Andrea Pickens - [Lessons in Love 02] (28 page)

"For God's sake, Edmund, let her at least sit down first before you ply her with questions," snapped Wrexham. He hadn't failed to notice the dark smudges under her eyes and the tightness around her mouth.

"Yes, I am quite sure he has fallen for it." She took a seat near the fire and gratefully accepted the cup of steaming tea that Lady Alston offered. "There is no doubt in my mind that he and his son will be there tonight."

"But you seem... nervous, Mrs. Proctor," said Max slowly, as he watched the cup shake slightly on its way to her lips.

"I suppose I am a bit on edge," she admitted. "Though it is not the sort of nervousness you mean. It's just that, well, I have thought of this moment for so long and now, one way or another, it all will be over shortly. It seems... almost unreal."

"It will be very real when the Runners clap those two scoundrels in irons and drag them off to the gaol," growled Wrexham. "Bingham and I shall see to that. You may rest easy that your role is done. You will be on your way to Covent Gardens when we spring the trap."

Bingham began to pace the room. "Is everyone very clear on what the plan is tonight? We wouldn't want any last minute mistakes to scare Sandhill and son off."

All heads nodded.

"Still, it cannot hurt to go over it once again. Max?"

"I am to impersonate Father and escort Aunt Olivia into our carriage at nine-thirty sharp. Then we will stop at Mrs. Proctor's townhouse and I will escort her into the carriage as well, so that anyone observing us will see the evening proceeding exactly as Mrs. Proctor described. We are to drive off in the direction of Covent Gardens, and travel for at least twenty minutes, in case anyone is observing our actions. Then we are to double back and go to Lord Bingham's rooms to await word from you."

"Very good. Leo, you will be stationed in the garden, for that is by far the most likely spot they will break in. I will be a street away with the Runners—"

"Why is Leo alone?" demanded Allegra. "It is too dangerous—"

"I'm afraid it can't be helped," said Bingham. "There is too great a risk they would notice more than one person trying to hide in that small space. And it is I that have a friend at Bow Street so I must stay with them."

"I shall be well-armed, and at the arranged signal, Edmund and the Runners will be on the scene in a matter of minutes," said Wrexham in a low voice. "There is nothing to be concerned about."

Allegra bit her lip but said nothing further.

"Any other questions?"

None of them spoke.

"Well then, there is nothing more to do than wait."

* * *

Lady Alston adjusted the silk shawl over her shoulders one last time. The clock on the mantel of began to chime the half hour as she picked up her reticule from the tufted sidechair and hurried into the entrance hall. She turned at the sound of footsteps behind her.

"Really, Max, you needn't go to quite that length to obscure your features—from a distance you look near enough like your father without having to disguise yourself like a highwayman."

A muffled sound came through the thick scarf wrapped nearly up to the eyes. Eyes that were not at all the steely blue of her nephew's, but rather a deep hazel.

"Max?" She peered closer, then uttered a word that neither her brother nor her husband would have guessed she knew. "Is that you, Robert?"

The young under footman's eyes grew even wider at the sound of the oath. "Y... es, Your Ladyship," he stammered, falling back a step or two. "Master Max said I was to assist you tonight—we have practiced and I am sure I can do it without a mistake. He also said I was to tell you not to worry and... " The scarf had slipped down to reveal a slightly trembling lower lip. "...and—you are not going to turn me out, are you?"

Lady's Alston's expression softened considerably. "No, Robert, of course I am not going to turn you out—though I should dearly love to get my hands on my nephew right now!" Her lips pressed together as the clock fell silent. After a moment's hesitation, she placed her hand on the young man's arm. "Come, we must be on our way."

A short while later, the carriage rolled to a halt in Mount Street and a tall, elegantly dressed gentleman emerged and mounted the stairs with slow, deliberate steps. The door opened at the first sound of the heavy brass knocker and Allegra appeared silhouetted in the muted light of the entrance hall.

"Thank you, Knowles. I shall be staying with my cousins, so you and the rest of the staff may have the evening off," she said a trifle loudly.

The butler bowed low in thanks as she took the gentleman's proffered arm and descended to the waiting vehicle.

"Where is Max?" she demanded as soon as the door shut and horses began to move forward.

Lady Alston shook her head. She turned to regard the cringing young man on the opposite seat.

"I... I don't know, my lady. Truly I don't."

Allegra look out an exasperated sigh. "I might have known something like this would happen. Max has been chafing for days at being excluded from taking an active part because of his age."

"Well, there is nothing to do for it now," said Lady Alston grimly. "Let us hope he does not do something foolish."

Allegra threw herself back against the squabs and stared at the curtained window. Suddenly she turned to the under footman. "Give me your walking stick."

The startled young man complied without hesitation.

"What do you—" began Lady Alston as Allegra rapped on the trap. "Allegra! I don't think..."

"Leo must be warned," she said as the carriage pulled to halt near the corner of one of the quiet side streets. "You must continue on, as planned." Her mouth thinned into a tight smile. "Don't worry—I have a bit of practice in skulking around, remember? Everything will be fine."

Then she opened the door and slid out into the darkness.

Chapter 13

She pressed up against the ivy-covered bricks and pulled her cloak tighter, grateful that she had thought to choose one of a dark hue. Her eyes searched the shadows but there didn't appear to be any sign of movement. It had only been dark for a short while and no doubt Sandhill and his son would wait to be sure the servants had all departed or were safely tucked away in their beds before attempting to enter the townhouse.

