Page 94 of A Deal with the Broken Duke
“Well, of course I believe you! My God! Who would make up a story like that?”
“I worried you might think I was crazy.”
“Of course I don’t. I know you better than that.”
“She said some things about Juliet.”
Daniel’s eyes narrowed. “What did she say?”
“It sounded threatening to me. She said she would never allow me to marry anyone other than her. She said she had to get the others out of the way. Others, plural, so perhaps it wasn’t just Susan.”
“You think she’s done something to Juliet?”
“I think we need to find Juliet and make sure she’s all right and then let her know about all this so that she can keep herself safe.”
“You really do care about her, don’t you?”
“Of course I care about her. I’ve always cared, Daniel. If it hadn’t been for this curse…” He groaned. “It’s not even real, this curse.”
“I’ve been telling you that for years.”
“Lady Annie really had me believing I would destroy anyone I loved. I’ve ruined my life over this.”
“Your life isn’t over,” Daniel said. “But let’s find Juliet quickly. I haven’t seen her in a little while, and I’m not sure where she is.”
Harry nodded. “Why don’t we split up?” he suggested. “I’ll look here, and you go back down to the first floor and look there.”
“That’s for the best. You look as if you’d kill someone if you laid eyes on them right now.”
“I very well might. I’ve never been this angry in all my life.”
Daniel gripped Harry’s shoulder. “We know the truth now,” he said. “We’ll set things right. Let’s find Juliet. We’ll meet in the library when we’ve got her and sorted this all out.”
“All right,” Harry agreed. “But hurry. Lady Annie is still in the house, after all. And now that I know the truth about all this, I feel there’s no telling what she’ll do. She might decide she has to act against Juliet right away.”
Daniel nodded anxiously. “Let’s find her. Meet me in the library in twenty minutes.”
He hurried off, leaving Harry on his own.
The Duke wanted to give in to the emotions that were racing through him—the strange mix of anger and relief—but there was no time for that, not while Juliet was in danger. He could come to grips with the effect Lady Annie’s actions had on his own life later. For now, he needed to make sure Juliet was all right.
He left the spare room and went down the hall in the direction of Juliet’s bedroom. It felt wrong and improper to be going this way, but some things were more important than propriety. He reached her door and knocked.
There was no answer.
“Juliet,” he called. “Are you in there? This is very important. If you’re there, please open the door.”
Again, no answer.
It would be wrong to open her bedroom door without being invited to do so, but this was a matter of life and death, and he would make his apologies later. He threw open the door.
The room was dark and empty. She wasn’t there.
He felt a rush of relief, but it didn’t last. Dread quickly rose and took its place.
If she isn’t here, where is she?
What if he didn’t find her in time? What if Lady Annie found her first? What if he had learnt his curse wasn’t real just in time to watch proximity to him claim another victim?
