by Amelia Grey
Zane seldom had dealings with the unsavory, yet still somehow lawful, act of crimping—forcing men into the military or service on a ship. Both occupations were always in need of young, strong, able-bodied men. Neither was an easy life.
“Did he name the ship?”
“Of course not. He didn’t even say if he was still in a crimping house. Only for me to get you. Even if we follow him after he leaves the gaming house, we have no way of knowing whether or not he’ll go to where he’s holding Robert.”
“I will pay whatever he asks to free him.”
Zane looked out of the small window on the coach door. Lights from buildings flashed by quickly as they jostled along, reminding him of how Brina’s eyes sparkled at him. Hellfire, he would be late for his own dinner party. This would be a tough one to explain but he believed she would understand.
Zane reached up and struck his fist against the roof of the carriage. “Faster,” he yelled.
Minutes later Zane and Harry rushed into the taproom of the Brass Bull. It was dimly lit, noisy, and smelled of dried ale. “Do you see him?”
“The bearded man sitting alone at the corner table.”
Zane’s hand curled into a fist as he strode toward the man. He wanted to jerk him up by his neck and pound his face, but he had to think about Robert. This needed to be handled with a well-tempered head.
It would be difficult. He would manage.
He pulled on the lace cuff of his sleeve and calmly strode toward Remick. The tall, robust man slipped a watch back into the small pocket of his waistcoat and rose. In his mind, Zane had imagined Remick an older, shorter, and more rotund man with small eyes. To the contrary of all Zane thought, the man’s clothing and air of superiority might suggest to some he was a gentleman.
“I’m impressed, my lord,” he said and bowed. “Your man did his job well.”
The man’s pleasantness only angered Zane more.
“You made it here in seventeen minutes,” Remick continued. “I was of a mind to give you more than the twenty indicated.”
Zane didn’t want to be reminded of the time. Brina, his uncles, and sister were probably arriving at his house right now and would be wondering where in the hell he was.
“How much do I owe you?” Zane asked in a clipped voice.
The man chuckled, showing white even teeth. “Now that you are here, there’s no hurry.”
Oh, but there was.
“I’ll pay whatever Robert owes and your fee for holding his debt.” He glanced over to Harry. “Find the gaming controller and ask him to come over with quill and paper.” Turning his attention back to Remick, he said, “I’ll write a promissory note that you can have exchanged for pounds tomorrow. How much do I owe you?”
The man chuckled again and eased himself back into his chair. “Sit down, Lord Blacknight. It’s going to be a long night. Do you really think I’m going to just accept payment for Mr. Browning’s debt? Don’t tell me you thought it would be that simple?”
“Paying another man’s gambling debts is never a simple matter. If you were a true gamester, you would know that.”
Remick’s shoulders twitched. “I think you and I are about to find out. Ever since I’ve been in London, I’ve heard you’re skilled at cards. One of the best, but I’ve never seen you play. I was looking forward to matching my skills against yours. Then I heard about a certain wager you had with a lady.”
This man wasn’t making it easy for Zane to remain calm. Mentioning Brina was the wrong thing for him to do. He’d never challenged a man to a duel, but now it looked as if he might have met his first. But for Brina and his love for her, he was going to give the man another chance. “None of that concerns the matter at hand. Robert has a debt and I’ll pay it. We can settle it with money or we can settle it at dawn with pistols.”
The man chuckled again and Zane wanted to yank him out of the chair and rip his head off.
“That’s not how we settle things in America. I’ve heard enough about you to know I’d be a fool to go against you in a duel of any kind—except cards. You’re going to play games with me. If you want to pay Mr. Browning’s debt, you’re going to have to win it one hand at a time.”
Zane took a step toward him, his gaze dead on Remick’s. So he was a card marksman who dealt in the underworld of crimping too.
“I’m not.”
“Then I guess your cousin will end up on a ship heading to Singapore after all. A promissory note won’t change that.” He picked up his glass of port and took a sip, but he never let his gaze leave Zane’s.
