She forced such thoughts away. “Then we had better make this meeting quick. We’re wondering whether you’ve overheard anything that may help us stop a very dangerous plot . . .”
Tatiana listened intently, with no sign of fluttery nerves. “It’s true—the prince sees me as nothing more than an ornament for his arm,” she said, once Arianna had finished her queries. “And has made it clear in no uncertain terms that I’m to keep my mind blank and my mouth shut. So I made myself appear a docile creature.” She lifted her chin. “I know you must think me a weak and spineless creature to have taken his abuse.”
“Not at all,” assured Arianna. “You kept your spirit, and that takes incredible courage.”
“But now that I have a chance to fight back, I shall prove my mettle,” said Tatiana. “I have kept my ears open.” She drew in a breath and quickly recounted what she had overheard. “Does that help?”
“More than you can imagine,” replied Arianna, feeling a rush of relief that her guess about the prince’s low opinion of women had turned out to be correct. “With this information, I’m confident that we can put an end to Orlov’s treacherous plot.”
“Good,” said Tatiana with a look of grim satisfaction.
“One last question—have you heard Orlov speak about anyone called The Redeemer? The person may be either a friend or an enemy.”
Tatiana thought for a moment before shaking her head. “Sorry, but no.”
Arianna shifted. “I ought not linger. Can you keep up your charade for another few days? It’s imperative that the prince and his cohorts remain unaware that we know about their scheming.”
“Yes,” vowed Tatiana. “I’ll do anything to make him pay for all the evil he has done. He . . .” Her voice wavered for an instant before turning hard as steel. “He killed my cousin.”
“We know that,” said Arianna. “And we shall make sure that justice is done.”
As Tatiana put her palm on the closet door to ease it open, Arianna added, “Prescott dared not put anything inwriting, but he sends his love and promises that all will be well.”
Two spots of color bloomed on Tatiana’s cheeks. “Please tell him that I . . . that I . . .”
Arianna smiled. “I will.”
Their eyes met and held for an instant.
Dmitri Orlov,thought Arianna,has made an elemental mistake in assuming that women are, by their very nature, the weaker sex.
Now they must make him pay for his hubris.
Tatiana stepped out into her bedchamber, and after taking a moment to assure herself that nothing was amiss, she waved for Arianna to join her at the windows.
“May the Holy Mother keep you safe,” she whispered, pulling the heavy brass casement open a crack.
“And you,” replied Arianna as she climbed to the sill and placed a foot on the ice-slick outer ledge.
A sudden pistol shot shattered the silence of the night. And then another.
“Thieves, thieves!” Shouts swirled through the air. Dogs began a furious barking as footsteps pounded over the frozen street.
Arianna scrambled all the way out as Tatiana closed the casement and rushed to her bedside.
Heart thumping like a hammer against her ribs, Arianna braced her back against the stone wall as the frigid air hit her like a punch to the gut. For a moment, she couldn’t breathe. Blades of criss-crossing lantern light cut through the darkness shrouding the neighboring mansions.
Damn. Damn. Damn.
“Tatiana, Tatiana!”A male voice.An instant later the bedchamber door flung open. “Tatiana! Merciful heavens, are you safe?” Fear gave the man’s voice a razor-sharp edge.
“Y-Yes, Father.” A pause. “W-What is going on?” Tatiana sounded bewildered, as if she had just been roused from sleep.
Arianna froze as the wild flickering of a candle reflected off the thick glass panes. The casement opened . . .
And then slammed shut.
“It appears that a gang of thieves has been spotted trying to break into the Yusupov mansion,” answered Tatiana’s father. “I must go help hunt down the scurvy varlets.”
