Page 57 of When the Duke Met His Match

They took their seats, and Theophilus scanned the room, wondering if he could pick up on any suspicious. But with a room full of supposed criminals, placing his thumb on the exact criminals they were after was hard.

“I kept my eyes peeled all the while I waited for you,” she murmured to him.

He leaned back in his chair, trying to relax his exhausted body for just a moment. A soft, comfortable bed sounded like the very thing he needed, but he knew that possibility was not an option.

“Perhaps they haven’t arrived yet. I don’t imagine these sorts of arrangements are made before dusk.”

“What if we missed them? What if we did all this for nothing and couldn’t uncover their plans?” she asked him in a hushed tone, her eyes wide with concern.

Theophilus tried to offer her the most reassuring look he could manage. “We don’t know that yet. I hope it isn’t the case, but we will need to wait and find that out.”

She took a deep breath and nodded, deflating into her chair again.

Before long, a shorter woman with big brown eyes walked up to the table and gave him a quick look before she met Odette’s eyes.

"Is this the lad then?" she asked, mischief all over her gaze. Theophilus turned to Odette and found her gaze was averted and her cheeks dusted pink. The stranger laughed to herself and moved on to serve another table.

When the woman was gone, he threw Odette a funny look. He had the feeling he had missed something. “What was that about?”

“It’s a long story,” Odette murmured, dismissing it with a small laugh of her own.

He shook it off and waited with his eyes trained on the front door.

Neither of them said a word while they waited. She propped her chin up against her palm while he leaned back in his chair, hoping with everything he had that they hadn’t missed the rendezvous. Too much was depending on it for him to let it pass them by.

For their sake, they needed to know the plans before they came to fruition.

The door opened with a creak, and several men wandered in from the alley. A man stumbled behind them with a hood over his head, appearing far too drunk for his own good. He bumped into their heels, to which they grumbled at him and shoved him back. He slurred an apology and followed them to a nearby table.

Theophilus watched with interest as the group sat down at a nearby table, keeping his head tipped down. Odette followed his lead.

They were the first group to arrive in some time, and something about them told him they were the ones they were looking for.

Feeling a small nudge to his side, he moved closer to Odette as she whispered, “That’s them.”

Nodding once, he returned to his relaxed position and pretended to have his focus trained elsewhere.

The two of them strained to hear what was being said, but he couldn’t catch most of the conversation due to the noise in the establishment.

From what he could tell, the drunk man had to be their informant. With his hood up and back turned to them, Theophilus couldn’t see his face, but he was sure to keep his eye on him.

Even if they talked low enough for him to miss what they were saying, he only needed to catch the informant alone. Surely, he’d be able to make him talk one way or another.

“Are you able to hear any of it?” Odette asked him, her eyes giving away her struggle.

He shook his head no and tapped his fingertips against the table lightly. “Not even a second of it.”

“This is hopeless,” she mumbled, crossing her arms over her chest.

While that seemed to be true, Theophilus hadn’t lost hope yet. His gaze remained on the men, should they make a move to leave. “Not all is lost yet.”

“What now? We just wait?”

Nodding, he looked over at the server and hailed her. He murmured to Odette, “We’ll sit tight and see what information we can get from them. Once they leave, we will too.”

Once the server came back around, Theophilus ordered himself an ale and prepared himself to stay put for as long as necessary.

Chapter Thirty-Two