Page 25

The motive had been clear. The means unquestioned. The baron was dead. Brendan would have been tried for patricide.

That the woman—Lily—had sacrificed everything to save him, for reasons he could not fathom, made his stomach clench.

He remembered her now. Tiny, with those wide, expressive eyes and that nervous chatter. She had always seemed like a side character—a child—in the drawing rooms of Town.

And yet, she had just procured his freedom and his life.

Collapsing back to the floor with a slow exhale, Brendan closed his eyes again.

“I suppose,” he muttered, “that I shall have to marry her.”

“What have you done?” Her mother’s wail cut through the drawing room, a desperate cry that interrupted Papa’s calm explanation of Lily’s predicament.

Aidan spun away from the fireplace, an ornate creation of veined marble and carved acanthus leaves, and staggered to a nearby armchair, collapsing into its cushioned depths. His face had turned ashen, his usually rakish expression stripped of all composure. “This is all my fault … If I had been here as agreed …”

Lily did not move. She could not. Her gaze remained fixed upon the hearth’s blackened grate, now cold and empty. Her hands were clenched in her lap, the tension in her fingers making her knuckles throb. Her family’s reactions echoed around her like distant voices muffled by water, her heartbeat roaring in her ears.

“There is no time for regrets,” Papa said quietly. His voice, low but unwavering, cut across the disarray in the room. “Lily felt compelled to act, and it is our place to support her.”

“But, Hugh, she is ruined!” Mama cried, twisting a handkerchief in her trembling fingers. “Lily will never make a good match now that the peerage believes she was bedded by … by … by a murderer!”

Lily winced at the word, her lips pressed together as though to contain the swell of emotion threatening to escape. A wave of cold dread passed through her. Yet still, beneath the mortification, a steady voice within repeated, You did the right thing. There was no other choice.

Papa’s tone sharpened slightly. “Christiana, Mr. Ridley is not a murderer. Lily has merely reported what she saw. She has done what any decent person ought and provided him with the alibi he so sorely lacked.”

“But, Hugh⁠—”

“Our child will be secure,” he bellowed, a wall of loud resolve, “because we shall stand with her!”

Lily flinched. She had never heard Papa raise his voice before. He was usually accommodating to her mother’s wishes, but there was one subject on which he always stood firm. Family loyalty always came first.

Lily supposed she was fortunate that this was the case. When she had knocked on the door of his study, she had not been certain how he would react to what she had to tell him, but she should have known. Papa had immediately called for the rest of the family to join them so he could break the news. Even now, he stood by her side.

She looked up at her father, towering above her. His face showed the signs of aging, but his square jaw was firm and his expression resolute.

Blowing a deep sigh, Papa relaxed his features before continuing. “I know you wanted Lily to make a good match—the best match—but her conscience dictated that she take action. Now our family must work together to help her forge a new path.”

Her mother lifted a hand to cover her mouth, a sob escaping as her chocolate brown eyes glistened. Lily’s heart wrenched in her chest. Her own eyes prickled with the threat of tears as she dropped her head to stare at her twisting fingers.

“I am … so sorry. I … did not know what else to do.”

“Nay, I bear the blame!” Aidan jumped to his feet, pacing back and forth and flinging his hands into the air. “If I had been here that night, I would have seen him myself and been able to step forward as his alibi. It is my fault that Lily was alone. If not for me, she would never have been in this situation in the first place.”

“Aidan.”

Her brother continued to pace in front of the large fireplace, mumbling about his culpability.

“Aidan!”

He stopped to look at their father, who said, “Lily made her decision, and there is no undoing it now. News of her spending the night with Ridley will spread through the ton shortly, and we must prepare ourselves.”

Aidan nodded dully, still pale from the shock of recent revelations.

“Will … will Mr. Ridley offer for her?” Mama’s voice was fretful, and guilt stabbed Lily.

“I shall contact him forthwith to learn his intentions.”

“And if he does not?”