The Faerie Ring (30 page)

The other girl’s eyes narrowed. Her voice was cold when she spoke. “I live in a world that you can’t even begin to comprehend. A world of battles and oaths and passions that bind us for a thousand mortal lifetimes.” For a fleeting moment, there was something in Larkin’s expression that Tiki had never seen before. Bitterness? Or was it sadness? The faerie’s voice came out in a whisper. “Of loss that is beyond your ability to understand.”

Then Larkin’s lip curled in disgust, her voice tinged with anger. “It’s taken me a very long time to find the one I love. And I’m risking my own life to be with him.
Nothing
is going to stand in my way. With the ring of the truce, we’ll be free of those who pursue us.”

“But who is after you?” Tiki tried to think of something, anything, to keep the faerie talking. To stop her from disappearing before she could find out more about Clara.

“Donegal.” Larkin spat the name out. “The high king of the UnSeelie court is displeased with me.” She glared at Tiki. “The power held within the ring will buy my freedom. I’ve tried for a very long time to get the ring. And it’s finally in reach. If Wills doesn’t get it tonight, then you had better have a plan to bring me the ring tomorrow. Or your little girl is dead.”

Tiki stood stunned as Larkin stepped into a group of people and disappeared into the crowded station. Larkin knew Rieker was going after the ring tonight. Had he told her? Tiki hadn’t considered the ring might have value to Rieker beyond the reward. But now that she thought about it, why would he need the reward? He was already rich. He’d tricked her into revealing its hidden location so he and Larkin could run away together. The ring must offer them the power to escape.

Even now, Rieker could already have the ring. Had she just sabotaged her one chance to reclaim Clara?

Tiki ran for home. She needed to talk to the others. They needed to get in position to steal the ring from Rieker. They couldn’t take any chances that he could slip away.

*   *   *

T
IKI
was breathless as she stood in the shadowed candlelight of their little room and told the others of her encounter with Larkin. “She
knows
Rieker is going to be at Buckingham tonight. She
knows
that he’s going to get the ring. They’ve been plotting to run away together.” Her words came out in a hurried rush. “We’ve got to make sure that we follow Rieker from the palace. We’ve got to make sure that he doesn’t run away before we have a chance to get the ring. It’s the only way we can save Clara.”

“Slow down, Tiki,” Shamus said in his steady voice. “It’s not even seven o’clock. Rieker hasn’t gone to Buckingham yet. We still have time.” He stood up from where he had been whittling by the stove. “Now, what are you thinking?”

Tiki wrung her hands together, trying to calm herself. They still had time. “I think the three of you need to go to Buckingham. One at the front, one at the back, and one on the side near the Mews, so if he leaves, you can follow him. Just in case he doesn’t go home.” She took a deep breath. “I’ll still go over and sneak into his town house in Grosvenor Square and wait for him there.”

“But how are we going to follow him if he’s riding a horse?” Toots asked.

“It’s snowing outside. Hard,” Tiki said. “It looks like it’s going to snow all night. Which means he’ll take a carriage to the palace tonight. If someone spots him, they can hop the boot and follow him. If he doesn’t go to Grosvenor Square, then whoever is following him”—she looked around at their solemn faces—“it will be up to you to steal the ring from him. Any way you can.”

Chapter Thirty-four

L
EO
stared at Wills over his cards. “You’re in love with her, aren’t you?”

The three other men at the table turned in surprise. As one, their eyes shifted from the prince over to Rieker, who stared at his cards, unruffled by the question.

“To whom are you referring, Leo?” Rieker asked as he threw two cards facedown to the side. “Two.” With a sardonic half-smile on his lips, he lifted his eyes from the cards to the young man sitting across from him.

“Wills, in love?” Arthur echoed in disbelief, gazing at Rieker as if for confirmation. “You’ve got to be joking.” The other two men guffawed along with Arthur, aware of Rieker’s dislike of romantic entanglement.

“I can see it in his eyes,” Leo said. Curiosity burned liked a flame in his gut. He turned to Rieker. “I can see it when you look at her, when you talk about her. But I feel compelled to stop you, Wills. There’s something amiss. How well do you know her background?”

