Deception (18 page)

“We followed you down, but only a minute or two,” he admitted. “My associates and I were curious about where you first encountered the demons last night.”

Lillian said, “I have not had the pleasure of meeting your friends.”

Fletcher stepped forward. “Forgive me. Jamie and Dugan MacGregor, Miss Lillian Dellacourt and, of course, you know Dorian Lambert.”

Dorian stepped next to her. “The MacGregors are the sons of Ian MacGregor. He has some claim to be chief of their clan.”

Each one of the brothers in turn stepped forward and bowed over her hand. They were exceedingly tall, with blue eyes and long brown hair curling past their shoulders.”

Jamie said, “Our da does not make any claims. The clan will decide who is the MacGregor.”

“And if you are the sons of the MacGregor, will you find a new occupation?” Dorian sounded like their disapproving uncle.

Dugan laughed. “We shall wait and see. For the present, we work for Angus.”

Fletcher asked, “How did you find this place?”

Lillian said, “A girl was kidnapped close to here. We followed a logical clue, and it led us to the tunnel.”

He walked over to the doorway Dorian had discovered. “This is remarkable ingenuity.”

“Until now, the demons did not have this kind of technology. I think the ascension of the master is behind this new intelligence. Either the demons are getting smarter, or they are guided directly by the master.”

Dorian asked. “Do you still think it was worth saving Belinda?”

Her stomach tightened, and her cheeks flamed with anger. “If we had known how to stop the master from ascending, I assure you we would have done so. As it was, all we knew was he was using priests and Belinda to enter our world. We killed all the priests, save one who fell into the pit, and we removed Belinda from Fatum Manor. What more could we have done, Dorian? You were not there. Shafton was not there. Read the reports and tell me how we could have done more?”

“Forgive me, Lilly. I have read the reports and you are correct. I have lived in Edinburg for several years, made it my home. Demons have always been the thing we fight, but at a distance. London is where the demons are, and people, such as yourself, have them under control. Suddenly, my city is under siege. I’m angry and frustrated. I should not have taken it out on you.”

The heat eased from her face and neck. He wasn’t perfect. He lost his temper. There was something comforting in the knowledge. “I understand.”

“Shall we see what is down here?” He pointed into the dark passage he’d revealed.

Fletcher had watched the entire exchange and grinned at the two of them. He walked over to Dorian and slapped him on the back. “I’m happy for you, Lambert.”

“I have no idea what you are talking about.”

“Don’t you?”

“Do all of you know how to fight in the dark?” Lillian asked.

Dorian nodded and preceded her through the hole in the wall.

The others shrugged.

Lillian gave all three a stern look. “If you are going to follow, stay back and do not engage anyone unless you are sure it is not me or Dorian.” She followed Dorian down the tunnel, her blades tucked along her forearms to keep them from cutting him accidentally in the pitch darkness.

The tinkle of running water filled the space, but no chanting or footsteps other than theirs. Where the first passage had brought them deeper, this one was on the rise. They crept along in the dark for perhaps a mile.

“This is far longer than I expected.” Fletcher kept his voice at a whisper.

“I agree.” Lillian’s heart pounded faster with both the exertion and anticipation.

Dorian stopped.

“What is it?” she whispered.

His voice was also low. “A door, wooden with a latch.”

“I’m ready.” She gripped both blades and waited.

Light spilled through the door, blinding her. She spun to the side, blades high. Blinking back her vision, the empty room came into focus. Daylight streamed in through a dozen small widows evenly spaced at the top of the walls.

“In the name of all that is holy.” Jamie looked around the room with wide eyes. They were in a cavernous round space, big enough to hold a hundred men, maybe more.

Lillian understood how he felt. The room was remarkable and daunting. The stone floor and walls were smooth as if sanded to perfection. Symbols marked the walls. She didn’t know what they meant, but she remembered them from Fatum Manor where the master had ascended and tortured Belinda.

Dorian walked to the middle of the room. “Come and see this.”

