Deception at Sable Hill

by Shelley Gray

  Owen dutifully crossed off a few more names. “That leaves just Captain Keaton, Sergeant Fuller, and Officer Craig.”

  “Do you really think the captain could be our culprit?”

  After a long pause, Owen shrugged. “I’m not saying he is, but I also have to say that I’ve noticed him in the vicinity but never right when one of the victims has been found.”

  “But he was there when Danica was knifed at the Gardner home.”

  “After the fact.”

  Sean nodded. He kept his name on the list reluctantly. “Now, what about the gentlemen?”

  Owen’s lips twitched. “Obviously I don’t know all of these men extremely well, but some just don’t seem the type to bother with knifing a woman.”

  “Bother?” That seemed like an odd choice of word.

  “Whoever planned these attacks took a lot of time and effort. Some of these men barely feed themselves.”

  Sean chuckled. “Anything else you notice?”

  Owen tapped on one name, Martin Upton. “Maybe him, though I can’t really see him doing something like this. I don’t know if he’d have the nerve . . .”

  “That’s not a good enough reason. It could be a ruse.”

  “Point taken.” He pointed to another name. “And as for Quentin Gardner?”

  “Yes?” Sean vividly remembered watching Quentin waltzing at the gala at his home. He remembered how he’d held Eloisa a little too closely and how he hadn’t wanted to release her when Sean had approached. “He is not wimpy.”

  Owen’s mouth flattened. “No, he is not. He’s also known to have a rather volatile temper. And to be unreliable.”

  “What do you mean by unreliable?” He thought that a curious turn of phrase.

  “Quentin is the type of man to organize an outing, then cancel at the last minute.”

  Sean met his gaze. “Which would go against everything we know about the Slasher’s methods. Most of the victims were right where everyone knew they would be.”

  “Except for Eloisa.”

  “You’re right.”

  “Quentin told me at his family’s party that he was intrigued by Eloisa, especially given the rumors swirling about her.”

  “Rumors? I don’t think Eloisa is aware there have been rumors about her, nor was I. Was Quentin actually interested because some suspected she’d been violated?” Sean didn’t even attempt to keep the contempt from his voice.

  “I don’t know that the rumors went that far. But he saw her as a conquest. A lot of men and women are secretly jealous of Eloisa, though they’d rather be stabbed themselves than admit such a thing out loud. Eloisa, with her stunning looks, spotless reputation, and extreme wealth, seems almost untouchable.”

  “But she isn’t untouchable.”

  Owen looked away. “When rumors started circling that she might not be quite as pure and perfect as she used to be, many people celebrated that. I am thinking now that perhaps Quentin had thought that was a good thing. He could take advantage of Eloisa and no one would be the wiser.”

  Sean bit back a few choice words about that. Instead of giving in to the fierce emotions surging through him, he put down his pencil and looked at Owen directly in the eye. “He sounds like our most viable suspect.”

  Owen jerked a nod. “Perhaps.”

  “Perhaps?”

  “Yes. I mean, no.” Pain filled his gaze. “Quentin has never been one I would call a true friend, but I truly can’t imagine him committing these crimes.”

  “I think you should watch him carefully from now on. Most especially whenever Eloisa is at the same event.”

  “I will keep my eye on him, of course. But most likely you’ll be escorting her from now on?”

  “I don’t know if I will be seeing her again.”

  “Why?”

  Sean cleared his throat. “Her parents are justifiably anxious about her forming any sort of relationship with me.”

  “I thought you’ve both already come to terms with that.”

  “That was before . . .” He couldn’t even bear to finish his sentence.

  “Before what? Before she fell victim to a madman with a knife?”

  “You’re being overly dramatic.”

  “If I am, it is by the narrowest of margins.” Owen glared at him, then slammed his hand on the table.

  “Calm yourself. You’re going to get us thrown out of here.”

  “Hardly that. You listen to me, Lieutenant. You cannot give up on Eloisa.”

