She at last had what she had always desired.
A home with the man she loved beyond all reason.
They halted just long enough for Juliet to dash into Justin’s townhouse and retrieve the amulet she had discovered during their travels through Spain. Then, returning to the carriage, she used the short time during the drive to the docks to activate the amulet with her and Victor’s scents before splitting it into several small pieces and handing half of them to Victor to spread through the tunnels.
All too soon they had reached the docks, and not giving herself the opportunity to consider just how insane it was to deliberately enter the lair of a Jinn, she shoved open the door and climbed out of the carriage.
In the blink of an eye, Victor was standing in front of her, his expression somber as he wrapped his arms around her in a protective motion.
“Juliet.”
She tilted back her head to meet the fierce emotions smoldering in his silver eyes.
“Must we repeat the same arguments yet again?” she asked softly.
“If you are harmed it will destroy me, little one.”
Her heart melted at the stark simplicity of his words. Lifting her hand, she pressed her palm against the cool skin of his cheek.
“I promise to take the greatest care.”
“You free the gargoyle and leave the docks. Do you understand?”
“Very well, but if you do not return to me—”
He bent down to cover her lips in an achingly sweet kiss. “I have sworn to be at your side for all eternity. I love you, Juliet.”
With a last kiss, he was turning and disappearing with a speed her eyes could not follow.
“I love you, Marquis DeRosa,” she breathed before reluctantly making her own way to the nearby warehouse.
With none of Victor’s talent for tracking his prey, she was forced to retrace her path from last eve and simply hope she stumbled across Levet. Not the best plan, but the only one she possessed.
Entering the warehouse, she crossed to the gaping hole in the floor and lightly dropped to the cavern beneath. Then, moving to the various openings that led to tunnels, she scattered the tiny pieces of the amulet before heading down the nearest passageway.
Her heart was thundering in her chest and her palms were sweating, but she took pride in the realization that the stench of human fear that had been prevalent hours before was beginning to fade. They had at least managed to save a number of prisoners.
She bypassed the tunnel where they had battled the Jinn, shivering at the memory. Victor had sensed Levet nearby….
Juliet abruptly paused, tilting back her head. She might not possess Victor’s vampire senses, but she was certain she could catch the faintest scent of gargoyle.
Hoping that she was on the track of Levet and not some other gargoyle, Juliet squeezed through a narrow opening, banging her head on the low ceiling as she struggled to follow the scent. Good lord, another inch on her backside and she would never fit.
Her hands were scratched and her clothing was ripped in several places by the time she managed to reach the end of the tunnel, but her heart gave a leap at the sight of the entrance carved into the stone wall.
Bending low, she wiggled through the opening, cursing as she sacrificed several strands of hair and a small part of her scalp to a low-hanging rock. But at last she was in a cavern large enough for her to stand upright and even to drag in a deep breath.
Better yet, there was a tiny gargoyle only a few steps away, hung to the wall with silver manacles.
With a muttered prayer of thanks, Juliet rushed to tug on the cuffs. Her witch blood gave her immunity to the silver, while her imp blood gave her enough strength to loosen the metal and allow Levet to squirm free.
“At last,” the gargoyle muttered with a distinct lack of gratitude. “I thought you had decided to leave me to rot in this godforsaken cave.”
Juliet futilely tried to knock the dirt from her pants. “It is a notion with growing appeal. Are you hurt?”
“Of course I am hurt.” Levet turned, wiggling his one remaining gossamer wing. “Can you not see I am missing a wing?”
She grimaced. “Are you able to walk on your own?”
Levet sniffed. “Gargoyles are renowned for their ability to overcome pain and perform heroic feats that stun and amaze the demon world.”
“Yes, well, the only heroic feat I desire is getting out of here.” She shivered. “As swiftly as possible.”
“That is my specialty.”
Expecting Levet to leave the same way she had entered, Juliet frowned as the gargoyle instead crawled between two large boulders and disappeared from sight.
With a shake of her head, Juliet bent downward, discovering a small tunnel.
“What are you doing?”
“Following the night.”
“But…”
“Trust me.”
Condemning the cramped tunnels and annoying gargoyles to the netherworld, Juliet crawled through the small space. Once she returned to Victor’s lair, she intended to spend hours soaking in a hot bath.
At last reaching a connecting tunnel, Juliet straightened to find Levet waiting with an impatient expression.
“This way,” he urged, waddling with surprising speed through the darkness.
“You are certain?” she demanded, only to sigh in resignation as he continued on without so much as a backward glance. Following in his wake, she ruefully reminded herself that she had willingly chosen to rescue the aggravating gargoyle, even if at the moment she longed to give him a good shake. “You have not yet explained how you were captured by the Jinn.”
“He”—Levet halted to clear his throat—“caught me off guard.”
“Hmmm. You are hiding something from me.”
He hunched his shoulders, refusing to turn as he doggedly continued down the tunnel.
“It was not my fault.”
“What was not your fault?”
“I thought there was a nest of pixies, so I decided to perform a bit of magic to impress them.”
“Oh, lord,” Juliet muttered. She was familiar enough with Levet’s dubious magic to presume that it had been nothing less than a disaster. “What happened?”
Levet paused, then turned down a side tunnel, his tail twitching behind him.
“There might have been the smallest of explosions.”
Juliet frowned. Although she suspected that Levet’s notion of a small explosion was a good deal more spectacular than her own, she knew there must be more to his tale than he was revealing.
“Did you wound the Jinn?”