“I pray she is all right after this. She… she is a blessing my grandfather would have wanted and adored relentlessly, and I was a fool not to have appreciated her as she should have been. I shouldn’t have given in to my fears and let my grief turn my heart to stone. I just need one chance to do better. To be better…”
Agnes’ godmother was still patting his shoulder, but he quickly forgot about her as he noticed Agnes’ brows furrow and her eyes flutter open slightly.
“I am sure you will, dear. You both are meant for each other –”
“She’s awake,” he breathed, staring right at his betrothed. The other women followed his gaze, and when they saw for themselves that he was indeed telling the truth, they rushed over to her side and began fussing over her, overjoyed over her wellbeing. Agnes, however, kept her eyes on Silas.
He contemplated stepping towards her but stopped as her voice reached him first.
“Did… did you mean what you said? Earlier? All of it?”
Silas nodded slowly, balling his hands into fists by his sides, needing to feel grounded as he spoke.
“I meant it all. Henceforth, I will do everything in my power and beyond to be the man you deserve, every day for the rest of our lives.”
“For the rest of our lives… that is a long time, Silas.”
He agreed easily. “I know. Still… that is what I wish for.”
She stared at him silently for a moment and then spoke,
“I will be the judge of whether you are capable of doing that. And depending on what my verdict is, we may or may not have our wedding in two days after all.”
Her words were fair, and she was worth agreeing to whatever terms she might issue. He had put her through so much, and the least he could do was prove himself trustworthy, and if he fell short, it was within her rights to call off their marriage. He would respect her decision – he owed her that much.
“All right. You have yourself a deal.”
She shook her head but accepted his help to get her off the floor.
“No more deals or contracts or clauses. Just… do your best.”
He intertwined his fingers with hers and gave her hand a small squeeze, promising softly,
“I will.”
The constables arrived moments after that, two of them going to arrest Lewis while the other supervised the Safield siblings – who had been successfully captured by Silas’ footmen. The inspector came forward and asked to speak to the Duke concerning the matter, and he nodded, nudging Agnes towards her godmother. He had started to follow them, then he walked in the other direction towards Lewis and retrieved the antidote from his pocket.
Then, he went back to Agnes and handed it over to her.
“This is the antidote for Scar. Please administer it to him right away.”
She glanced at the small vial in her hand and looked back up at him.
“Are you sure you wouldn’t rather do it yourself?” she questioned uncertainly.
He nodded, “I’m sure. I trust you. You have always done what’s best for him ever since you first met him that evening in the rain. I know that he’s safe with you.”
She dropped her gaze back down to the item in her hand and quietly said,
“All right. I’ll give it to him right away.”
“Thank you,” he told her sincerely, then walked forward and offered his elbow to his grandmother. “You should come with me, Grandmother. You need to hear this, too.”
She didn’t question him; she just put her hands on his elbow and let him guide her towards the constables. Retelling the story felt as though he was back in the carriage again, scared and scarred at the sight of his grandfather, bleeding before his eyes. Except this time, he wasn’t alone. This time, he had answers he had sought out for months after the accident. Neither of the culprits could look at Silas or his grandmother while he relayed thenecessary information as best as he could – also mentioning the attempt on Agnes’ life two weeks ago.
At the mention of that incident, Lewis spoke up and disclaimed his involvement, stating that it had been Marion’s idea, as she had hoped that they could scare Agnes away to keep the Duke from obtaining the rest of his inheritance.
His outburst earned him a look of disappointment from the Dowager Duchess, and he fell silent again, joining the others in hanging his head in shame. The inspector promised that they would be severely punished for their crimes. As they dragged the perpetrators away, Agnes returned to them with a smile.