To Trust a Thief (9 page)

Chapter Thirteen

Bryant waited for two days before Min gave him a decision. Watching her stumble around the ballroom made him feel a little better. She obviously wasn’t getting any more sleep than he was. Then again, tripping over her own feet was something Min did on a regular basis.

When class ended, he stood at the door, gallantly kissing each girl’s hand as she left. Inwardly, he rolled his eyes. He couldn’t wait to find the treasure so he could clear out.

Minuette and Miss Kensington were the last to leave. Miss Kensington gave him a cool good-bye. But Min lingered, pressing her hand into his. He bent down to kiss her hand, stroking her palm with his finger. He loved the way she trembled when he touched her. He wanted to peel off his gloves so he could feel her skin beneath his. Instead, he held on to her hand for as long as was polite, drawing lazy circles on her palm before reluctantly letting her go.

She slid her hand from his and whispered, “Picture gallery. Eleven o’clock.”

Bryant nodded once and watched her walk away, hope and excitement thundering through his chest. But he had a small matter to attend to before he could meet the enchanting Minuette in the picture gallery.

…

Dinner was torture. Min had made her decision but she couldn’t shake the feeling that she had made a mistake. Though they did say two heads were better than one, and with Arthur and Charlotte, they technically had four. Plus, there was plenty of treasure to go around. But even so…

It didn’t help that Bryant avoided making eye contact with her, which started a whole new round of doubts. Exasperated, Min told herself to stop and turned her attention to her meal.

Just before dessert, Bryant stood and excused himself.

“Pardon me, ladies, but I have some personal matters to attend to. If you will excuse me,” he said with a slight bow to Lady Courtland, “I will say good night.”

Bryant turned away and strode out of the dining room, his boots echoing in the hall. Min’s eyes followed him as he left, a small, worried frown creeping onto her face. Charlotte stomped on Min’s foot under the table. Min scowled, rubbing her throbbing toes against the back of her other leg.

Charlotte smiled sweetly in return. “Susan asked you a question, Min,” she said, her eyes flashing a warning.

Min turned to Susan, a pretty and shy girl from the neighboring town, and said, “I’m terribly sorry. My mind must have wandered a bit. What did you say?”

“I asked if you’d heard the stories Katherine has been telling us about Lady Courtland’s father-in-law and his mistress and the mysterious missing necklace. Do you really think there could be a treasure hidden somewhere in the house?”

Min hesitated. Everyone had heard the stories, naturally, but she wondered why Katherine was stirring interest all of a sudden. A twinge of unease crept through her mind, but she kept her tone lighthearted.

“Oh, I shouldn’t think so. After all, if there were a treasure, I’m sure the family would have found it long before now.”

Several of the girls nodded in agreement. “I suspect you are right, Minuette,” Susan said. “But it does make a fine story, does it not? I’m rather curious about those paintings she mentioned.”

“Paintings?” Min asked, grabbing her water to help force her bread down her suddenly tight throat.

“Yes, the one of the mysterious woman that faces Lord Courtland’s,” Susan answered.

Min was going to kill Katherine.

“Oooh, and Katherine says that Lady Courtland is wearing the Courtland necklace in her portrait. I’d love to get a good look at it. Let’s all go and have a look after dinner, shall we?” The other girls nodded enthusiastically.

Min glanced at Charlotte with a strained smile. Charlotte very helpfully shrugged her shoulders and returned to her dessert. Min groaned inwardly but didn’t want to make a fuss over Susan’s suggestion. After all, if she argued the point too fervently, someone might become suspicious about why she didn’t want anyone up there.
Let them have their look
, she concluded. Hopefully it would satisfy their curiosity and that would be the end of it.

But just in case… “That sounds fun,” she agreed with the girls. “We’ll just have to be careful and make sure we stay in a group. We wouldn’t want the ghost to get us, after all.”

“There’s no such thing as ghosts,” Susan said, though she didn’t look too sure.

“Oh, I wouldn’t bet against it,” Min insisted. “I’m not superstitious, mind you. But I do sometimes get the feeling that I’m being watched when I’m up there.”

“I’ve been hearing strange noises,” one of the girls chimed in. “And the other night, I could have sworn I saw a light in one of the attic windows.”

