Page 33 of The Last Chance
“Look, I’ve told you everything I know.” The gentleman stepped aside and tried to usher them out. “The doctor advised rest. If you have anything more to say, call tomorrow.”
With Aaron’s suspicions roused, he decided to search the upper floor. “If there is someone else upstairs, speak now.”
Parker shook his head. “No one but Nancy. Check if you must.”
“I will go.” Miss Lovelace was already at the door. “I doubt Nancy would want a strange man finding her naked in bed.”
Aaron reluctantly waited as Miss Lovelace mounted the stairs. The need to protect her grew fiercer by the day. But the lady valued her independence and would not take kindly to him treating her like a child.
He held his breath until she reappeared in the hall. “Well?”
“The maid ducked under the sheets when I entered. There’s no one else upstairs. I checked every room, beneath the beds and in both armoires.”
“I don’t know which harpy made an accusation against me,” Parker said, referring to the lie that he’d attacked a woman during the soprano’s encore, “but when you check my alibi, you’ll know I’ve told you the truth.”
“I pray you’re right.” Aaron nudged Parker’s shoulder as he stepped past the sluggard. “Your life depends on it.”
Aaron escorted Miss Lovelace to his carriage, bracing himself as he gripped her hand and assisted her ascent.
During the journey to visit the Fitzpatricks, he aired his frustration. “I can’t invent the same lie to trick Fitzpatrick. I can’t tell him Howard is dead and accuse him of murder, either. He’ll deny being in the club, and his terrified sister will be his alibi.”
Howard’s only relative lived in Northumberland. It would take days before his obituary appeared inThe Times. Hence they had a week’s grace to find the murderer. But keeping Howard’s death a secret caused other issues.
Miss Lovelace agreed. “Perhaps we should focus our efforts on finding Venus. She may not have killed Lord Howard, but she is the mastermind behind the plot to incriminate us.”
How did one find a nameless woman in London?
Aaron groaned when the answer came to him. “It would mean venturing into the world of the demimonde.” Howard wasknown to attend the odd event. Did he meet Venus at a party, too?
“We could question Mrs Flavell. She must know the identity of those who attend her wild parties.”
“Very well, but I’ll go alone.” Mrs Flavell was always on the hunt for fresh blood. Who better than the beautiful daughter of a wastrel? “The demimonde is not the place for you.”
Miss Lovelace sharpened her gaze. “Allow me to judge what is suitable. I warned you, sir, you will only play the domineering patriarch with me once.”
Damnation!
“Have you ever been to a party at Mrs Flavell’s lavish abode?”
“Of course not. Have you?”
“Many years ago. A man leaves his conscience on the doorstep and rarely departs with his soul intact.”
Miss Lovelace sat forward, her brow furrowed. “What did you do there? You’re not the sort to indulge in fanciful pleasures.”
Aaron snorted. Did he detect a hint of jealousy?
“A young man needs to know where he belongs. It was reassuring to know I did not belong there.” His conscience had followed him through the candlelit corridors, past an orgy of people wearing animal masks, past the naked dancers urging him to smoke in the opium den. “Make no mistake, I have the same urges as other men.” Urges that were hard to control in her presence. “I choose to abstain because I cannot keep my vow to my family if my mind is engaged elsewhere.”
“Your vow to protect them always?”
He held her gaze, his throat tightening, his heart heavy with regret. “No one can ever be more important to me than them.” Keen to put paid to any notion they might be more than friends, he added, “That is why I will never marry.”
“That’s quite a sacrifice.” She swallowed deeply, a shadow ofsadness settling over her. “Are you not lonely? Do you not long to be a father or fall in love?”
He gave a mocking snigger but didn’t admit that he locked himself in his study to feel close to her. By watching her house, he felt as if he were protecting her, as though she were part of his family, too.
“What sort of role model would I be?”
