“Andrews,” she said without preamble. “Have you seen Mr. Harrington? Nathanial?”
“Not today, miss.”
“Do you know where he is?”
“No, miss.” Andrews shook his head. “I have no idea where he is at the moment.”
She huffed. “What about his brother?”
“Which brother, miss?”
“Any brother,” she snapped.
“Neither Master Quinton nor his lordship are at home, miss.”
“And Lady Wyldewood.” She raised a brow. “Has she vanished as well?”
“I would not say she has vanished, miss. But no, she is not at home. Lady Regina, however, is still abed,” he added in a helpful manner.
She gritted her teeth. “So is no one else home?”
“Miss Henry and Mr. Dennison are in the library, miss.”
“That‟s something, at any rate,” she muttered, and headed toward the library. “Thank you,
Andrews,” she tossed back over her shoulder.
“You are quite welcome, miss.”
She flung open the library door and stormed into the room, interrupting what looked to be a discussion of a somewhat intense nature between Florence and Mr. Dennison. “Where is he?”
Florence rose to her feet, Mr. Dennison a scant beat behind her. “What are you doing out of bed?”
“I feel fine, perfectly fine,” she snapped. “The only thing that would make me feel better is knowing where Nathanial is.”
“Quite honestly, Gabriella.” Florence met her gaze directly. “I don‟t know.”
Gabriella‟s jaw tightened. “Mr. Dennison?”
He shook his head. “I can‟t say, miss.”
“Can‟t say or won‟t say?”
“At this moment, Miss Montini, I have no idea where Mr. Harrington might be.”
Gabriella‟s gaze shifted back and forth between Mr. Dennison and Florence. “I don‟t believe either of you.”
“Nonetheless, we are not lying to you.” Florence‟s lips pressed together in a disapproving manner. “You do realize you are not appropriately dressed?”
“I had other things on my mind,” Gabriella said sharply. She paused and drew a deep breath. “I am going to my room now to dress appropriately and then I am going to the Antiquities Society in hopes that Nathanial has brought the seal to the committee.”
Florence and Mr. Dennison exchanged glances.
“And you are not going to stop me.”
“We wouldn‟t think of doing such a thing,” Florence said. “By all means, go to the Antiquities Society. I think it‟s an excellent idea.” She nodded. “In fact, Mr. Dennison and I will be happy to accompany you.”
“You will?” Gabriella narrowed her eyes. “Why?”
“Goodness, Gabriella, will you ever stop being such a suspicious creature?” Florence huffed.
“First of all, it would be entirely improper for you to be unaccompanied. Secondly, as perfectly fine as you may feel, I am not especially confident that you will not collapse at any moment. And third…” She paused. “I‟ve been with you at the beginning of all this and I‟d rather like to be with you at the end. Now, do put on some proper clothing and we shall wait for you here.”
“Excellent.” Gabriella nodded, turned, and started back to her rooms. She knew she shouldn‟t be annoyed at Florence, and in truth she wasn‟t. She could trust Florence. As she could trust Nathanial. And as long as she kept saying that to herself, she could keep this mounting sense of doom at bay. After all, he‟d done nothing to earn her distrust. Not yet. She dashed the thought from her mind. Leaps of faith, Gabriella, she told herself firmly. Leaps of faith.
It was well past noon when they finally arrived at the Antiquities Society building. The
Verification Committee had adjourned and the annual general meeting would begin in a few
minutes.
The moment she realized they would be too late, a heavy weight had settled in the pit of
Gabriella‟s stomach. Still, it was not yet time to give up. She spotted Mr. Beckworth amidst the crowd milling in the corridors and hurried toward him, Florence and Mr. Dennison hard on her heels.
“Mr. Beckworth,” she called.
“Gabriella.” The director addressed her with a concerned smile. “I heard about the fire. Nasty business. Are you all right?”
“Perfectly fine, thank you. Mr. Beckworth…” She held her breath. “At the Verification
Committee meeting, did Mr. Harrington present my brother‟s seal?”
“I am sorry, my dear.” Sympathy shone in the older man‟s eyes. “I haven‟t seen Mr. Harrington since I met with the two of you in my office.”
“I see,” she said slowly. A terrible sense of defeat and disappointment washed through her.
