A Debt From the Past (22 page)

They followed him to the drawing room and were offered drinks, which they refused.

‘Perhaps you would prefer tea?’ he asked.

‘No, thank you, sir. We won’t take much of your time.’

Beth watched Gresham carefully. He appeared wary, giving Dan suspicious glances from time to time, and she couldn’t help wondering if that was a guilty conscience. She was now sitting and so was Gresham, but Dan remained standing. He was a quiet man and could disappear into the background when needed, but at this moment she was seeing a different side to him. He was dominating the room, and there was something in his manner that said it would not be wise to make an enemy of him. She was extremely glad to have him on her side.

‘Well?’ Gresham cleared his throat. ‘What is it you felt I should know?’

‘Miss Langton has been told that a few of her regular buyers and their families have been threatened and told not to take her produce this year.’ Dan paused for just a brief moment and then said, ‘And the threats have been made in your name.’

Colour drained from Gresham’s face. ‘That is preposterous!’

Dan inclined his head. ‘That is why we have come to you. There are two men involved, and they have suggested that your estate will be able to supply everything needed. That does appear strange, does it not? Your estate is less than half the size of the Langtons’, and therefore could not produce enough to satisfy these buyers.’

‘Do you know who these men are?’ Gresham asked.

The man was putting on a show of being shocked by the news, but Beth could see it was false. He was not a good actor.

‘Not yet, but we will track them down. I will see that they are quickly put in gaol – and the man who hired them. Miss Langton has known these families all her life and considers them friends.’

Dan glanced at her; somehow she immediately knew what he wanted her to do.

‘Indeed, Sir Peter. Mr Edgemont is correct. They have always been a part of the Langton estate family, but not bound to us. They are free to trade wherever is best for them. That is not the problem. What I do not like – and will not tolerate – is that they are being forced to do something against their will in order to protect their families from harm. That is criminal.’ She sat back, feeling that she had said enough, leaving Dan to take over again.

‘So, you see our dilemma. This must be stopped for everyone’s sake – including yours, if you do not wish to be accused of this crime. Do you have any idea who these men might be?’

‘No, no! And what can be done about it if their identities are unknown?’

‘I will find them; have no fear about that.’ Dan smiled at Gresham. ‘That is my job.’

‘Oh, are you with the law?’ Gresham finished his drink in one gulp.

‘Something like that.’ Dan helped Beth out of her chair. ‘We have taken enough of Sir Peter’s time, Elizabeth.’

‘Thank you for seeing us,’ Beth said politely as they left the house.

‘Always a pleasure, Miss Langton.’

‘Do you think our visit will help to resolve this unpleasant business?’ Beth asked Dan as they cantered towards the gates.

‘We’ve made him aware that we are not going to let this matter drop, and that is enough for the moment. He will now have to be very careful, and I hope that will give us the time we need to catch these men.’

‘Don’t you believe he will now be frightened enough to withdraw his men?’

‘No. We shook him today, but he is sure we have no proof of his involvement.’

‘But that is true, surely? We are only surmising he is responsible.’

‘Are we, Elizabeth?’

She sighed, knowing she wasn’t going to get a full answer from Dan. ‘I have a house full of secretive men. Do you have any idea how frustrating and worrying that is?’

‘I know it is difficult, but I am asking you to curb your curiosity for a while longer, Elizabeth. This business with the buyers might turn out to be just what we need to put an end to James’s problem.’

‘I’ll try, but I will not tolerate anything that interferes with the smooth running of the estate. So, will you tell me what you want me to do next?’

‘We are going back to your house now. There is no point in visiting the other buyers; Masters will spread the word of our interest. We have to catch these men, because it will be the only way to remove this threat – and the only way to stop Gresham.’

Beth opened her mouth to ask another question, but Dan stopped her by pulling the horses to a halt. ‘Leave this to us. Just wait, Elizabeth.’

She sighed loudly in exasperation. ‘You are asking a great deal, Dan.’

‘Most young ladies would be grateful to be shielded from any unpleasantness.’

‘I am not most young ladies!’

‘Indeed you are not,’ he said, urging his horse forward into a gallop.

‘I thought the ladies would never leave us tonight,’ James exclaimed, closing the library door firmly and locking it. ‘That will stop them coming back in here while we talk. I thought I was going to have to carry Alice upstairs and make her retire for the night. The girls went reluctantly, but they didn’t make a fuss.’

