To Trust a Thief Page 2
“Charlotte!” Min tried to glare at her, but Charlotte was impossible to resist. Although exquisitely tiny, she was so full of life and laughter it seemed to bubble from every pore.
“Are you all right?”
Min shot Katherine a scathing look and swallowed the decidedly unladylike retort that trembled on her lips. “I’m fine. I’ve just had a rough morning.”
“You should be used to those by now.”
Min stuck out her tongue but couldn’t help smiling. Charlotte could always pull her out of a mood.
“So what happened this time?” Charlotte asked.
“I…ran into a gentleman outside the bookstore.”
Charlotte tried unconvincingly to hide her grin. “A gentleman? Who is he? Is he handsome?”
Min blushed. “I don’t know who he is and what difference does it make if he’s handsome?”
“He is! I knew it. Tell me everything.”
“Charlotte, that isn’t what’s important. I followed him—”
“Minuette! You followed some strange man around town?”
“Shh! Just listen. I overheard him speaking with another man. They were talking about finding the Courtland necklace.”
“The what?”
Min filled her in on the legend, keeping her voice low so the other girls wouldn’t hear.
When she’d finished, Charlotte leaned back with a confused frown. “I don’t understand why such an old legend is important.”
“Because I’m going to find the necklace,” Min whispered.
“Min, it’s just a story. It probably doesn’t even exist.”
“But what if it does? The men obviously believe it does and I’m in a much better position to find it than they. It would solve everything.”
Charlotte frowned. “I don’t want to see you pin all your hopes on a make-believe treasure.”
“The necklace is not make believe,” Min whispered. “And I will find it.”
Charlotte patted Min’s hand with the “sure you will, you poor dear” attitude she usually adopted when Min began spouting off about one of her schemes. While Charlotte usually proved to be right, like when Min had found an alchemy book and tried to turn a lump of lead into gold, this time was different. Charlotte would see. Min closed her eyes and angled her face upward, welcoming the warmth of the afternoon sun. She’d prove the treasure real.
A grateful sigh escaped Min’s lips as the wagon rumbled over the pebbled, tree-lined path leading to the grand manor house of Thornmont. Surrounded by expansive gardens and a small wood, the property, which had been in the Courtland family for generations, was quite beautiful.
Min climbed from the coach and made her way toward the large double doors of the manor. She stomped up the front steps, trying to remove as much mud from her boots as she could. A deep laugh stopped her short.
Min’s chest grew tight. The four-fingered man stood next to one of the grooms. He turned his head, and his eyes locked with Min’s. He tipped his hat to her. Min shifted from one foot to the other, not sure if she should give in to instinct and run or stay where she was and see what he was up to.
“Charlotte.” Min kept her eyes riveted on the man’s and groped blindly for her friend. She yanked Charlotte to her side the second her hand made contact. “Charlotte, it’s him! He’s followed me!”
“What?” Charlotte followed Min’s gaze. “My, my. You were right. For a bloodthirsty thief he certainly is handsome.”
“Charlotte!”
“Well, it’s true. Though”—Charlotte frowned—“it is rather odd he’s here. Let’s go ask around. Maybe someone knows who he is.” Charlotte joined the gaggle of girls swarming into the manor.
Min remained frozen on the front steps, unable to tear her gaze from his. She brought her hand to her throat, finding it suddenly difficult to breathe.
Her shortness of breath had nothing to do with the way the man’s gaze raked over her as if he’d devour her. Nothing to do with the fact that she would willingly drown in the eyes that reminded her so much of home. Nothing at all to do with the smiling lips that she couldn’t help but imagine brushing against her own.
It was because he was there to steal a treasure she’d decided was hers and she would be damned if she let him get to it first.
She sucked in a ragged breath and marched into the manor, repeating the lie to herself until she almost believed it.
Chapter Three
After she’d freshened up, Min had a few hours left before her weekly Sunday tea with her aunt, something Min usually enjoyed. But today, Mr. Smythe, yet another suitor found by her aunt, was expected at precisely four o’clock. Min was less than enthusiastic about the prospect.
However, the thought of spending the next several hours before his arrival digging up whatever she could on the Courtland necklace perked her up a bit. Her first stop was the portrait gallery at the top of the house. Min often wandered along the corridor. Few of the students ventured up there so it was a wonderful place to escape and be alone. But Min also loved gazing at the portraits of the long-dead Courtlands, dressed in all their finery.
Her favorite was of the mystery woman whose portrait hung all on its own, as if the others had forgotten it. Unlike the other paintings, there was no nameplate beneath the woman’s likeness. She always seemed so sad, sitting alone surrounded by baskets of star-shaped flowers. After reading about the legend, Min was almost certain the mystery woman was the mistress of Edward Courtland, the man who’d supposedly lost the priceless necklace. The unknown woman did wear a beautiful locket around her neck that Min had always admired. But the painting of another woman wearing a different necklace was what held Min’s attention now.
Tabitha Courtland, the late mother-in-law of Min’s aunt, was painted dressed for a costume ball and wearing a necklace that fit the description of the Courtland necklace. Min had always assumed the magnificent piece in the portrait had been paste, a fake colored glass gem. Staring at the necklace now sent shivers of excitement coursing through her.
