Chapter 11 Zaria
ZARIA
The bedroom was, by far, the nicest Zaria had ever stayed in.
In fact, she felt wrong here. Out of place.
As if someone might burst in at any moment, drag their gaze over her meager belongings, and tell her to get out before they called the coppers.
She found it difficult to imagine Ward here, fetching his clothes from a similar mahogany wardrobe or sleeping in a large canopied bed.
She didn’t know what to do with the gilded accents and embroidered pillows, or how to navigate the copper plumbing in the adjacent bathing room.
It was lovely, and she resented herself for the shred of glee she couldn’t quite ignore.
After all, the circumstances were less than ideal, and Kane would be only a few rooms away.
Zaria hoped he’d sent Jules home, as promised.
There was no way for her to be certain, but she couldn’t imagine a reason for Kane to keep her friend here.
By all accounts, Kane had won. The plot to kidnap Jules had upset Zaria just as much as he’d hoped, and now she was trapped here beneath his roof, subject to his every whim.
As the hours slid past, however, she began to wonder if Kane didn’t have as much need for her as he’d implied.
She kept her ears peeled for the approach of footsteps in the hallway, and although she heard someone pass by her door a few times, nobody entered or even knocked.
Still, she was on edge as she sat at the desk by the wall opposite the bed, picking at her nails until beads of blood formed at the cuticles.
Thoughts of Vaughan’s threat and questions about her mother spun around her mind and coalesced into nervous energy at her core.
She needed to find a way to get back into Kane’s office.
It only made sense that the ledger would be there, especially if Kane was attempting to run the crew the same way Ward had.
The problem, of course, was that the manor was full of dangerous crew members.
If Kane was to be believed, there might even be one outside her door right now.
They wouldn’t hesitate to report her if they caught her snooping, and she hadn’t yet forgotten Kane’s warning.
A week ago, she might not have believed him if he’d threatened to destroy all happiness in her life. But this was now. And seeing the look on Kane’s face in his office, Zaria didn’t doubt that he would do exactly as he’d promised, should it come to that.
Dusk had begun to swallow the light outside her window when a knock sounded on the door.
She jolted upright, neck and spine protesting.
At some point she must have fallen asleep hunched over the desk, no doubt exhausted after sleeping so poorly the night before.
The knock came again, this time more insistent, and she blinked a few times to focus her vision. “I’m coming.”
There was no need for her to have bothered—the next moment, the door swung open, revealing a boy who was decidedly not Kane. It threw Zaria off, and she paused where she stood, frowning. “Why bother knocking if you were just going to let yourself in?”
The boy frowned right back. He was tall, lean, and dressed all in black, his sleeves rolled up enough that she could see the arrow tattoo on his forearm.
His skin was a light brown, his dark hair short and curly.
She had the fleeting, absurd thought that he was far too handsome to do whatever it was he did for the kingpins both present and former.
“I wasn’t knocking to request permission.
I was knocking to warn you that I was entering. ”
Zaria snorted. “Thanks for the consideration.”
He either didn’t pick up on her sarcasm or chose to ignore it. “Durante says you’re to accompany us on a job.”
“What?”
“Durante says—”
“I heard you perfectly well,” she clipped, hating the way he spoke of Kane with clear reverence. “Why does he need me?”
The boy shrugged. “It’s not my place to ask, nor is it yours.”
Zaria peered past him into the hall, noting that he appeared to be the only crew member around. He must have been the one assigned to guard her door, then. Already she suspected they weren’t going to get along. “What’s the job?”
“Don’t know yet.”
“Do you know anything?”
His brown eyes narrowed. “Are you always this impertinent?”
There was no use lying. “Yes.”
“Just put on your coat and boots, would you? I’ll go mad if I spend another moment indoors.”
A few minutes later, Zaria was following the boy out into the twilight, her coat buttoned all the way up to her chin.
It was a cool evening, and whatever they were about to do, she hoped it wouldn’t take long.
A second boy waited for them in the street—this one equally large but with a shaved head, broader shoulders, and light complexion.
“Elijah,” the newcomer said with easy familiarity, mouth tilting up in a shit-eating grin. “Got to bring your charge along, huh?”
