Page 19 of One Wicked Secret
Daniel observed both women. One was a raven-haired beauty with a hideous scar cutting across one eye. The other a fae princess with the magical ability to steal a man’s soul. Surely every virile man in Christendom had noticed them.
“It’s no longer safe for you to remain here. A hundred people saw you in the countess’ ballroom. Gossip spreads like wildfire. As a precaution, you must pack a valise and leave tonight.”
After hearing his reasoning, surely Elsa couldn’t argue. Only one question remained: Where would he take them?
“You can’t return to Henley,” he mused aloud.
Elsa handed Clara her glass and stood. “I’ve changed my mind about going to Geneva.”
“Geneva was never an option.”
“Nor is lingering in the shadows, waiting for the blackmailer to find the journal and dispose of any witnesses.” Determination flared in her blue eyes, like sunlight on a restless sea.
Daniel kept his temper. The last six months had tested his mental limits. “I haven’t been idle. Magnus gave me a list of your father’s business associates. He was involved in a catalogue of poor schemes and investments. I’ve spent months gathering evidence, looking for a man who bears a grudge.”
Elsa snorted. “I assume the list is long.”
“Too long.”
Amid the brief quietude, Elsa straightened. The smile gently curling her lips held an air of triumph. “Logic says there is only one way to solve our problems. We must locate the journal.”
He scoffed. “What do you think I’ve been doing for thelast six months? Besides, the blackmailer may already have it.”
“If he does, why disguise himself as a vagrant and attempt to enter The Grange? It’s likely he was successful a second time and stole my mother’s books.”
He released a weary sigh. Why hadn’t thevagrantkilled her? Doubtless he was still hoping to use Elsa as a bargaining tool. The thought chilled his blood. It’s what he’d been trying to avoid.
“This is my problem, too.” Elsa stepped closer. She touched his upper arm like she meant to absolve him of the burden. “I know Edenberry better than anyone. I know every hidden cupboard and secret passageway. I will happily pack a valise because you’re taking me home to Chippenham.”
Chapter Four
Elsa sat quietly, studying Daniel’s profile in the dark confines of his carriage. She wore a soft wool dress in sapphire blue and matching pelisse, both modest and practical for the journey ahead. Yet whenever her husband looked at her, she felt naked.
While she had spent months hating him, he’d been driven by the need to protect her. They wouldn’t be in this predicament if he’d shared his troubles. She would be the wife, lover and ally he needed. Instead, he lived with the vision of her in bed with a dead man, forever wondering what intimacies they had shared.
The trust between them was gone.
She would always resent him for leaving her. He would always rue the day Magnus dragged him into this wretched mess. While she’d stood in the quiet church near Edenberry, her heart full of hope and ready to burst, believing Daniel had fought hard for her hand, he was honouring an oath he’d made with her brother.
No wonder he failed to consummatetheir union. The blood on her thighs might be hers, not Mr Carver’s. The devil might have stolen her virtue before falling prey to the blackmailer, though it was all supposition.
Elsa wrapped her arms around her abdomen and hugged herself, wishing she could remember, but that night was an empty black void.
“This isn’t the way to Chippenham,” Clara said, peering out the window at the row of townhouses shrouded in a filmy fog. “You always take the Great West Road.”
“We’re not going to Chippenham tonight.” Daniel’s dark eyes shifted to Elsa, fixing her to the seat and warning her not to protest. “We need rest, and I must make certain arrangements before we leave town.”
Distrust was an ever-present emotion now. She tried to dissect his last remark and understand his intention. “Business arrangements?”
“I plan to invite Viscount Rutland to come to Chippenham. I can’t search for the book, anticipate the villain’s next move and protect us all from danger.”
Although Daniel had mentioned the viscount many times, Elsa had never met him at Thorncroft. Clara had because she gasped like someone had pricked her with a hat pin.
“There’s no need to pester the viscount,” Clara said, a little panicked. “We’ll be no trouble and will abide by whatever rules you put in place.”
Elsa frowned. “We will?”
After hearing the truth, she needed answers.
