Night Storm (Bones & Gemstones Book 1)

by Tracey Devlyn

  “Of course, thank you.” The moment she turned to leave, another voice stopped her cold.

  “Soft-hearted, Christopher. What might you be up to?”

  Piper glanced over her shoulder in time to see regret edge across Christopher Gordon’s handsome features. A feminine hand curled over his shoulder, caressing the broad ridge. The mahogany-haired temptress, Vivian Keighley, emerged from the shadows to smile upon Charlotte.

  This time, the stunning actress wore a deep emerald-green gown shot through with gold ribbon. The same colored ribbon adorned a pearl drop hugging her slender neck. Below the ribbon, she sported yet another necklace. The heavy gold chain was so long that if it had been worn by a more modest woman, Piper would never have seen the jeweled locket dangling at the end.

  “Piper Scott, correct?”

  Feeling gauche and awkward, Piper nodded, tucking a nonexistent stray lock behind her ear.

  “How adorable!” The actress laughed, a rich, velvety waterfall of sound concocted to force men to their knees.

  Piper glanced at Christopher. No longer could she read regret in his expression. In fact, his face seemed devoid of all emotion until the siren’s fingers tunneled through his hair. Her touch sparked an instant, if slightly reluctant, reaction. The more Vivian toyed with his hair, the more his reluctance disappeared.

  “That’s better, my pet.” Vivian released Christopher and sauntered over to Piper, circling her like a breeder inspecting prized horseflesh.

  Vivian moved behind Piper, clasping her upper arms as if she were about to present her to a potential buyer. With her chin resting on Piper’s right shoulder, she spoke to Christopher. “Lovely, don’t you think?”

  The blank look had returned to Christopher’s face, though the gravelly tone to his voice spoke volumes. “Breathtakingly so.”

  Enslaved, Piper thought. Something about this mahogany-haired woman obliterated all sense and human decency in the handsome actor.

  Vivian caressed a bladelike nail along Piper’s cheek. “Much more pliable than her ladyship, yes?”

  “Vivian, I don’t think—”

  “No, you don’t,” she interrupted. “It’s my job to do the thinking for the both of us.” Her voice grew velvety again. “Time to play, pet.”

  Christopher began unfastening his greatcoat.

  Piper’s attention remained riveted on his hands, even while her mind screamed, Run! She didn’t understand what game these two were playing, but it scared her. Never more so than when Vivian’s hand covered Piper’s breast.

  She bolted away, her body shaking violently. “What are you doing?” She glanced at Christopher. Seeing no help there, she demanded, “Are you mad?”

  Vivian’s amusement faded, taking with it her beautiful mask. She lifted a heart-shaped locket from the valley of her generous bosom and rubbed the golden keepsake over her painted lips. “The last time a woman questioned my state of mind, she paid for it with her life.”

  Piper focused on the heavy gold chain and tried to pull the riddle together. Gold chain. Her ladyship. Bruising around the neck. Corpse at the theater.

  The answer struck her so hard she nearly cried out from the shock of it. “You killed Lady Winthrop?”

  Satisfaction smoothed out the cruel lines that had taken hold of the actress’s features. “I had tired of her, so no real loss.”

  “But why?”

  Vivian’s languid gaze slid over to Christopher, who had remained unnaturally quiet through their exchange. “Would you like to tell her, darling?”

  Anguish blanketed the actor’s handsome face. “Go to hell, Vivian.”

  “Language, pet. Sweet Piper isn’t used to such harsh talk.” Vivian’s gaze traveled down Piper’s length in much the same way as Christopher’s had. Where Christopher’s attention made her uncomfortable, Vivian’s sent terror running down her spine. “Have you ever been kissed, Piper?”

  “That’s none of your business.”

  Vivian chuckled. “I didn’t think so. Having never taken a man between your legs means you’d be doubly shocked to learn Lady Winthrop was my lover.”

  The notion of two women making love was too fantastical. “You lie.”

  “Do I?” Vivian’s voice dropped to a sultry whisper. “Tell her, Christopher.”

  Jaw set, he said, “She speaks the truth.”

  “Why would you kill someone you cared about?”

