The Spy Master's Scheme (Glass and Steele Book 12)

by C. J. Archer

  Mr. Le Grand’s drooping eyelids lifted, finally revealing the shrewd gaze he’d been trying to hide.

  “Still no response, gentlemen?” Matt shook his head. “You can’t possibly expect to recruit someone for a position when only half of the job description is given.”

  Mr. Matthews cleared his throat. “Yes. Well. There is a little more to it, of course. We wish to use your wife to help make Britain a powerful force on the international stage. While the British Empire already spreads around the globe, there are those who wish to see us fail. Your wife can single handedly protect our interests both here and abroad. Indeed, let’s not underplay it—Mrs. Glass, you can change the course of history.”

  My heart sank further with every word until it settled in my stomach like a lump of ice. They did not want my advice. They wanted me to fly the carpet and drop bombs on their enemies.

  “I think we should go,” I said, standing. Matt rose too.

  Mr. Matthews shot to his feet. “But we haven’t begun negotiations!”

  “Nor will we.” Matt’s voice was a low snarl that sent a chill through me. “Not until you realize my wife has honor, integrity and compassion. Not until you realize that she is not for sale, and certainly not going to create spells that will destroy for you—or for anyone.” He jabbed a finger in Mr. Le Grand’s direction. “If you had done your job properly, you would have known that, but instead you’re wasting my wife’s time.”

  Matt wheeled around, grabbed my hand, and together we strode toward the door.

  “Destroy!” Mr. Matthews scoffed. “It’s not destruction when it’s one’s enemies. You will be protecting your loved ones! Mrs. Glass, you will be the nation’s savior if you do this, its heroine. If ever we are faced with an enemy invasion, you can save us.”

  I stopped as Matt opened the door and spun around to face the men. “Last time I read the newspapers, there was no mention of enemies at our shores. Indeed, our armed forces are the ones doing the invading. Good day, gentlemen. You know where to find me if you change your mind and wish me to assist with policy making only. But I will not be creating new spells, or using existing ones that can cause destruction. And, might I point out, there are no magicians capable of flying a carpet that can hold a bomb. Not even me.” It was a lie, but I held Mr. Matthews’ gaze and was proud of how convincing I sounded.

  It was Mr. Le Grand who answered, however. “I’m disappointed, Mrs. Glass. This is a department that could do with a little more honor, integrity and compassion your husband credits you with. But you’ve made your stance clear, and we will not make this offer to you again. Goodbye.”

  I strode out with Matt at my side. Mr. Le Grand’s words rang in my ears all the way home, not because I regretted my decision, but because there was an ominous ring to them that made me feel sick to my stomach.

  Chapter 14

  We called on Brockwell at Scotland Yard before heading home to apprise him of the situation. We also wanted to know if he’d suffered any consequences for confronting Sir Charles.

  He was in a meeting when we arrived, however. We waited in the foyer and watched as policemen came and went, some in uniform, others in plain clothes. Perpetrators weren’t brought in through the front door, but persons of dubious character passed us by as we sat on the chairs. Some were clearly prostitutes while others looked as though they’d yet to shake off the effects of the previous night’s imbibing. They would be witnesses and victims, and friends of the arrested.

  A woman who fell into all three categories made quite a scene as she tried to explain her predicament to the sergeant on the front desk. “Tell them!” she cried. “Tell them they arrested the wrong man!” She stabbed her finger into the counter surface, her face red with the effort of explaining. “He must be freed now!”

  The sergeant put up his hands. “Look here, calm down!”

  “I will not calm down! Not until my husband is freed. He was simply trying to defend our property from the rioters. We are the victims in this situation! To be quite frank, that man deserved the beating he got after he broke our front window.”

  “This is a matter for your local constabulary, not Scotland Yard.”

  “They told me to come here! Are you telling me my husband isn’t here? Then where is he?”

  I rose to offer my assistance to a woman who must be a magician or magician’s wife, but Matt placed a hand on my arm.

