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Wearing Wesley’s robe did help. Sebastian made it through the night, not waking until the gray sunlight of winter dawn filled his room, the green robe still pulled tight and cozy around him.

He touched the monogram on the chest. Wesley was never getting this back.

Sebastian would have a new one made for him, but this one was his now, and Wesley could just tell himself that no good deed goes unpunished .

In the pale light, Sebastian could see his tattoo, the black ink partially covered by the robe’s thick cuff.

Does it bother you, that he lost his color? Wesley had asked.

No. I like him like this , Sebastian had said.

Staring at the lion now, against the green of the robe Wesley had given him, Sebastian realized that wasn’t quite the truth.

He loved the lion like this.

What a gift he was, a scar from the battle that had saved someone as courageous and kind as Wesley. Sebastian was going to ask Isabel for another tattoo, in just the black ink, to match.

He dressed and headed down the stairs. A footman was standing at the bottom of the staircase, and deferentially led Sebastian to the morning room. He could hear Wesley’s voice as they approached.

“…simply makes sense to have him stay here,” Wesley was saying, “if you think Lady Nora wouldn’t mind.”

“I think she’d be delighted,” Lord Valemount’s voice boomed back. “And you think he’ll agree?”

“I feel certain of it,” Wesley said, head turning as Sebastian entered.

“But here’s Don Sebastian himself, and we can ask.

” He tilted his head. “The other women were planning an outing to the village today, but it would seem Lady Nora isn’t feeling well.

I suggested to the duke that perhaps you would be willing to skip the morning’s hunt and remain at the manor in case she needs anything. ”

“Oh.” Sebastian tried to school his face into an expression of surprise, like he wasn’t expecting an excuse for him to stay behind. “Should we call for her doctor?” he said pointedly. “We met Dr. Wright aboard the Gaston with Lady Nora.”

“Oh, no need for Dr. Wright, I shouldn’t think,” Valemount said, a little too quickly. “He’s probably making rounds in the village. If you’ll stay behind, Don Sebastian, I’m sure Nora would appreciate it.”

Wesley and Sebastian exchanged a meaningful look. “Yes, of course,” Sebastian said. “I probably made it obvious last night that I am not much of the hunter myself.”

“To say the least,” Sir Reginald said, exchanging a smirk with another hunter.

After breakfast, the entrance hall was a flurry of men in scarlet coats and women dressed for town arranging their days.

In the chaos of the crowd, Sebastian snuck away to the ground-floor study near the ballroom, and sure enough, there was a candlestick phone on the desk.

He kept an eye on the doorway and an ear attuned for footsteps as he asked the operator to put him through to Arthur and Rory’s inn.

“I am staying behind from the hunt,” Sebastian said quietly, when Arthur got on the line. “They are all leaving now.”

“We’ll head your way then,” Arthur said. “The drive to Valemount Hall is about three miles across the estate from the road, you said? We’ll find a place to stash the car and walk the last bit.”

“You can avoid the hunt?” Sebastian said.

“Our resident animal lover might not know this,” Arthur said, in a nice tone, “but fox hunts are loud . The dogs bay, the men shoot at birds, some asshole usually plays a trumpet—it’s an entire circus.

We should be able to keep our distance and find another path through the moor, but if we are caught, we’ll just pretend we were exploring the park and accidentally crossed onto the property.

Wesley is smart enough to play along. Where should we meet you? ”

“There is a guest house on the hill near the manor.” Sebastian explained what had happened the night before. “I have the glove for Rory to scry, but maybe we should go back to the guest house too and search some more. Or I can do that before you get here—”

“Christ, no, wait for us,” Arthur said sharply.

“If you go anywhere by yourself and anything happens to you, Wesley will want Rory and I drawn and quartered, and I’m not sure if being a viscount actually gives him the authority to do that in England but let’s not find out.

Is there anywhere less visible than a guest house on top of a hill? ”

Sebastian pursed his lips. “The stables and kennels should be empty while the hunt is out, yes? Maybe just a horse or two left behind.”

“Perfect,” Arthur said. “We should be able to find the stables easily enough. Meet us there.”

After hanging up the phone, Sebastian found the housekeeper and asked after Nora.

“She says she’s quite ill, I’m afraid,” the housekeeper said. “Refuses to leave her rooms or have anyone come in.”

“I’m so sorry to hear that,” Sebastian said, and meant it. “Are you sure you don’t want me to call her doctor?”

“You’re sweet to offer,” the housekeeper said, “but Lady Nora doesn’t want to see Dr. Hughes either.”

