Page 75 of The Duke and Lady Scandal
Then fear seized her again.
“Grendel?” If any harm had come to that cat, she’d be heartbroken. And racked with guilt.
She should have seen to hiring a night watchman or invested in stronger locks.
“Grendel? Come on, lady.” Allie bent to push aside books and papers and boxes, then got down on her knees to look under the settee. Grendel wasn’t there.
Since nothing looked disturbed in the front of the shop, she assumed the door connecting themhad remained closed during the attempted robbery. So she had to be in the back. Allie called to her in a soothing voice as she searched behind crates and under her desk.
Had she darted past when Allie opened the door?
She decided to make a quick search of the front of the shop too.
While she got on her hands and knees to check under cabinets and furnishings on display, the bell on the door chimed. She whipped up to see who’d entered, and a sigh of relief escaped when she saw the kindly face of Mr. Gibson.
Though when he spotted her, his pleasant expression crumbled.
“My goodness, Miss Prince, what’s happened?” Mr. Gibson immediately made his way over and offered a hand to help her up. “Did you take a tumble?”
“No, I was looking for Grendel.” Allie gestured toward the back room. “We’ve had a break-in, and I can’t find her.”
Saying it all aloud made tears well in her eyes. When one trickled down her cheek, she swiped at it with the back of her hand. This was no time to fall to pieces. Taking responsibility for running Princes meant that even the unexpected and the dreaded were hers to manage.
“Good heavens.” Mr. Gibson had approached the threshold of the back room. “I suppose they’ve cracked the safe.”
“No, that is the single bit of good news. Theydidn’t. And nothing up front looks to have been disturbed.”
“It is my fault.” His shoulders slumped, and he rolled his hands together nervously. “I’ve meant to make inquiries about hiring a night watchman but then got busy with the Holcroft diamond.”
“It isnotyour fault. I should have seen to hiring someone. Though we may have lost nothing. Could you check your workroom?” She wasn’t certain what pieces he had in progress and how much of it he had placed in the safe. All of it, she hoped.
“Of course.”
“Oh, Grendel. Where have you got to?” Allie suspected the cat hid herself during the break-in, and unless the thieves left the alley door open, she wouldn’t have darted out. She was a cat made for the indoors. She loved quiet, and a comfortable place to rest, and her meals delivered right on time.
“Perhaps some cream,” Mr. Gibson called faintly from the back.
“Yes, of course.” There was nothing the elderly feline liked more than milk or cream, though it no longer agreed with her and was only given as a very occasional treat. “I’ll go fetch some from Hawlston’s.”
Allie was still trembling when she entered the busy cafe, but she tried not to let it show.
After Allie waited in a short queue, Mrs. Cline offered a greeting with her usual smile. “You’re back to your early visits, Miss Prince.”
“I’m afraid I’m not here for coffee this morning.” Something in her voice gave her away.
“Oh no, dear, what’s got you fretting?”
Allie swallowed and leaned in. “We had a break-in last night.”
Mrs. Cline let out a gasp. As a business owner on the same street, this would be of special concern to the coffeehouse manager.
“Nothing was taken, at least as far as I can tell,” Allie rushed to add. “But I can’t find Grendel. She lives in the shop...” Worry for the gray ball of fluff welled up. “Could I buy a dish of cream?”
Mrs. Cline turned to one of the girls who helped behind the counter. “Hazel, fetch a bit of cream for Miss Prince.”
A moment later, the young woman returned with a little filled glass bottle and set it on the counter.
Mrs. Cline slid it toward Allie. “Never you mind about the cost. Go and find your cat, miss.”
