The Taming of the Thief (35 page)

 
   
“She is not descended from any line I know.
Her mother was married to the Earl of Collingsworth.”

 
   
“He must not have been her birth father.”

 
   
The look of comprehension slid over Gray's
face.
“Of course.
Only the oldest is his, the son. The
daughters were said to have different fathers, all four.”

 
   
“Yes, and the youngest, Cordelia, is treated
as an outcast by the others.”

 
   
Gray sneered. “That brother of hers is a
bastard. Owes everyone in town, which is why he isn't here.”

 
   
“You mean she is in town alone?”

 
   
Gray crossed his arms over his chest and
frowned. “Indeed. I think she stays in the family townhouse, but with little
staff. Truthfully, I have no idea how she affords it. Her father...Collingsworth
left her barely anything to live on from what I heard.”

 
   
“And there is no rumor of impropriety. She
has no protector?”

 
   
“Not that I know of.
And I assure you, with the notorious Lady Fionna as her mother, if there was a
hint of scandal, it would be all over the ton.”

 
   
Nico shoved that aside and moved back the
subject on hand. “Regardless, she is a Carrier.”

 
   
“Again, I point out that my family has kept
track of all the noble families. She isn’t on that list and neither is Lady
Fionna.”

 
   
 
Irritation turned Nico’s voice sharp. “Think.
When the church attacked us during the Inquisition, many families hid. We
scattered to the winds, and I am positive we have yet to find everyone. There
are probably several dozen Carriers in the ton and they have no idea…why would
they unless they have mated with a Born? “

 
   
He had known about Lady Cordelia for days.
Something about their first meeting, the way his body had reacted, had told him
she was not just a simple bluestocking. He had immediately responded to her,
despite the fact she was not his type of woman. He usually liked females tall,
lithe and definitely experienced. Cordelia had none of these attributes, but
she was a Carrier. So he was predisposed to respond to her.

 
   
Though in truth, he had never reacted even
to another Carrier so strongly.

 
   
“You may be right,” Gray surmised.

 
   
“I am. It’s easy to scent a Carrier. It also
explains why Hurst is after her.”

 
   
The young duke crossed his arms over his
chest. “Hurst is not one of us.”

 
   
“Indeed. He's
Made
for sure.”

 
   
With satisfaction, Nico watched Gray's eyes
widen in alarm. It was the first Made vampire to hit the ton in recent times.
“Bloody hell.”

 
   
“Precisely.
He has
shown little to no interest in Lady Cordelia until recently. We need to find
out where he was before his fascination arose. If he has not left town...”

 
   
He let his words trail off letting Gray draw
his own conclusions.
“And a nobleman at that.
This is
not a good development.”

 
   
“No. I need you to find out where he was,
discover any of the places he frequents.
Who he’s spent time
with.
We also might want to put a man on him.”

 
   
“Do you think we need to warn the other
noble houses?”

 
   
Nico snorted. The other vampire families
were notoriously stubborn. “Would it do any good? They refuse to believe there
is a problem. My father is the only patriarch who is worried. No one else but
the three of us seems to understand the gravity of the situation.”  He
thought about Lady Cordelia and her role in everything. “I say that Hurst's attention
started just over a fortnight ago. Something must have happened then. He does
not appear to have gone completely into the Blood Lust, but there is a good
chance he is not far from sinking there.”

 
   
“How do you know he isn't already there?”

 
   
Sometimes Nico forgot that Gray was too
young to have seen Made vampires and their terrible descent into murderous
madness. “If he had, you would have seen more than just a slight altercation
when I asked Lady Cordelia to dance. It is very likely the bastard would've challenged
me on the spot—possibly even attacked me.”

 
   
Shock crossed Gray’s face.
“Truly?
That would have been a sight.”

 
   
Nico ground his teeth again, but this time
not to keep his teeth hidden. Gray was a good sort, but he was young,
especially for a vampire. He was not around for the last purging, and he did
not know just how bad this mess would end up.

 
   
“He probably doesn't know I am a Born, has
no idea what is going on. His body is telling him to pursue her. And since she
has no protection, such as your sisters and others in the ton, he knows she
would be easier to prey upon.”

 
   
“I'll get a man on him, and I'll talk to
father about his connections, where he has been before. I hope this doesn't end
up like that bit of business you had to handle up north.”

 
   
With that, Gray left Nico alone with his
dark thoughts.

 
   
There would be no way out of it; Hurst would
have to die, but not before they got some information out of the bastard. The
one he had to kill three weeks ago had been too far gone to question, but Hurst
seemed to still be functioning surprisingly well…but Nico didn’t expect that to
last. If they could grab the viscount off the street, they might be able to
persuade him to talk. He'd make plans tonight with Malik. Time was precious
when a vampire had been
Made
. If they were not handled
properly, they would turn into a craven beast searching out the nearest Carrier
to consume. If the woman didn't die, she would wish she had.

