Immortal Rogues - My Lord Eternity Part 5

Mr. Ryan regarded her somberly. "It appears that there are two possibilities. Either she was given the paper for some unknown purpose. Or..."

"What?"

"Or the paper was placed in her hand after she was murdered."

She dropped the note onto the floor, her fingers unwittingly rubbing against her skirts, as if to rid herself of the nasty sense of menace that tingled through her.

"Why? For what purpose?"

The large man grimaced. "That I cannot say."

"Dear heavens," she breathed, more disturbed than she wished to admit.

"I tell you this only because I believe you should take care, Miss Kingly. It might well be that your work among those less fortunate has made you a dangerous enemy."

With an effort she gathered her calm about her. She would not be panicked into abandoning those who depended upon her support. After all, she had been terrified when she had first taken this house so close to the stews. And even more terrified when she had first ventured into the streets at night. Whatever came along she would face squarely, not cowering behind her door.

"That is absurd," she said in crisp tones. "I do nothing more than offer hope to those who have none."

"There are always those who earn a profit from the misery of others," he pointed out with more than a hint of warning. "They would not appreciate your interference."

She could hardly argue the truth of his words. There were always people like Molly's husband. And those horrid men who sold children to brothels. She would not doubt that several cursed her name. Perhaps even desired to rid the streets of her presence.

But there were also countless others who viewed her as their rescuer from starvation or worse.

"Do not ask me to halt my efforts, Mr. Ryan," she said in low tones. "I will not."

He slowly smiled, as if expecting her staunch response. "I only ask you keep in mind that there is danger in what you do. And perhaps when you are upon the streets that you notice anything peculiar."

Jocelyn rose to her feet, offering a small nod. "Very well."

Shoving himself upright, the Runner allowed his inner resolve to chase away his air of jovial goodwill.

"Do not fear," he a.s.sured her in relentless tones. "We shall soon have this monster in Newgate."

She did not doubt for a moment that this man would be tireless in his search for the killer.

Unlike most, he did not sneer when he spoke of Molly, or dwell upon the fact she was a mere prost.i.tute. Instead, there was a grim determination etched into his countenance.

"I do hope so. He should be punished for what he did to poor Molly."

"He will. Until then, please take care."

"Yes, I will."

"Then I will bid you good day." With a bow the man turned to leave the room.

Jocelyn remained standing as she considered the unexpected visit. She was determined not to over-react to the announcement that Molly was clutching her name in her hand. There could be a dozen explanations. It would be foolish to plague herself with concerns that might very well be imaginary.

All the same, if she were perfectly honest with herself, she could not deny a renegade flare of relief that Mr. Valin had forced his way into her home. For all his rakish charm, she sensed that he would make a dangerous adversary.

And at least for the near future she would not be alone.

The hack pulled to a halt in the shadows of St. Giles. With care Lucien helped Miss Kingly to alight complete with a large basket she had insisted she bring with her. He had been rather surprised when she had made no protest at his determination to accompany her to the streets on this evening, and he could only wonder what had occurred with the Runner earlier in the day.

Obviously something had unnerved her enough to lower her pride to the point of welcoming his a.s.sistance. And while he was relieved not to endure a lengthy argument, he could not help but ponder what danger she faced.

Whatever it was, he would do well to be on his guard, he sternly a.s.sured himself, his gaze lingering on the delicate lines of her face. No matter how invincible she might consider herself, he knew that she could never be prepared for what hunted her now.

No mortal, no matter how brave or determined, could be prepared for a vampire.

As if sensing his concern but misunderstanding the cause, she regarded him with a lift of her brows.

"You are determined upon this?" she demanded.

He smiled as he firmly took her hand and placed it upon his arm. "Quite determined, my dove. I will be at your side each night you travel to the streets, and even pay for the privilege."

She gave a faint shrug, but she could not entirely disguise her relief. "'Tis your money."

"Indeed it is. And soon to be yours."

"Yes." She glanced down the darkened street. "We go down that way."

Lucien gave a nod, but before he could take a step, a familiar tingle raced down his spine. He stilled, searching through the darkness with his mind to locate the source of the malice that was nearly tangible in the air. It took a moment to locate the vampire in a nearby alley, and he reluctantly removed Miss Kingly's hand from his arm.

"A moment, my dear."

She glanced at him in surprise. "What is it?"

"Remain here. Do not stray."

"Mr. Valin, where are you going?" she demanded with a hint of impatience.

"To rid us of a pest." Removing the dagger from beneath his coat, he moved with a fluid stealth down the street and slipped into the alley. He con-fronted the silver mist with a frown.

"Reveal yourself, Amadeus."

With an eerie chuckle the mist swirled, forming into the shape of the nondescript vicar.

"Just keeping a guard on my property, Lucien. Neither of us would desire harm to come to the Medallion."

Lucien narrowed his gaze in distaste. "I intend to keep a close guard upon Miss Kingly. Your concern is unnecessary."

