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.”