Sinclair and Raven Series: Books 1-3

by Wendy Vella

  Her eyes began to adjust, as this room had more light, and Lilly felt some of her fear ease. The murder house had severed heads and limbs, all, Lilly gleefully noted, slathered in blood. There were murder scenes reenacted, and the sound of moans and screams wailed around the walls.

  “There is certainly a great deal of blood,” she said, hoping to unsettle the man at her side.

  “I believe I mentioned that it is only my siblings' blood that upsets me, madam. Therefore, you may remove that smirk from your pale face.”

  “I have no idea what you are speaking of, sir,” Lilly lifted her chin.

  “Each of these is of a real murder, Lilly!” Toby yelled from his position in front of a gruesome murder scene.

  “Will they have nightmares from this, my lord?” Lilly questioned, feeling guilty that such young children were being subjected to so much blood and gore.

  “I don't think mine will. And if my guess is accurate, Toby has seen more horror than both you and I, therefore I think they will slumber well tonight.”

  She looked at Toby as he gave Warwick a small smile.

  “He is the one you told Essie about that day at Temple Street, isn't he?”

  “Yes. When Mr. Davey found him, he was bruised and beaten, and lying on the doorstep.”

  “Was he the first of the children to go there?”

  “No, there had been three before him. However Toby was different from the start. Mr. and Mrs. Davey love him as their own, and he lets them because they do not smother him. Yet he is still untrusting and will disappear for a few days when he needs time alone, which of course worries us, but we try not to let that show. “

  “And you have a special bond with him?”

  Lilly didn't answer immediately, choosing her words carefully.

  “There is something about him that tugs at my heart. He is so strong and stoic, and yet sometimes I see the fear in him.”

  She felt Devon's hand squeeze her fingers gently before once again releasing them. Lilly shouldn't feel warm all over from such a small gesture, but she did.

  “Miss Braithwaite, will you come and see this? Somer says it is a severed finger, but I believe it is a severed toe.”

  Lilly looked at the twin before her then at the man beside her. “Surely your brother would be a better judge?”

  “He will try and agree with both of us,” the little girl said dismissively. “He likes to be fair.” She rolled her eyes. “We have asked Cam, Essie, and Toby, and now we need to ask you.”

  “You're a heartless little wretch, Dorset Sinclair, to dismiss your big brother so ruthlessly.”

  Dorset merely poked her tongue out at Dev, and then took Lilly's arm and towed her to inspect the aforementioned appendage.

  After it was decided that it was indeed a toe by Lilly, which pleased Dorset hugely, she was then taken in hand by both twins and escorted the rest of the way around the exhibits.

  Lilly told herself she was relieved to have left Devon Sinclair's side, yet the truth was she felt bereft. And that alone was enough motivation to keep her distance.

  Dev stayed a few feet behind Lilly as the twins dragged her from room to room. She was good with them, teasing them and tweaking a curl here and stroking a cheek there, much better than she was with adults. She seemed to lose her inhibitions around children.

  “So do you mind telling me why, when you went to the port to look at your latest acquisition, you picked up a woman instead, and not just any woman, but your Miss Braithwaite?”

  “She is not my anything, and stop meddling, Cambridge, or I'll break your nose again.”

  “Funnily enough, Dev, when you did it last time—after it had healed—my sense of smell was even stronger. In fact, I had this strange smoke smell minutes before our kitchen in Oak’s Knoll caught fire, remember? I knew it was about to happen even though I was some distance away.”

  Dev had realized very early on in his life that you could never insult Cam without him turning it around to the point where you forgot the original insult in favor of the discussion you were being sucked into. So it was important to stay focused.

  “Just leave it be, Cam,” Dev warned, watching the sway of Lilly's skirts as she swung Somer's hand in her own.

  He had seen another side to her today. Her fear of the dark was real, like his of blood. Then there was her humor. He'd believed her silly and brainless, but in fact she wasn't.

