Page 44 of The Searching Songbird

I knew it. The moment I saw his name written down on that list, I knew it was him.

“Lily Delaney.” She sketched a quick curtsy.

“Delaney, huh?” He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “I don't believe I'm familiar with anyone by that name. Are you from out of town?”

“I am.”

It was on the tip of her tongue to say she'd traveled there from Eldour, but something held her back. Best not to give him too much information. Who knows how all of this will turn out.

He cocked his head to the side, studying her. “But you have relations, here, surely?”

“None that I'm aware of.”

His brow furrowed. “Your features are so familiar... I could almost swear I've seen someone like you before. I just can't quite put my finger on where...”

Panic gripped her hard and fast. Had he somehow been able to see her inside Fia that time? Had the vision worked both ways? I cannot let him suspect... If he knows why I'm here, it'll destroy my chances of reaching her.

“I... I couldn't say. Perhaps there is someone here with a similar appearance.” She managed what she hoped was a casual shrug. “Who knows?” Clearing her throat, she took a step backwards, half-turning toward the main road. “If you'll excuse me, I really must be going.”

“Of course. I'm sure your friend is quite worried by now.”

“Yes, exactly.” She mustered a smile. “Good day, sir.”

“Farewell, Miss Delaney.” His curious gaze remained fixed on her as she hurried off down the alleyway. Just before she reached the end, he called out, “I look forward to your performance.”

I believe I've already witnessed a performance of my own, she thought to herself as she ran up the steps of the theater. But you won't fool me with your friendly banter and charming smiles, Miles Tennyson, for I've seen who you really are. And, you sir, are the devil.

Chapter Twenty-Two

“Explain to me, Draven. The girl is unchaperoned, alone in a foreign land. It should be as easy as picking a cherry from a low-hanging branch to abscond with the girl. And yet you dally here, for what? Musicales?” The boss's face remained as coolly impassive as ever, unmoved except for the slightest flash in those silvery-blue eyes.

Draven's throat worked up and down as he attempted to sort out his thoughts while simultaneously fighting the pull of the boss's voice. The deceptively smooth words were laden with power. The kind that would have a weaker man begging to take his own life if only it would please him.

“About that...” He ran a nervous hand through his hair as he studied a crack running through the red-brick wall of the building next door. Soon after the boss had approached him in the theater, he'd suggested they move their discussion somewhere private. Now, standing in the dank alley beside the impressive stone building, he hesitated. Why had he not given this conversation proper consideration? What the hell was he supposed to say to convince this man to leave Lily be? He hardly seemed the romantic type...

“I need more time.”

The boss raised a brow, clearly waiting for him to expound.

“She... that is, I...” Bloody hell, what am I supposed to say?

“I can see that you're somewhat...conflicted,” the boss drawled, saving him from putting his mixed up thoughts into words. “I understand. Truly, I do. You're not like the others, the pirates and mercenaries that would do a man's bidding without a second thought, so long as they were paid.” He laid a heavy hand upon his shoulder. “Which is why I hold you in as much respect as I do, Draven. You're a man of honor, the likes of which I need by my side as much as I do the scrappers.”

He let his hand fall back to his side and cast a glance back at the front of the building. “Go. Reclaim your lady before she becomes overly concerned.” His eyes grew hard as he settled his gaze back on Draven's face. “Despite whatever you think of me, I do not wish the girl harm.”

Draven stood frozen for a split second before his legs finally got the message to move. Stumbling forward, he was halfway back to the front steps before the boss's voice gave him pause once more.

“I do not wish her harm, Draven, but I do need her. I'm staying at The Burrow. Meet me there tonight, and we'll discuss what needs to be done.”

What needs to be done.

Those words echoed through Draven's core as he ran up the steps to the theater, their implications twisting his stomach into knots.

“Draven!”

A distraught Lily ran to meet him as he stepped through the lobby entrance. He only had a moment to note the worried lines on her face and the panicked glimmer in her eyes before she barreled into him, throwing her slender arms around his neck. His arms wrapped around her waist instinctively, pulling her in so that she was layered against his chest.

“I was so worried,” she whispered, her hands clinging onto his shoulders as if for dear life. And, damn, if he didn't glory in the feel of her. Her head tucked neatly below his chin, her soft breasts pressed against his torso...