Page 21 of Tempting the Highland Spy
“I wanted you there. I knew you’d watch over her.” Simon poured two fingers of whisky into a tumbler and took a hearty gulp of the stuff. “It would be to our advantage to recover the relic. If the dagger is indeed authentic, it is both irreplaceable and priceless. The elders in the Antiquities Guild would view it as quite an accomplishment—one that would go a long way toward clearing the fiasco with Lady Caversham’s emeralds from their minds.”
“Their opinion of me is the least of my concerns.”
“Is it, now?” Simon cocked a dubious brow. “Has it occurred to you that if Jones is afforded the opportunity, he could lay claim to the dagger as evidence? It’d be a damned shame if thatsgian dubhwinds up in American hands. I’d considered calling upon Connor or Gerard to go after the relic, but I assumed you would seize the opportunity.”
Opportunity.Harrison scowled. Simon certainly prodded his weak spots. If he thought to spur Harrison into engaging in a pointless competition with his brothers, he was mistaken.
“They far surpass me in recklessness. There’s no contest there. But their impulsiveness could be an asset in the search for the dagger.”
Simon nodded his agreement. “I cannot argue that.”
“Assuming the evidence does indeed connect O’Hanlon with the investigator’s death, how does this tie in with the heiress’s intended?”
“We have established a definite connection. Lowry’s killer made a mistake. He was interrupted before he could finish off his victim. A constable came upon the gravely wounded man. Too late to save him. The poor bastard managed to utter a few words before he died.”
“He identified O’Hanlon as his killer?”
Simon gave his head a slow, weary shake. Exhaustion was coming over him, just as it had settled into Harrison’s bones. “The investigator gave a name—Lyceum. We believe he’d found evidence at the Lyceum Theater. Raibert was one of the most acclaimed members of their troupe.”
“Andthereis the link to Raibert.”
“One of many,” Simon agreed. “We suspect Raibert and O’Hanlon are connected to a trio of deaths in Brooklyn, all very nasty affairs. Raibert has been very adept at covering his tracks. He’s clever, unlike his brutish associate. In any case, there’s something else to consider—assuming Raibert has the dagger, we need to determine how he got his hands on it. If Miss Fairchild was involved, he may want to silence her. Guilty or innocent, she may be in grave danger.”
“Indeed.”
“We’ve good reason to believe Raibert has had men killed in the past. There’s no reason to think he won’t do it again if the murder suits his purposes.”
“All the more reason to send an experienced agent. If you give a damn about Miss Winters’s safety, you will convince Jones to call off the mission.”
“We both know he’s not going to walk away empty-handed. Jones has got too much on the line—he’d rather risk her life than his own ambition.” Simon rubbed his neck wearily. “He has an ally in the Home Office. Miss Fairchild’s involvement makes this a sensitive matter for our government. They expect the matter to be settled, by any means necessary.”
“Bugger it,” Harrison muttered under his breath.
“Jones will forge ahead with this plan, with or without our cooperation. And Miss Winters will go along with his demands. Where her future is concerned, he’s holding all the cards.”
“The bastard is willing to risk her life?”
“Jones does not see it that way. If you refuse this mission, he intends to provide her security.”
“I bloody well hope the man does a better job of it than he did tonight.” Harrison gritted the words between his teeth. “O’Hanlon wasn’t going to let her walk out of that place alive. If I hadn’t gone after her…”
“O’Hanlon would’ve silenced her.”
Harrison clenched his hand into a fist. How could his reason-driven brother involve any woman—much less a woman who’d never been trained in the art of defense—in such a scheme?
“The danger is unacceptable. I cannot fathom your willingness to go along with Jones’s plans.”
“The final decision is out of my hands.” Simon leaned over his desk, tension setting his jaw into a grim line. “Jones is determined to go after Miss Fairchild, no matter what it takes. Miss Winters is the key to getting the evidence he needs. He’s confident he can defend her.”
“He’s a damned fool.”
Simon nodded his agreement. “We need you for this mission, Harry. Go with her. Unless you would see her walk into a vipers’ lair with only the American to watch over her.”
Blast it, his brother could always touch a nerve.
What choice did he have? How could he rest his head at night knowing they’d sent an ill-prepared woman—even a thief and a liar like Grace—into danger?
“I’ll do it. You know better than to think I would turn away from my duty.”
