Always searching for ways not to be broken, maybe he just needed the person who hid his seams.
And because he was skimming the entries that concerned him, he almost missed it. Only the hour chime of the clock woke him from his stupor.
His finger pressed into the page and the voice echoed in his mind.…just last summer. Horrible,as usual.
A firm knot settled in his stomach. The strange thing was the flicker of relief—from finally figuring it out, from never having to go through the journal again, from ending the nightmare. Only to begin a new one.
He pounded the table with his fist. And then did it again, for good measure.
Marietta ran into the room, scanning the space as if looking for a threat. “Gabriel?”
“I know who the murderer is,” he said grimly.
She stared at him, mouth agape.
He started penning notes. “Did my father, brother, and John say where they were going?”
“They are completing the task of tracking down the names on the list.”
“Good. When they get back we will need to discuss the plan.”
“Who is the murderer?”
“I’ll tell you when we are assembled.”
She started to protest. He reached forward to kiss her, to thwart her, and abruptly stopped.
He touched her cheek instead, rubbing his thumb along her soft skin. “Soon. This will be over soon.”
Marietta was nervous. She didn’t know why. Maybe because the nightmare was nearing its peak. Maybe because Gabriel was not telling her something, but at least not hiding the fact from her. Maybe because he never hinted at anything in the future. Anythingafter.
Jeremy, Alcroft, and Gabriel’s father returned around noon. They gathered around the kitchen table. Gabriel was twitchy, pacing.
“I was looking over the list and found a match. A stable hand. Lester Flume. He’s mentioned in Abigail’s journal, not by name, but Lady Dentry has all of the names written out by hand and he is on the list she gave me.”
“How do you know she has all of the names written in her journal? She hardly seems the type to do something so foolhardy,” Jeremy said.
Gabriel nodded, but his shoulders tensed further. “She threatened me with it. Before. Foolish, yes, but she considers it worth the cost. It’s a way to keep track for her. I saw a page near the beginning of her journal when I was looking through her desk, and indeed there were names, dates, details. I let her take it back before I looked further, but I am going to return tomorrow, to confirm my suspicions.”
“And you think she will let you have a look at the book, just by you asking?” Gabriel’s father asked skeptically.
“No, I’ll have to dream up a good story, most likely. Play on her titillations. She will let me see it in the end.” He shrugged. “And if not, I will take it. Give it to Dresden to end this.”
“You would allow your name to be ruined?” Alcroft asked, shock all over his face.
Gabriel nodded once. Decisively. “I am willing to take the chance.”
Alcroft slowly nodded back. “Very well. I will support you, you know that.”
“Yes.” Gabriel’s voice was soft. “I know you will.”
“As will I,” Marietta said.
All eyes turned to her.
“I will go with you to the estate tomorrow,” she said.
He nodded slowly.
