Kisses to Steal

by Tilly Wallace

  Alick took one look at Quinn and his scowl deepened. "You don't have to be so smug about it."

  "About what?" He suspected the grin on his face was permanent. How could he stop smiling, now that he had secured Ianthe as his mate for life?

  "Love." Alick spat the word out as though it left a sour taste in his mouth. "Damn daft emotion is contagious. We should have stayed in Edinburgh. You and Hamish have gone soft with this talk of finding mates. I don't believe it."

  "You're just jealous. Since we're at Bedlam, we could scout around inside for a likely mate for you. There's a woman with a tail in Alice's room that might be game to take you on?" Quinn needled his fellow sergeant. He simply couldn't contain his good mood.

  When he wasn't exploring Ianthe's delectable body the previous night, they had made plans for their future together. Ianthe would sell the town house to raise the capital for them to buy a small farm. When they were settled, she wanted Alice to live with them. Then he’d demanded less talk and more action, as he proved the merits of a younger lover. Repeatedly.

  After some time, the little party emerged with Aunt Maggie in the lead, as though she were the lookout to protect those who came after. Alice moved on unsteady feet between Aster and Ianthe. She looked as if she were not meant to walk this earth—a creature made of vapour and mist, who would simply vanish once the sun reached its zenith in the sky. Quinn wondered if the girl would recover from her ordeal. How would they even begin the find the pieces of her soul she had hidden from Hoth, or would she live the rest of her days with a shattered mind?

  The wolf pack would form around Alice and protect her as one of their own. But she needed something more personal. Then it struck him. She needed a dream. Something to hold in her darkest moments. A light that would help her through the dark. She needed her own wolf.

  The women approached the carriage and Hamish carried a wicker basket over to them. Aster lifted the lid and pulled out a small bundle of grey fur. Aster's constant canine companion, Dougal, perked up at the sight and gave a yap. Aster hushed him, and then pressed the puppy into Alice's hands. Nobody spoke, as everyone wondered how she would react.

  Clever Aster, Quinn thought. Alice might not have a dream or a wolf, but the puppy would give her a guardian who would never leave her abandoned in the shadows thrown by her mind.

  Alice held out her hands and stared at the pup, and the pup stared back. The two regarded one another as if neither was quite sure what to make of the other.

  Aster stroked the silken fur of the puppy. "She is a Scottish terrier, like my Dougal. She will be your constant companion, friend, and protector. She will listen to all the secrets, dreams, and pain in your heart and never tell another soul."

  Alice still stared at the tiny bundle. Then, inch by inch, she moved the puppy closer until she cradled her against her chest. Wide, lost eyes looked up to regard Aster.

  "She will be my friend?" Alice whispered, so faint that Quinn had to strain to catch her words.

  Aster smiled. "Always. Scottish terriers are fantastic hunters and I believe she will help you track down your missing pieces. When you are ready, the wee thing will need a name."

  To reinforce the point, the puppy placed her front paws on Alice's chest, reached up, and licked her new mistress's face. Everyone stood still and waited. Then a tiny smile crossed Alice's lips as she curled her fingers into the little terrier's fur. Watching the two, a name came to Quinn.

  "Eilidh," Quinn said, pronouncing the word so it came out ay-lee.

  "Ay-lee?" Alice hesitantly repeated the word, a worried frown on her pale face.

  Quinn smiled. "Eilidh, yes. It's Gaelic and means light. We hope the puppy will be your light."

  The puppy concerned wagged her tail. She seemed to like the name and the connotations it carried.

  Alice stroked the creature in her arms and whispered the name back to her. "Eilidh."

  A yip, and another round of face-licking started.

  "Thank you." The smile on her face faltered, as though the muscles could not sustain the action for long. Hugging the wee terrier to her, she climbed into the carriage.

  They all waved as Aunt Maggie and Alice, now accompanied by Eilidh, started their long journey to the Highlands of Scotland.

  "That was a grand idea, Aster," Quinn said as the black coach rattled down the road.

