His eyes widened. “You needn’t go with me. You should go and get comfortable in your room. Take a nap, perhaps. I’ll let you know what I find out.”
She shook her head. “No, I can’t. If I don’t go with you, I’ll just think about what happened, the fact that she’s out there all alone. At least if we’re doing something, I won’t be thinking.”
“You’re absolutely right.” He stood as well. “Perhaps the coach is still outside. Let’s go.”
* * *
AHALF AN HOUR LATER, Luke and Serenity sat in his brother Adrian’s parlor. Adrian stepped into the room, his gaze locking immediately with Luke’s. “Did you find her? Did you find Allison?”
Luke shook his head, feeling a new pang of guilt. He hoped the inspector he’d sent after Roger and Allison had made it to France by now, but at the moment, he wanted his stepbrother found for different reasons entirely. He wanted Allison back, but he also wanted to know what Roger had done with his child.
“No, still no word about Allison. But I need to tell you about another matter, and I pray you can help me.”
Adrian suddenly noticed Serenity. He raised a brow at Luke, who gave a short nod. “You must be Miss Pratt,” Adrian said with a smile, giving her a little bow before taking a seat across from her. “I’ve heard so much about you.”
“You must be Adrian,” Serenity replied, returning his smile nervously. “I’ve heard much about you as well.”
Luke was pleased that Serenity met Adrian’s gaze directly and did not seem to be bothered by his younger brother’s scarred face. He very much wanted his brothers to care for Serenity and for her to care for them. Anne’s loss had made him more determined than ever to cherish his family, and he wanted desperately to find a way to make Serenity and his child part of it.
“When I spoke with Mother, she told me something horrifying,” Luke said, deciding to just cut to the chase. “She admitted that she and Roger had conspired against me. First, they told Serenity I no longer wanted her. Then, after she’d safely delivered our daughter, a child I wasn’t aware she was carrying, they took the child from Serenity and told her she had not survived. According to Miss Stone, Serenity’s companion, who was feeding information to Mother, they took my daughter to Miss Hawley’s Gentlemen’s Club.”
Adrian sucked in a sharp breath. “Oh, my God, Luke. I’m so sorry. I... can’t believe... no, scratch that. Of course, I believe it. I’d believe anything of that witch.” He got to his feet and began to pace the room. “You know, of course, that Miss Hawley’s Gentlemen’s Club burned to the ground a few months ago.” He cast Serenity an anxious glance, apparently uncertain whether he could trust her with his activities as Prometheus.
“She knows about your previous occupation,” Luke said, twisting his lips in a semblance of a smile.
Adrian raised a brow, obviously surprised and not altogether happy that Luke had shared their secret. Luke didn’t blame him, but he tried to show him with a look that Serenity could be trusted. She’d never tell anyone that Adrian had been Prometheus.
Luke cleared his throat. “I assume you did quite a bit of reconnaissance on that hell hole before you destroyed it.”
“Of course,” Adrian said, a bit uncomfortably. “Before I met Vanessa, I spent all my time in such pursuits. That place was particularly heinous. The children were so young.” He shuddered. “That’s where I found Gabriel, you know.”
Luke sat forward, his pulse thundering in his temples. He’d known Adrian had rescued the boy that he and Vanessa had adopted, but he hadn’t known he’d found the boy at Miss Hawley’s Gentlemen’s Club. “Can we talk to him? Can we ask him if he knew a little girl, one who was about seven years old?”
Adrian continued pacing, riddled with tension. “May I call Vanessa down, ask her what she thinks?” he asked at last. “I badly want to help you, Luke. But Gabriel is just starting to adjust to his new life. I would not want to bring back his memories of that place unless it was absolutely necessary.”
“Of course,” Luke said, abashed. “I’m sorry I asked. I just... damn it! I don’t know what to do.”
Adrian’s eyes widened at his admission. “I don’t know if I’ve ever heard you admit that you’re anything less than invincible.” He came over and squeezed Luke’s shoulder. “We’ll talk to Gabriel. We’ll find your daughter. I am just not sure how to do so in a way that won’t hurt my son.”
“Hurt our son?” Vanessa asked from the doorway. She stepped into the room, her dark eyes flashing with anger. “What are you talking about?” Maternal protectiveness emanated from her in waves.
When Luke had first met the beautiful actress who’d blackmailed his little brother into marrying her, he’d tried to buy her off, convinced she was nothing more than a fortune-hunting whore. However, since their first meeting, she’d done nothing but surprise him. She loved Adrian despite his scars, she’d shown uncommon courage and resourcefulness during her ordeal with Anne, and she was a fierce champion of those she loved. Adrian couldn’t possibly have found a more suitable bride, despite her humble beginnings.
Adrian strode to his wife’s side and took her hand. “It’s a long story, but Luke desperately needs to ask Gabriel some questions about the place where I found him. You see... his daughter might have been there also.”
Vanessa turned to Luke, her gaze softening. “Luke... I didn’t know you had a daughter.”
“Neither did I,” he said hoarsely. “Not until yesterday. She was taken, and Serenity was told she had died.”
Serenity had been silent throughout the exchange, but when he turned to look at her, tears were streaming down her pale cheeks. “Please,” she whispered, locking eyes with Vanessa. “I know it’s a lot to ask, and I would never want to do anything to hurt your son, but my little girl is out there, all alone. She’s only seven years old.”
“My God,” Vanessa whispered, rushing to Serenity’s side and taking her in a fierce embrace. “I’m so sorry.”
Luke and Adrian exchanged helpless glances as Vanessa continued to murmur quietly in Serenity’s ear, obviously giving her comfort. The fact that Vanessa had so easily accepted Serenity, even knowing that she’d had a child with Luke without the bonds of marriage, made him love his sister-in-law even more. The two women would prove to be great friends, he suspected, and after Gemma’s betrayal, he knew Serenity desperately needed a friend.
When he’d been a young man, he’d worried so much about how society would accept Serenity. He’d been loath to put her through the gossip and cruelty people of his class turned on anyone they thought lower in status. Since Adrian had married Vanessa, he’d come to see that none of that mattered. Vanessa and Adrian rarely went out in public, and they didn’t seem to mind at all. Vanessa cared nothing for balls and entertainments; she just wanted to spend time with her family.
Now that Serenity had entered his life again, so had hope. For the first time in forever, he could see himself happy and whole. He could see a life, a family, and Serenity had always been at the heart of that dream. But the dream didn’t work with their little girl, and he would move heaven and earth to find her so that Serenity could believe in that dream, too.
