"Who is Aksel Bredeh?" she asked at last, wondering what there was to the new mercenary that would motivate Nykyrian to help her. Could he be any worse than Pitala?
She shivered at the thought. Silence answered her question.
She glared at Nykyrian, awaiting a response. Before she could ask again, the doors opened on her floor.
Nykyrian stepped out and scanned the corridor.
Tempted to shove him and say boo, Kiara bet herself he'd jump twelve feet. Or shoot her, her mind cautioned. If he really were an ex-League Assassin, he was very dangerous if startled.
She reached her door and stopped. "This has been tam pered with," she whispered to Nykyrian, seeing a strange device hooked into her card slot.
She swallowed the panic surging through her body. Someone was inside her flat! She could hear them.
Cold fear washed over her.
Nykyrian pulled her behind him then knocked twice.
"Who is it?" a deep growling voice asked from inside.
"The Tourah Beast," Nykyrian answered sarcastically. "Open the damn door before I get shot in the hallway!''
"Geez, what a temper," the voice said as the door slid open to reveal a large Andarion male.
Kiara's heart slid into her stomach at the massive form. She had thought Nykyrian to be tall. This man stood a head taller. His long teeth flashed at her.
Was he considering her for dinner?
Nykyrian grabbed her arm and pulled her past the man.
Her eyes widened as she brushed up against the Andarion's chest. The crimson and white eyes sent a chill down her spine. No wonder Nykyrian wore dark glasses. Eyes like those were terrifying.
"Where's Rachol?" another voice drew her attention to her couch.
"On his way," Nykyrian responded.
Kiara stared at the human male reclining on her couch with his feet propped up on her table. His dark auburn hair, almost as long as Nykyrian's, concealed the right side of his face. He seemed completely comfortable in her home.
The sight angered her.
How dare they invade her privacy in such a manner. Her agitation increased when the Andarion returned to her favorite armchair, picked up her bag of friggles from the low table and began munching them!
Seizing the bag, she narrowed her eyes. "This is my home, not some free-house!"
The Andarion looked at Nykyrian, his eyes wide. "She's got spunk," he rasped with a dark laugh. "I bet her meat is equally as spicy."
His gaze returned to her. Kiara took a step back, clutching the bag to her chest.
"You might want to return the food to him," Nykyrian said from behind her. "It's unwise to starve an Andarion. If Hauk decided to nibble on you, there's not much we could do."
Hauk raked her with a measuring stare.
Her anger vanished. Handing the bag back to Hauk, she swallowed the lump in her throat. What had she gotten herself into? How could her father have turned her over to these people?
"They're only teasing you," the red headed man said with a bright smile. "I'm Darling Crewell." He stood and extended his hand to her.
Kiara shook his gloved hand. Something in Darling's manner reminded her of an aristocrat. He seemed easy enough to get along with, unlike the two Andarions.
"The glutton is Dancer Hauk," Darling said as he retook his seat.
"Dancer?" Kiara smiled, amused by the revelation,
"It means killer in Andarion," Hauk snapped.
Darling laughed, a deep throaty sound. "You wish! I believe Nykyrian told me it meant: of beautiful cheeks."
Hauk gave Nykyrian a glare that bordered on murder. Nykyrian shrugged, apparently unconcerned by the hostility. "Well, it does."
Kiara sighed, relieved by their play which took some of coldness out of them and the awkward nervousness out of her.
Darling smiled again. "I'm sorry if we overstepped our bounds. Being the only one here with Hauk, I encouraged him to scrounge for other sources of food."
At least Darling had manners. "It's all right," she assured him . "I'm still upset over what's happened."
Turning around, she faced Nykyrian. He leaned against her bar with his arm s folded over his chest. His head was angled toward Darling, but she was sure he was watching her. She could feel his eyes on her. If only he wasn't wearing those blasted glasses.
Did he ever remove them?
"I need to change," she said absently. "I suppose I don't need to tell the three of you to make yourselves comfortable."
Nykyrian smirked.
She really hated those glasses. She would love to be able to read his emotions and moods.
Kiara paused at the entrance to her hall and glanced back at the three men. She was uncomfortable about removing her clothes with strangers m illing about.
She looked at Nykyrian's stoic face.
"You don't have to worry about us," he said roughly, reading her thoughts. "Hauk isn't attracted to humans, Darling isn't attracted to women, and I'm . . ." Nykyrian paused.
What could he say? All too well, he remembered the sight of her in the skimpy nightgown. He wanted her more than anything.
Her eyes held the look of expectation. He steadied himself. At the moment, she thought him a hero who had saved her life. He wasn't. The best thing would be to make her hate him now instead of later.