His Michaelmas Mistress (19 page)

Edward smiled. “Did they really? Well, then, come on inside, and we shall call for some refreshments for you.”

“Has Julia been down to see you today?” Freddie asked.

Edward frowned. “She was here earlier to pick up Ruby, but they haven’t been back yet. Now that I reflect upon it, they’ve been gone a little longer than I had thought was necessary. I don’t want to think the worst, but…maybe we should go and check on her.”

“Where did she and Ruby go?” Freddie asked.

“Julia wanted to go to Wilton Park to fetch a few frocks,” Alice said calmly. “And now that I think of it, Edward, you are quite right, she should have been back by now. She told us she wouldn’t be long...and usually when Julia gives a length of time, she sticks pretty close to it.”

“I know,” Freddie muttered, sighing heavily. The thought of the poachers entered his mind. What if there had been more of them? What if Julia had run afoul of them?

Tiny and Lucky had come up to stand behind them.

“I think we shouldn’t tarry for long, mates. I think we need to hasten to Wilton Park. You…mayhap, you and Cyril should stay here, Clarence. And Father, I think you should remain as well, with Hamish and the rest of your retinue.”

His father snorted loudly. “Did you think you’d butter me up by calling me Father, Freddie? You shan’t issue orders to me and have me obey them. No, indeed. If you think there is trouble on the horizon, I will go and face it with you. I am not afraid.”

“I never said I expected trouble,” Freddie said.

“You didn’t have to say it. It is written plain as day across your face, and the fact that you are trying to shield us all, only reinforces my suspicions. I know why you want these young lads to stay behind with their relations, but I shan’t listen to you like a good little soldier. If your beloved is in trouble, I am going with you.”

“So am I,” Edward said quickly. “If Julia is in a scrape, I shall be there to help her out of it. I wish the Lovett Girls would get over their ability to land smack dab in the middle of danger. Of course, I’m certain that she’s merely dilly dallying by taking her own sweet time looking through all of her frocks,” he chuckled, attempting to make light of the situation.

Freddie looked into Edward’s blue eyes. He was just as worried as Freddie was. Julia was a dependable sort of person. If she said she was going to be back in a specified amount of time, then, she was going to be back within about five minutes of the time she gave.

Lewis and Micah emerged from the house.  “Doc, how do you feel?” Freddie asked.

Lewis shifted uncomfortably. “I feel like there is something in the wind,” he admitted. “We shall go and have a few horses saddled for us. We are not all going to fit into that carriage.”

Julia hadn’t ever let Freddie down until now.

“I shall be, but a minute. I only have to fetch a pistol,” Edward said. “Do you need anything, Freddie?”

Freddie shook his head, and opened his coat to show Edward what he concealed within. Edward’s eyes widened. “There is more on my person that you can’t see, sir.”

“I understand. I suppose your time with The Angels of Death has conditioned you to be prepared for anything.”

“Aye,” Freddie said.

“Oh, aye,” Tiny interjected. “Freddie is a walking bloody armoury. But then, I’m almost as bad.”

“So am I,” Lucky admitted. “We never want to be caught with our trousers down, eh, lads?”

“Right,” Freddie said.

“I wouldn’t mind seeing Wilton Park,” Clarence started.

“You won’t charm me, Clarence. You stay here, where it is safe. Your Aunt Alice would probably love the pleasure of yours, and Cyril’s company, and since Lewis and Micah are here, you will be able to meet their wives.”

“Aunt Alice? Oh, yes,” Clarence said. “I suppose…I guess I can stay behind this time, and become reacquainted with all of my cousins, but one of these days, people are going to have start treating me like a man. I am not a boy anymore.”

“I know, you aren’t Clarence, but the sort of people I have a hunch we shall have to deal with…well, they aren’t the kind you’re accustomed to dealing with.”

“If you lads are anything like my sons, I expect you are a wee bit peckish,” Alice said, catching Freddie’s gaze. She smiled at him, and started walking back toward Lark Hall, just as Edward emerged from it. “Would you boys like some plum cake? Or I could have some sandwiches made up for you. If the weather holds, you can go picking blackberries with the children later.”

“Oh, that sounds like jolly good fun. I do like blackberries,” Cyril said, falling into step behind her. Artemis and Athena barked, and followed Alice back into Lark Hall.

