God Save the Queen (The Immortal Empire) (20 page)

I would rather have stayed with him, but I sucked it up like a big girl and made the walk of shame to the table. My sister looked at me with such disbelief that I couldn’t help but chuckle. I sneaked a glance at Vex and caught him smiling. I suppose I could take some ribbing if it meant my brother and sister stopped thinking about Dede.

“I assume you’ve introduced yourselves,” I commented.

“Of course,” Avery retorted, expression slightly affronted. “His lordship helped me and Em carry in groceries this morning.”

“After which Avery immediately rang me,” Val added with a grin. “Told me to come straight away. I thought there were children – or at least puppies – in need of dire rescue.”

Avery pinkened as we all laughed. “Well, it’s not every day a marquess comes to call.” Or the alpha of the entire UK werewolf contingent. Vex just happened to be both.

“I should hope not,” Vex said with a grin, placing a mug of steaming coffee in front of me. “My pride would be deeply wounded.”

I raised a brow at the same time as I raised my mug. “We wouldn’t want that.”

He winked at me and I grinned. This wasn’t the first time I’d brought someone home, but it was certainly the most surreal. It felt … comfortable, and it should have been anything but.

Vex helped Val bring three large platters of food to the table. Along with the sausage and French toast there were fried tomatoes, bacon and scrambled eggs, potatoes and ham. A halvie diet needed a lot of protein in it, and this morning I found myself craving the savoury fried meats and creamy eggs. It wasn’t just a craving – I
needed
it.

Half-bloods have huge appetites, but my ravenous hunger was matched by Vex’s. I watched him fill his plate three times with egg-soaked fried bread and sausage, drenching both in sweet syrup. I think he drank an entire pot of coffee. And through it all he was polite and open towards my family. He asked Val about work – which I believed was genuine interest because he didn’t ask about the hospital break-in at all – then enquired as to how long Avery and Emma had been together and when they had met.

“Speaking of meetings,” Avery began with no attempt at subtlety as her wide gaze flitted between Vex and me. “How did you meet my sister, my lord?”

“Vex,” he corrected before shooting me a warm glance. “I first
noticed your sister some time ago, but hadn’t the nerve to approach her until last night.”

My stomach flipped over. He had to be joking, hadn’t he?

“Really?” Avery echoed my doubt, and were it not for Vex I would have pinched her.

The werewolf laughed – that deep bark I’d heard the night before. It rumbled through my entire body. “Really.”

There was something odd in his gaze. He seemed sincere, but there was a glimmer of regret as well. It disappeared in a flash, but I knew I hadn’t imagined it. I had no idea what had caused it either. To be honest, I didn’t want to think too hard about it. Why ruin a perfectly good afternoon with paranoia?

After breakfast, Emma insisted on doing the washing-up, and Vex announced that he had a meeting with the Queen later that day so had best be on his way. I walked him out.

I turned to face him, to tell him all the usual things one said when saying goodbye to someone they’d shagged, but I never got a chance to speak. Strong arms closed around me, lifting me clean off the floor so that my toes brushed against his shins. For a moment I thought he might devour me, and I was prepared to die with a smile on my face. He kissed me hard and good and hungry – and it didn’t feel like goodbye. It felt more like “to be continued”.

Good, because in addition to being the first man in my bed for quite some time, he was my only link to Ophelia outside of Bedlam.

“What was that for?” I asked when we came up for air.

He set me down, but didn’t let me go. “Because you feel like home, and I’d rather stay with you and your family than drink bottled blood out of Queen V’s china cups.” A slow smile curved his lips. “I suppose that sounds like romantic drivel from an old wolf.”

Throat tight, I shook my head. There was nothing old about him. “I think it’s the nicest thing I’ve ever heard.”

Vex stroked my cheek with his thumb. “I would like to see you again.”

I nodded. “My schedule’s open.” Bereavement leave tended to have that effect.

“Dinner tomorrow night?”

I was half disappointed he didn’t want to get together tonight and half exultant because tomorrow wasn’t that far away. “It’s a date.”

“I’ll ring you to make plans.” He kissed me again before slipping on a pair of dark glasses that would protect his sensitive eyes from the sun. Weres didn’t have the sun issues that vampires did, but they were still nocturnal creatures, weaker in the daylight.

The door clicked shut behind him. Not even ten seconds later, Avery, Val and Emma pounced on me. Who would have thought my love life would displace Dede’s “death” as topic of choice? That was fine by me; at least when I answered their questions about Vex I didn’t have to lie.

After the interrogation was over, I dressed and then went downstairs to the cellar, where Avery and I trained and worked out. Being stronger than humans was well and good, but as halvies we needed to keep our bodies and our skills honed. It was something I took very seriously as part of the Royal Guard, even if I was on forced leave.

Val was already there, beating the sand out of a punching bag with his bare fists.

“Doesn’t the Yard provide a gymnasium for you lot?” I asked.

He stopped punching long enough to glance at me. “I’ve been told to stay away from work for the remainder of my bereavement leave.”

“Ah.” His situation was the same as mine, and he didn’t like to be idle any more than I did. I suppose spending too much time in our heads was a family trait.

I held the bag steady for him, putting my own weight behind it to give him more exercise. “Val, there’s something I need to talk to you about. That girl who broke into Prince Albert—”

“Ophelia Blackwood, your sister, I know.”

“Well, yeah, but—”

“You saved her from a betty attack later that night. I saw the park surveillance footage. It’s all right, Xandy. You’re not guilty by association. It’s not like you and she have been hanging out, and even if you had been, it’s not as though she’d make you privy to her plans.”