‘What did you expect, James? They want to know what the hell is going on.’

‘So do we, Grandfather,’ Alex said, looking enquiringly at Daniel. ‘Tell us what your plan is, Dan.’

‘To catch these men and make them tell us who is paying them. Once we have proof it is Gresham, we will then be able to have him arrested. And then your promise to Edward will have been honoured, James.’

‘Not good enough!’ James exploded. ‘He’ll receive a mild rebuke and be set free. He’s guilty of blackmail and murder, Dan.’

‘That was thirty years ago,’ Daniel said firmly. ‘I told Edward it would be impossible to charge him with that now. In my opinion, the best we can do is to completely ruin his reputation.’

James was shaking his head. ‘From what I’ve heard, he doesn’t have a reputation of high enough standing to ruin. I won’t settle for that. There must be more we can do.’

‘Why not take his estate from him? It borders the Sharland acres. Be useful for your school, wouldn’t it?’

All eyes turned towards the elderly man sitting comfortably and swirling a large brandy around in his glass.

‘And how are we going to do that, Grandfather?’ James asked softly.

‘Catch these men, like Dan said, persuade them to talk and then make Gresham an offer he couldn’t possibly refuse. Once you have done that, I will take Alice and the girls to London, and we will spread rumours he will never be able to recover from.’

‘You’re a devious old man,’ Alex said, laughing and shaking his head in disbelief.

‘So you’ve said frequently. What do you think, James? Would you settle for ruining Gresham that way?’

James looked up at his friend. ‘What about it, Dan?’

‘I think Edward would approve.’

‘He would. But is it possible?’

‘It’s worth a try. We’ll all have to work together.’ Daniel let his gaze rest on each man in turn. ‘I’ll set out a plan, and you will have to do as I say. Our first task will be to catch these men.’

‘Absolutely.’ Alex raised his glass. ‘You give us the orders, and we’ll obey them, won’t we, Grandfather?’

‘I wouldn’t dream of doing anything else. Just as long as you include me in this, young man,’ the grandfather said to Dan. ‘I have a debt to settle with Gresham as well. If the blasted man hadn’t disappeared, this would have been settled years ago.’

There was a tap on the door, and the handle rattled as someone tried to open it. The men frowned, wondering if the women had decided to join them after all.

‘Your lordship!’ the butler called. ‘Mr Greenway would like to speak with you urgently.’

James hurriedly unlocked the door and opened it. ‘Sorry you couldn’t get in, Jenkins, but we didn’t want to be disturbed. Come in, Henry.’

As soon as the estate manager entered, Alex asked anxiously, ‘Are the pigs all right?’

‘Yes, sir, but Charlie came to me and said those two men are sneaking around again. They came just as the light was fading, and he followed them. They spent some time examining the barns and stables. When it got too dark to see clearly, he lost them. They might still be on the estate.’

‘Ah, hell! Where’s the boy now?’

‘I made him go home, my lord.’

‘Good.’ James sighed with relief. ‘I wouldn’t want him to get hurt. We’ll have to make a thorough search of every building. There’s no telling what they could be up to. It looks as if Gresham has stepped up his campaign against us.’

Dan nodded. ‘That’s what I thought he would do. A desperate man acts in haste and can make mistakes. This could be our chance. We are going to need every man we can muster for the search.’

‘Stanley, the footman, will help, I’m sure. Shall I fetch him?’

‘Please, Henry, but give him the choice. He doesn’t have to put himself in danger if he doesn’t want to.’

‘Understood, your lordship.’ The estate manager hurried out of the room.

Then Jenkins suddenly appeared. ‘I’ll help as well.’

‘Thank you, Jenkins, but I have a very important task for you. These men could be dangerous and I don’t want the ladies to be at risk should they enter the house while we are all outside. I need you and my grandfather to remain here and protect them. There are pistols in the desk drawer if you need them, Grandfather.’

‘You take those, James. Jenkins and I will be all right,’

‘We don’t need them. Dan has guns with him.’

‘Of course he has. How foolish of me to forget,’ the elderly man remarked dryly.

Henry Greenway soon returned with the footman. ‘I’ve explained the situation to Stanley, and he’s eager to help.’

‘Thank you.’ James turned to Dan. ‘What’s the best way to tackle this?’

