Page 66 of A Relentless Rake

“Allowed in child after child who couldn’t pay tuition but whom we have to feed and clothe. Purchased blankets for the dormitories, desks for the classrooms, rugs for the common rooms…” With each item he listed, his voice grew harsher, more frustrated.Desperate.“And what new monies have come in since you caused us to lose our best patroness and Father to work himself to death?”

His words hit her like a slap. Yet she managed to fling back in her own defense, “I never forced you intothis.” The blood drained from her face. She was staring at a complete stranger. She repeated fiercely, “Whathave you done?”

“Exactly what I had to.” He paced the room, so agitated that he shook. “It will all be over soon, and then we’ll never have to worry about money. Until then, donotmention this again, not to me nor to anyone, or it will be more than the school that’s destroyed. They’ll come for me—forus. God only knows who’ll be hurt.”

His threats didn’t intimidate her. “Does that include Lady Rowland?”

He halted in midpace, and his hand that had been clawing at his neckcloth froze. “What do you know about her?”

“I saw you with her tonight. Are you lovers?” She hoped beyond hope that the baroness had played no other role than that.

He scoffed at the idea and continued to pace. “Of course not.”

She pressed a hand to her roiling stomach. “Then what is she to you?”

“Someone who can help us with the school.”

“How?”

He shook his head. “You just have to trust me.”

She nearly laughed.Never again.“If it concerns the school, then it—”

He wheeled on her. “Leave it be, Olivia!”

He charged toward her and pushed her out of the room and into the hall. The door slammed shut, and the lock clicked into place.

She retreated until her back hit the wall. Then she crumpled, sliding down to land in a heap on the floor. She wrapped her arms around her knees and rocked back and forth the same way little Cora did whenever the girl had a nightmare. A nightmare—if only that was what this was! Because that would mean she would eventually wake up and escape it.

She pressed her hand against her mouth and choked back the roiling in her stomach. Alec had been right about Henry from the very beginning. He knew, even that first night in the alley when he’d demanded to know where her brother had gone, when he’d questioned her about his work. All those poor men hurt…some of them killed…and the prime minister—

Alec had known. But she’d refused to believe him.

She stared at the closed door, and the pain of her ripping heart outweighed the sickness balling in her belly. Alec, Henry…who was left for her to trust?

***

Alec stood in the shadows of the school’s service yard and let out a short whistle. He cocked his head and listened.

An answering whistle came a few heartbeats later.

He moved forward toward the sound. Reed’s dark figure was hidden by the stone wall, and the man remained where he was, not moving out of the shadows to greet Alec as he approached. But his hand was certainly on his knife, Alec knew, just as he knew Reed would be here. He’d lingered long enough after following Olivia safely home to see Everett arrive and knew Reed would be fast on the man’s heels.

Reed sheathed his knife but made no gesture of extending his hand. They might have been partners on this mission, but that certainly didn’t mean the ill blood between them had been cleansed. “What are you doing here?”

“Following the sister home,” Alec replied, grateful that the darkness hid any stray emotions regarding Olivia that might have been on his face. “Where’s Clayton?”

“Trying to track down the man who hired the messenger boy at Vauxhall.” Reed slid him a look. “You have information?”

Alec gave a tight nod and turned toward the house. “I know why Scepter recruited Everett. Two years ago, he worked on renovation plans for the Admiralty Club. Scepter couldn’t approach the club manager for copies of the building plans without raising suspicions, but Henry Everett had kept a copy. They knew that. That’s what they worked from, where our slip of charred paper came from.”

Reed frowned. “What would Scepter want with building plans?”

“If they knew exactly where the structure was weakest, they could maximize destruction with minimal explosives.” Alec dropped his hands to his sides. The weight of the world hung on his shoulders tonight. Or perhaps just the weight of his heart. “All they needed were the building plans and a willing mathematician.” He muttered almost to himself, “To take out a massive arch, you only have to remove one small stone…”

“Christ,” Reed breathed out. “But why would Everett agree to work with them? What did they hold over his head?”

“I have no idea.” Yet Alec was more determined than ever to find out. “But I think I know someone who does.”