There was an entire world of kindness in that smile.
"Am I disturbing you?" she asked gently.
"Not at all." Darcy tilted her head to one side. "Are you a friend of Styx?"
"Not precisely. I'm Shay, and you must be Darcy."
"Shay." It took a moment before Darcy's eyes widened with recognition. "Viper's ... mate?"
The woman chuckled at her hesitant tone. "Yes, for my sins."
Darcy wasn't certain why she was caught off guard. Shay was certainly lovely enough to have captured the elegant vampire's attention. But there was something earthy and warm about the woman. Viper ... well, not so much.
At the thought of the silver-haired vampire Darcy clapped her hand to her mouth.
"Oh, you shouldn't be here."
Shay gave a lift of her brow. "I shouldn't?"
"I know this is your house, but I think this solarium was supposed to be a surprise."
The woman laughed as she glanced around the beautiful room. "Viper isn't nearly as sly as he believes he is. I've known for weeks that he was planning this." She returned her attention to Darcy with a wink and a smile. "Still, I won't tell him if you don't. Men can be so sensitive when they think they're being clever."
Darcy couldn't help but return the smile. "I won't say a word."
Shay moved to settle on a padded bench. "I hope that you're comfortable here. Well, as comfortable as you can be, considering that you're being held against your will." She gave a tug on the long braid that had fallen over her shoulder. "Someday I'm going to plant a stake in Styx's heart regardless if he's the bloody Anasso or not."
"The Anasso?" Darcy questioned.
"Master of all vampires." Shay rolled her eyes. "And doesn't he just know it."
"He does have a certain arrogance about him," Darcy admitted.
"A certain arrogance? Ha! He could write the book on cold-blooded pride."
A frown touched Darcy's brow. Granted Styx had taken her captive. And he could be aloof and distant at times. But she also knew that he possessed wonderful qualities that he kept hidden from most.
"He takes his responsibilities very seriously. Perhaps too seriously at times," she said in a quiet tone. "But, he can be quite kind and gentle once you get to know him."
Her guest gave a choked cough, but seeming to sense Darcy's dislike in speaking ill of Styx, she managed a faint smile.
"I'll have to take your word on that."
"If you're here to see him I'm afraid he hasn't yet risen."
"Actually, I'm here to see you."
"Me?"
"Viper told me all about you and I just had to come and meet you for myself," Shay explained.
Darcy grimaced, remembering her brief, but tense confrontation with the vampire. "I can imagine what he said. He didn't seem overly fond of me."
"Actually he was quite impressed."
"I find that hard to believe. He seemed convinced that I intended to slay Styx the moment his back was turned."
Shay gave a rueful lift of her hands. "He's just concerned with his Anasso. The vampires are all quite protective of him."
"I've noticed," Darcy retorted dryly.
"Yes, I suppose you have." Shay gave a small laugh as she rose and paced toward the plants that Darcy had set on the wooden shelves. There was a restless energy that seemed to crackle about her slender form. "Are these yours?"
"Yes." Darcy moved to stand at her side. "I hope you don't mind me taking over your solarium, but I was worried about them being alone in my apartment."
"Of course I don't mind." The woman reached out to lightly touch an African violet. "You obviously have a green thumb."
"I enjoy plants."
"So do I, but somehow I always end up killing everything I touch." Shay turned to regard Darcy with her odd, golden gaze. "Maybe I can hire you after the solarium is finished. I'll need someone to keep me from committing vegetative mass murder."
Darcy smiled. "I wouldn't say no. I'm always looking for jobs."
"Viper said you are a bartender?"
"Among many things," she readily admitted. "I never finished high school so I take what I can get."
"You're alone in the world?" Shay asked gently.
"Yes."
"So was I for many, many years. It's ..." The golden eyes darkened with a pain that was only now beginning to heal.
"Lonely?" Darcy finished, with a sad smile.
"Lonely and frightening." Shay gave a shake of her head, as if clearing her dark thoughts. Then quite unexpectedly, she reached out to take Darcy's hand in her own. "Do you mind?"
"Do I mind what?" Darcy demanded.
"Viper tells me that you think you might have demon blood. I'm half Shalott, which allows me to detect most sorts of otherworldlies. I might be able to tell you something of your heritage."
Darcy hesitated for a long moment. She didn't truly believe the woman could help her discover the secrets of her past. Not even if she was a demon.
Still, it seemed somehow rude not to allow her to try.
"What are you going to do?" she at last demanded.
Shay wrinkled her nose. "I'm sorry, but I need to smell you."
Smell me? Jeez. What is it with these people?
"All right," she warily agreed.
The demon lifted Darcy's hand to her nose and sniffed deeply of her skin. And sniffed, and sniffed, and sniffed again.
It seemed to be a demon thing.
"Strange." The woman dropped Darcy's hand and stepped back with a confused expression. "I would swear..."
"What?"
"There is the faintest hint of werewolf," Shay confessed.
Darcy threw her hands in the air. "For God's sake, I've taken two showers and a bath since I was near Salvatore. Do I have to boil myself in bleach?"
"You were with a Were?"
"Only for a few moments and he barely touched me."
Shay chewed her lip as she pondered Darcy's words. "That could be it."
"You don't sound very certain."
"I'm not, which is very odd." The woman heaved a deep sigh. "I'm sorry; I hoped I would be of some help."
Darcy instinctively reached out to touch her hand. "It was very kind of you to come here and try. I do appreciate it."
"I had to come." Her eyes darkened. "I know, Darcy. I really, truly know what it's like to be different, to have to isolate yourself from others in the fear they might discover the truth, to always wonder if you will ever feel safe."