The Ink Master's Silence: Glass and Steele, #6 by C.J. Archer

Author:C.J. Archer
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: C.J. Archer

Chapter 11

Matt didn't join me for luncheon so I went looking for him. I had a niggling concern that he would heed Brockwell's warning and leave me out of the investigation. I eventually found him mucking out one of the stable stalls. Duke sat on a bale of hay not far away, his booted foot propped up on a water trough. Cyclops leaned against a wall, his ankles and arms crossed.

"Where's the stable boy?" I asked, checking the second stall. Both horses shared it while Matt cleaned out the other.

He straightened and leaned on the broom. He looked far too handsome for his own good, dressed in a working man's trousers, his shirt open at the collar with the sleeves rolled up. Sweat dampened his brow and made the shirt cling to his muscular frame. I eventually dragged my gaze up to his face, only to find a wicked gleam in his eye as he watched me.

"You look hot, India," he said. "Perhaps you should take a seat."

"It is rather warm in here."

Duke shifted aside, and I sat on the hay bale next to him.

"The stable boy came down with a fever," Matt said, returning to his chore.

"We were about to help," Duke said.

"After we eat," Cyclops added.

"And give him our report." Duke cleared his throat. "I've just come from Hendry's paper shop. Willie's still watching him in case he gets more visitors."

"More?" Matt prompted, once again pausing. "Customers?"

"I don't think so. Ordinary customers came and went, but these two separate callers received special treatment. He escorted them to the door when it came time for them to leave. He was angry with 'em. His first caller was a man. Hendry called him Professor."

"Nash!" I said. "How intriguing. And his other visitor?"

"I thought she was just a customer when I saw her carriage pull up," Duke went on. "I took no notice of her until she left and Hendry slammed the door in her face."

"Did he call her by name?" Matt asked.

"No, but her carriage had this symbol painted on the door." He plucked a piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to me.

"It's Rotherby Bank's symbol," I said, studying Duke's drawing of a hawk's head in profile surrounded by a wreath of leaves.

"Delancey's bank," Matt said. "Hendry's caller must have been Mrs. Delancey. You say he argued with her?"

"Not argued, just made sure she left his shop and scowled a lot. That man's angry, Matt. He's real angry."

I folded up the piece of paper. "So would you be if you lost friends over Oscar's articles. I consider myself fortunate that I have good friends who look beyond my magic."

Cyclops pushed off from the wall and hefted a bale of hay in his arms. "If his friends are scared of him now, they weren't never his friends in the first place."

"Amen." Duke nudged me with his elbow. "You're the sweetest thing there is, India. Besides, I come from a country where women like Willie carry guns. That's something to be scared of.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.