  “Oh, surely I'm allowed a little more fun? After all, you harassed me for days when I fell in love with Miss Millhouse. I remember waking up one morning to you singing a love song at the end of my bed, and then there was the little matter of that red velvet heart. Eden made it, and Essie initialed it.”

  “I take responsibility for the song, as I was the one singing it,” Dev said. “However, the heart was your sisters’ idea.”

  “Which you happened to suggest,” Cam scoffed.

  “Can Lilly and Toby come and eat an ice with us, Dev?” Somer said, coming to his side.

  “Of course they can. Go and ask them nicely.”

  “Just so you know, Dev, we like her,” Cam said, punching his brother in the arm before he started herding the children toward the exit.

  So do I, Dev thought, feeling his chest tighten as she laughed at something Essie said.

  Dev had known that when the time came that he found his mate, he would fall for her quickly. She would consume him, and he would want everything she gave and more. Lilly, he now knew, was that person. He thought it may take her a while longer to come to that conclusion, however.

  Chapter Fifteen

  “Can I not convince you to choose the lemon with a cream sarcenet overdress, Miss Braithwaite?”

  “No thank you, Madam Dupont. I like the mustard, it suits me perfectly, and please add a trim of gray around the neck and cuffs. Plus I think a large collar of the same trim would be lovely, don't you?”

  The seamstress made a choking sound but nodded.

  Lilly wanted something really ugly to deter Lord Danderfield. She had tried to put the man off, but since that day she had gone to Dr. Engle’s House of Ghoulish Horrors with the Sinclair family and Toby, he had been most persistent. Yesterday he had called to take tea, and asked that she go driving with him today. Lilly had quickly refused, stating she already had an engagement.

  He was a loathsome pig, and she would never marry him, even if she was forced to flee. She would rather live in Temple Street than be subjected to that man's advances.

  His questions were personal and invasive. He wanted to know her every movement, and had told her that when they were wed, he would be curtailing all activities except those he approved of.

  “Can I not interest you in something in a lighter fabric, Miss Braithwaite? Perhaps a—”

  “I have quite made up my mind, Madam Dupont. Please have the dress made and delivered to my brother's house.”

  Leaving the shop, she purchased a pair of gray gloves and a silly bonnet that she would have Bee add several unflattering things to.

  She had thought a great deal about Lord Sinclair—Devon, as he insisted she call him. The man had infiltrated her head and made her smile at random moments. Lilly did not smile randomly, well not genuinely she didn't. She giggled foolishly in public, and in private she had not had much call to smile.

  The most terrifying part of Dr. Engle’s House of Ghoulish Horrors, upon reflection, was realizing just how much she had enjoyed it, had enjoyed being with the Sinclair family and allowing Devon Sinclair to hold her hand and lead her through those horrid dark rooms.

  Toby had told her in his no-nonsense manner that they were all right, those Sinclairs. High praise indeed from a boy who rarely had a kind word to say to anyone.

  Seeing the Sinclairs together as a family, watching them laugh and tease each other, hug and touch each other, had been something special to be part of, and Lilly was not so cynical that the experience had not moved her in many ways. If she were honest with herself, she'd been jealous of the bond t
hey so obviously shared. She had lost count of how many times Devon Sinclair had touched a sibling with a stroke of his big hand on their heads or the brush of his lips on a cheek, and every gesture had made Lilly's toes tingle because she had wanted to be the recipient.

  She was not herself, Lilly realized. So much was unsettling her. First there was this business with Lord Sinclair, and how she appeared to be letting him in to aspects of her life that she let no one in to. Actually, he had forced his way in, but still, had she fought harder, that would not have happened, surely. There was also the concern about Nicholas's insistence she marry Lord Danderfield, and of course, the issue of the missing children.

  “Pardon me, Miss Braithwaite, but an urgent message has arrived for you.”

  A young boy handed her a note. Opening her reticule, she handed him some coins before looking at the missive. The handwriting on the front was not familiar. The content made her heart sink.

