Jen Turano - [Ladies of Distinction 02]

by A Most Peculiar Circumstance

  These ladies were going to be the death of him.

  Theodore glanced over his shoulder at the officer. “Are you certain that spanking isn’t allowed?”

  The officer laughed, but then smothered another one with his hand when the ladies began grumbling.

  Theodore’s lips twitched, yet he sobered when he glanced at Agatha and found her nodding at him, as if she believed he should be in full agreement with her plan. “Let me be perfectly clear, Agatha. Your involvement in this matter is now at an end, and just to refresh your memory, I don’t need any assistance, not from you or any of your friends.”

  “I don’t remember offering you my assistance,” Agatha snapped.

  Theodore blew out a breath. How had it come to this?

  The world had once been a relatively pleasant place to live, back in the days when men and women knew and kept to their respective roles.

  Now everything was upside down, and he didn’t care for it at all, not one little bit.

  He wanted things to go back to the way they’d been before, when life was easy and women weren’t running amok, when men were taking care of business.

  His gaze traveled over the collection of ladies, taking in Katherine’s outlandish pink gown and black wig, and then moved over the ladies of the night, all of whom were dressed in shabby outfits. He narrowed his eyes as he noticed each outfit seemed to be individualized, as if each lady had taken pains to retain a certain amount of self. He shifted his attention to Arabella and felt something strange settle in his stomach. She was only standing a few feet away from him, but for some reason—perhaps because she wasn’t looking at him—she seemed unapproachable, and that . . . disturbed him. He took a step forward, unable to help but notice that even though her gown dwarfed her curves and her white wig was askew, she was beautiful. He tore his gaze away from her, unwilling to dwell on her beauty, wanting instead to dwell on how furious he still was with her.

  He conjured up a smile as he returned his attention to Agatha, who was now tapping her foot against the floor and appeared to be grinding her teeth. “Perhaps you and I could agree to compromise?”

  Agatha stopped grinding her teeth. “I’m listening.”

  “From what I can surmise, there’s probably a killer or, at the very least, a kidnapper on the loose. You cannot argue the point that it’s safe for you to continue investigating this matter, so here’s what I’m going to suggest. I will pick up where you left off and I’ll share everything I discover with you.”

  “You won’t let me go with you?”

  “No, you can’t go with me, and if you don’t agree to my terms, I’m going to tell your mother what you’ve been up to, and both of us know how that will work out for you.”

  “You’re being completely unreasonable,” Agatha snapped.

  “I’m never unreasonable.”

  Katherine let out a loud snort, rose from the bench, and glided up to the front of the cell, shaking her head as she came to a stop. “What about the time I chopped off all the heads of your toy soldiers?”

  “What?”

  “Come now, surely you remember? You’d made me angry, and to get back at you, I took a knife and lopped off all their heads.”

  “You’re bringing that up now?”

  Katherine sent him a beautiful smile. “You stated you’re never unreasonable, and yet you were completely unreasonable when you discovered your soldiers had taken leave of their heads. I can still remember your fit of hysterics.”

  “I was not hysterical, and just to clarify, not only did you chop off their heads, you stomped on them and broke their bodies into little pieces.”

  “Ah, so you do remember.”

  “This is a ridiculous conversation and certainly does not prove your point. I was a child when that happened, and I can assure you, I would not be the slightest bit concerned if you were to chop the heads off of toy soldiers now.”

  “You don’t have any toy soldiers left for me to chop,” Katherine said with a smug nod of her head. “Otherwise they would be in danger.”

  “Kate, enough,” Theodore said, although his anger had cooled to next to nothing. He’d forgotten how well-equipped she was to divert his temper. He’d also forgotten she used to be mischievous and fun. He released a breath and forced himself to concentrate on the situation at hand.

  “I need to know how many women have gone missing.”

  Dot began ticking them off on her fingers, every tick causing him to realize the situation was dire indeed.

  “Ten,” she finally proclaimed, “and all ten of them within the past week and a half.”

