“What are you doing?” she asked as he grabbed a piece of wood from a pile nearby, which was likely waiting to be used in the building of a new shop or home.
Matthew didn’t answer. He slammed the wood into the window, once, twice, three times—until the glass shattered. He shrugged off his jacket and wrapped it around his arm to clear away the remaining glass. Then, leaving Miss Timperman staring after him, he hoisted himself inside.
He found himself in an office. Weston Gardiner’s, most likely, although the man himself wasn’t present.
Everyone inside the bank must have heard the window breaking. Stealth was not on his side. And with that in mind, he shoved open the office door and entered the bank.
Chapter Twenty-five
“DURHAM!”
Sophia had never heard such a welcome voice in her life. She almost didn’t believe it was him, until Mr. Durham turned, yanking her with him. And there he was—Matthew.
Behind him, Miss Timperman peaked through the open office door where Sophia supposed Matthew had entered by breaking the window they’d all heard shattering.
Durham shoved Sophia in front of him, that revolver pressed into her side.
“You stay right there,” Mr. Durham said, a slight unease she hadn’t heard before entering his voice. “Your wife was preparing to ask the clerk here to withdraw my money.”
The poor bank teller, a small, thin man with an even skinnier mustache, had been the only person present in the bank when they’d entered. But bless him, he’d drawn himself up as tall as he could and insisted he could not take any money out of Sophia’s account without her direct consent.
Which she hadn’t given.
Across the room, Matthew raised his hands. “Did Mrs. Canton tell you she had only a paltry sum left?”
Sophia blinked at him. Certainly, she had much less than she’d started with, but what remained wasn’t exactly “paltry.” Matthew was lying. His eyes flicked to hers, and she knew, in that moment, that he didn’t hold the things he’d already forgiven her for against her.
She’d been wrong. And now it was too late.
Unless they could get out of here.
“She said she’d spent some. But I can tell with the hesitance she has to give me the rest that there is certainly plenty remaining.”
“Oh, no,” Sophia said, her voice stronger than she’d expected it to be. “It’s just that it’sallI have. Surely anyone would protect the little they have remaining to their name?”
His hand squeezed even harder around her arm. “You’re lying.”
