Bedford Street Brigade 01 - Where the Lady Belongs by Laura Landon Page B

with Quinn. Only the Koh-i-Noor diamond separated them.
    “Four more days,” Quinn sighed. “The Great Exhibition closes on Saturday. We couldn’t have made it four more days without disaster striking?”
    “Guess it wasn’t in the cards,” Mack answered. “Now we either find our killer, or go down as failures.”
    “You’re full of all kinds of good cheer, aren’t you, Mack?”
    “I don’t see too much to be happy about. A man is dead, and we don’t know why.”
    Mack was silent for a moment, then said, “Round up Hugh, Jack, Briggs, and Roarke, and bring them here. We’ll need their help.”
    Quinn nodded, then left. Less than an hour later, he returned with the four former investigators in tow. They made a rotating schedule to guard the exhibit for the next four days, then Mack walked to the door. “Briggs and Roarke, you two stay the night. And keep a sharp lookout. The rest of you, stay until the Exhibition closes in a few hours, then stop by my Bedford Street house. We’ve got a lot to figure out and not much time to do it. The longer our killer is on the loose, the less chance we have of finding him.”
    Then Mack left the area. The diamond would be safe. He didn’t doubt it. Every man there had proved over and over that he was an expert in every aspect of security. But this was different. This was a crime. One with no motive. No evidence. And more than a hundred witnesses—none of whom saw anything. Except the woman in the green-and-white-checked gown. Instinct told him she saw something but wasn’t brave enough to speak with him.
    Mack hailed a hack, which took him to 33 Bedford Street, and dismounted when he reached his home address. During the ride he thought of nothing except how he might find this mysterious woman.
    Every detail of how she looked refused to leave his memory. Her features became more defined. The color of her hair and eyes. Her narrow waist and full bodice. Her elegant bonnet with yards of netting tied beneath her chin. If only he had a name to go with her face. If only he had one clue as to who she was and where he could find her.
    He made his way up the front steps that led to his modest yet elegant house. His butler, Harper, opened the door before he reached for the knob.
    “Good evening, sir.”
    “Good evening, Harper. Would you ask Cook to fix a late supper? There will be three extra guests.”
    “Of course, sir. And you have a guest,” Harper announced before Mack could walk away from him.
    “A guest?”
    “Yes, sir. She’s in the parlor.”
    “ She? ”
    “Yes, a young lady. And she seems quite upset. I’ve sent for tea. It should arrive shortly.”
    “Thank you, Harper.”
    Mack crossed the foyer in long strides, anxious to see who this guest might be. He could only hope.
    He hesitated a moment as he reached the door, then opened it. What he noticed first was the green-and-white-checked gown.
    The bonnet was gone. Harper had undoubtedly asked for it when she arrived. But everything else about her was as he remembered. Thick auburn hair loosely framed her face, and her deep, deep brown eyes were still filled with fear. She was as he’d pictured her before, except up close she was far prettier than he’d realized from a distance in the Exhibition. Her complexion was clear and creamy, her lips full, and her cheekbones high and noble. And for the first time in his life, Mack Wallace was completely taken aback by a woman’s beauty.
    “Mr. Wallace?” Her voice wrapped around him like a warm blanket on a cold night.
    “Yes. And you are?”
    “Miss Cora Lane. We saw each other at the exhibit.”
    “Yes.” He stepped into the room. “Are you all right?”
    She hesitated before she spoke. “Yes, but I’m frightened.”
    Mack walked across the room until he stood close enough to see the golden flecks in her eyes. “What are you afraid of?” he asked.
    “I saw the man who fired the gun into the crowd. I can recognize him.”
    “I see,” Mack answered.