“This is my problem,” she said, moving away from him to take a seat. He followed, drawing another chair close to hers, so close that their knees now touched.
“It seems to me that the one person who would have the most to gain from your brother’s death would be Brantley. Is he the one who has been threatening your family?”
“I shall just go and make sure Charlie—”
“No, Patience, you will not.” Mathew took her arm and lowered her back into the seat.
“Yes,” she said after a brief silence.
“Yes, what?”
“Yes, Brantley intends to harm Charles so he can inherit his title, but until I saw him at Vauxhall Gardens, he had never openly admitted his intent.”
Mathew remembered how shaken she had seemed that night when he’d found her. “Was he the one who put those marks on your neck?”
Her nod made him want to track the bastard down and hurt him.
“And was it him you saw outside the cowkeeper’s shop?”
“No, I heard the gunshot and guessed it was someone he had hired coming after Charlie again.”
“I’ll kill him for hurting you,” Mathew said, touching her neck softly.
“I hate him.” She looked ferocious. “I wanted to shoot him at Vauxhall, and would have if I was alone.”
“I have no doubt that you would have succeeded, my sweet, but then you would have been charged with murder.”
“It would have been worth it to rid Charlie of him.”
“So those large men who go about with you and Charlie are more bodyguards than footmen?”
She told him about the attempts on Charlie’s life, and his admiration for her courage grew. Patience had protected her family in whatever way she could, but now she was no longer alone.
“Winston has certainly fooled many people as to his true personality.”
“Yes, and that is why it was difficult to tell anyone,” Patience said. “Who would believe my word against his? I even went to a magistrate, but he laughed at my claims.”
“What did Brantley say to you the other night?” Mathew took her hand and warmed her cold fingers. Touching her was becoming an addiction.
“That he was coming for Charlie and that I would not be able to stop him.” She lowered her eyes, which told him she had not told him everything.
“And?”
“I would be made to watch him die before he then killed me.”
“He will not succeed,” Mathew said calmly.
“My fear is that no matter what I have put in place, I cannot stop him,” she whispered.
“We will stop him.”
“I-I don’t want you entangled in this, Mathew.”
She touched his chest, and he wanted to pull her onto his lap and hold her. This woman had slipped inside him somehow, and he knew that she would not be dislodged.
“You are not safe here, I will move you into my house. It is larger and more secure, plus I have a great deal more staff.”
“No!” She pulled away from him and got to her feet. “That is an absurd notion, Mathew.”
He watched her pace around the room, hands moving, feet striding. Her body was a beautiful thing when in motion.
“It is the perfect solution, and one that if you paused to think rationally about, you would understand is the wisest for your family, Patience.”
“Don’t tell me how to care about my family! I’ve done nothing but consider them since my parents died!” She paced back to his chair to glare down at him. “I have kept them safe until now, and I will continue to do so without your help.”
“Why is it so hard for you to accept help from me? Do you still distrust me? Are you still harboring that grudge that has plagued you for years? Am I to be painted the villain alongside your cousin?” Frustration drove him to his feet, and anger made him reach for her. “Damn you, woman, will pride stop you from accepting my help to the detriment of your family?”
“Don’t you dare infer that I would ever put my pride before my family’s safety!” She was yelling right along with him now.
“Then accept my help, damn you!”
“Why are you yelling at Mathew, Patience?” Charlie asked as he came back into the room.
“Did you manage to alert someone?” she said after inhaling a large breath, instead of answering her brother’s question.
“Yes. Lenny had returned to see if there was word, and after blistering my ears about my reckless behavior, he has now gone to collect the others who are out there searching.”
“You wait until Mr. Toots gets hold of you, Brother.” Patience moved away from Mathew as she spoke. “He will be furious with you.”
Mathew’s insides were boiling. He couldn’t understand why she did not want his help. Surely she could see that this was the best option to keep them safe.
“He will make me clean the silver again, won’t he?”
“If you are lucky,” Patience said, wrapping an arm around her brother’s shoulders.
“Why were you yelling at each other when I came in?” Charlie then said with the tenacity of a child who wanted answers, and Mathew was angry enough to give them to him.
“Patience told me about your cousin, Charlie, and I told her I thought it best for you all to come and live with me, as I have more staff, a bigger, more secure house, and can ensure your safety now that I know where the threat to you all lies.” Mathew watched Patience as he said the words, her blue eyes narrowing as anger darkened them.
“It is underhanded of you to involve Charlie in this!”
“Yes,” Mathew said. “It is.”
“I think we should take Mathew up on his offer, Patience.” Charlie looked from Mathew to Patience.
“No!” She folded her arms, her lips forming a line. Mathew knew that particular expression, as he’d seen it enough times in the last few days.
“Why are you yelling, Sister?” Lucy walked into the room with her bonnet trailing in one hand and a sweet smile on her face.
Charlie replied, “Mathew thinks we should move into his house so he can look after us, and my cousin won’t get me.”
