Saving Grace (Victorian Vigilantes Book 1)

by Wendy Soliman

  ‘She’s shaken but relatively unharmed.’

  ‘She must be shaken to have sent for you, Jake,’ Isaac said.

  ‘I stepped out for an hour this evening and some ne’er-do-wells broke in while I was gone.’

  Jake ground his jaw. How often had he told Olivia she needed more than one permanent male in her establishment? A wealthy, attractive woman living alone would always be a target for scoundrels. If that woman also had a less than stellar reputation and worked undercover for Jake, then her safety was definitely a matter for concern. She had always dismissed his worries, as though she had a point to prove. He ought to have insisted. If anything had happened to her…Jake shuddered, endeavouring to remain calm and shake off the debilitating fear that trickled down his spine.

  ‘Did the rogues say what they wanted?’ Isaac asked.

  ‘Aye, they wanted to know where Lady Eva is.’

  Ah, Jake thought, so this is all my fault.

  ‘There were three of them,’ Green said. ‘But fortunately they underestimated my mistress.’ Jake managed a brief smile, aware that most people did. ‘She crowned one with a vase, er…kicked the second in a place that definitely put him out of the fight, and—’

  ‘And the third one managed to get to her?’ Jake felt a murderous rage replace his earlier fear.

  ‘Aye, but she used that close-combat fighting you taught her. She allowed him to come up behind her, went all weak and defeated like, and then threw him over her shoulder. He landed on a small table, so he did, and broke it.’

  ‘Good for her!’ Isaac said with relish.

  Parker had already ordered up one of Jake’s unmarked carriages. ‘Remain here, Parker, and hold the fort,’ Jake said. ‘Make sure the house is secure and that Lady Eva remains safe.’

  ‘That I will.’

  ‘Make haste,’ Jake said to his coachman as Green joined him and Isaac inside the carriage and Mrs Grantley’s coachman followed close behind in that lady’s conveyance.

  ‘What injuries does Mrs Grantley have?’ Jake asked.

  ‘I can’t rightly say. When I arrived home they took fright and ran, and Mrs Grantley despatched me to fetch you.’

  ‘But you are injured,’ Isaac said.

  ‘Bah, it’s just a scratch. I engaged with one of them and he came off far worse.’

  ‘Mrs Grantley’s maid is caring for her now?’ Jake asked.

  ‘She is that.’

  ‘Was anyone else hurt?’

  ‘No, fortunately Molly and Sarah had gone to bed and knew nothing about it until the rogue whom Mrs Grantley threw over her shoulder recovered. He subdued Mrs Grantley…’

  ‘Subdued her how?’ Jake called upon all his training as a diplomat to keep his deep concern out of his voice. ‘If he dared to—’

  ‘He struck her and then tied her to a chair.’

  For which he would pay dearly, once Jake discovered his identity. ‘I believe he became quite violent but Mrs Grantley refused to even admit that she knew Lady Eva.’

  ‘She would,’ Jake replied. ‘She really shouldn’t be so stubborn. God alone knows how it might have turned out.’

  ‘The blaggards lost patience, searched the house to make sure Lady Eva wasn’t actually there and then I returned and they fled.’

  ‘After you confronted them, Green,’ Isaac said. ‘That was brave.’

  ‘I knew something wasn’t right when I got back and saw the front door hanging open. They were back in the drawing room, about to do I know not what to get Mrs Grantley to talk. I sneaked into my room, got my blunderbuss and threatened them with it.’ Green jutted his chin pugnaciously. ‘One of them crept up on me and landed a lucky blow, but the gun saw them off right enough.’

  ‘You saved the day, Green,’ Jake replied. ‘I doubt they would have left Mrs Grantley alive to identify them if you hadn’t scared them off.’

  ‘She must have been terrified,’ Isaac said.

  Green shook his head. ‘If she was, she isn’t showing it. She’s furious about the loss of her favourite vase, though.’

  Jake managed a bitter laugh. ‘I’ll buy her six more.’

  Their carriage turned into Olivia’s road.

  ‘Stay alert,’ Jake told his coachman and the footman who had accompanied him. ‘We can’t ignore the possibility that Mrs Grantley was left alive to raise the alarm, just so that the villains could see who came to rescue her.’

