Chapter 29

C hapter 29

I plunged into the river. The water swept over me, hungry and greedy, and then came the cold. I felt it to my bones, the shocking ice that enveloped me. The painting—gripped in my right hand—was torn away.

I rolled in the current, kicking my legs and flailing my arms. I needed air. I forced my eyes open.

All I saw was blackness. Vague shadows but no light. No moon or lantern or boat.

My arms tangled in my cloak, so I scrambled to release the clasp at my throat. My cloak disappeared into the deep, a floating wraith.

Fire raced through my veins. I could swim well enough to make it to the police boats, but I did not know which way the surface was. I was trapped in this endlessly swirling river.

I forced myself to focus, though my lungs already screamed inside me. I closed my eyes, then opened them again. There. Was that passing darkness a boat?

It was all I had.

I kicked, throwing my hands before me and propelling my body toward the shadow. Every inch of me was a battleground, my body fighting the cold, the panic, the fear.

I pushed myself, my skirts wrapping around my legs, my boots clinging like anchors to my feet. My muscles burned. My head grew clouded.

So close.

A numbness settled into my limbs, and they moved clumsily. I forgot what I was trying to do. Inhale , a voice inside me said. Inhale, and this will all be over.

Something tightened around my neck, a sharp line against my skin. I was tugged to one side. Was that ... a hand?

Then an arm came around my waist, strong and sure. I was pulled through the roiling waters and reaching depths.

My head broke the surface. I inhaled and coughed, water streaming over my face. I clutched at the arm around my waist, terrified of going under again.

“Verity.” Nathaniel’s voice was a broken sob in my ear. He pulled me closer, his free arm working wildly to keep us both afloat.

“Nathaniel,” I gasped. Relief poured through me, fighting the panic and dread that had overcome my body.

Men shouted from the boats nearby, and Nathaniel kicked, dragging me with him.

“I can swim,” I insisted, though my limbs felt weak and numb.

“I don’t care,” he said, his breaths coming in short, tight gasps. “I’m not letting go of you.”

The side of the police boat loomed over us, and arms reached for me. Someone pulled me from the water—and from Nathaniel, despite his words. I collapsed onto the bottom of the boat, water pooling around me. Two men I did not recognize hovered over me, unsure what to do.

The boat tipped again as Nathaniel pulled himself over the side, bringing another rush of water. He righted himself and stumbled to my side, dropping to his knees.

“Blast it, Verity,” he said, his eyes like midnight. “You’ll be the death of me.”

“I—”

He gathered me into his arms and held me against his chest so tightly I could hardly breathe, let alone speak.

“Thank God,” he whispered in my ear. “Thank God.”

I clutched him closer, my throat aching. My clothes were soaked through, and the chill night air pierced through me, yet I couldn’t feel it. My heart filled every inch of my chest.

“I could not have lived ...” he said into my hair, his voice cracked and faded. “I could not have lived if you had not.” He pulled back, and his hands roamed my shoulders and arms as if searching for an injury. “Your necklace,” he rasped. “It was a miracle, I swear.”

I looked down, and there hung Grandmama’s bezoar pendant, winking in the moonlight. I remembered the sharp tug around my neck, the murky hand.

“You grabbed the chain?” I said, dumbfounded. “That was how you found me?”

“Good fortune indeed.” He exhaled, shaking his head.

I gave a disbelieving laugh. “I shall never doubt Grandmama again.”

But he did not laugh. He only took my face in his hands, cradling my jaw as though I were priceless porcelain, the most breakable glass. His eyes shone, his breathing haggard. “It happened so quickly,” he whispered. “I thought I was too late.”

I grasped his hands around my face, holding him there even as tears streamed down my cheeks, hot against the dripping river water. “I am here,” I said fiercely. “You are here. That is all that matters.”

His lips pressed into mine. His kiss was desperate—boundless—yet he tethered me to reality, to life and love. He kissed me with all that he was, with every good part of him, and I clung to him. I needed him.

Like I needed air or food or shelter, I needed Nathaniel Denning.

A distant shout barreled through my thoughts, and we parted with a jolt.

“Denning!” came the shout again. “We have them both secured.”

Drake stood aboard the wherry a dozen feet away, holding a lantern. I could see two river policemen standing guard over Allett and Barlow kneeling with their hands bound. Barlow glared across at me, but Allett’s expression was empty. Broken. He simply stared at the river.

Where The Woman in Red had sunk.

Where I’d nearly drowned as well.

Elizabeth stepped forward into the light of Drake’s lantern and grasped the side of the wherry. “Are you all right, Verity?” she called, her voice desperate.

