27. Through London
THROUGH LONDON
Alex
The flavour of the few drops of Irene’s blood lingered on my tongue after I’d tasted it.
I’d spent a restless night, thinking about her parted lips, flushed cheeks, and soft breathing while I’d healed her cut.
Healing her had been an unplanned decision, which I almost regretted.
She’d had no idea the healing would have been so arousing.
And I’d had no idea how healing her would affect me.
I couldn’t hold her hand without being sick, but I made her moan with my vampire powers.
My butler tossed me nervous glances as I waited for her in the entrance hall, pacing. I’d been selfish with Irene. My desire to touch her had been so strong that I hadn’t hesitated to offer my help, but I hadn’t considered the consequences for her.
I’d also hoped she would trust me after what we’d shared. Or maybe I was the only one in turmoil after the healing. Maybe she had already forgotten about yesterday.
My train of thought derailed when Irene came down the stairs. She looked stunning in a lilac-blue gown with a matching hat and a white underskirt; the fabric reminded me of sea foam.
Her cheeks flushed when our gazes met.
Perhaps she hadn’t forgotten.
My mouth grew dry, and being a vampire had nothing to do with that. “You look lovely.”
She brightened. “Myrtha has an extraordinary wardrobe.”
“We shall arrange one for you.”
Her radiance dimmed. “After we’re certain I’m not going to fade.”
“It won’t ever happen.” Determination steeled my voice.
The butler bowed as we left the house. Thick clouds shielded the sun, for which I was grateful. I didn’t want Irene to witness my discomfort in the sunlight.
I opened the carriage door for her, and she paused, a foot on the step, glancing at my hand before moving on. I didn’t offer her my hand. I wanted to, but the thought made me gag, and throwing up in front of her wasn’t my idea of impressing her.
She sat in front of me in a froth of lilac-blue fabric, looking like a mermaid. Her wili power added a translucent quality to her porcelain skin, absolutely mesmerising. Myrtha’s skin was the same, but the effect on Irene was like a kick in the bollocks. In a very good way…if such a thing existed.
I rubbed my forehead, struggling to make sense of my thoughts. Two minutes with her and my brain went barmy.
She shifted, and I had to move as well, not to touch her legs.
I cleared my throat. “We’ll visit one of my informants first.”
“Who?”
“Mrs. Talbot. Clever sleuth. She’s a low-power witch, married to a policeman.”
The carriage jerked, and she moved again, inching closer to me. I slid onto the seat to find myself cornered. The familiar choking sensation rose in my chest. It didn’t matter that Irene was the one cornering me. The fear of her pressing against me overwhelmed my own desire.
“You don’t want to touch me, do you? Not even by accident.” She sat at the other end, giving me more space.
“It’s complicated.”
“Yesterday…” As she blushed, the rich, flowery scent of her blood thickened, driving me mad.
“I shouldn’t have done that. You had no idea what would happen.”
Judging by how she stiffened, I’d said something wrong.
“I don’t regret it, but I thought that after that, you would have touched me.” She focused on her hands in her lap. “Are you truly afraid you’ll hurt me if you touch me?”
Letting her believe I couldn’t keep my vampire urges under control pained me intimately. The choice was between her believing I was wild and dangerous or that I was a complete idiot.
“I’m not a rogue. My thirst is under control.”
“Then what? You said you would lose control if you touched me.”
“Can we discuss that another time?”
I wasn’t proud of my answer, but I wanted to remain focused on keeping her safe in the city, and there was a difference between telling the truth and exposing myself completely.
She lowered her gaze, and the day became less bright. “I understand.”
The sadness in her words was a stab to my unbeating heart.
“What?”
She swallowed hard. “Sean didn’t… He beat me viciously, but he didn’t…you know. Are you disgusted with me because of what happened to me or because I’m a wili?”
“I’m not disgusted!” The carriage jolted as my power burst out with a strength that was surprising even to me.
She raised her gaze, half-shocked, half-terrified. Not exactly how I wanted her to look at me.
“I could never be disgusted with you. It’s important you believe me.” I leant back, realising that I’d edged too close to her. “And if he’d forced himself on you, my opinion of you wouldn’t change. I’m not one of the toffs of your world.”
She tensed. “What do you mean?”
That had come out patronising. “Society has expectations I don’t have. Purity means something else to me. It means kindness and compassion, and you have plenty of both.”
She found her hands suddenly fascinating. “That means a lot to me.”
“I reserve my disgust for Sean. You have nothing to be ashamed of.”
She raised a shoulder. “I wonder if I fought him hard enough.”
“You did. He was stronger than you and used to violence.”
She remained silent.
“Irene, look at me.”
She obliged, but a shiver ran through her.
“You did nothing wrong.” How I wished to hold her.
She didn’t believe me, if her sad expression was any indication. “Then why do you avoid touching me?”
She wouldn’t use my weakness against me, but the reason I was reluctant to tell her the truth was a matter of shame rather than worry.
I didn’t practise what I preached.
“It can’t be because you’re the duke.” As the clouds parted, a beam of sunlight lit her golden hair while I remained in the shadows.
I flexed my fingers, stretching the leather of the gloves. She followed the gesture.
“I don’t like touching people, nor do I like being touched.” Each word cost an ounce of pain.
Darius knew my story because he’d been with me from the beginning. He understood. I hadn’t seen Irene in years, and I wasn’t ready to bare myself.
“Why?” Compassion, more than curiosity, rang out in her voice. “Is it because of your transformation?”
“It has to do with it.” I ignored the whisper inside my head calling me a coward. “Only Darius knows. That’s why I don’t touch you. I gather you enjoyed what happened yesterday despite my coldness.”