  ‘No one will get past us, m’lord.’

  ‘Good man.’

  Jake took the three steps to Olivia’s front door in one stride, Isaac at his heels. A tearful Molly peered through the window situated high in the front door, looking relieved to see that it was Jake. Who had opened the door to the intruders, he wondered, or had they simply broken in and taken Olivia by surprise? Jake heard several bolts being shot back before the door actually opened. At least someone in this establishment was taking security seriously, even if it was after the event.

  ‘I’m mighty glad to see you, my lord.’ Molly wiped her eyes rather inelegantly on her sleeve. ‘It has given us all such a turn, so it has. Only think, we could all have been murdered in our beds.’

  ‘How is your mistress?’

  Molly rolled her red eyes. ‘Fighting mad, my lord.’

  ‘That’s reassuring,’ Isaac said.

  He and Jake entered a drawing room that looked as though a herd of elephants had trampled through it. Olivia sat on the settee, battered and bruised, fury radiating from her eyes.

  ‘Of all the damnable luck, Jake,’ she said by way of greeting. ‘There were only three of them but I was wearing heavy skirts and my feet got tangled in them, otherwise I—’

  ‘Shush!’ Jake crouched before her and took both of her hands in his. ‘I am so sorry, my dear. I should have anticipated this.’

  ‘And I should have been better prepared.’

  ‘By having more than two females and one male servant living in?’

  Olivia tossed her head, wincing at the pain the gesture clearly occasioned her. ‘I am not in the mood for lectures, Jake. You know very well how much I enjoy my privacy.’

  Jake didn’t pursue the subject. ‘How are you?’

  It was a ridiculous question. Her gown was torn, there was a bruise already forming on one side of her lovely face and a deep cut on her upper arm. Her wrists were chaffed, presumably because she had tried her damnedest to escape her bonds when tied to a chair. Olivia wasn’t the shrinking violet type.

  ‘I shouldn’t have sent for you, Jake,’ she replied, avoiding his question. ‘They won’t return, but if they’re watching I might have alerted them to our connection.’

  ‘Nonsense, for once you did the sensible thing. I came in an unmarked carriage and no one could have seen my features when I entered your house.’

  ‘Yes, but even so, you are not needed.’

  ‘How very discouraging.’

  ‘Someone has to keep your head from swelling.’

  ‘And someone has to keep you safe.’ Jake was still crouching in front of her, his lips perilously close to hers. Never had the desire to kiss her been more compelling. ‘Molly,’ he said, deliberately turning away from Olivia before passion overcame common sense. ‘Pack a few essentials for your mistress and have Sarah waken Master Tom. You will all remove to Grosvenor Square until we get to the bottom of this.’

  ‘Just a minute—’

  ‘No arguments, Olivia. Think of your son’s safety, even if you don’t care about your own skin.’

  ‘Besides,’ Isaac added. ‘You need to describe your attackers to Lady Eva. She might be able to identify them.’

  ‘I am counting on that,’ Jake said, doing what he could to suppress his rarely acknowledged violent impulses. ‘Then I shall have the pleasure of making their acquaintance.’

  ***

  William cast a scathing glance at Stoneleigh’s dishevelled person. His clothing was torn and he had a lump the size of a duck egg on the back of his head where a woman had supposedly thro
wn him over her shoulder. He had let a damned woman get the better of him! It defied belief. William was so angry at his incompetence he would be lucky to escape this interview without incurring further injuries.

  ‘I have difficulty believing your stupidity,’ he said softly. ‘I’ve always regarded you as the one dependable man in my employ. Seems I got that wrong. Not only did you fail to tell me about this Mrs Grantley, but you also broke into her house, allowed her to see your ugly face and learned nothing of consequence. What am I supposed to make of that?’

  ‘You were engaged with our mutual friend this afternoon so I had to make my own decision. I did what I thought was right, trying to help you locate Lady Eva. That’s what you asked me to do, ain’t it?’

  ‘Don’t blame me for your ineptitude,’ William barked.

  ‘The Grantley woman knows where Lady Eva is, I’d stake my reputation on that.’

  William made a scoffing sound at the back of his throat. ‘After allowing a lady to best not one but three of you, your reputation isn’t worth my spit.’