“Tell your men to stay behind, Father,” Freddie said.

The Duke looked at him. “They can be of help, Freddie. They know how to handle themselves in a fight.”

“Aye, but my men don’t know how to work with them. We have our own ways of doing things, and I think we should go on, alone.” At his words, Lewis and Micah rode toward them on horseback. The grooms had really made haste to saddle two horses for the men.

“How bad do you think it could be?” Edward asked softly.

“Julia might just be taking longer than usual to pick out her frocks—but somehow, I doubt it. I think we’re going to have to deal with poachers…and this time, they’re going to be a hell of a lot more violent than Enoch Smith and Madge were.”

“So…I guess we fight fire with fire, eh?” Tiny asked. “Ah, it’s going to feel good to be able to undertake another mission.”

Freddie remained silent, as he climbed back into the carriage, and Tiny and Lucky mounted their horses, and rode ahead of the carriage with Lewis and Micah. All he cared about right now was Julia. He couldn’t think of her in the clutches of the sort of men that were a part of the gangs that operated out of London.

If they’d hurt her…if they’d touched one hair on her head, he would make them all die a slow death.

Julia opened the secret door that led into the Billiards Room.

She and Ruby crept into the room with Alfie bouncing around happily. Fortunately, the large room was empty, save for Tobias and Charles. They wouldn’t have to use their pistols, and she really didn’t want to use them unless they had no other choice, because the noise they made, would alert the entire household. She prayed that not all of the servants were in on this scheme, because the Cook and her kitchen staff hadn’t seemed the sort. But then, she supposed it took all kinds.

She walked toward Charles and Tobias. They sat in chairs and were tied up. Their backs were to her, and they might not have heard them open the panelling and might not have even heard them step into the room.

She touched Tobias on the shoulder, and he jumped in his chair. Walking around so he could see her, she put her finger to her lips. She was going to ungag them, but she didn’t need them talking too loudly. She removed Charles’s gag first.

“Where the bloody hell did you come from?” Charles whispered, as Ruby attended to the Duke. “You have to go back to wherever you came from, and hide there until help comes, Julia. The men running this ring are hardened criminals. They are not to be trifled with. They don’t even flinch when it comes to having to kill. They are all quite mad. You should see the hardened glint in their eyes. They are mean and cruel, and are probably, as we speak, making plans to have some fun with you and Miss Massey, and those two pistols you are carrying will only do so much.”

“I know,” she whispered. “One of the maids warned us. She told us that they would stop at nothing, and that they had all gone to Bedlam. She also told us that they killed Mr. Browne.” She couldn’t fathom why Mr. Hargreaves had even allowed her to go up to the Scarlet Bedchamber. Had he had a good chuckle thinking about what he would do to her and Ruby once they came back downstairs? She couldn’t make sense of any of it, but then, people that had gone barmy rarely made a bit of sense.

“That’s why we are in this mess,” Tobias sighed heavily. “Charles became curious and wandered off, while I was talking to Mr. Hargreaves, and he discovered the body, laying out in the Gardens,” Tobias explained.

“Oh, Charles,” she sighed. “You always have to stick your nose where it doesn’t belong. I had hoped you had somehow grown out of that trait. I see you haven’t.”

“Men rarely change, Julia. I had a feeling you’d show up today, I was right. I needed to see you and throw myself at your feet. I still want you, Julia, and I still have hope that you will see the error of your ways.”

She groaned. “You have to stop thinking about me, Charles. You must. You have to move on. I shall never see the error of my ways, because…because there is nothing wrong about the love I feel for Freddie,” she sighed, and stood up.

Tobias rubbed at his wrists, and stood up and almost fell back down.

“Damnation, this bad leg of mine, is really acting up today. I…I fear I might be a burden to you three.”

“We are not leaving you behind. If that is what you are hinting at,” Julia said.

“Indeed we are not,” Ruby said.

She looked over at Alfie. The little dog sat right where the secret door was located. Even though the paneling was back in place, he knew that the door was there. He was a smart little thing.

“Terrific. Be it on your heads, then, girls. I take it you came through a secret passageway?” Tobias asked.

“Aye,” Julia said. “This old house has many secrets.”

“Thank God for its secrets,” Charles said. “You don’t happen to have a few more of those, do you?” he asked, looking at the pistols.

