than the strange glow the demon had conjured.
“This way,” Siljar commanded, walking down the tunnel briskly.
“What is this place?” Anna demanded. “It doesn’t look like something the Commission would call home.”
Siljar clicked her tongue. “You are a female with an annoying number of questions.”
“Hey, I’ve just been zapped from my bed by a demon I don’t know. I think it’s understandable I’d have a few questions.”
“This is the lair of the previous Anasso. It is south of Chicago by human standards and near what they have named the Mississippi river.” The tiny head cocked to the side before the woman came to an abrupt halt. “You fear for your vampire—why?”
Anna jerked to a halt. She didn’t like the fact that the demon could read her mind, but maybe it was better this way. She wasn’t sure she would have otherwise had the nerve to confront the powerful demon.
“From what I’ve heard, you haven’t treated Cezar very well over the past few centuries,” she said, her expression tight with disapproval. “I can’t help but wonder if you took me from him as some sort of punishment.”
A hint of puzzlement touched the delicate face. “It was not our intent to punish the vampire. Or at least, not entirely. I suppose there were those on the Commission who took exception to his drinking of your blood, but he was made our servant to ensure he fulfilled the destiny that was given him.”
Anna frowned in confusion. Why the hell would they care if Cezar took her blood?
“And has he fulfilled it?” she demanded, not bothering to hide her anger.
“You are alive, are you not?”
“Me?” Her anger tumbled away as a rising horror replaced it. “That was his destiny? To keep me alive?”
“It was foreseen that he would have a pivotal role to play in your survival.”
“My God.” Anna pressed a hand to her suddenly aching heart. Cezar had endured years of being the Commission’s personal slave because of her? Holy crap. “It’s my fault that you held him captive for two centuries?”
“I do not believe he begrudges those years,” Siljar said, without a hint of remorse. “Indeed, he seems quite pleased with his fate.”
Anna sucked in a deep breath. There was no point in ranting and raving at this…creature. Obviously the Oracles were firm believers in “the end justified the means.”
Instead she made a silent, solemn promise to do everything possible to make sure that Cezar never had cause to regret the sacrifices he’d been forced to make for her.
“Then I’m not here because of Cezar?” she demanded.
“No.”
“Is it Morgana?”
“No.”
Okay. This was getting her precisely nowhere.
“Do I at least get some sort of lawyer?”
Something that might have been amusement flashed in the black eyes. “You are not here to be judged, Anna Randal.”
“Then why am I here?”
With a formal gesture, Siljar pointed toward the opening that loomed just down the tunnel.
“Step into the cavern and all will be explained.”
Not at all satisfied with the vague promise, Anna abruptly threw her arms up as there was a brilliant flash of light and the demon just…disappeared.
“Great. Just freaking great,” she muttered, blinking the pain from her eyes and turning toward the opening of the cavern. The fear that had clutched her since the arrival of the demon in her bedroom remained, but along with it was a rising sense of resignation. Deep in her heart she knew that this was the secret destiny that Cezar had kept hidden from her. That even if she turned and ran from these tunnels she would only be returned. There was no avoiding what was waiting for her in the darkness, so why the hell not just get it over with?
Squaring her shoulders, Anna allowed the always tangible sense of Cezar to fill her mind. He might be miles away, but the sensation of him flooded through her with a comforting force. Her thinly stretched courage returned, as if Cezar were standing at her side, and with an unconscious tilt of her chin she forced herself to walk forward.
If this was to be her fate, then she would meet it with her head high.
At least physically speaking.
Stepping into the inky darkness she sensed a vast opening with a high ceiling that made the slightest noise echo eerily through the silence.
She stopped not far from the entrance, unable to see a damn thing. She wasn’t overly anxious to make her entrance by tripping over something and landing flat on her face.
“Hello?” she called out, unable to hide the impatience in her voice.
Without a breath of sound a torch set in the center of the stone floor flared to life, revealing a small wooden chair.
“Anna Randal,” a deep male voice echoed through the cavern. “Sit. We offer you welcome.”
She hesitated only a moment before moving to settle on the seat. Despite the fact that she could make out only shadowed forms seated at what appeared to be a long table on a dais, she was acutely aware that she was wearing nothing more than a T-shirt, and her hair hung in tangles.
