“Aye, let the Weslorians have at him,” one of the men had said behind him. “They’ll make quick work of him.”

Leo had swallowed down a lump. That, then, he surmised, was the end of it. What could he possibly do without Lysander to advise him?

But that was not the end of it.

When the ship arrived in London in the middle of the day, the docks were teeming. The crew of his ship was eager to discharge their duties and have their time on shore. As Leo watched men move crates and trunks and God knew what all, a sailor inadvertently bumped into him, touching his hand. Startled, Leo turned and realized that the sailor was slipping a paper into his hand.

“What is this?” Leo asked.

“From Lysander,” the sailor said. “Find one, find them all. Bring them home, and let the dust settle where it may.”

“Pardon?” Leo looked up, confused—but the man had disappeared into the throng of working men.

Leo unfolded the page. Listed were five feminine names. Those names—and the faces he imagined to go with them—were the reason he couldn’t stop his attempts, bungled as they may be, to speak to Ann Marble. She had to know something.

His first instinct had been to send the names to Bas with a note explaining what little he knew. But Leo had quickly discarded that idea. Bas was honeymooning. Moreover, Bas had carried the mantle of greater responsibility between the two of them all their lives. He’d worked to make things better in Alucia while Leo had worked to avoid any responsibility. Bas had earned the reputation of being smart and capable, and Leo had earned the reputation of being a rogue, a profligate. And this...this horrible business was happening in England, right under his nose.

Maybe, after living with such grace and privilege, it was time he did something for someone else.

But he wasn’t exactly versed in the practical ways of the world. There was, and had always been, someone close by to do everything he needed. How he might even attempt to find these women was a mystery to him. And what if he did find them? Then what? Was he to command them into his carriage and bring them...where? Here? To this hotel?

He was no hero. If he allowed himself to think too much about it, Leo could drown in a sea of self-doubt. And yet, at some point, it had occurred to him that Lysander was right—he was uniquely qualified to do something about this, precisely because he was a useless prince. His title alone gave him entry into practically any house in London that he liked. His title alone attracted the attention of women, and his title alone had afforded him many opportunities to practice his charms. If there was a man who could walk into the houses where these women were kept, it was him. If there was a man who could convince these women to leave with him, to come forward, to speak, it wasn’t the hulking Lysander. It was him.

All he had to do was find Ann Marble. Isn’t that why Lysander had mentioned her? Leo wished he could remember precisely what he’d said, but he had to believe that if he found Ann Marble, he could find these women. Find one, find them all.

Unfortunately, after his visit to Lord Hill, he’d discovered that Ann Marble was no longer in Lord Russell’s employ, either. No. She was now cleaning rooms in the home of Lord Beckett Hawke.

What a small world it was.


A LIGHT RAIN had begun to fall when Leo reached the Upper Brook Street mansion where Hawke and his sister resided most of the year. Hawke had said once that in the unbearable months of summer they decamped to a family house in the Cotswolds. Leo was flanked by Kadro and Artur as he jogged up to the door. Kadro reached forward and rapped on the door. Several moments passed before the door swung open and Hawke filled the frame. He was still wearing his dressing gown. Dark shadows accentuated his green eyes, and his darkly golden hair appeared to be standing on end. Leo’s first instinct was that Lady Caroline had died.

But then Hawke grinned and said jovially, “Highness! You’ve come just in time. The fever broke last night.”

“That is welcome news indeed, friend.”

Hawke threw his arm around Leo’s shoulders and hauled him inside. “Come in, come in, all of you. No need to guard him here, eh, lads? We’ll have ale. No! Better yet, we’ll have gin. A toast to my sister’s health. Garrett! Where are you, Garrett?” he bellowed, calling his butler.

Kadro and Artur did not move from their post at the door. Hawke didn’t seem to notice. He let go Leo and padded into the salon, barefoot, his silk dressing gown billowing out behind him. “Garrett, come here!”

Leo glanced back at his guards and, with a tip of his chin, sent them outside to wait, then followed Hawke into his study. The place was disastrously cluttered. Books had been tossed onto the settee; more of them, once stacked near the hearth, had toppled over. Morning papers were stacked haphazardly on a table. There was a pile of what looked like clothing, but Leo wasn’t entirely certain. On the desk, dishes from a previous meal. It appeared as if Beckett Hawke was living in this room.

