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The look he gave me was so cold it was almost scary. Only almost, though, because of the words that next came out of his mouth. ‘You stay away from Dalgliesh! He’s dangerous.’
Warmth flooded my heart. He cared. He cared if I was in danger. The arrogant, chauvinistic asshole! He should know that I could very well take care of myself. How could any one person make you feel so mushy and pissed off at the same time?
Concentrate, Lilly!
Clearing my throat, I stepped closer to the desk.
‘I may have an idea of how we can prevent Dalgliesh’s plans, Sir.’
‘Indeed, Mr Linton?’
‘Yes indeed, Sir.’
I explained my idea to him. He listened calmly and patiently until I was finished, and then he nailed me to the wall with his cold gaze. By the looks of him, he was contemplating fixing me in place there permanently, if that could stop my crazy plans.
‘No!’
‘Just think about it!’ I cajoled.
‘You can’t be serious, Mr Linton!’
‘But it would work. I’m sure it would.’
‘Dropping Dalgliesh into a volcano would also work. That does not mean it is a feasible plan.’
‘But it would be a darn interesting one.’ I tugged my ear. ‘Are you sure there aren’t any volcanos around here?’
‘Mr Linton!’
‘All right, all right. Back to my original plan, then.’
He didn’t seem much more pleased about that. His eyes narrowed. ‘Ah yes. Your “original plan”. Correct me if I am mistaken, Mr Linton. Your plan consists of finding the saboteur here in my opera house…’
‘Yes.’
‘…and then,’ he continued, icy derision dripping from his voice, ‘offering His Majesty King Louis Philippe, his entire court and all the cabinet, as a sign of my generosity and love for the French people, free seasonal tickets for my opera?’
‘Err…yes?’
The glower he sent me could have frozen a volcano in mid-eruption.
‘Do you have any idea how much an opera ticket costs, Mr Linton?’
I didn’t, actually—because he had forgotten to charge me for the earlier performance. I decided not to mention that fact at the present moment, however. Better to annoy him with it in a month or so.
‘No, Sir.’
‘And do you have any idea how many members the king’s court has?’
‘Um…a dozen?’ I guessed.
His glower become even frostier.
‘Two dozen?’
I could feel my toes starting to freeze. Swallowing down my misgivings, I raised my chin.
‘Do you have any better ideas?’
