21. Kieran

Sam and I wait by the kerb after the sun goes down. He was pale when I got him home last night, but food and sleep have done him wonders. We're both dressed in dark, loose clothing now—each in our own clothes, thanks very much—and Sam paces back and forth in front of me as we wait.

"Do you think he's okay?"

"Lucien wouldn't be coming if he wasn't."

"I'm sure I got all of it, but what if—"

I catch Sam when he turns, my hands coming down on his shoulders to hold him in place. "Listen. Adam is fine. He's still up and walking around, thanks to you."

We still haven't talked about what Carey told me. Well, I haven't told him about it. I think that might be part of why he's unsettled. Clearly, his magic is different from anything I've ever known—even if his magic has been more constant in my life than practically anything else.

"I'm worried," Sam blurts out all at once. "The mage—She—"

He shakes his head, wrestling with whatever he wants to say.

"We'll handle her," I say. "Tristan'll know pretty soon Adam isn't dead, anyway."

Sam's expression darkens. "You think he'll go after him again."

I don't know. It's why I'm glad we're doing this tonight. Sure, this is a hunch, since Tristan running into the tube station last night doesn't mean all that much, but it's the best lead we've got. The vampires have checked every property they own, anything that might be traced back to the clan.

They've found nothing.

"Where are they?" Sam mutters.

As if on cue, two figures round the corner. I recognise Lucien immediately, of course, and my heart thumps faster in my chest. I'm glad I haven't had work today because I've barely been able to think while worrying about him, causing a dull ache just behind my ribs.

It's silly, I know that. He's fine. He was fine last night.

Still.

Elle's mouth is pressed into a hard line as she approaches. I trust Lucien in trusting her, even though it's a leap as far as I'm concerned.

But I saw the way she was looking at Adam last night, too. They both look out for him, and that's what I'll have to rely on.

"You really think we'll find him there?" she asks. I told her about my hunch in the car on the way back to the flat last night.

She looked no less sceptical then than she does now.

Before I can answer, Sam asks, "How's Adam?"

Lucien smiles. My stomach flutters. "He is fine. He was a handful last night when I got him back, but he rested and has woken fully healed. Thank you, Sam."

Sam's cheeks go pink. "It's fine. I just—I wanted to be sure."

Elle's gaze on Sam has softened a little, too. Good. It'd be better if she liked at least one of us. It's clearly not going to be me. That's obvious when she looks at me again and some hardness returns to her eyes. Fine. I can deal with that.

"I don't know for sure that this is what he's doing, and yeah, he's not likely to be in the station near here, but…"

"But?" Lucien prompts. I hardly dare to look at him. I know I'll just lose my train of thought if I do.

"But it feels right," I say. "And I don't trust the hunters."

Elle frowns. "Why not?"

Sam and I exchange a look. We talked about this today. We can trust them with it.

"I picked up the mage's magical signature last night," he says with a sigh.

"You did?" Lucien frowns. "You said Tristan did not teleport away."

"Oh, he didn't. I sensed it when I got there, but I couldn't focus on anything else while I was working on that curse. And when I was done…"

"We left," Elle says. "Why didn't you tell me on the way back?"

"You were all together, and Tristan was gone. And I needed some time to be sure, but the signature on that curse was definitely there when I arrived at Hyde Park."

"Could she have been there before?" Lucien asks.

Sam shakes his head. "I'm pretty sure the mage is hiding among the hunters."

Something crosses Lucien's face, and he and Elle exchange a glance. "There is a hunter," Lucien begins, though it seems to pain him to say it. "They showed us that they could do magic."

"They said they didn't have a lot, though," Elle adds. "Just enough to sense it."

"There are a few hunters like that," Sam says. "I doubt it's them. This mage has been trying to hide herself; she wouldn't risk it by showing off."

There's certainty in his voice, and for a second, I wonder if he knows more than he's letting on. Elle and Lucien wear identical frowns. Are they trying to remember all the hunters present last night? I know that's what I've spent the day doing.

"Let's get this done first," I say. "We can worry about a mole when we get back."

That gets them moving and I take the lead as we start walking. Sam drops back to walk with Elle, asking her how the hunt has been going, and Lucien falls into step with me. His smile is soft when I look at him, and I can't help but return it.

"I, uh… I brought some stuff for us to break in with," I say, shifting the backpack I'm wearing.

"Ah," Lucien replies. His expression is carefully neutral. "I brought along some tools of my own."

