Chapter 1 #4
Ready to be done with the conversation, Kieran straightened and set his arms behind his back.
“Please give my congratulations to your sister on her happy nuptials or whatever the phrase.” He intended to leave it at that, but Miss Wilde reacted like he had just congratulated her sister’s untimely demise.
“What?”
Bother. He resisted the urge to glance at the clock. How long had he been talking, now? “We’re expected to wish others well in marital endeavors, no? I’ve assumed wrong before.” He shrugged.
“No, no, it’s… Cordelia isn’t married. Nothing was planned until months from now.”
“Strange. I read only just this morning that the pair eloped.” And I do not give a shit. Kindly, move along now.
“She… what?”
Gods above.
He shifted his shoulders, the only sign of his frustration.
“Elopement. The announcement was in the papers this morning. I don’t forget and I’m rarely wrong.
Though, I’m surprised you weren’t aware, as her sister.
Perhaps,” He looked at Lord Drake, praying that embarrassment ended this conversation.
“A long night has kept you from your family?”
“I…” She stumbled, falling into Lord Drake’s side.
Honestly.
“Thanks. North, was it?” Drake interjected, holding Miss Wilde upright.
“It’s been a pleasure, but I think I’d better see the lady home now.
” As the pair retreated, Kieran got the sense that he had just revealed something rather significant.
His interest lasted about as long as it took for them to hasten out the door.
“Mr. North? You’re to follow me please.” A stocky officer with green tinting the skin near his forehead and ears, held the gate used to keep civilians from entering the main work floor.
Finally.
Kieran followed the officer through the bullpen, deftly weaving through the chaotic thrum of activity as night shifted to morning.
They proceeded toward the holding cells, down a few short flights of stairs, until they were at ground level where a section of concrete blocks with barred doors lined the outer wall of the building.
There was open space in front of the cells and several desks along the far wall.
Inside one of the cells, sat Miss Blair, her full painted lips pouting and a hand on her chin, elbow balanced on her knee.
She looked bored. No signs of distress.
The stairs were at a slight angle to the cells.
She didn't seem to notice him as he descended.
He kept to the outer edge of the room, until he could no longer see inside the cells and hopefully not give away his presence until he got to the bottom of whatever had caused her distress.
The officer Kieran recognized from his bedchamber sat at one of the desks, scribbling away at a stack of papers.
“Officer Kent, I believe,” Kieran said, swooping in and startling the officer into fumbling the word he’d been writing.
“Goodness. Mr. North, I thought you changed your mind about coming in.” Kieran glanced at the clock. They must have arrived at least an hour ago, at this point.
“Just delayed,” he replied. “May I see the report?”
“Oh, that’s not really how we do thing—”
Kieran snatched the sheets already filled in.
Seraphina Blair. A human woman, which he had already guessed.
Thirty-four, though she appeared younger.
No mention of previous records. Seeing her surname written out, Kieran tried to place where he had heard it before as he returned the pages to the desk.
“Sera.” An officer with blonde hair stopped in front of Miss Blair’s cell. Though there was familiarity in the tone, it was more scolding than concerned. The Blonde Officer crossed her arms as Miss Blair moved to lean on the bars.
“Hey, Rachel.” Miss Blair had removed her wool coat, now that they were in warmer territory, to reveal a dress that suited her coloring perfectly.
A deep teal that at once contrasted her pale skin and complemented her dark hair and eyes.
Though she lacked a few layers to be fashionable, it was a suitable enough ensemble for a well-bred lady.
Yet her manners, posture, and speech all denoted an upbringing of a lower tier. The Fells, if he had to guess. Kieran sat at one of the empty desks, unnoticed for the moment. It was an odd dichotomy that he either went overlooked entirely or commanded the entire room.
“Kent,” Rachel barked, and Officer Kent hurried to her side at Miss Blair’s cell.
“Yes, sir?”
“Report.”
Officer Kent frowned, but handed over the pages he’d filled out so far. “I was just in the middle of—”
“I’ll take it from here, Wes, thanks,” said Rachel with finality.
“But—”
“You’re dismissed, Wes.” Officer Kent opened his mouth again, but Rachel silenced him with a look and he retreated. Rachel flipped through the pages, then pinched the bridge of her nose. “You broke into Kieran North’s home?”
Kieran couldn’t see Miss Blair from this angle, but he could hear her well enough. He waited, hoping that Rachel might get him an answer to her motives.
“That’s where they found me,” Miss Blair replied, voice strained.
“Why? What were you thinking? He’s a well-respected politician with a lot of influence. Gideon might not be able to help you if North decides to get involved.”
“I never asked for Gideon’s help,” Miss Blair protested.
Gideon must have been a mutual acquaintance, someone with power. The Captain of the Watchmen. That had to be the connection.
“I won’t be able to keep something like this from him.
He already knows you’re here. I told him to let me come in first so he could…
cool down.” Rachel had appeared indifferent, stern, but it was clear that she cared for Miss Blair.
Sisters? They didn’t look anything alike.
Rachel was taller, lean muscles clear from her rolled up sleeves and the tighter fit of her uniform.
Light complexion and hair, almost pale blue eyes. Perhaps it was a distant relation.
“Just let him in and let’s get the disappointment over with. Haven’t had a good Gideon Preaching Session in a while.”
Rachel flinched. “He’s not… disappointed.”
“Ashamed? Disgusted? I know he thinks I make shitty choices and I’m ruining my life.
” Kieran tried to recall his fleeting meeting with the Watchmen Captain a few years ago—who he was now starting to recall was named Blair—and he shared several traits with the woman in the cell.
Same dark hair and eyes in stark contrast with cream colored skin. A sibling, he would bet anything.
“He makes shitty choices every damn day, so if he says a word to you, I’ll set him straight,” Rachel assured.
Perhaps a sister-in-law then. The conversation hinted at a possible marital relationship between Rachel and Gideon. Although, last Kieran knew, the Captain was unattached. In fact, his skirt chasing was one of his more prevalent descriptors.
Either way, however, Kieran’s involvement in this charade could finally end. Family squabbles were not his concern and it was now clear she was in no real danger. He could now disengage from the plight of Miss Blair without guilt. Thank the gods.
He rose to his feet, drawing Rachel’s notice. She braced, taking a defensive stance as he moved around the desks.
“Who the hell are you?”
“The injured party,” Kieran replied, stepping forward until he was in front of Miss Blair’s cell once again. He cast what was meant to be an offhanded glance in her direction, but his gaze locked onto her. He stared. Numb and deaf to Rachel's questions or attempts to claim his attention.
A shadow loomed just behind Miss Blair, nearly on top of her. Feathered edges and nightmare black silhouetted her body. Kieran’s heart raced. Now, the situation had become altogether something else.
Death.
Miss Blair was marked by Death.
Well. Fuck.