Once a Courtesan by Liana LeFey

Author:Liana LeFey
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Published: 2017-03-26T18:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirteen

Jacqueline had to admit it seemed a solid plan. At this point, anything was preferable to doing nothing. Taking action would be satisfying. “I agree. In the morning, I shall tell Mrs. Sloane—”

“Don’t tell her it’s a ruse,” he cautioned. “Her reaction must be genuine. Sally must believe the Archangel is coming or it won’t work.”

Nodding, she acquiesced. Deceiving Prudence felt wrong, but he was right. Certain preparations commenced when they had advance warning of a new arrival. “You believe Boucher will act?”

“She’d be a fool not to take advantage of such an opportunity, considering the personal danger your friend represents. I only wish our visitor had not been alerted to our knowledge of his presence.”

Again, she experienced chagrin over her rash reaction. “I should have thought better before acting. The idea that a voyeur might be watching my girls…”

“I don’t blame you, but now that he knows he’s been seen, our visitor will be more cautious. I doubt we’ll be able to spot him again.”

“Had Sarah not been restless we might not ever have known he was there to begin with.” A shudder ran through her. “I wonder how many nights he has been watching us?”

“Try not to dwell on it. Until this is resolved, I would assign people to stand watch throughout the night—in shifts of no more than a couple of hours’ length so no one person is overburdened.”

“I think it a prudent suggestion. What of Sally? I cannot exclude her from the rotation.”

“No, you cannot.” He hesitated, as if he wished to say something he knew she would find unpleasant. “I’ll secretly double the watch during her shift.” Raising his hand, he cut off her protest before she could voice it. “Moving in makes sense, and it’s only temporary. I know you and the other teachers are aware of the gravity of this situation and are more than willing to defend both yourselves and the girls, but you’d be foolish to refuse me in this for many reasons. As you said earlier, I’m well suited to the task of protecting this school and its occupants. Whereas one of them might hesitate to shoot an intruder, I won’t.”

She marked he hadn’t included her in his statement. “Again, I cannot deny your logic. Although the senior staff have all been shown how to operate a pistol, only Mrs. Sloane and I have any real experience.” In her mind flashed a memory of ice-blue eyes, their light fading into dullness as the life left them. “I don’t know how the girls will react.”

His lips quirked. “If Sarah’s reaction to finding me downstairs tonight is any indication, I cannot imagine the others will have a problem with it—especially not once they hear her tale. Consider, too, what they overheard from the staff about what happened in the courtyard. The secret is out. They know something is wrong, and they’re frightened.”

“I will ask the staff and students about it tomorrow morning and see what they say,” she said at last. “If, however, they object, I must respect their wishes.

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