He looked back.
“Be careful,” she said again.
For a moment, he looked at her with an expression she could not quite read. Then he took both her hands in his and held them, and everything she had been carrying all evening quieted for just one moment.
“Do not fret,” he said. “This may mean we are one step closer to finding Arabella.”
He let go and moved down the stairs into the crowd. Clara stood, watching him go, and felt the absence of his hands as though he had taken something with him that belonged to her.
* * *
Julian made his way through the ballroom without losing sight of Devereau for a moment. All around him, people spoke of the waltz, of what a handsome couple they made, of the kiss, of when they might be introduced to the child. He let it wash past him.
Devereau stood near the arches speaking to a gentleman Julian vaguely recognized. He was at ease. Entirely, deliberately at ease. He was confident; that much was clear. Was it real or a façade? Did he fret inside because this territory had to be dangerous for him, or was he so sure of himself he did not care about such things?
“Devereau,” he said, when he was within range.
The man turned. “Your Grace” A smile. “What a pleasure. It has been some time.”
“It has. The last occasion, I believe, was Southampton. My birthday celebration. You came with your cousin.”
“That is right. Ole Steven could not make it tonight. Silly man fell of off his horse,” Devereau said. “And I recall your cousin was there also. What was her name again, Annalise?”
Julian kept his hands loose at his sides.
“Arabella,” he said. “I am surprised you do not remember. I understand the two of you spent some time together in Dover about a year ago?”
“Dover?” Devereau shook his head. “No, I scarcely go to Dover. I much prefer Southampton. A superior port.” He paused. “You mistake me for someone else. So, I take it, she is not here? Your cousin?”
“Unfortunately not. And I must correct you, you were at Dover with her. She told me so.” A bold-faced lie. Would the man buy it?
His eyes held Julian’s with perfect steadiness. “So you are telling me she was in Dover, and you believe I saw her there?”
“I am telling you nothing,” Julian said pleasantly. “I am asking a very simple question.”
“And I have given you a very simple answer.” He spread his hands. “I have not been in Dover for a very long time. I do not even know your cousin. I do not know why you would think I do? He tilted his head slightly. “Although I would counsel care, Your Grace, with the manner in which one poses such questions.Raising suspicions against people one does not know well can be a dangerous game.”
“Indeed, it can,” Julian agreed, “as can underestimating a man’s resolve to keep his family safe.”
Devereau looked at him for a moment then he stepped back and bowed, shallow but correct.
“This has been most informative,” he said. “And a pleasur, as always.”
He turned and moved back into the crowd.
Julian watched him go. He was shaking slightly, not from fear but from the effort of standing there with his hands at his sides while this man looked him in the eye and lied with the smooth confidence of someone who had been doing it for years and had never yet had cause to regret it.
That would change.
He turned and made his way back towards the stairs.
He returned to the ballroom where Gideon and Nathaniel had joined Clara, Marianne, Helena, and Evelyn.
“And?” Clara asked eagerly.
“Well, I asked him if he had been to Dover with my cousin. I said that was what Arabella told me.”
“You lied to him,” Helena said. “Very clever. That way, he could not catch you out.”
