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"Uht be better?" Philip risked a glance at Christopher’s face and winced "In any case, if Lady Winter and Lord Eddington were the cause, and I were to learn that they spent very little tied in any lascivious activities"

"A reasonable conclusion"

"Yes, well …" Philip cleared his throat "Therefore, since the events would o to Lady Winter and ask her to clarify"

"She has never once told me a secret of hers," Christopher said "That is our primary point of contention"

"Wel …she did write to you She can"

Christopher snorted "If only that were true She caood-bye"

"But you do not have to say it in reply, do you?" Philip asked

"No However, it would be best if I did For both of us"

Philip shrugged You know better than I That was his protégé’s e But it was tempered by an unspoken admonishment His lieutenant did not believe he had exhausted all of his options, and Christopher supposed he was correct about that

"Thank you, Philip," he dismissed "I appreciate your concern and candor"

Philip ress with obvious relief

Christopher rose and stretched, his body aching from muscles strained by Maria’s passion By God, the woasm of his life, but the climax had been bittersweet He had felt her withdrawal even as she opened herself as she never had before

"Maria," he breathed,to the here he could look out at the street below She had come here to this cesspool in search of hilass, the heat of his skinthe pane, the unanswered queries in hishim

There was no real need for the answers Their relationship, such as it was, had nowhere to go It was best that it end so ement should make it easier to do what he ewick

Why pursue the connection?

A knock sounded behind hiewick has coh

It took hilass and return to his desk He nodded his readiness and waited for the viscount to enter

"My lord," he greeted dryly, refusing to rise

Sedgewick’s lips whitened at the insult and then he sank into the seat Philip had recently vacated, crossing one ankle over to the opposite knee as if this were a social call

"Do you have any information for me or not?" the viscount snapped "You and Lady Winter were both gone a fortnight Surely you learned soether"

Sedgewick’s gaze narrowed "You were not?"

"No" Christopher smiled as the othera pinch of snuff from the box on his desk with deliberate leisure "It has been years since the deaths What are a feeeksthe peer with a trained eye, Christopher huher position within the agency, perhaps? And the length of tirows short is my patience It is not one of my virtues"

"Do you have any virtues?"

"More so than you" Sedgewick rose "A sennight, no o, and I will find another to take up the task you seem not to be capable of"

Christopher knew he could end this now He could promise to deliver a witness ould implicate Maria But the words would not come "Good day,the foppish viscount, who then left the room in his profusion of lace and jewels

A week Christopher rolled his tense shoulders back and knew the tined to investigate the girl named Amelia would return with their reports Beth hopeful y would have gleaned so fro man he had stationed in Maria’s house could be call ed back to share what he had learned

Christopher had pockets of information to tap It was not like him to delay the reception of news But then he had not been acting like hiht he first had sex with Maria