Darkness Avenged (Guardians of Eternity) by Alexandra Ivy Page B

about his companion,” he rasped.
    Her lips twisted into a wry smile. The buzz of insects fell silent and a dozen small animals scuttled away in sharp fear at Santiago’s sour mood. How long had it been since she’d spent time with a man who was willing to stand up to her?
    Too long, if the strange sensations sizzling through her veins were anything to go by.
    It was one thing to feel a measure of admiration for Santiago after centuries of being surrounded by sycophants who rarely dared to question her decisions, let alone treat her as if he were her equal. And quite another to shiver in sizzling arousal.
    “I can’t because I truly don’t know,” she informed her companion, her voice coated in an extra layer of ice. There was no way she was going to allow this man to sense her growing vulnerability. He was a predator who would pounce on the first hint of weakness. “I’m merely a servant of the Oracles, not their confidante.”
    Santiago growled, but before he could express his smoldering frustration, there was the rustle of leaves above them and the pungent scent of granite.
    “Gargoyle,” Santiago instead muttered, stepping back as Levet floated down on his fairy wings to land on the path between them.
    The gargoyle stuck his tongue toward the male vampire. “I do have a name.”
    “I thought you were hunting,” Nefri intruded into the male sniping.
    Levet readily turned in her direction. “I was until I noticed the herd of people heading this way.”
    Santiago frowned. “At this hour?”
    “It could be another search party,” Nefri suggested.
    “More like a lynch mob,” Levet corrected, his tail twitching. “ Sacrebleu. They were shouting and waving their guns like they were overdosed on steroids.”
    A lynch mob? Nefri deliberately avoided Santiago’s sharp gaze, a bad feeling growing in the pit of her stomach at the gargoyle’s warning. Not because there was a group of people out there looking for trouble. Humans took a peculiar delight in stirring their passions to a fever pitch. She had a terrible premonition that this was more than just an overabundance of testosterone.
    “How far?” she asked.
    Levet pointed up the path. “Five miles and headed this way.”
    “We’ll cut through the swamp,” Santiago announced, taking instant command. “Once we’re clear of the town we can circle back and pick up my vehicle.”
    Nefri didn’t protest. She didn’t have any more desire than Santiago to run across a group of humans looking for blood, even if she was more accustomed to giving orders than taking them.
    “Tromp through the bogs? Ewww.” Levet wrinkled his snout . “I am no slimy lizard. I will join you on the other side.”
    Nefri reached out to lay a gentle hand on the gargoyle’s shoulder. “Take care, Levet.”
    “Merci, ma chérie.” He offered a low bow, a sparkle in his gray eyes. “You have my promise I will take the greatest care. And if you have need of me you only have to call my name.”
    She nodded. “I will.”
    With a flap of his wings, Levet was headed upward, dodging the overhanging branches with astonishing grace.
    “Thank the gods,” Santiago muttered. “That creature would try the patience of a saint.”
    “And you’re no saint,” she muttered, pointing out the obvious.
    “Not even close.” With a wicked grin he leaned forward and claimed her lips in a short, bone-melting kiss. Then, before she could slug him, he was turning to jog off the pathway, sliding his sword back into its sheath so he could pull out a large dagger and battle through the overgrown vegetation.
    Nefri stoically followed in his wake, pretending that his lethal kiss hadn’t inflamed the sensual hunger that was becoming more than a mere inconvenience. That her lips weren’t tingling with an excitement that she felt to the tips of her toes.
    Damn it all. Why this aggravating vampire?
    And why now?
    Shoving aside the questions that had no answers, Nefri focused her concentration on