Page 72 of A Whisper and a Curse

“Thank you, Mr. Grenville,” Tilda said. “You’ve been very helpful.”

Removing his glove, Hadrian offered his hand to the man. Tilda didn’t think it was necessary to see Grenville’s memories, but she wouldn’t try to stop him.

Grenville clasped Hadrian’s hand. A moment passed, and Tilda observed the slight flare of Hadrian’s nostrils. They said goodbye and took their leave.

“Hopefully, we can hail a hack on the High Street,” Hadrian said as they walked away from Grenville’s house.

“What did you see?” Tilda asked.

“Mallory. Rather, Vale.” Hadrian was walking very quickly.

“Will you slow down?”

Hadrian paused. “My apologies.” He rubbed his temple, then offered her his arm. “I’m feeling slightly overwhelmed to learn there is, in fact, someone else like me.”

“Is it relieving?” Tilda said softly.

Hadrian’s eyes darkened. “It’s maddening. Mallory is despicable.”

They continued walking toward the High Street. Tilda felt the tension in his arm. “I know it bothers you that he uses his power to cheat people.”

“Doesn’t it frustrate you as well?”

“It does. But what are we to do about it? We may believe what Grenville told us, but who else will?”

Hadrian stopped again. “Now you understand how I feel at every turn.”

“Of course I understand,” she said reassuringly, meeting his gaze. “I truly do.”

They started walking once more. At length, Hadrian said, “I’d thought we would question Captain Vale about why he leased the house in Belgravia, but now that we know he is Lysander Mallory’s father and that Mallory possesses the same ability I do, the purpose for that interview has changed entirely.”

“It’s possible the captain isn’t aware of his son’s gift, just as your mother isn’t aware of yours.”

Hadrian nodded, his brow creased. “For that reason, I’m not sure if I want to ask the captain about it.”

“Hopefully, the opportunity to discuss the matter will arise,” Tilda said with a confidence she didn’t entirely feel.

Hadrian smiled at her, and Tilda was glad to see him relax a bit. “If anyone can adeptly turn a conversation to their advantage, it is you.”

CHAPTER 15

They were not able to find a hack. Returning to the alehouse they’d visited, Hadrian paid someone to take them to Captain Vale’s house and to wait there for them whilst they conducted their interview. Unfortunately, it was a small gig which required the three of them to press in tightly together whilst a fine drizzle fell.

Finally, they were seated together. And not just on the same bench, but pressed tightly enough that they were touching. It was just their arms and the barest hint of their thighs. Rather, it was their clothing that touched, but it was intimate enough for Hadrian to wonder if Tilda was discomfited.

He was not.

On the contrary, he enjoyed being this close to her. She eased the tumult of thoughts spinning in his mind since learning that Mallory indeed shared the same ability to experience others’ memories as Hadrian. He felt much better, as if Tilda’s presence beside him was a balm.

The driver sat on Hadrian’s other side, and he smelled of ale and earth. Thankfully, Tilda’s floral scent was a welcome diversion. Because of the driver’s presence, they didn’t discusswhat they’d just learned, nor what they planned to ask Captain Vale.

His residence was a large manor house that Hadrian estimated to have been constructed perhaps eighty years earlier. He wondered how the man had come to be in possession of such an estate, since he’d been a military officer. Perhaps he was a second—or even third—son and had inherited it.

“I’m curious why Thaddeus Vale has taken up a career as a spiritualist when he could stand to inherit this,” Tilda mused after they departed the gig, somewhat echoing Hadrian’s line of thought.

“I was thinking something similar. I wondered how Captain Vale had come to inherit this impressive pile whilst also serving in the military and decided he was likely a second or third son. Perhaps Thaddeus is not his firstborn and will not inherit.”

“We shall soon find out,” Tilda said as they reached the door.