All About Seduction(130)

Dear heavens, they were arresting Mr. Broadhurst.

Robert folded back into a corner, his head down. Her mother and sisters stood on the stairs hanging onto one another, their blue eyes big and round in their pretty faces. Caroline had the strongest urge to block Jack’s view of them. But he was glowering at Robert, not ogling her beautiful sisters.

“You left me,” said Jack.

Robert lifted a shoulder. “I had to make certain his affairs were in order.”

Caroline had the oddest sensation the room was tilting. Apparently, Mr. Broadhurst felt it too, because he collapsed, and no amount of shaking by the men roused him.

Then blackness closed in from the edges of her vision, until there was just a pinprick of light, then nothing.

The acrid smell made Caroline retch. She pushed away the hand holding a vile substance under her nose.

“Give her room to breathe,” said Jack.

She opened her eyes to find her sisters and mother leaning over her. She scanned until she found Jack behind them. Pushing to sit up, she realized she was on a sofa in the library instead of in the hall.

“Wh-What happened?”

“I’m afraid I’ve some bad news.” Her mother patted her hand. “Your husband has passed away.”

That wasn’t bad news, but Caroline focused on Jack’s face. His lips tightened. Why would Mr. Broadhurst’s death make him angry?

“I’m afraid the shock of being arrested must have made his heart give out,” said her mother. “We’ve sent for the doctor, but he is no longer breathing. I’m very sorry, but if you’re feeling better, I need to see to the men from Scotland Yard. And, well, make arrangements for the body.” She let her daughter’s hand drop. Grimacing, she looked directly at Jack. Then she rose to full height and commanded imperiously, “Come on, girls, let’s give your sister a bit of privacy.”

Amy leaned close and whispered in her ear. “I’ve never seen a man move so fast. Then he carried you in here, even though Robert said he shouldn’t.”

As her sisters filed out, Jack’s eyes never left hers. The door clicked behind them.

“Jack,” she sighed. Had he really carried her? She looked down at his leg. “Did you fix your brace?”

He lifted his trouser leg and showed her the rubber sleeve attached to the metal bars and leather straps. “I can almost run with it. Still a few kinks, but I haven’t had time to work on it.”

She smiled. “Where have you been? I’ve been so worried.”

“If you had made it into the mill office, my brother would have given you my letter. He tried to bring it here, but they wouldn’t let him see you. He even brought Beth, thinking she might be allowed in, but I told him to put it directly in your hands only.”

Caroline put her fingers to the fading bruise. “Mr. Broadhurst didn’t want anyone to see my bruise.”

“Might have been difficult to explain why he attacked his pregnant wife.” Jack pulled his hands behind his back. “I cabled your brother you were in danger, and then wrote him what I knew. Apparently, your father had grown suspicious after your marriage and had the direction of some servants who were working here when Mr. Broadhurst’s second wife died. While they made statements about their suspicions, there wasn’t enough proof of her murder.

“But after your brother and I compared notes, and you told me about the highway man’s description, I remembered a man who used to be a dray driver. The man said he came into some money and quit working, but everyone suspected he still did odd jobs for Mr. Broadhurst. I told Scotland Yard and was able to take them to the man. Lord Langley identified him and his coat. Once the man knew he was to hang, he sang like a canary about working for Broadhurst.”

Jack’s mouth flattened. “We were coming to arrest him, but your brother decided to rush ahead. I guess he thought it best to make sure there had been no further changes to the will. Said Broadhurst needed to take his medicine.”

Her mind spun as she processed the information. She was a widow. Her husband had been arrested for Mr. Whitton’s murder and possibly his late wife’s. “His medicine,” she repeated dully. The foxglove the doctor had warned her about. Robert had been given the warning too. “Robert was probably giving him a chance to keep his name from being dragged through the mud.”

“Undoubtedly,” said Jack dryly.

When he had a chance to think about it, Jack would realize the scandal would have touched his child too, if a trial took place. She stared at him standing out of reach. She patted the sofa beside her. “Will you come sit down?”