An Unsinkable Love(74)
about that too."
The memory of the Titanic officer who'd been shot, and the two bludgeoned men he'd found nearby—one a steward, the other a crony of Eldon's—flashed in Malcolm's mind. Then there was Carlisle. Fear for Bree and fury at Eldon's lethal bent sent adrenaline roiling though his veins. Malcolm reached for the door.
Fred put his hand on Malcolm's arm. "It's locked. I already checked."
He tested the latch anyway. Through a narrow gap between the doors, he saw a chain and padlock. He walked over to the corner and peered around—another barred window. As he turned back, his jacket snagged on a piece of 249
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metal. It was one of three heavy iron hinges pinning the door at the corner of the building.
Malcolm smiled grimly. He jogged silently back to the car and retrieved the custom-made toolbox from under the passenger seat. Back at the coach house, with Fred breathing nasally beside him, he used a big screwdriver to lever the pin out of the lower two hinges. He couldn't reach the topmost one, but when he tugged the doors below the metal flanges, he found the old wood rotted at the bottom. The two of them were able to pull the lower edge of the door away from the building enough to crawl through.
Inside the dark carriage house, they moved carefully around the car, avoiding trash strewn about the floor.
Scrapes, thuds and muttered curses echoed from upstairs. It was hard to hold back, but Malcolm worried he might cause Bree more injury if he ran up the stairs without knowing what he would be dealing with. The first tread of the stairs creaked loudly, and a yelp from upstairs was abruptly cut off. Malcolm gave up on caution and bolted up the rickety flight. He burst through the door at the top of the stairs—and skidded to a halt.
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Chapter 40
Elizabeth was quite peeved. It was time for the big announcement, and neither Bree nor Malcolm was anywhere to be found. Her son had insisted the engagement announcement be a big surprise, complete with toasts and dancing. It wasn't like him to be so cavalier about such a carefully planned schedule. She certainly didn't begrudge the pair time together, but their guests were waiting and, once married, Malcolm and Bree had a whole lifetime ahead of them. Thinking they might have stolen into the garden, Elizabeth stepped off the terrace and took the wide graveled path. She investigated a few dark niches most often occupied, but they were empty. The night air was cool and the guests had retreated to the house. She was about to do the same when she heard rustling and muttering on the other side of the shrubbery. With a sigh of relief, she stepped around and was surprised to find Melody sitting by herself, sniffling and dabbing at her nose with a hanky.
"Whatever are you doing out here, Melody? It's gotten quite cool. You'll catch your death." The girl didn't answer, just sniveled louder. Out of patience, the older woman said,
"Have you seen Malcolm and Bree?"
Elizabeth was shocked when Melody burst into loud sobs and covered her face with her hands. She sat on the stone bench beside the blonde. "What is it, dear? Are you ill? Shall I call your mother?"
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Through hiccupping sobs, Melody managed to say, "No, Elizabeth. I'm all right. Just incredibly stupid and naïve. And embarrassed. Do you think Malcolm will ever forgive me?"
"Malcolm forgive you? Whatever for?" Elizabeth asked, mystified.
Melody raised her head, dabbed at red, swollen eyes, and blew her noise loudly. "I've been a fool. Eldon told me Malcolm didn't want Bridget—he wanted me—and I believed him. I acted, well..." The young woman's face darkened in the faint light. "I acted very badly."
"Wait. You said Eldon told you Malcolm wasn't going to marry Bridget? When was that?"
"This afternoon. He stopped by the house and said if I got Malcolm alone, I could get him back."
"When did you speak with Malcolm?" Elizabeth's impatience returned. She sensed something was very wrong, especially if Eldon was involved.
"A bit ago. He was very angry with me." Melody began to sob again.
Elizabeth said firmly, "That's enough. Dry your face and let's go inside. I need to find Eldon and Malcolm and Bridget and get to the bottom of this." She handed Melody another handkerchief and pulled her to her feet.