  ‘She’s not exactly welcomed by society,’ Stoneleigh said, thrusting out his chin. ‘She was accused of killing her husband a few years back and almost hanged for the crime.’

  ‘I recall the circumstances. The real killer was found at the eleventh hour but her reputation didn’t survive the scandal.’

  ‘Right. She came out at the same time as Lady Eva and is reputed to be a madcap. She cares nothing for what people say about her and lives her life exactly as she sees fit. Just the sort of woman to shelter a runaway wife, in other words.’

  ‘And yet she threw you over her shoulder.’ William glowered at his henchman. ‘I’m willing to wager you’re at least twice as heavy as she is. How would she know how to achieve such a thing, much less put that skill into practice?’

  Stoneleigh looked humiliated. ‘She got lucky.’

  ‘No.’ William stood, sorely tempted to have Stoneleigh soundly thrashed for his stupidity. ‘You were overconfident and exceeded your orders. You found no sign of my wife in that house and, in spite of Mrs Grantley’s tarnished reputation, I’m sure there are any number of gentlemen willing to seek redress on her behalf.’

  Stoneleigh shuffled his feet, keeping his eyes focused on them. ‘They don’t know who we are.’

  ‘Idiot! How long do you think it would take a determined person to discover your identity? Hell, if the woman actually is in contact with my wife, a description of you is all it would take.’ William glowered at the ugly horseshoe-shaped scar beneath Stoneleigh’s left eye. ‘You’re not exactly inconspicuous.’

  ‘I didn’t think of that.’

  ‘It seems to me that you did very little thinking before acting.’ William paced the length of the room, kicking at Stoneleigh’s shins each time he passed him. ‘If you are identified it will lead straight back to me and the last thing I need at this juncture is anyone prying into my affairs.’

  ‘Let me at least keep the Grantley woman’s house under observation. I’m still convinced Lady Eva will eventually appear there.’

  William shook his head. Was there no end to the man’s stupidity? ‘After last night, I doubt if Mrs Grantley herself will appear there, especially if she knows where my wife is. Did you leave someone to see who rode to her rescue?’

  ‘Er, no, but it’s not too late.’

  ‘Of course it’s too late!’ William threw up his hands. ‘Damn it, I’m surrounded by idiots. She will be long gone by now and we’re no closer to finding my wife.’

  ‘How did the meeting with our mutual friend go?’

  Stoneleigh was clearly anxious to change the subject, but hadn’t chosen well. Reminders of his humiliating exchange with his society controller only heightened William’s ire.

  ‘How the devil do you suppose it went? He enjoys reminding me that I have no control over my own wife. Not that it makes any difference to my work for him, but he’s determined to rub my nose in it.’

  Stoneleigh glanced at the long clock ticking away in the corner of William’s office. ‘The Sikhs will be expecting us at the warehouse.’

  ‘They can damned well wait. Get out and send Rose to me.’

  ‘She’s gone. You told me to dismiss her.’

  William threw back his head and roared. ‘I need a woman, and I need her now. Presumably even you can arrange that.’

  Stoneleigh scurried for the door. ‘I shall see what I can do.’

  ***

  Stoneleigh, humiliated by his failure to find Lady Eva and the dressing down he had just had to endure, marched into the kitchen. He had been convinced, absolutely sure, the Grantley woman had Lady Eva under her roof. She wasn’t there but the woman knew where she was. It was only a matter of making her talk. How was Stoneleigh supposed to know she fought like a man? Even so, he’d managed to subdue her and she would have spoken eventually, had not her male servant chosen that precise moment to return and threatened them with a damned gun. He hadn’t known the man was on his own, of course. He said others were right behind him and Stoneleigh couldn’t risk being apprehended.

  Fuck it, everything had gone wrong today and Stoneleigh needed to take his anger out on someone. He beckoned to the pretty kitchen maid who was attending to the dishes. She wiped her hands on a cloth and walked up to him with a saucy smile playing about her lips. Stoneleigh had been planning to have her himself. Now he would have to send her to Woodstock—a situation which did nothing to improve his mood.

  ‘Tidy yourself up and go and report to the master in his study,’ he said, patting her backside. ‘And for God’s sake, do something to put him in a better frame of mind.’