Despair caught at her throat. Still, she preferred not to let it show. She managed a polite smile.
“Thank you, Mr. Beckworth.”
“As you are already here, I assume you will be joining us for the general meeting.”
She shook her head. “I‟m not actually a member of the society.”
“I know that, my dear, but it seems to me you usually attend the meeting.” Mr. Beckworth
smiled. “In the upstairs gallery, of course, with the other ladies.”
“I don‟t think—”
“Of course she will,” Florence said in a gracious manner. “She wouldn‟t think of missing it.”
“Excellent.” Mr. Beckworth nodded and took his leave.
“Come along.” Florence hooked her arm through Gabriella‟s and steered her toward the stairs that led to the observation galleries. “If we don‟t go now, we won‟t find good seats.”
“I have no desire to observe the meeting,” Gabriella said, but allowed Florence to lead her up the stairs nonetheless.
Mr. Dennison had disappeared, but then why should he be any different from anyone else today?
In truth, she had no desire to do much of anything at the moment. It was as if she had stood out in the cold for a very long time and was now numb to the touch. She dimly understood that this feeling would fade and leave in its stead despair and anger. He had failed her. She‟d trusted him and he had failed her. And in an odd way, she still did trust him. Perhaps because when she fully realized that she was wrong to do so, her devastation would be complete. And she was not yet prepared for that.
They managed to procure seats in the front row, right behind the railing. The meeting would begin any minute. There was some sort of activity, apparently outside of the doorway near the dais. Florence leaned closer to the railing to see what was happening. Gabriella stared ahead unseeing. It simply didn‟t matter. Nothing mattered save this awful ache that was growing inside her, somewhere near her heart.
“Well?” Nate stared at his brother.
Sterling chuckled. “It‟s hard to turn down a request from the Earl of Wyldewood.”
“Excellent.” Nate breathed a sigh of relief.
Mr. Dennison hurried up to them and nodded. “She‟s in the gallery. It was an excellent idea to put this part in the hands of Miss Henry, sir.”
“I shall have to thank her later, and you as well.” Nate turned to Quinton. “And?”
“Here.” Quinton thrust a thin open book at him. “These are the rules of the society. I‟ve marked the one you want.”
“Thank you.”
“You should thank me,” Quinton replied. “It goes against everything I believe in to look at rules of any kind.” He cast his brother a reluctant grin. “One for the other.”
Nate returned his grin, acknowledged Sterling‟s nod of support, and stepped into the room.
The director took his place behind the podium, banged his gavel, and called the meeting to order.
The room quieted. Mr. Beckworth began the way he always began, welcoming the members, and
then droned on, the way he always droned on, at the beginning of any meeting. Gabriella had rather enjoyed it in the past. Even in the gallery it was as if she were truly a part of it all. As if she belonged.
She tried to focus on his words, tedious though they might be. Anything to keep from thinking her own thoughts.
Beckworth paused. “This year we have had a most unusual request, but as it comes from the Earl of Wyldewood…”
The announcement caught her attention. Florence nudged her. “Are you listening to this?”
“Yes,” she murmured, and stared at the dais. What on earth was going on?
“The board has agreed to allow Mr. Nathanial Harrington to address the assembly. Mr.
Harrington.”
The director stepped aside and Nathanial took his place, a sheaf of papers and a small book in his hand.
Nathanial?
“Good day, gentlemen. I am most grateful to be allowed the opportunity to speak to you this afternoon,” Nathanial began.
Gabriella stared in shock. What was he doing? She leaned closer.
“According to the rules of the Verification Committee, an artifact presented and rejected can only be presented again before the end of the next year‟s meeting. Exceptions can be made only under extraordinary circumstances.” Nathanial‟s voice rang out over the gathering, strong and confident. “I believe this particular case meets that criteria.
“Last year, Enrico Montini had in his possession an Akkadian cylinder seal. The carvings on that seal included symbols for the lost city of Ambropia and the Virgin‟s Secret.”
Murmurs of interest washed through the crowd. Gabriella‟s heart lodged in her throat.
“Unfortunately, it was stolen from him and he lost his life attempting to reclaim it.” Nathanial‟s gaze rose to the gallery and found hers. “It has now been recovered thanks to the courageous efforts of Miss Gabriella Montini, but unfortunately too late for this year‟s committee meeting.
