Darkness Revealed (Guardians of Eternity #4)(14)

“I’ve been waiting two centuries,” he muttered thickly.

“I smell apples.”

He stilled, his eyes narrowed. “And?”

“And I always smell apples when Sybil Taylor is near.”

His senses reached out, easily locating the fairy who was creeping down the dark street toward them.

“Damn that fairy.” Reaching behind Anna he easily wrenched open the steel and glass door, thrusting Anna into the vast marble foyer as he followed close behind. “How the hell did she find us?”

He didn’t give his companion time to respond as he pressed her behind one of the large potted palms and took his own position next to the door. With a low word he was wrapped in shadows, invisible even to the fairy’s eyes.

Only a few minutes passed before Sybil was sniffing around the door, her expression wary as she stepped over the threshold and studied the darkness.

“Anna?” she called softly, a small crystal shimmering in her hand. “Anna, are you here?”

More than a little unhappy at having his intimate moment with Anna interrupted, Cezar flowed forward and wrapped his arms around the fairy.

“How did you follow us?” he demanded, squeezing her painfully as she attempted to struggle against his hold.

“Release me, vampire.”

“Wrong answer.” He pressed his fangs against her neck, hard enough to draw blood.

She gave a squeak, her struggles ending as she froze in fear. “No…wait.”

“How did you follow us?” he repeated.

“I scried for Anna,” she answered, referring to the art of crystal-gazing.

Unlike vampires, fairies were capable of small amounts of magic. But even fairies needed a part of the person they were scrying.

“With what?”

The scent of apples became nearly overwhelming as Sybil struggled to contain her fiery temper. Fairies were creatures of emotion, flitting from one to another with such speed a wise demon tended to give them a wide berth.

“I stole her hairbrush so I would have strands of her hair,” she at last gritted.

“Why? What do you want from her?”

“She has a bounty on her head.”

“A bounty?” Anna stepped from behind the potted plant, her face pale. “What the hell does that mean?”

“It means that someone wants you dead, querida,” he said, instantly regretting his blunt honesty when her eyes widened in shock.

“Oh my God.”

“Not dead,” Sybil interrupted. “Captured.”

Cezar shifted his arm so he could wrap his hand around the fairy’s throat. One squeeze and she’d be dead. Not as satisfying as draining her dry, but effective.

“Who offered the bounty?”

She hesitated before muttering a vile curse beneath her breath. “The Queen of Fairies.”

A chill stabbed through Cezar’s heart. Dammit, he should have paid closer attention to Anna’s revelation of what had happened to her aunt and cousin two centuries ago. It hadn’t occurred to him that it would have any bearing on the danger she faced today.

He wasn’t usually so stupid.

“What’s her interest in Anna?” he rasped.

“I don’t have a clue.” Sybil shot a surly glare in Anna’s direction. “And I don’t care.”

His fingers tightened. “Shall I make you care?”

She hissed in pain, holding up her hands in defeat. “Look, I don’t even know if Anna is the one the queen seeks.”

“Explain.”

“All I know is that the word was spread that the queen would offer her priceless emeralds to any fairy who managed to locate a human who possessed the magic of the elders in their blood. When I met Anna in the courtroom I instantly sensed some sort of power. It’s unstable, but very strong.”

Anna grimaced at the fairy. “That’s why you were always following me around?”

“Well, it wasn’t for your charming personality.”

Anna stepped forward, her fists clutched as if she were considering punching the woman in the nose. Cezar was swift to tug Sybil backward. Although he liked a catfight as well as the next vampire (who didn’t?), he was more interested in getting to the truth before he was forced to kill the fairy.

“And the spells you cast in her direction?”

Sybil gave a jerk of surprise. “How did you know about them?”

Cezar ignored her surprise and Anna’s questioning gaze. “Just answer the question.”

“They were harmless for the most part,” the fairy muttered. “I hoped to force her into using her powers so that I could be sure she was the one that I sought before I went to the trouble of kidnapping her.”

Anna made a rude noise. “Nice.”

“If your only intention was to capture Anna then why did you set the fire outside Anna’s door?” he demanded.

It took another warning squeeze before Sybil was squeaking out the answer. “I assumed that you had taken her to her room for a late night snack. I couldn’t risk having her drained before I could get her to the queen. I knew a fire was the one thing that would frighten you away.”

Anna gave a small gasp. “Do you know how many people could have been killed by that fire?”

“What do I care about humans?” Sybil demanded in baffled tones.