Chapter 20
They moved swiftly through the darkened house, only pausing when they reached the hall where Selena had hidden her safe.
Dante was intent on the scents that filled the air when he felt Abby dig in her heels. He turned to discover her peering uneasily through the shadows.
“You’re sure the wizard is gone?” she demanded.
“One way to find out,” he whispered directly in her ear. “You go first.”
She rolled her eyes. “Very funny.”
“If the wizard was near, we would hear him screaming for mercy,” he assured her. “Viper doesn’t screw around when he’s on the hunt.”
She sent him a knowing gaze. “Then what is bothering you?”
Dante gave rueful grimace. This mate thing was going to take a bit of getting used to.
“I smell something strange.”
“It’s not me is it?”
His lips quirked. “No.”
“The demon?”
“No. The smell is human, although strangely masked.”
Abby peered down the hall and oddly stiffened before stabbing him a glittering glare.
“What’s with all the charred marks on the wall?”
He shrugged. “The house exploded, lover. There are a lot of charred marks.”
“They weren’t here earlier.” Her hands landed on her hips. “The wizard did that when you were fighting, didn’t he?”
“Abby, the wizard is no longer our concern. Viper will deal with him.”
“The point is that you told me you had a minor disagreement.”
“No one died,” he pointed out in perfectly reasonable tones, flicking a glance over the unmistakable damage. His gaze lingered on the singed carpet before his teeth snapped together. “Damn.”
“What is it?”
“The spell books are gone.”
“The wizard?”
Dante gave a shake of his head. The wizard had shown no interest in the books.
“More likely the demon returned to retrieve them. Along with a witch.”
“They were here and we missed them?”
Dante brooded for a long moment. Dammit, he hated this feeling he was stumbling about like an idiot. Especially when he feared he was putting Abby’s life in danger.
“It was a foolish risk,” he growled. “They must have known the dark wizard was near.”
“They must really have wanted those books.”
“Yes.”
Abby abruptly grasped his arm. “Oh . . .”
“What?”
“Do you think they wanted the books enough to kill for them?”
Dante shrugged. “The witches would not hesitate to kill if they thought someone stood in their path. They are utterly ruthless.”
“Even Selena?”
Dante frowned. “Selena?”
“Maybe they wanted the books and she wasn’t in the mood to hand them over.”
The memory of Selena’s secretive manner flashed through his mind. The woman was certainly arrogant enough to be dabbling in magic the witches would have forbidden. Or even to seek powers that would have given her control of the coven.
But even as he considered the notion of a battle between the witches and Selena, he was giving a shake of his head.
“No. Selena was the Chalice. They would never put the Phoenix in danger. Protecting the spirit is their entire purpose in life.”
Abby grimaced. “Oh. Just a thought.”
“A very clever thought.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Are you patronizing me?”
“Why would I wish to patronize you?” he demanded in startled curiosity.
“I know I’m not overly bright, but I’m not stupid.”
Dante regarded her in astonishment. Devil spit, but she was the most baffling woman. “Of course you’re not stupid. I always found it astonishing that such an intelligent woman would be content to work as a minion for someone like Selena when you could so obviously do better.”
Her eyes darkened, almost as if she was relieved.
“It paid the bills. Trust me, it wasn’t as bad as some places I’ve worked.”
Taking her hand, he led her down the hall to the back staircase. The trail of the demon was growing ever fainter, and he had no intention of losing it.
At the moment it was their one and only lead to the coven.
“You could do anything with your life. Be anything,” he told her softly.
Struggling to keep up with his long strides, she gave a short, humorless laugh.
“How? My father and brothers abandoned me when I was still a child, and my mother never left the couch until she drank herself into a grave when I was seventeen.” He felt her shudder as she dredged up painful memories of her past. “I dropped out of school and got a job so I wouldn’t be shuffled off to some foster home. I’m lucky I didn’t end up walking the streets.”