‘We’ll have to split up to cover as much ground as possible. Move quietly and don’t call out to each other, and on no account are any of you to confront them on your own. Come to me and I’ll deal with them. I’ll stay in the area of the main barn.’

They all nodded agreement.

‘Can you fire a gun, Stanley?’

‘Yes, sir. I’m a reasonable shot.’

‘Right, you have one of mine and Alex the other one. The rest of us can arm ourselves with anything to hand.’ Dan glanced at each man. ‘And be careful! Let’s go.’

‘What is all that noise?’ Beth buried her head in the pillow and groaned.

‘Wake up!’ Helen ran into the room and pulled the covers from her. ‘Please, Beth. I heard gunshots!’

The urgency in her friend’s tone snapped Beth awake and she sat up. ‘Gunshots! Is that what woke me?’

‘Something serious has happened. I just know it!’ An agitated Helen started dragging Beth out of bed. ‘We might be needed.’

Beth opened her eyes wide for the first time and tumbled out of bed, hastily pulling on her clothes.

‘Hurry!’ Helen helped Beth fasten the buttons on her gown. ‘From the noise and activity downstairs, something terrible has happened!’

That wiped away the last of Beth’s sleepiness, and they both ran downstairs.

The scene that met them in the library was unbelievable. Dan, the grandfather and Jenkins were leaning over a man sprawled in an armchair – and there was blood everywhere. The man who had been hurt was James, and it looked very bad.

With a cry of distress, Helen pushed them all aside and placed her hands firmly over the injury in an effort to stop the bleeding.

‘Take charge, Helen,’ Dan said quickly. He turned and ran from the room.

‘Stop standing around doing nothing!’ Helen shouted at the men in the room. ‘Someone go and fetch the physician. Now!’

‘That hurts, woman!’ James gasped. ‘Get off me.’

‘Shut up and keep still. Do you want to bleed to death?’

Alice ran into the room and straight up to James, her face bleached of all colour. ‘Stupid, stupid!’ she cried. ‘Why couldn’t you leave this alone? I told you it would lead to dangerous trouble.’

‘Get out!’ he growled as soon as he saw her. ‘I don’t need another female who is going to make a fuss.’

Beth pushed the men aside, ignoring his outburst, and snapped out her orders. ‘Fetch me a pair of scissors, someone, and something to use as dressings. Has anyone gone for the physician?’

‘Yes – Stanley,’ the grandfather replied. He was standing beside his daughter and holding her hand to steady her. ‘He’ll be all right, my dear. I don’t think the bullet has hit anything vital.’

James wiped the perspiration from his face with the uninjured hand. ‘I don’t want a bloody doctor.’

Scissors were thrust into Beth’s hand. ‘I don’t care what you want. Let us tend you, or you are going to bleed to death.’

There was another muttered expletive.

‘And you can moderate your language, your lordship,’ Helen scolded.

‘Oh, for heaven’s sake, don’t go all formal on me. You know my name.’

‘Very well. Keep still, James, and let us cut away your shirt. We do not wish to add to your injuries.’

The scissors slice through the sleeve and across the shoulder of the elegant dress shirt.

‘Oh!’ gasped Alice. ‘That bleeding must be stopped.’

Beth had already made a pad of linen from the shirt and placed it on his arm. ‘All right, Helen, let us both press – hard!’

James clenched his teeth but said nothing.

Ten minutes later the bleeding had almost stopped, and Helen took the opportunity to inspect the wounds carefully, concentrating on what she had to do and not allowing fear for his life to come into her thinking. ‘Whoever did this meant to kill you. There are two wounds, and a bullet might still be in the shoulder.’

‘Then remove it!’

‘That would be extremely dangerous and not necessary now I’m here.’ The doctor hurried into the room. ‘I’ll need hot water, and everyone but her ladyship out of the room. I shall need her assistance.’

‘I shall stay,’ Alice declared.

‘No.’ Beth smiled to soften the refusal. ‘You are already distressed, and this will not be pleasant.’

‘Come, we must leave the doctor to do what is necessary.’ Alice’s father led her, still protesting, from the room.

‘I’ll see the hot water is sent in at once.’ Beth went straight to the kitchen and was not surprised to see the entire staff there, anxious for news and eager to help. Pans of hot water were already bubbling on the stove.