Page 68 of Vampire's Breath

The man swallowed. “There was a sadness about her that no one could quite understand because she seemed to be on the adventure of a lifetime, doing what she wanted. She should have been carefree and happy to be touring England, but she wasn’t.”

I pulled him closer. “Did anyone lay a hand on her?”

The man shook his head. “No.” His eyes sparkled with fear. “No. There was no one with her. She was here alone.”

Relief hit me harder than I wanted to admit. I had no claim over her—none at all—but the thought of someone else’s hands on her made something in me burn. An icy tendril of fear crept up my spine. Was this the same possessiveness Ashdowne had felt for Isobel?

“Lorcan.” Conall’s soothing tones cut softly into my thoughts.

My brother didn’t have to say the words. I knew what he was asking.

I stared into the man’s eyes again, reaching for his mind. “You won’t remember this conversation—unless she returns. Then you’ll tell her she is to contact Lorcan.”

The man nodded, his Adam’s apple bobbing. “Absolutely.”

I released him, giving him a slight shove backward as I did. “You may go.”

He stood straighter and looked at Conall and me blankly, confused as to why I stood behind the desk. “Gentlemen, if you’ll excuse me, I must check on the coffee. You really shouldn’t be back here, sir.”

“Absolutely,” said Conall with a smile. “You have a wonderful establishment here, and we will keep it in mind for our next retreat.”

I scrambled from behind the desk and looked at my brother. “There’s nothing here, Conall. What are we going to do?”

He looked out the window, and I followed his gaze. The sky bled crimson at the horizon, dark fingers of twilight stretching toward us. His face looked heavy and gray, his eyes darkened with circles beneath them. He pressed his lips together. “I hate to say it, brother, but we’ll have to let Patricia and her team do what they do best—and that’s track her down.”

“But it’s been days. We’ve missed something. I know we have.” I palmed the back of my neck and looked at the ceiling.

“Lorcan, we’ll find her. But for now, I want to return to Manchester, find a hotel room, shower, and get a decent meal.”

“No.” I shook my head and took two steps past him before pacing in front of the desk like a caged animal. “We have to think. Where would she go next? What is she looking for? If we can figure that out, then we can go and—”

Conall appeared in front of me, resting his hands on my shoulders. “Lorcan. I can tell that you love her. But flying all over Great Britain chasing what might be is worse than searching for a needle in a haystack. Patricia will find her. And worst case, we know where she will be in only a few days.”

“A few days is too late,” I said. “Aiden is after her now.” I clenched my jaw. “And I don’t love her.” The words decayed into silence between us, hollow. They rang in my ears, making my heart lurch. I shoved my fists into my pockets like a petulant child bent on believing his own lies.

A slow smile spread across Conall’s face. “You can keep saying that all you want, brother. But I have never seen you threaten a human over touching a woman before.”

I shivered as ice in my spine spread through me before muttering, “Just like Ashdowne did.”

“You’re not like Ashdowne at all.” He put an arm around my shoulders. “Let’s go find a nice room for the night. And after that, I’m going to hunt.”

I sighed. I had no choice. It was his jet, and there were no trains until tomorrow. I followed him to the car, slid into the passenger seat, and folded my arms across my chest. I stewed in silence the entire drive back.

Lorcan

Iglared at Conall as he sat across from me, the faint gray of the early morning visible through the windows behind him. My fingers curled around yet another glass of whiskey. The acrid scent burned away what little patience I had left. I emptied the glass and dropped it with a loud clunk on the table beside my chair. Conall gave me a deadpan stare from the table in our suite before lifting his free hand and swiping his screen in an exaggerated motion.

I narrowed my eyes at him, the silence heavy. My phone had rung at three in the morning. Patricia had finally found the hotel Briar had stayed in while in Edinburgh. Her team had also located the Waverley Station footage, confirming that she hadboarded a train to Aberdeen. I drummed my fingers on the arm of the chair, wanting to kick myself.

I had been there just yesterday. If I had only stayed, I might have found her today. But no, I had to go running around like a fool. I could still hear Conall’s words before he had acquiesced to us leaving Aberdeen and coming here. “You’re tearing after her like a hound on a scent. A stag that panics makes it that much easier to kill. You need to think like the lynx, brother—watch, wait, and when you move, make damn sure it counts. But keep running in circles if it makes you feel better. Zadie has the plans filed.”

He had disappeared an hour after we checked into the hotel, not returning until after the call, his sclera burning red, and his pupils ash. He reeked of booze, sex, and death. “You really should find someone to eat, Lorcan,” he slurred with a smile after I explained we needed to leave. “Until Patricia can give me an exact location, I’m staying right here. Now, if you’ll excuse me…”

He shut the door to his room in my face before he stumbled to the bed. I swallowed my anger as my heart clenched. I hadn’t been his big brother for one hundred and fifteen years, so demanding he treat me that way now would fall on deaf ears. I had no choice but to wait. But that didn’t mean I couldn’t do anything. I called Patricia back and directed her to pull all the videos from the ferry to Orkney, Kirkwall, and Tingwall. I knew Briar was there. I poured myself a drink and sat in the chair I still sat in, waiting for the phone to ring.

“Brother,” I said, not bothering to mask the frustration in my voice, “when will we be able to leave? We both know where she’s headed.”

Conall let out a long sigh before sipping the tea in front of him. “We leave once Patricia confirms she’s there. I’m not runningall over Great Britain. If you recall, we were just in Aberdeen twenty-four hours ago, and you insisted on coming here.”

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