Free Wanted: A Blood Courtesans Novel by Michelle Fox, Kristen Strassel

turned to me, slipping her hands around my waist. I liked that. “Will Desiree show us her file? Then we could go to her house. See if she’s been there.”
    “That’s Lady Desiree to you.”
    Corynne rolled her eyes. “Do titles really matter at a time like this?”
    “Yes they do, if you expect her to help you.”
    She let go of me. “What’s your title?”
    “Lord.”
    “Oh, come on. Are you bitter because you’ll never meet him?”
    Her accusation stung in places I hadn’t felt since I was alive. My name honored my forgotten village, but my title honored my brother, and the life he could’ve had if given the chance. So much reminded me of him, even in these modern times. I pulled her back into me. “No. Lord and Lady. It’s an English title for someone in a position of authority who isn’t royalty. There is protocol here, and it’s for your protection.”
    “And your ego,” she muttered, but didn’t try to break away. “Those titles mean nothing if you don’t protect the courtesans you lure here. And before you tell me we came on our own free will, we came because of what you had to offer. Money, opportunity, forever. Olivia was probably here because she had nowhere else to turn. I need to know she’s safe.”
    “We’ll find her,” I said. Heat radiated from her body, flooding those same places I’d forgotten about. “And we’ll make sure she’s safe.”

 
    Chapter Ten
    Corynne
    Olivia lived in an absolute shithole apartment in a trash-lined neighborhood the rest of New York had forgotten. Just as I imagined she would. I’d be so relieved when something in our search surprised me. Desiree—oh, wait— Lady Desiree gave us the address much more willingly than Nash had led me to believe she would. They both insisted on waiting until the next sundown before we began our search.
    Nash and I weren’t on this mission alone. That night’s auction had been cancelled because we needed all the supernatural backup we could get. It comforted me and frightened me at the same time. Now we had a throng of pissed-off, hungry vampires lurking in the shadows, ready to take out their hostility on anyone who looked at them sideways.
    The girl who answered the door was a thin as Olivia, but not as pretty. She hesitated before answering me, a complete stranger with a six-hundred-something year old vampire hovering over my shoulder. I realized that Olivia might not be using her real name, or she could’ve given Desiree bogus info.
    A chill ran down my spine that had nothing to do with the vampire behind me. I’d done the same thing. Even the police had no solid evidence I was with the coven. No one knew where I was.
    “Haven’t seen her in a few days,” the girl finally said carefully. “Not unusual. Figured she got a movie or something.”
    “What do you mean by ‘got a movie’?” Nash asked.
    The girl clutched the door. I wondered if she sensed Nash wasn’t human. “She’s an actress. Or she likes to think she is.” She stopped and sighed, biting her lip as she considered us again. “You’re not the police, are you?”
    Shit. I hated that she even thought to ask that. “No, we’re not,” I said. Sabrina probably should’ve come to the door with me instead of Nash, but he refused to leave my side. I liked that as much as I hated it. Humans would’ve told me I was overreacting. Vampires seemed to know better.
    She relaxed, a little bit. “She’s been working with this producer. He’s been here a couple of times, and he’s shady as fuck. Hands all over her, always giving her compliments, but she never has any money. She always makes excuses for him, but she couldn’t make the rent this month. She swears she’s not doing porn, but that guy can’t be legit.”
    “What’s his name?” Maybe Nash would recognize it.
    “Wayne. That’s all I know. I could hardly stand to be in the same room with him. He gave me the creeps.”
    “Does Olivia have a job other than acting?” Nash placed