My second chance was about this too. It was about a wife who needed her husband, and children who needed a father. It was about a man's life. If I sent him to trial, he would very likely hang.
What if . . . ?
What if I lived so I could forgive Briggs?
I cleared my throat, now thick with emotion. “Your trial . . . is up to you. What you did was unthinkable; however, no one deserves to die who desires reconciliation and expresses true sorrow for their trespasses. I, of all people, know of the pain you speak of. I carry my own burdens. I will not press charges if you leave now. I will, however, keep an eye on you from a distance. This time, my detectives will be paid, and they will be relentless. If I hear word that you are gambling again or stealing money, I will not have mercy on you a second time.”
Tears sprang to Briggs’s eyes, and he wept at my feet.
If he was anything like me, his guilt would continue to torture him. Eventually, he would become dead to it, or he would let it motivate him to be better.
It was a quarter hour before Briggs left my office. Between his thanks were his repeated apologies and his humble request for my counsel in abandoning his vice. I would never see my money returned. I knew thatand still let him go. In some ways, the monetary loss had vindicated my soul. What I had cheated from others was now cheated from me.
I sat in my office for a few hours, contemplating my day. I had lost a friend, and for now, Estelle was lost to me too. And yet, this low point was not as low as it should have been. My heart felt somehow lighter. With what energy I had left, I went in search of my sister.
I knocked, and when I heard her voice, I let myself in. Augusta lay curled up with Gingersnaps on her bed. It was never a good sign to find Augusta enclosed in her bedchamber.
“She’s gone,” she said.
“I know.”
Augusta smoothed Gingersnaps’ fur in rhythmical strokes, and I caught the redness around her eyes. “I had a sister again. Now the house feels empty, and I feel so alone.”
I walked deeper into the room and stopped only when I reached the end of her bed. “You’re not alone. We’re together now. But I will do all that I can to set this to rights.”
Augusta pulled herself up against her pillows. “Then I must give you an important piece of information to aid your search. Estelle’s surname is Lowry, not Lewis.”
“Lowry?” I knew a man from university by that name. Could they be related? “Thank you. I know an excellent detective who will help us. I’m going to bring her back.”
Augusta dropped her hand and visibly swallowed. “It will not be easy. There is more you do not know. I’m only betraying her confidence because the circumstance demands it. Estelle is engaged.”
I gripped her bedpost. “What?”
Augusta paled. “I’m sorry, Atlas. I just learned of it myself.”
I tried not to panic or let myself sink again into the dark place I had just risen from. I recalled Mr. Thornbeck’s words:Of all the people I have met on this earth, not one of them has been perfect,and I rallied. “Tell me everything you know. Don’t leave out a single detail.”
Chapter 36
Estelle
Iwanted to despise my brother for dragging me home, but it wasn’t wholly bad returning to Norwood Hall. I had missed it. When we pulled up the drive, both Nora and I burst into tears. We threw our arms around each other and wailed. Our time away had been both terrible and incredible, and being home again meant that we had survived.
Reginald finally had enough and hopped out of the carriage. “I never cry when I return home.”
I swatted his arm as he helped me out of the carriage, but he held it tight.
“I’m sorry—again.” His sincerity was unmistakable.
It was not his fault he was drenched in tradition. We had been raised this way. He saw nothing wrong with his arrangement to marry me to his friend. His apology was for other reasons. His true sorrow came from the frequency in which he had left me alone and for not preparing me better for marriage. As much as we disagreed, I could not deny that he was trying to do what he thought was in my best interest.
“I know you are sorry,” I said. “You apologized at least a thousand times on the train.”
He sighed. “I cannot feel like a worse brother.”
By the time I was through complaining about the arranged marriage, he might wish to leave home for good. “I believe you, but the hurt over your arrangement has not subsided.”
He tucked my arm in his and steered me toward the house. “Did I not prove myself by finding you? I practically slept in the investigators’ office, paying them twice the going rate to ensure they would protect your reputation and keep your name out of the Society papers. Not to mention I have sworn off travel for the rest of the year. Until you are wed, you will have my complete attention.”
