Chapter 21

Stranded in a foreign town with nothing but the clothes on his back, Matthew knew no other way to survive but to return to his old ways. He stayed in a blind alley near the market town, where he could easily blend with the locals while picking out his targets.

He'd resolved to go on with his life, but not a day passed that he didn't think about Arabella. Her images pervaded his dreams and consumed his waking hours. He imagined her reaction the minute she found out he was gone. He'd promised to stay, but he'd left her without a word. What would she think of him? It was likely that she hated him now. Not that it mattered. Sooner or later, she would return to her family, and when she reentered society, she would meet a man of her class, and soon forget about him.

Determined to put his misery behind him and get on with his life, he plunged into the bustle of the market town. As he pretended to jostle through the crowd, his hand unobtrusively made its way into some man's pocket, and a coi