She nodded at Ruby, who showed them the case sitting in her basket. “Oh, you two are gems,” Charles said, readying the pistols for him and Tobias. “You ladies lead the way, and we shall follow.”

Julia nodded her head briskly at them. “I…I don’t know if we should try and make a run for it…or if we should stay hidden until help comes. The pistols are limited, and well, I don’t want anyone getting hurt while we are trying to get away.”

“You mean hide like the priests used to do?” Charles asked.

“Aye,” she said.

“Is there enough air for us in there?” Tobias asked.

“I think so,” Julia said uncertainly. “By this time, someone must have noticed that I haven’t returned. They are bound to send help, and I can only pray that Uncle Edward was savvy enough to go and enlist Micah and Lewis’s help because I fear he is quite out of his depth here.”

“Did Lord Prescott and Lord Spaulding go with your Freddie?” Tobias asked.

She nodded her head, as the hidden door slid open and revealed the secret passageway.

“If we are truly fortunate, maybe Freddie and his mates have returned. They will know exactly what to do to unnerve these bastards,” Tobias said. “Lord Prescott alone, has enough tricks up his sleeve to make them all feel as if they’re going to be blown from here until Kingdom Come.”

Hope surged within her. If only that would happen. If Freddie had returned, their salvation was at hand…if he hadn’t…she didn’t know what would happen.

She had never needed Freddie so much in her entire life. If he rescued her from this, she would marry him tonight!

*****

“If Julia knows of the peril she is in,” Freddie said, as they gathered round and started to plan how they would approach Wilton Park. “If she knows she is in trouble, she’ll attempt to make her escape through the secret passageways that the house has.”

“Julia doesn’t panic when she is in danger, she isn’t that sort. She will keep a cool head about her, and she will do what she has to do,” Edward said. “Ruby, on the other hand…well, I’m not exactly certain how she’ll fare in such peril. If she takes after her mother, she just might start screaming for help.”

“I think Ruby will listen to anything that Julia tells her,” Lewis mused.

“I grant you that one,” Edward chuckled. “Only a fool would think to disobey Julia. No, Ruby shall heed anything that Julia tells her to do, and she will follow her like a faithful little puppy dog. I hope.”

“Lucky, you don’t happen to have anything that will make a loud noise, but will be fairly harmless? I don’t want to risk hurting Julia or Ruby…”

“Oh, aye, I can make a few controlled explosions with what I have here. The noise will be enough to knock them right off onto their arses,” he laughed. “Their ears will be ringing for weeks.”

“Edward, Father…I think you both should stay here. I don’t want to take any chances with your lives. The lads and I…well, we know how to work with each other without even saying anything. You wouldn’t understand the signals we give each other, and we don’t have time to teach you.”

“Fine,” the Duke relented. “I will stay here with Edward, and if by chance, your beloved somehow escapes and finds her way off the lands, we shall be here waiting to give her shelter.”

“That sounds fine,” Freddie said, nodding his head briskly. “Well, Major Abbott, you are in command, so command,” he said to Lewis.

Lewis smiled. “Just like the good old days.”

“Aye, and those days aren’t really that far behind us, are they?”

The other men shook their head. “It’s a good thing, too,” Micah said, holding his rifle. “We might be a bit rusty, if we’d been away from it for long. One question for everyone, should I shoot to kill or only to disable?” he asked, with a cheeky grin.

“I wouldn’t kill them, if you can help it,” Lewis said. “We don’t know how complicit they all are, and they aren’t the enemy, and this isn’t an officially sanctioned mission.”

“I suppose you are right,” Micah sighed. “I’ll give you bastards cover. Now go on in there, and end this before it gets serious.”

The grounds had an eerie feeling to them. They seemed almost haunted. And Freddie was quickly reminded of how similar this day felt to the day when Iris had almost lost her life because of Lewis’s mad brother. The only thing that was missing was the thunderstorm…aside from that, it looked and felt the same.

They stalked up to the house. There didn’t seem to be any men roaming the grounds. They had to smoke them out. Lewis nodded at Lucky who was a safe distance from the house, and Lucky produced one of his nifty little noisemakers, lit it, and threw it. It exploded and made one hell of a noise that probably rattled the house. 

He could only pray that what they were doing, wouldn’t scare the hell out of Julia, and Ruby.

The blackguards that had Julia were about to get the fright of their lives.