Garrett entered and bowed, then offered to take the flowers and whisky from Leo.

“What good news it is to hear your sister has recovered,” Leo said.

“She still drifts in and out of sleep. It’s to be expected. She’s hardly eaten a thing,” Hawke said. He made his way to the sideboard, waving off Garrett, who juggled the flowers and the whisky in his hands. Hawke uncorked a bottle and poured gin into two glasses.

“Has she spoken yet?” Leo asked.

Hawke looked at Leo and grinned. “Oh, but she has. She accused me of causing her fever by hovering so close to her side and sent me from her room.” He laughed. “That is a very good sign. If she is cross with me, she is feeling herself again. Is that not so, Garrett?”

“Yes, milord.”

“And the doctor? What has he said of her health?”

“The doctor, the doctor,” Hawke said with a shake of his head. “He says the same thing he’s said all along. He presses his horn to her chest and says she has a heartbeat as dependable as a drummer boy, that there is nothing to fear.” He signaled his opinion of that by flicking his wrist dismissively. “She nearly died, I tell you. Had we not opened the windows to clear her room of bad air, and Mrs. Green had not made a poultice for her feet to draw the fever out, she would have certainly died.”

“Then God’s grace smiles on you today, my friend, for she did not,” Leo reminded him.

“No, she didn’t,” Hawke agreed, and paused to ponder that. He nodded and looked at Leo. “You’ve convinced me.”

“I’ve what?”

“Convinced me that her health has returned to her.”

“I have?” Leo asked, confused.

“I am to the club! You’ll wait, won’t you, while I tidy up a bit? I insist you accompany me and tell me what you’ve been about.” He picked up his glass and downed the gin. “I suspect you’ve been a naughty boy, Your Highness.”

Leo smiled thinly. “I would be honored if you would call me Leo when you mean to chastise me.”

Hawke laughed. “Then you must call me Beck. Not Beckett—sounds too much like bucket, doesn’t it? Garrett, have hot water brought to my rooms. And do something with those,” he said, gesturing to the most excellent whisky and the flowers. “Caro will like the flowers to brighten her room. Oh, yes, and see to it that His Royal Highness is kept comfortable until I return.”

“Aye, milord.”

“Do make yourself comfortable, Highness,” Hawke—or Beck—said as he swept out of the room behind Garrett.

Leo didn’t know how he’d make himself comfortable in a room as chaotic as this one. And really, what Leo wanted to do was sneak out of here and find Miss Marble. He had a feeling that once Lady Caroline was fully recovered, his access to this house and the servants would be abruptly curtailed.

He moved closer to the door, so that he could see into the hallway. He was standing in front of a painting of a fox hunt. The rider on a black steed, bent over the horse’s neck, was Beckett Hawke. In the distance was a stately home that Leo supposed was their country seat. He was studying the dogs racing alongside the idealized version of Beck when he heard the butler in the hallway just outside the door.

“Susan? Susan!”

Leo leaned forward slightly, listening.

“What have you got there?”

“Linens, Mr. Garrett. We’ve changed her bed linens.”

“Fetch Ann. Have her take these flowers to Lady Caroline, compliments of His Royal Highness Prince Leopold.”

Leo winced. Lady Caroline would read far too much into that, he was certain.

“I beg your pardon, Mr. Garrett, but Ann has gone to fetch her soup.”

Leo’s ears pricked up.

“Then you take them,” Garrett said. “I must attend his lordship.”

There was a lot of movement, a rustling of fabric, a small sound of exasperation. But then Leo heard Garrett’s sure footfall move away. An idea suddenly came to him, and he half leaped to the door before Susan could get away. He poked his head around the corner of the frame to see the maid standing where Garrett had left her, a pile of bed linens in one arm and his flowers in the other hand. When she saw him, her eyes widened, and she glanced nervously down the corridor. She looked as if she wanted to flee.

“May I be of service?” He smiled his most charming smile.

The maid blinked. “I, ah... I can...this is not...” she stammered.

Leo stepped out of the salon. “Susan...allow me to be of service,” he said smoothly.

CHAPTER TEN


A stalwart patron of the opera has recently taken to riding on Rotten Row in the evenings. It is said she will not miss the appointment, for her husband’s gift of proper riding lessons has come with the services of an instructor who is not only a competent rider, he has eyes the color of a summer sky. Our lady does prefer summer to other seasons.