Chapter 8
CHAPTER 8
Levet glared up at Bertha, who currently stood on his shoulders as she dug through the pile of rubble above them. It’d been hours since they’d been buried in the tunnel, and he was over this current adventure. There was nothing fun about being trapped, coated in a thick layer of dust, with his aunt digging her heels into the tender muscles of his neck.
He was going to give Chiron a very stern lecture about luring him to Hong Kong. This was not the exotic, fun-filled getaway Levet had been promised.
“Stand still,” Bertha chided, sending a shower of pebbles bouncing off Levet’s head as she pushed against a large boulder.
Levet coughed, wiggling his wings as the grit threatened to wedge into the delicate nooks and crannies. And his wings weren’t the only nooks and crannies getting wedged with grit.
“I do not know why I must be the one on the bottom,” he complained.
“Because my arms are longer,” she told him, grunting as she continued to shove at the boulder. “I’m the only one who can dig us out.”
“Oh.” Levet furrowed his brow, sensing there was something fishy about her argument. “Wait?—”
“I’m through!” There was the sound of stone cracking and another cloud of dust before the pressure on his shoulders abruptly disappeared. Levet tilted back his head to see a narrow hole that Bertha had busted open. Her head appeared in the space, her expression smug. Clearly, she was pleased with her success. “Do you need help?”
Levet scowled. He was a hero. Of course, he did not need assistance. “Stand aside,” he commanded.
Flapping his wings, he managed to lift himself off the ground and through the cramped hole, landing awkwardly next to his aunt. He flushed, grabbing his tail to give it a good polish. He wasn’t meant to fly. He was a gargoyle, not a stupid bird. Still, it was embarrassing to flounder around like a bloated turkey.
“I could have gotten us out much faster if you’d allowed me to use my magic,” he complained.
Bertha easily scrambled over the broken cement, leading him back to the main tunnel. “I love you, nephew, but I’m not willing to spend the next century recovering from your fireballs.”
Levet clicked his tongue. “I have very fine balls.”
“They’re a disaster.”
“Hey…” Levet allowed his protest to die away. It wasn’t that he wasn’t confident his balls were the finest in the land, but he’d been distracted by a sudden smell.
Bending low, he waddled toward the end of the tunnel before using the iron rungs in the cement wall to climb up and out of the drainage system. He halted as he glanced around the small garden next to a towering hotel. The dark streets were beginning to fill with tourists, but he ignored the frenzied chaos. It wasn’t so easy to ignore the aroma of the street vendors.
Mmm…
Bertha moved to stand next to him. “Levet?”
He shook his head, dismissing his gnawing hunger. He’d get a snack later. Like a full roasted pig. And pie. Apple pie.
“I smell the vampire,” he told his companion.
Bertha arched her brows. “The one who trapped us?”
“ Oui . But it is odd.”
“What’s odd?”
Levet nodded toward the nearby hotel. “This is the resort where Jayla works.”
Bertha’s expression was distracted as she considered the various possibilities. “The first ambush was a bust,” she finally said. “Perhaps they’re hoping a second will be more successful.”
Levet nodded. Bertha was right. “And they would know this is the place she would return. Let’s go.”
Pumping his feet as fast as they would go, Levet headed out of the garden and circled the edge of the pool. Then, using a side door, he darted into the front lobby. He was just about to track down the treacherous vampire when a chill blasted through the air, and a towering form abruptly blocked his path.
“Levet,” Chiron snapped. “Where the hell have you been?” The vampire’s icy gaze turned toward Bertha as she halted next to Levet. “And who is this?”
Levet slammed his hands on his hips. He was filthy, hungry, and in a M.O.O.D. “I have been buried beneath a ton of rubbish, thanks to you,” he snapped. “And this is my Aunt Bertha.”
Chiron stilled, whether shocked by Levet’s tone or his explanation was impossible to guess. “Are you joking?”
Levet clicked his tongue. “I was following Jayla’s trail when Aunt Bertha appeared?—”
“She’s related to you?” Chiron interrupted.