Min shoved another forkful of food in her mouth to hide her smile as the girls began buzzing, some exclaiming in semi-mocking terror, until Lady Courtland called for silence.

Min thought she saw Katherine glaring at her from the corner of her eye, but when she turned to her, Katherine was busy muttering something to Agnes.

Yes. It would definitely be wise to keep an eye on Lady High and Mighty.

All thoughts of Katherine, paintings, and ghosts fled as Min caught sight of Bryant striding through the hall toward the front entrance. He was leaving and she did not know where he was going or why.

Well, that just won’t do.

Her eyes darted about the table. There had to be something… Her hand reached out for her water glass, very neatly splattering its contents all over her dress in the process.

She squealed and jumped from her seat. Charlotte gaped at her.

“Oh dear,” Lady Courtland said, her long-suffering tone clearly illustrating her exasperation with Min’s accidents. “Well, you’d better go get cleaned up.”

“Thank you, Aunt Laura,” Min said, already hurrying from the room. As soon as she was out of sight of the dining room, she cut across the huge hall and into the salon. The French doors leading to the gardens were the closest exit to the stables. If Bryant was leaving, he’d need his horse.

Min shivered as the cool night air hit her. But she pressed on, hurrying to the stables just in time to see Bryant ride out the front gates.

“Blast!” Min muttered, heading for her favorite mare’s stall. She tossed up a prayer of thanks for Bryant’s timing. The stable hands would all be at dinner in the kitchen while the house’s inhabitants ate their own meal.

She led the horse out, murmuring soothing noises as she took a quick look around. Seeing no one, she hiked her skirts to her knees, grasped the horse’s mane, and pulled herself up. Min kicked the horse into a run, allowing herself a little smile. Katherine might mock her “wild” upbringing, but it was certainly coming in handy tonight. Riding bareback through the waves near her parents’ cottage had been one of her favorite pastimes.

Bryant had to have gone toward town. Min spurred the horse on, her eyes straining to see into the distance. When she finally caught sight of a small cloud of dust up ahead, she slowed her panting mare, matching her pace to the faint trail left by Bryant’s horse. Anxiety niggled at Min’s mind the closer she drew to the village. The water on her dress had dried, but an unaccompanied girl riding bareback through town without hat, cloak, or gloves was sure to draw attention.

The first rooftops were just becoming visible. Min led her horse off the road into a small copse of trees. She rode as far as she could beneath their cover, but the closer the town became, the thinner the trees grew.

The Swan’s Neck sat at the edge of the town, laughter and light spilling through its open windows as the town’s residents enjoyed their supper at the tavern. Min spotted Bryant’s horse tied up amongst the inn’s patrons’ steeds. She needed somewhere to hide her mare. The stable hands were hard at work minding their guests’ animals, or Min might have tried to slip her horse into their stables.

Arthur. His clinic lay only a few buildings down. If her luck held, she’d be able to tether her mare inside his shed while she spied on Bryant. She didn’t want to risk riding down the main street, so she took the horse the long way, skirting around the fenced yards of the shops between the inn and Arthur’s.

Light shone through the windows of his clinic, though the windows to his upstairs apartments were dark. Which meant he was most likely busy with a patient. Perfect.

Min brought her horse into the shed, tethering her with a bit of rope she found hanging from a nail by the door. Arthur’s old gelding gave them a disinterested look and went back to munching on his pile of hay.

Min tidied herself up as best she could without a mirror and walked quickly down the boarded sidewalk toward the inn. Once she drew near enough, she cast a glance around and ducked down the alley, coming around the side of the building. She kept to the shadows, peering in the open windows. When she reached the third one, she drew back with a stifled gasp. Bryant and his redheaded friend sat within.

Min pressed herself against the cold brick wall at the side of the window. Their voices were difficult to make out through the rest of the noise. She leaned as close as she dared and listened.

Chapter Fourteen

Bryant had scanned the room until he found who he was looking for. “Evening, Julian,” Bryant said, sliding onto the bench at his friend’s table.

“Well, well. You finally deign to check in,” Julian said, one eyebrow raised. “I thought I would have to resort to masquerading as one of your students in order to keep an eye on you.”

“Had I known that, I might have stayed away longer,” Bryant said with a laugh.

