Olivia gasped. ‘We cannot afford not to do as he asks; not if it offers the slightest danger to Tom.’
‘Tom’s welfare in my primary concern, along with your own.’
Olivia closed her eyes and nodded. ‘Forgive me, I am not thinking coherently.’
‘There is nothing to forgive.’ Jake squeezed her hand. ‘Now, tell me about the Granvilles. I don’t believe I am acquainted with them.’
‘I don’t suppose you are. They are not top drawer. Sarah’s family live close to mine in Surrey so we were often thrown together in local society before our respective weddings. We remained friends when we both moved to London as married women.’
‘They must be acquainted with Sir Hubert?’
‘Yes, they are.’
‘Does Granville have an occupation or is he independently wealthy?’ Parker asked.
‘Actually, he used to be in a similar situation to my brother Rupert in that he had an import business. I am unsure if he still does.’
‘A competitor to Rupert?’
‘Yes, but they were too civilized to show any rivalry.’ She turned towards Jake, her face alight with hope. ‘Do you suppose that is where Tom is being held? In the Granville household in Kensington? I cannot believe it. Sarah would not be a party to anything of that nature, I am absolutely sure. But if it was done without her knowledge, how could they keep a lively child quiet?’ She paled even more; something Jake had thought impossible. ‘And why would they? Apart from Molly’s connection to Sarah, I can think of absolutely no reason.’
‘Are the Granvilles back from Europe?’ Parker asked.
‘I have no idea. I feel persuaded that Sarah would have called upon me if they had returned, but I have not heard from her, other than the odd brief letter from Italy and I have not received anything at all for several months now. In her last letter she did say that they were thinking in terms of returning to England and that she was glad about it. She was homesick.’
‘You say you do not like Granville, yet his wife remained loyal during your travails,’ Jake said. ‘Would Granville not have objected to her association with you; a suspected murderess? Excuse me, I know you were innocent but society pre-judged the matter and turned its collective back on you for a while.’
Olivia lifted one slender shoulder. ‘Sarah was in a similar position to me. She was compelled to marry Granville but the union is not congenial. She has never said as much, but I think he is cruel to her. I have seen her with bruises and her explanation for them always seemed implausible. Anyway, she gave him two children, and now Granville leaves her more or less to her own devices.’
‘Then why the European tour?’ Parker asked. ‘That would throw them constantly together.’
‘I think Granville’s business is doing no better than Rupert’s and he needed to economise,’ Olivia replied pensively. ‘Sarah did not actually say as much, but I read between the lines. Why else would she not take her maid with her? She made the best of it, put on a brave face and said she hoped that time alone with Granville would mend the rift in their marriage.’
‘I cannot see why the Granvilles would abduct Tom,’ Jake said, pacing as he tried to assimilate all the facts. ‘Sarah Granville is your friend and could not know about Lady Marchant’s letters.’
‘Unless Molly told her,’ Parker suggested.
‘We must assume that Molly knows about them,’ Jake mused.
Olivia nodded. ‘I seem to recall that she was loitering when I discovered the letters and told Parker about them. I thought nothing of it at the time. And, of course, we have spoken of them several times since then. There is every chance that she overheard us at some point.’
‘But that does not explain why Mrs Granville would recommend Molly to you, Olivia,’ Jake said, convinced that he was missing something vital. ‘What possible advantage could there be to her?’
Olivia shook her head, looking sick with worry. ‘I have no idea, but we ought to go to Kensington and talk to Sarah. I shall know immediately if she is not being honest.’
Reed returned to the room. ‘We have thoroughly searched Molly’s sleeping quarters and questioned the other servants, Jane in particular, my lord. None of them know anything about Molly, other than that she was sweet on that curate. Jane says she was very close-lipped about her family and never said much about her circumstances. And there is nothing amongst her possessions that lends any clue as to her current whereabouts.’
‘That would have been too much to hope for,’ Jake muttered, asking Reed to have Jane sent in.
‘Oh, madam,’ Jane said when she joined them, her eyes blotchy with tears. ‘What a thing to have happened.’