“Of course. She is my mother’s sister.” Levet glanced toward the delicate woman standing next to him. “Can you not see the resemblance?”
“No.”
Bertha sent Chiron a sour glare. “Rude.”
“Right?” Levet demanded. “Vampires.”
Chiron clenched his hands into tight fists as if struggling to keep from strangling Levet. “What about Jayla?”
“I was about to tell you when you interrupted,” Levet complained.
Ice coated the marble floor. “Levet.”
Levet wisely stepped back, sensing he’d pressed the vampire far enough. Leeches were notoriously short-tempered.
“We halted at the spot where Jayla was kidnapped.”
Chiron stared down at him, his face tight with impatience. “Kidnapped? Who kidnapped her?”
“Some vampire with blond hair,” Levet repeated the words he’d overheard. “Not a local.”
“In a black limo,” Bertha helpfully added.
Chiron glanced down at the tips of his polished shoes as if wishing he was a million miles away. Finally, he returned his attention to Levet.
“Did you see her being kidnapped?”
“ Non , we followed the vampire who witnessed it.”
“Where is he?”
“Dead. Killed by the same vampire who collapsed a ceiling on our heads.” Levet held up his hands to reveal his cracked claws. “It took hours to dig out and totally ruined my manicure. You owe me.”
Chiron rolled his eyes. “You give me a headache.”
Levet flapped his wings. “The feeling is entirely mutual.”
“I…” The vampire’s words trailed away as his gaze moved toward the double glass doors at the front of the lobby. “Jayla.”
Without warning, a roar ripped from the male’s throat, and he raced across the marble floor, moving so fast he was a blur of darkness. Unaware of what was happening, the clusters of guests still sensed the violence throbbing in the frigid air, their screams echoing through the lobby as they fled in terror.
* * *
Jayla was lovesick.
There was no other explanation for the goofy smile that refused to leave her face, or the way she kept reaching out to touch Azrael as they walked through the doors of the Dreamscape Resort. As if she were afraid that he might be a figment of her fevered imagination and would disappear without warning. It would take a century or ten to accept that the glorious male was truly her mate.
It also explained why she failed to notice the very large vampire barreling across the lobby, headed directly for them.
It wasn’t until Azrael released a low growl and stepped in front of her that she recognized the danger. Well, that, and the screams as her guests scattered throughout the lobby.
“Chiron. Stop.” Moving with blinding speed, Jayla pushed past Azrael and held her hands out, determined to stop the charging vampire before he could inflict any damage. “What are you doing?”
With obvious reluctance, Chiron came to an abrupt halt, glaring at Azrael. “Is this the bastard who kidnapped you?”
“No.” Jayla grimaced, realizing she wasn’t being entirely honest. “Well…yes, but he’s my mate.”
Chiron’s eyes widened in shock. “Mate?”
She nodded. “Azrael.” She smiled as Azrael placed a protective arm around her shoulders. Glancing toward his grim expression, she wrapped her arm around his waist. Violence still throbbed in the air. One wrong move, and there would be bloodshed. “This is Chiron. My employer. And friend.” She waited for Azrael to offer a grudging nod before turning her head to meet Chiron’s frigid gaze. “What are you doing here?”
“You disappeared, so I came looking for you.”
“As did I.”
Jayla jerked in surprise as a tiny creature with oversized wings waddled around Chiron. At first, she thought it must be a mongrel fairy, then she caught sight of the gargoyle features and stunted horns.
“You must be Levet,” she murmured, trying to hide her smile. She’d heard enough rumors about the miniature gargoyle to recognize him.
Levet offered a sweeping bow. “Knight in Shining Armor, at your service.”
Chiron muttered something about chunks of granite and bottom of Victoria Harbour before giving a sharp shake of his head.
“What happened?” he asked Jayla.
Jayla’s felt her fangs lengthen. She’d been putting off the troubles waiting for her in Hong Kong to simply savor her new mate. Reluctantly, she accepted that it was time to face the devil.
