Page 76 of The Starling and the Hatter

“No, sir,” I said as memories of picking pockets and handing coins off to my brothers ran through my head. “But they must have had an accomplice.”

“Explain.”

Explain. Just explain, Elise, I prompted myself as my entire body shook with fear and nerves. Yes, your freedom and your very life are at stake, but the duke is asking you to explain, so speak! “I would guess that they removed the trinket from Her Grace, handed it off to someone else, and then that person put it in my pocket.”

“Well,” the duchess said, looking down her lofty nose at me. “Since you seem to be all-knowing, why not tell us who this accomplice is?”

I didn’t know. The who eluded me. I only knew that I’d seen them do it before; I’d even helped them do it before. Yet, who had gotten close to me this evening? Daggon’s wife had remained in her seat. A few jugglers had stood to do tricks here and there, but none had come close enough to me. Aside from Hatcher and Robert, I had interacted with few other people. Hatcher would never do such a thing, and Robert…

Robert.

A feeling of dread settled in my stomach.

I looked around, trying to find his face among the sea of people surrounding me. We were friends, weren’t we? Yes, I could see now that he was self-absorbed, but he would never do something to deliberately hurt me—would he?

“Robert?” I called, hoping he’d step out from behind someone else, his face a mask of innocence and curiosity, hoping he would prove these awful suspicions wrong. But he didn’t respond.

“Who is Robert?” the duke asked.

“White,” I answered, looking around frantically. “The jester magician. Robert!” I called out, more loudly, still clinging to the hope that he might step forward. People in the crowd turned to one another, looking about, murmuring their questions or opinions. But Robert didn’t materialize. “He fled,” I whispered to myself, then looked up at the duke again. “He was the accomplice,” I said quietly as the realization came. Then I turned to my brothers. “Wasn’t he?”

“Accomplice to what?” Morley asked. “This is all just stories and wild accusations.”

I studied Morley’s face, looking for deception, but he had seemed genuinely surprised when I’d taken my headpiece off. And if he didn’t know who I was, then why would he target me? Why ask White to plant the stolen item on me? I looked to Daggon, hoping for answers.

And I found them.

Daggon wasn’t blustering or confused. He didn’t look at me as though seeing a ghost the way that Morley did. His face was set like iron and just as cold. He had already known who I was, and he’d attempted to hurt me because of it.

It shouldn’t have hurt. The realization that my brother wanted to continue hurting me shouldn’t have been surprising or painful. It was just the way things were. But my heart didn’t seem to know that. My heart wanted my brothers to feel some sort of remorse or guilt over the way they’d treated me. My heart wanted something better.

My heart wanted something it was never going to get.

Maddox

I saw the pain and betrayal marring Elise’s face and wanted nothing more than to go to her. If only to keep her safe, or at least give her comfort. But this was not the time for rash displays of affection. I could see the duke and duchess changing their minds, and I truly believed we had almost convinced them of Elise’s innocence.

“Wait,” the duchess called out. “My bracelet is gone.” She was feeling both her wrists, then her hands went to her ears, touching her earrings, then the delicate circlet on her head, before moving to her throat. “And my necklace,” she shrieked, then turned her blazing eyes on Elise and her brothers in turn. “Search her!” she demanded, pointing at Elise. “And them, and him!” she ordered as she gestured to the Wolfe brothers and then at myself.

“And someone find that magician!” the duke called out, his voice sounding truly fierce for the first time. He’d kept his temper in check when dealing with a single ring, but having the duchess stripped of multiple priceless items had pushed our sovereign ruler over the edge.

As the guards swarmed me, all I could hope was that Robert had not planted more of the stolen items on either Elise or me.

As I watched the guards searching her, touching her, it was all I could do to stay still and silent. I reminded myself that the guards were just doing their jobs, and just because seeing anyone else touching her made me want to roar like a great bear didn’t mean I should.

She’d said she loved me. At least, I’d thought those were the words. They’d been quiet and said on a sigh and I could not be positive that they’d been real. I’d imagined her saying it so many times—daydreamed about it so often that perhaps my imaginings were muddling reality. That truly would be madness.

The guards were quickly finished with me, finding nothing hidden on my person.

Elise was not so lucky.

“What’s this?” a guard said, holding up a delicate bracelet. “Is this the one, Your Grace?” he asked, turning to the duchess.

Elise opened her mouth in horror.

“No,” the duchess said, surprising us all. “That isn’t mine.”

“It’s mine!” a shout came from my left. A noblewoman stood, clutching her wrist.