Page 35

A lexander’s fist had connected with the man’s jaw before any more words could be exchanged. In front of him, Alexander only saw red where the man’s face was supposed to be.

So close. He had had come so close to something terrible happening.

The man reeled backward from the force of Alexander’s punch, a myriad of curses escaping his lips as he did. He clutched his jaw, trying to steady himself.

“Y-your Grace,” he spluttered out, pathetically. If Alexander was not so furious about what was happening, he would have almost been amused by just how quickly the tone had shifted. “Y-your Grace, believe me. I did not mean harm.”

Alexander wanted to punch him again and break his teeth so that he would never speak properly again. But before anything could be done, the sound of pounding footsteps echoed through the trees behind them.

“Your Grace!” Fergus called out, appearing from the path at a sprint, Lewis right beside him.

“Restrain him,” Alexander did not once take his eyes off the man.

Without question, Fergus and Lewis lunged forward. Fergus grabbed the man’s arm, twisting it behind his back, while Lewis took the other.

“You are coming with us,” Lewis grumbled in his low voice.

“I did not mean... to…” the man writhed. Alexander took one last moment to memorize the man’s face, for he would make sure that he never roamed the streets of London as a free man again.

“Shut up,” Fergus said to him, “ye're lucky that His Grace did not bash your head in.”

“You deserve worse,” Lewis chimed in.

“Take him to the constables, Fergus” Alexander ordered his men. “Make sure he is questioned thoroughly, and that his motives are clear to us. Lewis, you stay here.”

“Yes, Your Grace,” Fergus said, already dragging the man backward. The man’s protests grew fainter. He turned then, at last, toward Penelope. She was leaning heavily against the bench, her hand pressed to her side.

Next to her, Odette stood, looking more startled than he had ever seen her before.

Apollo circled around her, barking and rubbing his coat against her legs.

Alexander’s eyes swept over both ladies, checking for any signs of injury .

His jaw tightened, and he realized he had yet to speak a word to them.

Nor had they said anything to him.

“Come,” he said finally to Odette. “We’re going home. Lewis, take Odette with you. Make sure she does not leave your sight.”

Odette did not dare protest. She simply kept her head down, and followed the bodyguard without a sound. Perhaps, she had finally learned their importance.

Penelope was still standing in the same position. Alexander willed himself to look at her, taking in her hunched appearance. She pushed herself off the bench to walk towards him, but the slight misstep she made did not go unnoticed by him.

“You come, too,” he said to her, not able to resolve the conflicting feelings brewing inside him. A part of him wanted to make sure she was fine, but another voice in his head made him red with fury at the thought that she had been involved in a situation that had put his daughter’s life in danger.

So he simply turned, caught up to Odette, and wrapped a protective arm around her shoulder. His other hand kept clenching and unclenching at his side.

He had come far too close to losing them. Yes, them. Because Odette was not the only person he cared about losing anymore.

Penelope hurried alongside him, one hand pressed to her side.

“Alexander,” she ventured quietly. “Please… would you give me a moment to explain myself?”

He halted abruptly, turning to face her.

“You broke every rule I gave you,” he said to her in a voice that he did not even recognize .

Penelope’s lips parted to explain, but he lifted his hand, silencing her before she could speak.

“Every. Single. Rule,” he continued, his eyes flashing with anger. “You left the estate without protection. You lied to my staff. You took a horse alone, and then brought my daughter into danger.”

“You do not understand the full story,” Penelope flinched, noticeably distressed by how he spoke to her. “I had no choice but to come here.”

His blood boiled at the thought.

“Of course, you had a choice,” he barked out. “Y ou only chose the wrong thing.”

“But you do not even know what happened,” Penelope argued. “I could not have left her on her own.”

“You risked her life,” Alexander’s words were sharp, and devoid of any warmth. He could see the confusion and fear in Penelope’s face. He did not like speaking to her like this, but when it came to his daughter, nothing else was more important .

