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“Whyever not?”
Lord Hawthorne leaned closer, and she could feel the heat of his breath mingling with hers. “I work alone,” he stated firmly with a hint of coldness she’d not heard before.
“Will you at least keep me abreast of the investigation?”
“I would be willing to do that, assuming you do not become a nuisance.”
“Thank you.” Madalene worked hard to pretend that his nearness wasn’t affecting her. She had never been this close to a man before, and she found it rather unnerving.
To her great relief, Lord Hawthorne stepped back and offered his arm to her. “Allow me to escort you to your coach,” he said. “I assume it is out front.”
“It is,” she replied as she placed her hand on his sleeve.
As Lord Hawthorne led her towards the doors, he remarked, “I should note that the longer your friend is missing, the less likely it is that we will be able to find her.”
“I assumed as much.”
“And there is a good chance that she is already dead.”
Madalene gasped. “You don’t truly believe that, do you?”
Keeping his gaze straight ahead, he replied, “I do.”
“I truly hope that isn’t the case.”
Lord Hawthorne opened the door and stepped to the side to allow her to go first. “I will come by tomorrow to discuss the particulars.”
“I shall be looking forward to it.”
They exited the main door, and Lord Hawthorne walked her to the coach. He opened the door and put his hand out for her.
Madalene accepted his assistance and stepped inside. “Thank you,” she murmured.
Lord Hawthorne didn’t close the door right away. Instead, he said, “I don’t want you to get your hopes up. No good will come from that.”
“I understand, but I still have hope that Edith will be returned unharmed.”
“Do you not understand what I am saying to you?”
Madalene smiled ruefully. “I do, but I choose to ignore half of what you say.”
Lord Hawthorne didn’t smile as she had intended, but rather his eyes sparked with annoyance. “Go home, Miss Dowding,” he ordered before closing the coach door.
She found herself watching Lord Hawthorne re-enter the building as the coach pulled away from the pavement. What a perplexing man, she thought. She wasn’t entirely sure why she’d accepted his help, but there was something about him that made her feel safe. And it was that something that compelled her to trust him.