The vampire gave an impatient click of his tongue. "The female is meaningless. All that interests me is the power that she unwittingly holds. As long as she maintains possession of the Medallion, I shall be near."

It was a threat that Lucien did not doubt for a moment. Amadeus possessed a single-minded purpose that would make him relentless in his quest to gain command of the Medallion.

"It shall never come to you," he swore in low tones.

Again Amadeus chuckled, his expression mocking as he regarded Lucien.

"It will be mine within the month. There is nothing you can do to halt me."

Lucien clutched the dagger in his hand. "Do you wish to settle this now?"

"Now? That would hardly be logical," the vampire retorted. "The moment is not yet ripe to put my plans in motion."

Plans? Lucien experienced a flare of unease. He deeply disliked the knowledge that the cunning vampire was patiently plotting in the shadows. He was devious and utterly ruthless.

Worst of all, it appeared that he would not be easily swayed into giving up his desperate desire for power.

"I do not desire to destroy you, Amadeus," he said in dark tones, his reluctance unmistakable. "But I will if I must."

"You?" Amadeus stepped forward, his eyes glittering with cold amus.e.m.e.nt. "Within a few days you will be bored of your role as heroic knight and be seeking more enticing entertainments. You have never been worthy of being a true vampire."

The condemnation struck deeply. There was no denying that many among the vampires had considered him a plague rather than an equal among brothers. Even the Great Council had chastised him for his frivolous nature and lack of responsibility.

And perhaps, deep inside there was a faint doubt that he was equal to the great task laid upon him. A task that might very well have been given to a far more worthy vampire.

He would not, however, reveal any weakness to Amadeus.

"I will not fail," he pledged softly. "I will not."

"Of course you will." Amadeus mocked. "It is as inevitable as my undoubted success. I always win, my poor boy. You would be wise to stay out of my path."

The air around the vampire suddenly s.h.i.+mmered, and in a blink of the eye Amadeus had changed into a large black dog. With one powerful vault he was past Lucien and bounding down the street.

With a curse, Lucien turned to follow, but even as he left the alley, the slender form of Miss Kingly was appearing from the shadows.

"Mr. Valin."

He grimaced with impatience, knowing he could not abandon this maiden to pursue the vampire. There were more dangers than Amadeus in the dark streets.

Calming his fiery desire to discover precisely what the renegade was plotting, Lucien regarded the pale face with a lift of his brow.

"I thought I told you to stay put."

Her pride was instantly ruffled by his stern words. "I do not take orders from you, Mr.

Valin."

His irritation was swift to fade at her stiff defiance, and a smile curved his lips as he held out his arm. "So I see. Shall we go?"

There was a moment's pause before she at last laid her fingers upon his arm, although she made no move to continue down the street.

"What were you doing?"

Lucien grimaced, still able to feel the faint choking sense of malevolence. "Having a word with an old friend."

"A friend." Her eyes abruptly narrowed. "In this neighborhood?"

He abruptly laughed as he realized the direction of her thoughts. "Stop glaring at me in such sour disapproval. My friend was not a poor lady from the local brothel. It was an acquaintance from my homeland."

A faint color touched her cheeks at the realization she had leapt to conclusions, but her gaze remained steady. "Where is your homeland?"

Lucien shrugged. "At the moment it is in the garret of your house."

"That is not what I meant."

"No?"

"No."

Although he was uncertain that he could keep his secrets forever, Lucien was not about to confess to truth until he had proven to this maiden she could trust him.

"I believe we should be about our task. The night is swiftly pa.s.sing."

She frowned into his impa.s.sive countenance. "What are you hiding?"

"All things in their time, my dear. For now I think we should concentrate upon what we set out to do this evening."

Perhaps sensing he was not about to satisfy her curiosity at the moment, she gave him a last probing glare before reluctantly nodding her head.

"As you say. It is this way."

Allowing her to lead the way down the street, Lucien kept a watchful eye upon the various drunks and ruffians that tumbled from the local gin houses. More than one allowed their gazes to linger with hunger upon the beautiful maiden at his side, but one glance into his set countenance was enough to convince them to move along to less dangerous game.

He was so intent upon his vigilant guard that he nearly stumbled over Miss Kingly when she came to an abrupt halt before a tumble down building.

"An empty warehouse?" he demanded in puzzlement.

"It is not empty." She headed toward a narrow door. "Come, but be on your guard."

He smiled ruefully at her warning. "I am always on my guard, my dove."

Coming to the door, Miss Kingly knocked sharply upon the splintering wood. From within, a m.u.f.fled voice could be heard.

"Who pa.s.ses?"

"It is Miss Kingly."

There was a moment of silence. "Do you know the pa.s.sword?"

"Thomas," Miss Kingly retorted in stern tones.

"Sorry, that ain't be it."

"Thomas, open this door at once."