Still he kept his trap shut. As much as he might want to protect Laylah, he understood that the only means to keep her safe was to discover the truth of the child she sheltered.
“The first memories I have are of living on a farm in Australia with my foster mother,” she grudgingly revealed.
“A demon?”
“Witch.”
Styx narrowed his gaze at her clipped tone. “She was unkind to you?”
Tane edged closer as he sensed the sadness settle in Laylah’s heart.
“No, she loved me as if I truly was her daughter,” she said, her voice so soft it could barely be heard. “But if what I learned in London is true, then everything she said to me was a lie.”
Styx perched on the edge of the desk. “The most dangerous creature in the world is a mother protecting her cub. She will lie, cheat, kill, and even die if necessary. Wouldn’t you do the same?”
She frowned, as if considering Styx’s blunt words. At last she gave a nod, a portion of her betrayal seeming to ease.
“I suppose.”
“What happened to her?”
“One day I was collecting the herbs that Sadira used in her spells of illusion when I heard her scream.” Her very lack of emotion revealed the depth of her wounds. Any healing was a long way off. “I rushed back to our house but I was too late. She was …” She was forced to halt and clear her throat. “She was lying on the porch with her throat sliced open.”
“Dead?”
Laylah shuddered. “I’ve always assumed she was, there was so much blood, but I was captured by the mage before I could reach her.”
Styx shot Tane a warning glare as he instinctively stepped toward Laylah.
Reluctantly Tane came to a halt. They were at the mercy of the Anasso. For whatever reason, he was willing to at least listen to Laylah, but Tane didn’t fool himself. The moment Styx decided that she posed a danger to his vampires she would be sacrificed to the Oracles. No fuss. No muss.
“Victor said the wizard goes by the name Sergei,” Styx said.
Anger replaced her painful memories. “He never told me his name.” “What did he do to you?” “Styx,” Tane growled.
A sharp pain lashed through Tane as Styx punished him for his interference.
Just a tiny taste of what could be.
“The truth is all that will save her, Tane,” the king warned. Then, he snapped his attention back to Laylah.
“Well?”
Laylah stiffened, but she stubbornly refused to cower beneath the chilling gaze.
“I don’t know exactly how the mage knocked me out, but when I woke up I was locked in a cell in northern Siberia.”
“Siberia?” Tane echoed in surprise. “That’s a little remote, isn’t it?”
“Actually, it confirms what Victor has discovered about the mage,” Styx answered.
“Victor already has intel on the bastard?” Tane was impressed. “That was quick.”
“Victor is nothing if not efficient.”
Efficient?
Yeah. He was also a brutal, ruthless, stone-cold killer. It was no wonder the info superhighway had a direct route to his desk.
“What did he learn?”
“Sergei Krakov made his first appearance as a mystic in the royal court of Peter the Great.” Styx’s voice held the contempt all vampires held toward magic-users. “He provided himself with a life of luxury by producing a few minor ‘miracles’ and acting as a spiritual advisor, but from what Victor could uncover his true interest was in the ancient prophecies. His library is said to rival Jagr’s.”
“That’s saying something,” Tane murmured. It was rumored the ancient Goth’s library had over twenty thousand books and scrolls.
“The mage is convinced he’s destined to lead the world into a new era,” Styx continued with a grimace. “Whatever the hell that means.”
Tane rolled his eyes. Every half baked tyrant claimed to possess the ability to lead the world into a new era.
Laylah, however, pressed a hand to her chest, the scent of her fear spiking the air.
“The baby,” she breathed. “He and my bat-shit crazy aunt think they can use the child to reincarnate the Dark Lord.”
Styx nodded, clearly having been given a blow by blow account of Laylah’s encounter with Marika from Victor.
“Where did the child come from?”
“I’m not entirely certain.” She lifted a hand as Styx’s eyes flashed with frustration. “Chill.”
Styx arched a brow. “Chill?”
“You have that look that says you’re planning to lecture me on keeping secrets … yadda, yadda, yadda.”
“I never lecture,” Styx tried to deny, only to backtrack at Tane’s sharp burst of laughter. “I may encourage others to see things from my point of view.”
“Well don’t bother with your encouragements,” Laylah said. “I spent my time with the mage either locked in a cell or so tightly wrapped in spells I could barely sense my surroundings.”
“There must be something you remember,” Styx prompted.
“I remember the mage entering the cell one morning and then the world went black.” She rubbed her hands over her bare arms, as if she were suddenly cold. “When I woke up I was in a dark, frozen cave.”
“A cave?” Styx frowned. “Where?”
Laylah lifted a shoulder. “I think it was north of where we were staying, but I can’t say how far. I could probably find it if I shadow walked.”
Styx and Tane exchanged silent glances. No one would leave a child that was rumored to possess a part of the Dark Lord lying around a cave.
No matter how remote.
“Were there any markings in the cave?” Styx asked.
She shook her head. “No, nothing but the mist.”
Tane absently stroked the hilt of his dagger. “The same mist you used to take us to London?”
“In a way. When I enter the mists I sense a …” She halted, wrinkling her brow as she struggled for the right word. “Corridor. Like a highway at the edge of different worlds. This was more a bubble.”
“As if it was self-contained?” Styx demanded.
“Exactly,” Laylah agreed, clearly surprised by Styx’s accurate description.
Tane didn’t blame her.
Styx was so good at flexing his brawn that it was easy to forget he had a brain. He did it on purpose, of course. He liked for others to underestimate him. Tane turned toward Styx. “Do you know where it is?” “No, but I suspect I know what it is.” “Are you going to share?”