The faint sound of a boot scraping gravel caused Allegra's head to snap around to her right. The outline of a figure moving stealthily towards the narrow door set into the garden wall was barely evident against the gloom of the deserted alleyway. Though she could not make out a face, the set of the shoulders and the coltish gait was all too familiar. She was about to step out of her own hiding place when another shape materialized just behind the first one.

"Stop right there, else I'll slit you from ear to ear."

Allegra was close enough to hear the rough whisper, and to see the glint of the knife that was now pressed up against Max's throat. The speaker's other hand had him firmly by the collar of his jacket.

"You've picked the wrong house to case out tonight," continued the voice. "Now take your hands out of your pockets very slowly—you wouldn't want my hand to twitch now, would you?"

Max had enough sense to do exactly as he was told.

The blade stayed hard up against the jugular as the other man quickly searched the lad's clothing for any concealed weapon. Satisfied that there was none, he ordered Max to walk on to the gate where he shoved him hard up against the weathered wood, then paused as if to consider his next move.

"You've just provided me with a rather ingenious way to throw off the authorities for this night's work, my unlucky friend. When they find your corpse inside the garden they will think that a band of thieves quarreled over the loot and came to blows. I imagine they will spend months scouring the stews of Southwark and Seven Dials, but to no avail," he said with a nasty sneer. "The question is, do I cut your throat now or later? The chances are slim that anyone would stumble over your body...."

Allegra didn't wait to hear anymore. She couldn't be sure that Wrexham, hidden somewhere inside the garden, had any notion of what was taking place. Slowly she began to inch her way around to come at Max's assailant from behind, careful that the soft kid of her slippers made no noise along the broken ground. Lord Sandhill's son, confident that he had things well in hand, had relaxed his guard slightly. The knife dropped a inch or two away from flesh as he continued to taunt Max with his coming fate. The blade then flashed up in the air to punctuate a point and Allegra saw her chance. Grabbing the raised arm, she yanked it back with all her strength and knocked the young viscount off balance.

Max lost no time in reacting as the grip on his collar loosened. He spun around and drove a knee into the groin of the other man. With a grunt of pain, the viscount doubled over and collapsed to the ground as if shot.

Allegra eyed the writhing figure at their feet with great interest. "Where did you learn to do that?"

Max straightened his jacket. "Father taught after my first meeting with this bastard." He couldn't restrain himself from delivering a kick for good measure into the ribs of the fallen man. "Not entirely gentlemanly, but effective. Er, what are you doing here?"

"I might ask the same of you, but explanations had better wait. The viscount is not likely to be alone—"

The dull click of a pistol being cocked sounded from close by in the shadows. "How very astute of you, Mrs. Ransley. However, explanations are very much in order." Lord Sandhill stepped out from behind a small tool shed. "And pray, not a word of alarm or the lad will get a bullet in his head. For your own sake, I hope my son has not been badly injured by your attack—he does not take lightly to opposition, especially from females."

"I am well aware of that," said Allegra evenly. "But at least he will not be attempting to rape anyone in the near future."

Sandhill's eyes narrowed, then he peered more closely at her face. "By God!" he exclaimed in a low voice. "You! I thought I had seen you somewhere before. You are no relation of Wrexham's. You are that mousy vicar's daughter." His expression became even harder as he mulled over his new knowledge. "Get up, Richard."

His son gave a low moan and pushed himself to his knees. Sandhill reached down and grabbed hold of his shoulder, hauling him to his feet.

"You hellbitch, you will pay for this," croaked the viscount, his form still slightly bent over. "When I finish with you, you will wish you were dead." He turned his malevolent gaze from Allegra to Max. "And you, you sodding little urchin, I'll—" His words stopped abruptly. "Why, this is the same bastard who was spying on me in Yorkshire! What the devil is going on here?"

Sandhill's expression became even more serious as he eyed Max. "Who are you?"

Max gave a faint smile and remained silent.

"Richard," snapped Sandhill. "Take up where you left off if the bloody fool won't speak up."

The knife pressed hard enough against Max's throat that a drop of blood appeared. The lad only clamped his jaw more firmly shut.

Allegra had no illusions about the seriousness of the threat. "I should think twice about murdering Lord Wrexham's son," she said quickly.

A low oath escaped Sandhill's lips. "Wrexham's son," he repeated. With a deep frown, he signaled his own son to hold up, then began to stroke his chin as he mulled over the new bit of disquieting information. After a few moments, however, his face became less grim.

"I have no notion of how you sussed things out, but bad luck for you that you did. Who else is involved in this crude little trap you have set?"

His words were directed at Allegra.

"Don't tell them a thing!" said Max.

"My dear Mrs. Ransley, surely you do not think me so dimwitted that I would believe only you and the boy are here tonight? If you do not wish to see young Master Sloane's throat slit this instant, you will tell me your plan."

Allegra bit her lip as she shot an anguished look at Max. "Lord Wrexham is armed and waiting in the garden. The plan was to allow you to take the necklace, then the earl would surprise you and keep you under guard while Max went to alert the constables. I was to be another witness to your misdeeds." She omitted mention of Lord Bingham and the Runners waiting nearby. Perhaps by some miracle...