Page 70 of The Secret of the Dashing Detective
The next day,Matthew suddenly found himself overwhelmed with nothing to do and a great need to fill his time. For he was miserable. All he could think of was Juliana. He was contriving reasons in his mind for why he had to go see her, knowing he was acting a fool but unable to stop himself. For this was all his own doing. He knew that. He could have her in his arms right now if he chose to – but he couldn’t do that to her. He couldn’t upend her entire life, couldn’t be selfish enough to reach for the one woman who was far too good for him.
He would have liked to have tried to distract himself with work, but the new cases he had decided upon had not yet started. The Smithfield case had ended long ago, when they had determined that the wife wasn’t being unfaithful — she had simply taken up a new hobby, one she didn’t think her husband would approve of. He was waiting to meet with a man the next day to resolve his requirements, and it was yet to be determined if the other had resolved itself.
Finally, Matthew convinced himself that it was the perfect day for him to go speak to the Duchess of Warwick and the ladies Juliana and Prudence to see if he could convince them to intervene on Dr. Lewis’ behalf. Which was theonlyreason he was returning to Warwick House, he sternly reminded himself. It had nothing to do with his wish to see Juliana.
Once he ascertained whether they could aid him in his quest, he would determine how to best prove Lewis’ innocence. He already knew that Lewis had an alibi for the night Juliana had been taken, but it was his mother, which the duke insisted was no alibi at all. Instead, Matthew would have to make it clear that Lewis had known nothing of his own father or background besides the fact he had not been present in his life. For that, he would need Mrs. Lewis’ help, but he would take it one step at a time and see what he could do on his own before involving her.
His horse seemed to know the way to Warwick House without Matthew having to guide him there, and soon enough he was staring up at the gate that led through to the grounds behind. He was just about to go through when he heard a sharp yap next to him, and he looked down to find Juliana’s little Lucy staring up at him.
“How are you, girl?” he asked, to which Lucy responded with a quick bark. “Is something the matter?”
He was talking to a dog. Ridiculous. But he couldn’t help that Juliana and her love for the animals seemed to have touched something inside of him, and he was finding himself more and more curious about her opinions on their right to have better welfare. If nothing else, spending time watching Juliana and Lucy together had proven that a bond could certainly exist between human and animal.
Just thinking of it, however, had him missing Juliana all over again, although he would be seeing her soon enough. He just wasn’t sure what kind of reception he would receive.
He rode in through the gates, leaving his horse with a groom before taking to the steps. Jameson seemed considerably surprised to see him.
“Mr. Archibald,” he said. “I was not expecting you.”
It was interesting how butlers could say so much with so few words.
“I am here to speak with the ladies Juliana and Prudence and the duchess, if it is at all possible.”
“I shall see if they are receiving callers,” Jameson said, his reception frostier than it had been previously, that was for certain.
He returned not long afterward.
“The duchess and Lady Prudence will see you.”
Matthew followed him along the corridor, wondering just what that meant. Had Juliana given up on him entirely?
He entered the drawing room, finding the duchess and Lady Prudence awaiting him on the sofa.
“Mr. Archibald,” the duchess said, not belying any of her emotions toward him, although her tone was missing its usual friendly note. “Welcome. What can we do for you?”
“I am here to speak to you about Dr. Lewis,” he said, taking the armchair across from them. “It seems His Grace is convinced of the man’s guilt; however, I am quite certain that he has had no role in threatening your family. I was hoping that you, perhaps, could help him believe otherwise.”
“You are asking me to go against my husband, and for Lady Prudence to go against her brother?” the duchess said with a raised eyebrow.
“I am only asking for help in convincing him of the truth,” he tried instead.
To his surprise, the corners of the duchess’ lips turned up slightly. “Very well. As it happens, we are inclined to agree with you. Giles is so eager to be finished with this threat that he is not thinking rationally about it. What can we do?”
He outlined his plan, asking them to slowly work away at the duke’s arguments.
“I am afraid, however,” he said, “that there is still someone out there waiting to find a weakness in your defenses. Please continue to be vigilant.”
“Of course,” they said, before rising in an indication it was time for his departure.
“Will you please… provide my regards to Lady Juliana?” he asked hesitatingly.
“Of course,” the duchess said. “I believe she is currently visiting with Lady Maria.”
“Is she now?” Matthew said as his heart started to beat more rapidly. He had a bad feeling about that – a very bad feeling.
If Juliana had provided such an excuse to her sister and her closest friend in the world, it was most likely she was not with Lady Maria, but rather on some mission or another – only this time, he was not there to look after her.
He strode toward the front entrance with new purpose – he had to find Juliana. It didn’t matter whether or not they had a future together or what had been said between them. He was not going to let anything happen to her. Ever.