“If I hadn’t gone, she would still be missing,” Penelope said in final defense of herself. Alexander did not know the specifics , only that he had found her and Odette in a place he had forbidden them to g o. That alone was enough to ignite his ire.

Alexander exhaled slowly through his nose, closing his eyes briefly. “We will discuss this later,” he said curtly, glancing back at Odette, who was still yet to say a word. “Not here.”

“Fine,” Penelope said, turning away from him. Her shoulders were taut with tension. A thought occurred to Alexander that he should reach out and relieve some of that tension, but he restrained himself immediately.

He was meant to be cross with Penelope. Softening towards her would do him no good.

He turned away, and helped Odette into the carriage.

“I shall be fine on my own,” Odette said the first thing to him all afternoon.Apollo jumped in after her, laying his head protectively across her lap.

Alexander pinched the bridge of his nose. That was the Odette he had been accustomed to dealing with before Penelope came into his life, the one that was brusque in her responses, and troublesome.

Penelope stepped up next, pausing at the threshold. She glanced back at Alexander. He said nothing, merely offered his hand to steady her as she climbed in.

Once inside, Alexander shut the door firmly and took his seat opposite them. The carriage began to jolt forward.

Penelope’s hands twisted in her lap. Her eyes flicked toward him, hesitated, then dropped again.

Alexander leaned back, resting one arm along the windowsill. Now that there was some stillness to the scene, the reality of what had almost happened hit him harshly. His knuckles whitened against the sides of the carriage.

“Alexander,” Penelope’s voice broke through the silence. She had been watching him carefully, a frown spread across her face.

“Not now,” he repeated. He did not wish to discuss anything in front of Odette.

She fell silent and did not attempt to speak again.

Perhaps for the better, he thought to himself.

Odette shifted in her corner, gazing out the opposite window, her cheek resting against Apollo’s fur.

When the carriage ride finally came to an end, Alexander was the first one out of the carriage. A line of worried servants waited for them as they arrived.

“Take Lady Odette to her chambers, make sure she is bathed and that any wounds are tended to,” he said to the staff, who listened to him at once. Then he turned to Penelope, “And escort the Duchess to my study.”

He did not wait for the orders to be acted on. Instead, he swiftly made his way over to his study. A moment later, Nancy brought in Penelope. She was leaning against the maid’s shoulder before she was sat on the sofa inside.

“That will be all,” he said to Nancy, wanting to speak with her alone. Nancy frowned, but agreed. Finally, for the first time that day, they were alone.

“Penelope,” Alexander was the first one to break the silence. His gaze dropped to her arm. “Show me,” he murmured.

“I thought you would wish for us to speak first,” she said.

“Do as I say,” he tried to keep his voice stern, but it was difficult when they were alone like this, and she had that impossibly sad look in her eyes. “Please, let me see.”

He gestured to her arm, which he had noticed since the moment he found her at the park. She had an obvious strain on it, even though she was trying her hardest not to let it show.

“It’s really nothing,” she argued as he hovered over her.

“Then it will not matter either way,” he said. Even when in discomfort, she would not let go of her stubbornness. “Now, please.”

There was a crack of vulnerability in his voice. Reluctantly, she lifted her sleeve, revealing the scrape across her upper arm. Alexander’s jaw clenched as he took her wrist carefully in his hand, angling her arm to see better.

“You are seriously hurt,” he said through gritted teeth. “When did he do this to you? I thought I arrived in time.”

Penelope tried to shrug it off as nothing.

“He shoved me to get through to Odette,” she explained, lips pressed together. “But it is only a scratch. The important thing is that Odette was not harmed in any substantial way.”

“Only a scratch,” Alexander echoed bitterly. His thumb brushed faintly across the edge of the bruise beginning to bloom beneath the skin. “It could’ve been worse had I not arrived in time.”

