Page 85 of Kiss the Dawn
I lost myself in the inky depth of his pupils. “Yes.”
He withdrew, leaving me momentarily empty before snapping his hips back to fill me once more. A guttural sound clawed its way up my throat, followed by another and another as he thrust, hitting the spot that twisted my lungs and sent cold fire spiraling through me.
My body spasmed as I came, vibrating as the orgasm ripped through me. Ezekiel’s golden eyes bled to crimson as he found release.
We remained locked together for several minutes as our bodies recovered from the assault of pleasure.
Then Ezekiel smiled and said, “Was that good for you?”
I stared at him for several beats because, had he just made a joke? Laughter bubbled up my throat and spilled from my lips in a giggle.
His smile turned into a grin, and his laughter joined mine.
And it was the most beautiful sound in the world.
Chapter 30
PADMA
Ihate this part. Sitting still with a needle in me while someone else’s blood filters into my veins and my infected blood is removed. There’s nothing to do but think, and Jacqueline usually leaves me alone to do just that, but tonight, for some reason, she wants to chat.
She perches on a stool at her work bench, cup of tea in one hand, cigarette in the other.
“And how is work?” she asks.
“It’s fine.”
“Just fine? Oh, come now, Padma. You work for the Order; there must be something interesting happening. Any juicy cases?” She takes a drag, cheeks hollowing, holds it, then exhales. “What about the missing persons case?”
“How do you know about that?”
“Your friend Edwin mentioned it when he was here with you last.” She does the exaggerated move of looking around her. “Where is he, by the way? I do enjoy his company. He’s so nice to look at.”
I don’t like the idea of her ogling my Edwin, and my tone reflects it. “He’s busy, and the case is…it’s a bust so far.”
“Really? No leads at all? How strange.”
The curse is broken. Orina is safe, and so is Dracul territory. A huge win for us, but there are still people missing. Jacqueline does lots of reading and research, and she’s lived here for like…forever. Maybe she can help.
“There’s a symbol. It’s on a piece of paper in my jacket pocket. It’s our only lead.”
She stubs out her cigarette and crosses the room to the coat hanger, returning a moment later with the slip of paper. She studies the symbol. “This looks familiar. I’ve seen it somewhere.”
My pulse spikes. “You have? Can you remember where?”
She chews on her cheeks. “Let me make a fresh pot of tea. It will give my mind a moment to work on it. I’m sure it will come to me.” She leaves me to my transfusion, and I sag back in my seat.
If she can tell us where she saw the symbol, then we’ll have a starting point. We might be able to track down this group and find out what they’ve done withall the people they’ve taken. I want to believe that they’re still alive, but Edwin’s the optimist, not me.
Jacqueline returns with a pot of tea. “I recalled where I saw the symbol. There are a few boarded-up buildings in Brimswood. It was on one of those. I can’t remember the name of the street, but it’s between Brimswood Park and the Pavilion Hall. There’s a laundromat and a department store called Williams and Johns on the street.”
“Doesn’t ring a bell, but it’s certainly something we can look into. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Oh, and I saw it at night. It was…glowing. I’m not sure how visible it will be in the daytime.”
“Then we’ll go after sunset. Thank you.”
“Glad I could help. Now—” She pauses and looks about the room once more, but this time in a wary manner that makes my scalp tight.