  “Dearest, Piper.” Vivian looked upon her as if she were about to counsel a child. “I said nothing about caring for the baroness. I simply gave her access to my body. And Christopher’s.”

  Piper’s mind froze, unable to comprehend the siren’s words.

  “All had been going well. The baroness showered gifts upon us, paid our rent, satisfied our appetites…until she tempted Christopher away from me.” Vivian pulled the locket from between her breasts. “When I realized the two were meeting each other secretly, I knew it was time to end our liaison with the baroness. Permanently.”

  “Why did you have to kill her?”

  Vivian flashed a cruel smile toward her lover. “Christopher forced my hand the moment he fell in love with her.” She kissed the heart-shaped locket. “Inside this little trinket lies a lock of dear Christopher’s hair. Romantic, is he not? Too bad her ladyship did not get a chance to enjoy his costly present for long.”

  “You cannot kill every woman I fall in love with,” Christopher said, anguish riddled his features.

  “Oh, I don’t know,” Vivian said in a singsong voice. “I’m doing pretty well so far.”

  Piper stared. How many people had these two killed?

  The actress shifted her attention back to Piper. “Before we get started, there’s one thing you should never forget.” She drew up her jewel-tone skirts and pulled a knife from a sleeve tied around her calf. Sending Piper a seductive sidelong glance, she lifted her hem higher to reveal black garters. “Never forget Christopher is mine.”

  When Piper made no response, Vivian hiked her skirts to her hips and signaled to her lover. She wore nothing beneath.

  Enslaved by something Piper was not equipped to understand, the actor dropped to his knees before the temptress. Vivian smoothed the knife along his jaw. “My little pet forgot my cardinal rule for a few weeks, and the baroness paid for his mistake with her life.”

  Vivian nicked her finger with the knife. Blood beaded over the open wound, and she smeared it over her lover’s bottom lip, and then slipped the tip into his mouth.

  The sickening display both horrified and fascinated Piper. Her feet seemed rooted in place, yet her mind kept urging her to escape. When Christopher bent his head toward the apex of Vivian’s legs, Piper did just that. She ran. As fast as her booted feet would take her.

  The siren laughed. “Oh, innocent Piper. Don’t you want to see your brother, Felix?”

  Piper halted, breathless, tears threatening. Dear God, could Felix be here after all? Slowly, she pivoted. Bile rose in the back of her throat at the mere thought of what vile act those two would be performing. An act she would be compelled to watch if she wanted to see Felix again.

  Christopher still kneeled on the floor, a look of frustration marring his features. Vivian, on the other hand, stood with nonchalant grace near a staircase. The same one Piper and Mrs. Fielding had exited from after observing Felix’s performance on Monday. She couldn’t believe how much their lives had changed in such a short period of time.

  “Pretty Piper,” Vivian crooned, waving her hand toward the staircase. “Your brother awaits.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  Charlotte’s heart thundered, and sweat trickled into the corner of her eyes, making it difficult to see through the haze of her fear. One by one, she crawled up the Augusta’s spiral staircase, determined to reach Felix.

  After Trigger’s disturbing discovery, she and Cam had hurried to the theater while Trigger delivered her regrets to Mr. Buchanan. Even now, with Piper’s and Felix’s safety hanging in the balance, she still ex
perienced a twinge of guilt for having deserted Mr. Buchanan and Lachlan.

  Entering through the same passageway where they had found Lady Winthrop’s corpse a few days ago, she and Cam paused just inside and listened for any telltale signs of disturbance. As luck would have it, they had arrived in time to hear Vivian Keighley’s dark description of what she had done to Lady Winthrop in order to keep her “pet” all to herself.

  Amoral, perverted creature. Charlotte now had a better understanding of why the killer—Vivian—had slashed the baroness’s face. The actress either felt threatened by Lady Winthrop, or she was marking her territory like a wild animal. Both options were incomprehensible to her.

  And Charlotte now understood the significance of the blue thread beneath Lady Winthrop’s fingernail. The day of the murder was the day she had met Vivian. Charlotte recalled admiring the actress’s ability to wear the garish sapphire dress.