“Yes,” I managed, though I’d begun shivering from the cold. “Alive, at the least.”

“Return Miss Harwood to her home,” Nathaniel ordered Drake. “Then take the prisoners to Bow Street. I will join you shortly. I must see to Miss Travers.”

“I am certain you must.” Drake grinned but turned with a parting wave to follow Nathaniel’s instructions.

The river policeman sitting behind me spoke. “Where to, sir?”

“Take us back to the Wapping station,” Nathaniel said. “We can take a hack from there.”

“Take a hack to where?” I struggled to sit up, and Nathaniel helped me to the middle bench beside him. “I want to come to Bow Street.”

Nathaniel blew out a breath. “You nearly drowned, Verity. I am taking you home.”

“But I—”

“Please,” he said. “Please let me take care of you. You need dry clothes, a fire, and a bed. There will be time tomorrow to go to Bow Street.”

His eyes held mine, so fervent and true, and my fight melted away. “All right.”

He wrapped a long arm around me, though it did little good. We were both soaked. One of the river police offered his coat to me, which I gladly accepted.

“Did you find my sketch?” I asked Nathaniel as the men began rowing us back up the river, the lights of the city once again encompassing us. “Of Allett?”

“Yes,” he said. “I could not believe my eyes. Drake and I left Rawlings and the patrol at the park and went immediately to Allett’s home. I had little hope he would be there, but luck was with us.”

“How so?” My teeth chattered.

He pulled me tighter against his side. “We were returning to Bow Street for reinforcements when a man stopped us. He told us what happened at Harwood House and that he saw you go after Allett and Miss Harwood. He followed you enough to see Allett was heading for the docks, then he came for us. We went straight to the Wapping station, and the river police agreed to help us search for you.” His voice cracked, and he turned his face from me. “I thought it was a lost cause. I thought we would never find you.”

I looked up at him, starlight casting the side of his face silver and black. He held me in his arms, but the fear of the last hour had yet to release either of us.

“When I saw you,” he whispered, “it nearly broke me. I would have done anything to get to you. To see you in such distress and to be unable to help—”

I slipped my hand into his, raising our joined fingers to my lips and kissing them. I did not reassure him. I knew precisely how difficult it was to rid oneself of awful memories. But I could hold his hand. I could stay at his side, and we could help each other through this.

Then I realized what he’d said. “The man who found you. What was his name?”

Nathaniel shook his head. “He wouldn’t tell us, though he said he was a friend of yours. He dressed strangely, in the brightest colors and patterns.”

I stared at him. Wily? It had to be. But ... he had helped Nathaniel find me?

“You know him?” he asked curiously.

I nodded. “I believe I do. Where did he go?”

Nathaniel shrugged. “Once he gave us his information, he vanished.”

“Ah, yes,” I said. “He is rather good at that.”

“And you won’t tell me who he is?”

My lips curled into a grin. “You can hardly expect me to give up an informant, Sir Chivalry.”

Behind my levity, my mind whirled. I could not believe it. Wily had risked a great deal in aiding Bow Street. They knew his face now, if not his name. Why had he done it?

Nathaniel’s arm tightened around my waist. “I suppose I can settle for knowing only some of your secrets.”

I knew he was teasing. But my heart pattered more quickly, and my mind agreed. I was ready. “One day, Nathaniel Denning,” I whispered, “I will tell you all my secrets. Because I know you will keep them for me, and I know you will love me even still.”

He said nothing for a long moment. Then his throat bobbed, and his eyes met mine. He knew what I was finally saying.

I trusted him. I loved him.

“I will,” he said hoarsely. “I swear I will.”

He kissed me again, so sweetly and lightly that it could have been a brush of the wind against my lips. Then he held me close as we skimmed over the river, the brilliant stars lighting our way.

The gentle light of dawn woke me. I rolled over in bed, peering at the mantel clock above my banked fire. Six o’clock in the morning.

Memories from last night rushed into my mind. Allett. The boat. The painting. Nathaniel. They felt like snatches of a dream, warped and unreal.

Nathaniel had brought me home last night, I remembered hazily. I could see Mama’s white face in my mind’s eye and her relief when I’d assured her I was all right. Nathaniel had explained everything to Mama as he’d guided me inside. Then he’d bid us farewell, hurrying to go change before heading to Bow Street. He’d made me promise to sleep a few hours.

Four was sufficient, I decided. I threw off my covers and went to my armoire, selecting a deep-blue walking dress. I had to learn what had happened after we’d parted from the others on the river. I had to speak with Elizabeth and reassure myself that she was unharmed.