‘It is not your fault, Jane.’
‘Excuse me, m’lord, but Mr Reed says that Molly must have sent that message about my mother.’
‘We think it highly likely, Jane,’ Jake replied. ‘She knew about your mother’s illness and that you were staying here. Few other people did.’
Jane nodded. ‘I wish I knew why she has taken against you, madam, when you are such a kind and considerate mistress. And I am sure Master Tom has never done anything to drive her to such extremes. He is just a babe.’
The footman despatched to speak with Molly’s curate returned.
‘Graves knows nothing about a meeting to help fallen women, my lord, nor did he send for Molly. In fact, he has not seen her for several weeks. He implied that their friendship was never anything more than that. Molly developed a sudden interest in the workings of his chapel and he never turns away a willing pair of hands in his efforts to help the poor.’
‘And yet Molly had everyone believe they were sweethearts,’ Olivia muttered. ‘How odd. Perhaps her feelings for the curate were not returned and her disappointment caused her to recklessly abscond with Tom.’
Jake sent her a reassuring smile. ‘The diversion that enabled the abduction was created quite deliberately. Molly has neither the wits nor the resources to arrange such a thing and the curate has no reason to. No, someone else told her what to do.’ Jake dismissed Jane and thanked the footman who had delivered the information about Graves. Only Parker remained as Jake sat beside Olivia and took her trembling hand in both of his. ‘Tom will not be harmed. These people are well organised but they have no reason to hurt your son. Quite the reverse, since they are using him to get your attention.’
‘They most assuredly have it!’
‘You expect a demand for those letters in return for Tom?’ Parker glowered. ‘That might have been effective if Mrs Grantley was still alone at Cheyne Walk but Sir Hubert, or whoever has taken Tom, must know that she is now living here, under your protection, which means they are either audaciously arrogant or very desperate.’
‘Oh my goodness!’ Olivia clasped her face with both hands. ‘I have just remembered about the Asylum for Fatherless Children.’
‘I beg your pardon.’ Jake looked at Olivia in confusion.
‘It is Mrs Mansfield’s latest charitable cause. I have managed to avoid being pulled onto any of her committees in the past, but have run out of excuses this time. We are due to meet tomorrow in an orphanage in Whitechapel to see what can be done for the poor mites.’
‘Whoever took Tom cannot possibly suppose that you would still keep that engagement.’ Jake said.
‘Perhaps she will get instructions to do so and take the letters with her,’ Parker suggested. ‘Even if we swamp the place with our people, there is every chance that the blaggards would get away in the crowded back streets that they must know a great deal better than we do. Clever!’
‘I think we should start with what we know, not suspect,’ Jake said calmly. ‘That means a visit to your friends in Kensington, Olivia. Have the carriage brought round, Parker, and come with us. Whilst we are speaking with the lady of the house, you need to chat with the servants.’
‘Right you are.’
‘Go up and collect your things,’ Jake said softly, turning back to Olivia, ‘and we shall be on our
way. Don’t worry,’ he added, sending her a smile of firm resolve. ‘Tom will be returned to you very soon. On that score you have my solemn promise.’
Chapter Thirteen
‘Oh, madam!’ Jane, waiting for Olivia in her room, looked wretched. ‘I feel responsible for what happened. I should have known that message about my ma was bogus. I just never thought…’
‘Hush now, Jane. None of us could have foreseen this.’
‘If anything happens to Master Tom then I shall never forgive myself.’ Jane dabbed at her eyes. ‘I never shall.’
Olivia found herself reassuring her son’s nursemaid, much as Jake had just reassured her. It helped her to remain in control as she selected a hat with a half-veil that would conceal her blotchy eyes. She settled it on her head and secured it in place with a pin, not bothering to examine the results.
‘Try to keep busy, Jane,’ Olivia said as she picked up her gloves and stocking purse. ‘It will help to keep your mind off things.’
‘If you can be strong, madam,’ Jane said, blowing her nose and straightening her spine, ‘then so too can I.’
