She tucked a loosened lock of hair behind her ear as she cleared a pile of fabric swatches from the sofa. “Must we really make up special napkins and tablecloths to match the floral—” Looking up, she stopped short on seeing his expression and felt her heart lurch.
“Is something amiss?”
He took a seat before answering. “Is Raven here?”
The question stirred another frisson of alarm. “No, the boys left this morning to deliver my drawing to Mr. Fores, and then—” Charlotte sat down beside him. “Ye gods, Wrexford, is something amiss?”
“Not that I know of,” he answered. ‘It’s just that Riche saw Tyler and Hawk leave my townhouse together, and I find it odd that they said nothing to me about it. Since he said that Raven wasn’t with them, I simply wanted to ask the boy whether he knew anything about it.”
“Raven hasn’t yet returned home. He was planning on paying a visit to Lady Cordelia at her office.”
Was it merely a shadow thrown by the shifting sunlight, or did the earl’s gaze suddenly darken with concern?
“The dockyards!” she exclaimed, realizing the import of what she had just said. “Are you worried—”
“I’m not worried about anything yet,” he answered. Her huff caused him to hastily add, “I’m merely concerned. However unreasonable, I suspect Tyler feels some measure of guilt at having let the specimen elude us. So I simply wish to talk with Raven and assure myself that Tyler and Hawk aren’t poking around in places that are best left undisturbed.”
“Raven would never let his brother venture into danger,” protested Charlotte.
Unless . . .
“Hell’s bells.” She slumped back against the pillows. “You think the three of them might be up to some unholy mischief together?”
“I would like to believe that Tyler wouldn’t allow emotion to overpower reason,” answered the earl.
Oh, but I know all too well what a powerful force emotion is.
“However, I think it wise for me to pay a visit to the office of Nereid and Neptune, just to be sure,” he finished.
“I’m coming with you.” Charlotte shot up before he could react. “Dressed as Magpie, of course. If there’s trouble, we’ll need to act quickly.”
“If I thought I had a ghost of a chance of convincing you—”
“Save your breath.” She held his gaze, daring him to challenge her.
He looked away. “Hurry and change.”
* * *
Sheffield waited for Raven to have a seat facing his desk before nudging a knife across to him. “Have a look. The hilt is made of silver, and the carnelian stones are an unusual shade—more a rich cinnabar red than orange.”
Raven picked it up, and after a cursory look at the decorative elements, he ran a thumb lightly along the blade. “Oiy, it’s pretty enough. M’lady would like the color. But the steel is inferior—it can’t hold a sharp edge.”
He slid the weapon back across the polished wood and looked up. “No point in having a knife that might let you down in a pinch.”
“Seeing as I’m not planning on slicing through anything other than envelopes and sealing wax with it, I daresay it will do the job without any trouble,” replied Sheffield as he tucked it into his desk drawer. “Be that as it may, I—”
“Why don’t you stop fiddle-faddling, Mr. Sheffield,” interjected Raven, “and tell me the real reason that you asked me to come back here and see you.”
“Er, I was just about to do so, lad.” The chair scraped over the floor as Sheffield shifted in his seat and darted a look at the door to make sure it was firmly shut. “But do keep your voice down. I’d prefer to keep this just between us.”
“Of course.” Raven propped his elbows on the table and leaned in a little closer. “What do you need me to do?”
“Us,”corrected Sheffield. “We need to do a little sleuthing around the docks.”
“Looking for what?”
Sheffield gave another glance at the door. “The man who murdered DeVere and Quincy. I dislike involving you in such sordid doings, lad, but I need your help on something. I would never ask you to do anything dangerous. However, Wrex won’t like my request. And neither will Lady Charlotte. So think hard on it before saying yes.”
