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SLEEP WAS ELUSIVE AS Alex sat in his study and drank away the memories of Deckland and his betrayal. He had sent Rachel and his sister up to bed as soon as they had arrived home. Neither of them argued when he insisted on staying down there.
The next morning he left the house early to find out what he could about the new person Deckland was pretending to be. What he found out was bad news. After talking to a man he knew at the Bow Street Runners, he needed to talk to a friend and found himself calling on Thomas.
"He has an entirely new identity." Alex said as he came into the room that Thomas called his office.
"Deckland does?" Thomas didn't bother to get up from his chair, where his steward was helping him with correspondence.
"Of course. How many other swindlers are running around London?"
"I'm not going to bother answering that."
Thomas indicated for his steward to leave them alone. Alex was so agitated, he felt like he couldn't be still, so he paced back and forth across the room. He could feel the pounding of his heart inside his chest, as if he had run there instead of riding. He so badly wanted to put his fist through the man's face, but he had to find him first.
"What did you discover about his new identity?" Thomas remained calm, sitting in his chair behind the desk.
"He is now going by the name Marcus Hatwell. He recently arrived from New York, along with a few of his business partners."
"Decided to take them with him this time."
"Apparently, he is now in the textile business. When we were going into it together, it had been paper goods."
"Textiles are far more profitable these days."
Alex stopped and looked at Thomas. "How can you make light of this?"
"Humor is the only way I know how. Years of bad situations, I suppose."
"The man stole my future and my sister's future. He is the worst kind of devil."
"Yes, but he's a smart one. Those are the hardest to catch."
Alex remembered what Deckland had said the night before, about how he had no proof of any of it. He couldn't prove that Deckland was really the same man as Hatwell and he couldn't prove the money was taken by him. Legally, Deckland was going to get away with it all.
"There must be something I can do. The thought of seeing him around London, living the life he bought with my family’s money will drive me mad."
"You appear to be halfway there already."
"Funny."
Thomas reached into one of the drawers of his desk and pulled out a stack of papers. They were tied together with a string and looked as if they had been riffled through numerous times. The corners of the pages were bent and they appeared to have had the ink smudged too many times.
"Do you know what this is?" Thomas tossed the stack of papers on the desk, but Alex didn't move to reach for them. "This is all the information I could find about my brothers after they went missing. Every eye witness or piece of gossip that I followed. Any kind of paper that might show where they were that week. I retraced every step they made leading up to that night."
Alex remembered that time in his friend's life. Thomas had tried to console his mother while he himself went down the trail looking for the young men. Nothing had ever turned up to show if they were dead or alive. Eventually, he had stopped searching because of his injury, but Alex always suspected Thomas still believed they were out there.
"It took me a long time to get this much information and I couldn't have done it alone. I hired a man, a very persuasive man. Someone who knows how to sniff out the truth from those that don't want to give it."
"I need such a man."
"I thought you might. I sent him word this morning that I had a new case for him to look into. He's faster than expected and told me to meet him later this evening about it. Seems he already has a lead on the man and his activities."
"You did this without me asking?" Alex finally felt his body begin to slow down and he was no longer feeling the need to move.
"A friend doesn't need to be asked. I saw you were in trouble and decided to help."
"You didn't have to do that."
"No, but I wanted to. You are one of the few friends who kept by me after the accident. You need someone to keep by you now."
Alex didn't know what to say. He knew Thomas was a good friend, but this went beyond that. This was something that felt more like family.
"I will be by around sundown this evening to pick you up." Thomas said, unaware that Alex was staring at him like a gaping fish. "I suggest not telling the ladies where we are going. We wouldn't want them to worry."
"Where are we going?"
"Mitchum wanted us to meet him in a pub near Whitechapel called the Dancing Fish. A bad neighborhood, but we are looking for a bad man."
Alex hadn't spoken to Rachel since the night before. He didn't know what to say to her after the scene he’d made. She must think he was a mad man, accosting someone like that in front of everyone. After he had made such a big deal about proper behavior, he went and behaved like a common street thug.
