Page 103 of A Fearless Heart
He kept walking, but fell again, this time all the way to the street, spinning so he saw street, sky, street, sky, the halves of the world whirling into a single striped ball he was trapped inside.
“Help—” he got out, and then someone seized him by the arm.
“I’ve got you.”
Chapter 34
Cady felt like she wasin hell since hearing the damning words from Gabe’s own mouth when she found him holding court in her own kitchen. Everything he’d told her was a lie, and he’d withheld crucial facts about the poisonings to get her to trust his version of events so she’d give him information.
Naturally, she refused to speak to him again. She sensed that her disreputable servants would have preferred it otherwise, but they said nothing. Days passed, and though she knew he called more than once, the order stood. Then he stopped calling, and she tried not to mind.
Trevor visited once or twice as well; she kept the full news of Gabe’s betrayal from him, only informing him that it would be best not to receive him for a while. With his characteristic flair for the dramatic, Trevor declared that he’d bar every door to Gabe and never see him again.
“As far as I’m concerned, he can live at the bottom of a well from now on.” Trevor laughed. “Ugh, how damp and slimy would that be? Where do you keep the wine, Cady dear? I feel the need for a drink.”
Mr Addison also called at the house, bringing a bouquet of gorgeous white roses and the news that he’d be returning to Kent shortly.
“These are lovely,” Cady said sincerely, smelling the flowers.
“I hoped you’d like them. A rare variety—Cecily White. Very old, though I don’t know the origin of it. I find the hue to be particularly pure. So many whites can be yellowish in tone, or fade too quickly. But this one seems to shine from within. I thought of you, my lady.”
“That’s very sweet,” she said. “I do wish you weren’t leaving London. I’ll miss your company.”
He looked pleased. “When you return to Calderwood, please send word and we shall arrange a small gathering to celebrate.”
“That sounds like just what I need.”
“Are you quite happy, dear Cady? Forgive my boldness, but you appear a little sad.”
“A little, yes. But no feeling lasts forever. I will be fine, Mr Addison.”
He nodded, though the answer still seemed to trouble him. “Well, I must be off. Much to do before I ride home. I hope to see you very soon. Good day, my lady.”
After he left, Cady put the roses in a crystal vase and placed it in the parlor. That’s where she was in the evening, quietly reading a journal, when a knock came at the front door.
She frowned, looking up at the clock. In no circumstances could it be considered a visiting hour. Was it Gabe? Perhaps she could see him again. Part of her needed to. “Rook?” she called, seeing the boy cross the foyer. “If that’s Mr Courtenay…”
“It’s not,” he said, sounding upset.
He opened the door, and Cady heard two unfamiliar voices. Then Rook showed a couple to the parlor door.
“My lady, this gentleman and lady must speak with you. It’s very important.”
Cady had stood up by then, curiosity unfurling in her belly. “Have a seat, I suppose?”
The lady walked to her first. “It’s very good of you to see us. I am Miss Chattan, and this is Mr Neville.”
“How do you do?” Cady spoke the phrase far more hesitantly than usual. The woman looked familiar… “You were at Viscount Nyle’s party! In the hallway.”
“Good memory, my lady,” she said with a smile.
“Lady Arcadia…is it still Lady Arcadia, or has the Crown Office rendered its opinion?” the man asked. He didn’t sit until Cady and Miss Chattan both did.
“It hasn’t…how do you know about that? Who are you?”
“For simplicity, let’s say that we are the Zodiac,” he replied. “I’m annoyed that you are aware of that name, my lady, but we can’t very well just wish it otherwise.”
“Are you here because I learned that Gabe works for you? I can’t possibly see what it matters. He already got everything he could have wanted out of me.” She couldn’t hide the bitterness in her voice, nor did she miss a flash of something in Miss Chattan’s eyes. Sympathy?
