‘There could be twenty. It does not matter. If they are after money, they can have it. But what if they are after Charlotte?’
Fear trickled like ice through her veins. Surely someone could not be after Charlotte. The two of them had left all that behind in America. Grace loosened her grip and he pulled his arm free. Without another word, he marched into the darkness. Grace followed him. He came to an immediate stop and she ploughed into his back. She had a moment to enjoy the rich scent of him before he was turning and gripping the tops of her arms. ‘What are you doing?’
‘I am coming too.’
‘Do not be ridiculous.’ His dark eyes bored into her, fury in their depths. ‘Wait here. Or better yet, go and fetch some help.’
‘And let you get killed while I run about being a helpless ninny? I do not think so.’
‘No. You will not come with me.’
‘There is little you can do to stop me.’
‘I can throw you over my shoulder and put you wherever I want.’
‘But you will not. We are wasting time having this argument.’ He was vibrating with fury, but she was not afraid of him. ‘I did not do enough to keep my sister safe. Let me do this for her daughter.’
‘No,’ Tobias ground out. ‘I will not put you in harm’s way.’
‘Then I should come with you. If you leave me there without your protection, then how do you know something will not befall me without you?’
She knew she had won the argument when he did not immediately reply.
‘Very well,’ he said, his voice dark. ‘You can come with me, but if I tell you to run, you will do so without question.’
‘Yes,’ she said, although she already knew that she would not leave him if he were hurt.
He must have sensed her wavering because he added, ‘You must promise. I know that you always hold yourself to those.’
Drat the man, he was right. ‘Very well. I promise I will run if you tell me to, but only once we have assessed the situation.’
‘Fine.’ He did not sound happy, but she would deal with that later. She may be dressed up in all her finery, but she was no shrinking violet. She had seen things that would shock Tobias and she meant what she said: if something needed to be done to protect her niece, then she would do it. Also, a small part of her, a part that she was trying to ignore but that was there nonetheless, did not want to leave Tobias alone either. Granted, he was at least a third bigger than her, with one arm nearly as wide as her two put together, but she did not want him to be alone in this.
The two of them made their way through large rooms Grace had not visited before. In the darkness, it was impossible to make out the purpose of each one, but she had the sense that they took up more space than the apartment she was renting. Grace stuck close behind him because it was impossible to see more than a hand’s width in front of her. For a large man, dressed formally, Tobias moved quietly. If she hadn’t known he was in front of her, she would have thought she was alone. They came to a closed door. Grace’s heart was pounding so fiercely, it was incredible to her that the space was not echoing with the repetitive boom of it.
Behind the door, a floorboard creaked.
Some of Grace’s bravery deserted her.
Before she could ascertain Tobias’ plan, he flung open the door and strode into the room. It was too dark to see much, but she heard him moving forward, followed by a grunt of pain and the sound of someone falling to the ground, before Tobias said, ‘Who are you and what do you want?’
‘Please,’ said a man’s voice. ‘Do not hurt me.’
‘That will depend on what you are doing sneaking about my study.’
‘Please,’ said the voice again. ‘I meant no harm. I… I was told to. Paid, you see.’
‘Explain,’ barked Tobias, sounding far from his normal refined manner. If Grace had been on the receiving end of this command, she would have told him anything he wanted to know.
‘They told me to get in, so I did.’
‘Who are they?’
‘I… I do not know.’
‘You had better start making sense or…’ There was the sound of scrabbling and another grunt of pain, which did not sound as if it came from Tobias.
‘I do not mean any harm,’ said the voice again, higher and more panicked than before.