“Singapore?” Zane’s hand made a fist again. “That’s halfway around the world.”
“That’s why it’s difficult for boarding masters to find young healthy seamen to make the voyage. It’s long and arduous. So many don’t make it there. Or back.” He put his glass down on the table with a clunk. “I want to match my skill against yours. I don’t want your money. I already have enough wagered that you will gamble before midnight tomorrow night.”
“You bloody thief. I’ll see you in hell first. You deliberately allowed him to fall into debt to you.”
“It’s a dirty business but a lawful one. He could have paid me what they owed and walked away at any time. He doesn’t know anything about hard work but he’ll learn. And, should I go to hell, I’ll be sure to say hello to Mr. Harper Tabor while I’m there. He’ll be on the same ship with Mr. Browning.”
Zane’s heart slammed against his chest. “You bloody fool, I’ll choke their whereabouts out of your—” Zane lunged for Remick but was grabbed by the shoulders. He struggled against Harry and another man, trying to shake them off, but they pinned his arms behind his back.
“No, Zane,” Harry said. “Calm down. Think!”
He couldn’t think. The man held Robert and Harper captive. What was he going to do? He’d promised Brina he wouldn’t play. He was little more than twenty-fours from keeping his bargain with her.
“I’m not playing,” he said again.
“You have no choice. You have no idea where the young men are. When is the last time you saw either of them? Are they in a crimping house here in London? Bound for Southampton? Or already on ship ready to sail out of Liverpool? They’d be gone before you could beat their whereabouts out of me.”
“Let me try,” he ground out as he tried to free himself again.
Remick chuckled. “I know you aren’t afraid to test your skills against mine. But if you care so little for your cousin and Mrs. Feld’s cousin, I’ll take my leave. They’ll return one day. If they survive the voyage. But remember, it takes years to work off a gambling debt on a ship.”
Zane was at a crossroads like no other. He was damned if he did and damned if he didn’t. The man was right. Crimping wasn’t against the law. Robert and Harper legally owed their gambling debts. The man was using that to force him to play. The man had no vendetta to settle, he just wanted to add one more gambler to his list.
“The clock is ticking. If no one hears from me by dawn, it will be too late.”
“You bloody rotten guttersnipe.”
“That’s where you’re wrong. I live for playing cards and matching my skill against others’. I’ve been planning this for several days. Once I realized Mr. Browning was your cousin and his friend the widow’s, the idea came to me. Both men were so eager to learn all my secrets. It was easy to get them into debt and it didn’t take long. Being American, I don’t have the title of earl, but I know how to be a gentleman. We’ll play each game for one hundred pounds. If you’ve won enough hands to pay off their debt by midnight, I’ll tell you where they are. There’s no time to waste. You need to sit down now.”
“How do I know I can trust you?”
Remick grinned and sniffed. “I’m a gambling man. I always pay my debts. But if it will make you feel better, I’ll let your friend put it in writing. Keep everything legal. I’m not really after sending the young men to Singapore. It’s you I want to defeat.”
Zane
had no choice. He had no damn choice. He thought to send Harry to tell Brina what had happened, but no, he couldn’t. This was something he’d need to explain to her himself and make her understand why he had to break his promise to her. He couldn’t leave that to another man.
“Reserve the private room upstairs.”
“No, no,” Remick said. “Right here in the gaming room. So everyone can see that every game is fair.”
Zane turned to Harry. “See that there’s a table for us in the gaming room and bring over a fresh deck of playing cards.”
Chapter 25
Brina stepped down from her carriage in front of Zane’s home. Thankfully, Adeline hadn’t questioned her when she said she wanted to take her own carriage to the earl’s house. It was scandalous. A widow arriving alone to a bachelor’s dinner party.
But tonight, Brina didn’t care.
It would be a late evening. She would be one of the last to leave and she didn’t want Lyon and Adeline to wait around for her. She wanted time to be alone with Zane as they were last night.
