Page 44 of Her Heart's Rightful Earl
He paused and turned, fixing her with a serious look.
“Now do you understand why I am pleading with you to walk away?”
“I understand. But I remain.”
Alexander dropped his head in exasperation. Arabella felt flurries in her chest at the enormity of this commitment. Therewas no possibility she was going to abandon Alexander, but she also felt overwhelmed at the prospect of such heightened danger.
“Very well, Arabella. I can see I will not be able to deter you.” Alexander looked up at her through his eyelashes. “You always were tenacious.”
Arabella noticed the familiar sparkle in his eye as he said it. She did not respond.
“I missed you so much, Arabella–” he began, but she cut him off.
“This is not about us, Alexander. This is about justice and—presently—it seems this must be mostly about survival.”
He dropped his eyes to the cold, dusty floor and nodded sadly.
“It seems that all hope is dashed. My father, cousin Edmund, us …” he faded off there, recognizing it was a prohibited topic. “And now I believe it will be impossible for us to continue this mission–”
“Whatever do you mean?” Arabella gushed.
“That proving my innocence and exposing the real perpetrator is insurmountable under the current circumstances.”
“No! We cannot abandon the investigation!”
“We may have no choice, Arabella. I have yet to discuss this with Captain Morrison and Thomas. But I feel that the situation is placing too many people in danger.”
Arabella stepped towards him, unexpectedly closing the gap between them.
“Please! Please keep trying!”
“I am afraid for you. For my brother, my mother, and for Thomas …” Alexander fixed her with an intense, pained expression. “You have not told your sister of my reappearance?”
“Of course not. Although I confess it is an almost impossible task. You know that Charlotte and I share everything. She must believe I am going mad, so fractious is my behaviour.”
“It would be dangerous for her to know. I beseech you to continue with the secrecy.”
“I will, certainly. I do not wish my sister to be in harm’s way.”
“I do not wish any of you to be in harm’s way. Which is why I suggest we should abandon the investigation.”
“Why do you believe we are all on board and willing to fight this injustice, Alexander?”
He shrugged, humbly.
“For you! Because when you left, there was a void in our lives that was only filled with a swell of undesirable grief. If there is an opportunity to regain some semblance of normality, to have you rejoin us, it would make our reality much less bleak. We do not fight this fight through some sense of altruism. Allow us to be selfish because we all wish to have you back here with us!”
“You do?” Alexander’s eyes regarded her sadly.
“Of course I do, you oaf!” she teased lightly. “You ruined my life, and I still wish you to feature in it! I am a fool!”
Suddenly, there was a sound from outside. Footsteps approaching.
They both gasped as they turned to face the door, and Alexander grabbed Arabella by the tops of her arms and pushed her behind him. His hands went immediately to the knife at his belt, and he stood, poised to deal with a potential attack.
Arabella was small behind Alexander, feeling sheltered and protected, despite the precarious nature of the situation. She tried to calm her breathing but could tell by the frantic rise and fall of Alexander’s shoulders that he, too, was distressed and striving to cope with the stress of the moment.
They stood completely still as they listened to the footsteps, which passed the door and continued down the path outside. When, after a few moments, they had not returned and they could hear only silence from outside, they both released ragged breaths and Alexander turned to Arabella, his eyes wide and panicked.