There was also the matter of her deceit. Alex knew that she had never lied to him about meeting Deckland, but she had kept it a secret from him and that felt very much the same. He was angry about that and wasn't sure he could keep from saying something cruel to her.
Rachel was waiting for him when he arrived home, sitting on the steps of the staircase just inside the door. ""Where have you been? Daphne and I have been worried about you. There wasn't even a note."
Alex could see the way her dress was wrinkled where her hands were gripping it. Her hair was pulled up but in haste, so it tilted to the side. She must have been in a hurry this morning to find him. Those brown eyes were rimmed with red, and he suspected she had been crying only moments before he came in. He felt a lump in his throat as he realized how worried she had been. He wasn't accustomed to anyone worrying that much.
"I didn't have time. I left as soon as the sun was up, hoping to find out more about this Mr. Hatwell person." It was a weak excuse but the only one he could give.
"And?"
Alex didn't want anyone else to hear what he was about to say so he pulled her into another room before talking.
"My search wasn't very successful. I was able to find out that he truly has arrived in London as a different person, but that wasn't going to help me."
"The nerve of him coming back here!"
He couldn't help but notice the bright pink color that spread across her cheeks when she was angry. He was glad that those sparks in her eyes weren't directed at him this time.
"I agree, but there wasn't much I could do to prove it."
"You're just going to give up?"
Alex saw the way her eyebrows came together and put a wrinkle there. He wished he could soothe her with good news, but he knew he had to be as vague as possible. As Thomas had said, the girls would just worry if they knew what was going to happen.
"No, of course not. I'm going to continue to dig until I find something I can take him to jail with. Thomas has offered to help me by going over some of the financial records I had from when I dealt with Deckland." Alex made sure that his expression gave nothing away; he kept the casual look he always had when he was playing cards. "I'm afraid that means I won't be able to accompany you and Daphne to the ball tonight. Eloisa and her cousin will be there, though."
He could see the way she was looking him meant that she didn't entirely believe him. The Raven had watched him at the tables enough to know every tiny tell he might have. As hard as he tried, something must have been off enough to give her pause but not enough for her to call him on it.
"Are you sure you want us to go out? I don't think any of us would mind staying in to help. The more hands there are, the more work can be done, or so says my father."
That was the last thing Alex wanted. He needed to know that the women were safe and far from Deckland. Thomas would feel the same way about his wife and sister-in-law.
"No, it's going to be very dull and probably frustrating. We wouldn't want you to go through that with us." he said, attempting to sound bored by it. "Besides, Daphne needs as much time in front of the ton as possible. The season is ending soon and she will be sad if she misses the fun."
"I could send her with Eloisa and stay behind to–"
"No." This time Alex knew his voice was sharp, but he needed to be. "You will go with the rest of them to the ball. This is my responsibility, and I need to take care of it."
She opened her mouth as if to argue but thought better of it.
"Fine, but if you find anything, you wait until tomorrow. Don't do anything foolish tonight."
It was too late for that. Alex had no intention of giving that man any more hours of peace than he had to. If they found where that snake was hiding he was sure as hell going to hunt him. He could either drag Deckland to jail or into hell, but he wasn't going to stay in London.
"Of course not. I have Thomas to keep an eye on me."
He smiled, hoping she would find his joke funny but she didn't. Instead, she threw herself into his arms and buried her face in his chest. He stood there, holding her with one hand on her back and the other stroking her hair.
"I know men like Deckland. My father dealt with them all the time. They are dangerous."
The words were muffled but he heard them still.
"I'm not naïve. I have had my fair share of run-ins with the dark side of the city."
Alex had played in all sorts of gambling hells when he first went broke, any that would give him a line of credit to play with. Sometimes he wondered if they would take back their money in blood, but he always managed to come out safe.
"No you haven't, not like this. I know real evil when I see it."
"How much time did you spend with the man?"
Rachel looked up at him with a weak smile. "Enough to know I don't want you to be alone with him."
