Lydia drummed her fingers on her thigh as she contemplated Morgan's questions. Morgan had stated the worries that Lydia herself was trying to ignore, but it was already too late for Lydia to take back her offer to make conversation. "You're right, he isn't gracious ... but that won't matter much at all. We're not putting any faith in his generosity; we're putting faith in his desperation. Granted, you and I likely have a more urgent need to catch this pest of ours, but Adrian wants him gone, too, which says plenty considering that he doesn't care about Carpe Noctem's reputation even a tenth as much as I care about mine. Something about the killer is troubling him, and something is keeping Adrian from pinning him down, otherwise he wouldn't have shown his face at the Coven the other night."<br/><br/>It was true; Lydia was definitely more desperate than he was, especially with the added pressure of time looming over her head. There was no way of telling how long it would be before someone saw something and started a panic. Adrian had more bargaining power. Even if Lydia threatened to refuse to help him, it was likely that Adrian could wait. She couldn't. "He'll help us, but I'd bet my entire clan that he'll try to make us jump through hoops before he reveals everything."<br/><br/>Morgan's second question had a much less desirable answer. It wasn't like she kept tabs on who went in and out of Adrians's territory. These days, Lydia only ever bothered with Carpe Noctem if there was a problem. Long gone were the days of cordiality with the clan and its members. There was no way to predict exactly how Adrian's subordinates would receive them, unless he gave them specific instructions ... and Lydia wouldn't put it past him not to warn his guards just to get a kick out of the commotion their arrival would cause.<i>Damn him.<br/>
</i><br/>Her eyes met Morgan’s. “As for humans, I doubt there are many willing to go into that part of town at night, Morgan." She also doubted that any of the ones who<i>did</i>came back out unscathed, but Morgan probably suspected that already. "It’d be different if you were traveling alone. If Adrian's lapdogs decide to ignore the markings, they won’t be laughing once they realize they’ve started a total clan war. And I can assure you that’s not what Adrian wants. Besides, If they try to hurt you, I’ll hurt them first.” Lydia wasn’t used to protecting humans by any means, but ... Morgan was useful. It’d be a pain if she had to get her hands dirty, but it’d also be a shame if Morgan died. Her company, despite the troubling circumstances surrounding it, wasn’t unwelcome, and if only the situation were different ....<br/><br/>Lydia’s eyes flitted briefly to Morgan’s collar before rising again. Her shirt collar had risen slightly, leaving less skin exposed to Lydia’s eyes, but the deep red fabric against her skin still made for a tempting sight, even more tempting with such little space between them.<i>Damn this carriage. </i>Turning away, she reached for the window on her side and propped it open halfway; she needed the air just as badly as Morgan.<br/><br/>"Say," she added, "how often does your Commander send Enforcers out to Adrian's territory, out of curiosity? I’m sure we’ll have our hands full dealing with vampires, but if we have a run-in with one of yours ... what then?”