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And then there was Dominic, Lord Hawthorne—the only man who had achieved making her feel like a desired woman.

At first she hadn’t taken his flirtations seriously, because he was, after all, a gifted rogue.

But he was still able to make her weak in the knees, and yearn for his passionate kisses.

He’d accomplished making her fall in love with him.

She should have done things differently with Nic.

Instead of trying to hide her feelings for him, she should have embraced them, and let him know how she’d fallen in love.

She should not have pushed him away. Instead, she wished she’d have cherished every day—every moment—he’d made her happy and complete.

If she got out of here… No, when she got out of here, she’d find him and apologize and tell him her feelings. Hopefully, he would return them.

She started out toward the stairs slower this time, and focused on her destination. I will do this! When she bumped against the bottom step, she heaved a relieved sigh. “I’m to the steps.”

“Oh, Miss Paget. Please be careful.”

At this point, Tabitha didn’t dare stand, so she bunched her gown to her knees and proceeded up the stairs in an unhurried pace.

Right away, she could tell the steps were very rickety and old.

She would definitely have splinters in her palms and knees once she was finished. But she’d worry about that later.

When she placed her weight on the next step, it creaked and wobbled. She held her breath, praying that it wouldn’t break beneath her. Then she realized if Miss Talbot’s large frame hadn’t broken the piece of wood by now, there was no way Tabitha’s small body would, either.

Continuing on her way, she crawled slower.

She discovered that hurrying only made the dizziness in her head worse.

But she was almost to the top of the stairs, so she couldn’t stop now.

As she climbed the next step, it trembled more than the first had.

Reaching her hand out, she tried to grasp something to hold onto.

Wasn’t there supposed to be a railing? But she couldn’t find it.

Blindly, she searched for something to stop her—to keep from tumbling down the steps, but her hand came up empty.

God, please help me!

*

For some reason, Frederick was also missing.

But Nic was more worried about Tabitha. Unfortunately, in order to find her, Nic needed his cousin to make an appearance and take over the role as clergyman. This way, Nic could go and do as he pleased without people thinking he was the man of God.

While the Worthington brothers and their wives settled in their rooms at the inn, Nic went out in town dressed as the clergyman—since he felt he needed to play this part.

His main purpose was to find Miss Talbot.

He didn’t know what he’d say to her when he found her, but if she did take Tabitha, he wouldn’t stop hounding the spinster until he received some answers.

His walk through town was more hurried than before, and some of the people who waved, gave him a curious stare. He could tell some of them wanted to talk, but Nic wouldn’t stop for anyone but Miss Talbot.

Ever since his conversation with Miss McFadden, he wondered why the spinster would act in such a way.

He knew about having her heart broken by a man in her younger years, but why would she think that men like David didn’t deserve to live?

Why would Miss Talbot make it her duty in life to weed out men like David and make them pay for their sins?

His gut feeling told him Miss Talbot was not right in the head.

Something sinister was afoot in this town, and he needed to find out what it was.

Because of Miss Talbot’s anger toward David Griffin, Nic wondered if she had anything to do with the young man’s death.

Was the spinster insane enough to kill? She was a tall, stout woman—whereas David was thin.

Did the woman have the strength to carry a dead body to the sandy beach and bury him by herself? Or had she enlisted help?

And did this even relate to the theft at the church?

Frederick had remembered seeing someone who was thin twist their ankle as the suspect fled the scene of robbery.

Frederick also recalled seeing a larger man who’d sprinted out the back door first. By these descriptions, Nic wondered if it was Miss Talbot and David.

After all, when the doctor had examined the young man’s body, he’d mentioned a broken ankle.

What were the odds Miss Talbot was dressed as a man?

But more importantly, why was she doing this? What were her reasons?

These questions and more would be answered if he could find the blasted woman!

The house she shared with her widowed sister was finally within view. He quickened his step until he stood in front of the door. He knocked hard, and then grimaced. Perhaps he shouldn’t have pounded on the door with so much force.

The door was answered by Mrs. Smythe. When she looked at Nic, her eyes widened.

“Oh, Mr. Woodland. What a wonderful surprise to have you visit.”

He smiled the best he could under these circumstances. “I hope you don’t mind me coming unannounced. I’m actually looking for your sister.”

She gaped for a few awkward moments. “Mildred? You wish to see her?”

“Yes, of course. Is something wrong with that?”

“Of course not, Mr. Woodland. In fact, I’m very happy that you would want to see my sister. However, she’s not here right now, and that upsets me greatly.”

He arched an eyebrow. “You’re upset that she’s not here? Why, may I ask?”

She chuckled. “Because after all these years a man comes calling on her, and she’s not here to receive him.”

Oh, for goodness sake! She thought Nic—or the clergyman—wanted to court the spinster? Well, he supposed miracles did happen, but it was still quite humorous. Unfortunately, now was not the time to laugh. “By chance, do you know where she’s at?”

“I do not. My sister enjoys walking along the beach and finding seashells. Other than that, I cannot possibly imagine where else she’d be.”

“I thank you, Mrs. Smythe. I shall go down by the beach to look for her.” He turned to leave, but the older woman grabbed his arm, stopping him. He peered into her mischievous eyes.

“Mr. Woodland, if I might suggest something.” She grinned. “I think you should find some daisies to take with you. She loves daisies.”

He gritted his teeth and counted to ten under his breath. It wasn’t wise for Dominic Lawrence’s true nature to come out right now, but Nic’s impatience was having a hard time staying hidden. “Indeed, that’s a good suggestion. Thank you.”

When Mrs. Smythe released his arm, he breathed a sigh of relief and hurried away from the house.

He turned in the direction that would lead him toward the beach, but something halted his progress.

It was almost like an invisible force moved in front of him, keeping him from going any further. How strange…

Closing his eyes, he rubbed his forehead and took deep breaths.

The afternoon sun shone warm upon him, and he realized summer would be here soon.

The birds squawked as they flew by. In the distance, the splashing of waves hitting the rocks was heard.

Closer to town, children played and laughed.

But there was another sound…something that he didn’t normally hear, and it was coming from behind Mrs. Smythe’s house.

He turned his head and peeked in that direction.

There was nothing behind the house except for the yard.

And the only building behind that was up on a hill.

It was the old abandoned house where he’d met Tabitha that one afternoon.

That was the first time he’d heard her jovial laugh.

The musical sound was still in his memory, and he could hear it now.

But that wasn’t the sound he heard a moment ago. It was more like a loud…cry. Almost as if someone were pleading for help. How odd.

Shrugging off the feeling, he turned back toward the ocean and took another step, but once again, the same sensation washed over him, holding him from going any farther. What in the blazes was wrong?

Once more, something tugged on his conscience and made him look toward the abandoned house up on the hill.

An eerie sense of remembrance came over him, and for some reason, he pictured him and Tabitha exploring the inside of that house.

It was empty, which he had found strange at the time, but there were unexplained footsteps in the corner of the room that had disturbed him more.

Usually, he allowed his feelings to guide him in the direction he needed to go, and right now, his feelings told him to look inside the house again.

The more he studied the place, the stronger the urge became.

He couldn’t ignore it, yet he wanted to because searching for Miss Talbot was top priority—and finding Tabitha.

Oh, bugger! He grumbled and sprinted toward the house on the hill, praying that he’d find something important. He didn’t want to waste any time on something useless. And right now, he feared going to the abandoned house would indeed take him on a goose-chase.