Page 99 of A Winter Scandal

“It’s easier,” Rawdon replied.

“Particularly if one happens to be color-blind.” Myles glanced around, then narrowed his eyes as he glanced toward another group of guests, who were accepting drinks from a black-and-white-clad maid. “I say … that girl looks familiar.”

“Who?” Gabriel straightened and glanced around. “The girl in green? That’s one of the Squire’s daughters.”

“No, not her. The maid behind her. Wait, she’ll turn around again. She looks like …”

“Hannah!” Gabriel and Rawdon said almost in unison.

Thea looked at the maid. “Of course! I saw her here; she’s one of the new servants Damaris hired to prepare for the party. But I didn’t see her face that day, Gabriel, so I had no idea she was the one you were looking for. What better place to hide than in plain sight, among a bunch of servants?”

“I never thought of looking here for her. Under our noses the entire time.”

“And her note—she must have slipped it in with my dress that day, and it fell out when Lolly took the dress out of the box.”

“Who are you—you mean Jocelyn’s maid?” Myles asked, looking confused. “What the devil is she doing here?”

“That is what I’m about to find out.” Gabriel started toward the maid, with the others on his heels.

At that moment Ian came out of the room on the other side of the hall. Without glancing around, he seized Hannah’s arm and whisked her away with him around the corner and into the long gallery.

“Ian!” Gabriel halted. His face turned white, then flushed, and he ran after them.

Some of the other guests turned to stare as Thea and the others hurried after Gabriel. Thea cast a pleading look at Damaris as she went, and Damaris moved in quickly behind them to get the other guests’ attention, clapping her hands and suggesting that they all move into the other room for refreshments.

Gabriel opened the first door along the long hall and startled the people inside, who were gathered at tables, playing cards. With a bow and a muttered apology, he withdrew and started down the hall to the next room. It, too, was empty, but as they neared the next door, they could hear a man’s voice inside, shouting.

“… until you tell me? Where the bloody hell is Jocelyn?”

Gabriel flung the door open and charged inside. Thea, Myles, and Rawdon rushed in behind him. Ian whirled and gaped at them. His eyes widened with a sudden, horrified realization.

“You!” Gabriel spit. “All along it was you who seduced my sister!”

“No! No, I swear!” Ian glanced around frantically. “Gabe! Myles! Please, I saw Hannah, and I was trying to find out where Jocelyn is. For you! I was questioning her for you!”

“Not bleedin’ likely!” Hannah screeched, jerking out of his grasp. “It was you what seduced my lady. It was you what told her you loved her and pined for her and cried great crocodile tears because you had to marry Miss Pot o’ Gold! I tried to warn her about you, but she wouldn’t listen! She was so bleedin’ in love with you she couldn’t see what you really was. An’ you broke her heart, you did, when you sent her packin’ like that. Treated her like she was nothin’. Just some trollop.”

“Gabriel, no, don’t believe her!” Ian cried, but with a roar Gabriel was already charging him.

He slammed into the other man and they crashed to the floor. Gabriel’s fist smacked into Ian’s face, splitting his lip.

“Gabriel!” Thea turned to Myles, then Rawdon. “Do something!”

“What would you suggest?” Lord Rawdon asked politely.

“Stop him! He’ll kill him.”

“Oh, I’ll stop him before he goes that far,” Rawdon said, his eyes glinting. He pushed his mask up onto his forehead.

“Myles!” Thea turned a stern look on him. “Help me!” She ran over and began to tug at Gabriel.

Myles joined her, and with a sigh Rawdon did, too, grabbing both Gabriel’s arms and dragging him to his feet. Gabriel stopped struggling, though his hard gaze never left Ian’s face. “It’s all right. I won’t hit him again. Not just yet.”

He shot his cuffs and straightened his jacket as Myles stepped over to Ian and shoved his snowy-white handkerchief into the other man’s hand. Ian cast a glance toward the doorway, and Rawdon casually stepped in between Ian and the door. Ian slumped and brought the handkerchief up to his face, dabbing at the blood that trickled from his lip and nose.

“You’ve been lying to me all this time,” Gabriel said, his voice low and hard. “You fed me lies about Alec to protect your own cowardly—”

“No! I swear to you! I didn’t lie about Rawdon. I heard all those stories. He did attack Miss Fortner.” At a low, growling noise from Rawdon, Ian edged closer to Myles. “I’m telling you the truth. Yes, all right, I was jealous of Rawdon—hell, he was going to marry the woman I loved! But I believed everything I told you. The stories were true: I heard them. I—” Ian glanced at Rawdon and swallowed, then looked at Gabriel and Myles.