She would interrogate Aunt Laura about the necklace during their teatime visit, but for the moment, going to the library might answer some questions about the family.
When Min reached the library, a surprise waited for her.
“Arthur,” she cried, rushing toward her friend.
Dr. Arthur Carmichael sat in one of the dark corners of the library, the bruises on his face painfully apparent even in the dim light.
He grasped her hands when she reached out to touch his cheek.
“Arthur, what happened?”
He grimaced. “You know what happened.”
“Lord Rellik?”
“Just a friendly reminder of my debt.”
“Arthur…”
He waved her away. “It doesn’t matter. That’s not why I’ve come.”
Min folded her hands and waited.
“My grandmother asked me to find something for her. Will you help?”
“For you? Anything,” she said, leaning down to place a gentle kiss on his cheek.
Two hours later, Min was beginning to regret her generosity. She rolled the ladder another few feet and kicked her skirts out of the way as she ascended the rungs for what felt like the thousandth time. Arthur was one of her dearest friends and she’d do anything for his sweet old grandmother, but digging through musty books and tripping up ladders in a futile search for some lost memento was challenging her good nature.
Not that she’d complain to him about it. He had bigger things to worry about. At least this was a problem with which she could help him. She searched through the old books on the upper shelves of the bookcase, casting anxious glances at Arthur every few seconds.
“I’m fine, Min.” Arthur flinched as his words pulled at his split lip. “Just keep looking.”
“You don’t look fine,” she muttered. Arthur ignored her and continued searching a shelf.
Well, he was the doctor. He would know if he was all right or not. She grabbed a few
more books, feeling behind them before moving to the next shelf. The library at Thornmont Grange was extensive, to say the least.
Min stifled a sneeze. The layers of dust appeared to date back to the days, several decades before, when Arthur’s grandmother had been a young maid. “Is there any reason we have to search at this precise moment?” she asked. It wasn’t a complaint, exactly.
“My grandmother doesn’t have much longer, Min. Her health was precarious before she witnessed my little run-in with Lord Rellik’s men.” Arthur sat and leaned back against the bookcase, rubbing a puffy and blackened eye. “Now she’s just… Look, she asked me to retrieve whatever it is she’s hidden in this bloody library and she’s not going to rest until I deliver it. It’s the least I can do for her.”
“Well, did she give you any other clue about where this thing supposedly is? ‘The old section at the top’ is a little vague.”
“Sorry, no. She wasn’t in any condition for a detailed discussion. However, if it was something she wanted to keep hidden, I’d assume it would be as far out of the way as she could manage. Try the top shelf. I’ll look on the lower ones.”
Min kept her irritation to herself. Arthur was hardly in any condition to be climbing ladders, no matter what he said. Lord Rellik’s men had been very thorough in their “reminder” of Arthur’s debt to their boss.
She returned her attention to the shelves.
If Arthur couldn’t pay off his gambling debt, she feared… Well, she wouldn’t even think about what she feared. If she could find the necklace, she’d be able to help him as well. But if she couldn’t…
“Arthur, do you have any idea what you’re going to do to—”
“Is your aunt still sending London’s finest your way?” Arthur brushed some dust from his trousers, looking everywhere but at her.
Min grimaced, annoyed at the reminder of her own troubles. “Unfortunately, yes. The last one was older than my father.” Her voice caught on the last word.
“How is your father doing?”
“Not well.” She climbed down and sat on the floor next to Arthur. “I received a letter from my uncle yesterday. My father is growing more ill. There are witnesses who will testify he acted in self-defense, but the family of the man who died in the altercation wants him charged with murder. My mother won’t leave my father even though it may take months to free him.” Min swatted at her skirts, taking out her frustration on the dust that clung there.
“My uncle Mark was told by a guard that a large bribe in the right hands would see my father on the next ship out of Nevis, but he refuses to consider such a thing. He thinks he can use his ‘considerable’ experience as a barrister to set things right. But he doesn’t understand that things work a little differently out there. He might be one of the finest when it comes to London courts, but a distant island colony is quite another matter.”
Arthur bumped his shoulder against hers. “I thought you loved Nevis.”
“I do. I’d much rather be running along the beach with the other plantation children than here practicing poise and etiquette. Bloody boring.”
Arthur snorted back a laugh and Min bit her lip. “See what I mean?” she said. “I don’t know what Aunt Laura was thinking. She may have polished my sister enough to catch one of society’s finest, but I’m a lost cause. I’d be better off back in the village with my parents.”
“Ah, but then you wouldn’t have met me.” Arthur nudged her leg with his toe, grinning when she gave him a wry smile.
“Very true. And how dreary your life would be if not for me.”
“It would be! You single-handedly keep me in business, my girl.”
Min scowled at him but he ignored her. “In fact, your coming here might have been the best thing that ever happened to me.”
“Really?” Min asked, afraid of where this line of conversation was leading.