‘I shall be back soon. Reed knows where to find us if anything…’ Olivia’s voice caught in her throat. She swallowed down the lump that had formed there and took a moment to compose herself. ‘If any urgent messages arrive for me.’
Olivia reached the turn of the stairs and could see Jake pacing back and forth across the wide expanse of the vestibule as he waited for her, his heels sounding a loud rat-a-tat on the chequered marble flooring. He had not seen her yet and so she paused to scrutinise him. His expression was sombre, a frown etched deep into his forehead, and she would give much to know what thoughts were passing through his head at that particular moment. It would be pointless asking him since she was well aware he would tell her only that which he wished her to know; the infuriating man! He looked up, saw her standing there and his mouth curved into an enticing smile, all traces of anxiety eradicated from his expression.
‘There you are,’ he said unnecessarily, placing her hand on his sleeve when she reached him and conducting her to the waiting carriage.
Parker travelled on the box seat, leaving Olivia alone with Jake inside the conveyance. Raw, gut-wrenching pain ripped through her whenever she thought how afraid poor Tom must be. A lead weight threatened to drag her into the depths of despair, but Olivia could not allow herself to fall into her own version of hell. She needed to stay strong for Tom’s sake. That was the one thing she could do to make up for her neglect because, no matter what Jake said to the contrary, no one would ever convince her that his abduction was not her fault. Besides, if she appeared fragile, Jake would shut her out of the investigation completely; even though Olivia was firmly determined to be fully involved with it. By using her son in such a cowardly fashion Hubert, or whoever was behind his snatching, would soon discover the extremes to which a mother was prepared to go in order to protect her child.
‘That’s better.’ Jake, seated beside her, squeezed her gloved hand.
‘What is?’
‘I can tell from the range of emotions that have just passed through your expression that you have gone from deep despondency, through self-condemnation and settled upon fighting mad. I am very glad that the anger in your eyes is not directed at me.’ His theatrical shudder made her smile. ‘Well, I assume it is not.’
‘You have promised me that Tom will not be harmed and that we will get him back. I depend upon you to deliver on that promise.’ She lowered her voice to little more than a hoarse whisper. ‘I should go out of mind if I thought you were merely telling me what I wished to hear.’
Jake took her hand and lowered his own voice as he caressed her with an ardent look. ‘I have undertaken many sensitive missions for Thorndike; ones that could have adversely affected the standing of the entire British Empire if I had failed. But they all pale into insignificance compared with my determination to get Tom back.’ He squeezed her fingers and kissed the back of her gloved hand. ‘Never doubt that for a moment.’
Olivia could tell that his words of reassurance came from the heart and felt a fresh rush of adoration for this highly principled, complex aristocrat. If anyone could rescue Tom, she had every confidence in Jake’s ability to do so.
‘Thank you. I know that you will.’
‘Is this it?’ Jake asked when the carriage stopped a short time later in front of a four-storied terraced house with a blue door and railings that separated its narrow frontage from the pavement.
‘Yes,’ Olivia replied.
A fat thrush sat on the railings, watching them with apparent disinterest as they disembarked from the carriage. A cat slunk along the edge of the railings watching the thrush with considerably more intent. There were external stairs down to the basement of the house—the servants’ quarters, Olivia assumed. A narrow bow window on the ground floor, Olivia knew from previous visits, gave a view of the street from the drawing room. She looked up at the windows on the floors above but no small child peered through them. Not that Olivia imagined Sarah had anything at all to do with Tom’s abduction, but still…
‘I can see a light in the drawing room,’ she remarked. ‘Presumably Sarah is at home.’
‘There is one way to find out.’
They ascended the two steps to the blue door, and Jake gave a sharp rap with the brass knocker that was shaped like a boar’s head. Parker, Olivia noticed, slipped down the stairs to the basement and let himself in through the kitchen door. The main door was opened by a footman whom Olivia did not recognise wearing a livery that did not look new. Jake gave their names and asked if his mistress was at home.
‘I shall enquire, my lord. Be so kind as to wait in here.’