She spun, taking in the room. Little sound filtered from above. A long set of steps at the far end of the room ran along the rounded walls and stopped at a wooden trap door. At the center of the ceiling hung a long chain with a very large lantern at the end.

“What is this place?” Fetcher asked.

The center of the floor had a goat’s head carved in the floor, surrounded by a five-pointed star. At the top of the star, they’d carved a distorted fleur-de-lis wrapped by a hissing snake.

Dorian sheathed his sword and touched the symbol on the floor. “I think they mean to open a gate here.”

“Where is here?” The entire carved out cavern sent chills down Lillian’s spine. Something unnatural had built the room, and it gnawed at her soul. It was too perfect, too smooth and symmetrical. From the moment they entered, she had wanted to leave.

“That is a very good question. Shall we?” Dorian pointed toward the stairs.

She raced up the steps and pushed the heavy wooden door, but it didn’t budge. She stowed her blades in her boots and put her weight behind it. Pebbles and dirt fell in around their heads as the door moved aside. Choking, she took the last few steps into the open air.

The ruins of Holyrood Chapel rose around her. Her heart leaped into her throat. Nothing was sacred.

All four men climbed out, their mouths and eyes wide.

“Lilly, I have a very bad feeling about this. This is not the evil place Fatum was alleged to be. This is holy ground. How can this be?”

“I do not know, Dorian. Perhaps holy ground has no meaning to the master. Maybe there is power here and he can tap into it. The chapel has been abandoned since the roof caved in years ago. It may have left an opportunity open to the demons. In London, his minions had taken over an old, abandoned church. They performed sacrifices there and desecrated the place.”

“That would mean…”

The number of holy places that were no longer in use was staggering, too much to think about.

“It’s over a mile back to the castle, gentlemen. We had better get started. Dorian, perhaps we can find something in the archives that will make sense out of this.”

“I will advise Drake to put a watch on Holyrood. The demons went to a lot of trouble down there. I cannot imagine they will abandon it because we killed a few of their numbers and rescued a couple of women.”

“This is far worse than I expected.” Fletcher walked along beside them; his hands dug into his pockets.

“It is worse still, Mr. Fletcher. Worse than any of us know. You should consider that when you make your choices in lifestyle.”

He frowned in response. He and the MacGregors said nothing on the long walk. Tension hung in the air. At the near corner of the castle wall, they said good night and disappeared down the street and around a corner.

Dorian left her at the castle door to go and speak to Cullum.

Lillian went back in the archives. She dug through boxes of papers until she was covered in dust, but no closer to finding any answers.

Dorian joined her, rolled up his shirtsleeves, and sat across the table reading some tome. “Drake has sent for several new hunters to watch over Holyrood. We will be informed if anything happens.”

“Fine.”

“Are you still angry with me?”

“I will never agree with you and Cullum on this matter.”

He smiled. “Then we shall disagree, but I do not want that fact to interfere with what has happened between us.”

“I do not see how that is possible. We have fundamental differences in our view of the world”

“Look at me, Lilly.”

She looked up from a paper detailing the best way to kill a trebox dated twelve years earlier.

“I may agree with Cullum, strategically we made an error, but I still could not have abandoned those women to the demon’s sacrifice.”

She shrugged. It was unladylike, but her heart had cracked when he’d sided with their superior.

“What we have together is very rare. I do not think it likely either one of us will find this again in our lifetime. A person who understands and accept. A person who in spite of what we do, still wants to pursue a relationship.”

“Perhaps I do not need that type of relationship. I only agreed to one day, Dorian.” The lie spilled out with ease, but a knot tightened in her gut.

The sorrow in his eyes hurt even more. “I do not believe that, and I told you I would continue my pursuit.” He held up his hand, stopping her response. “We can talk about it another time. Have you found anything?”

Part of her wanted to tell him he was right. “It’s just a bunch of paper from the trunk in the corner. Most of it is written by Shafton, but I’ve found nothing interesting so far.”

“I wonder when some of this was placed here. It seems someone should have gone through all of this at some point.”

Lillian said, “Perhaps you are right. I wonder if the Countess of Shafton can be of any help.”