She’d done a lot of thinking since he’d left her bed in the early hours of morning. And because of his gentle concern and insights, she had come to terms with her fears of marrying again. Just as she had put away the hurt of losing Stewart and all the debilitating emotions that had followed. Sharing her burden of guilt for her past feelings seemed to lift it from her. Zane was right. She was young and devastated. It was time to forgive herself.
And she had.
She was ready to begin a new life of feeling free from her past, and she was going to start by telling Zane tonight she would accept his proposal at the ball.
That had her smiling and humming all day.
Her dark rose-colored gown had been made especially for this evening. A simple high-waisted gown with long, sheer sleeves. At the last fitting she’d had the seamstress add an overlay of white sheer silk so the color wouldn’t look so stark. She’d also had the neckline lowered more than usual, but not so low eyebrows would be raised at the party. Her only jewelry consisted of an ivory-circled amethyst on a white ribbon at her throat.
“Good evening, Fulton,” she said when he opened the door. After handing off her cape and reticule, she followed him to the drawing room to find it empty. She was a little early, but not much. She thought for sure Zane would be down, ready to greet his first guest. No matter. She would take a peek at the table to make sure her written instructions had been followed.
The dining room looked warm and inviting. It wasn’t large, but the staff had managed to seat twenty-four chairs around the table. A wide gilt-framed mirror bracketed by crystal candle sconces hung over the fireplace. On one wall hung a large tapestry of a classical garden with a waterfall scene. The other had a life-size wall painting of a man who looked as if he could have been Zane’s father or the first Earl of Blacknight. His hair was as black as Zane’s, though longer. He had the same classically handsome features with dark blue eyes that held a hint of devil-may-care humor and a twitch of mischief showing around the corners of his mouth.
The long rectangular table was almost the length of the room and covered with white linen. A single silver candlestick had been placed in front of every other chair down the center of the cloth. Woven throughout the candlesticks were bits of greenery and small English tea roses.
The china and crystal gleamed even though the candles hadn’t yet been lit. That would come closer to serving the first course. Zane would be at the head; she would be seated to his left as he’d instructed. As his hostess for the evening, Patricia would sit at the other end.
Brina smiled. It was going to be a good evening for Zane. And tomorrow evening would be even better. When he asked for her hand, she was going to give it to him in front of his family and everyone. He had proven he could be a gentleman, but she was going to marry him because she loved him more than she could have ever thought possible.
Only a few weeks ago, she swore she could never love or marry again. Zane’s gentle but constant pursuit had changed her heart. He had challenged her, made her laugh, made her happy. He helped her understand she no longer needed to feel such heavy guilt for the anger and selfishness that had festered in her for so long after Stewart’s death. Grief caused terrible feelings. They shouldn’t be compounded by continuing to relive them. She could never be good enough or ever do enough beneficial things to make up for what she’d felt at those terrible times in her life. All she could do was forgive herself.
And she had.
“Fulton and his staff have done an amazing presentation.”
At the sound of the voice behind her, Brina turned and saw Zane’s sister, Mrs. Cranston, standing in the doorway. “Yes. It’s as beautiful as I imagined.”
“Indeed. Very sweet and reserved, Mrs. Feld. Much like you. It was clever not to try and top the extravagance of the Duchess of Middlecastle’s table. She’ll be pleased it’s so simple.”
Brina wasn’t sure what to say about that, so she merely smiled and answered, “I’m sure Zane didn’t mean to—”
Mrs. Cranston’s eyebrows rose almost to her hairline. Brina immediately recognized her mistake. Zane. She had used his first name. She should have known it was bound to happen sooner or later. For most, it was an unforgivable error to refer to an earl in such a manner.
“I’m sorry, Mrs. Cranston. I shouldn’t have referred to him in a familiar manner.”
“You don’t have to worry about slip-ups with me, Mrs. Feld,” she responded in a matter-of-fact tone. “I am all for you helping my brother any way you can. I do believe you’ve been good for him, and I wouldn’t mind having you in the family. I would have never believed anyone could help him settle down, but you seem to have. For a month, at least. Only time will tell if it will last any longer. It won’t be the first time we’ve thought he had changed only to find that he hadn’t. But, we’re always willing to hold out hope. Ah—I hear voices. Let’s go see who’s arrived. Perhaps by now even our host.”