  ‘Any suggestions, Mr Stoneleigh?’

  He actually managed a brief laugh at that one. ‘I’m sure you’ll think of something. Unbutton your bodice and let him see the goods.’

  ‘What’s in it for me?’

  Ye gods, everyone was out to feather their own nests. ‘Play nice, make him smile, and he’ll pay you well. He will also elevate you to a better position, possibly even upstairs maid.’

  ‘Well, in that case.’

  The girl unbuttoned her bodice in front of Stoneleigh, causing him to smack his lips together when he saw what was hidden beneath it.

  ‘Come and find me later on,’ he said curtly.

  ‘If you like.’

  She walked away, swaying her hips. Stoneleigh figured she would keep Woodstock occupied for a while. He always took his time with the new ones. That left Stoneleigh with just enough time to nip back to Whitechapel and pay his respects to Rose.

  When he arrived she was sound asleep. He woke her up by administering a sharp slap to her backside.

  ‘Ouch that hurt!’

  Her less than enthusiastic response tipped Stoneleigh over the edge. He slapped her so hard her head smashed against the wall with a sickening crack.

  ‘Don’t ever give me less than your complete attention.’ He tugged her hair until she cried out. ‘I rescued you and can just as easily leave you and the brat in your belly to sink.’

  ‘I’m…I’m sorry. I didn’t mean nothing. You woke me up, that’s all. I wasn’t expecting to see you.’

  Stoneleigh, aroused by the violence, flipped her onto her belly, pulled her to her knees and drove himself as harshly as he could into the ungrateful chit. Her screams were drowned out by the sounds rising up from the busy street outside the window.

  ‘Just so we’re clear,’ he panted. ‘Whenever I tell you to do something, you do it without question.’

  ‘You’re hurting me.’

  ‘I’ll hurt you a damned sight more if you don’t learn some respect.’

  Her sobs, far from causing him to ease up, only drove him on. He yanked her hair so hard that her head snapped back. The fear and revulsion in her eyes made him feel invincible. At last something had gone right for him on this terrible day.

  Chapter Twelve

  Eva enjoyed the luxury of taking breakfast in her chamber, even if being i
dle gave her too much time to think about Grace—to wonder what she was doing at that particular moment. To miss her so badly a physical ache throbbed through her wounded heart and brought tears to her eyes. Please God, if there is any justice in this world, give Lord Torbay the strength to bring William down. Only then could she be reunited with her daughter, free from fear and interference.

  She refused to think beyond that point. About Isaac, who had brought her alive in so many magnificent ways. About her future. About anything at all.

  ‘One day at a time,’ she said aloud, sipping at the steaming cup of hot chocolate Betsy had delivered to her.

  When she made her way downstairs an hour later she thought her ears must be deceiving her. She stopped, cocked her head to one side and listened. No, there was no mistake. Childish laughter was coming from the small salon that Lord Torbay favoured. Could it really be? Hope flared and blossomed. God had been precipitate in answering her prayers. Somehow Grace had been snatched and brought to her.

  She dashed into the room, smiling broadly, not pausing to wonder why her daughter hadn’t been brought directly to her. Arms stretched wide, her steps faltered as she crossed the threshold, as did her smile. Disappointment ricocheted through her like a poisoned dart. Grace hadn’t been responsible for the laughter after all. Eva wondered if she had enough strength to withstand the disappointment.

  A small boy of about Grace’s age sat on the rug in front of the fire, playing with building bricks. Mrs Grantley was crouched beside him, helping him to construct a pyramid. As soon as it was completed the child promptly knocked down again, gurgling with laughter and clapping his hands. Lord Torbay was elegantly sprawled in a nearby chair, watching proceedings with an indulgent half-smile playing about his lips. Isaac, she now noticed, was stretched full-length on the floor, giving the building project his full attention.

  ‘Ah, good morning, Lady Eva.’

  Lord Torbay unwound his limbs and gracefully rose to his feet. Isaac sent her a somnolent smile from his position on the floor, handed the brick he held to the child and stood also. Mrs Grantley looked up and smiled, which is when Eva noticed unattractive discolouring on one side of her face where a large bruise was forming.