“Of course. Fixing that broken leg of yours and leaving you with nary a limp to show for it proved to the villagers that, young as I am, I am a good doctor. That leg is among the finest work I’ve ever done. Well, that and the stitches in your arm, and the ones under your chin—the scar is almost undetectable—and your sprained wrist from last summer, and the time you caught that nasty cold hiking around in the rain and I had you up and well in under a week, and—”
“I think that is sufficient to plead your case, thank you,” Min said with a sigh—as if she needed a reminder of the consequences of her less-than-graceful moments. She stood and brushed her hands against her skirts. “All right, one more stack but then I really must tidy myself up a bit. Another of Aunt Laura’s suitors will be dropping by this afternoon to ‘make my acquaintance.’ A Mr. Smythe, I believe. ‘Good family, good money,’” she said, mimicking her aunt. “Really, I don’t know why she bothers. I’m never going to marry.”
“Why ever not? What else are you going to do?”
“Whatever I want. I don’t want to be tied down to some man, forced to honor and obey his every whim.”
“It might not be like that. Your parents love each other and are very happy, aren’t they?”
“Well, yes. But even so, Mother gave up everything to be with Father. Her family, her money, her friends, and her easy life. I would never want to lose myself so completely for someone else. Or worse yet, be like my sister and give up everything for someone I don’t love. She married the first man Aunt Laura threw at her, and now she’s stuck with a chubby old toad twenty years her senior.”
“What will you do, then? Be a governess? Or maybe ask Lady Courtland if you can teach here when you are finished? I’m sure your aunt would be glad of the help. She seems to be amassing quite the student body. She’ll have a proper finishing school before long.”
“I said I thought the school would be a good idea for my aunt, not for me. She’s much more suited to polishing young ladies than I. I do believe, in good time, the decision to open the school will prove sound. Including myself, there are only eight students and the other girls are all local. Merchants’ daughters with money and no title, who are taught by my aunt, my old governess, and my aunt’s former companion. Hardly enough to get the society matrons excited.”
“But what of the newest student?”
Min groaned. “Don’t remind me.”
The esteemed (in her own opinion) Lady Katherine Worthwright had just joined the ranks of her aunt’s fledgling finishing school. Min wasn’t sure how or why Lady Katherine was here. Min’s aunt wasn’t running a formal school, or she hadn’t been until recently. She’d taken in Min and her sister Linnet out of pity, promising Min’s mother she could turn her little savages into respectable ladies of society. Aunt Laura’s friend, a local well-to-do merchant’s wife, had asked if her twin daughters could be included in her nieces’ lessons. Learning the art of being a lady from a real lady was apparently something the members of the upper middle class were more than happy to pay for. Anything to give their daughters a leg up in the marriage market.
A few more families had asked if their daughters could join, including Charlotte, Min’s best friend and the daughter of the region’s current Member of Parliament. Min’s aunt, in her reduced circumstances, couldn’t refuse the income. Aunt Laura’s late father-in-law had nearly decimated the family fortunes with his gambling habits, and the money Aunt Laura had brought into her marriage wasn’t nearly enough to keep up with the needs of a manor like Thornmont Grange. The school seemed like the best solution for padding the family’s depleted coffers while remaining in her home.
The addition of Lady Katherine Worthwright into the “school” was a huge feather in Aunt Laura’s cap, even though Min couldn’t stand the little nit. Min genuinely hoped it to be the start of something successful and profitable for her aunt. But the thought of teaching spoiled, useless girls how to be even more spoiled, useless women wasn’t something Min would ever willingly do.
“So,” Arthur pressed. “If you won’t stay on at Thornmont as a teacher, what will you do?”
“You could always marry me, you know.”
Min stopped halfway up, stunned into silence for probably the first time in her life.
Arthur laughed. “Is the prospect that horrible to consider?”
In some ways, yes. She loved Arthur. He’d been one of the few people who had wholeheartedly accepted her when she’d arrived in England as a tanned, willful, and wild fourteen-year-old. He’d always stood by her, tried to protect her, and she would always do the same for him. He was a wonderful friend.
But a husband? No. As much as it pained her to admit it, she just couldn’t trust him with her future. She knew he struggled to keep his gambling under control, and for a time she thought he had. However, there was always another temptation, and Arthur had proven time and again that he couldn’t resist. Min had helped him all she could, but she’d never tie her future to his. Or to anyone’s. The thought of being dependent on another person terrified her.
His amused smile began to harden and she hurried to form an answer, careful to keep her tone light and teasing.
“No, of course not, it’s just… Arthur, I’d be a terrible wife.”
He laughed again. “You sell yourself short.”
“You’re kind to think so.”
“It would solve so many problems, though. Besides, whether you like it or not, you’ll have to marry someday.”
“Perhaps. Perhaps not. Either way, Arthur, I’m not going to marry you just because it’s convenient. I like you too much. As a friend,” she added with a smile.
“Well then, as your friend, I have a slightly different proposal.”
“Go on,” Min said, morbidly curious.
“Be my fake fiancée.”
Min stared at him, stunned into silence for the second time in her life. Arthur was becoming quite adept at rendering her speechless. “Pardon?”
“Well, it would buy you some time. Your erstwhile aunt would be appeased and you’d be properly betrothed while you figure out what else you might do with your life.”