Gibson stroked his mustache. "It was inconclusive, yes, but I seem to recall a myocardial rupture only, and her capillaries and veins disintegrated. She died from mass internal bleeding, and the heart attack, but there was none of this other damage. Mr. Thomas's internals look like pulp. Zero's were fine, apart from the disintegration of her superior vena cava and the pulmonary artery."
"A dhampir is stronger than a blue blood, with presumably better healing qualities, though we haven't had a chance to test this theory. But Byrnes said a cut on Zero's skin healed in moments, where it would take a blue blood a few minutes for the wound to seal. So if the same agent killed both Zero and David Thomas, then perhaps her body fought the agent better." Ava tapped her lips. "This is a mystery. Did you test his CV levels?"
"Twelve percent." Gibson looked insulted. It was probably the first thing he'd done.
"Twelve? Why, he's barely a blue blood. Mr. Thomas must have been newly infected. He shouldn't even be showing any signs of the craving yet." Which made her wonder... "How did his neighbors know he was a blue blood? He would only just be starting to feel the stir of the hunger."
"I think you'd need to question his neighbors first," Gibson shrugged.
The thought made nervousness stir through her. The sudden shout of fury from the riot echoed in her ears. "I'm not certain that's a good idea. They weren't very receptive to blue bloods. However...." Kincaid sprang to mind. "I know someone who might be able to coax the information out of them."
For if it wasn't a disease, then someone had killed Mr. Thomas, and with so much outcry today, it was more about narrowing down a suspect pool than trying to find someone with the motivation to murder.
Six
"HERE IS A list of questions," Ava told Kincaid, handing over a sheet of paper. "I want you to ask around Mr. Thomas's neighbors, and discover how his blue blood status became known. He was barely into the first thirst, so he can't have been infected with the craving virus for long. Maybe a month. Maybe two. He might not have even known he was infected until recently."
"And you?"
She looked at him, and he saw the hesitation in her eyes, as if she still saw that vile man throwing blood over her. "I think it best if I stayed here at the guild and discussed the findings of the other deaths with Dr. Gibson, to acquaint myself with the case. The riot's barely settled. Evening's falling. The last thing the residents of Fitzrovia want to see is my pale face."
Kincaid shrugged, examining the list of questions she'd given him. "They're the ones missing out." There was a long moment of silence, and he looked up, realizing her eyes were upon him, a hesitant expression upon her pretty heart-shaped face. "What?"
"Nothing."
He lowered the list. "I'm fairly certain that wasn't 'nothing.' You're the worst liar I've ever encountered." Every hint of thought shifted across her expression with startling clarity. She should never play cards for money.
"No... I just.... Was that a compliment?"
The fact she had to ask made him feel a little angry on her behalf. "Of course it was a compliment. You're beautiful, and kind, and any man should be pleased to see you."
Ava smiled thinly, hurt gleaming in her big, green eyes. "Sometimes it's hard for me to tell, especially when it comes from you, because you're so flippant. And... men generally pay me few compliments. Except for Byrnes," she finished in an exasperated tone, "but one generally takes what he says as a somewhat brutal truth, rather than flirtation, and he was always focused on how clever I was."
"You have feelings for him still."
"I don't even know what I feel," Ava admitted, a considering frown on her face as though she was dissecting the facts of a case, rather than her feelings. "I like Ingrid. And I care for Byrnes. And when I look at the pair of them, I can see how well suited they are. I get this lump in my throat, because seeing how in love they are makes me happy for them...."
"But?"
Ava glanced up from beneath her blonde lashes. "There is also a part of me that aches, and asks 'when is it my turn?' Something horrible happened to me several years ago, and when I escaped, Byrnes was kind to me, and Byrnes is rarely kind to anyone. He accepted me for who I am, and I never felt as though I had to pretend to be someone else with him. But I realized what I feel when he looks at me is safe. And when he looks at Ingrid I see something else, and suddenly I don't know if 'safe' is a big enough word for what I want."
Jaysus. "You want to fall in love."
That right there ought to stop this strange fascination with her. Virgins were forbidden territory. Bluestockings had never caught his attention. But women who were looking to fall in love had to be avoided like the plague.