Good boy, Mathew thought. To get Patience to yield would take their combined efforts, and he hoped Lucy would be in agreement.
“What a wonderfully generous offer! We wholeheartedly accept!” Lucy cried, hurrying to kiss Mathew on one cheek. “And can I say that I’m proud of you for telling Mathew about our cousin and the threat he poses, Patience.”
“She didn’t,” Charlie said, ignoring his elder sister, who was now gnashing her teeth. “I ran away to the velocipede exhibition today, and Mathew found me. I told him about Brantley, and Patience added the rest.”
“No!” Lucy looked horrified. “You didn’t, Charlie. What if Brantley abducted you?”
“I know it was wrong, and I’m sorry, but the point is that I told Mathew about our cousin,” the boy said, eager to get his sister’s thoughts off what he had done and onto their cousin.
“I think we should accept Mathew’s offer, Patience.”
“How can you say that, Lucy?” Patience demanded. “What will people say if we simply up and move to his house, a bachelor household?”
“My mother lives there,” Mathew said, which earned him another glare.
“There, you see?” Lucy said. “No one will comment with Lady Allender there also, and it is the safest place for us until your Mr. Whitty can find the information we need to control our cousin.”
“Mr. Whitty?” Mathew said, watching as Patience closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose.
“He is a private investigator. Patience thought that if he investigated our cousin, he might come up with something we can use against him,” Lucy said.
“And has he?”
“I only saw him a few days ago,” Patience snapped. “I hardly think it likely he will have unearthed something yet.”
She was defensive and angry, probably still feeling the effects of her brother’s disappearance, Math
ew took the decision away from her as he rose to his feet.
“I shall have carriages sent in two hours. Have your staff pack what you need, and the rest will follow tomorrow. I will send three footmen upon my return to my home, who will watch over you until the carriages arrive.”
“This is ridiculous!” Patience looked at her siblings, who both looked determined, then at him. “I have staff here. I cannot simply leave them, nor will I let our cousin drive us from our own house.”
“Can we bring Lenny and Paul?” Charlie asked Mathew.
“Of course,” Mathew said as he walked to the door. He wanted to leave before Patience had a chance to tender any more arguments or throw something hard at his head. He would let her siblings deal with her.
“You can’t just—”
Mathew closed the door on her protests and made for the front door. He was outside in his carriage before she could catch him. Smiling as he saw the front door open, he watched her appear and almost wished he could see the fire in her eyes. Instead, he looked forward and instructed his driver to take him home. Once there, he would send men to watch over the household until the Allenders were safely inside his house. There would be no more threats to the Allender family; he would ensure that, just as he would ensure that Brantley Winston was brought to justice.
CHAPTER NINE
Patience stormed back inside to find her siblings standing side by side, facing her as she walked in through the parlor door.
“We are not going!”
“It is for the best,” Lucy said calmly.
“How can moving into the Belmont household help us? Surely it can only make matters worse, as suddenly the threat to us is also to them.” Patience tried to speak calmly, yet she wanted to kick something, namely a tall marquis. How dared he turn her siblings against her? Suddenly everything appeared beyond her control, and now Lucy and Charlie were trusting Mathew, but she was not yet sure she could do that.
Liar.
Ignoring the voice, she glared at her siblings. “We cannot simply move into his household, for pity’s sake. He has not even consulted his mother, and she lives there also.”
“She will not mind,” Lucy said.
“How do you know that?”
“Because she knows it is what our mother would have wanted.”
Lucy’s words were like a blow to her stomach, propelling the air out of her. “How can you know that?”
“I just do.”
She looked at her siblings, standing hip to hip, united in their belief that they should move into Mathew’s household, and felt a surge of betrayal. They did not believe she could keep them safe any longer, and, after a few words and no more than a week in his company, suddenly Mathew could provide them with a safe haven, while she could not.
“We are not moving into his household.”
She stormed out and went up to her bedroom, where she sat on her bed, thinking furiously. Was it her growing feelings for him that were stopping her? Did she trust him? Could she keep her heart whole if she saw him continually, and he kissed her again? Was it really best for them to move to his household, and were her personal feelings towards him making her unreasonable?
“Am I balking because of selfish reasons?” Patience whispered.
Falling backward onto the bed, she lay staring at the ceiling. Exhaustion was making her irrational. Perhaps after a few minutes of rest she could make sense of everything.
Patience woke to a knock on the door, and had no idea how long she had slept. Climbing to her feet, she went to open it, certain one of her siblings would be standing there.
“A note has arrived for you, Miss Allender.”
“Thank you, Mr. Toots.” She took it, quickly broke the seal, and read the few lines.
Come at once, I have news of an alarming nature concerning your cousin. It was signed Mr. Whitty, Private Investigator.
Shaking the last vestiges of sleep from her head, Patience quickly pulled on her bonnet and pelisse, then made sure her pistol was inside her reticule before she left.