"You—What?"

"It is useful to have one's own equipment for outings such as this."

"No, I—" I glance back. Elle and Sam are still talking, though I have no doubt they both can hear us. "You've broken in somewhere before?"

Lucien's smile turns sly and heat pools in my belly. "You haven't?"

I pause, and he keeps walking, and I try to wipe the flabbergasted expression from my face as I hurry to catch up. "Wait, so you…"

"It is how Elle and I met," Lucien says.

"It's how we met Vasile," Elle calls from behind us.

I look between the two of them. I don't know which story I want the most.

No, I do.

"How did you meet Vasile?"

Lucien groans, and Elle cackles. "Well, we'd heard there was this vampire's mansion that held a bunch of jewels we might be able to sell."

"Elle…"

"No, let me tell it." She waves Lucien off. I drop back a little way, already engrossed in the story, and I'm not the only one; Sam looks fascinated. "So we scoped it out. The treaty had only been signed a couple of years before, so we didn't really know who the crai was."

"So you broke in?" I ask.

She nods. "Lucien first, of course. He's very light on his feet." Her eyes sparkle with mirth. "We found the room with the jewels and a very nice art collection, but when we turned around, Vasile was in the room with us."

I look at Lucien, and though he's shaking his head, a smile plays at the corners of his mouth. "I was certain he would kill us."

"Always a chance of it," Elle agrees. "But the treaty says you can't just destroy a vampire for trespassing, so I guess we got lucky."

"What happened?" Sam asks.

"Lucien told Vasile it was all his fault, of course." Elle's words are fond. "Vasile told us to sit. He'd heard of us—we'd been stealing from all manner of creatures by then. And then he offered Lucien a job."

I stare at Lucien. "What?"

"He said he had divided the vampire territory of London into districts, but that one of his chieftains had a little more than he could handle. He offered me the position, with the proviso, of course, that I would not be caught stealing again."

"Holy—Wait?" I shake my head. "Not be caught?"

Elle laughs. "You can't just change a person overnight. It's been a few decades, though, since we last did this."

"I did not want to lead Adam to bad habits."

Elle laughs again, and Sam grins too, but I'm still staring at Lucien. He catches my gaze, and something in his wobbles, like he worries about what I think of him now.

"Have either of you ever broken in anywhere before?" Elle asks before I can think of what to say.

"No," I say.

"Yes," Sam says at the same time.

We all look at each other, and I start laughing first. Lucien shakes his head, and his little chuckle warms me as I drop into step beside him again.

"And here I expected you were always a troublemaker," he murmurs.

"Oh, I was," I agree. "Just not a stealthy one."

Maybe I shouldn't find it hot that Lucien and Elle clearly used to be thieves—and that I think it was more for kicks than anything else—but, well, it is. I sweep my gaze over him, imagining him carefully breaking in, the concentration on his face as he looks for danger, the—

"We're here," Lucien says, a hint of pink on his cheekbones. I grin.

The tube station is closed up, but there's a side door for maintenance workers to go through that won't involve them opening the shutter and risking people wandering inside. As it's still fairly early, there are people on the street, but we're careful when we head over to the building, which is set back from the others on the same corner.

"What's the plan?" Elle asks when we're all standing in the shadows.

Lucien pulls a set of lockpicks from the inside pocket of his jacket. "Lucien's going to get us inside," I say, "And then we're going to head down to the tracks and see if we find anything."

Sam frowns. "Are the tracks still running?"

"Not this one," I say. "The stations on this part of the line are all out of use."

Lucien crouches and gets to work. I keep an eye on the street, glad that Elle and Sam are also there to keep watch because I can't help the way my gaze is drawn back to Lucien. His movements are certain, head tilted to one side as he listens to what he's doing.

I shiver when I realise I want all that concentration focused on me and turn my face away. There's a camera over the door, and I keep my eyes low. It's probably not working, and even if it is, I doubt anyone is monitoring the feed.

The door swings open gently and Lucien smiles, putting his lockpicks away. I grin at him and wave at the darkness beyond the doorway, looking over at Sam. "After you."

Sam rolls his eyes. "Yeah. Great."

We wander through the tube station for a while. The floor is clear, but dust lays heavy on the furniture and turnstiles, and I pull a face when I touch the rail on the stairs, even though I'm wearing gloves.

It's so gross.

