The Parasol Protectorate Boxed Set (163 page)

Biffy only whined again. He was trying. He was reaching for that place deep inside that could force the shift,
that tingling pressure of bones re-forming. It wasn't working. He couldn't go either direction, couldn't return to wolf or human. He was trapped in the in-between of Anubis state.

“Oh, dear. Are you stuck?” asked Lyall.

Smart man
. Biffy nodded his shaggy head vigorously.

“Och, I've nae time for this! We must catch that blighter Floote.” Lady Kingair was at her limit. Clearly Biffy's predicament was merely an added insult to her evening.

She went up the stairs. Preparing, no doubt, to chase after Floote into the night. “Where would he go?” she shouted back at the two werewolves.

With a shrug, Lyall and Biffy followed.

The Beta said, “If he was still working for Sandy, and if he was operating under that agenda all along, we must assume that it is an antisupernatural agenda. Sandy promised me…” The Beta winced slightly at this, an old lie only now uncovered. “Never mind what he promised. If the plan all along was to expand the plague, then it may be that even I couldn't change his mind.”

Lady Kingair concurred. “I guess you weren't as alluring as you thought, Beta. So where would he go?”

Biffy came to stand close behind Lyall, placing a supportive hand on the man's shoulder. He wanted to reassure Lyall that he found him alluring, but he could only growl in annoyance.

Biffy knew what he would do were he in Floote's situation. Were he a mortal man with werewolves on his tail, there was only one truly safe place—the air. And Floote, loyal to the last, would try to get to Lady Maccon to explain his actions to her. To see that she was safe, as that,
too, was part of Alessandro Tarabotti's mandate. Biffy might have said all these things, but he had no proper mouth and his neck was part wolf as well, including, apparently the voice box.
Good Lord
, he thought,
what if I'm permanently stuck like this? I'll never be able to carry off a pointed collar again!
Then he realized with relief that Anubis was wolf form, at least in part, and wolf form would not survive the sunrise.
Only a few more hours, then
.

Lyall had reached the same conclusion as Biffy regarding Floote's probable course of action. “He'll head to the nearest dirigible.”

Lady Kingair dashed off.

Biffy whined and gestured with his wolf head at the stairs. The stairs that led to the second-story hallway that ended in a balcony that had a secret drawbridge to Lord Akeldama's house. If Floote wanted to take to the air quickly, he'd go for
Dandelion Fluff Upon a Spoon
. After all, he'd used Lord Akeldama's private dirigible before.

Lyall concurred, but he didn't try to stop Lady Kingair. He allowed her to rush off into the night, presumably toward the ticket stations of the larger public dirigibles at the green. She was not a woman accustomed to London and its extravagances. It had not even occurred to her that there might be a
private
dirigible nearby.

The Beta began making his way upstairs to cross over into the vampire's abode.

Biffy held back.

“Don't you want to see if you're correct? See if he did manage to steal Lord Akeldama's dirigible a second time?” Lyall goaded him gently.

Biffy gestured down at his naked body and furry head with one fine white hand.

Professor Lyall understood perfectly. “You're embarrassed?”

Biffy nodded.

“Don't be foolish. This is something to be proud of—very few werewolves boast Anubis form, not even all Alphas. And it's highly unusual in a pup so young as you. Generally, it takes a decade or more to manifest. This is brilliant.”

Biffy whined in a sarcastic manner.

“Don't be silly. It really is.”

Biffy gave a huffy bark that he hoped sounded like a snort of derision.

“Trust me, my dandy, this is a
good
thing. Now, do come along.”

With a sigh, Biffy did as ordered and followed his Beta across the small drawbridge and into his former master's house.

Only three years earlier, all would have been chaos at the sight of two naked men, one of them with a wolf head, wandering the halls of Lord Akeldama's domicile. Several of the drones, possibly Biffy included, might even have had the vapors.