  Come quick to Lady Jane Street, a boy is hurt. Toby's name was printed at the bottom. Lilly looked at the paper then folded it carefully, and slipped it into her reticule. Something was not right, because firstly, Toby could not write, and secondly, how did he know where to find her, when only Bee was aware of her destination?

  She couldn't afford to ignore the message if a child was in danger, yet what if it were dangerous for her, or a trap of some sort? She would have Bee and Wilson with her, so she should be quite safe Lilly reasoned.

  She hurried to her carriage with Bee on her heels.

  “Jane Street, Wilson,” Lilly said before she climbed inside.

  “Is it a child, miss?”

  “Yes, Bee. It says we are to go to Jane Street, as there is a child in trouble, and it was signed by Toby.”

  “Toby can't write though, miss.”

  “I know, but why would anyone else send me a note if there were not a very real danger?” Lilly said. “No, I must take a look. I will think of little else otherwise.”

  The day was a gray one, but as yet no rain had fallen. When the carriage halted, Lilly stepped down into Jane Street.

  “We will not be long, Barnabos,” Lilly told the driver as Wilson joined her and Bee on the street.

  “'Tis not the best street in London, Miss Braithwaite,” Wilson said as they began walking down it.

  “No indeed,” Lilly agreed. Looking around, she saw rickety old buildings that she was sure housed small children who wanted shelter for the night. London was full of such places. “I don't believe I've been here before, Wilson.”

  “It's not a place I'm overly familiar with, Miss Braithwaite. Perhaps you should wait in the carriage with Bee, and I'll find the child.”

  As the last word left her footman's mouth, Lilly felt icy fear grip her body. “We need to leave here; something is not right.”

  They came from the buildings. Five men; Lilly and her servants had no chance of escape. She struggled as a man grabbed her, and watched in horror as Bee was thrown to the ground and Wilson knocked over the head with a piece of wood, his body crumpling at her feet. Desperate, she fought, but they were too strong. She was lifted, her hands and feet bound, and then a sack was lowered over her head and she was suddenly in her worst nightmare. Alone in the dark.

  Dev had walked around the ballroom several times and had still not found Lilly. Bracing himself against a wall, he resorted to his other vision to find her. Color was suddenly all around him, but he forced himself to focus, breathing in and out slowly. He could do this, subject himself to this, for her. Where the hell was she?

  He'd been uneasy all day, as if he were coming down with something, or something monumental were about to happen to him or his family. But as the minutes ticked away, Dev had a feeling it was to do with Lilly.

  She was nowhere in sight and after an hour of checking rooms, the feelings began to intensify. She hadn't arrived at all, because he had asked the servant who announced the guests, and yet he knew she’d been planning to attend, because she had told Essex of her intentions.

  “That scowl is scaring the ladies. What has your hackles up this evening, brother?”

  Changing his vision, he looked at Cam.

  “Have you seen Lilly?”

  “No.”

  “Something's not right.”

  “Why do you say that?” Cam straightened from his habitual slouch, eyes intent as he looked at Dev. The Sinclairs understood each other, and their heightened senses fired if one of them sensed danger.

  “I don't know, something just feels off,” Dev said, shrugging as if he could shake the unease from his body. “I have looked everywhere and in both visions, and still I cannot see her.

  “You used your other sight here, with all this color? Are you all right? Why the hell did you not find me first?”

  “I am fine, don't fuss. I have the same feeling I had when Eden was kidnapped, Cam.”

  “And you are sure it relates to Lilly?”

  “I am.”

  “Is there any chance she simply chose not to attend this evening?”

  “Yes, there is that chance. Yet it's my belief she has met with foul play, but I have no idea why I believe that.”

  Cam didn't question him further. Dev's tone told him that his concern was very real, and if the Sinclairs knew one thing about each other, it was to respect their intuition.

  “Her brother is here, in the card room.”

  “I'll go,” Dev said, knowing how much Cam hated going into such a place now. It had once beckoned to him, and he still felt the lure upon occasion, so he stayed away.

