Page 33 of From Duke Till Dawn
He stared at her, appalled. Secretly gratified. He shut the door.
In his silence, she rushed ahead. “There’s not a thing I’ve done to merit your trust or forgiveness. Nothing at all. But if you turn your back on me...” She couldn’t finish the sentence and clenched her jaw as if to hold back more words—or tears. “Without Martin and the money he took, I can’t pay back the investors. I can’t pay the staff. Lacey will find me, and he’ll...” She squeezed her eyes shut and shuddered.
If she was playacting, she was doing a fine job of it. Visceral terror radiated from her, fear at what fate lay ahead of her.
He wouldn’t be fooled again. “How does any of this concern me?”
“I sank three hundred pounds of my own money into the gaming hell,” she said. “That was all I had in the world. Everything. I’ve got nothing to pay anyone.”
He refused to allow himself to feel any pity for her. “Go find shelter in Southwark, or any of the hundreds of thieves’ dens infecting the city.”
She blinked hard. “No place is safe for me now. Nobody’s going to stand against Lacey.”
Alex walked quickly to the sideboard and poured a whiskey. Part of him thought to offer a drink to her, since it looked as though she could clearly use one. But she didn’t deserve the kindness of a whiskey. The drink burned, but not nearly enough to erase the acid of his own wrath and shock.
“As you pointed out last night,” he said tightly, “I’m a duke. Not the sort of criminal class you associate with. There’s nothing I can do for you.”
She drew a deep breath, as if readying herself for a difficult task. Finally, she spoke. “Help me find him.”
He started in surprise. “What?”
Cassandra took several steps toward him. “Help me locate Martin,” she said carefully, the way one might negotiate with an armed brigand. “I’ll need to look in some... less savory places. But if I have you at my back, no one will try to hurt me. I’ll be safer in the shadow of your title. Even in the underworld, dukes are respected. And once I—we—get hold of him, we’ll get all the money back from him. I can repay our backers and staff. I’ll get Lacey’s fingers off my throat.” She drew another breath. “Then... I’ll pay you back.”
Alex stared at her. “You’llwhat?”
Warming to her topic, she said quickly, “Five hundred pounds. That’s what you gave me in Cheltenham. And I’ll give you back every penny, every pound. With interest,” she added. “We’ll be even, then. You’ll go on with your life and forget I ever existed.”
“That’s unlikely,” he answered darkly.
She spread her hands. “Consider it a step in the right direction.”
Alex raked his hands through his hair and pondered this. Personally, he had no use for the blunt. It was barely a fraction of his wealth. Yet recovering his five hundred pounds—plus interest—could offer some recompense for the deceit she’d practiced. Money could never suture the wound, but it wassomething. It had weight and meaning for her. He could control that. Control her.
He asked, “What of the staff at the gaming hell? And the investors? They’ll need to be informed.”
“Lacey knows and he’ll tell the investors. As for the staff...” A sheepish look crossed her face. “I bolted as soon as I figured out what Martin had done. I didn’t think they’d want or believe anything I said.”
“Head back,” he directed, “and pay them.”
She raised her brows. “With what? If I cash everyone out, that’s three hundred and fifty pounds.” She patted her reticule. “Still empty.”
He strode to his desk, opened a drawer, and pulled out a locked ebony box. Using a key he took from his waistcoat pocket, he opened the box. Stacks of currency filled the box. He counted out three hundred and fifty pounds and held it up so Cassandra could see it.
“This should cover it,” he said.
“With this amount being added to the five hundred I already owe you,” she noted.
“Of course.”
He didn’t want to notice that she trembled slightly as she gave a small nod, then held out her hand for the money. But he didn’t step forward to give her the cash.
“This stays with me.” He tucked the pound notes into an inside pocket in his coat. He put the box back in its secure location.
Her eyes widened. “What are you doing?”
He walked to the bellpull and tugged on it. Within moments, Bowmore appeared.
“My coat and hat,” Alex said to the butler. “And have my carriage brought around.”