"I promise I won't let myself be caught off guard. I won't do anything alone." Alex silently added that Thomas would be there with him for every step, not her.
He kissed her on the top of her hair, but then she pulled him down to kiss her lips. Only a day apart and he felt like he had forgotten how sweet she tasted. He drank her in and devoured her with his mouth. They were only moments away from stripping each other of their clothes when there was a knock on the door interrupting them.
"Eloisa sent a note around to ask if we were still going to attend tonight." Daphne's voice came from the other side of the closed door.
"Send the reply that we will be going." Rachel was still running her fingers through his hair and giving him the shivers. "Your brother insists."
"I never thought I would hear you say that." Daphne said.
Alex couldn't help but smile. Rachel was a good influence on his timid sister, helping her to build a little courage. She didn't know it would come around on her occasionally. Rachel was smiling at his sister's comment too.
"She's taking after you." he told her.
"A little too much." Rachel looked at him with serious eyes again. "Please be careful."
He nodded and she left the room to go get ready. For women preparing for a ball was like preparing for war. Alex would do well to stay out of their way. The ladies left first, but it wasn't long after that Thomas arrived. He was dressed in all black, same as Alex and wore a wide brimmed hat that could hide part of his face. It was important that a duke not be seen going into a place like the Dancing Fish.
The establishment was everything one would expect from such a name. It was old and worn out with a sagging roof and crooked doors. The sign that hung on the outside was in the shape of a fish in a dancing pose and had been painted so long ago most of the letters were missing. It looked like it was the Ding Fi and not very welcoming. The inside wasn't much better, but most of the customers were too drunk to notice. The man they were looking for motioned to them from a booth in the back, and they tried to make it there without drawing attention.
"Is this your best attempt at blending in? Because anyone could spot you are gentlemen from a mile away in those fancy clothes."
Mitchum, Thomas called him that, was a very portly young man, with a bushy beard around his chin and no hair across his head. He wore a shirt and coat but no waist coat or tie. A bowler hat sat on the table next to a large glass of beer. Mitchum signaled for the barmaid to bring two more for his guests. Even though they wouldn't be drinking them, that might help the two blend in better.
"You said you had news about your new assignment?" Thomas was quick to get to the point.
"Yes, that Hatwell fellow. It seems he hasn't been that man for very long."
"We already know he changed his identity and bought himself the connections he has now."
"Yes, but it cost him every dime he had. Now he's here hoping to find a new source of income."
"Not the textiles?"
Mitchum laughed. "Those are a long term investment and he's going to need funds much sooner. Rumor is he's looking to do what you did and marry into some available funds."
That might explain why Hatwell expressed such an interest in Rachel without knowing who she was. One look at her clothes and her demeanor would tell any skilled grifter she had plenty of money. He would have considered her a mark from the very beginning.
"He's been doing a few other things to try and get his hands one money as well. Gambling, for one thing. That's why I asked you gentleman down here at this hour. He spends most nights gambling in a room in the back of this place."
"Why would he come to Whitechapel? This isn't the place to find players with deep pockets." Alex knew where all the best places to play were and nothing in this neighborhood made the list.
"My guess is he wants to keep his activities a secret from those fancy investors. They might not trust him as a partner if they knew he had to gamble to pay for his rooms in town."
That made sense. Deckland wouldn't want them to know his life as a gentleman was a thin lie. They might get suspicious and pull out. Then he would be right back in his place as a thief and swindler.
"I thought you might want to catch him at such an establishment and discuss your history. Work out what you need to where no one would be looking."
"Good job." Thomas said, shaking the man's dirty hand without hesitation. "Once again, you have done excellent work."
"My pleasure, sir." Mitchum pulled the two mugs of beer that the men still had untouched toward himself. "Head down the back to the farthest room and tell the man at the door I sent you. He will show you to where your man is."