  Brockwell chose that moment to appear in the doorway leading to the corridor. He signaled for us to join him in his office. “I have just come from a meeting with the commissioner,” he said as he closed the door behind us.

  “Have you been stood down?” Matt asked.

  “Not yet. I’ve been given a warning. If I interfere in Home Office business again, I will be dismissed.”

  “But you didn’t interfere,” I pointed out. “You simply asked Sir Charles for clarification.”

  “While the confrontation with Whittaker was mentioned, it wasn’t the commissioner’s main issue. He was not pleased that I destroyed the carpet without his authority. In fact, he was livid. I tried to explain why I did it, but he refused to let me finish. Apparently my opinion doesn’t matter,” he bit off. “Only the opinion of his superiors count.”

  “They wanted that carpet,” Matt agreed with a mutter.

  “They will give up on the idea of flying it now,” I assured Brockwell. “We have just come from the office of the home secretary, as it happens. I told Mr. Matthews and Mr. Le Grand that nobody could fly the carpet with any weight on it.”

  “And they believed you?”

  “I think so.”

  Matt remained quiet.

  “Will you dine with us tonight, Inspector?” I asked. “You deserve some of Mrs. Potter’s cooking after the morning you’ve had.”

  “It’s probably best if I stay away.”

  “I suppose so. You don’t want to be seen associating with us too much or the commissioner might think you’re under our influence.”

  Brockwell cleared his throat. “It’s not that.” He picked up a stack of papers and shuffled them before slowly turning them over, perusing each one. “It’s Willie.”

  “I’m sure she’d be happy to see you,” I said carefully. “Perhaps you can even resolve the problem between you.”

  He picked up all the papers again and reshuffled them into a neat stack. “Did she tell you about it?”

  “No.”

  “Then she’s not ready to see me.” He gave me a flat smile. “Thank you for the invitation, India, but it’s best that I don’t see her for a while.”

  I felt a little deflated as we headed home. The morning had been a disappointing one. The opportunity to advise policy makers had been within my grasp, only to have it snatched away. Indeed, it wasn’t even an option, as it happened. They wanted me to do their dirty work, and dangled the carrot of advisory role in front of me as a lure. Matt had instantly seen through it, and I was glad he’d been with me.

  Chronos arrived shortly after we arrived home and stayed for a light luncheon. He ate little, however, and looked somewhat uncomfortable afterward. He shifted in the chair, stretching his torso as he pressed a hand to his upper stomach

  “Is everything all right?” I asked.

  “It’s just my indigestion again. So what happened this morning at your meeting with the home secretary?”

  “How do you know about that?” Matt asked.

  “Willie told me.”

  Willie suddenly stood and collected our plates. “No need to summon Peter. I can take these to the kitchen.”

  Matt narrowed his gaze at her but she pretended not to notice, whistling as she left the dining room. Aunt Letitia followed her out.

  I told Chronos how the meeting had unfolded. I prepared to defend my refusal to work with Mr. Matthews and Mr. Le Grand, but Chronos agreed with my decision.

  “You can’t trust these government types, India. Not where magic is concerned. They want to control magic—and therefore us—
by dictating how it’s used. If we let that happen, we are no longer a free nation of free citizens, we are pawns in their political games.”

  I blinked at him in surprise. “I always knew you were somewhat radical, but that is strong language, even for you.”

  “I’m proud of you, India. Proud of you for standing up for your rights and freedoms.”

  “That’s not why I refused to work for them. I simply don’t want to see my spells used to harm others. My magic is not a weapon. Nor am I.”

  He leaned forward and touched my cheek. His eyes shone as he smiled wistfully. “You are something of a radical too. You and I are not so different, after all.”

  My heart swelled and my eyes filled with tears. “I’m not radical. Just sensible.”

  His smile became lopsided. “Do you always have to have the last word?”

  Willie returned before I could answer, brandishing a letter for Matt. “There ain’t no return address on it.”

  He opened it and read. “It’s from Mr. Matthews. He wants to meet me at White’s for an informal conversation.”