  Theodore turned and set his sights on the police officer still standing in the same spot. “I’ll need for you to arrange an appointment for me to see the chief. If ten women have disappeared, we have a problem on our hands.”

  “But . . . no bodies have shown up, at least not that many,” the officer said.

  “Which makes it even more concerning,” Theodore said. He began to pace again, trying to collect his thoughts, and stopped to address the ladies of the night. “I need all of you to think. Someone has to have seen something unusual, no matter how small it might be. Ladies don’t just disappear without a trace.”

  Agatha drew his attention when she suddenly hit her forehead with her hand. “I completely forgot about that man Arabella saw tonight.”

  Trepidation flowed over him. He gripped the bar with one hand and gestured with his other to Arabella, who was watching him with something indescribable in her eyes, something he almost believed was hurt.

  He was responsible for that look.

  He pushed that thought to the back of his mind, knowing full well it would push front and center again soon enough, and tried to smile at Arabella, realizing he failed miserably when her eyes turned from hurt to stormy. He winced. “What can you tell me about that man you saw?”

  For a second, he thought she was going to refuse to answer, but then she shrugged, pushed her wig further back on her head, and opened her mouth. “I didn’t get a good look at him because he’d pulled his cap low over his face. I don’t believe he was as tall as you are, nor as broad, but he was . . . scary.”

  “Scary, how?”

  She shivered and then wrapped her arms around her middle. “He had this air about him, it was . . . evil, and he watched me for a long moment, and then . . . he started walking toward me. I felt the distinct urge to run.” She shivered again. “Before he reached me, though, a police officer grabbed me, and when I looked over my shoulder for him, he’d disappeared.”

  A feeling he’d never before felt in his life swept over him, stealing the breath from his body. She was in mortal danger. He knew it as well as he knew she’d been just feet away from the killer.

  He swore then and there he’d do everything to protect her, because . . . well, he couldn’t think about that now. Her life was at risk, and that’s what he needed to concentrate on from this moment forward.

  He began striding back and forth as his thoughts whirled. Arabella was an uncommonly beautiful woman, so uncommon that people tended to never forget her face, as he’d learned while he’d traveled the country looking for her.

  A killer of women would remember her face and would go to great lengths to find her again.

  That idea shook him to his very core.

  He strode over to the officer and stopped. “I need to get these ladies out of jail as soon as possible.”

  “Their bail has already been paid, Mr. Wilder,” the officer said. “It’s one of the reasons I came down to find you. They’re free to go.”

  “Well, what are we waiting for?” Katherine exclaimed. “We’ve been dawdling down here for no reason at all.” She smiled. “I just might be able to beat Harold home, and that will save me some uncomfortable questions.”

  As a distraction to get his emotions under control, dealing with Katherine worked wonders. “I hate to be the one to tell you this, Kate, but Harold’s waiting for you upstairs.”

 
Katherine blinked. “He is not.”

  “I assure you, he is. The last time I saw him, he was attempting to post your bail.”

  “Why didn’t you post my bail?” Katherine snapped. “I know you have more than enough money at your disposal. Why did you have to involve Harold in this? I cannot believe you sought him out and tattled on me.”

  A slice of sadness stole over him. Did his sister really believe he would choose Harold over her? Didn’t she realize that he loved her, or . . . maybe she didn’t. It wasn’t as if he told her on a regular basis, or ever, now that he thought about it. “I didn’t seek out Harold, Katherine. He sought me.”

  Katherine let out a breath. “Let me guess, he wanted to complain to you about my abysmal behavior of late.”

  “Well, yes, that is about the gist of what his complaints centered around, but enough of that for now. We really do need to get all of you out of here.” He gestured to the officer, who stepped forward and placed the key in the lock.

  “What about us?” Dot asked, causing the officer to pause. “Are you going to let us go, or do we have to wait until morning?”

  “You’re all free to go. Bail has been paid for everyone,” the officer said.