It was not that Lord Akeldama and his boys objected to nudity; in fact, all were coolly in favor of it—in the boxing ring, for example, or the bedroom. But wandering the hallways underdressed, let alone undressed, was frowned upon unless cursed by extreme inebriation or emotional instability. And a werewolf was not to be tolerated in the house of a vampire except when socially mandated. All that had shifted when Lady Maccon installed herself in
Lord Akeldama's closet. For where Lady Maccon went, Lord Maccon was soon to follow, and that good gentleman had somewhat improved the general outlook of Lord Akeldama's household on the subject of nudity and wolves, particularly in combination.

It was universally held among the drones that Lord Maccon had a particularly fine physique, and there had been quite the scuffle over who would be allowed to dress him in the evenings. After Floote assumed that role, it became a trickster's challenge to ascertain who among the boys could arrange such little incidences as would cause the London Alpha to bluster out into the hallway in the altogether of an afternoon.

As a result, the entire Akeldama household was markedly tolerant of Lyall's and Biffy's unexpected appearance and absent attire, although they did give Biffy some odd looks. Many of them had never seen Anubis form. Biffy took great solace in the fact that, as his head was that of a wolf, none of them knew it was him. Until, of course, they ran smack dab into Lord Akeldama, coming out of his aethographor chamber as they were making their way up onto the roof.

The vampire was dressed in an outfit that most closely resembled the waters of some tropical island, varying shades of turquoise, teal, and blue, accessorized with pearls and white gold. His effeminate features were screwed up in concentration over some small scrap of paper on which was scribbled, no doubt, an aetheric message of grave political, social, or fashionable import.

Lord Akeldama took a long look at Professor Lyall's physique and then gave him a little nod of academic approval. Then he directed an even longer look at Biffy.

Finally he said, “Biffy, my
darling
boy, what
have
you done to your hair? Something new for the evening?”

Biffy inclined his wolf head, dreadfully mortified. Of course, there was no chance of Lord Akeldama needing to see his face to recognize him; the vampire had a long, and somewhat inconvenient, memory for body parts.

Lord Akeldama smiled ever so slightly, the hint of a fang peeking out one corner of his mouth. “Now, my dear Dolly, did
you
know this would happen? You are a fortunate werewolf as well as a fortune man, now, are you not? Anubis form could be the solution to all your problems given some patience and a few well-placed suggestions.”

Professor Lyall only inclined his head.

“But of course, you would have known
that
the moment he manifested.”

The Beta's expression did not alter.

Lord Akeldama smiled fully, his fangs sharp and bright and fierce, as pearly as the cravat pin about his neck. “I don't trust serendipity, Professor Lyall. I don't trust it at all.” No one missed the fact that the vampire was, for once, using someone's proper name.

Biffy's wolf head swayed back and forth between the combatants, wondering at all the unspoken undercurrents.

“I never underestimate the same man twice,” said Lord Akeldama, fiddling with his cravat pin with one hand while he surreptitiously tucked the bit of paper with the aethographic message away with the other.

“You give me too much credit, my lord, if you thought I could anticipate this.” Professor Lyall nodded at Biffy's altered state.

“Well, Biffy, what do you have to say on the subject?”
The vampire regarded his former drone, his expression friendly, if a little distant.

“He's stuck, my lord.” Lyall came to Biffy's rescue.

“Goodness, how unnerving.”

“Indeed. Imagine how Biffy must feel.”

“That, my dear Dolly, is beyond even
my
capacities. And now, how may I help you gentlemen? Do you require
garments
, perhaps?”

Professor Lyall rolled his eyes slightly. “Shortly. We were hoping if first we might ascertain the condition and state of your lordship's dirigible.”

“
Buffety
? I believe she's moored up top. Haven't sent her out in many a moon. No need with my dear Alexia right here, I suppose. Why?”

“We believe she might have been used for nefarious purposes.”

“Really? How wonderfully
salacious
! I can't believe I wasn't invited.”

Professor Lyall said nothing.

“Ah, are you perhaps here in your BUR capacity, Dolly, my pet?”

Professor Lyall knew better than to give Lord Akeldama any more information than strictly necessary.

“No? Pack business, then? Has my little
Buffety
something to do with that unfortunate incident concerning
the other Beta
?” The vampire tsked around his fangs. “So sad.”