The two gentlemen followed the directions to the secret room. Alex had never been desperate enough to play in such a place. The use of Mitchum's name got them in the door and they knew it to be a place where only the most hardened people could be found. There, in the center table, was Deckland. He wasn't wearing his fancy suit but what Alex remembered him dressing in, the clothes of a merchant in the middle class who didn't want to draw attention to himself.
"What a surprise!" Deckland stood when he saw them entering the room. "I didn't think I would see you in a place like this."
"We need to talk." Alex growled.
"I'm a little busy right now, perhaps we can meet tomorrow?"
"Now."
The other men in the room responded to his tone and were getting restless.
"I don't think you realize where you are. This is not one of your sophisticated gaming hells or gentlemen’s clubs. This is the underbelly of London and these are my people.”
Deckland smiled with a smug expression.
Alex looked at Thomas, who held his cane in both hands like a weapon. Alex knew that his friend was a skilled fighter, but there were half a dozen men in the room. It would be difficult to fight them all.
"We just want to talk. I want what you owe me." Alex said, hoping he could convince Deckland to come outside.
"Owe you? I don't owe you anything."
"I just want the money you took."
Deckland laughed, tilting his head back and letting it out loud.
"I didn't take anything from you. You gave it to me, remember? You were so excited at the idea of making more of it that you didn't even look at the risks. You let yourself get greedy and that's what cost you the family fortune.”
Alex felt his blood pumping faster through his veins and he struggled to remain still.
"You lied to me. You pretended to be a businessman and I trusted you."
"That was your mistake, not mine." Deckland smiled with those pearly white teeth. "Now you better hurry home to that new wife of yours or you might lose something again."
That was the last thing Alex remembered Deckland saying before the room erupted into violence.
CHAPTER 16
Rachel knew it was a bad idea, but she didn't let that stop her from following her husband that night. He was up to something and might need her help. It was no surprise to her when the duke's carriage drove past his home, where they were supposed to be spending the evening. It did shock her to see that she was following him into Whitechapel. Rachel wished she had brought someone with her. Not Daphne or Eloisa of course, but she hadn't even brought a servant for protection. She had gotten a hired hack to follow her husband but doubted the driver would be much help.
She saw that their carriage stopped at a pub, with a card room in the back she heard players mention before. It was the type of place someone went when they couldn't get into an establishment like the Raven Club. Rachel was frightened of what Alex might have gone there looking for.
The driver of the hack didn't seem to want to leave her there alone, but she pushed enough coin into his hand to make him stop arguing. She was wearing one of her older gowns, dark in color and very well worn. She knew it would make her look like she belonged, even in a place like this. Her hair was pinned tightly to her head under the hood of her cloak and she walked slowly behind her husband and Thomas. First, they shared a table with a gruff looking man but they only spoke. They went to the back room after a few minutes. She slipped in after them, keeping close to the wall to avoid being seen by the guard at the door. She wouldn't reveal herself unless she had to.
The men in the room responded quickly to the intrusion, standing up around the table. Deckland was speaking but Rachel wasn’t close enough to hear what was being said. She could only watch the way the men got worked up from it and then chaos broke out.
Outnumbered, both Alex and Thomas did their best to fight off the other men but it was useless. Rachel watched as her husband was toppled to the ground and beaten by three of them. Thomas was able to use his cane to knock of the men fighting him, but not without gaining a few injuries as well. Rachel felt helpless, knowing that she could do nothing to save them both.
“Enough!” Deckland finally yelled and the men stopped their attack. “I find this has become tedious. Leave me alone or I will make sure you are unable to return home to your wife.”
Deckland walked past her as he left the room, but Rachel kept her head turned and her face hidden by the cloak. He didn’t even bother to look at her, he was so smugly satisfied with himself.
Thomas had enough strength to help Alex up from the floor and carry him out of the pub and into his waiting carriage. Rachel called out to them, getting in with them to ride home.
“How long were you there?” Thomas asked. “I didn’t catch your scent but the room was full of smelly thieves.”
“Long enough to know I married a fool.”
“Rachel?”