  “I’m not giving up on her. I’m merely recognizing my place. I am no good for her, and everyone knows it. I have brought her down in every way possible.”

  “No, you are abandoning her in every way possible.”

  “That is easy for you to say. You have no idea what it is like to fall in love with someone you shouldn’t.”

  “No, I’m only attempting to see your sister, a woman who is over a decade younger.”

  “Who is beautiful.”

  “Who has just as many worries about her background as her brother does.”

  “Katie is a sweet girl. And she’ll do anything she’s capable of to make you happy.”

  “Do you actually think my family cares about that?” Owen asked, his voice incredulous.

  “You’ve told them about Katie?” Sean respected Owen and his intentions toward Katie. But that said, Owen was a grown man who had already gone against his family’s wishes. Sean guessed that they’d been hoping he would at least marry well.

  “Of course I have! I would never have approached you about her if I wasn’t serious about my feelings for her. But perhaps you never had those types of feelings for Eloisa.”

  “Of course I did.”

  “Sean, in the last weeks, she has been raped and attacked in a train station. She’ll be scarred from both events for the rest of her life. All while this has been happening, she’s had to keep Douglass’s violation a secret and listen to her mother berate her on an almost daily basis about not having yet made an exceptional match.”

  “Which is why she doesn’t need a man like me.”

  “Which is exactly why she needs a man like you. She needs someone strong enough to bear her pain and stand up to her parents.” Owen lowered his voice. “She thought she found someone strong enough. To make matters worse, I told her I believed in you. I promised her you would walk through fire to get to her.”

  “I would walk through fire.”

  “But yet, you won’t knock on her door?”

  Now Sean felt like banging his hand on the table. Owen was right. He’d really made a crucial mistake. He stood up. “I need to go to her, don’t I?”

  “As soon as possible.”

  “If Keaton asks, tell him I’m asking more questions.”

  Owen grinned. “Just be sure you ask the right ones. And also see if she plans to attend the Meyers’ closing World’s Fair gala at the New York State building in a couple of weeks. If so, come to my home directly after you talk to her.”

  “So you can be there too?”

  “So you can get fitted into one of my tuxedos.”

  Sean grinned as he walked out the door. A year ago he would have let foolish pride and ignorance stop him from accepting such an offer.

  Now he realized how the offer had been given out of friendship. It was an offer for the use of a suit. One of many Owen Howard owned, but one that, if Sean wore it, would make all the difference when accompanying Eloisa.

  And that made all the difference in the world.

  CHAPTER 27

  Lieutenant Ryan has returned,” Worthy announced when he entered Eloisa’s private sitting room, where she was working with Juliet to sew a couple of dresses for Gretta. “Are you receiving, miss?”

  “She is,” Juliet said before Eloisa could formulate a lie. “Please tell Lieutenant Ryan that she’ll join him in a few minutes.”

  To Eloisa’s dismay, Worthy smiled—smiled!—at Juliet before leaving to do her bidding.

  “I can’t believe
you just answered for me,” Eloisa said. “And I really can’t believe that Worthy didn’t even question it.”

  “The reason you can’t believe these things are happening is the reason all of us servants have to take matters into our own hands,” Juliet said practically. “Otherwise you would continue to refuse to see anyone who has come to call.”

  “Those women only came to look at my face.” Still, Eloisa could barely look in the mirror. She’d never thought of herself as particularly vain, but having her face, neck, and chest marred like it was for the rest of her life made her realize how much she’d taken her looks for granted.

  “I know that. But we both know that not every one of those women is catty. Some are truly concerned. You should have let them see you.”

  “I’m just not ready.”

  “It’s been two weeks, Miss Carstairs. Your stitches are out and the swelling is gone.”

  It took everything Eloisa had not to lift her hand to her face and attempt to cover the red mark on her jaw and neck. “Two weeks is not long enough for them to fade.”

