Lukas’s black eyes glittered. ‘If you hadn’t risen again, she might have gotten away with it.’
I shook my head. ‘No. She’s sloppy. She’s made too many mistakes. Even the real Butch Cassidy got his comeuppance in the end.’
He smiled nastily. ‘Let’s make sure the same thing happens to this one.’
‘Should we tell Lady Sullivan first?’
‘She’s not proved very adept at dealing with her werewolves thus far. We can take it from here, don’t you think? At least until we get the confirmation of Cassidy’s guilt.’ He drew an inch closer. ‘I always thought that three musketeers was over-kill. Two will more than suffice.’ He raised a questioning eyebrow at me.
That kind of approach went against everything I’d trained for and every police regulation I’d come across. But I wasn’t with the regular police; I was in Supe Squad. I grinned in response.
Lukas’s eyes gleamed with satisfaction. ‘Good.’ He pointed at my arm. I’d wound a fresh towel round it so no blood was actually visible, but it was next to impossible to fool a vampire when it came to the hot, red, sticky stuff. ‘Show me,’ he commanded.
I sighed and carefully unwrapped the towel, wincing as it peeled away from the wound.
He examined it, frowning at the obvious bite marks. ‘A werewolf bite is no laughing matter.’
‘What?’ I said lightly. ‘Do you think I’m about to turn furry?’
‘It would be the first time that happened as a result of a single bite.’ He glanced up. ‘You ought to take care that it doesn’t happen again though. When we finally track down Cassidy, let me deal with her. Two bites in one day might cause problems. If you receive three – well,’ he shrugged, ‘it’s a certainty.’
I blinked. ‘It’s that easy?’
‘There’s nothing easy about becoming a werewolf.’ He clicked his tongue and lowered his head.
‘Uh, Lukas?’ I asked nervously. ‘What exactly are you doing?’
‘Relax,’ he muttered. ‘I’m not drinking your blood. I’ll be careful.’
I hissed, feeling the edge of his sharps fangs brush against my skin. Then his tongue darted out and, with the delicacy of a cat, he licked around the edges of the wound. I stared at his dark head. ‘I’m not comfortable…’
He glanced at me and pointed. I looked down. Instead of seeping blood, my skin had knit together. I gaped.
‘Vampire saliva possesses many healing qualities’ he said. ‘Shall I continue, or would you like me to stop?’
‘No,’ I croaked. ‘Keep going.’
He smiled and dipped his head once more. It was the strangest sensation, slightly itchy but also pleasantly warming. ‘That’s amazing,’ I said, when he’d covered the entire area.
‘The wonders of evolution,’ Lukas murmured. ‘After all, it would hardly do for humans to stumble out of Soho with blood spraying out of vampire-inflicted puncture wounds.’ He offered me a crooked grin. ‘We can’t do much about serious injuries, but flesh wounds like this are a piece of cake.’ He licked his lips. ‘They’re usually quite tasty, too.’
I recoiled. ‘Ew.’ Then I thought of something and peered at him. ‘Do I … do I taste different? From other humans, I mean?’
He paused. ‘Yes.’ He looked me in the eye. ‘Your blood has a strange quality. There’s an underlying taste I’ve never experienced before. Like,’ he frowned, ‘sulphur. Truthfully, it’s not all that pleasant.’
I thought back to the smell in the small room at the morgue after I’d woken up. That had been similar to sulphur. I turned away. ‘So I’m not human after all,’ I whispered.
‘It doesn’t seem like it.’ Lukas caught my wrist. ‘Emma, it would be wise to keep that to yourself. We don’t know what kind of supe you are. People tend to be afraid of unknown quantities, and you’re beginning to grow on me. I wouldn’t want to see you get hurt.’
‘Yes,’ I said with only the faintest hint of sarcasm. ‘After all, we must maintain the illusion of Supe Squad, and preserve the vamps’ and wolves’ status quo.’ I pulled my wrist away and ignored his expression. ‘Come on. Let’s catch ourselves a werewolf.’
***
The little sandwich shop was cloaked in darkness. I peered through the window and saw little more than shadows and the glowing green of the emergency exit sign. Lukas walked a few steps back and angled his head upwards, checking the floors above.
‘It appears that there’s a flat above the shop,’ he said in a low voice. ‘The curtains are closed, so it’s likely that someone is there even though there’s no light. Most werewolves don’t tend to sleep well just before a full moon. We’ll have to be quiet if we don’t want to alert her to our presence before we break down her door.’
I glanced at him. ‘Break down her door?’