“No.” But she had – sort of.

He swiped the back of his arm across his brow. “I know she’s one of MacLaughlin’s. The Yard’s already spoken to him, otherwise I might be suspicious of the two of you suddenly making a connection.”

“Suspicious how?” I didn’t sound
too
defensive.

“You know how the vamps and weres are – neither bunch trusts the other. MacLaughlin is the only one who ever dares challenge Her Majesty. Add that to the fact that he was one of the last people seen talking to Dede before her arrest and … well, if I hadn’t watched his interview myself, I’d wonder why he’d suddenly developed an interest in our family. If he had something to do with Dede’s death.”

I swallowed, my mouth suddenly very dry. “Albert’s fangs, Val. Way to destroy a girl’s ego.” I sounded caustic, but inside I was twitching. He’d outgunned even my own suspicions. Was Vex a traitor too? Why hadn’t he mentioned talking to Dede before she “died”?

What had I fallen into? I thought he could give me some info
on Fee. Thought maybe he intended to use me for the same. I hadn’t quite thought about the fact that there might be something darker behind his interest.

If I told Val what I knew, I could walk away from it all and let him take it to the Yard, but then I’d be brought in for questioning, as would Vex. Bedlam would be raided, and four people with whom I was connected would be arrested.

That wouldn’t look good for me, or the rest of my family. There were more people at stake here than just me and Dede. I had to do this the right way. I had to find out just what exactly was going on.

Val frowned. “Are you all right? I’m sorry, Xandy. You must think I’m a complete git. Of course MacLaughlin is with you because he wants to be with you.”

I forced a smile. “Just thinking about Dede. No worries. Enough talking. Let’s spar.”

Fighting with him was a fabulous focus. I had to concentrate on not getting my arse kicked, so there was no room for Dede or anything else – not even Vex.

Afterwards, sweaty and bruised, I hugged my brother and ran upstairs to shower. Things seemed so much clearer when I was clean. While I was getting dressed, my rotary rang. It was Mrs Jones, apologising for calling, but she’d had someone enquire about Dede’s flat, and would it be possible for me to come round and start tidying up? She’d gladly help me if I needed it. Since I had nothing else to do, I told her I’d be by in a bit, and for her not to worry, I could take care of it.

I disconnected with a shake of my head. Mrs Jones had always been friendly, but hadn’t she told me Dede had paid up until month’s end? Couldn’t wait to get the dead halvie’s stuff out and some new tenant in. Fucking humans.

I finished dressing in trousers, black shirt and grey corset, put my hair up, slipped on my high black boots and buckled them, and
then grabbed a black frock coat from the wardrobe. It was a good thing I liked black, else this mourning shit would make me feel like a bloody crow.

Dede had better appreciate me maintaining her thoughtless ruse. Why pretend to be dead? Why not be a traitor
and
openly alive? She said someone had tried to kill her, but I wasn’t sure I believed that any more than I believed her child was alive. The fact remained, however, that
she
believed both things with all her heart.

Before departing my room, I took the vial of blood from the pocket of the coat I’d worn the night before. It was still whole, the glass cool against my fingers. I made a fist around it; debated whether or not to toss it in the bin.

“Plague it.” I shoved the vial into my pocket. As an afterthought, I strapped on the Bulldog, using a holster that slung low on my hips and fastened round my thigh. I couldn’t wear the shoulder harness because of the tight fit of my coat. I felt a bit like one of those American gunslingers with the weapon so close to my fingers.

Downstairs was empty as I strode through the foyer to the door. I grabbed the keys to the Butler and a pair of dark goggles, and walked out into the late afternoon. The summer sun was high in the sky, warm and bright.

My first stop was the Prince Albert Hospital – the same place Fee had broken into. I needed to see my friend Simon. I didn’t trust my half-sister, but her advice about taking the blood to someone I trusted was sound. Simon was the only person I would trust with something like this.

“What have you got for me, gorgeous?” he asked when I walked into his domain of mass spectrometers, centrifuges and various other bits of equipment I couldn’t name. It was clean and discreet and that was all I cared about.

Simon was a tall, lanky halvie from up Birmingham way. Nerdishly cute, he had floppy brown hair that fell over his forehead and pretty blue eyes over which he wore stylish spectacles.

I offered him the vial of blood. “Can you do a work-up on this for me? All the bells and whistles.”

He took the vial and held it up to the light. “Anything for you, luvvie. Whose is it?”

“Mine,” I replied ignoring Fee’s command not to tell.

He shot me a quizzical look. “You all right, darling?”

“I’m fine. I think. I need this to be just between us, Simon. Seriously.”

He looked concerned, but thankfully didn’t press. “When do you need the results?”

“Soon as possible. There’s a triple espresso in it for you.”

“Now you’re just talking dirty. I don’t have much going on, I’ll make it my top priority.”

Relief put a grin on my face. “Thanks, Simon. I knew you’d come through.”

A smile tilted one side of his mouth, but his gaze retained a glimmer of worry. “Ring you when I have the results.”

I turned to go, then stopped. “What do you know about the records theft the other night?”

He shrugged. “Nothing. No one here is saying much about it. Were your records amongst the ones stolen too?”

I nodded. “Yours?”

“You know it, though not like mine have anything good in them. I reckon they were after one halvie in particular. Maybe two. It throws suspicion if they take a bunch of other random ones.”