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before the time of our wedding." That the man had not met her at all was something Ryan forbore to mention.
"Thank you, my lord, my lady. I am sure that we can clear this matter up. I am sorry to have bothered you
both."
"Not at all, Inspector," Carissa answered. "I am very sorry that you and your colleagues have been put to all of
this unnecessary work by my father."
Inspector Cavendish bowed slightly to Carissa and then to Lord Wolf. He followed the butler out, wondering
why in the world anyone would object to his daughter marrying the very wealthy Lord Wolf. Then he
remembered some of the darker rumors about the family, and he thought he knew.
Ryan cursed very imaginatively in three languages after the inspector left. She got up and began to get ready
to go out.
"What is wrong, Ryan? Surely the mess about the jewelry will be straightened out? I do really own them."
"Yes, my dear, the inspector will have his colleagues visit Somerset House and the witnesses and that problem
will be cleared up."
"Mmmmm, just when did we get married?"
Ryan grinned. "Actually, I had the document made up after we arrived here, but we were married just two
days after we ran off. I didn't want people speculating about what we were doing running all over together
unwed. And don't worry my, dear, a copy was duly filed with the proper authorities, and everyone concerned
will swear that the marriage actually did take place. I have learned over the years that it is important to have
the proper documents just in case of emergencies like this one. If you like, I will show you my own certificate of
birth for this incarnation. But another time."
"Look after Clywd for me, please. I may be gone for a few days. If you arrange to introduce him to Master
McKay while I am gone, that is fine, but do not let the boy move into town until I return. He does not know
how to secure a place so that it is safe for him."
"I realize he cannot be the Welsh boy you rescued all those centuries ago, but is the name a mere coincidence?"
"No, he is a direct descendant of Kelsa and that Clywd and the last of that line."
"And I am descended from Emily's other daughter, so he is my kin. I am glad Ryan. I like that idea of having
family."
Ryan smiled and kissed Carissa. "I knew you would like him. He& he is in a sense one of my biggest mistakes."
"Why? You did not make him, did you?"
"No, but I made the mistake of letting the then-king of the vampires in Edinburgh know that I cared for him. I
was his patron. He was something of a prodigy, a gifted pianist at only twelve, and I arranged the best of
teachers. Talon, as he called himself, was continuously challenging me. He wanted me to submit to him or leave
the district. I would do neither, nor would I fight him directly. He kidnapped Clywd when he was only sixteen
and made him. It came very close to destroying the boy. It did destroy his parents. I promised them I would
care for him, and I have to the best of my ability."
"I take it Talon is no longer king because you killed him?"
"Oh, yes. It is one reason Alyssa knows better then to challenge me. Or even to touch what I hold dear. But
then, she was always more subtle."
"Clywd has no self-control, does he, Ryan?"
"No, and he will not hunt humans at all. The deaths he caused before I found him left him so soul sore that for
years he could not even listen to music, much less produce it. I decided what was best for him was to be
completely away from people. I introduced him to some werewolf friends of mine, and they looked after him
and taught him how to hunt as they do. I think they thought of him as a kind of pet. Eventually, I was able to
give him back part of what he lost. He can make music again, but he feels incomplete. I hope McKay can teach
him what he needs."
"I hope so too."
"Ryan, you are not going to do anything drastic to Sir Donald, are you?" Carissa asked changing the subject.
"He promised to break the pieces up and reset the stones. They could not be traced that way."
"Yes, but no harm will be done in the long run, will there?"
"That is what I am going to make sure of. But he broke his word to me Carissa, and that I do not take lightly."
Carissa thought of exacting a promise from Ryan not to kill the man, but she knew that would show a lack of
trust. And she did trust Ryan. The vampire had done many horrendous deeds in her life, but she had also
evolved her own code of conduct. If Carissa could not accept that code, or could not accept that Ryan would
abide by it, then she had no business being Ryan's wife. "Please be careful, my love, and don't be too long. I will
miss you."
Ryan kissed Carissa once more, and then she was gone. Carissa stood looking out of the window, watching the
carriage disappear around a bend in the road. This would be her first separation from Ryan since they had run
away together. It might be only a day or two, but she had mixed feelings about it. She would miss Ryan very
deeply, but it also pleased her that Ryan had left Clywd in her care and had trusted her with the task of
arranging his tutelage. The boy might be twenty or more years older than she was, but he was still at heart a
boy, and Ryan cared for him, perhaps even as a son.
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