“I think so,” Ruth agreed.

As Matthew rose from his seat and moved to assist Faith and Ruth with their wraps, a man came rushing into the taproom and hurried to join the men at the bar. He was welcomed warmly by his friends and immediately began to relate some bit of news to them that caused quite a furor among those gathered there. His thoughts still on Noah, Matt paid scant attention to the man until he heard Radcliffe’s name being bandied about.

“That can’t be true!” Someone doubted his story.

“It’s true, I tell you!” the man declared vehemently to the others as the conversation grew excited at the bar. “I just heard it myself!”

“Come on, Gerald,” another sneered. “I don’t believe it!”

“Lord Geoffrey Radcliffe is dead! He was shot! Murdered tonight in his very own home!” the man insisted unwaveringly as he assumed a most pompous pose. He felt himself to be most consequential since he was bearing such important news, and he could hardly wait to relate the rest of the information he’d learned to his eager comrades.

Matt froze at the news, and his eyes suddenly glowed fervidly as his features grew strained and pale.

“Matthew?” Faith and Ruth, too, had overheard the conversation, and Faith glanced concernedly from her husband to the group of men.

He gave an abrupt shake of his head to silence them as he strained to hear all that was being said.

“Do they know who did it, Gerald?” someone else asked.

“They most certainly do. The authorities arrested him right on the spot. They caught him with the murder weapon in hand,” Gerald informed them.

“Who was it?”

Gerald’s expression reflected his delight in delivering the next bit of information. “The murderer is none other than Lord Noah Kincade.”

“Lord Kincade?” A chorus of voices echoed the name in stunned surprise.

Matthew had almost sensed what Gerald’s answer would be, and as he heard him pronounce Noah’s name, a gut-wrenching pain seared through him. Without conscious thought, knowing only that he had to get away from the inn as quickly as possible without attracting any undue attention, he hurriedly escorted Faith and Ruth outside into the cold darkness of the December night. It wasn’t until they were safely ensconced in a hired conveyance and on their way home that he spoke.

“As soon as I drop you at the house, I’m going to find Noah.”

“Shall I send word to Ben?”

“There’s no reason. What happened at Radcliffe’s had nothing to do with Ben and the others. It was private and personal,” he explained, and then suddenly a curse erupted from him as he felt close to violence. “Damn! What the hell happened between Noah and Geoffrey tonight?”

“The only way you’ll find out is to go to him,” Faith urged. “I’m sure he’s innocent. Noah would never kill someone like that.”

At her naive belief that Noah was incapable of savagery, the vivid, bitter memories of Noah’s deadly duel with James Radcliffe surged into mind.

“I pray to God you’re right,” Matt ground out, hoping against hope that Noah was innocent, and believing deep in his heart that he was. For, though his brother had been discovered with the murder weapon in his hand, Matt knew for a fact that Noah had gone to Radcliffe’s unarmed. If anyone had introduced guns into their confrontation, it had been Geoffrey.

“I know I am,” Faith told him solemnly. “He’ll probably be freed by morning. Just wait and see.”

Despite Faith’s hopeful encouragement, Matt felt that all was not as simple as it seemed. The situation must have looked very incriminating for Noah to have been arrested on the spot, and he wondered if there had been any witnesses to the shooting.

“Mother and I will be waiting up for you,” Faith said supportively as the carriage drew to a stop in front of her small house.

“I don’t know how long I’ll be…” he said distractedly as he climbed out and helped his wife and mother-in-law down.

“Don’t worry about us. Just go to Noah and help him.” Faith kissed him softly before going inside.

Matt strode back to the carriage and climbed in, ordering the driver, “To the jail, and fast.”

“Yes, sir.”

It was just after one in the morning when Matthew stormed into the jail and demanded to see Noah.

The jailer, a burly, mean-looking man, eyed Matthew disinterestedly before replying with only the barest essence of civility, “There’s no visiting allowed this time of night.”

“That’s ridiculous! I’m Lord Matthew Kincade, and I’ve just received word that my brother has been arrested. I demand to see him so I can find out about all these trumped-up charges,” Matt declared indignantly, calling upon his most imperious manner.

“Lord Kincade’s brother, eh?” The guard sized him up more critically, judging his worth. “Well, I suppose I could bend the rules for a nobleman…for a price.” He added the latter under his breath.

Disgustedly, Matthew tossed the man several coins and then watched as the jailer tested each coin for value.

“I don’t suppose it would do much harm to let you in for a few minutes.” He gave Matt a sly grin as he pocketed the money and then crossed the room to take the keys to the cells down from the hook on the wall.

“Thank you,” Matthew replied stoically, wanting more than anything to knock the guard’s smile right off his fat, smirking face.

After checking Matt for possible hidden weapons, the jailer took up a lamp and led him through a narrow passage to the back of the building. Unlocking a heavy barred door, he shoved it wide to allow Matt to pass through.

“Five minutes. No more. I’ll be waiting right out here.”

“You’ve been most kind.” Matt gave him a pained smile as he stepped into Noah’s private hell.

Noah was lying on the cot in his cell when he heard footsteps coming down the hall toward him. He knew the hour to be late and could only wonder at the reason for the disturbance, since the guard had told him that he would be allowed no contact with anyone until the following day. The sound of Matthew’s voice filled him with hope, and when the door swung open, he rose quickly from the squalid bed to greet his brother.

“Matthew!” They regarded each other in stricken silence for just an instant before embracing.

“What happened?” Matt asked worriedly when they broke apart. He regarded his brother seriously and read in Noah’s troubled gaze all the strain and anxiety he was keeping carefully under control. “We waited at the inn for hours…”

“I know. I’m sorry, but they wouldn’t allow me to send any messages tonight. How did you find out?”

“We accidentally overheard some men talking about Radcliffe’s death and your arrest. Are you all right?”

“I’ll be fine once I get out of here,” Noah told him wearily as he began to pace the tiny cell. “I’ve demanded to be taken before the magistrate. If everything goes well, I’ll plead my case tomorrow afternoon and then be released.”

“I don’t understand how any of this happened.” Matt shook his head in confusion. “The rumor was that you had a gun…?”

Noah nodded, his distress with the whole situation reflected in his expression. “I did, but it was Geoffrey’s. He’d just gotten word of James’s death and was convinced that I’d murdered him. He had the gun and was ready to use it. I fought him for it, and it went off while we were struggling.”

“Weren’t there any servants around?”

“Oh, yes. His faithful man, Bartley, was there. He’d refused to let me in initially, so I made the mistake of pushing my way past him. Geoffrey sent him for the authorities, and by the time he got back, the fight was over. He told the constable that I’d broken into the house, and then when they found me holding the gun, standing over him…” Noah rubbed the back of his neck in a weary, almost defeated, motion.

“Did you tell the arresting officer that it was self-defense?”

“Yes, but with Bartley standing there claiming it was the opposite…well, my argument didn’t seem very persuasive.”