Page 46 of Death of a Courtesan
‘She gave me address but warned me that I would not be admitted if I called there.’ Henry shook her head. ‘You have to make her change her mind when you see her, Riley.’ He thumped his clenched fist on the arm of his chair. ‘Damn it, I can’t do without her.’
Riley was embarrassed to notice that his brother’s cheeks were damp with tears. A lesser man might have enjoyed his mortification. Riley only felt sympathy for his plight.
‘I will see what I can do, but make no promises.’ He clasped Henry’s shoulder but resisted the urge to tell him to hold on to his dignity. He was aware how much pride it must have cost Henry to come running up to London and make such a humbling admission to a brother he’d always done his level best to undermine. It showed just how deep his feelings ran for Celeste. Riley worried that Henry, who to the best of Riley’s knowledge had never before put his own interests ahead of his position in society, might do something foolhardy.
‘Give me her address, Henry.’
Henry ran off an address in Battersea from memory. Riley, unwilling to trust his own memory, reached for pen and ink on Daniel’s desk, made a note of it and folded the piece of paper into his inside pocket.
‘I will see her early tomorrow evening and then meet you at White’s for a drink.’
‘Thank you.’ Henry shook his head. ‘You probably think me a weak-minded fool to get so emotional about a whore.’
Riley thought of the devotion that Adelaide engendered in her customers and was truthfully able to assure his brother that he thought no such thing. He poured them both a measure of brandy from the decanter positioned on the sideboard and a modicum of colour gradually returned to Henry’s countenance.
‘Don’t try and see her, Henry. You will only frighten her off, and I need to speak with her about a murder investigation.’
‘Celeste would never—’
‘I am sure she had nothing to do with the crime in question, but she knows something and wants to help.’
‘Typical of her,’ Henry said with grudging admiration in his tone. ‘She has a conscience.’
‘Come along,’ Riley said when Henry looked as composed as he was ever likely to. ‘We had best rejoin the fray before our mother sends out a search party. It is not often that she has the pleasure of both her sons being seen in the same room so we must let her enjoy the moment.’
Riley sought out Amelia, unsurprised to find her surrounded by several unattached males. He re-staked his claim by taking up a position at her side, discouraging the competition. Sophia joined them and Riley promised that he would take her for another drive in the park in the near future. Shortly thereafter he escorted Amelia home, having evaded his mother’s best efforts to introduce him to her latest protégée.
‘You and your brother were closeted in Daniel’s study for a long time,’ Amelia remarked as Stout drove them back to Chelsea. ‘Mending bridges?’
Riley was tempted to tell her the truth. He’d told her more sensitive things about his investigations over the past few months. But this was Henry’s secret and Riley decided not to share it, not even with Salter, until he had spoken to the object of Henry’s affections for himself.
‘Just being reminded of my obligations.’ He squeezed her hand. ‘Again.’
