Page 93 of The Highland Heist
Lillias’ gaze flickered to Grace, a ghost of a smile on her lips. “I couldn’t have managed without her.” Her shoulders drooped. “But I shouldn’t have taken her from you.”
Something was certainly wrong with her sister! Grace opened her mouth to ask what was wrong, when Lillias leaned closer. “Do I seem like I’m going mad?”
Not the question Grace had been expecting. However, as someone who had occasionally wondered the same about herself, she felt uniquely qualified to respond. She tilted her head, studying her sister. “No. Why would you ask that?”
Lillias pressed a fist to her chest and leaned back, her eyes darting to the floor. “It’s all this talk about the ghost in the castle. It’s gotten into my head.”
There was talk about that.
“And the stress of finding the will.”
“Understandable.” Grace nodded.
“And then, Tony.”
Grace froze, her sister’s hand grabbing hers before she could form a response.
“That’s the problem, Grace. It’s Tony.”
“What do you mean?”
Lillias swallowed again, her voice dropping to a whisper. “Yesterday, I thought I saw him. I was walking down the street, and there he was, staring at me from a window. I was sure of it. But when I looked again, he was gone.”
“That could have been anyone,” Grace said, attempting a smile that felt as fake as the assurances coming out of her mouth.
“I thought the same.” She lowered her voice even more and glanced around as if someone was listening. “But then last night I woke up feeling like I was being watched. When I opened my eyes, Grace, I swear I saw him standing over Thomas’ cradle near the window.” Her voice cracked. “When I turned on the lantern, he was gone.”
Grace tried her best to keep a steady expression, even as her heart plummeted to her toes. They had to find that will before Tony unraveled everything—or worse, before Kane or his sister grew desperate.
“You’ve been grieving.” Grace covered her sister’s hand. “Perhaps rushing into a connection with another man isn’t the best for your heart right now.”
“I miss him, Grace,” she admitted, her voice quivering. “I don’t want to, but I do. We were both selfish creatures—me more than him—but I can’t hate him for it. I want to. It would be easier. But I can’t. He was a good man.”
The moral dilemma ricocheting through Grace at the moment required Herculean strength to control. And then, as if to prove his idiocy, from behind a nearby curtain peeked the very man of whom they spoke. His gaze held Grace’s, pleading.
She gave her head a sharp shake, which Lillias interpreted as disapproval. “What? You don’t think he was a good man?”
“Of course, I do. He loved you.” Grace struggled to keep her voice even, glaring pointedly at Tony until he finally ducked back behind the curtain. “I wonder, if you could see him right now, what would you say to him?”
Lillias stared, her fingers working nervously in her lap. “I’d tell him I’m sorry. That I was wrong. And I’d ask if we could start over.” She pinched her eyes closed, tears slipping down her cheeks. “I’d promise to be better.” She looked back to Grace. “Frederick was right. I took it all for granted.”
Grace didn’t have time to further the discussion because Frederick and Zahra reentered with Mr. Kane beside them. Mr. Kane’s suit was so fine it practically screamed his wealth, a jarring mismatch for the modest surroundings.
“Are we ready?” he asked, offering his hand to Lillias.
With an idea of where the will might really be, Grace tried to sort out how to sneak upstairs in the castle, locate the right carving with a secret compartment, and keep Tony from putting them all in danger.
Secret compartment?
That’s what they were looking for? Hidden caches in the wooden sculptures scattered throughout Mosslea. Frederick pinched the bridge of his nose as he walked between his wife and Zahra, trailing behind Mr. Kane and Lillias on their way to the gatehouse.
To his quiet exasperation, Grace had even enlisted Zahra in the search.
And Zahra brightened at the very idea of such a scavenger hunt. They may not be related by blood, but Grace and Zahra certainly shared a love and stamina for adventure.
And the entire choice to include Zahra could prove a good one, as Kane seemed to completely ignore Zahra’s existence. Oh no, he only had eyes for Lillias, which proved rather unnerving. Lillias seemed markedly less starry-eyed today.
Had the conversation between her and Grace led to such a transformation?