  Juliet pursed her lips together before speaking. “Forgive me for being blunt, miss, but those marks aren’t going to fade anytime soon. They’ll still be there next month and next year.”

  “That gives me no comfort.” What she was afraid to admit was that no amount of time would be long enough to get used to them.

  “You don’t need any more comfort. You need to be reminded that you are still living.” After placing the half-sewn dress on a side table, Juliet stood up. “Now, let’s have you put on something more presentable.”

  Eloisa glanced at the dress she was wearing. It was one of her older ones, a little loose, given the weight she’d recently lost. Because of that, though, it was rather comfortable. “I don’t think Lieutenant Ryan will care about my dress.”

  “He won’t care because he cares about you, miss. But in two seconds he’s going to know you aren’t doing all right if you walk out there looking like you do. You’re going to scare him half to death, you are.”

  Eloisa let Juliet coax her to her feet and start guiding her to her wardrobe, but she still felt obliged to protest her maid’s heavy-handedness. “You heard what my parents said.”

  “I did. I think even the scullery maids down in the kitchens heard your mother’s tirade. As well as the way your mother refused to let Lieutenant Ryan see you.”

  Her mother had been especially harsh, practically laying all the blame for her attack at Sean’s feet. Eloisa had been horrified. But upon further reflection, she’d started to wonder if perhaps severing any ties with Sean was the best thing for both of them. She was damaged goods. An upstanding man like Sean should have a woman worthy of him.

  “Juliet, there mustn’t be anything between us.”

  “If you don’t care for him, you don’t. But we both know you do,” she said as she motioned Eloisa to her dressing room, pulled out her new periwinkle dress, and motioned for her to turn around.

  Eloisa turned, though she wasn’t exactly sure why she was being so compliant. “Even if I do care for him, my parents . . .”

  “May I continue to speak plainly?”

  “It’s too late to stop you.”

  “All of us servants love your parents. They are nice people and treat their help very decently. But your mother has never let up on you, miss. Not once.”

  “What?”

  “You know what I’m saying. Even when the society papers declared you to be the season’s diamond, that was never enough for your mother. She pushed you to always look perfect, then she pushed you to make not just a good match, or a great match, but a brilliant one.”

  “She was only hoping the best for me . . .”

  “She had such high expectations, no one could meet them. Not even Eloisa Carstairs.”

  After helping Eloisa step out of the day gown, she helped her step into the new one. “But worse than that, your mother never even noticed when you were hurting.”

  Eloisa couldn’t bear to think about that.

  “We all knew you couldn’t sleep. We heard the cries from your nightmares. We saw the circles under your eyes and the way you retreated into yourself. Everyone knew something terrible had happened. But your mother refused to let you be imperfect.”

  “You’re right.”

  “And now, here you’ve been attacked again! Scarred. It’s obvious that the Society Slasher sought you out. But instead of finally thinking about something other than your reputation, your mother has fixated on your looks. And she is mourning your looks, Eloisa.”

  “She has every right. My face is forever ruined.”

  “Miss Carstairs, you are still exquisite! If anything, those red marks only serve to accentuate just how pretty you are,” she said as she guided Eloisa to her dressing table and began quickly combing her hair.

  “Through it all, Lieutenant Ryan has liked you. He’s tried to protect you. He looks at you like you are the world to him. Let him love you.”

  “But my parents—”

  “Will survive,” Juliet said as she put the finishing touches on her hair. “And when your brother, George, arrives home from his trip to Europe, he’ll say the same thing. Now, go see Mr. Ryan before he grows tired of waiting for you.”

  Eloisa knew she was right. And so she started walking toward the one man who had claimed her heart. One who knew what happened to her at Douglass’s hands and still thought she was worthy. One who’d held her when she’d been lying on that platform bleeding.

  He was quite possibly the only man who also didn’t seem to care at all that she was no longer perfection personified.

  Only from years of experience at keeping his emotions close to his vest was Sean able to keep his expression neutral and composed when he stood up to greet Eloisa.