“She must be something special for Wills to fall,” retorted Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh, Leo and Arthur’s older brother. “What’s her name? Do we know this amazing creature?”

Rieker was expressionless as he shook his head ever so slightly, but Leo wasn’t sure if it was in disbelief or in silent warning.

“Come on, Wills, it’s us,” Leo said. “We’ve never had secrets before. Tell the boys who she is.”

Rieker picked up the two cards dealt to him and leaned back, sliding his cards into a stack and setting them on the table. He cocked his head as though measuring Leo’s determination.

“You seem to be enjoying this more than me, Leo, and since I’m not even sure of whom you’re speaking, why don’t you tell them and then we’ll all know. Perhaps it’s your own desires to which you’re referring.”

The others laughed as Leo colored slightly. He should have known better than to verbally ambush Wills. The man had a tongue like a viper when he was mad, though one would never know by looking at his expressionless face.

“Why, it’s Elizabeth Dunbar, of course,” Leo said. He hated to admit he enjoyed the sound of her name as it rolled off his lips. “No need to be coy, Wills.”

Arthur’s head jerked up in surprise. “The enchantress from the masked ball? The girl you drenched with wine?”

“The enchantress,” Rieker repeated with a chuckle. “So enchanting that she can steal your heart from you when you’re not looking, Leo?” He grinned as he waited for Leo’s response.

“Not m-me, you,” Leo stuttered, suddenly aware of the four sets of eyes laughing at him.

“Hmmm, so Leo’s in love,
again
.” Alfred chuckled as he shuffled the cards. “And it sounds like the young miss must only have eyes for Wills.” Alfred grinned over at Rieker and winked. “Not the first time that’s happened, eh?”

“And hardly the last,” Arthur chimed in, gazing at his cards. “But Leo, maybe that’s the hook, eh? The chase of unrequited love.”

“It’s not me, I tell you,” Leo sputtered.

“I’ve noticed a pattern over the years, dear brother.” Arthur grinned. “In case you haven’t noticed, it’s not a successful business model.” They all laughed as they laid their cards down and Arthur lifted his gaze to Rieker. “And what do you say of the fair maiden, Wills? Do you find her as enchanting as Leo, or just a passing fancy?”

Rieker’s lips lifted in a small half-smile as he took his turn shuffling the cards. “Arthur, you know it’s not wise to speak of these matters. You can never be too careful about what you say, or be sure who is listening.” He scooted back in his chair. “But I need a break from this enlightening conversation. Somebody keep him here”—he pointed at Leo—“so he can’t follow me and make other outrageous accusations until I return and have the support of your voices of reason.”

The others laughed as Alfred reached over and clamped a firm hand on Leo’s wrist. “We shall keep him here if we have to wrestle him to the floor. Hurry up and get back, though, or the cards will go cold.”

Rieker snapped off a smart salute and, with a wink at Leo, walked out of the room.

*   *   *

“A
RE
you sure you don’t want to stay? It’s past midnight.” Leo stood on the steps with Rieker as they waited for his carriage to be brought around. The snow was still falling, the ground and trees covered in a frozen layer of white that sparkled as the temperature dropped.

“I’ve taken your money, Leo. I hardly want to push my luck with your hospitality, too.” Rieker laughed. “Besides, the snow is still falling. If I want to get home, I should go now.”

“Not just my money, but everyone else’s, too. Do you
ever
lose at cards?” Leo grumbled good-naturedly. “But, seriously, you do know you’re always welcome here. I miss having the chance to talk with you.”

“You’ve had all night to talk to me. What more could we talk about?”

“You’re not telling me something, Wills. I can feel it. And I suspect it involves Elizabeth.” Leo slid his hands into his pockets and raised his chin. “I don’t know what it is, but I
will
find out.”

“Well, let me know when you do. For now, I’m going home.”

Leo stood on the steps, watching the coach roll away into the night. Damn Wills anyway. He didn’t know any more now than when the evening had started. He crossed his arms against his chest to ward off a cold breeze and tapped his fingers as he thought. Ever since that bloody ring had gone missing, things had not been right.

Whether Wills liked it or not, he was going to get some answers.

