The idea of escape was a dream, a beautiful one she had to admit, but still a dream. She couldn’t run, and this time she believed Samuel wouldn’t run either. He wouldn’t leave until this Jack the Ripper was caught, even if that put his own happiness at stake.
And herself? The Guild Masters would never let her go, especially with the thoughts of another still fixed in her head. Sooner or later the Administrators would catch up with her and take her home. Even if she’d often thought of running away as a child, of finding a life beyond the walls of the Archives, those possibilities were gone. The longer she’d stayed, the stronger the bonds she’d formed with the others. Dennison, Jones, they’d become her family. Master June had quietly slipped into the void left by her mother. No matter how much Sam meant to her in the past, she couldn’t walk away from everyone she loved, the people who were there to help her move on when he’d run out of her life. He’d already rejected her twice; she couldn’t risk that he’d do that again, leaving her with nothing.
Samuel walked over to the hearth and began to play with the dying embers, encouraging them back to life with the tip of the poker. She knew he was upset—those signs hadn’t changed in the least since he was younger—but there was nothing she could do to make things right.
“It’s full dark now.” Samuel’s voice startled Piper from her thoughts. He stood at the widow, peeking beyond the thin blind. “He should be along soon.”
“Dennison will make sure we’re fine. I know you don’t trust him, but he was always your friend.”
“You’re right, I don’t trust him. He always thought he was better than us.” Samuel paused, staring at her. The muscles in his jaw danced as he clenched and unclenched his teeth. Finally, Samuel ran a hand through his hair and down his face. “Annie.”
The non sequitur had her frowning. “What about her?”
“What is it like? Having her in your head?”
You be careful now, pet. While he might have a pretty cock, that doesn’t mean you can trust him. He’s still a copper, and they don’t always do what they should.
“She’s noisy.” A rush of disgust flooded her body, making it difficult to maintain eye contact with Samuel. “She doesn’t trust you because you work for the King’s Sentry. It’s difficult to keep her feelings separate from my own.”
“My work has had me doing many things that some of the less savory citizens of New London don’t appreciate. It’s taken me places I’d rather not go.” He balled his hand into a fist and his body swayed toward her, and yet he held himself back. “Dark places, doing dark things.”
“Only what you had to, Sam.”
Samuel let loose a desperate laugh. Turning, he stalked across the room and dropped to his knees at her feet. “Not always. Sometimes I had to fight myself to ensure I didn’t cross the line, go too far. When I first joined the Sentry there was this case. A clockwerker accused of killing his workmen and using their bodies to fuel his machines. I was told to get the information out of him no matter what. I did, too. I beat him until I broke his jaw.”
Christ.
“My fist was bloody and my fingers swollen for days. Timmons took me home after that, made sure I wasn’t going to go out and kill someone. His words. Not mine.”
Knowing that there was darkness inside Samuel didn’t come as a surprise. “Why?”
Samuel snorted as he ran a hand through his hair. “If you’d seen the bodies, you wouldn’t be asking me that.”
“Did it work?”
“No.”
“Why not?” How could someone withstand that much violence, pain?
“I could feel his hate, not just at us for having caught him, but toward everyone, all of New London. Toward me. But the bastard didn’t say a word. It didn’t matter how much I hit him.” With a lick of his lips, Samuel lowered his head. “That’s not the worst of it.”
How could it be any worse than nearly beating a man to death? “Tell me.”
“Even now I remember how it felt to punch him. I was horrified at first, couldn’t believe what I was doing, but then I started to like it. After Timmons pulled me off him, all I could think of was how much my hand hurt and how horrible a human being I was. I’d nearly killed a man.”
No. “I don’t believe it. How could you enjoy something like that?”
“Not everyone has a gentle spirit. Some of us have to work to keep ourselves level.”
Piper was well aware that she had lived a sheltered life. But this was a much different Samuel than the boy who’d grown up with her. He’d grown hard since striking out on his own. What would life be like, spending her days and nights with someone like that?
Here, let me show you.
A flash of memory not her own filled her mind’s eye. Annie hadn’t looked long at him, but enough that Piper had a clear vision of who the man was.
He liked a hard fuck. Came to me more than once because he said he knew how far he could push me. You’ll need to try it with that sergeant of yours. Have him squeeze your throat as he pounds into you. Your knees up by your shoulders so you’re opened wide.
Piper groaned and fell forward against Samuel.
“What?” He caressed the back of her neck, holding her close. “Pip?”
“Annie…” She swallowed hard, stunned by the strength of her sudden lust. “Jack, I think.”
“He’d been with her?”
“More than once. I think she was trying to pacify him. He wanted the Children of Osiris to accept him as their own.”
Oh, they all used my services, pet. I was more a woman than you’ll ever be.
“Shut up.”
The things I could teach you. You’d make your Sam scream, feel pleasure in ways he didn’t know possible.
Piper squeezed Samuel’s shoulder hard. “Shut up, shut up, shut up.”
“Pip?”
Looking up, she let her nose brush along the side of Samuel’s cheek. “I see him in my head, but from her memories. She’s… I think she’s holding something back from me.”