Brina had been almost to the point of tapping her foot in frustration before Mrs. Cranston left the room. It was no wonder Zane felt his family was such a challenge.
They were! How could his own sister be so unbelieving in him?
As she entered the drawing room, Brina looked for Zane. His uncles had arrived. So had Viscount Mountgate, Julia, Adeline, and their husbands, but she didn’t see Zane. Thinking he must be greeting someone in the vestibule, she headed over to speak to her friends.
Other guests continued to arrive, but Zane was noticeably absent. Unable to stop herself, she’d glanced at Mrs. Cranston, who was in turn, glancing at her. The last to arrive were the Duke and Duchess of Middlecastle. After they entered, Brina went in search of Fulton and found him standing by the door.
“Fulton, is the earl still in his chambers?”
“No, Mrs. Feld. I’ve already told Mrs. Cranston, he hasn’t returned home yet.”
Brina felt as if something had slammed into her body and it almost drove her to her knees. “What do you mean? He’s not home?” It was a foolish question, but nothing else would come to mind.
“That’s correct.”
“Do you know where he is?”
“The earl didn’t inform me of where he was going or when he expected to return.”
“Can you tell me how long he’s been gone?” Her breaths were so short, she could hardly speak. “All day? The afternoon? When did he leave?”
“More than an hour ago.”
Her heartbeat raced. “Then he’s coming back. He’s been delayed.”
“He said he would be back for the dinner.”
“Good. Thank you.”
Brina walked back into the drawing room on shaky legs. Chatter was lively, and if anyone was missing the host, it wasn’t showing to anyone but her and Mrs. Cranston.
Yet.
But the minutes passed. She began to think maybe he’d had a carriage accident. She knew how dangerously he could drive. He was excellent managing t
he horses, but what if— No. Then minutes later she was thinking perhaps he’d been attacked by footpads. What if he were lying hurt in an alley? Maybe she should ask someone to go look for him, but where would they start? Where would they go?
So, no. She wouldn’t ask anyone to look for him. He wasn’t an errant schoolboy. Anger was beginning to creep inside her. He knew where he should be.
“Have you seen Blacknight this evening?”
Brina turned to see both Zane’s uncles standing beside her. In the distance she saw Mrs. Cranston heading toward them. Brina’s heart pounded and her throat went dry. They were going to be looking to her for answers she didn’t have.
“Not yet,” she said calmly when she couldn’t have felt more tense as Mrs. Cranston stopped beside her.
Zane’s Uncle Hector stared at her and started tapping his cane on the floor. “I assumed he was in his chambers getting dressed, waiting late to make a grand entrance.”
“No,” Brina defended Zane. “I don’t believe the earl would do anything that pretentious.”
“Then where is he? If he’s not here, where?”
“I don’t know,” she answered truthfully, sadly, and bewildered that he wasn’t on time for his own party when he knew how important it was to do everything right this night. Why was his uncle giving her a difficult time about it? Didn’t they know how badly she wanted Zane to be with them right now?
“What do you mean you don’t know? You are the one who planned this evening for him. Did you forget to ask if he’d be attending his own dinner party?”
“Now, Hector, there’s no call for that kind of talk. If we weren’t able to tame him, why should we think Mrs. Feld could do it?”
“Enough of this,” Mrs. Cranston offered in a tone that let them know she was tired of the exchange. “I do believe my uncles are stressing you, Mrs. Feld. Don’t let them. Put a smile on your face.” She looked from one uncle to the other. “As we all shall and enjoy this evening. What you don’t realize, Mrs. Feld, is that this isn’t the first time my brother has snubbed his nose at Society or the family. He says he will attend an event, and then he doesn’t. But don’t worry, we’ll see him Christmas Day. We always do.”