Gaslight (Crossbreed #4)(85)

Without waiting for an answer, I stormed into my bedroom and crossed over to my desk. The fire in the hearth provided comforting light and heat, the wood crackling and hissing as the flames roared. As I stared at my desk, something seemed out of place, but I couldn’t put my finger on it.

“Did you move my things?” I shoved the jewelry box aside and straightened a few papers.

Christian entered the room but said nothing.

I looked around, searching for an answer. Then I realized the thing that had changed was me.

“I feel like I’m going crazy.” My feet carried me to the arched windows, but all I could see was my ghostly reflection in the bits of glass between the diamond-shaped lattices. “How long did it take before everyone gave up looking? Houdini said you would, but I didn’t believe him.”

Christian took my arm and turned me to face him. I averted my gaze and stared at his hand.

“Why won’t you hold my gaze?”

“How do I know Viktor didn’t send you in here to charm me for information? I don’t want anyone in my head.”

“And I promised I’d never do that.”

I rubbed my face, a nebulous fog clouding my thoughts. “Tell Viktor I just need a few days and I’ll be better than I was before. I’ve got a fire in me now, and I won’t stop until every lowlife in this city is either dead or incarcerated.”

The music box suddenly played seven notes, and I jumped.

“It does that sometimes,” Christian said. “Must be jammed.”

The jewelry box reminded me of Fletcher’s threat. “My father… I have to see if he’s okay. Fletcher threatened to—”

“I’ve taken care of it. I knew that Fletcher would know where to find him.”

I jerked my head. “How did you know my Creator had me? The auction was anonymous.”

That perked Christian right up. He gave me a smug grin and put his thumbs in his pants pockets. “Your maker told me his name. I knew straight away that your Creator was the only person who would have bid that high for a girl with mismatched eyes.”

“So Houdini gave you information?”

“Aye. And I informed him that he’d sold you to the devil himself.”

My gaze drifted down. “Then he wanted you to find me. He wasn’t just going to leave me there without hope.”

“This charade is more than I can fecking take,” he bit out. “Why are you defending the man who turned you over to a torturer?”

“He couldn’t have known. You just said yourself you had to tell him the nature of our relationship. It’s not right what he did, turning me Vampire all those years ago, but he said that he really did want to keep me and make me a companion. Fletcher took me before that could happen.”

“You’re defending a man who sells women for profit.”

“But he never planned to sell me. I know it’s fucked up, Christian, but he doesn’t mean me any harm.”

Christian drew in a shaky breath and blew it out slowly.

I sat on the edge of the bed, trying to keep my thoughts away from that dark place I’d spent the past month. The warm fire and soft bed were familiar… and yet not.

After a few minutes of silence, Christian sat down beside me. “Are you sure Houdini didn’t feed you his blood? Your loyalty makes me think otherwise.”

“It’s not loyalty.”

“But you don’t hate him anymore.”

“I just have a better understanding of him now, and maybe because of that I don’t hate him the way I hate Fletcher.” I rubbed at an invisible scar on my wrist. “Don’t tell anyone. About Fletcher, I mean. I’m sure they can guess, but I don’t really want to talk about it anymore. It’s over, and they don’t need all the sordid details.” My eyes flicked down to his lap when something caught my attention. “I’ve never seen you wear a ring before.”

Christian’s hand clenched into a tight fist, and he leaned forward. “Why did Houdini leave your memory of him? What did you give in exchange for that?”

I found it strange that Christian kept circling back to Houdini instead of Fletcher. “I don’t know, he just did. I begged him to let me keep my memory.”

“Think about it, Raven. You have knowledge of his crimes, his description, possibly where he lives, and how he’s related to you. Why would he set you free with all that valuable information? Just because you asked?” Christian glared over his shoulder at me. “Think hard.”

When I did, another headache came on. All I wanted was to sleep and find a way to fill the hollowness inside me. Being here was still surreal, and I kept expecting to wake up from it and find myself chained to a wall. I dreaded the inevitable conversation with Viktor and whether or not I still had a place on this team. Worst of all, I didn’t have anyone I could confide in. Not completely. “I’m tired, and I want to be alone. Can we talk about this in the morning?”

He sat up straight, hands on his knees. “I don’t wish to quarrel on your first night back. When you’re rested, we’ll discuss the matter.”

“I might not want to discuss the matter. If you have something to say, get it over with already.”

A knock sounded, and Claude peered inside. “I thought you might be hungry, female.” His nostrils flared in his attempt to pick up my emotional scent.