Alex had lifted his head enough to look at her through the one eye he could open. The expression on his bruised and swollen face was confused. Then his head fell back and he was unconscious.
Rachel felt like her heart was thumping in her chest hard enough to leave a bruise. She reached out and placed a hand on him, just to reassure her mind that he was still alive. Her breath only came as she watched the rise and fall of his chest. If he stopped, she feared she might as well.
At the house, servants carried Alex in and up to their room while Thomas went to his own house to rest. Not knowing what else to do, Rachel sent a message to the one person who knew about dangerous things. She hoped he would understand the urgency and come quickly.
"What happened?" Her father didn't bother with salutations, but burst into the house asking for the important information. Rachel did her best to explain everything she knew, including Deckland and his new identity.
"The bastard applied to become a member at the club. I had no idea who he really was."
"Did you let him in?"
Her father shook his head. "No, there was something about the man I didn't like. I told him we were full and wouldn't be taking new members for a while."
"Alex shouldn't have gone to face him with only one person watching his back. There were at least half a dozen against him in that fight."
"Sometimes men are too busy being angry to be smart. He probably couldn't think of anything but catching the man who betrayed him."
"He was badly beaten. I don't think it hurt his leg again, but almost everywhere else on his body is bruised. He could barely open his eyes when I gave him the laudanum. " Rachel felt the tears in her eyes and struggled to remain calm.
"The sort of men who go to that club are the hardened criminals most men are afraid of."
Rachel knew she was certainly afraid of them. Her mind was still playing over the scene in her head. She remembered each face and each blow. She trembled so strongly from them that she had to sit down or she was afraid she was going to fall.
"He's going to try it again." she said, her voice hollow to her own ears. "I know he won't give up. As soon as he is well enough to leave the bed, he will try to find him again. He won't give up until Deckland sees justice or he is killed."
"Then we will need to find a way to bring him to justice."
"I don't know how. Deckland was very careful in his dealings with Alex. He never even met Daphne during their time doing business."
"So there is no way to prove his new identity is false."
"Exactly. He's had years to build this story of being Hatwell and he's done a fine job if it."
Rachel had spent the entire evening holding back the tears, but they were now rolling down her cheeks. Knowing that her husband was so badly beaten was overwhelming. She let them slide down her face but didn't give in to the sobbing. She maintained her composure for the sake of her husband, but now she could no longer do so.
"Yet, he has run out of money, so he's been gambling to maintain the lie." said Gerald.
"We just discussed that." There was no need to go over it again.
Something changed in her father's expression and he began to pace the floor, his hands behind his back like when he was thinking about the club. His eyebrows were drawn together but his eyes had a wild look to them. She could only remember a few times in her life when her father got that look and it was usually when he had a brilliant idea.
"What if we don't worry about trying to prove he's Deckland, but instead we focus on him now as Hatwell?"
"Focus on him how?"
"The man is desperate for funds. Desperate men are easy to manipulate."
"You mean at the gaming table?"
"Yes. We do to him what he did to Alex. We take everything from him."
That idea made Rachel's tears stop. She looked at Gerald, waiting for him to explain the plan he clearly had formulating in his mind. If there was a way to get Alex back what he lost, she was willing to do it.
"We can use the club. He wants in so badly that if I send him an invitation to a private game he won't be able to resist."
"Do you think you will be able to beat him?"
Gerald had been an excellent player when he was younger, but it had been a very long time since he’d played. Once he was the owner and manager Gerald didn't feel the need to continue playing.
"No, but the Raven can."
"You didn't want me playing that part anymore."
"This can be an exception. If he's been playing in London, then someone has surely told him about the Raven’s impeccable playing skills. A man like that would want to play against the best. We can use his ego against him."
Rachel knew that Alex would not approve of her taking such a risk. Tonight Deckland had proven that he wasn't against using violence. There was also her reputation to consider now. She was still struggling to fit into Alex's world and if she was found out that would make her efforts wasted.
"What if I can't beat him?" Rachel hated the weak sound of her voice as she begged Gerald for reassurance.
