Raven (Gentlemen of the Order #2) - Adele Clee Page 0,64

your husband’s madness.”

“I have to find him, plead with him to stop this nonsense before something terrible happens to Miss Draper. Before I meet a horrible end, too.”

“You went to Godstow. Did Mr Stapler say you might find Goodwin here?”

“The haughty old fool told me nothing. His housekeeper took pity on me and hurried down the drive to say where I might find the doctor.”

So, that part rang true.

Sophia’s snort rang with mockery. “What makes you think you can trust him?” She jabbed her finger at the doctor. “How do you know he’s not conspiring with Mr Archer to kill you and take my sister instead?”

Maud glanced at the rug near the hearth, and her lips curled into a sensual grin. “We have come to an understanding.”

She meant she had seduced the wastrel into siding with her.

But two things were crystal clear. Goodwin and Mr Archer were devious devils and deserved to dangle from the hangman’s noose. The moment Finlay let the doctor out of his sight, he would likely be on the next ship heading for the Americas.

“Nothing matters but saving Miss Draper,” Maud said. “It’s the least I can do after what happened in the attic.”

If Maud was so concerned for Jessica, why did she not write to Sophia when she found the letters, and warn her of Archer’s intentions?

In the brief hush that followed, the air thrummed with internal chatter, unspoken words of vengeance, disappointment and regret.

“What shall we do now?” Sophia’s question dragged Finlay from his reverie.

Finlay turned to Goodwin. “Tell me where I can find Mr Archer.”

He would summon Daventry to the Order’s office in Hart Street, have him alert Sir Malcolm Langley, Chief Magistrate at Bow Street.

Goodwin shrugged. “He refuses to reveal his location. At present, he doesn’t know Miss Draper has left Blackborne. I’m to leave a note beside a tombstone in St John the Baptist churchyard in Windlesham before dusk tomorrow night, confirming our arrangement.”

“A note?”

“Bartholomew is growing impatient,” Maud interjected. “The doctor is supposed to make an unexpected call at Blackborne, make an excuse to see Miss Draper and lure her into the woods. If he doesn’t, Bartholomew has threatened to report Dr Goodwin to the authorities.”

It took the mental fortitude of a saint to keep Finlay’s rage at bay.

But a man consumed with emotion was of no use in an investigation, and he could see the end of their troubles in sight.

Finlay inhaled deeply, attempting to reduce his boiling blood to a simmer. “Then you will do as Archer asked. We shall all return to Blackborne tomorrow and lure the devil into our trap.”

Chapter 18

Unlike Jessica, sleep was the last thing on Sophia’s mind.

She sat in a chair in her bedchamber in Keel Hall, watching the gentle rise and fall of Jessica’s chest. A host of crippling emotions attacked her conscience. Guilt threw the first punch, a hit so hard she clutched her abdomen and wept.

Why had she trusted Dr Goodwin?

Merciful Mary! The man had attended Jessica for years merely to keep her in a drug-induced state. He had sunk so deep into a mire of treachery, he could not haul himself free without drawing attention to his devilry. And she could hardly blame her father for hiring the fraud. In trying to protect Jessica, he’d lacked foresight, too.

Anger flowed in her veins, releasing its bitter poison. When they encountered Mr Archer in Blackborne Wood, she would pull a pistol from her muff and shoot the fiend. The beast had ruined countless lives and deserved to pay for his betrayal. She would hang for the pleasure of watching him die.

But what of Finlay?

Love for him burst to life in her chest, filling every cold, lonely space—an antidote to every dark thought and feeling. What would happen once this was all over, when she resumed her place in society, and he took a new case for the Order? Would his old doubts resurface? Would the past still plague them both?

Jessica stirred and muttered something incoherent.

Sophia pushed to her feet, stroked her sister’s hair and pulled the coverlet up around her shoulders. “I’m so sorry.” She pressed the heels of her palms to her eyes to stop the tears. “I was the one tasked to protect you, and I have failed miserably. Forgive me.”

Jessica looked so peaceful in slumber, so innocent.

“I shall dedicate my life to ensuring your happiness.”

Sophia pushed away from the bed lest she crumple to the floor, a blubbering wreck. Sunrise was but an hour away. The day would