Chapter 20
Chapter Twenty
Honora squandered the day, fretting instead of doing anything productive on the search.
But what could she do in the light of day?
She needed the safety of darkness before attempting to find Pratt and getting the necklace back.
While she was quite certain it would not change her fate—Hind being a rather overzealous, petty sort of man—she would never forgive herself if she did not at least try.
But then there was a knock at her door.
Wilson ambled over to answer it, and all Honora could do was wait, heart beating away in her chest. Hind had not agreed to the three-day time period, but neither had he said she could not have it. What if it was Laura, come to end their acquaintance once and for all?
She swallowed, biting her lip. Then Wilson walked into the room with a card in hand. Best get the ugly affair over with.
“Mr. Stanton is here to see you.”
Honora nearly lost her grip on the card. But when she looked down at it in her grasp, she was shocked to see it was in fact him.
“What could he want?” she asked aloud.
Wilson leaned over the card, reading it again. “How should I know?”
“Oh goodness,” she said, pulling it down while glaring at him. “I was not asking you.”
“Shall I bring him in?”
Honora chewed her lip, then gave a nod. “Yes. Bring him in as well as a pot of tea. He prefers it to port, apparently.”
Wilson left the room, then shortly returned with Leonard just behind him. Honora’s breath caught, her heart in her throat. He was in a deep-green coat, threading fingers through his wavy brown hair as if to put it in order after removing his topper. She swallowed.
“Leonard,” she said, forcing a smile and waving him to sit. He walked forward, hardly meeting her eyes, then stood by a chair, waiting for her to sit before he claimed his seat. “To what do I owe this unexpected visit?”
He cleared his throat, hands clasped together. She could see the whites on his knuckles from gripping so tightly.
“I—” He swallowed. “I wanted to see if you would like to go for a ride with me today.”
A ride? As in, a voluntary outing between them? “Oh.”
His eyes flew to hers. “Is that not agreeable to you?” His fingers rolled across the arm of his chair. “I had thought you might enjoy the idea.”
Honora’s eyes trailed over him. The nervous tapping of his fingers, the way he could hardly meet her eyes.
And the sickness in her stomach reached new heights.
This man—the one who had difficulty opening up to others, the one who kept to himself, the one who never took what he wanted in life—was asking her for such a simple thing.
While she wanted nothing but to agree, something warned her away.
Hind’s threat lingered in her thoughts. Not to mention all the lies she had told Leonard.
They stacked up until a wall of impossibility lay between them.
For how could he forgive her if he truly knew?
She had been reckless, being willing to do anything to have companionship.
But her foolhardy decisions were now barricading any possibility of them actually being together.
So she did what would protect them both.
“What about your vow to never marry?” She held a hand up, looking at her nails. “Have you changed your mind?”
“Honora,” he said with a sigh. “I am only asking for a ride through the park.”
She shrugged, lowering her hand. “Yes, but to what end?”
With heavy eyes, he stared at her. “I admit I am unsure. But after the events two nights ago—”
“Ah.” She nodded. “If you feel obligated to me in some way, you need not be burdened by the thought.”
“I don’t feel obligated. I just thought it was a path worth exploring.”
Her heart clenched. How foolish she had been, and unfeeling and downright dishonest. She had sabotaged herself from the very beginning. It was almost as if she did not know how to love—or how to even be honest. She knew how to tell people just enough to string them along for her own means.
“Very well,” Leonard finally said when she did not respond. “What of the next task?”
“Oh,” she said, standing. “I had forgotten you are now free of our obligation. Which reminds me of something.” She smiled, waggling her brow as if up to some fun mischief. But deep down, she was drowning. Her throat was thick, and tears sat unshed behind her eyes. “I will return in a moment.”
Leaving him alone, she took heavy steps up the stairs, then entered her room and headed straight to her wardrobe.
Once she pulled the doors open, she reached in, pushing the clothing to either side and revealing a small opening in the back which led to a safe within the wall.
She entered the combination, opened it, and withdrew the item she needed.
As she made her way back downstairs, the demons in her mind berated her. Leonard had every right to not wish to see her again. He had every right to hate her.
This was her way of giving him his freedom. Her one act of graciousness, no matter how much she did not wish to do it. For now he would know just how truly awful she was.
A thief and a liar through and through.
Her steps seemed to echo about her. A lack of sleep caused exhaustion to creep through her extremities and play tricks on her mind. She stood in the threshold of the drawing room, watching as Leonard cradled a cup in his hands, breathing in the warm steam from his tea.
He looked up and saw her, then held a hand out to the seat across from him. “Why don’t you sit down. We can have some tea and continue our discussion.”
She kept the object behind her back as she walked into the room, but before she sat down, she placed it onto the table in the center of all the seating.
She sat and waited.
An uncomfortable silence filled her ears, and she wished for nothing more than for him to speak and get this awful affair over with.
But as soon as he spoke, she wanted her wish back.
“Is that what I think it is?”
She cleared her throat. “It is your great-grandmother’s ring. Take it and go sell it for the funds you need for your friends.”
He turned his head slightly toward her, but his eyes remained fixed on the ring. “You had this the whole time?”
“Yes,” she said, her voice nearly a whisper and choked with unspoken words. But she smiled through it all. Let him leave with the thought that she enjoyed this little lark. He could leave with no regrets. He had what he wanted.
“Was . . .” Leonard took a moment to steady his voice, but his anger was palpable. “So this was all just a game? The search for the necklace? The time we spent together?”
She pulled her lips in, then gave a small nod. “Yes.”
He brought his eyes up to hers. “How could you?”
His brown hair waved over his brow, and she ached to reach forward and touch it. She ached for a time when she could do so, even if he pretended to hate it. Now, he probably hated her.
He threw a hand out, half wild. “You put us both in danger,” he continued, then touched a hand to his brow. “Do you not have any amount of sense in that brain of yours? Look at me, Honora!” He gestured down at his body, the bruises still visible on his neck and face. “I was beaten because of you!”
Her lower lip dipped, and she forced a steady breath. “I am sorry, Leonard. But now you have what you need, and you can be free of me.”
Standing, his hand tightened around the ring. Then he turned, strode out the door, and slammed it shut behind him.