  Joseph had been right. Lady Winthrop had tried to fight off her attacker. Her female attacker, who wore a deep sapphire-blue dress.

  Such cold-blooded evil is rarely associated with women.

  Cameron’s words surfaced in her mind. Evidently, evil did not have a preferred gender.

  Charlotte paused to catch her breath. This ascent was so much worse than the first time. She had to go slowly so as not to arouse Vivian’s or Christopher’s notice. Add the pressure of finding Felix and getting him to safety, and she had the makings of a dismal heroine.

  Craning her neck, she tried to catch a glimpse of Cam. But she could not see him anywhere. Leaving him to deal with two mentally unstable actors had been the hardest thing she’d ever done. How she wished they had taken the time to notify the authorities or round up some help. But they had both been focused on getting to Piper and Felix posthaste.

  The moment the actress mentioned Felix’s location, Cam had given Charlotte urgent instructions, punctuated by a hard, love-filled kiss and a harsh warning to be careful. She hadn’t the heart to tell him about her fear of heights. Given a choice, she would much rather have faced a crazed actress than climb forty-seven wrought-iron stairs.

  Unable to put it off any longer, she continued her ascent, gripping each stair as if it were the only thing keeping her from plummeting into the depths of hell. Twenty-five, twenty-six, twenty-seven.

  Piper’s voice reached her. “Did you also place the red tie next to her ladyship’s body?”

  Charlotte froze midcrawl. How had Piper worked out that particular scenario for the red tie? Her assistant had been there when Charlotte had discovered the evidence, and she’d accompanied Charlotte to the theater, knowing that their visit had something to do with Felix. But to link all those circumstances together to create a conspiracy against Felix would have taken a great deal of ingenuity.

  Charlotte climbed two more stairs while she considered what Trig had witnessed earlier. He’d said Felix had been agitated upon entering the shop. Could their conversation with him earlier have revealed something vital to Felix? They had spent a great deal of time discussing his costume. If Felix said something to Piper about the costume discussion, the two of them together might have reasoned out enough to raise Felix’s ire.

  “Red tie?” Vivian repeated. “What on Earth are you going on about?”

  “So you didn’t plant Felix’s broken cloak tie next to Lady Winthrop’s body?” A mixture of suspicion and disappointment rimmed Piper’s words.

  “No,” Vivian mused. “I wish I had, though. Such an ingenious plan. With Felix’s talent, he would have been lead before long. Removing the upstart from Mr. Riordan’s notice would have been the perfect solution to keeping Chris as lead for several more years.”

  Seven more stairs, and Charlotte could draw in a deep, full breath again.

  “Had you not plied your wiles on Riordan,” Christopher Gordon said, “he would not have taken a dislike to us, and my position would have been secure for a long while—without me having to send innocents to gaol.”

  Silence flooded the area below. Charlotte found herself straining to hear Vivian’s reaction to her lover’s pronouncement. She didn’t have long to wait.

  Vivian laughed, deep-throated and delighted. “Oh, my goodness, Chris. Did you really plant the evidence?”

  “You left me no choice!”

  “Well,” Vivian said, unaffected by his anger. “Your conscience will be clear again after tonight. There will be no innocents imprisoned at your hand. I’ll take care of everything, as I have always done since we were children.” She paused a moment. “Up you go, Pretty Piper.”

  Panic propelled Charlotte up the final few stairs. She had to get to Felix and free him before Piper and Vivian reached him. Reaching the final stair, she closed her eyes and rolled onto her back, taking a second to regain control of her shaking limbs again.

  She angled her head to the side and opened her eyes. In the far corner, she located Felix, frightened and chained to a large wooden beam running the vertical length of the wall behind him.

  Eyes wide, Felix stared at something above her. Time slowed. Every muscle in her body went taut, waiting, bracing for impact.

  Dimly, the sound of muffled pounding reached her. Her heart, she thought absently. It thundered so hard within the wall of her chest that she could hear its laboring echo inside her ears.

  Turning her head toward the threat, she found Peter standing over her—with a large iron pipe in his hand.