  “And I shall check once more to see if she actually arrived here tonight, and then left.”

  Dev nodded and then headed for the card room. His clothes felt uncomfortable, as if lined by hair, and his throat tight.

  Lilly, where the hell are you?

  Nicholas Braithwaite was sitting at a table with four men when Dev walked in. He looked up and smiled as Dev approached. The smile was insolent and instantly set his teeth on edge.

  “Lord Sinclair, have you come to play, seeing as your brother cannot be trusted to?”

  As far as taunts went it was said more in the tone of jest, yet all present knew the intent behind Braithwaite's words was to insult. Nicholas had never forgiven Dev for removing Cam from his influence before the man had broken his brother completely.

  “I would like to speak with you alone, Braithwaite. I shall need only a few minutes of your time.”

  “I say, Sinclair, we are in the middle of a hand here, can't it wait?” one of the men said.

  “No,” Dev held Nicholas's eyes. “It can't.”

  “You'll have to wait, Sinclair. As you can see I'm on a winning streak, and unlike your brother, I won't be dragged from the table like an errant schoolboy.”

  Braithwaite was nervous; Dev could see it in his body. His eyes were flitting from Dev to the cards in his hand. They had shared no more than a handful of words since the business that night with Cam, and possibly that was because where he went, Nicholas Braithwaite made sure he did not.

  “Braithwaite, I will not ask politely next time,” Dev said, not raising his voice, but there must have been something in his tone because everyone at the table grew still. He didn't usually make scenes, but for Lilly he would make an exception.

  He needed information about her, and to get that he had to start with those closest to her.

  “Gentlemen, it seems I must leave you briefly. I shall return in due course, after my brief conversation with Lord Sinclair.”

  Dev watched the man rise and move to his side.

  “You can bloody well walk me back to the ballroom; that is the only time I will allow you, Sinclair. I had a winning hand, damn you!”

  “I think not,” Dev said, taking his arm and pushing him toward the doors that led to a hall. He marched Braithwaite down it until he found an empty room.

  “Unhand me at once!”

  Ignoring him, Dev shoved the man through the doorway and slammed the door shut behind him
. He had to give Braithwaite some credit; he did not move away from him, instead standing his ground.

  “Be quick. I have little time for the likes of you, Sinclair. Poor country boy who lives off his uncle's coattails.”

  Dev ignored the taunt and let the silence stretch until he was sure Nicholas's nerves were taut, and then he spoke.

  “Where is your sister?”

  Surprise flashed across the man's face.

  “What has my sister's location got to do with you, country boy?”

  There were only so many insults a man could take, especially when worry was riding him hard. It was just a small tap to the face, but it made Braithwaite's head snap back and when he righted himself his upper lip had begun to swell.

  “Try that again,” Dev growled.

  “How dare you strike me! Why, I'll have you thrown out!”

  “Not keen on challenging me yourself, Nicholas, like most men would do?” Dev said, putting an emphasis on the word men. “Of course, you like to get a man when he is down, don't you, Braithwaite? Make sure your victims are already weakened before you strike. How terribly brave you are.”

  Dev was usually a peaceful man, yet he had to admit to enjoying taunting Lilly’s brother, partly because of Cambridge, but more importantly, Lilly.

  He now cared for her, and after talking with James again, they believed this man had not treated her as she deserved.

  Handsome and rich, Nicholas Braithwaite appeared to have it all. Everything that should have made him so much more than he had become. But what got to Dev the most was the fact that this was Lilly's big brother, and it seemed he had failed in that role. To him, that was an unpardonable sin.

  “Where... is... your... sister?”

  Braithwaite didn't speak quickly enough for Dev, so he took a step closer to him once more.

  “Sh-she didn't come home today!”

  “Home from where?”

  “Shopping.”

  The fist in Dev's stomach clenched tighter.

  “And where have you looked for her?”

  Nicholas dropped his eyes.

  “I asked you a question, Braithwaite. Where have you looked for her?”