Chapter 29

Three days had passed since Annabel and Rosie had disappeared. They had now officially been declared missing.

That morning, Dominic found himself in his study, his brow furrowed as he leaned forward in his chair, the weight of the situation bearing down upon him like a heavy burden. Timothy stood before him, his expression mirroring Dominic's unease.

They had spent the past three days tirelessly searching for any trace of Annabel and Rosie, combing through the streets they frequented and questioning their friends and acquaintances. But despite their efforts, there had been no sign of the missing girls.

"It's been three days, Tim," Dominic remarked, his voice heavy with worry. "No one has seen them or heard from them. What do you think?"

Timothy's features were drawn with concern. "I've spoken to everyone we could think of," he confirmed. "But there's been no sign of them anywhere."

Dominic's jaw tightened as he absorbed the gravity of the situation. To be quite honest, he had hoped that Annabel had simply forgotten to let Reginald know that she would be visiting her sister. But the sister had not heard from Annabel in weeks.

That meant that no planning of any visitations was taking place. That meant that Annabel didn't take Rosie on some fun filled trip. They were probably taken against their will. Only one person came to mind.

"What about… what's his name?" Dominic said, gesturing at Tim with his hands. In all honesty, the man's name was irrelevant. But it would probably help to know who it was they were searching for.

"George Thompson," Timothy reminded him. "I've been following up on some leads, but so far, nothing concrete. The man is really good at hiding."

"He ought to be." Dominic gritted his teeth, barely able to control his anger. "He knows what awaits him upon return, the scoundrel."

Timothy nodded. It seemed that both men pondered the same thing, but Dominic was the first one to speak. "Do you think it is possible he was involved in their disappearance?"

"Possible and even probable," Timothy said gravely. "I see no other reason for kidnapping a mother and a young child. Maybe for ransom, if they knew that she was involved with Lord Stanhope, but it's been three days and no ransom note has been delivered yet. Whatever happened to the girls, we need to find them and quickly. Time is of the essence."

"I know," Dominic sighed. He knew that every moment spent searching for answers brought them closer to uncovering the truth.

"Keep digging," Dominic instructed, his voice resolute. "We need to find the girls, and then we need to find George. Let's hope that one will lead us to the other."

Both men got up at the same time, and Dominic patted Timothy's shoulder in a friendly manner. "I really appreciate all your help, old boy."

"Always," Timothy nodded with a smile. A moment later, he was gone, leaving Dominic to deal with the aftermath of a revelation that brought no news.

He was to see Reginald that afternoon, and he was sincerely hoping that Timothy would have some good news. Three days was enough to investigate and find out something valuable, something that might lead them a step closer to finding either the girls or George. However, that was not the case.

Dominic hoped that would not make Reginald despair. He could see him falling into that dark abyss day after day. Dominic knew how that felt, but he didn't feel close enough to Reginald to truly speak his mind.

He could only do that through Catherine, and for the time being, that was enough. Reginald had come to accept the fact that they were all on the same side, fighting for the same cause, but that didn't mean that Reginald had forgiven him for what he had done. Dominic knew that he would need to earn both Reginald's as well as Catherine's trust, and he decided to do it little by little.

***

It had been three days since Catherine could sleep properly. She kept thinking about Annabel and Rosie. Where were they? Who were they with? Were they all right? All those questions had the potential of frightening answers. It was better not to think about them at all, but that was an impossible feat.

That evening after dinner, Dominic had bid her goodnight. She realized that in all of that commotion, she still hadn't spoken to him about the way he ended their last kiss so abruptly. It just seemed inappropriate to discuss something so small in comparison to what was happening to her brother. Still, in light of everything, she couldn't sleep, and that night was no different from the two before.

She decided to go to the library. She tried to convince herself that it was because a book was an insomniac's best friend, but the real reason was that Dominic was also in the habit of spending sleepless nights there. Secretly, she had been hoping to stumble upon him.

The corridors were dark, barely illuminated, but Catherine knew the way well. Her footsteps echoed softly against the polished wooden floors. As she entered the library, her heart skipped a beat at the sight of Dominic's silhouette outlined against the dancing flames of the fireplace. He was sitting in an armchair by the fire, engrossed in a book, his features illuminated and made even more handsome by the soft light.

For a moment, Catherine stood in the doorway, content to simply watch him in silence. There was something undeniably magnetic about the way he was completely absorbed in his reading, his brow furrowed in concentration. Summoning her courage, she cleared her throat softly, announcing her presence. Dominic looked up, a warm smile lighting up his face as he saw her standing there.

"Catherine," he said gently, setting aside his book. "I wasn't expecting to see you here so late."

