Page 91 of The Duke and Lady Scandal
“This man is more than a thief, isn’t he?”
Ben dipped his head. “He is. He’s responsible for one murder that I know of, but Iwillcatch him.”
“Relentless.” She looked into his eyes, her gaze full of tenderness, but searching too. “That’s what one of your men called you.”
Turning her head, she took in the neat rows of hedges and carefully tended flower beds of the Wellingdons’ garden. When she looked at him again, the resolve he saw made his chest ache.
But he’d wanted this. He’d come to end this, but he hated it all the same.
“I suppose this is goodbye, Inspector Drake.”
Ben reached for her hand, and she didn’t immediately yield to his touch. She was a woman of resolve, and he adored her strength.
“Be safe, Alexandra.” He bent to place a kiss on the back of her hand. “Keep Collier with you until this is finished. Please.”
She said nothing. The odds of her heeding him weren’t high.
So all he could do was catch M. And he would if it took his last breath.
Chapter Nineteen
Allie wasn’t given to sleeping in late.
Perhaps because, as a child, she’d spent far too much time in bed. Now she was always eager to be up early. With the dawn in the spring and summer and just before first light now that the months were inching toward winter.
The day after her visit to Jo’s, after those moments in the garden with Ben, Allie lay in bed, waiting for dawn to rouse her. But the weather was as gloomy as her mood. Rain pattered against the window and storm clouds hid the sun.
Lottie had come in to clean the grate and open her curtains, but Allie had sent her away. She knew the reprieve was only temporary, and sure enough, as her mantel clock ticked over to eight, a soft rap sounded at her bedroom door.
“Come in, Lottie.”
“Are you quite all right, miss? Should I call for Dr. Allen?”
“I’m not ill, Lottie.”
The girl approached the bed and stood as if trying to assess her.
Allie lay with her back to her, but it felt rude. When she turned over, Lottie let out a little gasp.
“Oh, miss. Heartsick, are you, then?”
Allie swiped at tear. “I’ll get up. Will you choose a dress for me?”
“Of course.” Lottie seemed thrilled to have a task to accomplish and soon had a pretty robin’s-egg blue gown laid out, along with matching earbobs.
Allie yearned to feel as bright and vibrant as the gown Lottie helped her get into a quarter of an hour later.
“Shall I fetch you a tray for breakfast?”
“No, I shall come down.” She met the girl’s eyes in the mirror. “I don’t wish to wallow.”
Lottie gave her a soft, dimpled smile. “No, miss. That’s not your style at all.”
A few minutes later, Allie kept her word and went down to eat the breakfast the staff had prepared for her. She usually sat near a window in the morning room when she was the only family member at home, but the weather was so gray that she opted for a spot at the long dining table.
Lottie walked by more than she usually would.
Allie appreciated her concern and wished there wasn’t cause for it.