With one smooth motion, he reached down to scoop her in his arms and cradled her to his chest. Her fierce, relentless nature made him forget she possessed a human lack of endurance even with the additional power of the Phoenix. And God knew she was too stubborn to confess she might need to rest.
The fact that she didn’t so much as mutter a protest at him taking matters into his own hands told him just how weary she must be.
Taking the stairs in a fluid bound, he studied her too-pale face.
“You would have never walked the streets. You have too much courage and power for such a fate.”
Her features hardened. “It takes more than courage to survive.”
In the blink of an eye, he was out of the house and swiftly moving down a back path.
“You need no longer fear. I will always be here.”
“Not fear? A high school dropout who can’t pay her rent is expected to save the world. How scary is that?”
“The world is in very good hands.”
Her head rested against his chest as she gave a wry laugh. “You’re demented.”
He risked a glance downward as they left the estate, and he slowed to a more cautious pace. Even tired and rumpled as she was, he had never seen a more beautiful woman.
“What would you do if anything was possible?”
There was no hesitation. “Travel.”
“Travel where?”
“Anywhere. Everywhere.”
He paused at the road, sniffing the air until he caught the scent of the demon traveling away from the city.
“Very ambitious.”
She snuggled closer, creating an aching heat that clenched the muscles of his thighs and an assortment of other pleasurable parts of his body.
“When I was little and my dad would come home in a drunken fury, I used to hide under my bed with an old globe that a teacher had given me,” she murmured. “I would close my eyes and point at a spot, and then I’d imagine I was on a boat traveling there. In my mind I have been all over the world.”
A sharp pain raced through him. This woman had been betrayed by those who should have protected and loved her. She had battled monsters in her own home and then been thrown into the world with no one to stand at her side.
But now that was all done.
She belonged to him.
He would devote his life, or even his death if necessary, to making sure she was never hurt or lonely or afraid again.
“Someday you will go,” he swore softly. “I promise.”
Her arms wrapped about his neck, almost as if she sensed his dark determination to do whatever necessary to keep her safe.
“We will go. After all, you owe me a honeymoon.”
“Honeymoon. I like the sound of that.” Without thinking, he reached out with his thoughts to gently stroke her face.
Her eyes widened in shock. “What did you just do?”
His lips twitched as he deliberately shifted his thoughts to cup her firm breast.
“You mean this?”
“I can feel you touch me. How can you do that?”
“You’re my mate.”
“But . . .” She gasped as he teased her nipple to a hard point. “Stop that.”
“You don’t like it?”
“Can I do that to you?”
“Not unless I take your blood.”
Her gaze narrowed. “That’s not fair.”
He chuckled as he bent to press a kiss to her lips.
“Life is never fair, lover.”
“Tell me about it,” she groused, her gaze scanning the darkness about them. “Are we following the trail of the demon?”
“For now.”
She turned her head to regard him with a frown. “You’re worried.”
He sniffed the air. The worrisome smell of blood had been growing stronger. Now the ground seemed to reek of it.
“The Shalott has been injured.”
“Viper?” she demanded.
“He is on the trail of the wizard.”
Her breath caught. “The witches?”
“They may have punished her.”
“Why?”
“You slipped through her clutches.”
He slowly lowered her to her feet. A vague sense of menace was crawling over his skin. He couldn’t yet pinpoint the source of unease, but he wanted to be able to strike swiftly.
Abby shifted close, no doubt feeling his own prickling alert. “You think she was sent to get me?”
“I think it’s a possibility.”
“Then why didn’t she?”
Dante shrugged. At the moment all he could do was speculate.
“If she is in the power of the witches, it’s not by choice. Shalott’s are independent, fierce creatures, and she would struggle against her commands whenever she was able.”
“Like you.”
He smiled wryly. “Yes.”
There was a moment of silence before Abby shifted to stand directly before him.
“We must rescue her.”
“A demon?” he demanded in surprise.
“She could have killed both of us. Or at the very least taken me away while you were unconscious. I think we owe her.”
He allowed his hand to drift over her tumbled curls. “If it is possible, we will release her. First we must find her.”