They were shown into a tiny room that appeared to be Granville’s study. There was a desk littered with papers, boxes half unpacked and a smattering of books lined the walls. There were gaps on a lot of the shelves waiting to be filled, presumably, by the contents of those boxes. Olivia had never set foot in the room before but assumed it was the only other one on this floor, apart from the drawing room and the dining parlour. They had barely had time to examine their surroundings, or exchange a single word, when the footman returned.
‘My mistress will see you now, if you would be so kind as to follow me.’
‘Olivia, what a pleasant surprise!’ Sarah stood, smiling as Olivia and Jake entered the rather dreary drawing room. The walls were papered in striped burgundy; faded and bulging in places. A sparse fire failed to disguise a faint aroma of mildew. The narrow bow window facing north let in little light and the lamps were already lit even though it was not yet lunchtime. ‘I was planning to call upon you this week.’
Olivia embraced her friend, who looked gaunt and unwell. ‘Then I have saved you the trouble. May I present Lord Torbay?’
Olivia watched Jake assessing Sarah as he dispensed charm and impeccable manners with an even hand.
‘Thank you for seeing us, Mrs Granville,’ Jake said, waiting for the ladies to seat themselves before he took his own chair. Olivia observed the worn cushions sink beneath his weight and heard the springs protest with a loud squeak. ‘Olivia did not know if you had returned to England.’
‘We got back just last week. We are still opening up the house again so you must excuse the way it looks.’
‘You shut it down?’ Olivia asked.
Sarah hesitated. ‘Actually we had a tenant until last month.’
Olivia nodded, thinking that would explain why Sarah’s husband had packed away his personal possessions from his library.
‘We were not sure how long we would be away,’ she added evasively, apparently thinking she owed Olivia an explanation. ‘It seemed more practical to have the house lived in. You hear such terrible things about properties being vandalised if they are left vacant for too long.’
‘Quite.’ Olivia realised that Sarah’s husband had let the house because he needed to, and Sarah was attempting to save face with her explanation
. She ought to change the subject, ask about Italy and how Sarah had enjoyed seeing that country, or enquire after her children’s welfare, but thoughts of Tom made it impossible for her to do and say the right things. ‘It must be a surprise to see us here and so I shall come straight to the point.’ Olivia swallowed, beset with nerves and a fresh wave of despair that she somehow managed to shake off. ‘My son Tom went to the park with Molly this morning and…well, he has disappeared.’
‘Oh my dear!’ Sarah leapt up and engulfed Olivia in a fierce hug. ‘What is being done to find him? Have you involved the police? You must be beside yourself with worry and, given the circumstances and Lord Torbay’s presence, I imagine this is not a social call. I assume that you think I can help in some way. Needless to say, you can depend up me.’
‘We wondered what you can recall about Molly’s background,’ Jake said, presumably noticing that Olivia was fighting a fresh bout of despair and was momentarily unable to speak for herself.
Sarah widened her eyes; her shock seemingly genuine. ‘You imagine Molly deliberately colluded with the kidnappers—assuming that he has been kidnapped?’ She shook her head. ‘I cannot think of any reason why she would do such a thing.’
‘We have our own reasons for not involving the police,’ Jake said. ‘Suffice it to say that the matter is of the utmost sensitivity. We believe we know who has him, but not where he is being held or how Molly came to be involved. And she must have been involved. The matter could not have been contrived so easily otherwise. Indeed, she arranged it so that Tom’s regular nursemaid was called away upon a fool’s errand, knowing she would be asked to take her place and accompany Tom on his morning excursion to the park.’
‘Oh dear.’ Sarah looked genuinely distressed. ‘And to think I recommended the girl to you.’ Her eyes flew wide and two spots of colour appeared high on her pale cheeks. ‘I hope you do not imagine that I had anything to—’
‘The thought did not enter my head,’ Olivia told her friend, even though she was fairly sure that it would have entered Jake’s. ‘However, we did not know where else to start asking questions. That is why we came to you first.’
With Good Grace (Victorian Vigilantes Book 3) Page 17