Ah, so yer not as dumb as some of them others.
“Tell me, Annie.”
No. It was odd, but Piper knew the other woman had somehow retreated to one of the far corners of her mind.
“She’s hiding from me now.”
Samuel ran a hand down her arm, squeezing at her wrist. “We’ll figure it out together. I’ll help you if you trust me.”
“I do. I always have.”
“You probably shouldn’t.”
Desire flared in his eyes as his gaze raked down her body. A blush heated her face and she had to fight the urge to squirm away from Samuel and his heated look.
“I’ve tried to tell you, I’m not a good man. Given enough temptation, I’ll simply take what I want. What we both want.”
Her lungs tightened and Piper had to fight to draw in air.
She jumped at the frantic rapping on the door. Samuel wouldn’t let her step away, the light grip on her arm might as well have been steel. “Dennison.”
She watched as Samuel checked his gun, reloading two bullets into the chambers. It was so easy to forget that he was a dangerous man. One with a sharp mind and faultless logic, and all the strength of a twenty-four-year-old male in prime physical condition. He was full of hatred and mistrust for others and for himself, the result of what the Archivists had done to him, and those feelings informed his thinking even now that he was free.
It broke Piper’s heart.
“You’re a good man, Sam. No matter what you’ve done in the past.” She smiled when his startled gaze landed on her. “Don’t ever forget that.”
Samuel jerked the door open, catching the other man’s hand in the air, mid knock.
“Ah, ever the dutiful sergeant. On patrol, I see.” Dennison pushed past and marched straight to Piper’s side. “I trust you are unharmed, Miss Smith.”
“Are you implying I would do something to injure her? I’d give my life to keep her safe and you know it, Dennison.”
Piper hated the smirk on Dennison’s lips, knowing he enjoyed teasing a man he saw as a traitor to what they’d been raised to believe. “Sam has treated me with the utmost respect. Like an equal and a treasured friend. So stop being an ass, Emmet.”
Dennison straightened, pulling back the hand he’d offered her. Choosing to make a stand, Piper moved beside Samuel so their arms brushed in a silent show of solidarity. “I hope you managed to throw the Administrators off our scent. They’re the last thing we need to manage.”
Her voice was a steady force, far calmer than the maelstrom blasting within her. Lust and fear, warring with the need to break free from this haze of confusion. Piper’s hands shook and she was forced to lace them behind her back to hide the fact.
Dennison’s gaze shifted between the two of them before he scratched his scalp with his fingers. She knew he was trying to act casual, but she’d spent far too much time in his company to fall for the ruse. He was angry and frustrated, unable to hide his balled fist or conceal the jumping muscles of his jaw. Dennison always prided himself on his understanding and control of any situation. He was clearly not in control of this one.
“He’s gotten his wrist slapped by the Masters.” Samuel wrapped his arm around her waist and tugged her close. Her heartbeat immediately increased at the feel of his warmth pressed to her side and the scent of his cologne reaching her.
“Unlike you, I know what my duties and responsibilities are. I don’t run off half-cocked into the night without a second thought to the people left behind who’ll be forced to clean up my mess.”
“Fuck you, Emmet.” Samuel dropped his hold on her and stepped away. “You know nothing about what I had to do. You’re nothing more than a privileged brat.”
“Enough!” How could the two of them bicker like children when there was a double murderer on the loose? Piper stepped away from Samuel, deftly avoiding his touch. “The two of you need to stop this and work together.”
“No.” Their voices mingled together perfectly.
“Well, you’ve managed to agree on something.” Piper made her way to the bed and sat on the edge. There were too many threads floating around, none of which made sense. She needed to see the bigger picture. “What are we doing here?”
“We’re wasting time.” Dennison shook his head. “On my way here I picked up an early edition. It seems our killer was tired of dwelling in anonymity.” Pulling the folded paper from his coat, he handed it over to Samuel.
The paper was still crisp as Dennison shoved it into his hand. A single sheet, but it told Samuel everything he needed to know.
I wasn’t codding, dear old Boss, when I sent you the note. Maybe now you’ll pay attention to saucy Jack and my work. More to come, a double event, I think. Thanks for keeping that last letter back until I got to work again.
Jack the Ripper
Dear God.
“He’s taunting us.” Samuel tossed the paper into the fire.
“For all we know the killer isn’t even an archivist. He could be an albino, or trying to trick us into thinking he’s a part of the guild. Whores are murdered all the time. There’ve been no indicators that this killer is attached to the guild beyond a slur and some hazy impressions from a prostitute.”
“He is.” Samuel got to his feet and walked to the window, tossing Dennison a tube. “That’s a letter he sent to me after the first killing. It seemed like the ravings of a lunatic when I first read it, with no clues for me, so I dismissed it. But now I’m beginning to understand. Jack is somehow connected to the Archives.”
