Page 69 of A Duke's Unwanted Bride
Warner frowned. “Prussian Blue is rather fashionable of late, that is true, but that is in part due to the rarity of it.”
“It is not rare so much as expensive. But it would be less expensive than the number of almonds one would need to make cyanide and far less likely to attract attention.” Adele shook her head, tapping her fingers on his desk. “But as I said, it was something of a dead end. Perhaps if I knew where Martha was, that might open up some other ideas.”
“What do you mean?” His eyes widened.Why did she not mention this before?
“She left the household some weeks ago — it is what snapped the servants. They thought I had gotten rid of her. I have not been able to find her anywhere. She has vanished.” Adele looked at him, her eyes wide. “I have tried to find her, but it is hard to make such enquiries without drawing attention to the fact that she has gone. I know how this looks, Warner.”
Her brown eyes were full of tears, but her voice did not shake as she said, “Please — you have to know that I did not do this. I do not know what is happening, but I am innocent.”
He swallowed. “I know that. But whatever is happening, it is not good. I cannot protect you if you do not let me. Swear to me Adele, no more secrets.”
“I swear.” Adele nodded.
“Good. I will have someone I trust look into Martha. Let us hope she has not come to harm.”That will only cement your guilt.Warner paced around the study. “There is something we are missing; I am sure of it.”
“I do not think we will discover much while we are away from the city.” Adele bit her lip.
“Then we will go back. We need to get to the bottom of this, sooner rather than later. It is a matter of moving our plans up a few days.” Warner ran a hand through his hair. “Though I do not want those vultures to think we are returning because of these stories. It will only damage things further.”
“I am sure Rowen would be happy to give us an excuse. She could say that George or Alistair is ill and that we decided to accompany them.” Adele stood, her eyes distant and thoughtful. “Any of the Widows would be happy to help, I am sure of it.”
Warner nodded even as a prickle of unease spread through him. “If we seek answers as nobility, I suspect we will find none.”
“We could always disguise ourselves. It has been a while since I have been Mr. George,” Adele replied, a ghost of her smile on her face.
“A disguise is a good plan, but I think it would be best for us to go as a commoner couple. That will be the least suspicious and the easiest to maintain. And gives us a way to visit chemists and other such places without arousing suspicion.” Warner nodded to himself.
“One way or another, I am going to fix this.” He took Adele’s hand in his own. “And when I find out the scum who has thrown you to the wolves, they will rue the day their mother set eyes on their father.”
Twenty-Five
“Icannot make heads nor tails of this.” Adele frowned at the piece of paper she held in her hand.
She and Warner were walking back to his London estate in the early evening. They had arrived in London a few days before and had immediately set about investigating as much as they could.
Neither of them were wearing their usually finery, instead wearing clothes that suited merchants or other such professionals. Even in the more muted clothes of a merchant, Warner cut a striking figure.
Adele shook her head.Focus.She turned her attention back to the sheet of paper they had managed to procure from one of the chemists they had visited. The man had made her skin crawl, and it had not taken Warner much convincing to get him to give him the details of the clients he had had for the last few months.
“It is some kind of cipher, unless I miss my guess. The man may have been a weasel, but it seems he was not a complete fool.” Warner took the paper from Adele. “More’s the pity.”
Adele felt a lump form in her throat. With each passing day, she had felt panic and despair start to settle over her. She felt like there was a sword hanging above her head, waiting to drop at any moment.
If they really had proof, you would already be arrested,she tried to reassure herself, but after yet another day of searching, her hope was starting to wane.
Something of her thoughts must have shown on her face because Warner took her hand in his. “You must not lose hope. The fact that there have been no more articles is a good sign. My own men tell me that no one has been able to trace this servant.”
Adele felt the warmth of his hand spread through her and squeezed it. “It is hard to feel hopeful when increasingly it feels like things are stacked against me. I should have listened to you when you tried to warn me. Perhaps if I had not behaved so recklessly things would not be so bad.”
“Usually, I would love to hear you tell me that I am right, but I find that right now it gives me little joy.” Warner ran a hand through his hair, leaving it standing at odd angles. “There are too many questions right now, and this cipher… Well, if he has taken the trouble to disguise things, perhaps that is something in and of itself.”
Adele resisted the urge to smooth Warner’s hair down with her free hand. “Hopefully we will be able to discover the truth of things once we return home.”
The thought of returning back to their estate with yet another pointless lead made her heart sink, and she found herself leaning against Warner. He did not pull away, apparently lost in his own thoughts as they strolled through the street together. The smell of sandalwood filled her nostrils.
“So many threads — but what is the connection?” Warner was mumbling. “And why can I not find this dratted servant?”
The sound of music and laughter drifted towards them, and Adele looked to see the warm light of a pub. The laughter only added to Adele’s dark mood, and her shoulders slumped further.
