“Do you have everything you need?” Sophie asked, wondering what was in the box. With her gaunt face and empty expression, Marie appeared fragile and lost and not at all like the confident, composed woman she had met in Leicester Square.
“Yes.” Marie nodded. “But the girls … what will happen to them?”
“Lord Danesfield will take care of it,” Sophie reassured her. Dane took care of everything. He was the most solid, most dependable man she had ever known and she had been foolish to ever think otherwise.
Marie was just as quiet on the journey to Red Lion Square and upon their return had asked to go to her room. Sophie had no such luck as James insisted on hearing every horrifying detail and a whole hour passed before Sophie was able to go and check on her.
She met Amy on the stairs, carrying a bundle of clothing. “What would you like me to do with her dress, miss?” Amy asked, glancing down at the blood-stained garment.
“Burn it,” she replied. ‘But you must never mention it to anyone.” Sophie took a few more steps and then turned and asked, “Did she say anything to you?”
“No, miss. She’s not said a word. She just lay in the bath, staring up at the ceiling.”
Sophie offered a weak smile, thanked the maid and continued up the stairs, deciding to change out of her masquerade gown before calling in on Marie.
Having changed into her breeches and shirt, as they were the first thing to hand, Sophie tapped on Marie’s door and waited for a response before entering. Even though the hour was late, Marie was not in bed. She was curled up in a chair in front of the fire, wearing a plain linen nightgown. The room was far too warm, but she got the feeling Marie’s shivers had nothing to do with the cold. Even so, she picked up a blanket from the end of the bed and draped it around her friend’s shoulders. Moving the chair from the dressing table, Sophie placed it in front of the fire and sat down.
“How are you feeling?” Sophie asked even though she knew it was a stupid question.
Marie stared into the flames. “I thought I would feel relieved, happy,” she said softly, still clutching the bible in her hand. “But murder … it is just one more sin to add to a list of many.”
“It was not murder, Marie. You were defending yourself,” Sophie corrected. “He would have killed you. He would have killed us all.”
Marie looked down at the bible and stroked the cover. “My father would not have seen it that way,” she sighed. “One day, I will answer for it. I will answer for it all.”
Sophie shook her head. “You’re wrong,” she insisted. “You saved my life and Annabel’s, too.”
Marie shrugged. “Perhaps.”
They remained silent for a few minutes as Sophie followed Marie’s vacant gaze to stare at the flames and became lost in her own tumultuous thoughts.
This would be the last night she would spend under Dane’s roof. She’d spent the last six years being angry with him. How would she survive the next six years feeling nothing but love for him? In truth, she would never fully recover from their separation; she would always feel a little less than whole, always feel empty and incomplete.
As though sensing the reason for Sophie’s disquiet, Marie asked, “Will you return to your village now that the matter is concluded, now Victor is … is dead?”
Sophie looked up and met Marie’s gaze. “I have nowhere else to go,” she replied with some amusement.
“But surely your marquess will offer for you.”
Sophie snorted. “Under the circumstances, he probably believes he should marry me. But it is not the same as wanting to. Besides, he needs to marry someone a little more refined and a little less headstrong.”
“Call me naive,” Marie countered, “but you have not mentioned love. If he loves you, surely that is more important than anything.”
Sophie stood, walked over to the hearth and poked the fire. She could not even bear to consider the thought that Dane had feelings for her in that regard. It would
only make walking away all the more difficult, all the more painful.
“Love plays no part in the marriages of the nobility,” Sophie replied, stabbing at the coals as though they were to blame for all things considered unfair. “You have seen the proof with your own eyes.”
They were interrupted by a knock on the door and Sophie opened it to find Dane waiting outside. Her heart skipped a beat.
“You’re back,” she exclaimed, stepping out into the hall and closing the door gently behind her. “What happened?” she whispered.
Dane scanned her casual attire with interest and pulled her into his arms, where he proceeded to kiss her with a desperate urgency.
Panting, Sophie broke away first. “You cannot kiss me like that with my brother in the house,” she protested weakly. “What if he should see us?”
Dane’s hands settled on her waist, gripping the loose fabric to pull her closer to his warm body. “I do not care who sees us,” he whispered in her ear. “I want to feel your naked body next to mine.”