Chapter Thirty-five

T
IKI
stood hidden among the trees in the center of Grosvenor Square. She shivered again, whether from cold or fear, she wasn’t sure. The snow, which continued to fall in a thick blanket of white, had quickly soaked through the thin soles of her boots as she’d walked from the station. Her feet ached from the cold. It had been easy to find Number 6 again, she’d just counted down the row, but it was hard to believe that Rieker owned such a magnificent home.

Across the street, the white brick town home stretched up three stories, its imposing entrance decorated with black columns and railings. The house looked like a fortress. Reluctantly, her eyes swept up to the two brick chimneys that stood on either end of the roof. She shivered at the thought of having to climb down into that small, dirty dark space. There had to be another way in.

The main entry was at street level, with four black steps leading to the front door. Stables were housed in the back of the building, and Tiki guessed that the kitchen was located between the two. The servants probably lived below the ground level in the basement. She eyed the second and third floors. Rieker’s room must be on one of those upper floors. That was where he would most likely pull the ring from his pocket.

A small wrought-iron gate enclosed the front courtyard of each home, since the buildings shared common walls and were joined together in a row down the street. She couldn’t just walk in the front door. She would need to go around the back and try to get in that way.

A clock chimed the hour of midnight in the distance. Rieker would surely be home soon. She needed to hurry.

A shred of doubt crept in. Maybe Rieker wouldn’t come home. She pushed the thought away. She needed to find a way in to wait for him. Whether it was tonight or tomorrow, or the next day, she would be ready.

On impulse, Tiki ran across the vacant street and pushed through the short wrought-iron gate to the entrance, the hinges protesting with a screechy groan. Her heart raced as she ran up the stairs and pressed the latch. She heard a soft
click
and leaned her shoulder into the door, giving a hard push, but it wouldn’t budge. The front door was locked.

Behind the house, Tiki approached the back entry through the alley, staying in the shadows of the trees as she drew near. The big double doors to the coach house were open, presumably waiting for Rieker’s return. She crouched behind a tree, watching the coach house for activity, but no one was about this time of night. Tiki took a deep breath and sneaked in through the doors. The black shadows within the stables swallowed her as she entered.

Tiki stretched her arms out and felt her way along the side of a coach parked in the garage, her boots quiet on the hay strewn across the floor. She could hear the shuffling snorts of several horses. She approached another door at the end of the large room and fumbled for the latch. With a deep breath, she turned the lever and pushed the door open a crack to peer in.

A harness room.

Leather bridles and reins in an assortment of sizes and lengths were hung neatly along the wall. The smell of tanned leather filled the air, and Tiki inhaled the fragrant scent as she eased her way through the room. She had taken riding lessons as a young girl, and she had loved every minute of it. The rich smell of the leather brought back fond memories.

She entered the town house through the back door and paused in a landing area. One doorway opened onto a pantry, another to a scullery. She tiptoed through the rooms, her boots tapping softly with each step on the hardwood floors.

“Sir, is that you?” a male voice called.

Tiki jerked through a doorway and pressed herself flat against the wall as the butler climbed the nearby steps from his apartment. She stood frozen, her eyes measuring the distance back to the door, trying to decide if she could escape should he spot her.

“Master William?” The butler’s footsteps came to a stop at the top of the stairs. He held a candle high to light the way, its flame casting wavering shadows against the wall. “Is that you?” The silence seemed to shout at Tiki. She held her breath, praying he wouldn’t see her dark figure hiding there.

“Bloody rats,” the man mumbled as he turned and went back to his quarters.

Tiki released a sigh of relief. She pulled her boots off and tucked them inside one of the cupboards, then tiptoed from the kitchen in bare feet. When she came to the entrance of the dining room, she stopped to stare. The room was immense.

Rugs that were a full centimeter thick were positioned under a huge, ornate table that Tiki guessed would seat twenty. Carved sideboards lined the walls, with beautiful potted plants in each corner of the room. Large paned windows covered one wall and looked out to a snow-covered garden. A chandelier, hung with teardrop-shaped crystals, sparkled and winked in the candlelight as though acknowledging Tiki’s presence.