Sam walks ahead of the three of us, the torch on his phone lighting the way. He nodded when he came in like he sensed magic already, and I wonder if the floor is spotless because of the mage or because maintenance workers do come in here every once in a while.

Still, he's making sure he's thorough. I get it. We were both annoyed once we realised he'd sensed the mage last night—not that I was annoyed at him.

Saving Adam was more important.

We all walk out onto the platform and stand still. I sweep my phone's torch around but see nothing. Sam's magic prickles over my skin in the same way it has since we walked in here. I hear noises from further down the tracks, but when I look at Lucien, he shakes his head.

"Rats."

"That's not all that's down there," Sam says. He strides towards the edge of the platform and even though I know a train isn't coming through here, my stomach lurches when he jumps down onto the tracks.

It only takes me a second to follow. "Keep watch," I hiss back at Lucien and Elle. Elle rolls her eyes, but Lucien frowns.

We walk down into the darkness, the torch on Sam's phone brightening the way. When was the last time anyone was down here? It has to have been years.

"There's a ward up ahead," Sam says. He pauses before a curve in the tracks, and I frown when I can't see what's beyond that.

"Are they here?"

Sam shakes his head. His magic flares for a second before he pulls it back in. "No, I don't think so. It's not a ward like I've put up around the flat. It's not to keep people out—it's just to warn if someone gets in."

"So we could just walk through it?"

"Yeah. But the mage would know."

Who could it be? There were only two teams of hunters at Hyde Park last night. One with that big, Viking-looking vampire—who we haven't looped in on it—and the other with Elle.

"We could trigger it. If we get in touch with the vampires hunting, we could see if anyone runs off."

"If they're smart, they won't. They might still get word to Tristan. We'll be sitting ducks."

There are four of us, though, and unless the mage can get away, Tristan's at a disadvantage. Of course that's also if the mage is out hunting tonight.

Sam's right. There are too many variables.

"Okay, let's go back. Lucien and Elle might have another idea."

We go back to the platform, and I pull myself back up before I reach for Sam. When I stand, I bat dust from my trousers with a frown.

"Did you find anything?" Elle asks.

Sam outlines the ward we found, explaining its limitations to both vampires.

"I mean, we could send a team down here in the day," Elle says. "It'd have to be hunters, though. Or wolves, if Deacon agrees to that."

"The problem is if the mage is down there already."

"Or if she has set traps," Lucien says.

I frown. "Traps?"

"You said the ward only alerts her if someone has stepped through it. Could there be traps that she or Tristan could set to prevent people from getting to him?"

Sam nods. "Yeah, there could be. Let me go—"

He turns and heads for the edge of the platform, and this time, Elle follows him. I stay where I am, tilting my head to listen for any noise from above. Seems like we're alone.

Lucien moves closer until our shoulders bump together. "We are getting close."

"You mean to Tristan?"

Lucien looks at me, almost confused for a second before he smiles and flushes. I tug one glove off and reach up to rub my thumb over his cheekbone. His skin is so soft and warm where blood has come to the surface.

"Yes," he says, and his voice comes out strangled. "Yes, we are close to finding him."

I hum in response, letting my hand drop. I put my glove back on but lean against Lucien just a little. "Hopefully. Can we trust the Council itself? Vampires can watch this area of the tracks at night, or in the day if they stay inside, but Tristan's already—"

"Vasile trusts Moreau," Lucien says. His voice is a little stiff. "And the wolves have no stake in this fight. If Sam cannot tell us whether there are traps, it does not matter; we can still warn them of that."

"I guess he's been travelling along this entire part of the tracks," I murmur.

Lucien nods. "I will call Vasile when we reach the surface."

Makes sense. We've got no signal this deep. I wonder—

A sound trails down the stairs. Voices. They're firm and hushed… and coming closer.

"Shit," I hiss. Lucien races over to the stairs, glancing up, and I run for the edge of the platform. "Elle!"

She's there in a second, frowning up at me.

"Someone's here. We've got to go."

She nods and runs back to Sam, and I eye the stairs until she returns.

"He says you two need to go. Distract them, whatever. He can keep us hidden here and keep searching, but he can't ward the door on top of that."

I scowl, hands curling uselessly into fists by my sides. The voices are definitely closer now, approaching the top of the stairs. "Fine. Keep him safe."

Elle nods. "Of course."

I move back over to Lucien and shove my phone into my pocket. "Did you—"

"I heard. Here." He moves next to the door, his back against the wall, and opens his arms.