She could actually feel the weight of their gazes on her.
“Thank you,” she muttered, a shiver wracking her chilled body.
“Do not fear, we mean you no harm,” a softer voice soothed. A voice that held the faint hiss of a snake. Yikes.
Suddenly relieved that she couldn’t actually make out more than their outlines, Anna sucked in a deep breath.
“Then why am I here?”
“You know who we are?” the male voice demanded.
“I suppose you must be the Oracles, although I don’t really know what all that entails.”
“We are the justice of the demon world,” a new, guttural voice proclaimed. “It is our duty to ensure that the ancient laws are obeyed and to arbitrate disagreements between the species. We punish those who threaten our world and offer answers for those who seek our wisdom.”
“We are the protection of the demon world.” The hissing woman continued the strange litany. “With our powers we hold the veils between dimensions and help to shroud our people from the sight of the humans who infect this world.”
“We are the compassion of the demon world.” This time it was Siljar who spoke. “We provide sanctuary for those in need. We protect those who cannot protect themselves.”
It was an unfamiliar female voice who spoke the last words of the recitation. “We are the future and the past of the demon world. With the gift of foresight we steer the paths of those who have been revealed to alter our history. We preserve our traditions for those to come.”
Okay.
It sounded as if they had rehearsed that impressive little spiel more than once.
It didn’t, however, answer her question.
“Yes, well, that’s all very interesting, but I’m still not sure what it has to do with me,” she said.
“We have been watching you for some time, Anna Randal,” the guttural voice informed her.
“Watching me? Why?”
“It is foreseen that you are to become an Oracle.”
The breath was wrenched from her lungs as if she’d taken a blow.
Actually, it was worse than a blow, she acknowledged, as numb disbelief flooded her body and threatened to shut down her brain. She’d taken enough hits over the years to shrug most of them aside.
But to be told, out of the freaking blue, that she was destined to become some omnipotent being that was in charge of the entire demon world…well, that wasn’t something anyone was going to shrug off.
She gave a shake of her head. The Commission didn’t seem the sort to use nefarious ploys to trick people. And certainly they didn’t seem the sort to play practical jokes. She’d bet her last dime they didn’t even know what the hell a joke was.
On the other hand, she couldn’t believe for a minute that they were actually serious. It was insane to believe she was in any way Oracle material.
The demons would laugh themselves sick.
Christ, she would laugh herself sick.
“No.” She swallowed the lump in her throat. “Oh no. There has to be a mistake.”
“We do not make mistakes,” the hissing woman said, her voice cold.
Anna’s brows snapped together. Obviously people skills weren’t a necessary requirement to be on the Commission.
“There has to be a first time for everything,” she said tightly. “There’s no way in hell that I’m an Oracle.”
There was a brief stir in the air, as if she’d managed to shock the ancient demons.
“Why are you so certain?” Siljar at last demanded.
She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Dammit, what was going on? No one could believe that she was suited to such an important position. Not even remotely.
“In the first place I’m not a demon,” she pointed out, her hands clenched tightly in her lap.
“Neither are you human,” a deep male voice retorted. “Your blood is that of the ancients.”
“I don’t even know what that means.”
“Your powers are elemental, the most pure of all powers,” the same demon answered. “They draw upon the energy of the nature that surrounds you without the corruption of lesser magic.”
They sounded great. A pity they only worked when they wanted to.
“They’re also unpredictable, randomly destructive, and occasionally missing in action.”
Siljar, or at least Anna assumed it was Siljar, gave a soft laugh. “You are very, very young, Anna Randal. With time you will learn control.”
“Even if by some miracle I do, they will never compare to the sort of power that the rest of you obviously possess.”
There was a deep, rumbling sigh. The sort of sigh that was usually reserved for annoying children.
“You are mistaken,” the gravelly male voice informed her, “but it does not matter. It is not your powers that mark you as an Oracle.”
“Then what does?”
“Your heart.”
Anna gave a choked cough, that numb disbelief threatening to return. She didn’t know squat about these Oracles, but they didn’t strike her as being touchy-feely types. More the do-as-we-say-or-we’ll-rip-your-throat-out types.
