Page 26 of Trapped with the Earl of Sin

If there was nothing to be found, then they would be in and out. They would have nothing else to go on because perhaps there was nothing to worry about. That was the best-case scenario.

But if there was something to be found… well, there was no telling what would happen then.

“Right,” Martin hissed as they reached the door that he knew was Edwin’s. “It is time. Slip in through that door now.”

Once they crossed that threshold, there would be no turning back.

“What are we searching for?” Susanna gasped desperately as soon as they closed the door behind them. “Perhaps we should have made a better plan.”

There was no time to waste, so Martin offered Susanna a one-shouldered shrug before he started to look around. This was a well-kept simple room, which he hoped would work in their favor.

“I am not sure what we are looking for,” he told Susanna. “But I am sure that once we see it, we will know.”

He bent down to search under the bed, but there was nothing there other than a discarded shirt. As he glanced back up, he spotted Susanna snapping into action and opening the drawers to see what Edwin had hidden inside.

“There is a lot of papers here,” she murmured. “Do you think any of this will be useful?”

“Perhaps. See what you can find.”

Martin’s eyes darted everywhere. He really did wish that he knew what he was looking for. He realized he did not know Edwin well enough at all to understand what he might be seeking out. What might be strange or unique here.

He stepped towards the closet, knowing that he would hate it if someone invaded his privacy like this. But he also knew what he needed to do, for Luke’s sake.

“Oh my!” Before Martin reached the closet, he turned to see what Susanna was shocked by. “There is a letter here.”

Martin took the letter from Susanna’s hands to see what she was talking about. Certain phrases written in the unsent letter jumped out at him.

It is unpleasant to see the woman who should be mine in the arms of another man…I cannot believe that she believes he is the man who will make her happy…I just need to show her that I am the one for her.

“What do we do with this?” Susanna gasped in horror. “Should we take this letter and show it to Mary and Luke? Make them see that Edwin still has feelings for her?”

Martin was not totally sure what to do. On the one hand, he truly did want Luke to see that Edwin could not be trusted. But he was worried about doing something rash and pushing too quickly before they knew enough. Just in case there was more.

“I do not know,” he finally responded. “Let us just keep looking a little more. See if we can find something else to really make this make sense. We want a full picture, to show Luke and Mary how dangerous he can be.”

Susanna swallowed hard and nodded. “Alright, I will continue looking through these papers. See if I can find anything… maybe even something linking him to what he may have done to Duncan.”

It was clear that was hard for her to say, but they really did need to consider that Edwin could have been involved. Even if that was terrifying.

Martin instantly went back to the closet, because his gut was now telling him that there was something there. Something he truly needed to see. He tugged on the door, cringing as it creaked because every single noise worried him.

Clothes hung down, just as he expected, but Martin was not here to see trousers and suit jackets. He wanted to know whatwas hiding behind all of this. If he was going to hide something himself, then this was likely where he would put it.

There were some items tucked away behind everything else, but nothing that caught Martin’s attention. Not at first anyway. He carefully rifled through, doing his best not to disturb everything too much. He did not want to leave any evidence that he and Susanna had been in the room. He did not know how eagle-eyed Edwin was.

Judging by the discarded shirt on the floor, he was not the tidiest man, but Martin was not about to leave anything to chance.

Especially not with those words from those letters floating through his mind.A man who will make her happy. Should be mine. I am the one for her.

It was terrifying.

Those words might be the innocent ramblings of a man who harbored feelings for a woman who simply did not feel the same way if they had not come from Edwin. There was just something about him that had always made Martin uncomfortable, and now he was starting to see why.

It was because he had a nefarious side, Martin was now more sure of it than ever.

Wait…

What was that?

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