Page 85 of A Relentless Rake

Alec exchanged a grim look with Clayton, who answered, “Most likely because she wanted him to be indebted to her and the men she’s working with so he’d be compelled to do their bidding.”

Alec felt her stiffen. This time, a squeeze to her elbow wasn’t enough to comfort her, so he rested his hand on the small of her back, not giving a damn what Reed and Clayton suspected about the two of them.

“He said he did it for the money, but I didn’t believe him,” she whispered hoarsely as all the pieces of what her brother had been doing finally fell into place for her. “He said it was for the school, that we had spent too much money on it…thatIhad. He never mentioned gambling debts.” She slipped away from Alec and absently reached for a little wooden box sitting on her desk. Her fingers trembled as they traced over the delicate carvings of flowers that decorated its lid. “All the while, it was his fault.Heput our lives in jeopardy, risked the school…hurt people.”

“He was determined to become part of the Royal Society,” Alec explained quietly. “He had to lead the lifestyle its fellows expected from him, which cost a great deal of money and included time spent at clubs where he would have been expected to drink and gamble as much as the men around him. He couldn’t sustain that without going into debt.”

She trembled from her brother’s betrayal, but her spine remained ramrod straight. “And when the baroness offered to pay his debts, it was in exchange for working calculations for the Admiralty Club, to determine the weakest structural spots…where explosives could cause the most damage.” Not a question. Her hand dropped away from the box, and she pulled in an anguished breath. “He said he didn’t know what the plans were to be used for, that he suspected the club wanted to check the architect’s work.”

“He was most likely telling the truth about that,” Clayton confirmed. “Scepter wouldn’t have told him their endgame in case he was caught and questioned. He was simply a pawn they controlled through his debts.”

She nodded, but Alec could see her hesitancy to accept that truth about her brother. “I want to speak to the baroness.”

“No.” Alec refused to relent on this. It was too dangerous, and the men couldn’t risk showing Scepter their hand. “We have to pretend that we know nothing about Lady Rowland’s involvement.”

“But we will keep looking for Henry, yes?”

We. The word warmed Alec’s chest. They were still in this together, and that thought brought him more pleasure than he wanted to admit. “Of course.”

“I’ve positioned men to watch the baroness in case anyone else attempts to contact her,” Clayton assured her.

“And I plan on finding out more about what her household staff knows,” Reed added. “We’ll let you know what we discover.”

“Thank you.” She released her breath in a small sigh and blinked rapidly to clear her watery eyes.

With small bows to Olivia and nods to Alec, Reed and Clayton quietly excused themselves and left.

Alec closed the door. Then he gently pulled Olivia into the circle of his arms.

He closed his eyes against the warm, unfamiliar sensation sweeping through him. Although he couldn’t put a name to it, he knew everything in his life had irrevocably changed last night. Because of her.

He touched her chin and gently turned her head so he could examine the black-and-blue mark on her cheek. If he ever found the man who did this to her, he would kill him. “How are you feeling?”

“I’m fine.” When he challenged that blatant lie with a lift of his brow, she surrendered her false bravado and amended, “I have a terrible headache, but otherwise, I’m all right. Truly.”

He lowered his head and kissed her lips. He couldn’t keep himself from shaking. Dear God, what would he have done if she’d been seriously injured?

She sighed beneath his kiss and accepted his solace. Then she shifted back, breaking the kiss but not leaving the circle of his arms.

She bit her lip with worry. “How are Mrs. Adams and the girls?”

“Most likely still all in their beds.” He released her and stepped back, reluctantly putting distance between them before he made a fool of himself by crushing her to him. “I consulted with Mrs. Adams and Miss Smith, and we decided it was best just to tell the girls that a stray dog had gotten inside the house. All the noise was from chasing it out.”

A dubious frown wrinkled her brow. “And what excuse didyougive for being here?”

“I was returning the reticule you’d accidentally left at the musicale and arrived at the school just in time to help with the intruders.”

“But I didn’t take a reticule.”

“My mistake,” he answered, deadpan.

Her shoulders slumped with fatigue and worry.

He caressed the side of her face with his knuckles. “We need to talk about last night.”

She nodded. “Henry didn’t go willingly. That means those men weren’t the ones who—”

“I don’t mean your brother.”