For God’s sake, they held Cezar captive for two centuries just because they had a vision he might keep her alive.
“If you truly know my heart then you must realize I can’t play hardball with the rest of you. It’s just not who I am.”
She thought she heard a muttered agreement from more than one of the Oracles, but it was Siljar’s comforting voice that floated through the shadows.
“You have proven a rare ability to fight for justice, even when you knew it was hopeless, even when you knew that all of your efforts would lead to nothing more than disappointment.”
She stiffened in surprise, disturbed by the thought that these demons had been watching her for so many years. Maybe from her very birth.
“You mean my career as a lawyer?”
“It was more than a career, was it not?”
She thought back to her years battling for those who had no voice. Those who were oppressed. Those who were taken advantage of simply because they were too old, too poor, or too frightened to fight back.
It had been more than a career.
It had been a foundation that had given her life meaning.
“I suppose.”
“And the manner in which you confronted Morgana reveals you are capable of overcoming your human emotions and battling an enemy without the desire to punish your opponent,” a deep male voice boomed.
Anna shuddered. Her fight with Morgana had been a nasty necessity that would give her nightmares for centuries to come, not a job reference.
“I trapped her in a chunk of stone.”
“Yes,” the hissing woman murmured. “Quite amusing.”
Right.
Enough was enough.
With a surge of emotion, Anna rose to her feet and glared at the shrouded forms.
“This is crazy.” She shook her head. “There have to be thousands of demons who would make far better Oracles than I ever would. I barely even know about your world.”
“You are young and immature, it is true,” the gravelly voice agreed. “But in a few centuries you will be suitably trained to take your place among us.”
“Why not just take someone who’s ready now?”
“We do not choose Oracles, they are foretold by prophecy. We have known for some time that if you managed to survive Morgana you were destined to join us.”
“Did it occur to you that I might have a better chance of surviving Morgana if you’d helped?”
“But we did,” Siljar reminded her. “We gave you the vampire.”
The tangled emotions oddly eased at the mere mention of Cezar. For all the trials and uncertainty she had endured over the years, not to mention the annoying attempts on her life, she wouldn’t change one damn thing.
Not when it had brought her an extraordinary man who would love her for the rest of eternity.
“Yes, I suppose you did, although I don’t think he’d appreciate it being put in those terms.” With a smile, Anna slowly lowered herself to her knees and bowed her head. “Thank you. I doubt that it was your intention, but you’ve given me more than I ever dreamed possible.”
There was no missing the stir of astonishment that rippled through the air. Obviously the demons expected this response at the offer of becoming an Oracle, not at the mention of Cezar.
“You speak of the vampire?” the hissing woman demanded.
“I speak of Cezar.” Her head lifted with a flare of pride. “My mate.”
There were several low growls and mutterings at her words, as if the announcement of Cezar being her mate wasn’t overly popular.
Too damn bad.
“An…unfortunate decision by the vampire,” a new, ominous voice rasped. “Not the first I might add. He is lucky that he is not to be punished again.”
“Punished?” Anna scrambled back to her feet. By God, she wasn’t going to stand aside and let Cezar ever be hurt again. She didn’t care who the hell these demons thought they were, she would battle them to the death. “For what? Protecting me against my demented aunt? Caring enough to save my life? It’s certainly more than anyone else has ever done for me.”
“She is right, the vampire did what was necessary.” Siljar overrode the mutterings, her voice holding a rich command that filled the vast cavern. “He has served his purpose.”
“Perhaps, but he will be a blessed nuisance for the rest of eternity. You know how vampires are when they’re mated,” a demon groused.
“True,” another agreed. “He will be forever hovering around the female. He will have to be restrained when the Commission is in private session.”
Her eyes narrowed. She’d been kidnapped from her bed, forced to meet the mystical, powerful Commission in nothing more than a T-shirt, and bluntly informed that she was supposed to become an Oracle rather than enjoy a peaceful future with Cezar. She was in no mood to listen to them speak about the man she loved as if he were no more than a pesky bug they wanted to squash.
“The female has a name, and I haven’t said that I even want to be on the Commission,” she gritted.