“I thought her doctor’s name was Dr. Wright,” Sebastian said.

“Wright?” The housekeeper frowned. “Dr. Hughes has always been the family doctor. I’ve never met a Dr. Wright.”

“I see,” Sebastian said slowly. “I must have misheard.”

He went back into the entrance hall, which was very quiet now with only a pair of maids polishing the silver. He slipped past them, then ducked down a different hall by the dining room for a quick detour through the kitchen, where a young woman was slicing loaves of bread.

“Excuse me,” Sebastian said politely. “But I was hoping you might have some extra carrots or oats?”

She smiled, dusting flour off her hands. “Visiting the horses, eh? As long as you’re not looking for meat, I think I can find you something.”

“What happened to the meat?” Sebastian asked, as she walked through an archway.

Her voice drifted out of the larder. “Your guess is as good as mine. Seems to have disappeared.” She emerged a moment later with three carrots and a turnip. “If I may be so bold, the next time your friend Lord Fine can’t sleep, warm milk is more help than brandy.”

“Oh. I, um, I’ll let him know.” Sebastian could not fathom Wesley ever agreeing to drink warm milk, but he also hadn’t realized he’d been awake in the middle of the night. He’d have to ask Wesley about it.

From the kitchen, he found the garden door and stepped outside, heading west to the stables. As he neared the low, long building, the scent of hay and horse floated on the air. He cautiously approached, a story ready on his tongue about wanting to see the animals.

“Sebastian.”

He heard his name first, then saw Rory and Arthur coming around the side of the building. The elderly dappled mare Sebastian had met before poked her head over a half door, watching them with interest.

Sebastian let out a breath and hurried down the building’s side. “Stables appear empty, but who knows for how long,” Arthur said, as the three of them met in front of the mare, who started sniffing interestedly at Sebastian’s hair.

“I’ll keep a lookout,” Arthur went on, “while Rory scries and—why do you have a carrot?”

Sebastian held it in place as the mare ate it straight from his hand. “I got it from the kitchen before I came down.”

“ Before you came down?” Arthur repeated. “You were on your way to help Rory and I infiltrate a duke’s estate and decided to stop for carrots first?”

Sebastian ran a hand over the back of the mare’s neck, stroking her straw-colored mane. “She didn’t get to go out with the others. Shouldn’t she at least get a snack?”

Arthur raised an eyebrow. “Out of pure morbid curiosity, what does Wesley have to say about your priorities?”

“Yeah,” said Rory. “Where’s my snack?”

Arthur pinched the bridge of his nose. “That wasn’t—never mind. You did also bring something for Rory to scry?”

Sebastian fed the mare the end of the carrot, as he pulled the glove from his overcoat pocket. “This,” he said, holding it out to Rory. “I took it from a bedroom in the guest house last night.”

Rory took the glove, frowning. “No fingertips,” he said, exchanging a meaningful look with Arthur.

“Tell me again about your encounter with Wesley’s cousin,” Arthur said, as Rory held the glove and closed his eyes. “Don’t you think it’s odd that he followed you?”

“Yes,” Sebastian said. “But he came right out and told me that is what he’d done. He was not acting like a man who thought he had something to hide.”

“I suppose shame isn’t a concept Wesley puts much stock in either.” Arthur gently touched Rory’s shoulder. “Don’t you go too deep into history there.”

“Don’t worry; I can’t.” Rory opened his eyes with a frustrated huff. “I can’t see the past of this thing either. What the hell is going on with these Valemounts and doctors that I can’t see history?”

“I don’t know, but it has to be something magical,” Sebastian said. “And we think there’s a chance Lord Valemount is Dr. Wright.”

He explained Valemount’s absence the day before, Wesley’s train of thought, and the housekeeper’s confusion. Rory let out a low whistle. “But why would the duke have bothered with a disguise onboard the ship?”

“If Valemount was masterminding the destruction of magic by combining two relics, we did foil his plot,” Arthur pointed out. “Perhaps Valemount came to find out what happened to Langford, Alasdair, and Sir Ellery, but he didn’t want anyone to know he’d been in New York.”

“Especially if he murdered Alasdair while he was there,” Sebastian said grimly. “But surely Lady Nora would have known on the ship that her doctor was really her uncle? I don’t think she knows about magic, and even if she did, I don’t want to believe she would be involved in murder.”

“Maybe she’s keeping his secret for other reasons.” Rory pursed his lips. “You said Valemount was gone all day yesterday. What if he was moving Hyde again?”