*****

“Did you hear that?” Julia asked, as they all stopped and Alfie pawed at her leg, and started whining. The dreadful noise had made all of them jump, and yet, if her suspicions were correct, they had no reason to fear it.

It was The Angels of Death saying how do you do.

“You’d have to be bloody deaf not to hear that,” Tobias said sarcastically. “I take it your honey is out there somehow having Lord Prescott play his special kind of bombastic music. You have to hand it to the man, he certainly knows his trade.”

“You’ve been on the receiving end of this before?” Ruby asked incredulously.

“Oh, aye. Cheeky little buggers that they are. No harm came to me, though, or any of my men. I don’t think they’ll be acting so graciously with the blackguards that have caused us so much grief.”

“I daresay, they won’t,” Julia said proudly. “They are going to scare them witless, and I have to say, I think they all deserve it.”

“Huzzah to that,” Tobias said. “The popinjays that tied us up don’t have the look to them that would allow them to be footmen. They were mean, ugly looking bastards. They are definitely bad business, and the sooner they are hauled off to New Bridewell, the better.”

“Now that I know Freddie is here waiting for us, I’ll take us to the secret passage that leads out onto the grounds. Freddie will no doubt be waiting for us. Or at least, I pray he will.”

They stopped, as some more explosive noises rocked through the house. She was a little scared listening to the cacophony. After the din had cleared, they heard men shouting and shots being fired. She knew she had no reason to fret over Freddie, he’d come through the Wars basically none the worse for wear, but she worried nonetheless.

After a few tense moments, they reached the door that led out onto the expansive grounds. If only she could see out there and know if it was safe for them.

“I suppose we are taking a chance if we open that door and find the enemy on the other side, eh?” Tobias asked.

“You and Ruby best get behind us,” Charles said, as he reached for Ruby’s arm, and maneuvered her so she stood behind them. Alfie stopped, and sat at Julia’s feet.

“How well armed were the cads that tied you up?” Julia asked.

“Armed to the bloody teeth,” Charles said. “So we had best expect a bloody fight, unless Freddie and his mates have cleared the way.”

Nerve wrenching silence blanketed the house. As it was so quiet, they heard Hargreaves yelling, “Where the bloody hell are those two little lordly bastards, and find me that whore of a lady! We’re going to have to use her and her bitch companion as bargaining pieces.”

“I ain’t sticking around. The lord and his mates scare me,” one of the gang said, as Lucky played more of his tunes. She could hear men shrieking, and the same one that said he wasn’t going to stick around, screamed, “It’s every man for himself! Run for your lives!”

Julia smiled. “I think they might have seen Freddie and Tiny.”

“I do believe you might be right,” Tobias said, chuckling.

Freddie laughed. “It’s your face, Tiny. It has to be your face. It does it every time.”

Tiny laughed. “Your mug isn’t exactly like looking at an angel who came out of heaven, either, Mouse.”

“Ah, that’s where you’re wrong, mate. I look good enough to be painted by Michelangelo.”

“I don’t know who that bloke is…but I don’t think so, mate!”

Freddie led them toward the exit that Julia would use, if she was in the secret passageways inside of the house. Most of the gang from London had been taken care of, while some of the others lurked inside of the house waiting for the right moment, or what they believed was the right moment to strike out against them.

He saw the small hidden door opening, and he knew that Julia and Ruby would be behind it. He stopped as he saw something out of the corner of his eye. He turned to fire at the man who raised his pistol and had it aimed at him and Tiny, but Micah was on it. Micah hit the man in his kneecap, and the man’s cry of anguish echoed across the grounds.

“Guess that’s how Micah is getting over the whole not shooting to kill thing,” Tiny mused. “That bastard is going to be lucky to keep that leg, though.”

The door opened slowly, and he saw Julia as she stepped down out of the house. She turned, and her face lit up when she saw him. Ruby stepped down next, with Alfie by her side, and then, he sighed as his eyes caught sight of the other two men that were with her. Tobias and the man he never welcomed seeing, Lord Charles Tempest.

They walked across the lawn toward him, and he smiled, noticing that she had found a few of his dueling pistols. He started running toward them, and Charles and Tobias were lagging a bit behind, as Avondale had a bum leg that caused him no end of grief, sometimes. Freddie’s eyes widened, as he saw a gang member come up behind Charles and Tobias.