And I had to see Nathaniel, because every inch of me yearned for him.

After dressing, I looked in my mirror and touched the bruise on my cheek where Barlow had hit me, then the red welt on my neck. I’d never believed in any of Grandmama’s superstitions before last night, but I could not deny that Nathaniel’s grabbing my necklace had been serendipitous. Or perhaps something more. All I knew was that I certainly wouldn’t laugh at her beliefs in the future.

I slipped from my room and started for the stairs but stopped when I heard footsteps in Mama’s room. I pushed open her door. “Mama?”

She stood near the fireplace, one hand cupped around her neck. She smiled wearily as I stepped inside. “Good morning, dear. How are you feeling?”

“Perfectly well,” I said, though my body ached with exhaustion.

She sent me a wry look. “Of course.”

I moved to stand beside her, welcoming the warmth of the fire. I still felt a chill in the center of me, though I hoped it was only the memory of the icy waters rather than any lingering physical effect. “I am sorry to have worried you last night,” I said softly. “I wish I could claim ignorance of the danger of our plan, but ...”

“But you knew it very well.” Mama sighed. “I stayed awake all night, Verity, thinking of you. Praying for you. And I have come to a realization.”

I could not look away. “Yes?”

“I realized that I have been selfish,” she said. “I’ve wanted to keep you safe for my sake, but I have never considered the lives of all those you can help. Where would Elizabeth be now if not for you?”

She wrapped her arms around me. I slid my hands around her waist and held her tight, my eyes already welling with tears.

“You are a wondrous person, Verity,” she whispered. “I am so proud of you and all you have done.”

“Thank you, Mama.” My voice cracked.

She pulled back and straightened my spencer. “Now, off with you,” she said with a knowing smile. “No doubt Mr. Denning is anxiously waiting.”

My cheeks pricked with heat. “I meant to tell you about us. Only, before last night, I wasn’t entirely sure what we were.”

Mama laughed. “I saw how he acted when he brought you home, Verity. It was perfectly clear what you are to him. But what is he to you?”

I kissed her on the cheek. “The world, Mama. He is the world.”

I left the house with a smile. Mama was right. I could be a force for good, use my talents to help others. And no matter what obstacles I faced, I knew that knowledge was something I could hold to for the rest of my life.

I tied my bonnet and set off down the street. The sun was just rising, reaching toward me with its warmth and light. I tipped my face up and closed my eyes briefly. Considering how black last night had been, the sun felt particularly soothing today. I’d been so lucky. How differently things might have gone.

“Dropping your guard, Miss Travers?”

I jumped a little as Wily fell into step beside me, dressed in a garish orange jacket.

“You ought to keep a weather eye at all times,” he said, hands in his pockets as he matched my pace. “Never know when some scoundrel will surprise you.”

“Indeed.” I managed to recover. “Like last night when a certain scoundrel aided in the capture of a wanted criminal?”

“Odd, that is.”

I wouldn’t let it go that easily. “Really, Wily, what were you doing at Harwood House last night?”

He shrugged. “After turning in Higgs, I was somewhat invested in the outcome.”

“ You informed on Higgs?”

“Of course,” he said with a saucy grin. “As if the Runners ever would have found him. In any case, I was watching Bow Street last night when I saw you and Denning leave. Got my suspicions up, that did, and I followed you to the house. I saw the whole thing.”

“And you found Nathaniel and told him.”

“Aye.”

I paused there on the street, and he did as well. “Thank you,” I said quietly. “I know what you risked by helping me.”

“Ah, well.” His cheeks, already ruddy, flushed even more. “I owed you.”

He had, but that did not mean I couldn’t be appropriately grateful. He’d likely saved my life—and Elizabeth’s—when he’d decided to intervene.

“I also happened across these,” he said, holding out a hand. The sunlight winked on the familiar gold setting of a pair of pearl earrings.

I stared, then looked up at him. “Wily, you are positively sentimental. Jack will never believe it.”

“Then let it be our little secret,” he said with a wink, dropping the earrings in my palm. “I’ve a reputation to uphold.”

“Very well,” I said. “Friends?”

Wily chuckled. “If you like, Miss Travers.”

“Verity,” I said with an answering smile. “My friends call me Verity.”

He tipped his hat. “Until next time, Miss Verity.”

With a jaunty nod, he melted back into the early morning crowd. I smiled to myself as I tucked my earrings into my reticule. Jack had been right. I’d needed to learn for myself whom I could trust, and I had.