Page 13 of One Wicked Secret
“There’s a chance you killed Carver.”
Chapter Three
Daniel felt the fight drain from Elsa’s body. Beneath him, she lay on the grass, her strength seeping away as confusion darkened her gaze.
“I don’t understand.” She didn’t wriggle in the arousing way that made his cock hard and wish they’d consummated their union. She was as still as a cadaver on a mortuary slab. “How could I have killed Mr Carver? I didn’t even know he was dead.”
He should have kept his foolish mouth shut but hated hiding the truth from her. The answers she craved could send her to the gallows. He would be charged as an accessory, the penalty prison or transportation. Guilt would be a constant companion, a reminder he’d failed to save his wife.
“Elsa, it’s cold, and the park is unsafe at night. Let me take you home. I’ll explain everything. I give you my word.”
Defiance flashed in her eyes. “Home to Henley? No. No matter what you reveal, I’ll not return to how things were.”
“When you hear what I have to say, Henley might sound more appealing.” He would need to hire a new guard toreplace Finnegan. That would take time. “I guarantee you’ll feel safer there.”
“I’m not hiding anymore.” The pain of betrayal lived in every tense word. “Why would you think I’m capable of committing such an atrocity? It proves the trust we once shared has gone.”
Nothing between them would ever be the same.
Their relationship was broken beyond repair.
A villain had seen to that.
A devil had robbed him of the only woman he wanted.
“Because I found you asleep in Carver’s bed.” He rolled off her, standing abruptly, the memory of that night like a blade to his heart. The obscene image plagued his waking hours and haunted his dreams.
She turned so pale he thought she’d stopped breathing. “That’s not true. Why would you invent these wicked lies?”
“Carver made sure you wouldn’t remember.” He stiffened at the distant rumble of men’s voices, praying it wasn’t footpads. “Doubtless you have many questions, but I’ll say no more here.”
She batted his hand away when he tried to help her stand. Disbelief stole her voice, and they walked briskly back to the Cumberland Gate in silence.
They found Jarvis perched on his box, dismissing a woman desperate to earn a few shillings.“Move on. Find yourself another mark.”
Daniel intervened, filling the woman’s grimy palm with coins. “There’s enough for a decent meal and a room for the night.”
The woman clutched her bounty to her chest like the shadows had thieving fingers. “God bless you, sir. That’s mighty generous.”
Elsa wrapped the blanket from the coach seat around the woman’s scrawny shoulders, covering her threadbare shawl. “This will keep the cold out. If you find yourself in Aldgate, they serve soup daily from the kitchens of The Burnished Jade.”
The woman blessed them again before disappearing into the murky park, although they’d need more than divine intervention to survive the coming days.
“Would you care to give Jarvis your proper address?” Daniel said, somewhat impressed she’d been clever enough to deceive him.
She gave Jarvis an apologetic smile. “Crown Street, Shoreditch, close to Finsbury Square. I’ll tap on the roof when I need you to stop.”
Jarvis doffed his hat and gathered up the reins.
During the three-mile journey, they sat opposite each other on the leather seats, avoiding eye contact, the tension palpable in the confined space.
Elsa kept her nose pressed to the window. Silent tears slid down her cheeks, the sight tearing him in two again.
Twenty minutes passed before she knocked twice on the carriage roof and called, “It’s here, on the right. The house with the blue door.”
They stopped outside a row of terraced houses squashed together like soldiers in tight formation. Dim lights flickered in a few shop windows opposite. The chandler was still open for those desperate for lamp oil or candles or wishing to warm their hands on his lit brazier.
“I give you a generous allowance,” he said as Elsa tried to brush mud off her dress and straighten her hair. “You could afford to reside in Mayfair.” Nevertheless, he was thankful she’d chosen an area far from prying eyes. “Why live here?”