With still no response from Professor Lyall and none possible from Biffy, the vampire waved an aqua-gloved hand magnanimously at the ladderlike staircase that led up onto his roof. “By all means.”

The three gentlemen climbed up to find that the
Dandelion
Fluff Upon a Spoon
was, indeed, no longer in residence. They could see it, some distance away, floating high in the aether stream heading in a southwesterly direction. Lyall and Biffy were unsurprised. Lord Akeldama pretended outrage, although he was surely warned there might be something amiss.

“Why, I do declare! How unsporting, to purloin a man's dirigible without asking! I suppose you two have a very good idea who borrowed my beauty?”

The werewolves exchanged looks.

“Floote.” Lyall no doubt figured Lord Akeldama would discover the truth soon enough.

“Ah, well, at least I know he'll take good care of it and return it in first-rate condition. Butlers are like that, you know? But where's he taken it? Not
too far
I trust—my little darling isn't made for long distances.”

“Probably to try to make an in-air transfer to one of the postal dirigibles.”

“Going after my darlingist of Alexias, is he? To Gyppie?”

“Most likely.”

“Well, well, well.”

“So you say.”

“She'll be cast adrift, poor thing. I had better alert the authorities, let them know she's gone missing, so as I'm not held responsible if she drifts into anything
important
. Unless you,
my dear Dolly
, being BUR might count as…”

The Beta shook his head.

“Ah, well, so I shall send Boots to the local constabulary. Our beautiful boys with the silver pins.”

Professor Lyall nodded. “That is probably a good plan. Although, I shouldn't think they need know who took it.
Not just yet. Right now all we have is coincidence and speculation.”

The vampire regarded Lyall up and down in a very considering sort of way. “Look at you, Dolly, controlling information like an old intelligencer. One would almost think you vampiric. And, of course,
my darling Alexia
wouldn't like it, not her butler with a police record.”

“Exactly. We must take into account Lady Maccon's feelings on the matter.”

“I suppose… Lady Kingair?” Lord Akeldama twiddled his fingers casually in the air.

The Beta only lowered his eyes.

“Indeed, werewolf business. Just so. Well, Dolly my love, I
do
wish your werewolf business hadn't absconded with
my dirigible
.”

“I do apologize about that, Lord Akeldama.”

“Well, never you mind. Nice to have something for my boys to do. London has been awfully quiet without Lady Maccon. And now I see the sun will be rising soon, if you gentlemen will excuse me?” The vampire made a little bow at Professor Lyall. “Beta,” and then to Biffy, pointedly, “
Alpha
.”

Biffy and Lyall stayed, naked, on the roof of Lord Akeldama's town house watching the sunrise. As the sun eased itself up over the horizon, Biffy found himself inching closer and closer to Lyall's slight frame, until they stood, shoulders touching. When the first rays peeked over the horizon, he knew Lyall could feel the shudder of change that wrenched him back from Anubis to fully human.

The sunlight felt harsh, causing the sensation of dry and stretched skin. It was a condition, Biffy had learned,
that was the price werewolves paid for being out during the day. But it was a relief to experience it once more, pulling at his nose and eyes. He reached up a tentative hand to feel, finding his own face instead of the wolf's.

“I do not want to be an Alpha,” was the first thing he said, testing out his vocal cords for functionality.

Lyall bumped closer against his shoulder. “No, the best ones never do.”

They continued to stand, not looking at one another, staring out over the awakening city, as though trying to see a small dirigible long since gone.

“Do you think he made it to the post?” Biffy asked at long last.

“It's Floote. Of course he made it.”

“Poor Lady Maccon, a butler who murders, a father who betrays, and a husband who wants to die.”

“Is that why you think Lord Maccon was so eager to visit Egypt?”

“Don't you? What man wants to go mad. It seems to me the God-Breaker Plague is an excellent solution to the problem of Alpha immortality.” Biffy was, of course, thinking of his own future now.

“An interesting way of putting it.”

“I cannot believe no werewolf has thought to use it so before.”