Page 135 of Eternal Craving
“Now that’s more for us. Find somewhere for Marcus and Rachel to stay, will you?”
“Where are you going?”
“A quick change of clothes and then I have one final stop to make.”
She read my mind. “That’s suicide.”
“Book us into The Cavendish and I’ll catch up with you there.”
“You’re not going.”
“I won’t be long.”
“You need to listen to me.”
I rubbed my chin. “Right now, Delacroix, the Creda, and the Stone Masters all have an agenda.”
Sunaria sighed. “And we’re right in the middle of it.”
Chapter Forty-Four
The Stone Masters wereruthless.
This was according to the leather-bound book I found while waiting in their library – the headquarters that Lady Bradbury had led us to. The secret society’s townhouse enjoyed its desired privacy, thanks to the extensive land and dense woods that surrounded the building.
Inside, a dying fire struggled to warm the room. Below the far window sat a writing desk, and up against the three other walls were dark maple bookcases. Stacked along their shelves was a plethora of books about the supernatural. I pulled another off the shelf and turned to a random page filled with mishmashes of fact and fiction, distorted truths, documented by men who’d risked so much to gain so little. Through their investigations, they’d determined that vampires were evolving and mingling more and more with society. This was riveting reading.
I heard footsteps approaching and the library door opened.
The grey-haired man had a weathered face, expressing a lifetime of worry, and his tall, self-assured bearing gave away his background of privilege. He oozed old money.
He stood in the doorway with his hand resting on the door handle.
“I’m admiring your collection,” I said. “Particularly enjoying this book here.” I held it up.
“Vampire lore?” He entered the room cautiously.
“It says here, and I quote, ‘The art of mind reading is common in the elite.’”
He wore an uneasy expression. “I find it intriguing that you’d come here.”
He glanced at the jimmied lock on the wall safe, its contents of papers now strewn over the desk.
“The lock kind of gave way.” I glanced back down at the book. “Captivating reading. ‘Stone Masters,’ which one of you came up with that name?”
“Excuse me?” He took a step closer.
“Well, if I wanted to create a secret cult, I’d name it something a bit more unassuming.”
“We’re not a cult.”
“So, Stone Master, what does it feel like to drink the blood of a vampire?”
“What makes you think that I’mtheStone Master?”
I peered down at the book again. “The art of mind reading is common in the elite.”
“So you consider yourself elite?”
