Darkness Revealed (Guardians of Eternity #4)(35)

Cezar nodded. “Anna Randal.”

Viper allowed his gaze to stroke over the speechless woman at Cezar’s side.

“She’s beautiful.”

“Yes, she is.” Cezar’s voice was cold as he slipped a jealous arm around her shoulders. Even knowing his friend was well and truly mated couldn’t halt his instinctive need to mark Anna as his own. “I think we should go, before the Adar catches our scent.”

A small, knowing smile twitched at Viper’s lips. “Of course.”

Cezar waited for the vampire to slide behind the wheel before he bundled Anna into the backseat and settled himself next to her, his arms tugging her close. Within moments they were speeding out of the estate and heading toward the south of the city.

Leaving the elegant neighborhood behind at a speed that would curl Jeff Gordon’s hair, Viper glanced briefly over his shoulder.

“I don’t mean to pry, Cezar, but if I’m to find the best place to stash your companion then I need to know what I’m hiding her from.”

“Morgana le Fay.”

Viper’s attention returned to the road as he squealed around a corner, choosing the narrow side streets that were empty of traffic.

“Anna’s a fairy?” he demanded, a faint hint of surprise in his voice.

Like any vampire he was accustomed to his senses giving him precise details of the living creatures that surrounded him. Most vampires could even read the souls of others, always presuming the creature possessed a soul.

“We’re still searching for her heritage, although we suspect there’s a connection between the two,” he said carefully, shielding his mind so that the vampire wouldn’t suspect there was more to his interest in Anna than the obvious desire that was impossible to hide. He couldn’t risk Viper suspecting any connection to the Commission.

A beat passed before Viper flashed another curious glance over his shoulder.

“You suspect that she possesses the blood of the ancients?”

“She does command the powers of an elemental.”

“Truly?” A hint of respect entered Viper’s voice. “A rare talent and one that suggests she’s more a warrior than a mere fairy.”

“Hey.” Finding her voice despite her obvious fright at traveling at light-speed through the dark streets, Anna elbowed Cezar in the side. “I’m right here, you know.”

Viper gave a low, husky chuckle. “Forgive us, Anna Randal. We have been friends for many centuries and have often enjoyed long debates over the mysteries that life offers.”

Cezar made a rude noise. “Some might call them arguments.”

Viper narrowly dodged an oncoming car. “Philosophy does tend to be a heated subject.”

Cezar glanced toward Anna, who was staring at him with an odd expression. “He once threw a priceless Fabergé egg at my head.”

“I knew it couldn’t damage that thick skull,” Viper retorted.

Anna gave a shake of her head, as if clearing it of cobwebs. “You’re interested in philosophy?”

Cezar reached up to tug on a honey curl that had strayed from her ponytail.

“Despite your belief that I’m a shallow, womanizing lech, I do have interests outside the bedroom.”

Viper laughed. “Oh yes, Cezar once had interests that spanned every room in the house.”

“Oh, really?” Anna drawled, flashing Cezar a dangerous glare.

“Of course now he’s been all but neut…”

“Shut up, Viper,” Cezar growled.

Viper gave a soft curse. “She doesn’t know?”

“Know what?” Anna demanded.

Cezar allowed his power to fill the car, making the nearby streetlamps shatter from the pulse of energy.

“Was there a part of shut up that wasn’t clear?”

Anna stiffened at his side, her tiny features hard with suspicion. In that moment Viper was lucky that Cezar possessed an aversion to killing his brothers.

Not that he was averse to a good ass-kicking.

“I knew there was something you were hiding from me,” she hissed.

His arms tightened around her taut body, catching and holding her wary gaze.

“This has nothing to do with you, Anna, I swear,” he said softly, grudgingly turning his head toward the window as Viper made another sharp turn. They were driving down a ramp to an underground parking lot. Although he couldn’t sense the spells that were wrapped around the building to repulse humans, he knew they would be in place. What he did sense, however, was the nearly overwhelming scent of vampires, blood, and fairies. A combination that could only mean one place in Chicago. “Dios,” he breathed in shock. “What the hell are you doing, Viper? This place is filled with fairies.”

Skidding to a halt directly in front of the bank of elevators, Viper switched off the car’s engine.

“Precisely.”

“The point is to keep Anna away from Morgana and her subjects.”

Viper flashed a smile that would have sent a chill down the stoutest spine.

“Trust me.”

“Great,” Cezar muttered, reluctantly sliding from the car and taking Anna’s hand as she joined him.

She glanced around the lot, her brows lifting as she noted the dozens of gleaming cars that only the Fortune 500 could afford.