  Chapter Nineteen

  A waterfall of icy dread washed over Adair when he noticed a familiar mop of shaggy brown hair dart across an opening on the opposite side of the macabre scene unfolding between them. Hours seemed to pass before Trig poked his head around the doorframe.

  Anger fired through his veins at the whelp’s blatant disobedience. Now he had one more person he cared for to worry about.

  When he saw Trig preparing to move closer to the two insane actors, Adair stepped out of his hidden location and into the dim light. Visible to all.

  Trig spotted him instantly and made to wave a greeting—until he accurately read Adair’s murderous expression. Adair needed to get Trig away from Vivian and Christopher. Volatility vibrated around those two. He couldn’t protect Trig against such illogic and emotional chaos.

  With a few hand gestures, Adair did his best to direct Trig to the wrought-iron staircase Charley had ascended minutes ago. Miracle of all miracles, his streetwise, pain-in-the-arse assistant understood and slipped away. Toward Charley.

  Adair melted back into the shadows once again, relief replacing a good portion of his anger, though he saved enough to gnaw on the boy’s backside when next they met.

  “Up, up,” Vivian coaxed Piper in annoyance. “I’ll be right behind you.”

  The moment Piper and the witch actress started up the staircase, Adair emerged from behind the large prop formed in the shape of a tree. He silently placed each foot with precision.

  With Charlotte, Trig, Piper, and Felix in danger, he would take no chances, give no mercy. It took every bit of his willpower not to shift his attention to Charley’s location. Having her this close to so much evil made his stomach cramp.

  “Chris, pet,” Vivian said, glancing over her shoulder. “Are you coming—” Her eyes widened in shock at the sight of Adair.

  Already in the process of reaching for Gordon, Adair jumped on the actor’s back, balanced his weight, and snapped the sick bastard’s neck. Gordon slumped to the floor, and Adair followed him down, landing on his feet. His boots had barely touched the ground before he bolted toward the staircase.

  “Run, Piper!” he bellowed.

  The actress seized the girl’s ankle, yanking her down hard. Piper jammed her heel into the woman’s chest, causing her to gasp for air and loosen her grip. It was enough to allow Piper to make her escape.

  Adair reached the actress just as she regained her breath. The knife came out of nowhere, catching him beneath the jaw. The sting of metal searing across his flesh momentarily confused him. Warm blood poured d
own his neck, and Adair knew he had little time to finish this.

  On a surge of raw power, he grabbed for the shrieking actress, and missed. The heel of her shoe connected with his injured shoulder, and his vision blurred. His body flushed cold, hot, cold. Adair shook his head to clear the pain away and scrambled after the murderess.

  Only a few more stairs to go before she reached Charley, and Adair felt his body failing him. His feet and arms became sluggish and heavy. He couldn’t let Charley down, not after earning her faith again. Her love.

  Like an erupting volcano, Adair burst forward, a war cry tore from his throat. His arms wrapped around the witch’s knees, and he jerked back hard, sending them both plummeting to the ground.

  Chapter Twenty

  Charlotte rested her forehead against Cam’s bare arm. Two nights and two days of watching over him, with only brief naps in between shifts, had taken its toll on her body. She hadn’t wanted to rest even then, but Jules, with the help of Mr. Buchanan, had strong-armed her into leaving Cam’s side.

  The healer in Charlotte knew she was no use to him if her mind was foggy from lack of sleep. But the friend and lover in her couldn’t bear to leave him alone.

  Charlotte replayed the events of the other night over and over in her mind. The sight of Cam sprawled unconscious on the wooden theater floor, blood covering his throat, was an image she would never forget. By some miracle, he had survived the fall that had cracked open Vivian’s skull and broken her back.

  His survival came with a cost—three broken ribs, a fractured ulna, a laceration to the neck, and a brain contusion. The latter caused her the most concern, though Mr. Buchanan was confident the swelling on Cam’s brain would go down with time and rest.

  Thank goodness for Mr. Buchanan’s reassuring presence. Without him, she would have second-guessed her every move, driven herself insane. When she had sent Trig to fetch him—a mere two hours after Trig had delivered her note about not being able to attend his dinner party—her mentor had come without question. He had seen to Felix’s and Piper’s minor injuries after assisting her with Cam.