Page 23 of Eternal Surrender

He hesitated. “And how would you know that?”

“I know him. Intimately,” I said it too quickly.

“He’s never mentioned you.”

“Really?”

“I find that rather odd.”

“I work for him,” I told him. “Deal mostly with the ‘tedious crap,’ as Orpheus calls it.”

“Like?”

Seeing Marcus again brought some comfort, but I knew well enough to keep my distance. “Investments.” I hoped that sounded convincing.

“He has a broker.”

“Orpheus hates his broker.” I bit my lip, thinking of how much better I could have phrased that. “But he likes his accountant.” I gave a crooked smile.

“How come I’ve never met you?”

“I’m rarely in London.”

He scratched his chin, staring off. “Do you know where I can find him?”

“He’s taking care of some personal business, I believe.”

“How do you know him again?”

“We go way back.” I wondered whether now was a good time to explain the truth, though knowing Marcus’s unpredictable nature, I reconsidered. The last thing I needed was to provoke an assault.

“Prove it,” he said.

I tried to work out how best to handle him. “Orpheus rescued you from Blackfriars.”

“That’s not exactly a secret.”

“It’s not exactly common knowledge either.”

He folded his arms across his chest to let me know it wasn’t good enough.

“You once befriended Orpheus’s doppelgänger. . .” I said wryly. “Orpheus was of course flattered.”

Marcus shifted his stance.

Realizing I’d brought up an intimate instance meant to be held in confidence, I tried to change the subject. “You found Jacob for him.”

“His son,” Marcus replied. “That was a long time ago. Orpheus told you that?” Marcus was uneasy. “Why has he never mentioned you?”

A train sped past spraying orange sparks. We both waited for it to head off down the track, allowing us to hear each other again.

“He finds me boring.” I gave a shrug, pleased to see the relaxed shift in Marcus’s demeanor.

He scratched his head, seeming to lose interest.

“He’s done this before,” I said. “Pissed off without telling anyone.”

Marcus took in a deep breath.