Julian chuckled and slid a book-sized package wrapped in brown paper across the table. Bryant took it and laid it beside him on the bench. “Thank you.”

“What is it?” Julian asked.

“Just call it a backup plan. I’m going to be out from under Rellik’s thumb one way or the other. This will help. I’m surprised you didn’t look.”

“You’re the only person in the world for whom I’d curtail my natural curiosity.” Julian grinned. “I picked it up; I delivered it. I didn’t peek.”

“Remarkable restraint.” Bryant signaled a maid over. He ordered ale but largely ignored it while waiting for Julian to finish his food.

“So…” Julian pushed his plate away and propped his elbows on the table. “How do things go at the lovely Grange? Any luck?”

“The necklace isn’t exactly lying about in the open, Julian. I’ve made some progress, but it’s not like I can grab an ax and start punching holes in the walls. The manor is crawling with addlebrained girls. It’s almost impossible to find a spare second to search unless it’s in the middle of the night and even then…”

“Even then what?”

“Nothing.”

Julian cocked an eyebrow and waited. Bryant rammed his fingers through his hair. “I may have some competition.”

“Really? Would this competition be in the form of a charming young woman who likes to hide behind rain barrels and listen to other people’s conversations?”

Bryant’s lips twitched. “Perhaps.”

“Well, well. So what’s the problem? Seduce whatever information she’s got out of her and let’s get out of this country pit.”

“It’s not that easy,” Bryant said. But he couldn’t make himself meet his friend’s eyes.

“Bryant.” Julian leaned forward, every trace of amusement gone from his face. “You can’t afford to get mixed up with some hayseed.”

Bryant stiffened and Julian gave him an exasperated, though not unsympathetic look. “If she knows something, find out. Do your job and let’s get out of here. I’ve never seen Rellik so anxious to get his hands on a prize before. He’s going to be furious if you don’t deliver. Why did you agree to this job in the first place? It’s madness. The necklace may not even exist.”

“I know,” Bryant said, a sudden weariness pulling at every bone in his body. “I told him I wanted out, Julian.”

Julian’s eyebrows shot up. “I’m sure Rellik was less than pleased with that news.”

“You could say that. But like you said, he wants this necklace badly. He offered me a deal. I bring it to him, I’m free.”

“Well, that’s incentive for you.”

Bryant laughed, though the sound was devoid of any humor.

Julian stared at his friend for a moment. “Well, that’s that, then. Get the necklace and get on with your life. And do it quickly.”

“I’m hoping to speed things along.” A twinge of guilt hit Bryant but he kept talking. “I’ve offered our particular young lady a truce.”

“A truce, huh? And the terms of this truce?”

“She tells me what she knows; I tell her what I know. We find the necklace together.”

“And her reward for helping you find it?”

“We split it.”

Julian shook his head. “And what do you suppose your little friend will do when she ends up empty-handed because you promised her a share of something that isn’t yours?”

Bryant clenched his teeth against the unfamiliar feeling clawing at his gut. “I don’t know.”

A shadow moved at the edge of his vision. He stood and looked out the window, leaning out as far as he could. There was nothing.

He sat back down with a sigh, his thoughts turning back to Min. “I’ll make it up to her,” he said quietly.

Julian didn’t say anything and Bryant risked a glance at him. Julian had been his friend for as long as he could remember. There was no one else he would trust with his life or his secrets. But his growing feelings for Min were something he wasn’t comfortable facing himself, let alone sharing with Julian.

“Just be careful, Bryant. The last thing we need is to give Rellik more leverage against you.”

Bryant sighed and scrubbed his hands across his face. “I know, Julian.” He grabbed his package and stood up. “I need to get back. Hopefully I’ll make some progress tonight. I can’t take much more of this.”

Bryant caught a flash of movement out of the corner of his eye and looked back out the window.

“Why that devious little…”

“What? Who? What did you see?”

Bryant shoved the box into his pocket. “Seems our little eavesdropper is at it again.”

“Do you think she heard anything?”

“I doubt it. She couldn’t have been there long and we weren’t speaking loudly. Only one way to find out.”

Julian stood and clasped him in a quick hug. “Watch your back, brother.”

“And you yours.”

“Always,” Julian said with a wicked smile.