 
   
 
Now
Hurst had apparently set his sights on Lady Cordelia. And that bothered Nico.
Exceedingly.

 
   
With a sigh, he straightened away from the
desk. His body was still humming with anticipation of a joining. While he could
not satisfy the mating call Lady Cordelia had nearly wrested from him, he could
find a woman to slake his lust.

 
   
He walked to the door but it blew open,
bringing Lady Cordelia with it. His body responded immediately. The normally
perfectly coiffed curls that dangled over her ears were in disarray. A look of
irritation marred her usually smooth features. She slammed the door shut behind
her and then leaned against it much the same way that Gray had. Clearly, she
did not notice him in the room.

 
   
“Stupid man.”
She
locked the door behind her and then patted down her hair. “He is becoming a
real trial.”

 
   
“I hope you are not referring to me,” Nico
said.

 
   
She started and then looked in the shadowed
corner where he stood.

 
   
“Mr. Blackburn?”

 
   
He cursed himself the moment he realized she
could not see in the darkness. If he had stayed quiet she would not have seen
him. She had not mated yet, so she possessed only human abilities.

 
   
“It is I. I take from your comments that you
did not follow me here.”

 
   
She sniffed.
“Of course
not.
I am trying to avoid that idiot Hurst. Why on earth he has decided
to bother me now is beyond me.”

 
   
Bloody hell.
Hurst’s constant pursuit could herald the coming of his blood lust. If the
viscount touched her, he’d likely sink into madness. Something would have to be
done—tonight.

 
   
“Come, now, Lady Cordelia. You could easily
attract his lordship’s attention for any number of reasons.”

 
   
She mumbled something under her breath that
sounded like “not bloody likely.”

 
   
At least she understood there was danger.
Unfortunately, it did not help his protective instincts. The need to shelter
her, keep her safe, coursed through his blood, along with a healthy dose of
lust. He did not speak for fear of revealing the depth of his need.

 
   
Silence loomed several moments, then without
any warning she flashed him a brilliant smile. He blinked as he watched her
approach, amazed at the change in her expression.
And wary.
No woman could be trusted, especially a Carrier. Those with the ability to
birth vampires were frighteningly clever—they had to be to survive. He knew
without a doubt, Lady Cordelia was working something out in her brain that
would only bring about disaster for them both.

 
   
“Mr. Blackburn?” She stopped in front of
him, her scent wrapping around him, tempting him. It was a mixture of musky
woman and innocence that had his incisors threatening to descend. The woman was
too bloody tempting for her own good. No wonder Hurst had been after her.

 
   
“Yes?” he asked, surprised that he hadn’t
started panting.
Or done something far more aggressive.
 
Even now as she gazed up at him as if she worshipped him. He reacted, his lust
in full bloom. He wanted—ached—to throw her across the desk and strip her
naked. Nico knew it was primal; it had nothing to do with the woman.

 
   
But he’d never had such a strong reaction to
a Carrier.

 
   
“I wondered…” She pulled her bottom lip
through her teeth, and he inwardly groaned. The woman was going to undo him
with her innocent gestures. He curled his fingers into the palm of his hands.

 
   
“Lady Cordelia, what do you need?”

 
   
She blinked and hesitated. He did not blame
her. Even he could hear how his voice had deepened, roughened. The earlier
altercation still thrummed through his blood. Maybe she would flee the room,
and he would be free of her long enough to ease his desires elsewhere.

 
   
 
He
should have known better.

 
   
She raised her chin, and said, “Can you
explain a bit more about your shipping business?”

 
   
“W-what?”
He could
not concentrate on her words, but rather watched the way her lips moved in the
slant of moonlight that illuminated her face.

 
   
Cordelia cocked her head to the side. “Are
you unwell?”

 
   
He shook his head, his attention still on
her mouth. Her tongue flicked out over the fuller bottom lip as she took a step
closer. Bloody hell, he craved to taste her, to feel her mouth move beneath
his. He wanted to feel her flesh beneath his and he wanted to sink his teeth
into her neck.  With every bit of his control, he pulled his mind away
from the image of her wearing nothing but the moonlight.

 
   
He needed her to go, far away. He made one
last attempt.

 
   
“Lady Cordelia, I think you should leave.”
He bit out each word, the lust he felt dripping from each syllable.
Unfortunately, the woman apparently was oblivious.

 
   
She stepped even closer, determination
stamped all over her face. Passion darkened her eyes.  She was
magnificent.

 
   
“I will not be deflected again.”

 
   
Good God, the woman smelled of heaven. He
could imagine rolling with her on a bed, the scent of her surrounding him, the
tangy taste of her on his tongue. His incisors descended, primed for feeding.
He did not even try to stop it. He knew it impossible.

 
   
Without another thought, he grabbed her. She
gasped,
the sound erotic in the darkened library. He
had the satisfaction of seeing her eyes widen as he dipped his head.