"What are you—"

"We need to run."

"I can run."

"Kieran."He shakes his head. "You cannot run as fast as a vampire, and you know it. Come here."

"You're going to, what? Carry me?"

Lucien's jaw sets. "Yes."

"You can't be serious," I mutter, but I'm already moving into his arms. I wrap mine around his neck and he lifts me easily, which makes my stomach swoop. I tuck my face into his neck as I tighten my legs around his hips.

"Don't you dare drop me."

Lucien chuckles. The sound moves through his chest, into mine, warming the very heart of me. I let out a shaky breath.

"I would never."

Footsteps sound on the stairs, and I realise they're police from the way they're speaking to each other. Two of them, which worries me; if Elle or Sam make a sound, they'll stay down here to investigate.

Hopefully, they'll think it's just the two of us.

They don't see us as they step out onto the platform, which doesn't surprise me. It's pitch-black except for where their torches touch. Lucien's lips press against my ear.

"Hold on."

The words are barely more than a breath against my skin. I tighten my grip on him. I don't like being in this position—not being the one in control, having to wait—but I trust him. I do.

Lucien moves for the stairs, careful to make his steps loud. One of the police officers swings around.

"Stop right there!"

Lucien runs. He's not at full vampire speed, not yet, but he's easily moving faster than they are and I lift my head to see them both following us back up the stairs. They look confused, too, at the way I'm hanging onto Lucien, but I can't blame them for that.

He doesn't speed up until we make it out the door and confirm there are no other officers. I spot their car on the street, but then the scenery becomes a blur as we whip through side streets and alleys at a pace I almost can't believe. I press my face into his neck, squeezing my eyes shut. It's exhilarating, going this fast.

It's the speed that has my heart thumping against my chest. Not the spicy scent of Lucien's skin. Not the warmth that echoes between us.

We stop on a silent, cobblestoned street, Lucien backing me into a dark corner. He stands between me and the rest of the street, and I'm glad of it when I stand and my legs shake.

"Are you all right?"

I nod. He has one hand set on the wall next to my head, leaning over me. My mouth goes dry. I want…

Lucien's phone dings and he pulls it out of his pocket. Whatever he reads makes him smile, eyes going fond.

"Elle and Sam are safe. She is taking him home."

I stare up at him. The words barely make it through the low-level buzz that has settled in my brain. My hands twitch. I want to pull him closer.

I want him.

My own phone buzzes and I fumble it into view, tugging off my gloves impatiently when I can't open the message. It's Sam.

Found some traps. Tell you when you get in.

A sigh of relief leaves me and I sag back against the wall. We're close. I can feel it. And once we've captured Tristan, we'll be safe, Drew will be safe, and Lucien and I can…

I look up again. He hasn't moved, and his eyes are dark. I push up before I can think about it.

Our lips slide together, and a groan echoes between us. Lucien's arm goes around my waist, pulling me closer. I want to melt against him. I've never been with anyone as strong as me. Never. The thought is heady, making my hands shake.

"Lucien," I breathe when our lips part. "I want—"

"What?" The word is a growl as he kisses down my jaw. I grab his face and bring his lips back to my own, swallowing down an almost-pained moan.

"I want you. Now."

Heat flares in his eyes and I wonder what he sees on my face. Whatever it is, he seems to like it. He nods and kisses me again, this one messier, more frantic.

I tear my mouth away with another groan. "Fuck." I haven't thought this through. "Where can we…?"

Sam's at the flat, and I've not officially invited Lucien in anyway, even though he can get in the wards. Not that vampires need an invitation or anything like that. It's just… That's Sam's and my space. I can't bring Lucien into it without asking.

And the clan house? There are vampires everywhere there.

"I have a flat," Lucien says. He looks around us, clearly trying to work out where we are. "My district is not far from here. I think."

I grin and lean up, pressing my lips to his chin. "You think?"

Lucien growls. The sound goes straight to my cock, and I gasp before he kisses me again, pushing me back against the wall. I roll my hips forward just to hear him groan and give in to the urge to run my fingers through his hair.

"How far is it?" I ask, breathing hard.

"Not very," he says again. He gives me a devastatingly possessive look and fuck if my knees don't go weak at this change in him. I like sweet, caring Lucien, but this sensual, hungry creature before me?

He has the power to ruin me, and I am absolutely going to let him.

"Yeah," I say, nodding. "Let's go."