The town spread out before him, but he’d found out the other day that it was bigger than he’d hoped, which had kept him there longer than he’d planned. He’d asked around discreetly if any strangers had been seen in town and had received only negative replies. After what had happened today, however, it was obvious that Cheshire wasn’t as safe as George had assured him it would be.
When he brought the four captured attackers to the constable, he warned the official that three more had gotten away and might be showing up in town today. But before Montgomery returned to Dawton Manor, he realized that the three men who escaped might already be in town, and now that they knew that their quarry was in the area, would be asking questions themselves, and where better to do that than in a tavern. So he rode to the southernmost tavern he’d noticed earlier and entered it, which those men would likely have done, too, if they’d just come from the Blackburn lands south of town. And it was a good guess. There did happen to be three men standing at the bar.
As he approached, he heard one of them say to the barkeep, “Golden locks? Fancy dresser?”
“Nay.”
“Any other lords living in town they might sneak in to visit?”
The questions were being asked by a man who spoke perfect English, not what Montgomery had been expecting.
“Aye, a guidly number,” the barkeep answered. “We’ve a quiet town the gentry fancy tae escape the crowds o’ wicked London.”
Montgomery knew that voice. He rolled his eyes when Donnan MacCabe turned around and set mugs of ale on the bar for the three men who then moved off to a table. He kept his face averted until he reached the bar.
“What the devil are you doing here?” he asked.
The Scot shrugged. “Conan and I thought it a guid idea, with ye staying in the same house with our wee lass, for one o’ us tae keep an eye on the town. And where better tae do that than in a tavern. And rather than drink this place dry, which I would surely have done, I got a job instead.”
“Did those three men ask anything else before I got here?” Montgomery queried.
“Nay, but it was surely funny listening tae the foreigners trying tae tell their hireling what tae ask aboot when they canna speak the English tongue themselves, least no’ more’n a few words o’ it.”
“Damn, when I heard English being spoken I’d hoped I’d gotten it wrong and they were just thieves.”
“Wishing for one trouble o’er another, I’m thinking ye have tae many and a guid thing the lass will be hieing off soon away from ye. Since they’ve hired a sassenach tae speak for them, I’m guessing these are the ones she said are after the wee laddie?”
“Yes.”
Donnan raised a brow. “Ye kin if they dinna find what they look for here, they’ll move off tae some other shire?”
“But I’ll feel better if I at least bash their heads.”
“Aye, but then ye’d need to kill them or they’ll be waking and thinking they’ve come exactly tae the right place.”
“They already know, just not where we’re staying,” Montgomery said, confident that the rebels wouldn’t be here now with their interpreter if they knew Charley was staying at the manor. He explained about the encounter that had occurred on Blackburn lands, ending with, “And no, your lass wasn’t part of that fight.” Well, mostly she wasn’t.
But Montgomery paused, then grinned. “These blokes weren’t supposed to get this close,” he continued. “So it appears we will be traveling with the ladies to London after all—and as you say, these three need a reason to waste their time around here.”
“Dinna say I gave ye that excuse,” the Scot growled low as he slammed a mug down in front of Montgomery.
Montgomery laughed. “No, Charley beat you to it.”
Chapter Twenty-eight
“WELL, DON’T YOU LOOK—different!” Vanessa exclaimed.
Charley had come out to bid them farewell, and Vanessa didn’t recognize him at first without his magnificent mane of golden locks. He’d dyed his hair black! It still cascaded down his shoulders and back but was certainly no longer the beacon it had been. She still couldn’t believe it, considering how vain the boy was, so she tugged on a lock to see if it was a wig. It wasn’t, but the tug made him laugh.
The twins had regaled her yesterday morning before she left for her ride with an account of Charley’s announcement that he was a king, but then in the afternoon they brought her the disappointing news that he’d confessed that he’d been joking about it. Vanessa didn’t mention that fib to him now, or ask which of his statements had actually been a fib, but she did wonder why he hadn’t gone to this extreme to disguise himself before leaving London. “Why now?” she asked.
“Anything to remain near your side, dearest lady,” he said with a wide smile. “Even if I weren’t in love with you, which I most assuredly am, you also have my undying gratitude for your brave assistance yesterday.”
Remain? She hadn’t heard much after that. And then she saw his coach behind her mother’s two coaches, already loaded with his many trunks, and her heart beat a little faster. She gasped, “You’re traveling with us?”
“Did Monty not tell you?”
No, Monty did not. But she hadn’t exactly seen much of him yesterday after he left to deal with the wounded men they’d left behind, only at dinner last night where they weren’t alone. Charley hadn’t attended that dinner, neither had Kathleen, but the twins had been with them and had talked excitedly about departing for London in the morning. Monty hadn’t looked disappointed by that news. She had thought he must have already heard about it with the house bustling most of the day with so many preparations for their impending departure. But now she wondered if he had already decided he and Charley would travel with them. But why? Didn’t that defeat his purpose in coming here? Or did he no longer think the manor was safe after the encounter yesterday?
Confused and yet still incredibly pleased by the unexpected arrangement, she warned Charley, “Dye doesn’t last very long, so I hope you have more.”