Viper allowed the man to drop to the ground and licked his fangs clean. He had no real taste for wizard-wannabes, but the guard had to be eliminated, and he hated to waste perfectly good blood.
Not that the man had been much of a guard. A smile twisted Viper’s lips. Despite the small medallion that had proclaimed the man a disciple of the Prince, he had been no match for Viper’s strength. The battle had done nothing more than whet his appetite.
With a flick of his hand, he used his powers to sink the inert body into the ground. The fresh blood that coursed through his body elevated his strength and stirred the dark predator within. He was on the hunt, and he would kill anything in his path.
Sliding through the graveyard, he entered the large crypt and easily found the entrance to the tunnels beneath. He paused to sniff the air.
He could smell humans. And a handful of lesser demons who were willing to serve mortals in exchange for protection. Nothing that could prove a danger to him.
Nothing beyond the wizard.
Melting among the shadows, he slowly traveled down the steps. Although he was always confident, Viper wasn’t stupid. A vampire did not live as many centuries as he had by blundering into danger.
If the wizard was tapping into the power of the dark lord, he would be a formidable enemy. It would take as much cunning as skill to best him.
A perfect means to spend the evening, he acknowledged with a cold smile.
He passed two more guards on his way to the inner sanctuary. On both occasions he killed with silent efficiency and moved forward without missing a step. The few demons he sensed were wise enough to scurry away before he could cross their paths.
With deadly speed he was at the entrance to the lowest chamber. He halted to carefully study the room before him.
It was a large room, but barren with a large brazier set in the center of the stone floor. Before the burning fire, a tall man knelt in obvious worship. The wizard. And in his hand he held a leather whip that he lashed against his own back in a steady rhythm.
Viper curled his lip in disdain.
He had encountered any number of humans who had willingly traded their souls to the dark lord. For power, for immortality, for their love of evil. They became willing servants who would sacrifice anything and anyone to please their vicious master.
Even themselves.
Pathetic creatures.
But dangerous, he reminded himself.
Very dangerous.
Despite the distance, he easily sensed the ancient force that radiated throughout the room. The sorcerer was obviously a favorite of the Prince and allowed to draw deeply upon his power.
It was little wonder he had proven to be such a nuisance to Dante.
Allowing his fangs to run out, Viper flexed his fingers and flowed into the shadows of the chamber.
“Fee Fie Foe Fum, I smell the blood of a . . . not Englishman.” He paused as he sniffed the air and gave a shudder. “Ah, a Saxon. A pity. The last Saxon I devoured made me ill for days. Filthy beast.”
Scrambling to his feet, the wizard clutched the heavy medallion about his neck and scanned the room for the unexpected intruder.
A futile effort. Viper wouldn’t be seen until he wanted to be seen.
“Cooper. Johnson.” The man’s voice held an unmistakable rasp as he called for his guards. Well, at least he was smart enough to be afraid. “Breckett.”
“Dead, dead, and dead, I fear,” Viper purred in cold tones.
The man gave a low growl as he backed close to the flames. “Show yourself, vampire.”
“Later, perhaps. If you are very good.”
“Coward.”
Viper laughed as he drifted through the shadows. “I am intrigued. Why would an all-powerful wizard be hiding in these dark caves beating himself senseless? Are you the sort to delight in self-flagellation?” He paused as he easily read the dark, tangled thoughts that the wizard couldn’t hide. “No, you prefer inflicting pain on others. It must be atonement for the dark lord.”
“I have no business with you. Leave now and I will not try to halt you.”
“But I have business with you.”
“Do you think to challenge me?”
“No, I think to kill you.”
“Fool.” The wizard snarled. “You shall burn upon the Prince’s altar.”
“Actually, you shall be the one to burn. But not until we’ve had a little chat. Have a seat.” Lifting his hand, Viper moved forward, forcing the wizard to his knees with the power of his glamour. He would not be capable of holding the man for any length of time. But he intended to have his questions answered before he took pleasure in the kill. “Now, tell me what you know of the witches.”