“You want to ask his lordship’s wife if she has any evidence against her husband?”

“No. That would be rude. I want to ask her ladyship if she has any old documents stored in either the London or country estates.”

“Will you write to her directly?”

“I thought I might. I have met her on several occasions, though cannot be certain she will remember. It occurred to me to send a note to Belinda, but that might put her in an awkward position.”

“You mean, if you find evidence damning her father.”

Somehow, Shafton was the key to all of this. Lillian knew it, but she pointed to a stack of crates. “Perhaps those in the corner. They look as if they have been stacked there for some time.”

Dorian went to the back corner of the archives and took down a stack of eight boxes while Lillian wrote a letter to the Countess of Shafton.

Dust and grime covered the crates. They found nothing in the first box, and her shoulders ached from the effort.

“You two still at it?” Tybee asked from the doorway.

Dorian said, “I’m afraid so. We will be a while longer. No need for you to wait up.”

The door-keeper looked down at his feet and shuffled uncomfortably before looking across the room at them. “I’ll be finding my bed then. If you two need to rest, you’ll find some rooms made up with beds down the east corridor. I’ll have fresh wash water put in just in case.”

“That is very kind of you, Tybee,” Lillian said.

“It’s nothing.”

“Do you think you might have this letter posted for me in the morning? It is rather urgent.”

She met him halfway across the room and handed him the letter addressed to Belinda’s mother.

“I’ll see to it.” Tybee shuffled down the hallway away from them.

“I could do with some sleep, Lilly.” Dorian rubbed his forehead, leaving a streak of dirt across his skin.

Her eyes stung from exhaustion, and her muscles ached from inactivity. “Let’s go and find those rooms. We can sleep for two hours then come back to this.”

The room was nice, with a blue rug in the center, a desk and chair, as well as a bed with heavy drapery. A pitcher of water rested beside a bowl along with washing cloths and soap. Lillian had stayed in far worse places.

It came as a surprise when Dorian entered the small room behind her. “You can send me away if you wish, but I prefer to stay with you, Lilly.”

She longed to stretch out on the bed and ease her aches and pains. “I’m tired.”

He wrapped his strong arms around her from behind. “I’m exhausted. I would like to hold you if you do not mind.”

His warmth seeped through their clothes and spread throughout her body. Comfort was not so much to ask for, and she hated the thought of him on the other side of a stone wall.

She should send him away, but she turned around and wrapped her arms around his back.

He exhaled a satisfied moan, and his breath brushed across her ear.

A pleasant warmth settled in the bottom of her stomach. It was strange, comfortable, and novel to her.

His fingers massaged their way to her sore neck and shoulders, and he rubbed until the stiffness eased.

“That feels wonderful.”

“I’m glad. Would you like to get washed up? I will go next door and join you in a few minutes.” He kissed her and left the room.

Dust covered Lillian’s clothes. She removed them and shook off a cloud of grime. Removing all her weapons, she placed one small dagger on the table near the bed. She washed and eased onto the soft mattress, allowing the comfort to wrap around her.

Waking up with Lillian snuggled up against him filled Dorian’s heart to overflowing. His chest ached with emotion clamoring to get out. He longed to tell her how he felt, but it was not yet time. She needed to want him in her life. If he told her now, she might run.

She stretched long, reaching her arms over her head, and arched into him in the most erotic way. “We should go back to work.”

Banding his arm tighter around her waist, he pulled her close. “Soon. Stay a while longer. Let me hold you, Lilly.”

She settled her curves back into the planes of his body. “You are a puzzle to me.”

He kissed her earlobe. “How so?”

“I have never met a man who enjoyed lying with a woman without making every attempt to pursue baser activities.”

“Why is it so hard to believe I want more than sex from you? Having you in my arms and being at your side brings me great joy. That is not to say I do not want you sexually. Make no mistake, I do.” His cock responded to the idea, pressing against her round buttock.

She sighed heavily but didn’t comment.

Patience, he would need patience to get what he wanted most.