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I managed to find a hackney cab and directed it to take me to Claire’s house first, hoping that I’d been worried for no reason. When her butler informed me that he hadn’t received word from her, I headed straight for King’s.

Fairfax wasn’t there, but Rexford did expect him. So while we waited, my nerves growing more tense with every passing second, I told Rexford everything. My concerns about Claire being missing, the two girls who I was beginning to suspect hadn’t actually been adopted, and my fear that the headmistress I’d hired was involved in something sinister.

There was a great deal of cursing, and by the time I reached the end of the sordid mess, I was ready to storm into the school again and tear it apart with my bare hands.

Fairfax arrived then, and as instructed, he came up to Rexford’s office to speak to us. With one glance, he knew something was wrong.

“Sit down and explain everything,” he said.

Gone was the devil-may-care man with the pretty face that everyone else saw when they looked at him. In his place stood the Fairfax who could strategize like no other. Together, he and Rexford made a formidable pair.

So I repeated what I’d told Rexford, adding that one of the governesses had overheard Claire’s discussion with Mrs. Atkinson, and that the headmistress of the school had refused to divulge any information about who had adopted the girls. I had no doubt that Claire would have gone straight to the address she’d found in Mrs. Atkinson’s office.

“And now no one has seen her since early afternoon. The girls have been gone since this morning.”

Rexford’s eyes narrowed. “Did you approach the headmistress after speaking to the governess?”

I shook my head. “I thought it best to speak to the two of you first. If there is something nefarious happening at the school, I know of no one else better able to uncover it.”

Rexford nodded. “We’ll bring Clarence in on this.”

My eyes narrowed. “The club secretary?”

“You forget,” Fairfax said, “that he used to be the steward in charge of Rexford’s father’s vast holdings. The man has a keen eye for numbers and vast experience looking through financial records. He can look into that side of matters at the school while we search for Miss Sullivan and the children. It’s possible that there is more going on than you suspect.”

“Fuck!” I dug my fingers into my scalp. The school was set up by my father as a lasting tribute to my mother. It seemed I’d not only failed Claire, but my parents and all the children housed at the school.

I swore again and then forced myself to behave rationally. I needed to keep my wits about me if I was going to help straighten out this fiasco.

“You are correct, both of you. We need to go through the financial records of the school. We also need to learn what’s happened to the two girls and why the headmistress would insist on keeping details about their new home a secret.”

Rexford clapped me on the shoulder. “You’ve been there every month since the school was founded. This is the first time anyone’s heard a hint of anything untoward taking place. Whatever Claire uncovered, we can only hope this was just the beginning.”

I took a deep breath. He was correct, of course. There’d been no signs of misdeeds before now, and I’d always made a habit of speaking with the governesses. I hadn’t seen any reason to worry until today.

I turned to my friends. “What is our first step?”

They glanced at each other, and I knew exactly what they were thinking. They would harass me later about being the next Legend to fall, but for now they were all business.

“Go collect Clarence,” Fairfax said. “You can tell him what’s happening while the three of you head to the school. I’ll need to call in a few reinforcements and will follow shortly. Please ensure the headmistress doesn’t escape before I can speak to her. I’ll also need to interview the rest of the staff.”

I crossed my arms. “I should insist that you not torture the woman for information, but at this point I say proceed as you see fit.”

Fairfax’s smile was grim. “I doubt it will come to that. We’ll just keep her locked in her rooms with a guard stationed outside. Clarence can begin sorting through the financial records. I’m not sure he’ll get far tonight, but he should be able to tell if there is anything amiss.” He turned to Rexford. “Make sure Grey doesn’t destroy the contents of the room in his search for Miss Sullivan’s whereabouts.”

“Let’s go,” I said. My patience was at an end.

Chapter 35

CLAIRE

After yelling and banging on the door for ten minutes and only managing to make myself hoarse, I retreated to the armchair that was tucked into the corner of the room and waited. And waited. And waited.

I don’t know how much time passed, but it felt like hours before someone arrived. I was on my feet the second I heard the softer tread of a woman’s footsteps in the hallway. I held my breath until I heard the key in the lock, letting it out in a rush when Mrs. Beauchamp entered. She closed the door behind her, but this time when she left I would be following. She wouldn’t be keeping me locked in here again.

A million questions fought for dominance in my mind as I stared at the woman. What was the meaning of this? What gave her the right to believe she could lock me up? But the only one that mattered was finding out whether the girls were well. I held my hands together loosely at my waist and took a deep breath, determined to appear composed.

“I would like to see Hope and Grace.”