Free Sari Robins - [Andersen Hall Orphanage 05] by The Governess Wears Scarlet Page B

Reggie, he knew how to strike someone where it hurt.
    When Abigail realized what her brother had done, she’d begged him to return the crest and make away, fearful of what Lord Byrnwyck would do to him. She knew that if it weren’t for her foolish mistake with Phineas, Reggie would never have gotten so angry and dug himself a hole so deep. She needed to get Reggie out of trouble.
    But Reggie wasn’t ready to make amends. Instead he’d drawn a picture of the crest burning in a raging fire and had it delivered to Byrnwyck Manor, signature and all.
    In that single irrational act of revenge, Reggie had become a fugitive from the law. And he’d been one ever since.
    Lord Byrnwyck had had a warrant issued for Reggie’s arrest and had set the constable on him.Reggie ran off in the middle of the night, leaving Abigail frantic with anxiety.
    Thwarted, Lord Byrnwyck had set a price on Reggie’s head. He’d hired Bow Street Runners to track Reggie down. He even tried to throw Abigail in jail as an accomplice. It was only Jan and Warren’s staunch intervention, swearing oaths that Abigail had been with them all along and had no notion of her brother’s activities, that had saved her. That, and the fact that they’d told the magistrate that they’d never serve him dinner at their inn again if he didn’t do what was right.
    Throughout this whole ordeal, Abigail never heard a word from Phineas. She’d wondered what he knew, but like so many other questions in life, that one would have to go unanswered.
    Still, Phineas’s betrayal haunted her. How could she have loved someone so unworthy? How could she have been such a fool? How could she trust a man not to dupe her or hurt her when her judgment of character was so clearly wrong?
    So she’d allowed her girlhood dreams of love and marriage and a family to dissolve into mist, to reside with the unicorns and dragons and fairy godmothers that she no longer believed in. And so her heart had grown harder, and her nights lonelier.
    Images of the masked rescuer rose in her mind’s eye.
    Could he be a kindred spirit? Lonely, searching for…what? What could drive a man to roam the streets of London at night in a mask?
    “Where are you?” she whispered, wondering if he had a home, a wife…
    Nay, something about the man screamed solitude . Besides, he made for a much more appealing hero if he was tormented and lonely and…
    Abigail straightened. Perhaps he was disfigured and that’s why he covered his face. Was he burned in a fire? Wounded by some terrible tragedy? Born with a horrible birthmark?
    Her heart went out to him. The poor man! No wonder he refused to show his face. He probably had a fascinating story of pain and redemption. Her imagination painted a dark and brooding picture. Very romantic.
    She would never know, though. He certainly wasn’t about to share his life. She’d probably never see him again. So where was the harm in thinking about him? In dreaming about him? In having a little fun to pass the time?
    Leaning back into the bench, Abigail allowed her mind to drift, creating a hero from the masked rescuer, one who won her love through his bravery, integrity, and selfless sacrifice in the protection of others. Woven in with those traits, he had to have the most important quality of all—he had to love her unconditionally and forever.
    She sighed, watching the boys. “I swear if a man like this exists I’ll eat my own stockings with nary any salt or pepper.” She chuckled to herself, knowing that that day would never come.
    For men like her hero existed only in the world of fantasy and imagination. None was flesh and bone. And even if such a man existed, he wouldn’t want the likes of her. Her mind drifted back to the masked rescuer.Would they meet again? If so, how? Even though she knew it was based in fantasy, her heart warmed toward him.
    If I can get closer , what will I find? she wondered.
    Suddenly she very much wanted to find out.

Chapter 8
    S ighing,