She looked out of the window. Her heart changed rhythm, turning frantic.
“What is it?” I asked.
“I shouldn’t have enjoyed it. It was shameful of me.”
“It wasn’t. Instead, I should be ashamed for not having prepared you well enough.”
Her flush deepened. “I was raised in a certain way, and we aren’t even betrothed.” A high-pitched laugh came out of her. “So silly of me to say that.”
I opened my mouth to tell her she shouldn’t care about that, but she cut me off with a dismissive wave.
“Don’t say anything. Forget I said that. My life as a lady is truly gone.” She heaved a sigh.
She didn’t fool me. She was hurting more deeply than she admitted.
“You’re still a lady.” I touched the ray of sunlight shining on her hand.
The only things I had to offer were my strength and desire for vengeance, but I would take thousands of freezing baths if they could help me touch her.
The noises from the street became louder when we drove through London.
Vendors shouting the prices of their goods, people in a hurry, and yelling hawkers crammed the pavement, and my old thief habit pushed me to search the crowd for an easy target.
Instead, my vampire urge made me notice fast heartbeats, strong blood, and pulsating veins.
When she turned her head towards the window, a thick vein appeared underneath her perfect skin, and the temptation to sink my teeth into her flesh became almost overwhelming. So much for helping her.
Irene’s scent hadn’t changed after her transformation. If anything, her blood smelt stronger and richer, teasing me.
“Everything is the same.” She broke through my dark musings. “Yet it’s different.”
“Death doesn’t change a person’s heart. Being a wili doesn’t change you.”
She gifted me a beautiful smile. “And I’m glad my ability to see auras isn’t gone.”
“Your ability will make it easier for you to identify evil men.”
She returned her attention to me. “I’m not sure if I can definitely tell someone is evil. I can detect a lie or evil intentions, but that’s not the same. I didn’t realise how evil Sean was.”
“Try to study an aura longer and dig deeper. Reach the inner layers under the superficial, temporary emotions. You should catch the essence of the person’s soul itself. That’s why someone like you is called a soul searcher.”
“I’ve never done it, but I’ll try.” She had that serious expression when she was deep in thought. “Am I officially dead?”
“Yes. In the fire.” In a way, it was true. “Myrtha has her ways to make a future wili disappear from the world.”
“I guess it’s better this way.”
The carriage stopped at the kerb, and I opened the door, going out first. She came out without expecting my help.
“Concentrate on someone. That woman, for example.” I nodded towards the woman selling apples from her stall. “Stare at her aura as if you want to blur your vision.”
She frowned as she concentrated. As the thief I was, I stole the beauty of her profile, of the soft curve of her cheek, and of her pretty nose. The hat cast shadows on her face, adding details I hadn’t noticed before, like how her upper lip curved up or how her chin was slightly pointed.
“I see the usual emotions.” She rolled her bottom lip between her teeth. “I see worry and tiredness, but I don’t know if she is a good or bad person. I caught a glimpse of something else, but it lasted a moment.”
“It’s still impressive. You’ve always been compassionate and sympathetic. Understanding others comes easily to you.”
Her smile vanished. “If I were so good at understanding others, I would have realised Sean was a thug. Instead, he deceived me easily, and Papa died. Yes, I must learn to read auras more deeply.”
“Some people are good at hiding their emotions.”
“I don’t want to be gullible.”
“You aren’t gullible. Unless you have a trace of evil within you, you can’t understand evil in others.”
Making my way through the busy pavement was a lesson in patience and control. I forced myself not to flinch every time someone brushed too close to me, but my abdominal muscles contracted painfully, and an involuntary quiver coursed through me.
“Move on the left.” She pointed at the wall. “I’ll walk next to you and shield you from the people on the other side.”
I sucked in a breath in surprise. She was the first person who wanted to protect me. Darius cared about me, but Irene’s simple solution to make me comfortable awakened something in me I’d thought had died with my body.
“Thank you.” I sounded more gruff than I meant.
With the wall on my left and Irene on my right, the tension pressing to my chest eased. I was the strongest—and currently the only—vampire in town. But Irene assumed I needed protection.
“Mrs. Talbot’s house.” I stared at the modest three-storey townhouse with red-brick walls and small bay windows. Nothing impressive, but the clean steps, orange curtains, and pots of geraniums made me think a happy family lived there.
Mrs. Talbot opened the door. Her brown hair was tied in a low bun, and her apron had flour sprinkled on it. “Ravenhill.” She nodded to Irene. “Miss.”
“What news?” I handed her an envelope with a few hundred pounds.
She slipped it into her pocket. “Mr. Sean Lewis vanished. After he emptied Lord Mansel’s safe, all his traces disappeared.”
“His office?” I rubbed my chest as the bond with Irene became taut. She must be upset, thinking about Sean.
Mrs. Talbot shrugged. “Empty. He vanished without paying the bills, and apparently the office was destroyed by a fire. The owner died in it. I’m sorry I didn’t find more.”
Irene’s shoulders stooped. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” Mrs. Talbot said.
A child’s voice came from the house. “Mama? The cake is bubbling!”
She flashed a timid smile. “I have to go. Good day.” She quickly got back inside.
“We expected Sean to disappear, didn’t we?” I went down the stairs next to Irene.
“That means I have nothing to go on. No name, no address, and no clues.”
The second ride in the carriage was easier for me because I was getting used to her presence, but more difficult for her. Tears glistened in her eyes, and she clenched her fists in her lap.
“We’ll find him.” Although I hadn’t found Riley, so I wasn’t that hopeful in finding Sean.
She wiped her cheeks quickly and squared her shoulders. “I’m sure we will.”
At least she trusted me with this.