Chapter Twenty-One #2
“Suffice to say, that charming little house is a custodian of secrets.”
“Ferndale Grange?” Annie frowned, trying and failing to make any sense of what he was saying.
Perhaps he had truly lost his mind. Dread coiled in her gut even as another question arose in her thoughts, one that surely demanded an answer.
She dropped her gaze to Leo’s hands. Bare hands. Unadorned. “Did you kill Karl Hoffman?”
He scoffed. “I assume that is what Taggart implied when he visited you. I’ll admit I was tempted, my dear, but Hoffman was alive the last time I laid eyes on him.”
Annie wanted to believe him. Then again, he’d proven himself to be an expert at deceit. Fearful of antagonizing him, she decided against asking about Hoffman’s ring, but dared to voice another question. “How do you know about Inspector Taggart’s visit?”
“Like I said, I’ve been watching you.”
A suspicion formed. “That’s how you found me,” Annie said. “You broke into Archibald Mason’s office, didn’t you?”
Leo remained silent.
“They’re looking for you,” she continued. “The police.”
“Fortunately, in all the wrong places,” Leo replied. “If I let you live, however, that will change. And unless Hoffman reappears, I remain the prime suspect in his disappearance.”
She shook her head. “I won’t tell anyone, I swear.”
His hold tightened again as he placed his mouth close to her ear. “Do not insult me with false promises, Annie.”
“They are not false, Leo. You have my word. I’m pleading for my life! Believe me, it is not a scenario I would wish to repeat.”
Moments passed while Annie prayed in silence, daring to hope Leo was considering her release. But when a sudden and violent gust of wind rocked them, he stepped closer to the edge, causing Annie to squeal.
“Exhilarating, isn’t it,” he said. “Look down, Annie. I dare you.”
She did so, her terrified mind latching on to the story of Freya. But instead of Freya, she saw herself sprawled on the rocks below. “Must I go to my grave not knowing of what you speak?” she asked, tears blurring her view once more. “Do you really hate me that much, Leo?”
She felt, rather than heard, his inhalation of breath and felt his body tense. “Damn you,” he murmured, and pulled her back from the precipice. Annie dared to hope. Dared to believe.
“Let me look at you, Leo,” she said, surprising herself. “I want to see you.”
The response came instantly. “No.”
“Why not?”
“We are done here, Annie,” he said. “Now, hear me well. When I release you, you will close your eyes and count to fifty before you turn around. Any attempt to follow me will, I swear, not end well for you. Understood?”
“Not the reason behind it, Leo, no. And believe me, I have no desire to follow you, though I admit to being curious as to your direction. Do you still intend to spy on me?”
“Not anymore. Suffice to say, I shall be leaving England tomorrow.”
Leaving England? “And what of these secrets?”
“‘Seek and ye shall find.’ I shall say no more than that. Do not test me further. Close your eyes.”
She did as bidden yet Leo remained where he was, his breath still hot and heavy against her neck.
Then he pressed his lips to her hair and held them there for a long moment.
“Damn you,” he muttered again. “I care not who you are, Annabelle Fairfax. When Northcott has deserted you, which he surely will, you might remember that.” He released her and stepped back.
“Keep your eyes closed and start counting.”
Annie struggled to remain upright on her unsteady legs. Despite Leo’s demand, she opened her eyes and focused her gaze once more on Myddleton’s familiar roofs. Meanwhile, the numbers went by in her head, unspoken.
“Twenty,” she whispered at last, and stopped.
She’d given Leo enough time to get away.
Besides, she’d spoken true when she said she had no desire to follow him.
Bracing herself against the wind, she remained in place, consumed by a fading sense of shock, a euphoric sense of relief, and a horde of unanswered questions.
If any fear remained, it now rested solely in the mystery of this unknown truth.
When Northcott has deserted you, which he surely will…
Why would Julian desert her?
I care not who you are…
What did that mean? Was her father guilty of something nefarious?
Had some crime been committed in the past, perhaps?
And how, under God’s great sky, might she begin to ask Hattie and Janet about whatever it was?
She had no idea how to proceed. To question them would surely result in them questioning her, and she balked at the thought of confessing her encounter with Leo.
She wasn’t sure why. Perhaps because he was a potential complication, one that might be used as a diversion to the exposure of this mysterious truth.
If there even was a mysterious truth hidden somewhere.
For now, at least, Leo would remain unseen and unheard.
As if to support her rationale, more of his words came back to her.
Seek and ye shall find.
After one last look at Myddleton House, Annie turned and regarded Ferndale Grange, now seeing it through different eyes.
Questioning eyes. Before she stepped through its door, she needed to gather herself and show no outward sign of distress.
Hattie, after all, could read her like a book.
She lifted a shaky hand to her hair as she briefly pondered the whereabouts of her bonnet.
Miles away by now, no doubt. Easy to explain its loss, given the weather.
In an attempt to calm the tremble in her hands, she clenched and unclenched her fingers several times.
To settle her racing heart, she filled her lungs and exhaled slowly; once, twice, thrice.
Then, dropping her shoulders and lifting her chin, she set off back, already making plans.
It wasn’t till she got to the woods that she remembered Ruffy’s earlier reaction. Is that where Leo had been hiding? Had the dog sensed his presence? Annie knew she’d never pass the woods again without thinking about being watched. A shiver ran down her spine as she hurried on her way.