“Mr. Thomas Cresswell might not truly hold the title of prince, but the was perfectly fine. To me, he'd always be the king of my heart.” ― Kerri Maniscalco, Hunting Prince Dracula. CressWorth drawing.

Audrey Rose from Stalking Jack the Ripper.

Cressworth…

A smart, dramatic and smooth flirt of a gentleman teasing his way into the heart of a strong willed woman, holding her ground in a world of men.

Hm…

Hmm…

HMMM…

Case closed.

When we were young

Audrey Rose was so frustrated. Not only had Thomas missed dinner with her father and aunt, leaving her to fend for herself, but he also hadn’t even sent word of his absence. Did he forget? Did he get distracted with his journal at home? Did he find a lead in the case they were working?

Was he hurt?

“You’re going to wear a hole in my carpet, niece.”

Audrey Rose stopped pacing and looked to her uncle who had, at some point, come in and taken a seat with a stack of books and was already half lost in whatever passage he was reading.

“It’s just not like him to not send word. It’s even more unlike him to not waltz in and make a witty remark to make a scene.”

She sat on the loveseat adjacent to her uncle. Tapping her fingers on the arm of the chair and fiddling with the folds of her skirt.

“I think what you mean is, it’s not like him to go on a lead without you. Your husband has been known to get a little carried away with experiments as well, you don’t know what he’s up to.”

Of course, she knew that. How many times had their miscommunications almost cost them their lives? Let alone it had cost them numerous evenings out, but they always had remembered shortly after and sent word that they were safe, just distracted by something case related.

Maybe she should have stayed at their home. But returning there after dinner to an empty house when she had no idea where Thomas was made her feel sick. So, she came to their home away from home. If his current absence had any indication he was on to something and would come here to deliver any new news.

She was spiraling. She knew she was being irrational, overprotective. But after they had been through they both knew better than to make each other worry like this.

“Did I ever tell you about the social season from when you were five?”

Audrey Rose started at Uncle Jonathan interrupting her thoughts.

“Pardon, Uncle?”

“You see, the season when you were five your mother was involved in many different committees. This was the final year she was active before your father started encouraging her to take it easy because of her heart.

She had become very close to a few of the women she worked with, one had a child around your age. You two were a disaster at every event but they insisted on bringing you both. I think they delighted in it, seeing what life you could breathe into these usually stuffy affairs.

You, of course, were the ringleader. ”

“Sounds like something my mother would do,” she said with a smile. While Lady Malina Wadsworth didn’t mind playing the game of the London political scheme, she much rather preferred to put her efforts into causes that touched her heart. However, it was strange that she couldn’t remember these evenings. “What ended up happening to the other child?”

Uncle Jonathan shifted in his seat, “Oh he came back the next season looking for you. But that was also the last year his mother was very active as well, for she also had declining health.”

“Oh, that’s terrible.”

“It was, she died around the same time your mother did. Maybe a year or two apart.”

He stands, leaving his book on the small table in between us and goes to one of the cabinets beneath the bookshelf. He shifts some papers around until he stands and takes a deep breath.

“You know that I knew you and Thomas did not meet by accident. I knew you two would be remarkable not only because of your shared interests but your personalities. Thomas needed someone who could go with him head to head, you needed someone who challenged you but also looked out for you.

You needed that relationship from when you were children back.”

Audrey Rose furrowed her brow. When they were children?

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There was none of that “he loved me in spite of” nonsense. Thomas saw who I was—flaws and all—and I was more than enough for him, as he was for me. We needn’t complete each other; we complemented each other. He and I were whole on our own, which made us so much stronger when combined than two symbolic halves coming together to create one. Our bond had double the strength.

—Kerri Maniscalco, Capturing The Devil

Audrey Rose from Stalking Jack the Ripper.