  “Thank you, Mr. Wilder,” Dot simpered.

  “Don’t thank me, Dot. Mrs. Hamilton Beckett insisted on traveling here with me, and she took it upon herself to pay bail for all of you ladies.”

  Dot smiled. “That was very kind of Mrs. Beckett. You will thank her for us, won’t you?”

  “So much for not accepting help from do-gooders,” Theodore heard Arabella mutter.

  Dot drew herself up, but before she could say a word, the officer opened the door and Theodore had to step quickly out of the way as the ladies rushed past him, Dot leading the way. The officer moved to the other cells filled with women, and they rapidly filed out, nodding their thanks as they scurried after their friends. Before he knew it, he was standing with only Arabella, Katherine, Agatha, and three ladies of the night.

  “Sarah, there you are,” a woman he thought was named Lottie said. “Hannah and I were hoping you were in one of the other cells, but with all the commotion, we couldn’t find you.”

  “I was trying to stay unnoticed,” Sarah said softly. “You know I don’t like crowds much.”

  A piece of his hardened heart suddenly softened. He worked with the dregs of society on a daily basis, but he’d never truly considered their feelings.

  The woman Lottie had called Hannah stepped to Sarah’s side and gave her a hug, then released her and smiled. “Not to worry now, dear. The crowds are gone, and we’ll have you home soon.”

  His heart gave a lurch at the mere thought of these women traveling back through the streets, probably to a house that was less than a home. His feet suddenly began to move, and he found himself standing right beside Sarah, who regarded him nervously. “You won’t be safe until this culprit is caught. I’m going to suggest you and your friends travel home with me, spend the night there where you can get some sleep without worrying about your safety, and then tomorrow we’ll speak about a better plan.”

  He heard Arabella draw in a sharp breath and turned to look at her. She was watching him as if she’d never seen him before, and the look in her eyes was . . . different. Before he could figure out what the look meant, she smiled, and every single thought in his head disappeared.

  How long he stood there staring at her, he couldn’t say, but Katherine suddenly laughed, grabbed his arm, and began pulling him away from the cell and down a hallway. “Time for me to face the music,” she said, although her voice was more amused than troubled.

  He shook his head in order to clear it, and when Arabella’s smile immediately flashed back to mind, he decided he needed something drastic to chase the image away. “Did I mention that Father is here as well as Harold?”

  Katherine came to an immediate stop. “Father’s here?”

  “He and Harold came to lecture me earlier this evening.” He smiled as his thoughts finally came into focus. “Once he learned what had happened, he decided he couldn’t miss out on all the excitement.”

  “Father doesn’t like excitement,” Katherine said, dropping hold of his arm. To his surprise, she strode back toward the cell, grabbed Agatha’s hand and began dragging her along.

  “Did you forget something?” he heard Agatha ask.

  Katherine stopped and turned to nod at him. “Agatha and I will be staying in jail tonight. She needs an authentic story, and how much more authentic could it get than sleeping the night away behind bars as if we really were ladies of the night?”

  Theodore rolled his eyes and stalked back the way he’d just come. He brushed past Arabella, who looked as if she was trying not to grin, then past Sarah and the other ladies before he reached his sister’s side, took her arm, and pulled her into motion. She tried to pry herself free, but his patience was wearing thin once again, and before he knew it, they were moving through a heavy door, then standing in another long hallway as Katherine finally succeeded in shaking out of his hold.

  She looked up at him and bit her lip. “I’m not certain I’m quite ready to face Harold just yet, Theodore, especially dressed like this.” She pushed her wig into place. “I must look like I’ve just escaped from the asylum.”

  “I have a wonderful idea,” Agatha said, coming up to stand beside them. “We’ll tell Harold you’ve lost your mind and need to seek immediate medical attention. That will allow you to escape this little mess we’ve gotten into without causing you to have to explain anything to your husband.”

  “She’s not going to claim she lost her mind,” Arabella said, walking up to stand in front of Katherine.