"You don’t lose."
"I did once." That night had changed her life.
"You won’t. You would never let that happen."
She felt scared and alone in that moment. Without warning she moved from her seat and into his arms. It felt good to be held like that, the same as it had been when she was a child. Her father had always been the strongest man she had ever known. Now she let him protect her from her own fears and drew on that strength.
“I was afraid you might not come.” Rachel confessed, keeping her face buried in his shirt front.
“Your message was very urgent.”
“Yes, but you have been clearly avoiding me.”
She felt the rise and fall of his chest against her cheek as he sighed.
“I thought I was doing what was best for you. I didn’t want my reputation to ruin yours, but now you need me.”
“I always needed you.”
He squeezed her hard and Rachel could feel his regret. There would be no more avoiding her after this.
"It will take me some time to get it set up. The man will have to believe it is a legitimate game or he might not risk coming." Gerald spoke while he held her, and the sound rumbled in his chest. "You need to explain the plan to Alex and do what you must to convince him to go along with it."
"I'm not sure he will listen."
"You can persuade him. A wife always knows how to do that."
"We don't have the kind of marriage you and mother had."
Gerald laughed and Rachel felt it through his entire body. She pulled back and looked up at him in confusion.
"What kind of marriage did you think we had?" Gerald asked. "Certainly not a perfect one. I can still remember how pretty your mother looked when she was angry with me. Her cheeks would turn red and her eyes would be shooting sparks at me."
"I don't remember you fighting.”
"You were just a little girl and we tried to keep it out of sight. That doesn't mean it wasn't there.”
"I think Alex and I fight more than we don't."
Gerald reached up and tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear as he had when she was a child. "You two are still getting to know each other, but I assure you that the love is there."
Rachel couldn't admit that to her father, but she was having trouble fighting the idea to herself.
"Get some sleep. I will be back in the morning to work out the details." Gerald placed a kiss on his daughter's head.
Once her father was gone, Rachel felt completely alone. The house was quiet and Alex was asleep. She went to sit with him and watch him, but after a few minutes, the silence grew deafening. She chose to go back to his study and attempt to read a book.
That's where she was when Daphne arrived home from her ball. One look at Rachel's face and Daphne panicked.
"What happened? Is Alex hurt?"
The young girl's face was scared and Rachel didn't know if the truth would help. It hadn't help ease her fears. She told Daphne what happened but left out some of the more horrific details. At the end of the story, the girl fell into one of the chairs, a blank look on her face.
"He's returned." she mumbled. "Alex has been waiting years to face him, and now he's here."
"Yes, but he's been very careful about protecting his identity."
"I can't believe I shook his hand. I smiled at him. I flirted with him."
"You didn't know."
Rachel watched as Daphne tried not to break and lost the battle. The poor girl began to shake with sobs. Not knowing anything else to do, Rachel came to kneel beside her in the chair and offer her a hand to hold. It felt good to be of assistance in some way.
"Alex was devastated last time he dealt with that man. How is he going to handle it now?" Daphne asked.
"My father and I have a plan. It's a good plan. It will make sure Deckland pays for what he did."
"Still, Alex must be so upset."
Rachel chose not to tell Daphne how badly her bother was beaten. She wasn't going to let her see him in such a condition.
"He is, but he's sleeping now. I think he probably needs his rest."
"I won't be able to sleep, that's for sure."
"Me neither. That's why you found me in here, pretending to read."
The two girls held hands for a few more minutes, until Rachel decided they needed some kind of a distraction.
"Have you played cards before?"
"A little bit of whist with my aunt. She didn't care for it much, because she didn't like keeping track of the cards."
"Would you like me to teach you a few more games?"
Daphne sighed. "That would be lovely."
Rachel got the cards from Alex's deck. Holding them reminded her of the night she had played high card with Alex. There was a lump in her throat that she had to swallow.
"Can you tell me about Alex? You must know all of his secrets." Rachel suspected that might be the best way to take both of their minds off of what was going on.