“Durante specifically demanded it” was Elijah’s gruff reply.
He didn’t appear happy about the arrangement.
“Said I can only leave the manor if she comes along. He doesn’t want her unattended, but he doesn’t trust anyone else to take over, either.
” He cast a sidelong glance at Zaria, who resisted the urge to remind him that she could hear their conversation.
“Not sure why. You can’t be that dangerous. ”
The second boy only grinned wider, offering his hand to Zaria. “Pleased to make your acquaintance. I’m Adam Cromwell.”
She stared at his hand until he let it drop. “Can we get this over with? And for the record, nobody’s monitoring me because I’m dangerous. Kane is just afraid I’ll bolt the moment I’m left unattended.”
“Will you?” Adam asked, eyebrow raised.
“No.” How many times was she going to have to repeat herself ? “But try telling him that.”
Adam shot a questioning look at Elijah, who only shrugged. If she hadn’t been so irritated, Zaria might have laughed. She’d met him all of ten minutes ago, and already he was acting as if he’d been forced to endure her for hours.
“Where are we going?” she said as they set off down the darkening street, trying not to betray her trepidation.
Elijah addressed her over his shoulder. “We’re meeting Durante by Mansion House. And don’t ask me why, because I still don’t know.”
A jolt of panic shot through her. Mansion House was the Lord Mayor’s residence, as well as a known venue for banquets and other such elegant functions.
That wasn’t what worried Zaria, however—the location was well over an hour’s walk, and would require that they pass through Seven Dials.
She knew the chances of running into one of Vaughan’s people were slim, but they were certainly higher than if she stayed out of the area.
“Maybe you ought to leave me behind. Mansion House is quite a ways, and I’m terribly tired—”
“We’re not walking,” Adam said, pointing.
Indeed, there was a stagecoach waiting for them at the corner, a dark silhouette against the otherwise abandoned street.
It looked out of place here, surrounded by industrial buildings and within sight of the river.
Zaria climbed in at Elijah’s behest when they reached it, trying not to think about the last time she’d been inside a stagecoach.
The driver didn’t turn around or speak as they entered—not even to offer a greeting.
Readjusting her skirts around her, Zaria cast the man a suspicious look. “Is he a crew member as well?” she muttered under her breath.
“No.” Elijah grimaced as the stagecoach lurched into motion and sent him slamming against Adam’s shoulder.
Rather than move away, however, he leaned against the other boy, who didn’t appear to mind.
“Just someone on the payroll. You’ll find a kingpin has quite a few associates who aren’t necessarily crew members. ”
“Like who?” Zaria pressed, thinking of her mother. Could she be an associate of Vaughan’s, perhaps, rather than a proper member? For some reason, the former was easier to swallow.
“Why do you care?”
“I’m part of this now. Shouldn’t I know these kinds of things?”
Adam’s expression was open, his torso tilted forward as if he were prepared to answer Zaria’s question, but Elijah gave a tight shake of his head.
“You only need to know what you need to know. Durante was very clear about that. Besides, you’re not an official member—he was very clear about that, too. ”
She crossed her arms. “If I’m not officially in the crew, then why am I being forced to come along on jobs?”
“You already know the answer,” Elijah said coolly. “Adam, for God’s sake, don’t tell her anything.”
Adam leaned back, shutting his mouth with an apologetic shrug. Obviously Elijah was the cleverer of the two—Zaria would have to see what she could do about getting her guard switched. If she could only get Adam alone, he could prove very useful indeed.
Elijah watched her with narrowed eyes, almost as though he could see what she was thinking. It was unnerving. Zaria grudgingly understood why Kane trusted him.
As the uneven motion and chk-a-chk sound of the stagecoach wheels ceased, she spotted St. Paul’s Cathedral through the window, visible in the distance.
They had already passed Seven Dials, then, which meant they had to be near Mansion House.
The realization brought relief, quickly overshadowed by unease.
When Zaria thought of jobs one might do on behalf of a kingpin, they usually took place in a slum or down by the docks.
It wasn’t that she wanted to witness Elijah and Adam shaking someone down in the city’s poorer parts, but at least she would’ve been familiar with the location.