A Spy Unmasked (Entangled Scandalous) by Tina Gabrielle Read Free Book Online Page B

“If you would accompany me, miss?” he said as he led Rose away.
    Once they were alone, Robert ushered her into his study, closed the door, and motioned for her to sit in a chair before a pearwood desk.
    Sophia sat and took in her surroundings. Several documents on the desk bore official seals, and she recognized them as letters patents granted by the Crown for new inventions. Engineering drawings and blueprints were pinned on a corkboard on the far wall. In the corner of the study stood a Pembroke table containing what could only be described as various innovations to inventions—a handlebar assembly of a velocipede, an electric battery, a miner’s lamp, and good Lord, were those iron handcuffs?
    “Thank you for coming.” Kirkland sat in a leather chair behind the desk. “I see you find my collection of interest.”
    “Indeed,” she said.
    “I petitioned the Society for membership. I need to acclimate myself to the work of its members and offer a few of my own ideas.”
    “You thought of your own inventions?”
    He smiled. “Don’t look so surprised. I told you I studied engineering at Oxford.”
    She understood he would have to immerse himself in the group at the house party, feign interest in other’s works, and be able to talk intelligently about his own inventive ideas. His background would surely aid him.
    “I have something that belongs to you.” Opening a desk drawer, he placed a battered, leather-bound book on the surface.
    “My father’s ledger! You did manage to steal it before I walked in on you in Viscount Delmont’s library.”
    He merely chuckled.
    “What else did you learn?” she asked.
    “Wendover and I have both studied the ledger. Your father did not mention Lord Delmont or the Inventors’ Society. The ledger contains numerous chemical formulas and documents his failed attempts at producing a poisonous gas indiscernible to human smell and taste.”
    She frowned. “Papa was a brilliant chemist. He wasn’t attempting to produce a poisonous gas, but a harmless one that could be used by surgeons for their patients during surgery. But like many inventions, the object of father’s initial work yielded unexpected results and an entirely different product.”
    “It’s a loss he cannot finish his initial work.”
    “I hope to complete the formula.”
    “You are a chemist?”
    “I am not as brilliant a chemist as my father, but I am not entirely ignorant either, and I hope to finish many of his mechanical inventions as well. His ledger will assist me.”
    “You are full of surprises, Sophia.”
    Was he complimenting her or criticizing her for dabbling in what many would deem a man’s work?
    “There’s something else.” He withdrew a small gold object from his pocket and placed it on the desk. “Do you recognize this?”
    She picked it up and turned it over. “It’s a gear,” she said, frowning.
    “Did your father own one?”
    “He owned many gears. But none like this. Is it solid gold?”
    “It is.”
    “Why is it significant?”
    “It was found as a watch fob on the other bodies. I believe it has something to do with the murders. A sort of commemorative token upon admittance into the Society.”
    “To my knowledge, Papa never owned a small gold gear. What does it mean?”
    “It’s my job to find out.”
    “My father was a member until he was forced out by Viscount Delmont. I found entries in one of Father’s journals where he suspected some type of corruption in the group. Soon after, he wrote that he had a heated argument with Delmont and was forced out, but he never gave specifics. I hope this information is useful to you.”
    “It is.”
    Kirkland leaned forward and rested his forearms on the desk. His tailored cotton shirt stretched tightly across his broad shoulders, emphasizing a sinewy strength. “The ledger is not the only reason I asked you here today. We need to think of our history.”
    “Our history?” she asked, bewildered.
    “A believable story of