Page 17 of The Mysterious Miss Lydia
“I...don’t know. I suspect she’s working with whoever it is that leaked the classified information.”
“She? A woman was following you?” He frowned. “How do you know she was connected?”
“She was eavesdropping on my conversations, for one,” he said.
Sir Cedric didn’t look convinced.
“And she was carrying a copy of the same book that was copied in that missive,” he added.
He saw the moment he lost Sir Cedric’s interest.
“It’s a popular novel right now, Lord Galena. My own daughter asked me to get her a copy. It hardly means anything.” He was already starting to turn away.
“But you should have seen her.” Luke could hear the urgency in his voice, and Sir Cedric must have too because he slowed to turn. “My instincts say there’s something there. She was much too frightened. She could barely speak.”
“So, you confronted her? What’s her name? Where does she live?”
Luke winced, running a hand over his hair. “That’s the thing. She ran off before I could gather much of anything useful.”
Sir Cedric sighed.
“But what sort of young lady runs as if there’s a murderer on her heels in broad daylight.” He gestured to himself. “From me!”
Sir Cedric shook his head from side to side as he ceded that point.
Luke was hardly egotistical, but it was no secret that ladies tended to like him. Sir Cedric often teased him about the fact, though there was no denying it was a useful asset at times.
“You have to admit, that’s suspicious,” he added.
“Still,” Sir Cedric said. “This is not your concern any longer. Sir Wendell and I will handle it.”
“How do you know Wendell isn’t the leak?”
The words fell between them, and Luke inwardly flinched at his misstep. It was a thought he’d had any number of times. But he’d never voiced it because he knew he’d get this very reaction.
“Don’t be ridiculous.” Sir Cedric’s expression grew stern.
Luke knew very well Sir Cedric considered Sir Wendell’s father a friend, and he treated the young man like a son as much as a protégé.
Which...come to think of it, Sir Cedric only had daughters. Of marriageable age, if he remembered correctly. Could he be planning to make Wendell a part of his family?
Luke’s gut twisted.Therewere his instincts. Finally. Too little too late. But it was there, and it was telling him that Wendell was no good. The way he’d weaseled himself into Sir Cedric’s good graces and into the man’s blasted home...
“I know you like the fellow,” he started slowly.
“I don’t just like him, I trust him,” Sir Cedric snapped. “I have no reason not to.” He jabbed a finger at Luke. “And neither do you.”
Blast. He’d have to tread carefully. He’d made such progress and now he was losing him again, he could feel it.
“I saw her again today,” he hurried on. “The redheaded girl I’d mentioned.”
“Red hair?” Sir Cedric stilled as he was turning away. His hesitation was brief, but noticeable.
“What is it?” Luke asked.
“Nothing, it’s just...” He cleared his throat. “We questioned the people who worked with that insurrectionist and some of his neighbors at the boarding house.”
“And?” There was his gut again, telling him he was onto something.
