Page 63 of To Heist and to Hold
A roar of fear and fury escaped Mr.Sinclaire’s lips.Terror, however, did the opposite for Heloise, petrifying her chest until she could hardly draw breath.They had been so intent on the fight and making certain everyone took their places that they had not noticed those vital lanterns had gone dark.
“All of you light them again,” he barked.“Now!”
As the man scurried away to do his bidding, several other workers who had been listening in bolting after him, a raucous cheer went up from the venue behind them.Heloise tensed, looking to the gas lamps, expecting them to sputter out at any moment.The undulating sounds of the crowd continued, however, like waves against the shore.Heloise nearly sagged in her relief.
“Can you get to Euphemia?”she asked Ethan’s brother now.“Should the fight end in the next several minutes, she will need to delay turning off the gas.We need time to getthe lanterns relit.”
“Of course,” Isaac said.And then he was off, sprinting back down the hallway.
Heloise grasped her skirts in her hands and turned then, intending to race to where Julia and Iris stood and have them help in the relighting—only to find both women hurrying her way, no doubt having sensed that something was very wrong.
“What has happened, Heloise?”Iris asked breathlessly, thin body fairly trembling in her agitation.
“We need to assist the footmen in relighting the lanterns, now,” she said.
Neither woman needed further urging, both no doubt hearing the desperation and fear in Heloise’s tone.They immediately located tinderboxes and turned for the closest lanterns, going to work without a word.Heloise had not gotten far, however, when one of the employees, in the same deep purple jacket and full face mask as everyone else who worked at the club, passed by, heading back to the boxing venue.“What’s that you’re doing there, Mrs.Marlow?”he called out.
That rough voice could only belong to Mr.Copper.“Mr.Sinclaire has ordered the relighting of these lanterns,” she explained.“Can you please make certain the ones in the boxing venue are relit?”
“Of course,” he said with a dip of his head.“And if I’m lucky, I’ll be able to catch the end of the match as well.”
He exited the casino.But she hardly saw his departure because Julia, suddenly back at her side, dug her nails into her arm.Heloise glanced down in shock—only to see her sister-in-law staring after Mr.Copper, fear having dredged every last bit of color from her face.
“Heloise,” she croaked.“I recognize that voice.It’s him, the man at the table that night, the one who took the jewels.”
Heloise’s heart dropped into her stomach.“Mr.Copper?You are certain?”
“Yes.”
Ah God.Her gaze flew to Iris, who had come rushing back over, and saw some of her own shock mirrored back at her.She should feel relief, of course, that they had discovered the culprit so quickly.With luck Mr.Sinclaire had reached Euphemia in time to stop her from dousing the gas lighting, and they could cancel that portion of their plans altogether.This could hopefully be wrapped up quickly, with little damage to the club.
But relief was the farthest thing from her mind just then.For besides his brother and Mr.Teagan and Mr.Parsons, Mr.Copper was the person at the club Ethan trusted most, so much so he had conferred the important position of floor manager to him.He had known Mr.Copper since he was a boy, had grown up in the same rough streets, had a shared history with him.More than that, though, she knew Ethan considered the man a friend.
“I have to go tell Ethan,” she whispered, even as her heart broke for him.
Just as she was about to step away, however, a roar went up from the boxing venue, louder than ever, a sound that didn’t stop.That was it, she realized dazedly, the indication that the match was over, the proof that Euphemia had been waiting for.But had Mr.Sinclaire reached her in time?She looked to the massive chandelier that soared above the casino floor, dread and a hopeless kind of hope nearly suffocating her—just in time to watch the flames on it flicker and go out.
The roars of triumph and despair changed then, yells and shouts taking their place.And then the rumbling came as hundreds of pairs of feet sought a way out.And that rumble was headed her way.
Instinctively she pushed Julia and Iris against the wall, fear snaking under her skin as her eyes strained to adjust.A good number of the lanterns had been relit after Mr.Sinclaire’s orders.But would they be enough?The crowd from the boxing venue began streaming into the main casino then, a mass of dark, undulating bodies.The faint, fitful light glinted off gold and jewels and illuminated the faces of the patrons, highlighting the panic that etched their features.It was a panic she and the Widows had counted on.But was the low lighting—lower than they had planned on—making that panic more than they had bargained for?
Blessedly, the footmen had truly taken Mr.Sinclaire’s orders to heart and were even now doing their best to illuminate the space, all while trying to calm the terrified horde of patrons.Equally a blessing, the slowly increasing light also allowed Heloise to find just what she needed in the crowd: Mr.Copper, mask off now, hand clutching a bundle to his chest, ducking into the stairwell that led to the upper floor.
She should wait to tell Ethan.She knew she should.Hadn’t she promised him, after all, that she would not take any unnecessary chances, that she would remain safe?
But the very idea that, in the time it took to inform Ethan, Mr.Copper could conceal proof of his thefts had Heloise panicking.For she knew that if he was not caught in the act, he would never reveal the location of Lady Ayersley’s jewels.She had to follow him herself,now.But how could she leave Julia alone in this chaos?
Just then a slim male figure, one of the many footmen who littered the place, materialized at her side.“Heloise, have you seen anything yet?”he asked in a familiar feminine voice.
Heloise’s knees nearly buckled in her relief.“Euphemia, thank God.I think I’ve found the culprit.Stay with Juliafor me?”
As Euphemia hooked a protective arm about Julia, Heloise turned to Iris—only to have the breath sucked from her body.Iris had her hands pressed to her ears, eyes squeezed tight, and was hunched against the wall as if in physical pain.Damn it, how had she forgotten Iris’s panic in crowds?She had to get her out of this mess.
“Iris,” she shouted over the din, hugging an arm tight about her shoulders in that way that seemed to ground her when she lost control, “I can bring you someplace quiet.Can you trust me?”
There was a pause, barely a heartbeat, but it was enough to make Heloise want to scream.Finally Iris nodded, tucking her head into Heloise’s shoulder.
It was all the encouragement she needed.Holding Iris tight against her, she fought their way through the crowd, pushing through the mass of people.Finally she made it to the door to the upper level.About her, more and more lamps were being lit, the employees’ voices begging for calm, guiding people out.The cacophonous sound of coins crashed over the scene, the harsh voices of men yelling as someone took advantage of the chaos and attempted to steal from the abandoned tables.But she ignored it as, a rising fury filling her at the pain and grief that Mr.Copper had caused in his greed—and that was still to come when proof of his betrayal came to light—she and Iris followed Mr.Copper into Dionysus’s dark abyss.
