Rawley shook his head. “He won’t. I’ve been filling his ear with crew complaints with the boilers for the past few days. It will not come as a surprise.” He grinned, a lopsided quirk that she knew foretold mischief. “And besides, I have a fun little explosion planned.”

“An explosion!”

“Contained, Little Bee. Don’t you worry. Just enough of one to be convincing. Your duke has an uncanny attention to detail.”

“He’s not my duke,” she said without much heat.

Rawley only lifted a skeptical brow at that and then glanced over to Cora who was busy packing her things into a small portmanteau. “Whatever is going on with you and Thornbury is another problem for another day. In the meantime, Cora will be with you. She has all the information about where I will meet you in Paris. From there, we’ll await your brother’s instructions.”

Bronwyn bit her lip. “Is Courtland very angry?”

“He’s not happy, I’ll say that.” Rawley shrugged. “It’s more for your safety than anything else. That and the fact that your mother has been hounding him with fear of your absence. You know how he feels about the Marchioness of Borne.”

Bitterness flooded her. “She’s only worried about how she will look to her friends if I’ve gone and ruined myself. Trust me, it’s not out of any actual concern for my welfare.”

“Regardless, Ashvale wants you safe.”

She let out a breath. This was a good plan, and it would do until she could figure something out for herself and possibly get in contact with Wentworth. However, contradictory emotions were at odds in her body when it came to the duke—the thought of deceiving him felt wrong. “Rawley, do you think I can trust Thornbury?”

He didn’t answer for a bit, but then he shook his head. “I’m not entirely sure. The duke is a good man, but he’s England’s man first. His duty will be to the Crown and the Home Office. Your brother trusts him but says he will follow the law to the letter, and that will be his downfall.”

“How so?” she whispered, heart sinking. In other words, he would turn her over, no matter his own true feelings on the matter.

“Just because he’s a man of integrity doesn’t mean everyone else is.” Rawley sent her a compassionate look as though he could guess what his blunt words were doing to her. “And he’s no longer active. He will not be able to help you from within. Thornbury might want to do the right thing, but his faith in that office is misplaced considering the corruption running through its ranks.” He lowered his voice. “There are those, like Palmerston, who secretly support the American war for trade reasons, and others in the Home Office who disagreed with Thornbury’s arrest of Sommers.”