nonsense your brother said as he used us for his own gain and then sold us to a criminal.” He turned his head to Selina. “We should have brought your husband.”
“Yes. In fact, I’ll see if he can come tomorrow. I’m confident there is ample reason for him to arrest her.”
“What?” Pauline started coughing once more, more violently than she had yet. Her face turned red.
“My husband is a Bow Street Runner,” Selina said with clear satisfaction. “You’ve admitted your crime to us. Unless you’d care to change your mind about speaking with a clerk who will take your testimony?”
“Water, please,” Pauline rasped. When neither Rafe nor Selina moved, she nodded vigorously. “I’ll talk to the clerk.”
Selina went to pour more water and brought her the glass. She even helped the invalid drink. Pauline continued to cough, and her sister returned.
“Oh, Polly, you’ve worn yourself out.” She looked toward Rafe and Selina. “I think you must let her rest now. It’s time for her medicine.”
Rafe pinned Pauline with a dark stare. “The clerk will be here tomorrow. Don’t die before then.”
Mrs. Gill gasped and drew her hand to her chest as her eyes widened. “What a terrible thing to say.”
“Your sister has done far worse,” Selina bit out in a clipped tone. She hesitated before looking toward Pauline once more. The anger seemed to drain from her as he shoulders sagged and her features turned sad. “You used to sing Lavender Blue to me. All I remember is my mother’s coral necklace and that song.” Her voice was soft and haunting. It broke what remained of Rafe’s heart.
Tears filled Pauline’s eyes again. “I loved you. I thought you and your mother would be fine. Your uncle promised me that. I am so sorry for my part in what happened.”
Mrs. Gill frowned at her sister. “Polly, what are you talking about?”
Pauline weakly lifted her hand in a feeble wave. “Later. I need to sleep.” She seemed to sink deeper into the bedclothes. Her eyes closed.
Rafe gritted his teeth and lightly touched his sister’s back to guide her to the door. Selina didn’t move, however. “Did that necklace burn in the fire?” she asked.
It took a moment for Pauline to respond, and she didn’t open her eyes. “No. You had it. She came to the nursery to make sure you got out of the house. You wanted her, but she needed to go find your father. You reached for her and grabbed the necklace. It came off, and you held on to it as we left the house.”
Rafe’s heart broke again as he watched the despair carve deep lines into his sister’s face. Her back bowed with the weight of her grief.
“I made sure it was with you when Edgar took you.”
Was it possible, then, that the necklace Beatrix had given to Selina had belonged to their mother?
“When the clerk comes tomorrow to take your testimony, he’s going to bring a necklace. You will tell him if it’s the same one. I am not certain it is, but you will know.”
Pauline didn’t respond.
“I’m sorry, but you must go,” Mrs. Gill pleaded.
“You’ll keep me apprised of her condition,” Rafe said. “Send word to me at Upper Brook Street in London. Tomorrow, a clerk will come to take her testimony about the matter we discussed today. You must admit him, do you understand?”
Mrs. Gill nodded.
Rafe inclined his head, then guided Selina from the room. They walked in silence from the inn and waited to speak until they were seated in the coach on their way back to London.
Selina stared out the window as they drove north through Redfield. “She may die before the clerk arrives.”
“She probably will, just to spite us.”
“Our uncle is a murderer,” she said quietly, her gaze fixed outside the coach.
“Yes. I want to kill him, Lina.”
She turned her head toward him then, her blue eyes dark and piercing in their intensity. “No. You are not a murderer.”
“You know that’s not true.” He’d told her what he’d done to the man who’d killed his pregnant wife, the man who’d brutally ripped away the best part of Rafe. “When it comes to those I love, I will do anything.” His throat burned, threatening to close with emotion. “I worked so hard to protect you, to keep you safe. None of it mattered. I failed. What you said in there—”
She held up her hand. “I was upset. Besides Beatrix, the only other person who knows what happened to me when I was a