"I couldn't sleep," she admitted, crossing the room to join him by the fire. "I thought a quiet moment in the library might help."

Dominic nodded in understanding, gesturing at her to take a seat opposite him. As she settled into the chair, he regarded her with a gentle curiosity.

"Are you all right?" he asked, his tone filled with genuine concern.

Catherine hesitated for a moment before nodding. "Yes. I mean, with everything that is happening to Reggie, I would feel selfish if I said something was wrong."

He raised an eyebrow. "Well, is there?"

She swallowed heavily. "I… perhaps this isn't the best time to be discussing these things. We have more important matters to deal with right now."

"That is probably true," he nodded in a reassuring manner. "And we are doing everything in our power to solve those problems. You know that we are. But sometimes, the solution is out of our hands until the right moment for it comes. Only then is it available to us. In the meantime, perhaps we can focus on something else, something… as you said, less important?"

Now, his book was completely forgotten. She was the center of his attention, just the way she liked it.

"I… I don't really know where to begin," she admitted, biting her lower lip.

He smiled. "At the beginning?"

She chuckled. It actually helped. She cleared her throat a little, then she continued. "I wanted to talk about the last time we kissed."

"Oh." That was the only thing he said. She wondered if that was a bad thing. Regardless, she decided to see it through until the end now that she had started that conversation.

"Why… why did you run away from me?" she said it a bit awkwardly, but the truth was that was how she felt about it. He ran away from her and then they neglected to discuss it.

He didn't say anything at first. He inhaled deeply. She wondered if he was searching for the right words.

"I didn't run away from you," she started to clarify. "I ran away from myself."

She frowned. "From yourself?" That didn't make any sense. Still, she wanted to give him a chance to explain as much as he wanted, until everything was crystal clear.

"Yes," he admitted, leaning forward, closer to her. "I… I know that all of this started off badly. No wonder that Reginald doesn't trust me."

"It's not that, it's just…"

"I know you are trying to help, but it's all right," he assured her. She could tell that he was finding it difficult to choose the right words, but he wanted to share everything with her. She waited patiently as she listened intently. "He has every right to be suspicious of me, of my intentions. And there is also something I haven't told you…"

"What is it?" she asked, fearing the answer.

"The initial reason that I had to marry so fast was my late father's will," he explained. "It stated that I had to get married before I turned thirty and I have two years left to bear an heir."

"What would happen if you failed to do that?" she inquired, waiting for her mind to process this information.

"I would lose all my wealth, my estate, my properties," he said matter-of-factly. "All I would have would be my title, but that in itself means little without the accompanying wealth."

"I see," she said, nodding. "So, basically, you could have married anyone?"

He nodded. "The will didn't stipulate. I had no limitations in that respect. I just had to be married, that is all."

"So… why me?" she wondered. "Why go through all of this when you could have married any lady of the ton? I know there have been many eager contestants for that position."

"There have?" he asked mischievously.

"You know there have," she smirked, fighting off a smile.

"Well, I only had eyes for you, Catherine," he said tenderly. "I still do. I know I went about it the wrong way, very wrong way, but I had to rush, and I didn't want to make the mistake of marrying anyone else. It had to be you." He paused for a moment, then he continued. "I know I tend to be unbearable when it comes to the things I want. I… I focus and I don't stop until what I want becomes mine."

"But you do know that you almost pushed me away with this?" she asked, shaking her head.

"I know," he nodded. "That was the price I was willing to pay for the rest of my life, to devote my existence to making amends for it, but with you by my side, instead of someone else I would never be able to love."

Love.

At first, she wasn't sure she heard him right. Her mind buzzed with excitement as it processed the word, finally accepting it as real. He did mention it.

"Love?" she echoed.

"Yes," he smiled without a second of hesitation. "It is love that I feel for you. I have no other way to explain it. It has been drawing me to you so effortlessly, so powerful that I wasn't able to resist you since the first time I laid my eyes on you."

A part of her was still afraid of trusting him. Was this all real? Was this the real him, or would he change again? She couldn't know. She had to take a risk and trust her instincts. That was how she had been leading her life, trusting her heart.

It never steered her wrong. But then again, she had never been in love. Her heart had led a solitary existence up until that point in life. Now, she was wondering if her heart was to be trusted when it came to someone who had already forced her into something she didn't want then.

She decided to trust her heart, as she always did. If it turned out to be a mistake, it would be a mistake created out of love, not hate. That was the moment when she knew that she had to be his. Neither of them would be escaping what they both felt was their fate, their destiny.

She gazed into his eyes, and she could see a reflection of her own love, of her own longing that yearned to be satiated right then and there. There was no more waiting. She had to give in.