“But it wasn’t,” Penelope insisted in a tone that was almost pleading. She was the only thing willing his mind to stop going to dark places. “Shouldn’t we focus on that? You came in time.”

“You did not tell me before you left,” Alexander exhaled a sharp sigh. “I only found out when the footman informed me that you had left in a hurry .”

“Oh,” Penelope muttered, as though it was a new discovery for her. “So that explains how you managed to find us .”

“It does not explain anything,” Alexander felt his anger rise again. “You did not tell me, when it was your responsibility to do so. You did not take Fergus or Lewis with you, when I expressly forbid you to leave the premises without them. Now, do you understand why I am so cautious?”

For a moment, Penelope was silent. She looked at him and then away.

Alexander tilted her head towards him, and made her look him in the eyes.

“You broke my trust. After everything we spoke of last night… after I told you I needed to know you were safe… you still left. You lied to my staff. You left without protection. And you took Odette with you.”

“No, that is where you are wrong,” Penelope began to shake her head, “I understand that it must seem like I snuck her out to the park but that is hardly the truth. In reality, I had gone to find her.”

Alexander stared back at her.

“What do you mean?”

“Exactly what I am telling you,” Penelope’s tone was flustered. “I woke up to find Odette missing from the estate, and I had a sinking feeling that she had escaped to the park. I went looking for her, and found her there.”

Alexander stood up then. “If you knew that she had done something to put herself into trouble, why did you not come to me?”

“I couldn’t waste time…”

“You should have told me,” His voice thundered then. He exhaled sharply, gripping the back of his chair until his knuckles whitened. “If I had arrived a minute later… a second later…”

His throat worked around the words. “They would have taken you both.”

“I wasn’t trying to disobey you,” Penelope said softly , behind him. “I was trying to bring her home.”

Alexander’s fingers tightened around the wood. He could still see it, clear as day: her struggling beneath the man’s grip, the wild terror in Odette’s eyes, Penelope’s voice crying out. The image wouldn’t leave him.

“You could have been taken,” he murmured. “You could have been hurt worse.”

“But I wasn’t.”

“You have a gash down the side of your shoulder,” he said hoarsely. “That counts as an injury, and one that is my fault.”

Penelope’s eyebrows knitted together.

“It’s not your fault in the slightest.”

She was trying her hardest to convince him, but Alexnader knew she was misguided. In fact, this entire thing was solely his fault. If he had not made the enemies that he had, those around him would not have to live with the restrictions that they do.

“I am serious,” Penelope insisted, placing a hand on the side of his arm. “It is neither my fault, nor is it yours. It is only an unfortunate thing that happened and now we must be vigilant moving forward.”

Her optimism would brighten up his day on any normal occasion, but today, he had no room for it. The guilt had already begun to consume him, so much that he could barely stand the sight of her there.

“Go to your room, Penelope,” Alexander shook his head, his mouth tightening.

“We are not done speaking yet,” she stared at him, confused.

“Go. I cannot… I cannot talk now,” he admitted. He was far too angry, and worse, he was afraid.

Penelope hesitated, her brows drawing together, but finally nodded. “If that is what you want, then fine. But please know that I want to continue this conversation with you.”

She turned, walking slowly to the door.

“Penelope,” he stopped her right as she was at the edge of the door. She looked back at him, prompting him to continue.

“I…” he swirled the words around in his mouth for a moment. “I am happy that you are safe, but do not ever make me wonder like that again.”

Even from a distance, he could see Penelope’s eyes widening. She nodded, and then slipped out the door. Leaving him to stare at the empty spot that she had left behind for a long time .

What had happened today could never happen again. His enemies were better equipped than he had previously thought, for they were able to sniff out his weaknesses without so much as a moment's notice.

Someone knew that Odette would be at the park. No place was safe anymore.

The path forward was clear. He would have to double down even more on his protection around the house.

He had too many enemies, and he was not willing to take any risk that would put his family in danger.