Tempting Miss Allender (Regency Rakes 3) (18 page)

“My lord, I am Mr. Toots, the Allender family butler.” The man presented himself before Mathew, his face tight with worry.

As Mathew opened his mouth to issue instructions, the front door was flung open and two more of his men bundled another inside. They held his hands behind his back as he spat out several vile curses.

“We caught him and another at the rear of the house. The other one got away.”

Lucy appeared then, and he urged Charlie to her side before moving to stand before the man his footman had a good grip on.

“What was he doing?” Mathew said, looking the man over. He was short and solid, with a belligerent expression on his face. Mathew thought he looked like a thug whose services could be purchased for the correct price.

“He had these.” His footman held out a pistol and knife. “And he was looking to get inside this house.”

Mathew signaled for his men to release the intruder and moved closer, so he was now only inches away from him. “Lucy, you and Charlie go and organize your things. You will be leaving for my house shortly,” he said, keeping his eyes on the man.

“But Patience—”

“Trust that I will get your sister back, Lucy.” He said nothing further until the Allender siblings had left. Then he said to the captured man, “Miss Allender has been abducted and I think you were involved. She was taken so she would not interfere when you attempted to break into this house and take her brother.” The man pressed his lips together as Mathew went on, “Mr. Winston will be brought to justice for this, and you will go to jail at his side unless you tell me at once where she is.”

The man said nothing, so Mathew smashed his fist into his stomach, making him gasp and wheeze for several seconds.

“Now, we shall try that again. Tell me what I want to know.”

This time the man spat at Mathew’s feet.

“Mr. Toots, please retrieve one of the swords from the second floor and bring it to me at once. I will also require something to gag this man, and ropes to bind him.” That got a reaction. The man jerked his head back, eyes wide as he looked at Mathew.

“I care nothing for you,” Mathew said. “In fact, were you to die this day I would feel little, but the woman you abducted means a great deal to me. I will get the information I seek from you in any way I must.” He kept his eyes steady.

“I-I know where she is,” the man stammered.

Patience panicked as the water closed over her head. It was cold enough to take her breath away, and fear made her want to inhale, but if she did, it would be water she took in, not air. The skirts of her chemise wrapped around her legs, threatening to help drag her down. Kicking and waving her arms, she managed to make her way back to the surface, and finally her head was clear. Raising her face skywards, she drew air into her lungs in deep, gasping breaths.

Looking up at the window, she knew she would remember the moment she had plunged from it for a long time to come…if indeed she made it back to her home and away from this place, wherever this place was. Breathing deeply, she started to swim for the dock, where she would hopefully find some way to get out. The few feet seemed to take ages to cross, but finally her hands touched the wood of the dock, and she gripped it hard. Pulling herself upwards took several attempts, with the first two plunging her back into the water. Rage came to her rescue, and even though her body ached and her fingers stung, she now felt no fear. Heart thumping, she managed to get a foothold and pull herself slowly up again, this time out of the water, until she was lying like a landed fish on her side beneath the window.

“Get up!” she whispered, urging herself onto her knees, then to her feet. Staggering slightly, she braced a hand on the wall to steady herself. When her head was clear, she reached for her clothes.

She stripped off her chemise, then quickly slipped into her dress, hoping that no one appeared as she stood exposed to the elements. The day wasn’t cold, but her teeth still chattered. Perhaps fear could be to blame for that, she realized, looking back at the water and shuddering at what she had just done. She pulled on her half-boots and quickly laced them, her fingers struggling with the simple knots. After she’d wrung out her hair, she stuffed it all into her bonnet and fastened the satin ties at her throat. She hoped she would look at a glance as any lady should. She just prayed no one got too close.

“She’s down there!”

Looking up, Patience saw a man’s head poking out of the window she had jumped from. With her skirts in hand she started running along the narrow path and around the building until she reached the front. When she reached the road seconds later, she could hear the thunder of feet and knew more than one man was chasing her. Sprinting out onto the narrow street, she willed her weak knees to hold her upright as she turned left and ran. Where was she? Hoping a hackney would pass her soon, Patience went as fast as she could until the street veered into another.

As one street stopped, another started, and each seemed worse than the last. The cobles uneven and broken, debris strewn everywhere. Straining for breath, she ducked into a narrow alley between two buildings and moved as fast as she could to the end.

“Stop!”

Not bloody likely
, she thought, tugging her skirt as it caught on something. She heard it rip, but simply tugged it harder for release and kept moving. Once free of the alley she put her head down and ran until her heart was pounding, her legs had filled with jelly, and she could simply not take another step.

Looking around, she saw that darkness was nearly upon her. Smoke from the chimney pots belched, forming fog to thicken and swirl in dense clouds The buildings nearby were stacked high, and she realized these were some of the tenements she’d heard about, homes for the poor. Everything around her was dark and foreboding, and she shuddered to imagine living in such a place. The stench made her retch, and she did not want to think of what the damp was under her feet.

She had to get out of here and back to her home. She had to save her brother and sister, but to do that she would need to ask for help.

Squinting, Patience saw the glow of dim lights up ahead. Moving closer she saw a sign swung from a stand, announcing that it was a tavern called the Speckled Hen. The façade was dark green, the paint was chipped and peeling, and the door had a broken pane of glass in it. Pushing the door open, she wished for a weapon, anything with which to defend herself should she need to.