“Emile,” she snapped. “The bitch set an ambush for me. If it hadn’t been for Azrael, I would be dead.”
Chiron was shaking his head before she finished speaking. “It wasn’t Emile.”
Jayla blinked in confusion. “You’re sure?”
“Positive.”
She didn’t doubt him. Chiron had obviously managed to peek into Emile’s mind to be so certain. “Then who?”
“That vampire,” the gargoyle abruptly interrupted, pointing toward a red-haired male who’d just entered the lobby to glance around in confusion at the stampede of humans. “He paid mercenaries to destroy you.”
Gideon.
Shock momentarily held Jayla frozen in place, then she sent a warning glare toward the two males next to her.
“He’s mine,” she growled, hurtling across the lobby before Gideon realized the danger. Grabbing him by the throat, Jayla slammed the slender male against the wall.
“Bastard,” she rasped, not sure if she was more hurt or infuriated by the male’s treachery.
Hazel eyes widened in horror before he belatedly attempted to cover his ass. “Jayla. Where have you been? I was so worried?—”
“Why?” she snarled, interrupting his lame attempt at innocence. “I saved you. If it hadn’t been for me, you would still be in the slave pens. And you betray me?”
The pretense dropped away to reveal the stark craving just below the surface. “Did you think I would be your pet employee forever?” Gideon sneered, his handsome face twisted into an ugly expression. “I have my own ambitions.”
“What ambitions?”
“To own a resort.” He spat the words like a curse.
Jayla shook her head, sickened to realize how easily this male had fooled her. Why hadn’t she sensed his greed? Or his willingness to destroy her to fulfill his goal?
“No one was keeping you here. You could have walked away if you wanted to start a business,” she snapped.
Gideon glanced over her shoulder at the vast, elegant lobby. “I wanted this one.”
Jayla furrowed her brow in confusion. “You thought Chiron would give it to you?”
“He intended to start a war between Emile and me,” Chiron clarified as he and Azrael strolled over to stand next to her.
“Why?”
“So the clan chief would ban us from Hong Kong.” Chiron sent Gideon a jaundiced glare. “Obviously, he assumed he could take over the resort once we were gone.”
“Coward,” she hissed in disgust. There was no worse insult among vampires.
Azrael lightly brushed his fingers down the curve of her spine. “Do you want him dead?”
Jayla considered. Killing the bastard would certainly solve her problems. But it wasn’t enough. She’d been an assassin for long enough to know there were many things worse than death.
“No. I want him to suffer.”
Chiron arched a brow. “Torture?”
She shook her head, a slow smile spreading across her face. “He can spend the rest of eternity scrubbing dishes and taking out the trash.” She released her grip on Gideon to lean against her mate. The feel of him strong and steady helped to banish the aching sense of betrayal. “While he envies our happiness.”
Gideon hissed, his pride revolted at the thought of being reduced to menial labor. Especially when he would be performing that labor for mere humans. “Just kill me.”
Chiron reached out to grab the male by the back of his neck, easily lifting him off the floor. “He can start now.”
Jayla watched as Chiron hauled the squirming vampire out of the lobby. She didn’t doubt that her master would take some time to personally punish Gideon, but for now, she didn’t want to think about the traitor.
Instead, she turned to wrap her arms around Azrael, laying her head against the center of his chest.
“It’s over.”
He dropped a kiss on top of her head. “I’m pleased to know you can still stick a knife in the heart when necessary, kiska ,” he teased, referring to Gideon’s horror at spending the rest of eternity with his hands stuck in a kitchen sink.
“You were showing a few of your mercenary skills yourself, Angel of Death,” she murmured, recalling his swift impulse to protect her from Chiron.
He wrapped her tightly in his arms as if he never intended to let her go. “Clearly, we were destined for one another.”
Jayla closed her eyes, absorbing the wild, masculine scent that filled her senses. “Clearly.”