According to the rules of this august institution…” He paused and glanced down at the book on the podium. “The general assembly may, through a simple majority vote, call for the
reconvening of the Verification Committee. I urge you to do so now.
“Aside from the unparalleled historical importance of the seal, it is to be donated to the society, thus its validation is especially important. In addition,” his gaze again met hers, “I propose it be known from this point forward as the Montini seal, in recognition of the man who brought it into the light of public knowledge and the woman who risked all to return it to us. Thank you.”
Nathanial nodded and left the dais.
“Most unusual,” Mr. Beckworth said, retaking his position. “We shall vote on that proposal at the end of the meeting when we vote on other matters. And now turning to the…”
She stared in shocked disbelief. Blood roared in her ears. Her heart thudded in her chest.
Nathanial hadn‟t betrayed her. He hadn‟t abandoned her. How could she have doubted him?
Even for a minute?
“Come along.” Florence got to her feet. “We must be going.”
Gabriella stared at her. “What?”
“Come along,” Florence said firmly, took her arm and urged her to her feet. “Now.”
Gabriella was fairly certain she was putting one foot in front of the other but had no knowledge of doing so. One minute they were in the gallery, and the next in the downstairs corridor.
“Miss Montini? Gabriella?”
Gabriella turned to find the Earl of Wyldewood standing behind her, a genuine smile on his face.
She wasn‟t at all sure she‟d ever seen him truly smile before. “Yes?”
“If all went as Nathanial had planned, I was to give you this.” He handed her a folded note. “And then escort you to the director‟s office.”
She stared at the note in her hand.
He leaned closer to her and lowered his voice. “You should read it now, Gabriella.”
She nodded and unfolded the note. Why did her hands always seem to shake of late?
The note read:
My Dearest Gabriella,
A much as surprise might be nice, it seems to me it might be wise to introduce something of this magnitude in private. You should know that after your father‟s death, your mother‟s family tried to find you. They ended their efforts only when they were told you were dead. They have always wanted you and have loved you as they loved your mother. My mother has arranged for your
reunion.
You should know as well that I too love you.
Always,
Nathanial
She stared at the words on the page. A lump rose to her throat and her eyes fogged.
“Gabriella?” the earl said softly.
She glanced at him. “Do you know what this says?”
He grinned. “I have an idea.”
She smiled at him. “Why, you‟re not at all stiff and stodgy, are you?”
“Don‟t tell anyone.” He offered his arm. “Shall we, then?” She nodded and he escorted her along the corridor.
“Where…”
They paused before the door to the director‟s office and he stepped aside. “They‟re expecting you.”
“They? Who?”
“Go on, my dear,” Florence said behind her.
Gabriella looked at the earl. “Aren‟t you coming in?”
He shook his head. “I think not.”
She glanced around. “Where is Nathanial?”
“I‟m not exactly sure.” He smiled in a brotherly sort of way. “Go on now. I suspect your future and some of your past awaits you.”
“Very well.” This was entirely too much to comprehend all at once. Nathanial had proven to truly be her hero. The news about her family was something she‟d never dared dream of. And he had declared his love. It was all she‟d ever wanted. No, it was so much more. Why, then, was she hesitating? She drew a deep breath and opened the door.
The door swung open and Gabriella stepped into the room. She was as lovely as always, if still a bit pale. She appeared cool and serene and confident, and he knew her well enough by now to know she probably wasn‟t the least bit serene.
Mother bustled over to her, took her arm and brought her to her family. “Gabriella, I want you to meet your aunts, Caroline and Beatrice, and your cousin Emma.”
For a long awkward second, no one said a word. Then Lady Danworthy burst into tears and
threw her arms around Gabriella. Followed a scant moment later by Mrs. Delong and Emma, all of them crying and talking at once. In the midst of it, one of her aunts fastened her mother‟s necklace around Gabriella‟s neck. The only one not weeping was Gabriella herself, who looked stunned. But not unhappy. He had been right to warn her.
Even Mother sniffed back a tear. “Isn‟t it wonderful. See what you‟ve done, darling?”
“I didn‟t do it, Mother, you did.”