The temptation was there. Ian had known from the start that this was exactly what Mayfield had called it. A travesty. And a folly. Two smitten fools.
Again Annie's face was in his mind. This time the image was from the day he had put his body between hers and the angry mob, pressing her against the wall to protect her. He would have given his life for her without thought.
Not that the gift of his life, irreparably shortened by her father's actions, would amount to any grand gesture.
His unbesmirched reputation, as Mayfield had called it would be a far more meaningful sacrifice. Perhaps that was the same conclusion that Doyle, in his simplicity, had come to about his own reputation. Whatever Travener's motives, Ian found that he couldn't leave. Travesty or not, he would see this out to the bitter end.
