Page 12 of Who Cries for the Lost

“What would you have me do instead?” said Sebastian, settling into the chair opposite him. “Take up a seat in the House of Commons, perhaps? I have a hard time seeing myself as a politician. And I seriously doubt Hendon would welcome my interference in the running of the estates.”

McPherson laughed. “Not if he’s anything like my sire was. I suppose there’s always faro, vingt-et-un, and hazard.”

“That was more Sedgewick’s poison than mine.”

“So I remember.” He leaned forward and dropped his voice. “They’re saying Miles wasn’t just killed—that his body was also mutilated. Is it true?”

So much for the Palace’s confidence in Bow Street’s ability to keep that quiet, thought Sebastian. Aloud, he said, “I’m afraid so.”

“Dear God.” McPherson swallowed hard. “He really was castrated?”

Sebastian nodded. “And his face shot off at close quarters.”

“Who would do something like that?”

“Can you think of anyone?”

“Me? Good Lord, no.”

“He hasn’t seduced anyone’s wife lately? Run off with someone’s daughter? Raped their chambermaid?”

An unexpectedly fierce light blazed in the other man’s eyes. “I wouldn’t know. Like I said, I haven’t seen much of him lately.”

Something about the way it was said pricked Sebastian’s interest. “Any particular reason?”

McPherson leaned back in his chair, one hand swiping at the condensation on his tankard. “If you must know, I found I simply couldn’t stomach the way he treated women—particularly one young French widow he’d induced to fall in love with him. We didn’t exactly have a falling-out, but he knew what I thought of him and, well, after that we rather went our own ways.”

“I take it you mean Alexi Sauvage?”

McPherson’s lips parted on a quickly indrawn breath. “You know about that?”

Sebastian nodded. “I understand you’re the one Sedgewick sent to tell her he was dead.”

A faint flush touched the other man’s cheeks, and he looked away. “It’s not something I’m proud of.”

“So why did you do it?”

“To be honest, at the time it seemed the kindest thing to do. It was either that or tell her he’d lied to her, that their marriage was a sham and he was basically using her as his whore. And I wasn’t cruel enough to do that.”

“You didn’t think she’d find out the truth?”

“I don’t know... I suppose I thought she’d go back to France. Not sure why she didn’t.”

“There was a war on at the time, remember? It tended to make travel to the Continent a bit difficult.”

“I suppose.”

“You know she discovered the truth anyway?”

McPherson nodded. “Sedgewick told me. He was furious about it. Seems she tracked him down and confronted him in front of his own house. I said, ‘Well, what did you expect?’ He didn’t take it well, but at that point I didn’t care.”

“And you haven’t seen him much since?”

“Occasionally, but not often, no. I actually thought he was still out of the country. Last I heard, he was.”

“He was? Where?”

McPherson shrugged. “I’ve no idea. I’m not in that business anymore, remember?”

---