“No, no!” he declared desperately. “Scarce knew any. Do assure you! I— Oh! Well, that is to say, Ihaveof course, but not in a—er— Only in a—a quite respectable—” She looked at him again, a laugh in those glorious eyes that slanted in so bewitching a way, and his knees turned to jelly. “Lord, what a clunch I am! Miss Falcon, will you pray believe I did not intend to shoot your brother? Er, not exactly. And—and I’d no least idea he would be indisposed for so long a time.”
“Even if you shot August by mistake, your action was ill considered, sir. And I cannot like recklessness.”
“No, of course not. Dreadful trait.Truly,I am very sorry, ma’am.”
She walked with him into the hall. “My brother would be nigh recovered by this time, I must admit, save that he is a difficult patient, at best.”
Morris brightened. “Heard he was hot at hand. Drives you to the ropes, does he? Ain’t surprised, though the fella who would cause anxiety to a creature so gentle as yourself, ma’am, must be a proper slowtop, and—”
“Not such a slowtop as to permit you to call upon my sister, Morris!”
Wearing a red and purple satin dressing gown that made Morris blink, August Falcon was coming down the stairs. His black hair was rumpled and unpowdered, causing him to look even more menacing than usual, and the dark blue eyes fairly hurled anger.
Morris tore his shocked stare from that garish dressing gown, and made an effort to recover. “Ain’t no law forbidding a man to pay a morning call.”
Falcon paused on the last stair, his glance flashing to his sister. “Whatever is your aunt about? I trust she don’t permit that you receive every military rattle who abuses my father’s door knocker!”
“I ain’t a rattle!” protested Morris indignantly. “And Miss Katrina didn’t receive me. Fact of the matter is, I come to call onyou!”
A lackey opened the door to the book room, and Falcon waved Morris inside.
Following, Katrina said, “I was bandaging the lieutenant’s hand, dear.”
“For which I am eternally grateful,” declared Morris fervently.
Falcon murmured, “Full of sound and bombast and doubtful of achievement.”
Scarlet, Morris said, “If you care to know it, Falcon, that’s a vicious dog you’ve got!”
“Well, well!” A grin replaced Falcon’s sneer. “Apollo gave you a proper greeting, did he? The animal earns his keep.”
“An you’d the least discrimination, you’d not give the brute house-room!”
“Nonsense. Apollo is a fine fellow.”
“You’d not think him so fine had he ever bit you.”
“Au contraire.Hehasbitten me.”
“Gad! Why the deuce would any rational person keep a dog who bites the hand that feeds him?”
Falcon gave him a scornful look. “Because he bites, of course. What did you want to see me about?”
“Oh.” Morris glanced uneasily at Katrina, who stood with her hands demurely folded, enjoying this foolish conversation.
“Er—it’s to do with Gideon Rossiter,” Morris explained.
“Rossiter!” Falcon’s lean countenance flushed. “If there’s one thing I don’t choose to talk about before I have my breakfast, ’tis that son of a—”
“August…,” murmured Katrina reproachfully.
Fuming, he said, “You’d best leave us, ma’am. If we’re to discuss Rossiter I’ll not be responsible for my language!”
She shook her head at him, but went out.
“About the duel,” began Morris, as the door closed.
“To hell with the duel,” snarled Falcon. “Any discussion of that can be handled by my seconds. Burn it, I thought you’d come to take him!”
