This time he had a cut. I dropped to my knees and fished out his handkerchief and held it to his temple. “It’s a small bleed. No more. When he awakens, we’ll tell the truth.”
Patience’s friend shrugged. “He’ll live. I’ve had worse injuries with our missions, but we need a head start. Her Grace needs to tell Repington of our activities before anyone else.”
I looked at the lady and wondered if she knew about Felton’s true work or if she was just being critical. Wanting to shield him, I crowded closer to my poor Felton. “Will you all stop attacking my husband?”
Patience lulled Noah to sleep. “So, you do still consider him yours? That’s good.”
I picked pieces of the mud vases from his hair. “We’ll get a formal separation once we return from Warwick. It is for the best.”
“Is it, Chari? The man has been in agony for months. I know he loves you.”
That mirrored the confession he offered when we left the theatre. It didn’t change the confusion in my heart. Holding Noah, Patience stood and moved to the paintings of Agatha and Amelia, the pictures of us picnicking on the grounds of Warwick. On a clear day, one could hear the sea, even if one couldn’t see it.
I missed the girls. For a moment, I let my heart grieve. If I closed my eyes, we were all there, but I couldn’t drop my lids. I didn’t want Patience to disappear.
“I wasn’t prepared to be a wife.” The words crawled across my tongue. “I thought it would be a big adventure. If I had not wed, Helena would be alive.”
Patience came to me. Over sleeping Noah, she pulled my wet face to hers. “Chari, my heart breaks for Helena, but what happened to her is not your fault.”
“Then it’s Gladstone’s. I want to take my knife, my topaz knife that Papa gave each of us, and stick it into his gullet. The scoundrel should be flayed.”
“Chari, no. We have to move forward. Hate will keep you bound.”
“How? This boy. That’s all that remains of our sister. It’s Gladstone’s fault. He should pay.”
Lady Ashbrook gasped. “Gladstone could gain custody if he knows about the boy. We’ve seen this in the Widow’s Grace.”
No. No, I’ve kept Noah safe, not to hand my boy over to that evil family. “Gladstone must never know. He’d be ruinous. I think the man should die. I think I want to try.”
Patience pulled me into a tighter embrace. “No. I just got you back. You can’t do anything so stupid. We’re family. We’re restored. Stop thinking of killing.”
That was the problem. It was always in my thoughts. It was easier to think of revenge than the state of my heart. Patience’s world was set, a new husband, one baby here, one to come. She could care for Noah and Enna if I was caught.
“That look. Chari, no.”
Felton moved a little but didn’t awaken.
“It makes no sense, Chari. Lord Gantry has been a fine friend to Repington, but if he abused you, I’ll hate him forever. I will find a way to rid him from our lives.”
“No. Gantry never hurt me, never lifted a hand to me. He’s not that type of villain.”
Noah rustled and Patience’s belly jiggled. She arched her back and sort of looked at me. “What type of villain is he?”
“The type who makes you think he believes in you, that he trusts you, then in a moment of confusion, he leaves you bereft. He has no faith.”
Jemina rubbed at her forehead. “Speak plainly. It’s been a long night. We’ve checked a few wrong places before finding Enna. What exactly did Lord Gantry do?”
My eyes closed and I was again on the patio. Tramel was comforting me over Gladstone’s gloating over what the fiend had done. Then Felton stepped through the door, over the threshold, and held me in such contempt.
My sister put her palm to my face. “You went silent, Chari. What did he do?”
“He thought I succumbed to his father’s charms. He thought we had an affair. What type of faith is that?”
“What?” Jemina sat and slipped off the couch. “I heard he’s an awful man. And hateful.”
“Never. Tramel, Lord Gantry’s father, is misunderstood. He’s not hateful. At least not to me. Always kind—”
Patience stared at me and stole my breath. That was the same look she had when were younger and I told her I had a crush on the vicar’s son.