  “Why you and not me?” I asked.

  “He probably thinks Matt influences you,” Chronos said. “He hopes to get Matt on side to convince you to change your mind. Little does he know.”

  “Idiot,” Willie agreed.

  Matt tossed the letter on the table. “I won’t go. There’s no point.”

  I wasn’t so sure. “I’d like to know what he wants. On the other hand, you have been coming and going from the house a lot lately. I’d prefer it if you stayed home.”

  “I’ll escort him to the club,” Duke said. “Willie too. We’ll make sure he’s not exposed.”

  Willie slapped Matt on the shoulder. “I can come inside with you, if you want. They know me at White’s now.”

  Chronos shook his head sadly. “Women at gentlemen’s clubs? What is the world coming to?”

  Matt agreed to meet Mr. Matthews, and I decided to call on Catherine at her shop for something to do. Woodall could deliver Matt to the club, take me to the St Martin’s Street shop then drive Chronos home. Not wanting to disturb Bristow or Peter after our lunch finished, as they would be sitting down to their own luncheon in the servants’ dining room, Matt was going to deliver the message to the coach house himself, but I insisted on doing it. Even in the mews, he was too exposed for my liking.

  I rode in the carriage as Woodall drove to the front of the house. Matt and the others must have been watching for our arrival, because the front door opened before we’d come to a complete stop. Chronos joined me in the carriage first, while Duke and Willie escorted Matt down the steps.

  A gunshot rang out.

  Before the scream had left my lips, the flash of metal in the sunlight caught my eye. It was a knife, thrown by an unseen hand.

  The movement spell sprang to mind, complete with the image of metal and the word Fabian used for it. Actual words failed me. My voice wouldn’t work. I could not speak the entire spell in time to stop the blade from striking Matt. I could only think it.

  The blade clattered onto the pavement before it struck him and stayed there.

  My body trembled as I stared at it. I did that, not by speaking the spell but simply by thinking about it. The thrill of my magical power was not what had me shaking all over, however. Something dreadful had occurred to me.

  I now knew who was trying to kill Matt.

  My heart shattered.

  Matt had dropped to the ground the moment the gunshot rang out. He signaled that he was unhurt, but Duke pressed a hand and knee to his back, not letting him rise as he scanned the vicinity.

  “Can you see who it was?” Chronos asked, squinting into the distance.

  “There!” Willie pointed toward a figure sprinting away down the street. “After him, Woodall!”

  She jumped onto the running board. Her hat flew off as the horses leapt forward but she did not try to catch it. She hung on with one hand and held her gun in the other.

  I opened the window. “Don’t kill him!”

  “He deserves to be shot, India!” She aimed the gun.

  “Put it down!”

  She lowered the gun, but not because of my order. The figure had run into a lane too narrow for our carriage to turn into at speed. By the time Woodall managed it, the shooter was nowhere in sight.

  Willie swore at the top of her lungs. “We’ll never catch him!”

  The sense of sickening dread that had filled me since my magic stopped the blade from striking Matt now threatened to overwhelm me. I gripped Willie’s arm tighter as tears sprang to my eyes.

  “Yes, we will. I know who it is. I know where he lives.”

  She turned to me, frowning. “Who?” both she and Chronos asked.

  “Fabian.”

  Chapter 15

  I had the devil of a time convincing Willie that returning home to Park Street was a better idea than driving to Fabian’s house. Fortunately Woodall knew who to take orders from and drove back the way we’d come. We met Matt and Duke at the end of the long street, much to Duke’s frustration.

  “He wouldn’t go back inside,” he grumbled as we collected them both.

  I touched Matt’s face, his shoulders, and chest, searching for blood.

  “I’m unharmed,” he said. “The bullet missed and the knife fell short.”

  I threw my arms around him and buried my face in his throat. The warmth and strong pulse of blood in his veins helped steady my nerves, but I still felt ill. Yet again, I’d come so close to losing him.