"He doesn't like to keep secrets." Daphne sat across from Rachel at the small table made for playing these games.
"No secrets then, just details that I haven't learned about him yet."
Daphne frowned. "Sadly, I'm not sure I know my brother much better than you do anymore. I have been away for so long."
"You knew him as a child."
"Yes, but so much has changed about him. I had hoped to get to know him again when I returned to London, but it hasn't happened as of yet."
Rachel knew that Alex had been spending most of his time with her, but she thought that was because Daphne was enjoying the season. Now she wished she had encouraged them to spend more time together.
"What about his childhood? Was it as carefree as I imagined?" Rachel was trying to lighten the mood for them both.
Daphne laughed.
"When we were younger, my brother was never serious. Everything was a game to him. He used to drive his tutors mad with his silly antics."
It was easy for Rachel to imagine that. Alex was always quick to smile and easy to laugh. He enjoyed making jokes, especially if it made her blush. Yet, there was always another layer beneath his charm that reflected his guilt over his failing and his concern for his sister. That darkness was difficult to see but directed so many of his actions. Rachel wondered what he had been like before that piece of him existed.
"Did he have a lot of friends?" Rachel asked.
"No, he didn't have very many. Thomas became his best friend at school, but most of the other kids kept their distance. He didn't follow orders as they were given."
"That I can believe."
"Thomas was also a troublemaker, so I think that was the basis of their friendship."
"He was lucky to find a kindred spirit."
They continued to play as they talked and Rachel was trying to both teach Daphne the game and practice her own skills. Daphne proved to be a natural at it, creating some good hands. Perhaps it was something in the blood that made the Fullertons good at the game.
"Thomas was lonely and selfish back then. He had a lot of friends, but when he was injured, those people abandoned him."
“Not your brother?"
"Alex isn't the type to give up on someone."
Rachel thought about how many times she had pushed him away and he’d always come back for more. She had done everything she could to make him hate her, yet she knew he didn't. He continued to pursue her, and it couldn't be for just what they did in the bedroom. He was determined to win their wager and get her to fall in love with him. The motivation was what she was uncertain about.
"Have things gotten better between you two?" Now it was Daphne asking the questions.
"Better?"
"I know that you disliked each other in the beginning, but things seem different now. You both look at each other differently."
"We have been working on it."
"Good." Daphne looked at Rachel from over the cards in her hand. "I have enjoyed having you as my sister."
"So have I."
Daphne's face lit up, and she smiled for the first time since she had arrived home. She played a better hand and Rachel realized she was improving with each round. It made her feel more relaxed.
"Will this plan of yours work?" Daphne asked.
Rachel looked into those big imploring eyes and didn't want to lie to her.
"I think so. I hope so."
"Then I think I will take that hope to bed with me."
Rachel remained quiet as Daphne left and she had to admit she suddenly felt tired as well. She went upstairs to the room she shared with Alex. He was still asleep in the bed, and she couldn't look away from his battered face. She titled the lamp away so it wouldn't wake him but she stared at the injuries to that handsome face and bit back her tears. Sobbing would definitely wake him.
Rachel didn't bother to change into her nightgown. She didn't think she had the energy to unfasten the buttons herself, so she just crawled into the bed beside him fully clothed, laying her head on the pillow next to him. It smelled like brandy and sweat, with dirt smudges mixed with blood on the pillow. She would need to help clean him up in the morning, if he was up for it. She would need to sleep if she was going to have energy for tomorrow. She turned on to her side, facing away from him and closed her eyes. She felt movement beside her and Alex turned toward her, pulling her close and wrapping his arms around her. It was just instinct on his part; he was too deeply asleep to know what he was doing, but she was grateful for it.
"Rachel?" Alex mumbled her name in his sleep.
"Yes, it's me. Just sleep and we can speak in the morning."
She waited until she could feel his breathing fall into a deep rhythmic patter. As she lay tucked into is arms, Rachel allowed herself to fall asleep listening to him at rest.