Praise forDEANNA RAYBOURN
âWith a strong and unique voice, Deanna Raybourn creates unforgettable characters in a richly detailed world. This is storytelling at its most compelling.â
âNora Roberts, New York Times bestselling author
â[A] perfectly executed debut.â
âPublishers Weekly, starred review
âThis debut novel has one of the most clever endings Iâve seen.â
âKaren Harper, New York Times bestselling author
âA riveting drama that makes page turning obligatory. A very fine debut effort from Deanna Raybournâ
âBookreporter.com
âI found it delightfully absorbing.â
âThe Bookseller
London, 1886
Other sins only speak; murder shrieks out.
âJohn Webster The Duchess of Malfi
To say that I met Nicholas Brisbane over my husbandâs dead body is not entirely accurate. Edward, it should be noted, was still twitching upon the floor.
I stared at him, not quite taking in the fact that he had just collapsed at my feet. He lay, curled like a question mark, his evening suit ink-black against the white marble of the floor. He was writhing, his fingers knotted.
I leaned as close to him as my corset would permit.
âEdward, we have guests. Do get up. If this is some sort of silly prankââ
âHe is not jesting, my lady. He is convulsing.â
An impatient figure in black pushed past me to kneel at Edwardâs side. He busied himself for a few brisk moments, palpating and pulse-taking, while I bobbed a bit, trying to see over his shoulder. Behind me the guests were murmuring, buzzing, pushing closer to get a look of their own. There was a little thrill of excitement in the air. After all, it was not every evening that a baronet collapsed senseless in his own music room. And Edward was proving rather better entertainment than the soprano we had engaged.
Through the press, Aquinas, our butler, managed to squeeze in next to my elbow.
âMy lady?â
I looked at him, grateful to have an excuse to turn away from the spectacle on the floor.
âAquinas, Sir Edward has had an attack.â
âAnd would be better served in his own bed,â said the gentleman from the floor. He rose, lifting Edward into his arms with a good deal of care and very little effort, it seemed. But Edward had grown thin in the past months. I doubted he weighed much more than I.
âFollow me,â I instructed, although Aquinas actually led the way out of the music room. People moved slowly out of our path, as though they regretted the little drama ending so quickly. There were some polite murmurs, some mournful clucking. I heard snatches as I passed through them.
âThe curse of the Greys, it isââ
âSo young. But of course his father never saw thirty-five.â
âNever make old bonesââ
âFeeble heart. Pity, he was always such a pleasant fellow.â
I moved faster, staring straight ahead so that I did not have to meet their eyes. I kept my gaze fixed on Aquinasâ broad, black-wool back, but all the time I was conscious of those voices and the sound of footsteps behind me, the footsteps of the gentleman who was carrying my husband. Edward groaned softly as we reached the stairs and I turned. The gentlemanâs face was grim.
âAquinas, help the gentlemanââ
âI have him,â he interrupted, brushing past me. Aquinas obediently led him to Edwardâs bedchamber. Together they settled Edward onto the bed, and the gentleman began to loosen his clothes. He flicked a glance toward Aquinas.
âHas he a doctor?â
âYes, sir. Doctor Griggs, Golden Square.â
âSend for him. Although I dare say it will be too late.â
Aquinas turned to me where I stood, hovering on the threshold. I never went into Edwardâs room. I did not like to do so now. It felt like an intrusion, a trespass on his privacy.
âShall I send for Lord March as well, my lady?â
I blinked at Aquinas. âWhy should Father come? He is no doctor.â
But Aquinas was quicker than I. I had thought the gentleman meant that Edward would have recovered from his attack by the time Doctor Griggs arrived. Aquinas, who had seen more of the world than I, knew better.
He looked at me, his eyes carefully correct, and then I understood why he wanted to send for Father. As head of the family he would have certain responsibilities.