“I thought you would be bigger,” she drawled. “With horns and a tail.”
The ground trembled as Styx released a portion of his legendary power. Behind her, Brigette thought she heard Xi mutter something about stubborn idiots in low tones.
“And I thought you would be smarter. It’s not the wisest decision to show your face after you tried to destroy the world.”
Brigette’s smile remained, although she covertly balled her hands into tight fists. She would endure endless torture before she’d reveal her raw regret for the past.
“Well, I’ve never been over-burdened with brains,” she assured him.
Styx narrowed his eyes, but before he could continue the unpleasant conversation, there was a scent of granite, and a tiny shape appeared in the open doorway.
“Mon amie.” Levet moved forward, his fairy wings shimmering and a charming smile adding a beauty to his lumpy features.
Genuine joy melted Brigette’s heart. This gargoyle was the only creature in the entire world who treated her as if she was more than a traitor who should be destroyed.
“Levet.”
The gargoyle waddled forward, gently touching her arm. “I am so delighted to see you. I feared you might never leave that moldy village.”
“So did I,” she admitted.
“So why did you?” Styx asked.
Brigette had given some thought to her reasons. Her only conclusion was that it was complicated.
A part of her had been curious, a part had been aggravated, and another part had been bored and seeking a distraction from her self-imposed exile. Why not travel to Chicago and discover what was happening?
Then, after she’d arrived, she’d become caught up in her role as a spy. For the first time in five hundred years, she was thinking about something besides herself. And it’d been…exhilarating.
She chose the easiest answer. “I don’t like people intruding into my territory and assuming they can manipulate me into using my evil powers for their benefit.”
Levet frowned. “You no longer have evil powers.”
Brigette shrugged. “That’s not the point.”
“If you were pissed, you could have run them off,” the Anasso said, his voice edge with suspicion. “Or killed them. There was no need to travel all the way to Chicago.”
“I wanted to see for myself what was happening. They claimed that the new King of the Vampires not only intended to enslave the vampires, but the Weres as well.”
Styx grunted, as if her words had caught him off guard. “Why the hell would I enslave anyone?” He waved a hand around the office, which was stripped of most of the froufrou nonsense that filled the rest of the house. “If it weren’t for Darcy, I wouldn’t even have servants. I would live alone in my caves.”
Brigette shrugged. “Roban also said you were going to send the Weres to Italy. Something about their old hunting grounds.”
“They should be so lucky,” Styx muttered. “Salvatore has done nothing but bitch and gripe about the weather in Kansas City. He would love to return to Italy, although I doubt he’d be willing to be confined to his old hunting grounds.” Styx paused, as if struck by a sudden thought. “Still, I might consider the possibility. The mangy fur-bag too often forgets that I’m at the top of the food chain.”
There was a glint in the Anasso’s dark eyes. As if he was deliberately trying to provoke her. A wasted effort. She had no loyalty to Salvatore, the King of Weres. She’d never met the male and had no interest in being part of a pack. She’d given up any right to a family.
“Maryam has proof,” she told the towering vampire.
“Show me.”
Brigette held out the wooden box. “In there.”
“Oh.” Levet’s wings fluttered. “A mystery box. Can I open it?”
Styx took the lacquered container, then, with a mocking smile, he shoved it toward the gargoyle. “Knock yourself out.”
Levet wavered, clearly torn between his insatiable curiosity and the realization that there might be something dangerous hidden inside.
Folding his hands behind his back, Levet wrinkled his snout. “On second thought, you should have the honor.”
There was a whisper of a chilled breeze as Xi stepped past her, in full Raven mode. Taking the box from his master, he flipped open the lid. Styx leaned forward, peering inside.
“Scrolls.”
Brigette rolled her eyes at his puzzled tones. “Why are vampires so baffled by scrolls? My uncle devoted endless hours to reading and creating them.”
“Only a fool writes down his private thoughts or secret plans,” Styx informed her with an arrogance that set her teeth on edge.
“Really?” Brigette drawled. “Then why do they have your signature? And your fancy-ass official seal.”
Xi took a scroll from the box and studied the wax seal before he unscrolled it. Was that what you did to scrolls? Unscroll them?
Whatever you called it, Xi handed the opened scroll to Styx. “She’s right.”
“Thanks, Captain Obvious,” Brigette mocked.
Xi merely regarded her with a steady gaze, but the Anasso released a warning growl. “You do know I could kill you and no one would care?” the king demanded.
“I would care,” Levet promptly protested.
Warmth stole through her heart even as Styx made a strangled sound of irritation. “You don’t count, you chunk of granite,” the vampire snapped.
Levet stuck out his tongue, but Brigette was already turning away. She’d finished what she’d come there to do. She didn’t have to stick around to be insulted by a leech.
“Let them burn the world to the ground, I don’t care,” she said. “Enjoy the Armageddon.”
“Stop.”
She glanced over her shoulder, her steps never slowing. “You’re not the boss of me.”
“I’m…sorry.”
The harsh words brought Brigette to an astonished halt. Slowly, she turned to confront the massive vampire.
“Excuse me?”
Styx looked as if he’d had a lemon shoved in his mouth. Or maybe up his ass. He was definitely puckering.
“I’ve been under a lot of pressure lately. It’s made me a little…”
Chapter 4
“Grouchy? Crabby-pants? Homicidal?” Levet offered in sweet tones.
He’d stuck around the mansion in the hope of seeing Brigette. He’d been worried about the female Were since she’d wished him away from the mists that surrounded her homeland. The sight of her appearing healthy, quick-witted, and as feisty as ever eased the worry that had plagued him for the past few months.