Page 79 of The Dark Hiss of Magic
‘Four people are already dead.’ Thane frowned at my expression. ‘Ian Ravensheart. Knox Thunderstick. Simon Campbell. Daniel Jackson.’
A tear rolled down Adrienne’s cheek, reminding me that she’d only just discovered what had happened to her friends. She hadn’t had any time to come to terms with her loss. ‘Their friends and family,’ she said, choking. ‘Their friends and family.’ She swallowed. ‘Their friends and family…’
Thane reached for her hand and clasped it. ‘They have to deal with the loss of their loved ones.Youhave to deal with that loss.’
Her bottom lip trembled. Hightower put his arm around her. ‘I’m so very sorry.’
I gazed at her. ‘You are the only person left to kill,’ I mused aloud. ‘You are the only one left who the killer believes could have the seeds.’
Hightower bristled. ‘Even with me here to protect her, that’s a little insensitive, don’t you think?’
I considered apologising but I was only stating a fact.
‘And I don’t have the seeds,’ Adrienne said. ‘I’m not lying. I don’t know where they are.’
I didn’t doubt her for a second; I didn’t need Harriet and her Truth Seeking skills to know that Adrienne was telling the truth. Those damned seeds were probably floating down the Tweed right at this moment. ‘We know that, but the killer doesn’t.’ I was warming to my topic. ‘Our original plan was a good one. If the killer is after anyone else, it’ll be Adrienne. We can still use her as bait to draw him in.’
Adrienne’s tears were falling more freely now.
‘That might have worked this morning but this guy is smart,’ Thane countered. ‘If he wasn’t expecting a trap before, he’ll certainly be expecting it now.’
‘He’s not as smart as me, but the wolf is correct,’ Hightowersaid. ‘It is too late for such a trap to work. I suspect that the best we can do is keep Adrienne safe. She can come home with me.’
‘And what?’ I asked. ‘You’ll keep her hidden in your warded vault behind your castle walls and moat for the rest of time?’
‘I don’t have a moat. Though my castle is impressive.’ He turned to Adrienne. ‘You’ll like it.’
‘It’s only a temporary solution,’ I argued.
‘Can you think of a permanent one?’
‘We find the killer,’ I said pragmatically. Then we’d kill him, though it was safer not to say that part aloud in present company.
He Who Guards appeared to be on my side. He drew himself up to a sitting position on Adrienne’s lap and yawned before sweeping his feline gaze across us all. ‘You’re not alone,’ I said to him. ‘We’ll help you. We’ll provide protection. Adrienne won’t be hurt, not while I’m around to help keep her safe.’ From the glint in He Who Guards’ eyes, he didn’t think he needed any help.
‘What do you want to do, Adrienne?’ Thane asked. ‘Do you want to go with Quentin? Or do you want to go home and wait to see if the real killer shows up searching for the silphium seeds?’
Her teary gaze swept across us, and suddenly I wasn’t convinced she was in the right frame of mind to make any sort of decision. She’d been working all night and now her life had been turned on its head because of a straggly plant. What the nymph needed was a damned break.
She surprised me by straightening her thin shoulders and drawing in a hiccupping breath. ‘All I want is to see my friends,’ she said. ‘Where are their bodies?’
Hightower winced. ‘Adrienne, my dear…’
‘I want to see them. Then I have to get some sleep.’ Shelifted her chin defiantly. ‘Only then can I decide what I want to do next.’
‘When the chips are down and you’re mired in hell, you find out what you’re made of,’ I said quietly. ‘And you, Adrienne, are made of steel. Are you sure about this?’
She wiped her eyes and nodded. ‘Where are my friends?’
‘Mathers Street mortuary,’ Thane told her.
She moved He Who Guards off her lap and stood up. ‘I’m going there.’ She sniffed loudly. ‘Now.’
‘It is not a good idea,’ Hightower warned.
I looked at Adrienne’s face. I got it: she needed this. She needed to see her friends for herself. ‘Of course it is.’ I beamed. ‘In fact it’s a great idea, Quentin, because you’ll be right beside us and ready to protect Adrienne if the killer shows up or we get into trouble along the way. You’re our magnificent hero.’
He looked slightly green around the gills. ‘I am your magnificent hero,’ he whispered.
