He didn't want her to leave his side. To risk being alone with Edra.
But what choice did they have?
He couldn't directly attack the witch. Not as long as he remained bound to the Phoenix. And Abby was still fumbling to learn the powers she possessed.
All he could do was allow the coven to believe he was no longer a threat and wait for an opportunity to rescue Abby from their clutches.
After that… well.
He would deal with "after that" when it came along.
Forcing himself to wait and ensure that no one else was about to enter the room, Dante was distracted by the faint tap on the window.
Warily he allowed his senses to reach out. His lips twitched as he flowed to his feet and crossed the room to regard the vampire standing just outside.
"Viper."
"Napping on the job?" the silver-haired vampire demanded as he slipped through the open window.
Dante raised his brows in surprise as Viper smoothed his velvet coat and adjusted the ruffles of his cuffs.
"How did you come in?"
A sly smile touched the too-beautiful features. Reaching beneath his shirt, he pulled out a small leather bag that was attached by a leather strap about his neck.
"A gift from a voodoo priestess."
Dante frowned. "What's in it?"
"A variety of nasty bits and pieces that are used to animate the dead," he drawled, a cynical smile tugging at his lips. "It allows me to pass as a living being."
A handy little object, Dante acknowledged. And precisely the sort of trinket that Viper would collect. He watched as Viper tucked the bag beneath his shirt. His brows abruptly snapped together.
"Bloody hell, what happened to you?" Dante demanded as he studied the charred burns on the smooth flesh.
With a flick of his hands, the older vampire closed his shirt to hide the marks.
"The dark wizard and I had a mild disagreement."
"What sort of disagreement?"
"I thought he should be dead and he disagreed."
Dante smiled wryly. There was little use in lecturing Viper in taking such risks. Once he was on the hunt, nothing could halt him.
"I presume you convinced him to your way of thinking?"
"Eventually." A flare of annoyance rippled over the pale features. "I was careless. His power was greater than I expected."
So the dark wizard was gone. One less problem to deal with.
"What are you doing here?"
Viper's presence suddenly seemed to fill the room. Even the candles dimmed.
"Before I ripped out his throat, the wizard swore that the witches intended to banish us all to the depths of hell. I decided that I wasn't ready to go yet"
Dante clapped a hand on Viper's shoulder. There was no need for words. They would hunt together as they had centuries before.
Few things could have given him more hope.
"The witches have Abby," he said.
"Where?"
Dante took a moment to reach out to his mate. "Below us. A cellar."
Viper gave a slow nod. "Can you fight?"
"I can't harm the witches who were part of the spell binding me to the Phoenix. The newer witches should prove no problem."
Viper smiled to reveal his fangs. "Leave them to me."
"There is also a demon," he warned. "We'll need to make sure it isn't planning a nasty surprise."
Viper tilted back his head to deeply sniff the air. The silver eyes widened in shock.
"A Shalott. So, they haven't all vanished. How very intriguing."
Dante grimaced at the fevered glitter in the midnight eyes. Shalott blood was rumored to be an aphrodisiac to vampires. Which no doubt explained why they had chosen to leave with the dark lord. Without his protection, they would be hunted to extinction by vampires.
'You take care of Edra; I will see to the demon," Dante said sternly.
"Why, Dante, don't tell me you've been seduced by the creature?" Viper mocked. "Whatever will Abbysay?"
"She wants the demon spared."
Viper stilled. "Why?"
"Because she could have killed us and didn't."
"Humans." Viper gave a shake of his head even as an unreadable emotion darkened his eyes. "So weak."
Squaring his shoulders, Dante glanced toward the door.
"Are you up for this?"
Viper moved to stand at his side.
''What's the plan?"
Chapter 24
Abby bit her bottom lip as the hair on the nape of her neck stirred and her palms began to sweat.
It was the same sensation she had experienced when she had been five and had entered a carnival's haunted house and spent nearly two hours huddled in a dark corner, too afraid to move so she could bolt for the door.
She hadn't known why she was frightened. She had only known that she sensed something out in the darkness waiting to devour her.
Of course, with the wisdom of age, it was simple to look back and realize her fear had been caused by a combination of overstimulation, the smothering darkness, and being abandoned in the house by her mother.
Still, the sense of being devoured had been very real.
Just as it was at this moment.
Grimly squaring her shoulders, Abby allowed herself to be led through the dark, empty rooms until the elderly witch at last paused to open a dooi and began to climb down the narrow stairs.
She was no longer a child.
She didn't huddle in corners.
She fought back with a vengeance.
Well… maybe not a vengeance. More of a combination of bumbling, fumbling, and flaying.
But she would never again be a willing victim.
A musty smell of damp earth and mold rolled over Abby as they reached the bottom of the steps. She hesitated as the utter darkness momentarily blinded her.
"Don't be afraid," Edra whispered, her ancient face becoming suddenly visible as a fire bloomed to life in a large brazier. "There is nothing here that would ever harm you."
Nothing but you, Abby whispered silently.
"Why are we here?"
The witch moved across the floor. "I have something I wish to show you."
Edra was walking toward what appeared to be a large slab of marble set next to the brazier. It appeared all the world like something you would put on top of a grave.
Along the edge of the marble were precisely arranged black candles and dried herbs. And in the very center was a strange symbol drawn with a thick, clotted liquid that gleamed with a reddish-black hue.
Abby's stomach clenched as she reluctantly followed in the woman's wake.
<cWhat is this?"
"My modest altar." The witch reached out to stroke the cold stone with a reverent hand. "Not what I desired to present to the beloved Goddess, but I was forced to leave much behind after the attack by the wizard."