Grace’s heartbeat pounded so violently that she feared it would give her away. ‘And this gentleman... What was his name?’
The watchmaker smiled kindly, as if amused by her enthusiasm.
‘Lord Edward Averton.’
Mrs Merriweather gasped. Grace exhaled sharply.
At last. Proof.
Proof that the murderer had to be Lord Edward.
The watchmaker turned, shuffling through his records. ‘I have the original bill of sale here. I keep a record of everything.’
He handed her a yellowed parchment with faded ink. But there was no mistaking the name.
Lord Edward Averton.
Mrs Merriweather gripped Grace’s arm. ‘We have him.’
Grace barely heard her. Relief and triumph flooded her veins. This was it.
They had what they needed.
They left the shop in a hurry, hailing another hackney back to the Duke’s residence.
Grace clutched the parchment tightly in her hands, her determination renewed.
She had to speak with the Duke.
And she prayed that tonight, she would finally have the chance.
Chapter 25
However, much to Grace’s disappointment, she did not have an opportunity to speak with the Duke that evening. He seemed to be forever surrounded by his ‘friends’, and after supper, half the women in the room encircled him. No doubt due to his newly confirmed bachelor status, she thought viciously.
She tried to approach him a few times when he walked past, but he pointedly looked away, and she struggled to catch his eye. As a last effort, she even joined in the conversation when all the guests had left, leaving only Lady Elizabeth and Mrs Merriweather in the drawing room.
‘Gerrard seems happy with his bride-to-be,’ the Duke remarked, reclining in an armchair. Lord Gerrard had just left to escort Lady Jane home.
‘I wondered at their growing friendship since Father’s funeral,’ Lady Elizabeth admitted, perturbed at the thought that she had missed all the signs. ‘I feel a fool for not seeing it before.’
‘Do not make yourself uneasy on that account, Eliza. It happened, and it is for the best. My heart was not in the marriage. Jane must have felt it. I only wish they had not gone behind my back. That is what stings the most, especially from Gerrard. But he is my little brother, and I must find a way to forgive him.’
‘I wonder at your forbearance, Gabriel; it could not have been easy to do what you did. If I were in your place, I would not want to see Gerrard again,’ Lady Elizabeth said. ‘He was alwaysspoilt; always had everything he wanted without having to work for it. But I never dreamed he would be disloyal to you. He loved you so much as a child—he cried his heart out when you left for the military. Perhaps his perceived abandonment caused him to resent you?’
The Duke made no reply.
‘I hope it will not deter you from finding a wife and securing the family line, brother.’
He said nothing and merely stared at the dying embers in the grand fireplace.
‘I wish you would consider Lady Farthington or Lady Hawthorne, Gabriel,’ Lady Elizabeth sighed.
‘I have no desire to do so, Eliza. You know my sentiments on the matter.’
‘You must not let Jane mar your views on matrimony. There are plenty of faithful women out there. Am I not right, Miss Skye?’
Grace nearly choked on her tea. What an absurd situation. To be asked to comment on a man’s suitability for marriage when that very man had, not two nights ago, offered to make her his mistress.
