“No… yes… I don’t know what I feel,” Caleb said. Which was a lie. He was already halfway in love with Simone, but he didn’t dare admit that to his friends. Quite frankly, he couldn’t believe he had done something so stupid and fallen for his partner. That was a line that he wasn’t supposed to cross. But how could he not love Simone?
Simone would always be enough for him, and no one could ever convince him that there was more to life than loving her. It was rather unfortunate that he had promised to marry her in name only, but he couldn’t change the terms now.
Roswell placed his hand on Caleb’s shoulder. “Be patient with yourself, and your feelings. It is all right to be conflicted.”
“No, it isn’t,” Caleb said. “I offered Simone a marriage of convenience. That is what she agreed to.”
“Plans can change,” Roswell encouraged, dropping his hand to his side.
“Not these,” Caleb asserted. “I would never do that to Simone.”
Roswell lifted his brow. “Is your intention to just pine after your wife for the remainder of your days?”
Caleb winced, knowing how miserable that sounded. “If that is what it takes.” He paused. “But we have much more important things that we have to address first.”
Fredrick spoke up. “Anything we can help with?”
“Not unless you want to help us break Lady Hungerton out from Bedlam,” Caleb said.
With stunned expressions, Fredrick and Roswell stared back at him. Fredrick recovered first and asked, “Lady Hungerton is alive?”
Caleb bobbed his head. “It is likely. Kendrick discovered some proof that makes us suspect that Lord Hungerton faked his wife’s death and placed her in Bedlam.”
“Poor Lady Hungerton,” Roswell muttered.
Fredrick grew somber. “I have toured Bedlam, alongside my father, and it is not a place that I would ever want to linger in. The floors are terribly uneven, the walls are buckled and the roof continuously leaks whenever it rains. The pungent odor of unwashed bodies seeps through your nose, making it entirely unbearable.”
“Is the women’s wing any better than the men’s?” Caleb asked.
“No. If anything, it is worse,” Fredrick replied. “The patients are locked in their cells, for there is no other word for it, and the lucky ones are not chained to the walls.”
The picture that Fredrick painted was bleak, urging Caleb to act, and quickly. “My father has arranged a meeting withone of the Bedlam Governors tomorrow,” he revealed. “I am hoping it will give us access to the women’s wing.”
Fredrick’s eyes grew pained. “Upon reaching the gate, you are met by two statues, similar to gargoyles. They are positioned at the entrance welcoming everyone to Bedlam, symbolizing the dual nature of madness- Raving and Melancholic,” he revealed. “It is a sight that I will never forget, and for most of the patients, it is the last thing they see before they enter the hospital.”
“It sounds awful,” Caleb acknowledged.
“Very few patients are ever released from Bedlam,” Fredrick shared. “Once they arrive, the lives that they knew before are stripped away, and they are forced to endure such squalor that many take their own lives.”
Roswell interjected, posing the question, “Are you sure that Lady Hungerton is at Bedlam? Many of the patients were moved to other hospitals due to the deteriorating conditions there.”
“I had that same thought, but Lord Hungerton still pays a Bedlam Governor once a month,” Caleb replied. “Surely that can’t be a coincidence.”
Fredrick met Caleb’s gaze. “We will assist you in any way that you see fit. I am not acquainted with Lady Hungerton, but I cannot allow her to remain in Bedlam, through no fault of her own.”
“Thank you,” Caleb acknowledged.
The sound of a door closing drew their attention and Caleb turned his head to see Simone approaching them.
Simone gave them an expectant look. “Why are you all huddled in the alleyway?” she asked, adjusting the blue spencer over her gown.
“Did you see us?” Caleb questioned.
“How could I not?” she responded. “I knew agents were guarding the place, but I had not expected to see all of you.”
Caleb offered her a smile. “I came to ensure you were protected.”
“How were you going to protect me from here?” Simone asked.