“Indeed, Monty brought me an ample supply when he returned from town yesterday. And I shall ride with you ladies to keep you entertained.”
“No, you won’t,” Monty said as he rode forward, leading Snow with him. “A week of listening to your incessant chatter and Lady Kathleen will bar us from her London residence. Seeing the ladies at mealtime will suffice for you, boy.”
Charley huffed and moved to his coach. Monty tossed Vanessa Snow’s reins, saying, “I saw him saddled, so I assumed you are going to ride today.”
“Just part of the way,” she said. “He’s not used to the sidesaddle yet.”
“And neither are you?”
“I learned. My father made sure of it. I just don’t like it any more than Snow does.”
“But ladies must persevere.”
He appeared to be waiting with some curiosity to see if she would jump up to mount as she usually did. Of course she couldn’t do that now when she was wearing a riding habit, and he knew that, was already starting to dismount to help her when a footman ran forward with a stool she could use as a mounting block.
Once she was mounted, he asked, “Has your mother seen that horse?”
“No.”
“You like annoying her, don’t you?”
She grinned. “Is it that obvious?”
He laughed. “A little. Care to mention why?”
She didn’t and said instead, “I’m more curious about why you didn’t say something last night about your decision to return to London.”
“Because it wasn’t yet a foregone conclusion. I was still debating the merits of it.”
“What made you decide to go?”
“I didn’t think Charley would dye his hair.” He gave her a half grin. “I couldn’t tell him no after he made that sacrifice.”
So it was Charley’s idea, not his? Odd that Monty would give in on this when he usually ignored Charley’s preferences. And they’d come to Dawton Manor to hide
far away from London.
They moved to the front of the line of coaches to wait until everyone had boarded. Out of the shade of the house, she noticed the slight bruise on his cheek. She hadn’t seen it last night possibly because the candelabras on the dining table had limited her view of him, but it was apparent now in the sunshine.
“Fell out of bed, did you?” she teased, pointing at his cheek.
“No, your Scots guard was annoyed with me.” She gasped and stared beyond him at the MacCabe brothers, both already mounted and waiting for the coaches to depart. “They wouldn’t hit you!”
“No, they probably wouldn’t,” he agreed. “But Donnan was annoyed enough not to help me when I dealt with the three remaining men who escaped the fight yesterday.”
Her eyes widened. “So you confirmed that those men are Charley’s enemies?”
“Yes, I found them in town asking questions about him, well, their interpreter was. They’d hired an Englishman to speak for them. But he didn’t understand their native tongue, either. Your Scot said they used pantomime to communicate to him the questions they wanted him to ask. But he ran off as soon as the scuffle started, yelling, “They didn’t pay me to fight for them!”
“I assume you won against the two and they are now in jail?”
“No, I left them unconscious. I’d rather they waste their time searching all over Cheshire, and if there are more of them in England, these two can get word to them about where Charley has gone into hiding. They and their cohorts will know with certainty that we aren’t in London, so chances of any of them looking there again are next to none.”
Well, she obviously wasn’t going to hear, “And I couldn’t bear to part from you,” so she said no more. And Kathleen finally came out of the house. She did not have to board her coach to find out that Vanessa wasn’t in it with the twins when Snow caught her eye.
With a cringe, Vanessa wondered if her mother was going to walk over to her and insist she travel inside the vehicle as a lady ought to. It would be a long walk for Kathleen to reach her with both Blackburn coaches harnessed with four horses for greater speed. Kathleen did neither, but Vanessa didn’t doubt she’d hear about it later when they stopped for lunch. If they stopped. This was going to be a very hurried trip. After all, they had an important ball to attend in a week’s time.
Chapter Twenty-nine
VANESSA STOOD AT THE parlor window waiting for the horses to be brought around so she and her sisters could go riding in Hyde Park. Kathleen was on the sofa behind her, going through all the invitations that had already come in. Her mother seemed so happy, so vibrant now that she was back in London.
Suddenly the very proper, punctilious butler entered and, trying his best to hide his annoyance, said, “Lord Bates has requested that yet another armoire be brought up to his bedroom. Would that be acceptable, Lady Blackburn?”
Kathleen didn’t even glance up from the invitations in her lap to say, “Of course, he can have the one in the empty bedroom on the third floor.”
Vanessa smiled, amused that Charley and Arlo hadn’t yet finished unpacking Charley’s wardrobe even though they’d all arrived yesterday. Mr. Rickles looked aggrieved, had likely hoped for a different answer, but then he wasn’t at all pleased with their houseguests after Monty had called him Pickles yesterday instead of Rickles, and Vanessa, at least, was sure Monty had done so deliberately because he couldn’t resist ribbing the stiff, stuffy butler.
Kathleen rose a few minutes later to join Vanessa at the window and remarked, “There are so many social events to attend, we’re all going to have a lovely time!” But then her expression turned aghast. “You cannot ride that beast in the park!”
Vanessa raised a brow at her mother, but Kathleen was still staring out the parlor window that faced the street where the horses had just been led. The twins hadn’t come downstairs yet to join them, which meant they could both, for the moment, speak their minds.