There was a collective gasp, the shock a tangible force in the air. Clearly they expected potential Oracles to leap with joy at the thought of joining their exclusive ranks.
“Anna Randal, you do not understand the honor that has been given you,” the gravelly voice chastised with obvious annoyance. “There has never been an Oracle who has turned away the opportunity to serve upon the Commission. Indeed, there is none who would not be eager to fulfill such a destiny.”
Anna shrugged. “Then you shouldn’t have any trouble finding someone to take my place.”
There was more muttering, most of it in a language she thankfully didn’t understand. She didn’t think they were saying anything nice.
At last it was Siljar who attempted to ease the rising tension. “That is not how it is done, Anna. We do not simply find someone. The Oracle is prophesized. It could be several millenniums before another is shown to us.”
Millenniums?
Good grief.
They seriously needed to consider a new method of choosing their Oracles.
What if one of them died? Or wanted to retire? Or preferred to spend the next few centuries tucked in bed with a delicious vampire?
Oh…yes. A few centuries alone with Cezar were exactly what she wanted.
“Look, I don’t know what cosmic joke made you believe that I should be an Oracle, but I don’t want the job,” she said, her voice clear and determined.
This time there was no muttering, no foreign curses. Instead a thunderous silence filled the cavern. A silence that was far more terrifying than their earlier annoyance.
Anna swallowed a lump that felt the size of Gibraltar as she waited for the looming shit to hit the fan.
Okay, that wasn’t probably the smartest thing she’d ever done. Even an idiot realized that denying a request from a powerful assembly of demons needed to be done with a bit of tact. Where the hell was her law training when she needed it?
Of course, it might be better to simply have her cards on the table, she tried to reassure herself. If they were going to kill her for her refusal then she’d just as soon have it over and done with swiftly.
When the silence at last was broken, however, it wasn’t with a lightning bolt or earthquake. Instead it was Siljar’s soft question.
“What do you want?”
Anna licked her dry lips. She would try to be more diplomatic, but she wouldn’t lie. This was too important.
“I want to complete the mating ceremony with Cezar and live in peace with his clan,” she said, her voice thick with the need that burned in her heart. “That’s all.”
“A moment,” Siljar demanded.
The darkness deepened around the forms until they were lost in shadows. It was almost as if they had placed a tangible cloak over themselves, shutting her out as effectively as if they’d slammed a door in her face.
Realizing her knees were shaking, Anna abruptly dropped back in her seat and sucked in several deep breaths. She wanted to believe this was all some horrible nightmare. That she would awaken to discover she was safely tucked in Cezar’s arms with nothing to worry about but whether to enjoy a private dinner with her mate or a few hours with her newfound friends. But the damp chill of the cave and smoke of the torch were all too real.
And downright uncomfortable.
Concentrating on her powers, Anna was able to warm her skin and send the smoke toward the back of the cave, but there was nothing to combat the hardness of the wooden chair or the queasy ball of nerves in the pit of her stomach.
Those she endured, for what seemed like hours, although it was probably no more than twenty or thirty minutes.
At last the darkness thinned so that Anna could determine the vague outline of the Commission and she slowly rose to her feet. It seemed a good idea to be ready for a hasty exit if things went to hell.
“We agree,” Siljar said.
Anna blinked in shock. She’d expected a thunderous lecture on duty, or bitter recriminations, or bolts of deadly lightning.
She hadn’t expected this mild capitulation.
It made her wonder when the ax was going to fall.
“What did you say?”
“You shall be allowed to keep your mate.”
“Are you serious?”
“Yes,” Siljar agreed. “And as a concession to your extreme youth we will not require you to commence your duties as an Oracle for the next century.”
It was one of those deals that sounded too good to be true. With a frown she struggled to peer through the murky darkness.
“And at the end of that century?”
“You will take your place on the Commission.”
“Does that mean giving up Cezar?”
“Once mated it is impossible to break the bonds,” the hissing woman retorted in annoyance.
Obviously not everyone was happy with the Commission’s decision.
Anna refused to be intimidated. Stupid, but there it was.
“As you know, I’m a lawyer. I’d rather have everything spelled out in black and white,” she stubbornly said. “If I take my place as an Oracle, will Cezar be at my side?”