  And at the hand of someone I trusted, too.

  “Tell him he’s an idiot, India,” Duke went on. “The shooter could have doubled back—”

  “It was Charbonneau!” Willie blurted out.

  I felt Matt tense.

  Duke swore, quietly at first then again at the top of his lungs. He punched the padded door.

  “Now that we know Matt’s all right, can we tell Woodall to drive to Fabian’s?” Willie asked me.

  I drew away from Matt and nodded. I couldn’t speak, not a single word. My throat was suddenly too tight.

  Matt removed his glove and stroked his thumb over my cheek, wiping away a tear. “Are you sure?”

  I hugged myself. “Yes. I sensed his magic. It was in the metal blade. I was able to overcome it, but there was resistance.”

  Duke removed the knife from his inside jacket pocket. I touched it but did not pick it up. The magical heat was so intense I felt it through my glove.

  “What do you mean resistance?” Chronos asked. “You stopped his moving spell with your own?”

  I closed my eyes and nodded.

  Matt drew me against him and kissed the top of my head. He was alive, thank God, but he wouldn’t be if Fabian had succeeded. I could hardly fathom it. I’d worked with him; I’d let him into my home; I’d helped him and liked him.

  He’d betrayed me so completely I felt too shattered to focus.

  “You had the opportunity to speak the spell?” Chronos asked, drawing my mind back to the incident. “I didn’t hear you.”

  “I imagined the spell and pictured the blade diverting its course. I didn’t need to say the words. The impression of it was so strong, so vivid, that it worked.”

  “Amazing,” he said on a breath. “Your magic has grown powerful indeed.”

  I’d controlled Fabian’s magic with the iron supports attached to the flying carpet but that was when his magic was aligned with mine by having the same purpose. This time was different. I had worked against Fabian’s magic. My magic had overridden his—and I wasn’t working with my natural element of watches; I’d been working with his. His should have been the stronger of the two.

  “I’m not sure I could replicate it if I tried. It was an unconscious effort. I was running on instinct alone.” And terror, I might have said. Terror at losing Matt.

  He hugged me fiercely against his warm body, but with every passing second, I grew colder. Cold with anger. My unfocused
daze was replaced with an icy fury as sharp as the blade Fabian wielded.

  By the time we turned into Fabian’s street, anger filled me completely. “He needs to pay for what he’s put you through, Matt. He should be arrested. We’ll capture him then take him to Scotland Yard.”

  Matt opened the window and ordered Woodall to drive on past the house and pull over at the end of the street.

  “Why not confront him now?” I asked.

  “Because if he was on foot, he won’t have returned yet. We’ll watch for him.”

  “I thought you were going to let him go free.”

  “No,” he said ominously. “I want to speak to him as much as you do.” He grasped my hand tightly.

  I released a long breath and waited. Duke peered out one window and Willie watched from the other. I concentrated on breathing steadily, calming my nerves without dampening my anger. I wanted a clear head when I spoke to Fabian, but I wanted him to see how furious I was.

  It was telling that none of us speculated about why Fabian had done it. We all knew. His motive was so clear to us now.

  He wanted to make me a widow. He wanted to remove Matt so that he could swoop in and comfort me then marry me.

  He didn’t know me at all if he thought I’d ever marry again.

  “There he is,” Duke said. “Want me to tell Woodall to intercept him?”

  “Wait until he’s at the steps,” Matt said. “We don’t want him running off.”

  Duke gave Woodall instructions then a moment later, we rolled forward. The butler was just opening the front door as we pulled to a stop. We piled out of the carriage and stood at the base of the stairs, trapping Fabian.

  At the butler’s frown, Fabian turned around. He paled, but attempted a smile. “What a pleasant encounter. I was just out for a walk.”

  “You dropped your knife,” Matt said in that chillingly idle tone he employed when he was furious. “Duke, would you mind returning it to Mr. Charbonneau?”

  Duke tossed the knife. It clattered on the stone step mere inches from Fabian’s feet.