  Theodore caught a whiff of her perfume when she brushed past him. The scent tickled his nose, and he felt the most unusual urge to lean closer to her. He winced when Agatha elbowed him in the ribs and sent him a wink.

  He wasn’t certain, but he thought the heat that took over his face just might be a blush. He narrowed his eyes at Agatha and then shifted his attention back to Arabella, who was now holding his sister’s hand and smiling.

  “You, Katherine Gibson, are a strong, incredibly intelligent woman, who has finally decided to take charge of your life. You didn’t do anything illegal or harmful, and you simply need to tell your husband that.”

  Katherine drew in a breath, squared her shoulders, and nodded. “You’re right. I haven’t done anything wrong.”

  Arabella’s smile widened, and she dropped Katherine’s hand. “That’s the attitude. Now, go tell Harold that.”

  Katherine grabbed Theodore’s arm, tightened her fingers into the sleeve of his coat, and smiled a rather wobbly smile. “I’m ready, but just don’t leave my side.”

  He placed his other hand over her arm, squeezed it once, and then they began walking once again, pausing for just a second as he opened the door to where he knew Harold, Samuel, Eliza, and Violet waited.

  Dead silence greeted their arrival into the room.

  Theodore’s gaze went directly to Harold, who was staring back at them, his eyes narrowed as he glanced at Katherine and then back at Theodore.

  “Well, where is she?” Harold demanded.

  Katherine released his arm and stepped forward. “I’m right here, Harold.”

  A muffled laugh caught Theodore’s attention, and he saw his father spinning around to face the wall, his shoulders shaking with what could only be amusement. Before he could process that peculiar state of affairs, Harold began to rant.

  “I assume you’ve concocted some type of explanation for your deplorable condition?”

  Theodore opened his mouth, intent on interceding, but snapped it shut when Arabella moved to Katherine’s side and took hold of his sister’s hand again.

  “I’m certain Eliza has already explained the situation to you fairly well, Mr. Gibson,” Arabella said as she nodded to Eliza, who was standing by the window with Violet.

  Harold puffed himself up, his face beginni
ng to mottle. “You’re Arabella Beckett, aren’t you?”

  “I readily admit that I am.”

  “Well, girl, what do you have to say for yourself?”

  Theodore’s temper flared, and he took a step forward, but then paused when Arabella drew herself up and didn’t so much as flinch when Harold stepped closer to her. His respect for her increased immensely, and he felt his lips twitch when Arabella lifted her chin, fixed Harold with an icy look of disdain, and opened her mouth.

  “I suppose what I have to say is this: I haven’t been called ‘girl’ in quite some time, and if you wish me to answer your questions, I suggest you use caution in the manner you use to address me.”

  A tic began to pulse on Harold’s cheek. “Your frank demeanor is very unbecoming for a woman.”

  “As it has already been pointed out to me this evening that I’m judgmental, smug, and act somewhat superior to everyone, your opinion of me barely leaves a mark on my obviously unfeminine skin.”

  Harold blinked, but then continued on as if Arabella hadn’t spoken. “You’re to blame for my wife being ruined.”

  Arabella glanced at Katherine. “She doesn’t appear ruined to me.”

  “She’s dressed like a tart.”

  “I’m actually dressed like an opera singer,” Katherine said, speaking up.

  Harold’s face went from mottled to deep red. He glared at Arabella. “Are you proud of yourself? Proud of the fact you’ve managed to turn my completely respectable wife into a woman of questionable character?”

  “I’m afraid you’re giving me too much credit.”

  “Of course I’m giving you too much credit. You’re most likely incapable of figuring out the ramifications of your actions.”

  Arabella’s eyes began shooting sparks. “Are you suggesting I’m unintelligent?”

  “I’m not suggesting anything,” Harold countered. “It is silly women like you who will be the downfall of our great country. Just because you’ve decided to abandon your God-given position in life does not mean it is remotely acceptable to coerce innocent women to join your side.”