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Yet, as he fought to stay alert, pain filled his head, sinking him in the endless sea of despair.
Chapter 11
Regina quickly hidbehind a stack of empty crates in the abandoned warehouse. Her heartbeat slammed against her chest as panic filled her.
Never in her life had she witnessed such a terrible act of violence. Shock kept her mobilized. She doubted she could even scream at this moment.
Her mind whirled with what she had just witnessed. She couldn’t believe any of this, even though she had seen and heard what Wayne and Jane were discussing down in the hidden room under the floor. Was Harold involved in the Opium trade?
When Regina had overheard Jane telling Waynewhyshe administered the illegal substance to Regina and her parents, her world came crashing down around her.Vagabond?After all the cherished years and memories she shared with Jane, it was difficult for Regina to accept that they hadn’t meant a whit to Jane.
Tears blurred her vision, and she closed her eyes, leaning her forehead against the crate. And to think, Wayne Nichols was a Bow Street Runner and had never been in love with Jane. Unfortunately, the good news was pushed to the bottom of her feelings because right now, all she could think about was Jane’s purposeful betrayal.
“Come on, you fool,” Jane snapped from the room under the floorboards. “Wake up.”
Although Regina couldn’t see, she heard Jane slapping her new beau’s face. Moments later, a moan came from the man.
“I’m awake,” he said slowly.
“Splendid because I need you to help me carry Mr. Nichols to my coach so that I can take him home.”
“Why?” The man’s voice lifted. “All he wants is to arrest you and your father, and apparently, he wants to arrest me just because I’m here with you.”
“Are you not listening to me? I’m going to take Mr. Nichols home so that my father can deal with him.”
Regina’s chest tightened harder. If Harold was the evil man Wayne had made the earl out to be, what would he try to do to Wayne? She didn’t want to imagine it. As much as she still wanted Harold to be the kind and loving man he had been her whole life, apparently, Wayne knew differently.
She rubbed her throbbing temples. Why hadn’t she stayed home today? Instead, the nagging thought that Jane had poisoned her hung like a noose around Regina’s neck and tightened by the second. How could she go throughout the day without confronting Jane?
Before Regina left the house, she grabbed an unopened bottle of wine to take with her. This would be the reason for arriving unannounced at the earl’s estate. Regina had planned to celebrate her friend and Wayne’s engagement. Although a lie, Regina would make her friend think that she had realized her mistake in judging Wayne so harshly.
But now... all Regina wanted to do was hurry home as fast as her horse would ride and close herself in her bedchambers. What she had learned today devastated her completely. Sadly, hiding away would not do. Not when Wayne needed her help.
The grunts and groans of Jane and her new beau dragging Wayne up the stairs brought Regina alert again. She sneaked a peek around the crate. Wayne’s head was bloody, and Jane had wrapped a cloth strip around it. At least the woman thought of Wayne’s injury if even just a little.
Once the three were out of the room below the floorboards, Jane closed the trap door. The tall man tried to lift Wayne but struggled to do so. Jane tried to help carry Wayne’s feet, but between her and her friend, they were having a difficult time taking Wayne to the coach.