  “Miss Carstairs, thank you so much for seeing me,” he said graciously as he crossed the room to meet her halfway. He held out his hand, ready to take hers.

  She kept her own hands firmly by her side. “Would you be upset with me if I admitted that I almost sent you on your way?” she asked lightly.

  He knew she expected him to be everything proper. But he was only a common man, and no matter how much he might want to be a gentleman, Sean knew enough about himself to know he was never going to be very good at anything other than being the man he was. “I would be upset,” he said baldly. “Very much so.”

  She blinked. Then, to his pleasure, a faint sheen of happiness floated into her expression. “You are teasing me.”

  Unable to refrain from touching her a second longer, he stepped closer, reached for her hand, and pressed his lips to her bare knuckles. “I can’t help but tease you.”

  “Sean.”

  He continued. “However, I must admit that if you had refused to see me I would have been crushed.”

  She was still letting him hold her hand. “Is that right?”

  “Oh, yes,” he murmured as he pressed his lips to her knuckles again. “I would have been sorely disappointed to not show off my new skill at kissing ladies’ hands.”

  “You are certainly gallant today.”

  “Since it has made you smile, that makes me happy.” Unable to help himself, he carefully wrapped the hand he still held around his arm. “Would you care for a turn outside in your gardens?”

  She looked doubtful. “I’m afraid they aren’t much to see now. The sudden cold snap put an end to that.”

  “I don’t care what the gardens look like, Eloisa. You know I came to see you.”

  “I know. Thank you.” She glanced out the window, then with a shake of her head, said, “Would you mind if we chatted in the solarium instead? I’m finding myself not ready to venture out in the cold today.”

  “Wherever you’d like to be is fine.”

  Just as they turned, her mother descended the staircase. Fastening a glacial stare on him, she murmured, “Eloisa, I didn’t know you were expecting company.”

  “I wasn’t. Lieutenant Ryan’s
appearance is a surprise.”

  Only out of respect for Eloisa did Sean stand quietly while her mother eyed him with distaste.

  “Was there a reason you needed to see Eloisa yet again?”

  “Yes.”

  “Oh? Is there a new development in the case?”

  “My interest this afternoon is of a personal nature.”

  “Personal?”

  “You must have known how worried I have been about Eloisa. Since this is now the third time I’ve come calling.”

  Eloisa stared at him. “I thought you only came one other time.”

  “The first time, Worthy met me at the door and regretfully refused me entrance at your parents’ orders. Yesterday your mother was kind enough to do the honors herself.”

  “Mother?”

  “You are being impertinent. I must ask you to leave. Immediately.”

  “I think not.”

  “Eloisa—”

  With not a bit of trepidation, Sean watched the muscles work in Eloisa’s throat. He hated that he was bringing her so much tension, but until she actually told him she didn’t want to see him, he wasn’t going to go anywhere. She mattered too much to him.

  “Mother, please excuse us.”

  “If you continue to press your attentions on my daughter, Mr. Ryan, I will be forced to notify your superiors.”

  “I’ll let them know to expect your call,” he said before turning to Eloisa. “You are looking a bit pale. Perhaps we should go sit down?”

  “Yes. Thank you.”

  Her mother stepped forward. “Eloisa, think about what you are doing.”

  “For the first time in my life, I do believe I am.” With a shudder, she leaned closer to him. “Please, Sean. Let’s go sit down.”

  “Of course,” he murmured. As he guided her through the grand rooms, he kept his pace slow and steady. When they arrived at the solarium, he helped her sit down on one of the wicker sofas, then took a place right next to her.

  “Eloisa, the truth now. Are you all right?”

  “Sean, you know I am not.”

  There was so much trepidation in her face, so much fear in her eyes, he made a decision. Pulling off his gloves, he reached up and ran his thumb along the red scars on her cheek and jaw. When she flinched, he paused. “Do they hurt you? Or is it my calluses? Is my touch too rough?”