  Aster hugged Quinn. "She needs something that is entirely hers. And the name is inspired. Alice needs light to guide her through the long night that holds her prisoner. Her journey has just begun and I fear it is one she must make alone. We can only pray that Morag the witch knows what to do and that Alice comes out the other side, whole."

  Ewan's handsome face wore his usual detached stare as the carriage receded into the distance and then disappeared around a corner. "I remember her."

  Aster took Hamish's hand and Quinn held out his arms to his love and light. Ianthe smiled and then tucked herself against him.

  "Then you remember how brightly Alice shone," Ianthe said.

  "Yes." Ewan said no more. He simply stared into the distance, lost in his own buried thoughts.

  They returned to a much quieter house in Kensington to plan their final push. Aster and Ianthe sat next to each other on the chaise, and it warmed Quinn's heart to see his two favourite women weaving the bonds of friendship. Now the truth about the Highland Wolves was out, the men all hoped to be called to active service in the fight against Napoleon, instead of fighting in the shadows. Quinn was heartened that neither woman would be alone when that happened. Although he did wonder if they would follow. The captain might have a devil of a time trying to convince Aster to stay behind.

  Hamish leaned one hip against the sideboard and regarded his men. "Dunne is dead and Hoth is well in the grips of his sentence. Rumour has it that his staff have begun to abandon him. The howls of agony echo through the house and can be heard from the street. No amount of laudanum can curb his pain as the devoured souls return to whittle him away."

  An unnatural death for an unnatural creature. Justice was finally being delivered on the treacherous soul eater.

  "It should be easy now to slip into the house and search the cellars for the remains of the other women he consumed. Alick and I will go tonight," Ewan said.

  Drinks were poured and distributed as they celebrated their progress to date.

  "To Lady Miles and her inventive punishment for the soul eater." Quinn toasted the only woman mage in England.

  "To justice," Ianthe said and raised her glass.

  "To justice," the others echoed.

  "Forge is still missing, and he must know by now we provided him with a false list." Ewan raised the sore point to all of them.

  "I have been keeping a close eye on the newspapers for reports of any attacks or deaths that might be a vampyre feeding, but have not found anything," Aster said.

  Hamish's hand had tightened around his glass at the mention of that name, and now he glanced to his wife. "He cannot stay hidden forever. His actions will uncover him eventually. He will either expose himself as a vampyre or he will need to seek orders from his master, whoever it is on this side of the Channel. I suspect Balcairn will reveal himself as the main conspirator."

  "We have the route the gold shipment will take. They will not intercept it now and we have foiled part of their plan," Quinn said. The mundane part of their plot was spoiled and there would be no English gold used to pay French soldiers. Only the supernatural element remained to be discovered.

  Hamish nodded. "The War Secretary will ensure the routes are discreetly changed. He has given us limited time to find sufficient evidence against the Duke of Balcairn to bring this to an end. We have yet to determine how our merchants fit into their plan."

  Ianthe played with her tumbler as she listened to the conversation. "The duke's wife died some years ago. I could try and strike up an acquaintance for more information."

  Quinn stifled the growl in his chest. That was her past, not her future. He wo
uld not have her risking herself further; he just needed a diplomatic way to broach it without appearing to clip her wings.

  "I do not think that is necessary," Ewan said. He dropped the paper he had been reading on the table between the sofas. "While Quinn was getting shot at, there was another duel going on that may present an interesting opportunity."

  The bold headline on the gossip page told of a 'scandalous petticoat duel over cucumber sandwiches’. Lady Isabel Grayson, the most gossiped-about woman in London, had caused yet another headache to plague her father, the treacherous Duke of Balcairn.

  "You think the daughter could be a way to find evidence against the father?" Hamish mused. He exchanged a glance with his lieutenant. A similar plan to get close to Ianthe had yielded crucial information about the other two conspirators.

  "The Duke of Balcairn would seem to have rather a lot on his mind these days," Quinn said. He picked up the paper and scanned the article. Apparently Lady Isabel had disparaged Lady Charlotte's sandwiches, and one woman called the other out. Petticoat duels were rare, but not unheard of, especially where Lady Isabel was concerned.