The tavern was noisy and at a glance she noted it was occupied mostly by men. The few women who were here were not the kind she had ever met before, and not likely to inhabit the ballrooms of the affluent members of London society. As she stepped inside, the conversations slowly stopped as each person became aware of her presence. Realizing how out of place she looked, Patience schooled her features, refusing to show how intimidated she was. She made her way to the bar, then waited for the man behind it to approach her.

“My guess is you’re lost.”

He had a huge stomach and no hair, and several missing teeth. His hands were the size of the plates she ate her evening meal off of, and he was possibly one of the most terrifying people she had ever met.

“Yes, I am lost. Actually I was abducted and have just escaped, and men are chasing me,” she said, looking behind her once more. “I-I need to get home to my brother, as the men who took me are also intent on harming him.” The man’s expression did not change as Patience spoke, and her heart sank. “Please, I must go to him.”

“Me curricle’s outside. I could take you.”

Desperately relieved, Patience turned with an eager look to see who had said those words. The shouts of laughter that followed told her the man was having fun at her expense.

“Or perhaps you would like to use my barouche?” another voice called. “’Twould offer more comfort.”

They were laughing at her, and Patience felt the wonderful heat of anger return and give her strength. “Do you have family, sir?” Patience snapped. Desperate now, she faced the man who had spoken last. Of about her height, he was as wide as an old oak tree. When he didn’t answer, she said, “Because I have only a brother and sister, and I am responsible for them, but as we speak, my cousin is intent on killing my brother for his title.” She felt hysteria begin to well up inside her and battled to keep it at bay. “My circumstances may be cause for hilarity to you, but to me they are dire indeed.”

“Was only having a laugh,” he muttered, lowering his eyes as around them everyone quieted.

“As you can imagine, I am pleased that I can provide you with entertainment at the expense of myself and my family, sir,” she snarled. “I just jumped from a second-story window into the water below, and am now wet, cold and scared. I hardly think I am asking a lot of you, requesting a small touch of human kindness toward a person in need.”

“’Ere, someone just take her. She’s not going to let up until you do!”

She couldn’t see who’d said the words, but sent a glare that way. Refusing to let these people see how upset and distressed she was that they would not come to her aid, she said, “I will pay whoever can take me, but you will not receive the payment until I reach my home.”

“Done!” another man said, and Patience felt a flutter of belief that she would get home, but no sooner had the words been uttered than the door opened and in walked two men. She knew they were looking for her. No one in this room cared if she lived or died, and she was sure no one would step in to save her, so she dropped to a crouch.

“Where is your back door?” She looked up at the barkeep, and he pointed to his right.

“Get out of here quick,” he said. “I wants no trouble.”

Still crouching, she hurried in the direction he’d pointed toward and found a door. She pushed it open and passed through a kitchen where a young girl was singing as she stirred a bubbling pot.

“Where is the door that leads outside, if you please?”

The girl stopped, her mouth hanging open as she looked at Patience.

“Hurry, girl, I need the door now!”

“I like your bonnet.”

“Do you? Well, I’ll give it to you if you show me the way outside right now,” Patience said, undoing the ties as fast as she could.

The girl motioned for her to follow, which she did quickly, and when the girl threw open the door, Patience handed her the bonnet as she slipped through.

“Don’t tell the two men that I came this way, please.”

“I won’t. I promise.”

The door slammed on those words, and once again Patience was alone in the fog laden night air. Darkness was now upon her, and she wondered what she ought to do. Picking up her skirts, she started running once again. If she was moving, at least she had a chance to escape, a chance to get home. The only other option was to stop running and let them catch her, and that was no option at all.

The streets were narrow and dense with houses, and she wondered how she could feel so alone when all around her these buildings housed dozens, perhaps hundreds of people. But why would anyone want to help her? Surely here it was best to go about your own business and ignore everyone else’s. If she opened her mouth, her voice would label her as one of the people who inhabited a world they could never be part of. Hadn’t the Speckled Hen taught her that? But she wouldn’t panic, couldn’t let herself succumb to the hysteria that was steadily building inside her. Surely she could find her way home soon.

She continued to run, hoping that one of these streets would suddenly lead to somewhere familiar. Her sides were aching now, and when she stumbled she saw a small, dark space between two buildings. Patience ducked into it and squeezed herself into a tight ball hoping the fog would conceal her. Wrapping her hands around her knees, she tried to stop her breath from rasping, tried to stay still and quiet. Surely they wouldn’t find her here.

Were her siblings well? she wondered. Had the Toots family and Mathew kept them safe?

She pressed her mouth into the top of her knees to keep herself quiet. She didn’t look left or right; she simply closed her eyes and waited. Minutes later she heard the sound of running feet.

“She has to be here somewhere!”

“Bloody toff, she can’t survive out here alone. Someone will get her, and then she’ll be gone for good.” Those words were followed by a harsh laugh. “I wouldn’t have minded going a few rounds with her myself.”

“If we find her, you get her first.”

Patience concentrated on inhaling and exhaling, trying to shut out the sound of the men’s voices, and when she finally heard them running away she let the tears fall. She was safe tucked away here for now. Could she stay here until the sun rose, and find her way home then? To try to find her way about now, alone in the dark, was surely a hopeless task and she would merely stumble into danger.

“What you doing ’ere?”

Patience looked up and saw the, narrow face of a young boy staring at her.

“I am hiding.”

“From who?”

She decided to speak the truth, because if he was going to tell the men she was here, he would have done so by now. Surely he had seen them and heard their conversation moments ago, just as he must have seen her slip into this space.

“I am being chased by the two men who were just here. They abducted me and I escaped, now I must get home.” Patience swallowed the sob that had caught in her throat.