She paused and I watched a shudder run up her body. There it was. She’d sensed my presence, and she tilted her head back to regard me. A smile slipped easily into place to lower my guard, but I noted the jump of the pulse at her neck.
She was a pretty girl, observant as she took in our surroundings with a casual glance, eyes lingering on a pipe that could be used as a weapon before she focused her attention on me, no doubt to diffuse the situation before she had to resort to anything distasteful.
I took a purposeful step toward her, drawing up. I tilted my head curiously. “What made you assume I was an easy mark?”
She fluttered her eyelashes and widened her eyes. Expertly done. If I couldn’t hear her quickened breathing, I might have believed her innocence myself. “I’m not sure I understand the question, my lord.” Her eyes flicked past me, and I heard a soft footfall. I’d been so focused on the girl that I hadn’t noticed I’d been followed.
“Tell your friend if he moves another inch, I will end his life,” I said, not adding that I would end it anyway.
The girl pursed her lips and nodded past me. The man no longer approached, but I could hear him, licking his lips as if to ready himself.
“I suppose you want it back?” the girl sighed, digging into the folds of her dress, where pockets had been hidden. She lifted my money clip and held it out to me. “Here you go then. Pardon me for my impertinence. I have a family to feed, and it’s the holidays.” She met my eyes. Her face remained neutral, and I couldn’t tell if she had lied to gain my sympathy. Interesting. I was actually curious. I hadn’t felt this stirring of admiration in quite some time.
“What is your name?” I asked, ignoring the money clip.
The girl glanced down at her outstretched hand, then lowered it, lifting an eyebrow. “I’m not a whore. You’d best reset your expectations. I hear you can find your choice of girls on Fifth Street.”
“Okay, that’s about enough of this,” the man behind me proclaimed, stalking toward me. I didn’t even bother looking back. I grabbed his arm and wrenched it back with a crack that sent the man to his knees with a grunt of surprise and pain. “You dirty little—”
I bent the arm back farther and he swallowed a scream.
I hadn’t broken eye contact with the girl yet. “Your name?” I asked again.
She swallowed, eyes darting to her friend, who was likely pale from pain. “Raven.”
“Raven,” I said, nodding to myself. “I like that. Clever little birds, curious, intelligent.” I reached into my pocket and retrieved a dagger. “Tell me, Raven, would you offer me a taste of your blood, for the chance to live a little longer?”
The girl stared at the knife, as if weighing whether she could run to safety before I held it to her throat. I held it out to her.
The man whose arm I held reached into his own pocket, and I finally glanced down at him. He was a man with copper hair in his thirties, with sideburns down to his chin. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”
The man paused, then let out a small breath as I loosened my grip slightly on his arm.
I returned my gaze to Raven.
She wet her lips. “You’re a vampire.” I credited her for saying it without her voice shaking.
“Quite right,” I agreed, grinning. “Bad luck, your finding me in the crowd.”
“You were alone, distracted, and you wear an expensive jacket,” she replied. Her eyes narrowed. “You wanted to appear like an innocent human.”
“Of course. We are not so different, are we, Raven?”
“I beg to differ,” she said, dropping my money clip into the dirty snow at her feet and snatching the dagger from my hand. She examined it for a moment, as if considering if she could use it to turn me away, but instead, she cut her palm with a sure stroke, offering her hand to me.
I grinned at her. “Good girl. But I think I’d like to drink from your neck. It doesn’t have to be a deep cut, mind you, just enough to—”
She didn’t wait for me to finish. She shoved the dagger directly into my chest, over my heart.
I grunted in surprise, letting go of the man at my side. Black blood spilled into my throat before the cut knit itself back together. I swallowed it thickly, then laughed, watching the girl as she eyed the dagger with a quiver in her lips. She held herself quite well. I wondered just how much she could handle.
Before she could pull her hands away from the hilt, I covered them with my own, grinning down at her. “If you were aiming for my heart, you have to be mindful of the ribs.” I helped her pull the dagger out from my chest, where it had embedded itself in the bone. I hid a wince as the blade slid out. “But I appreciate your intentions.”
I backhanded her, and she held a hand up to her cheek as blood leaked from the corner of her mouth. She licked it clean, and I tilted my head, enchanted by this reaction. I wiped the dagger’s blade off on my pant leg before handing it back to her. “Now, kill your friend and I’ll let you live. If you don’t, both of you are going to die tonight.”
The girl considered me for a moment, her eyes sliding to the man in consideration. He stared back at the girl with wide eyes, head shaking ever so slightly.
I crossed my arms as I watched hesitation flit over the girl’s features. “I’ll give you extra incentive.” I moved too quickly for the girl to follow, grabbing her leg and slicing a hand down over her femur, earning the crack of bone that sent a shiver of pleasure up my spine.