  Not a week went by without some mention or other of Lady Isabel and her latest escapades. Last week, there had been an unconfirmed sighting of her wearing trousers and riding astride early one morning. Ladies of the ton went into vapours at the very idea. The wayward daughter of the duke seemed to be involved in most of the scandals that horrified London. The young woman was determined to vex her father. Quinn remembered her dancing in the fountain, a sad creature calling out for attention.

  "It would be convenient if the two plots were intertwined. Perhaps they chased the gold not just to deprive our allies of their payment but to fund the magical weapon?" Aster suggested.

  Alick snorted. "Maybe her father is in cahoots with Forge, so he can ship his daughter off to France and make her Boney's problem? Or so he can access a mage willing to turn her into a more subservient creature?"

  "That may be an added bonus to his connections. Although I would suspect her father simply doesn't like his position in the line of succession. That's the usual motivator when a duke plots treason," Hamish said, crossing his arms over his chest as they figured out their course of action. "But we need to take proof to Lord Bathurst."

  "And find Callum Forge," Aster said. Her violet gaze went to her husband. "I shall consult Lady Miles about a suitable way end him. Vampyres are harder to kill than wolves."

  The double agent was suspected of killing her father, and they all vowed to see justice served for Sir John and the other innocent men Forge had slaughtered. The vampyre had left a long line of victims in his wake.

  Hamish crossed to his wife and laid a hand on the side of her neck, caressing her skin with his thumb. "I will find him, I promise you that."

  "Speaking of Lady Isabel and her antics, I may yet be of assistance to our cause," Ianthe said. "If you wish to concentrate your efforts on her, I heard a rumour this morning that Lady Isabel has been removed to the family estate in Oxfordshire following her petticoat duel."

  "Banished?" Hamish asked.

  "You would think he would send her farther away, like India," Alick muttered.

  Quinn smiled to himself. The gruff man was having issues with the amount of love his fellow soldiers were finding. He couldn't grasp the fact the wolves were finding their mates. Perhaps he would prefer to be banished, far away from troublesome women.

  "Yes, but therein lies the interesting part. My friend said the duke is holding a lavish entertainment there this Friday evening. Cyprians all over are somewhat dismayed, as an open invitation has been extended to all the eligible young bucks of London and many are leaving town," Ianthe said, offering up the intelligence she held.

  "A troublesome daughter is banished, but eligible men are invited to a house party." Ewan rubbed a hand over his smooth chin. "Does make you rather curious as to what else her father is plotting, does it not?"

  "I think we shall take a jaunt to Oxfordshire and use the distraction of a full house to see if we can ferret out a connection between Balcairn and Napoleon," Hamish said.

  "And flush out Forge and details of the weapon they construct." Quinn rubbed his neck. There was a debt to be paid between him and the turncoat. Then his gaze lingered on Ianthe, the only woman he would ever love. "Perhaps we should look at country estates while we are there."

  She smiled and her love blanketed him. "It might involve a rather thorough investigation as to the suitability of meadows."

  He grinned. He knew exactly what he would do with her in a wildflower meadow, and it had little to do with horses. "Oh, I think I'm up to the task."

  Her laughter filled the room and Quinn marvelled at how she filled his heart so completely.

  * * *

  THE END

  Did you enjoy this book?

  * * *

  Thanks so much for reading Kisses to Steal and I hope you enjoyed it.

  * * *

  Please consider taking a moment to share your thoughts by leaving a review at the retailer where you purchased this book. Reader reviews help other readers discover new books.

  * * *

  Thank you, Tilly

  About the Author

  Tilly drinks entirely too much coffee, likes to watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer and wishes she could talk to Jane Austen. Sometimes she imagines a world where the Bennet sisters lived near the Hellmouth. Or that might be a fanciful imagining brought on by too much caffeine.

  To be the first to hear about new releases and special offers sign up at:

  www.tillywallace.com/newsletter

  Tilly would love to hear from you:

  www.tillywallace.com

  tilly@tillywallace.com

  Also by Tilly Wallace

  Highland Wolves

  Secrets to Reveal

  Kisses to Steal

  Layers to Peel

  Souls to Heal