"You think they'll let down their guard when you do not?"
"Quite the contrary." A smile touched Styx's lips. It was a smile that would send most of those who knew him fleeing in terror. "I intend for them to be on full alert when you and your clansmen surround the lair."
It took a moment before Viper at last smiled in return. "A diversion."
"Exactly."
"And while we are rattling our sabers and threatening dire retributions you intend to sneak through the back door and grab your mate."
"Yes."
Viper gave a slow, reluctant nod of his head. "It might work, but I don't want you going by yourself."
Styx frowned. "I appreciate your concern, Viper, but we both know that I can move much faster and with less chance of attracting attention if I go alone."
"And if something happens to your I will have no way of knowing that Darcy is still in need of rescue," he smoothly retorted. "Or would you prefer she remain in the hands of the Weres?"
"Damn you," Styx muttered, knowing he had been neatly outmaneuvered. Clenching his hands, he gave a sharp nod. "I'll take the gargoyle, but you will warn him that he is to follow my every command without question or I'll throw him to the wolves myself."
Chapter Twenty-Three
Salvatore was in a foul mood as he left Darcy’s room and sought out his curs to make sure they were prepared for the inevitable arrival of the vampires.
He freely admitted that he possessed his share of arrogance.
And no doubt a healthy helping of vanity.
From the day of his birth he had been spoiled by every Were he encountered. He was the destined king. A pureblood of impeccable lineage who had revealed a power and strength well beyond others', even in his earliest years. And, of course, he had been blessed with the sort of male beauty that had made females fight battles over him. Sometimes to the death.
It was little wonder he assumed that any woman would be eager to have him in her bed.
Entering his private office, he crossed the barren floor and poured himself a large shot of brandy.
His wounded pride urged him to return upstairs and prove to the ungrateful bitch just what pleasures she was so carelessly tossing aside.
He hadn't devoted decades to perfecting his skills at seduction for nothing.
No woman left his bed unsatisfied.
But a larger part of him refused to give in to such base instincts.
As he had told Darcy, he wasn't an animal.
Taking a woman against her will was utterly repugnant. Even it did mean gaining the precious children they so desperately needed.
So now what?
Salvatore stiffened as the scent of expensive perfume filled the air. Just for a moment he considered making a dodge for the nearby window. He could easily scamper up the side of the building and make his way to the roof.
His teeth snapped together as he realized the cowardly direction of his thoughts. He feared no man, and certainly no woman.
Not even Sophia.
Forcing himself to lean casually against the desk, he was calmly sipping his brandy when the door was pressed open and the beautiful pureblood strolled into the room.
A faint smile touched her lips as she halted before him and allowed her brazen gaze to roam over him.
"Poor Salvatore, you don't look particularly happy for a man about to bed his consort," she drawled.
He sighed with deliberate boredom. "Go away, Sophia."
The green eyes flashed with annoyance. She was a woman who expected every man in her vicinity to be panting with desire when she was near.
"How can I?" Her gaze dropped to his half-empty glass. "As a mother I must be concerned when I discover my daughter's mate drowning his sorrow in brandy."
"One shot is hardly drowning."
"Ah, then you're drinking because it's the only way you can force yourself to do your duty?" She gave a mocking click of her tongue. "How sad."
"Shut up, Sophia."
"You don't find her attractive?"
"I find her considerably more attractive than her mother."
"Brutal." She gave a short, brittle laugh. "Tell me what's bothering you."
Salvatore drained the last of his brandy and set the glass on his desk with a loud click.
"Your daughter has decided that she doesn't particularly care to have me as her consort."
"What does it matter?" Sophia gave an indifferent shrug. "She's here now and in your power."
"And unwilling." He abruptly straightened, resisting the urge to backhand the woman. Sophia liked her men rough. He wasn't about to give her the satisfaction. "I don't rape women."
Easily sensing his smoldering violence, Sophia offered a taunting smile.
"Surely you don't doubt your powers of persuasion? Really, Salvatore, I thought you had more balls than that."
He gave a low growl. How in the hell that sweet, innocent child upstairs had ever possibly come from this woman's womb would forever be a mystery.
"My balls are not the problem. She believes she's in love with the vampire."
"So? She'll forget him in time." Sophia reached out to draw a manicured nail down Salvatore's cheek. "Love is nothing more than a false elusion that men use to trap women into perpetual bondage."
Salvatore grimaced. "Charming."
"Surely you don't believe in love?"
Salvatore kept his expression impassive. Love among the Weres was now no more than a myth. The pursuit of children had become the consuming goal, and nothing so mundane as emotions, even passion, was allowed to interfere.
It would be seen as nothing less than a fatal weakness if he were to admit that in the depths of the night he longed to discover that one woman who could be his true mate.
Realizing that Sophia was studying him with a growing curiosity, Salvatore forced himself to give a nonchalant shrug.
"It doesn't matter if I do or not. As long as Darcy.. ."
"Oh, for God's sake, just go upstairs and get it over with," Sophia growled with annoyance. "Once you have her pregnant you can hand her over to someone who doesn't possess your refined sensibilities. What about Huntley? He has a taste for forcing himself on reluctant women."
Salvatore stiffened. He couldn't believe even Sophia would be callous enough to hand her daughter over to such a savage animal.
"You really are a bitch."
"Yes, I know."
Reaching up his hand, Salvatore was on the point of physically removing the annoying woman from his study when he came to an abrupt halt.
His senses sharpened to full alert as he tilted back his head and sniffed the air.