“Where are you going, Patience?” Her sister was standing at the bottom of the stairs, looking up at her as she descended.
“I shall return shortly, Lucy.”
“Mathew’s carriages will be here soon. Charlie and I are nearly packed.”
“Send him a note, please, saying we are not moving.”
Lucy shook her head furiously. “I will not, not when Charlie and I wish to go. If you want to stay, then do so, but we will be leaving.”
“Lucy, I—” Patience watched as her sister walked away, but she did not have time to talk with her further. She must see what Mr. Whitty had uncovered, because perhaps that would change everything. Dear Lord, she hoped so. “Just wait until I return, please!” she called, but Lucy did not reply.
Walking out onto the street, Patience hailed a hackney. She did not have time to collect the carriage, nor did she want anyone accompanying her. She would be safe to travel there and back alone at such a time. The streets were busy, and it was not her that their cousin wanted.
Mr. Whitty’s street was busy with people and carriages. Paying her driver, she told him that if he passed by again shortly, he would secure her fare home.
“Will do.” The driver tipped his hat, then drove away.
Something made Patience turn, a shiver of awareness as she struck out for the other side of the street, where Mr. Whitty had his premises. Looking over her shoulder, she saw a man watching her, so she picked up her pace, lifted her skirts and ran. The thunder of hooves stopped her, and, looking right, she saw two horses approach.
Silly fools, to be riding at such a pace on a busy street, Patience thought, stopping to await their passing. She looked once more behind her but did not see the man anywhere. Dismissing him, she realized she was becoming paranoid. Thankfully the horses started to slow as they neared her, which saved her issuing a warning about irresponsible behavior on such a busy street.
“Miss Allender?”
The man on the horse closest to her called her name. She did not recognize him, but seconds later he had drawn abreast. She did not see the arm that bent to catch her, but suddenly she was being lifted high and seated in front of him.
“Let me go!” She struggled and swung her fists, and then watched in horror as her reticule slid from her wrist and disappeared to the street below. She had no pistol now, and no one knew where she had gone to.
“Who are you, and what do you want with me?” she cried, but the man who was holding her did not reply. Patience knew it was useless to fight him anymore, as falling from a horse at this speed would only harm her. She must save her energy for when her feet were once again on the ground.
Slowly the streets turned less inviting, the buildings less grand, until they were winding their way through narrow, dirty streets. She saw some masts in the distance and shivered, realizing they were close to the water.
The horses slowed as they approached a large grey building. The man who had been riding alongside them dismounted and pulled her down, then threw her over one shoulder. Patience pummeled his back, but he merely grunted, trapped her legs and walked beside the buildings down a narrow alley. It smelled hideous, and she did not dwell on what could have made that stench.
She heard the creak of a door opening, then they were inside a darkened room.
“Lock her in and we’ll go finish the job and get the boy.”
“You will not harm my brother!”
“And what do you think you can do about it?” One of the men laughed at her.
Patience was then carried farther across the room, up some stairs, and through another door, then she was lowered to her feet.
“What will you do with me?” Spinning, she faced the man now walking back out the door. “Answer me!”
His smile wasn’t pleasant.
“Just getting you out of the way for a while, Miss Allender, while we take care of your brother. Then after that you’ll just have to wait and see, but i
t’s my thinking that by the time I get back here you’ll be mighty glad to see me.”
“No!” Patience ran across the room, but the door had slammed and the lock had been driven home by the time she reached it. “Please, I shall pay you more!”
Silence greeted her words.
“Dear God, Charlie,” she whispered as helpless despair gripped her. Her only hope was that her siblings would had gone against her wishes and left for the safety of Mathew’s household before these men got there.
On the other side of the room was a window that was leaking cracks of light through the boards that were nailed over it. Patience tried each to see if any were loose, but they were secure.
How long was she to be left here? Indefinitely? Would anyone come for her now, or once Charlie was… She could not even think it.
Pacing the small room, she tried to think as she looked for something, anything to loosen those boards, anything to help her escape. There was only a rickety, uncomfortable-looking chair on the foul-smelling floor, and nothing else. Patience lifted it high, then dropped it onto the floor, letting it smash into pieces. Picking up a leg, she turned toward the window.
She worked the narrow end beneath the wood, then pushed with all her strength, trying to prize it off. After repeated efforts she felt the nail loosen, and on the next attempt she had it free on one side. She gripped the loose board and pulled, and the next nail came free so easily that she stumbled backwards, landing hard on her bottom, the impact shuddering through her body. No one came to see what she was doing, or to check the noise, which suggested she was indeed alone in this building.
The work was tiring, and soon the muscles in her body were screaming at her to cease, but it was also giving Patience something to focus on rather than thinking about her brother and sister, who could right now be under attack.
Please stay safe.
The second board took longer, and by the third, blood was soaking into her gloves and her body was protesting fiercely. When the third board was free, she looked out through the dirty glass and her heart sank to her toes. Water met her eyes, lots of deep water.
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