Page 91 of Dukes Are Forever
Adele slammed an enormous ledger open, her heart skipping a beat as she found a list of names hidden in a secret compartment cut into the back of it. "Here," she said, her voice rising. "I think I've got it."
Malloryn tore it from her fingers, his expression tightening. "This is it. Let's get out of here."
He paused by Corvus. "And bring this prick. I'm not done with him yet."
* * *
"Are you all right?"Malloryn demanded as he helped Adele inside the carriage. Ingrid took one look at the pair of them and then shut the door, granting them some privacy.
Adele's hands shook, and her eyes were wide. She reeked of blood and smoke. "We succeeded in our endeavors, and that's all that matters. We have the list now. I'm fine."
"You're not fine." He reached out and took her hands in his, trying to rub warmth back into them. He could just make out the lick of flames in the distance, where Angel's Fall burned. So much for subterfuge. "I should never have sent you in there. You're untrained. You can barely defend yourself."
"That's why I have you," she whispered. "We weren't to know it was a trap. And you rescued me."
But what if I didn't make it in time?
He closed his eyes and fought the thought down, as the craving whispered through his veins. He was still raw and on edge, struggling to rein in the darkness inside himself. He'd never lost control like that, and there was a rather bothering sensation that lingered in his chest.
One that wanted to stop the carriage and rip Corvus down into the street where he could finish what he'd started.
One that insisted he hold her, just so he could feel the heat of her body against his and know she was safe.
One that demanded he claim her.
Right here.
Right now.
Fighting against the urge was taking everything he had in him, and he needed to have his head about him. Maybe if he just granted his hunger a little taste of what it wanted, it would be easier to restrain. Malloryn gave into the lesser of several evils.
Slipping onto the bench beside her, he eased her onto his lap. Adele rested her head on his shoulder with a grateful sigh. "I knew you were there. I knew you would come."
The utter belief in her voice left him a little breathless.
But it was the contented purring of the darkness inside him that left him on edge.
Troubling.
"So that was Dido," she whispered.
"Yes." He pressed a kiss to her hair, breathing in her familiar perfume. The tension in his chest eased a little more. "Can I ask you a question?"
Adele glanced up.
"It seemed as though Dido made a deal with Lord Corvus. He would grant her... something, in exchange for you."
Every inch of her stiffened.
"Is he the one who hurt you?"
He didn't need to know the answer. It was there in every line of her body. Adele burrowed her face back into the warmth of his coat, closing her eyes. "Yes."
Then he's a dead man.
"You'll never have to worry about him again," he promised, and for a second he was looking at a gray-tinted world as the craving roared through his veins. So much for controlling it.
Her fingers stroked the collar of his coat, and her voice was very small when she asked, "What are you going to do to him?"
