“Apparently,” she whispered, “he found my horse grazing by Lord Hampton’s estate.”
“But…that is miles away.”
“I know.” She cocked her head. “I suspect Edgar Stone of taking Pegasus in the first place, and then returning it to make him appear as if he is my rescuer.” She shook her head. “I just don’t believe his story.”
“I don’t believe a word out of his mouth.” Vincent rolled his eyes. “He has never been one who could tell the truth.”
The clinking of a glass and a man clearing his throat brought the chatter around the room to a halt. The duke stood with a champagne glass in his hand and smiled at the guests while servants passed trays of the drink around to everyone.
“Forgive me for interrupting, but I have an announcement to make.”
“This is it,” Ellie whispered, leaning toward Vincent.
Swallowing hard, he hoped he’d be able to see if any of the guests could be added to the suspects list.
“I’ll be watching Edgar Stone,” she said.
“Yes, I would bet money that he did it.”
A servant passed them with the tray of champagne. Vincent took a flute and handed it to Ellie before taking one for himself.
“First,” the duke began, “I want to thank you—my good friends—for coming tonight. I’m very happy that you are all here to share in this joyous occasion.”
Some of the guests appeared baffled as they whispered to each other, shaking their heads and shrugging.
“I would like to announce,” the duke continued, “the engagement of my daughter and Lord Trenton.”
Gasps bounced off the walls as all eyes turned to Vincent and Ellie. Smiling, he glanced from face to face, trying to see if anyone appeared guilty. Most everyone looked shocked and bewildered. But nobody appeared angered.
“I will post the banns very soon,” the duke said. “So, let us raise our glasses and toast to my daughter and her soon-to-be husband.”
Murmurs of congratulations rose in the room as everyone lifted their glasses and took a sip. It irritated Vincent that he still couldn’t figure out who was the one threatening him. Perhaps the person wasn’t in the room. That certainly narrowed down the list a little.
Within moments, a swarm of people came up to Ellie and Vincent. Some of their expressions looked genuine, but others were fake. Unfortunately, that didn’t make them suspects.
Vincent tried to be as polite as he could. After all, some of these people had given him money to help rebuild his stable, or offered their servants to help build it. But more than anything, he wanted answers about who was threatening him. And would they strike again now that the wedding announcement had been made?
Once Vincent and Ellie were by themselves again, she looked up at him and frowned. The spark in her eyes had diminished. Even the way she breathed was slower. She appeared as exhausted as he felt.
“Unfortunately, I could not tell if anyone was guilty,” she said.
“I couldn’t, either. What about Stone?”
“Believe it or not, he wasn’t here during the announcement. I saw him earlier, but then he disappeared.”
Suspicion rose within Vincent, and he stiffened. “That’s good to know, especially if I return home to find something else has happened to my property. I’ll know where to point the police inspectors.”
She nodded. “I never thought of that, but you are correct. He would be the perfect suspect.”
He turned to peer back across the crowd and sighed. “Is it wrong of me to want this party to end early?” he asked softly.
“Not at all. I’m also anticipating the end of this party, especially when I feign a headache and leave to go to my room.”
A grin tugged at the corners of his mouth when he looked back at her. “Which means I had better figure out an excuse to leave as well.”
“Actually, you already have an excuse. You are very tired because you stayed up most of the night putting out the fire and trying to find your horses.”
“Which is exactly what happened.” He took her hand in his and squeezed it softly. “Dinner has passed, and your stepmother is getting the room ready for card playing. I suppose now is the perfect time to bow out. Your father will understand.”