Chapter Thirteen
Many times in his life, Samuel had dreamed about the closure of the Archives. He’d been there with his foster father when protesters filled Memorial Square and shouted for the king to close the doors and execute all of the extractors. This had been shortly after his own escape from the grasp of the Guild Masters, the hate and bias against the Archives rolling off the throng of people that writhed together in the square. Their feelings were so strong it had made him ill. He had his own reasons to distrust the archivists, but even he couldn’t understand the force of their emotions.
The Hudson’s Bay Company had added its own protestations, a surprise given the company’s own dabbling with the same questionable technology and their continued ties to the crown. They’d publicly stated that they should have greater involvement with the Archives, as it was their technology that fired at its heart. The Archives had grown too secretive, the Company’s leadership had argued, and an “independent” third party should take on the role of advisor. Samuel remembered his adoptive parents’ snickers at the irony.
But nothing came of the outcry. The crowds slowly dispersed, the members drifting back to their shops and merchant stalls. The Hudson’s Bay Company representative disappeared back into the ether, hidden once more behind the wall of silence.
And the Archivists continued their work, collecting and storing the memories of the dead. Influencing the king, advising on trade and foreign relations.
Still, the idea of an archivist going mad and killing women made Samuel’s stomach turn and his head throb. Most of the men and women who wore the guild colors were good souls.
All of their lives would be in danger if Jack were revealed to be one of them.
Piper shared a long look with Dennison. “We need to tell him about the cult.”
“What?” Samuel pressed his back to the window. “Cult?”
“Miss Smith, there is still no proof—”
She quickly filled Samuel in on the details they’d learned from Doctor Constantine. The King’s Sentry had been made aware of the doctor’s conflicting loyalties, but had no proof he’d done anything close to treason.
“And Jack has one of these tattoos?”
“Annie had one as well. There is a chance she’d met Jack through the cult. Or because he was trying to get into it.”
“I don’t remember seeing it on her body?”
“Whoever did this to her had disfigured her arm.” Piper shivered. “I think he was trying to obscure the tattoo, put some distance between her and the group.”
“The cult isn’t implicated in the murders, though, and the good Doctor Constantine was sending us on a wild goose chase.” Dennison sat once more into the chair, but this time he looked exhausted. “We are no closer to discovering the truth than we were a week ago.”
“But we have Annie’s memories in my head now. Between the three of us, we should be able to determine who killed her and Mary.” There was a note of determination and certainty he’d never heard from her before. She had changed and grown in remarkable ways since his departure, and he was only now beginning to appreciate them.
Piper didn’t look at Dennison throughout the exchange, but Samuel could still feel her interest. Growing up, Dennison used to tease her about her accent and her humble life before coming to the Archives. Clearly, they’d grown past their differences since then.
Samuel had been a fool to think he could push his way back into her life. Despite how close they’d come to falling into bed with each other, he was the intruder here. Dennison might have more of a claim on her heart and life than he realized. Forbidden love was sometimes the strongest.
Piper turned her face, breaking the contact, and deftly stood, forcing both men to shift aside. “What we need is a plan.”
“Agreed.” Samuel got to his feet, rising to his full height. It gave him the advantage of several inches over Dennison. “We need to gather what resources we have, and backtrack Annie’s last few days. That should lead us to the killer.”
Dennison snorted. “Unless it was a totally random act.”
“It wasn’t.” Piper spoke at the same time as Samuel. A light blush covered her cheeks, but she pressed on. “She learned something, and I suspect Mary was aware of the same thing. It got them both marked for death.”
“Has she said anything else to you?” He hated the idea of that woman’s thoughts and feelings rolling around inside Pip. It was
too tempting a corruption, begging him to exploit it.
“No, but I can feel that she isn’t telling me everything. It’s like she’s grown comfortable inside my head and knows if she says too much, I’ll get rid of her.”
“As you should. The longer she’s in there, Miss Smith, the more potential damage will be done to your mind when the memories are wiped. Even now she could be entwining herself with your thoughts, melding your personalities together.”
“I’m well aware, Emmet.”
“Then we need to fix this. Now.”
There was something in Dennison’s tone, bitterness long practiced that Samuel had never noticed before. “Spit it out, man. If you have a problem with me, then say it.”
As Dennison rose to his feet, it was clear he was no longer the isolated, impulsive child Samuel remembered. He’d been trained, developed an edge, and Samuel knew Dennison wasn’t afraid to use it. Coming nose to nose with his onetime friend, Samuel realized if things went badly, Dennison would make a powerful enemy.
Narrowing his gaze, Samuel shifted his stance to put his weight on his back foot. “You don’t want to fight me.”
“Scared I’m going to hurt you, sergeant?”
“Hardly. While you might be someone of importance in the Archives, out on the streets you’re only a zombie, having led a sheltered life.”
Dennison shoved Samuel’s shoulder hard. He didn’t move. “You’re a traitor to us.”
“I did what I had to.”
“What you had to do?” The shrill note in Dennison’s voice shot straight through Samuel. “You fucking left us!”
The punch was expected, even if the strength behind it was more than Samuel would have given Dennison credit for. “Not bad.” He rubbed his jaw. “But you’ll only get to do that once.”
Gilded Hearts (The Shadow Guild Series) Page 16