“Yes, I can,” Vanessa stated simply.
Kathleen swung about, her expression rife with anger. “It’s a draft horse!”
“This fine riding habit I’m wearing will suggest otherwise. And he’s a magnificent beauty. I won’t be surprised if I get a number of offers for him. He makes a fine placard for the breeding farm I intend to open one day.”
Kathleen humphed. “The Rathbans will never allow something that common. You will need to undertake more genteel hobbies.”
That was not what Vanessa wanted to hear! She was giving up everything else for this marriage, she wouldn’t give up the stable she wanted, too. “Then I may have to do some bargaining with Albert Rathban myself. As a wedding gift, he can promise me that I’ll have a place on his estate to further Snow’s line.”
“You’re going to make that ridiculous demand and risk losing his agreement to allow your father to return home?”
Kathleen almost looked panicked, so Vanessa assured her, “You misunderstand. I would never make it an ultimatum, Mother, or risk your bargain. I would merely make the suggestion, and only after the engagement is secure. But if it will relieve your mind, I suppose I could wait until after the marriage to mention it.”
Mollified, but still staring at Snow, Kathleen mentioned, “We have other, more suitable, horses.”
“But I love that one, have raised him from birth.”
Vanessa didn’t add that she’d helped with that birth, which would appall her mother. But she resented that Kathleen was treating her like a child she could control and was so insistent on curtailing yet another of her freedoms.
Hoping to drop the subject, she added, “We’ll be back in plenty of time to rest and prepare for the ball tonight.”
“Are you being deliberately obtuse to think that might be of concern at this moment? You are among the ton now, the people whose opinions matter. Even you must know that riding a draft horse in Hyde Park would be scandalous. I could have sworn you promised you would not misbehave in public and embarrass this family.”
Vanessa’s cheeks bloomed with color. She had indeed said that, and she did indeed get Kathleen’s point, but couldn’t her mother have reminded her of that to begin with instead of saying no and expecting that to work as it did on the twins? She hated it, but she was going to have to concede on this one thing.
“As fond as I am of Snow, as uniquely beautiful as he is, and I might add, I’ve never viewed him as a draft horse, he has never been an embarrassment to me. But you are quite right, Mother. He isn’t suitable for a lady’s mount in town.”
“Thank you for seeing reason.”
Vanessa felt a little choked up at having another chunk of her independence whittled away. “Excuse me while I request a new horse.”
She left the room and went outside to do that and also to give Snow a bit of petting. She whispered to him her apology and her promise to still visit him each day to attend to his grooming, then she told the groom holding Snow’s reins, “I’ll need a different mount, please.”
“I honestly didn’t think you would.”
She hadn’t actually looked at any of the three grooms but turned about now with a laugh, recognizing Monty’s voice. “What the devil are you doing dressed like a groom?”
“Because I’m part of your escort.”
“Why?”
“Why not? Charley isn’t the only one who can make sacrifices in exchange for our new lodgings.”
She laughed again. “So you’re going to be a groom for our entire stay in London?”
“Bite your tongue, I’m not subservient enough for that. And I was teasing. Your mother would never request payment for her kindness.”
“A tweed cap and jacket is not much of a disguise,” she pointed out.
“It’s not meant to be other than for your mother who might object to me escorting you. Voilà, a mere change of clothes and I can steal more time with you. How could I resist? And as it happens, I’ll be attending your ball tonight, too.”
“Really?”
He grinne
d. “Surprised? I just won’t be arriving with you, since that would point out to any interested parties where I’m abiding.”
It was a delightful turn, but she still had to mention, “I thought you were still in hiding.”
He shrugged. “Revealing myself might present a few personal pitfalls, but nothing I can’t handle. It was imperative that Charley change his appearance before we came here, and he’s done a fine job of it.”
“I’m still surprised that you would want to go. As a rake, I didn’t think you would favor balls and the like.”
“To be honest I never have, but I feel compelled to attend this one so I can console you after you meet your fiancé.”
She frowned at him. “That’s not nice.”
“Neither is he.”
“Do stop disparaging him. I’m sure I will find something about him to like, and if not, I shall cry.”
“Good,” he said without any sympathy. “Now I’ll find you a stodgy old mare to ride.”
She choked back another laugh. “Don’t you dare! She at least needs to be spry!”
The twins were coming down the stairs when she reentered the house, Layla in a white riding habit, Emily in a pink one, and both bubbling with excitement. This would be their first ride in a London park. Kathleen had never brought them to London with her, though as Kathleen had told her, she hadn’t come here often herself after William left the country.
“We will be another moment,” Vanessa said. “I’ve had to request a different horse.”
“A shame,” Layla said.
But Emily had the same thought as Kathleen. “I assumed you would know better than to ride the white one in London.”
“Yes, I merely forgot,” Vanessa replied, not wanting to acknowledge Emily’s supercilious tone, at least not now, since it would undoubtedly put her and her sister at odds for their ride. But she intended to get Emily alone one of these days to find out why she had turned so disagreeable toward her. It wasn’t constant, but from time to time she would make catty remarks to Vanessa for no reason—at least, no reason Vanessa could think of.
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