Page 2 of Bloodlines and Birthright

“’Cause they’ll want to see it. They’ll tell Cyclops and Catherine then they’ll want to see it, too.”

“And you don’t want all and sundry to see your naked arse,” Oscar finished. “Understandable, but you should have thought of that before you got it in a delicate location.”

Willie continued walking, her strides purposeful. “That ain’t the reason I don’t want them seeing it. It’s because they won’t like what they see.”

For a moment, I thought she meant her naked arse, as Oscar so bluntly put it. Then I realized she meant she didn’t want them seeing the tattoo itself.

Oscar’s strides matched Willie’s and he easily caught up to her. I had to trot along in their wake. “Now I’m even more intrigued,” he said. “What did you get tattooed?”

“If I wanted you to know, I’d have let you watch the tattooist at work.”

Oscar flashed a grin at me over his shoulder, elevating his features from handsome to extraordinary. It was wonderful to see him smile these days, as well as a relief. After we exchanged cross words after returning from Scotland, I worried that our easy friendship would never be the same again. Fortunately, he didn’t seem to have taken the argument to heart and simply continued on as we were.

I was not quite as unaffected. Although it happened months ago, deep down, I still worried that he thought I’d lied about having no romantic interest in men. Even worse, I now worried that everyone I met thought that way. Oscar had assured me it wasn’t an issue and that we could continue our book hunting adventures together. Unfortunately the law, and society, would care very much. Also, I hadn’t lied. I’d said what I believed to be true at the time. Since then, however, I’d questioned a number of things about myself.

“Is it a depiction of a vulgar body part?” Oscar asked, still smiling.

“No,” Willie said.

“A vulgar hand gesture?”

She shook her head.

“A vulgar word?”

Willie grabbed Oscar’s arm and pulled him into a narrow lane. I followed, covering my nose at the smell. The recent warm weather had hastened the rot of the scraps and other waste in the neglected passage and turned the air into a foul miasma. How anyone could live in these slums was a mystery to me.

“You’re going to show us your tattoo here?” Oscar asked, peering into the dank, dark depths of the lane.

“No, Idiot,” Willie said. “I’m going to let you speak your spell. I didn’t want to do it out there where folk will gawp if it works.”

Oscar waited, but when Willie didn’t start unbuckling her belt, he sighed. “Very well. Take hold of Gavin’s hand to stop yourself flying off. Not that I think this will work if I can’t see the tattoo, but I’m not entirely sure.”

Willie grasped my hand and announced that she was ready.

Although the words Oscar recited were foreign to me, they formed a poetic rhythm that was quite mesmerizing, particularly when spoken in his deep, undulating tones. It wasn’t until Willie squeezed my hand that I realized I’d been staring at him.

The squeeze snapped me to attention. “Is something happening?” I asked her, my voice rising with excitement.

“No.”

Oscar muttered, “Damn,” before directing us out of the lane.

“Never mind,” I said as we continued on our way. “We didn’t expect your ink floating spell to work on a tattoo. I’m sure we’ll find the book containing the right spell in the Abbazia di San Vittore al Lago.”

“You ain’t worried about the anarchists?” Willie asked. “Matt says there was a state of siege declared after peasants and workers rose up.”

“That was in Sicily and parts of Tuscany, not the Lombardy region where we’re going. Oscar assures me the unrest hasn’t affected other parts of the country.” We both glanced at Oscar, but he didn’t seem to notice as he fixed his gaze directly ahead. “It’s very kind of you to worry about us, Willie.”

“I won’t worry if you take this.” She flipped back the flap of her jacket to reveal a gun tucked into the waistband of her trousers.

“There’s no need,” Oscar said.

“Willie!” I cried. “Put it away.” I glanced around to make sure no one had seen the gun. “As I said, we’ll be nowhere near the unrest. Isn’t that right Oscar?”

He quickened his pace. “The rain’s getting heavier. I’m going to take transport. Coming, Gavin?” He strode off, not waiting to see if I’d follow.

I hurried to catch up, but when I realized Willie didn’t fall into step alongside me, I stopped. “You could stand if you don’t want to sit.”