The Return of the Duke - Grace Callaway Page 0,123

and launched herself through the opening.

It was a tight fit, but survival was the ultimate motivator. Clenching her jaw, she ignored the harsh scrape of wood against her bare arms and pushed herself through, dropping to the ground on the other side. She got up, and an arm hooked her around the waist, pulling her back against a wall of muscle, a hand muffling her scream.

40

“Fancy, it’s me.”

Hearing Knight’s voice, she felt relief pour through her. He turned her to face him, scanning her with fierce eyes.

“Are you all right, love?” His gaze dropped to her undergarments, ripped during her hasty exit out the window, and rage flared in those grey depths. “If they laid a finger on you—”

“They didn’t,” she said in hushed tones. “I took off my clothes so that I could fit through the window. No one hurt me. Well, except Adelaide. She drugged me and carted me off. How did you find me?”

Knight had taken off his jacket and was wrapping it around her shoulders. “Time for that later. For now, I want you to go with Garrity while I take care of Adelaide.”

It was only then that Fancy noticed the group standing behind her husband. The shadowy figures included Mr. Garrity, Mr. Kent, Ransom, and a small army of guards.

She nodded at the men, then said anxiously to Knight, “Be careful. She has armed men.”

He took out a pistol, holding it with lethal confidence. “I’ll be right back. And Fancy?”

“Yes?”

His eyes blazed brighter than the stars. “I love you. More than anything.”

“I love you,” she whispered back, but he was already leading the charge, the others fanning out behind him.

“This way to the carriage, Your Grace,” Mr. Garrity said.

Gabby’s husband always looked dangerous, but with his pistol drawn and dark gaze pitiless, he looked more menacing than usual. In this instance, Fancy was glad for it. He, along with his own group of men, led her through the fence to a cluster of carriages. He assisted Fancy into one of them, and she was surprised to see her waiting friend.

“Tessa!” She hugged the petite lady before sitting beside her. “What are you doing here?”

“Aiding in your rescue, of course,” Tessa said.

“Thank you,” she replied tremulously.

“I couldn’t let Harry have all the fun. Gabby and Maggie wanted to come too, but,”—Tessa wrinkled her nose—“their husbands aren’t as modern as mine.”

Garrity, still holding his firearm on the opposite bench, flicked a glance at the two women.

“Gabriella asked her old-fashioned husband to pass on a message, Your Grace,” he said dryly. “She plans to pay you a visit tomorrow. Early.”

“Do you think the men are all right?” Fancy fretted. “The princess’s guards—”

“Are no match for the dukes and duchess of the underworld,” Tessa said with reassuring conviction. “This is hardly our first battle. The men will be back before you know it—”

A blast cut her off, the carriage swaying.

Fear clutched Fancy’s heart. “What was that?”

“One of Harry’s toys,” Tessa said blithely. “He’s forever tinkering with explosives. I’m just glad he does it now at the laboratories of Great London National Railway rather than at our home.”

“We’re still rebuilding the last warehouse Kent destroyed,” Garrity muttered.

Tessa looked at Fancy. “Why are you in your undergarments?”

Realizing that Knight’s jacket was hanging open, Fancy hastily buttoned it up. “I had to escape out a window, and it was easier to do it without all the layers.”

Tessa gave a sage nod. “I had to make a similar escape once—”

The door opened, revealing Knight and the other men. Fancy flew toward her husband, and he caught her, lifting her out of the carriage and crushing her against his chest.

“What happened?” she managed.

“We have Adelaide in custody.” His arms still surrounding her, Knight looked into her eyes. “She will answer for her crimes, as will her accomplices Erlenmeyer and, I’m sorry to say, your maid Gemma. Then there is Anna Smith, whose real name is Rosamund Becker. She was—”

“My mama’s midwife. Yes, I know,” Fancy said. “Adelaide told me everything.”

Knight studied her. “You do know what that means, don’t you, love?”

Given the danger, Fancy hadn’t fully contemplated the implications, but now she did.

“My father—my other one, that is—is still alive,” she said in wonder. “I have more family.”

“That too.” Knight’s lips twitched. “What I meant was that you are a princess and the heir to the Hessenstein throne. You always wanted a faerie tale ending, and I cannot think of a better one than that.”

“I can.” Smiling up at her husband, Fancy said, “The