by Laura Landon
Winnie wanted to trust Nick, but it was so hard. She hadn’t been able to trust anyone for so long, it was impossible now.
“You’re worrying, Winnie. You shouldn’t.”
“That’s easy for you to say.”
“How many times have you had to leave money behind the bakery?”
She looked away from him. “This is the fifth time.”
“They’re not going to stop, Winnie. They’re going to continue to demand money, because they know you’ll do anything to keep your mother’s whereabouts a secret. This will continue until your blackmailer is caught, and your mother is turned over to the authorities.”
For several moments she was unable to speak. She tried, but the lump in her throat stopped her words. Finally, she said, “You may be able to catch the blackmailer. But I’ll never allow you to turn my mother over to the authorities. I can’t, Nick.”
“There’s no other way out of this, Winnie.”
“There has to be,” she said. Then closed her eyes. “There has to be.”
CHAPTER 24
The next time Winnie opened her eyes, Nick was gone and her Father was sitting in the chair beside her bed.
“How do you feel, Winnifred?” he asked.
Winnie saw the concern on his face as well as determination. She breathed a deep sigh. Her father had questions that deserved answers. Except she couldn’t give them to him. This conversation wasn’t going to be easy.
“Much better, Papa. Although I doubt I look it.”
“No, I daresay you don’t. Would you like to sit?”
“Yes, please. I’ve been in bed long enough.”
“I’ll help you sit, then we’ll have tea. Tilly just brought a tray. Along with some pastries and sandwiches. She thought you might be hungry when you woke.”
“I am,” she answered, then held out her arm for her father to help her sit. Then stand. When she was on her feet and had slid her arms through the sleeves of her robe, she sat in the cushioned chair beside the bed.
Her father brought forward the strait-backed wooden chair, but before he sat, he poured tea and handed her a cup along with a plate with a pastry and sandwich on it. He placed a sandwich on a plate for himself, then sat in the chair and crossed his long legs, the ankle of one foot resting atop the opposite knee. He then leaned back in his chair as if he was ready to begin his interrogation.
“I’m sure you’re confused as to why I was at The Soiled Dove last night,” she began. Winnie swallowed, waiting for the pain in her jaw to subside before she continued. “I don’t know how much Benjamin told you—”
Her father held up his hand to halt her from continuing. “I have decided to ignore the lies your brother told me concerning the reason you were at an establishment like The Soiled Dove.”
“You didn’t believe him?” she asked.
“I raised your brother. I’ve had twenty-four years of practice determining when he was telling me the truth, and when he was speaking a lie. Almost every word he said to explain the reason you were at a gaming hell was a lie. I would now like to hear your explanation.”
“Are you as adept at knowing when I’m telling a falsehood as you are when Ben speaks?”
“Almost, but I’ve only had twenty-one years of practice learning when you are telling the truth, and when your words are false. And you are more difficult to see through than Ben. Anne, of course, is the easiest. Lying doesn’t come naturally to her.”
Winnie stifled a smile that threatened to unleash new waves of pain in her swollen face. No, Anne didn’t know how to lie. She’d never had to learn. Her unpracticed innocence came through naturally.
“Should we start with an easy question…” he asked.
Winnie wasn’t sure there were any easy questions. Everything her father would undoubtedly ask was something she didn’t want to reveal.
“…such as the real reason you were at The Dove last night.”
Winnie lowered her gaze. “I overheard your conversation with Mr. Wallace and Ben yesterday. I knew the goal was to prove Lord Cavanaugh was the man who’d funded The Dove. I simply had a better plan, so I chose to implement it.”
“And your other reason for taking such a risk?”
Winnie couldn’t face her father. “What makes you think there’s another reason?”
“Twenty-one years of practice,” he answered. “A father knows more than his children think he does.”
Winnie knew her father wouldn’t give up until he knew her real reason. “I knew the plan was for Mr. Stillman to go to The Dove and lose enough money to be given the opportunity to recoup his losses by entering the box with Mr. Ellsworth. I knew what would happen to Ni─Mr. Stillman if Mr. Ellsworth had the chance to fight him with his whip.”
“And how did you know that?”
Winnie hesitated. “I’d seen Mr. Ellsworth fight him before. I knew this time Mr. Stillman wouldn’t survive.”
“Here’s another easy question,” her father said. “Who hit you?”
“Harvey Willard. He and Basil Ellsworth were convinced I was cheating. They wanted to teach me a lesson.”
“Why were they convinced you were cheating?”
“Because I won nearly every hand I played.”
“I take it the bruises you suffered several weeks ago weren’t caused by a fall, like I was led to believe, but because this Mr. Willard was teaching you another lesson?”
Winnie nodded.
“May I also assume that you were a frequent visitor to this Soiled Dove?”
Winnie nodded again.
“Why?” her father asked. His voice was soft, yet unyielding. The one word a demand instead of a request.
Winnie thought of the way to best answer his question, but there was nothing she could say that would not lead to more questions. Questions she couldn’t answer.
“Is my question too difficult to answer?” he asked. “Or will your answer be too incriminating?”
“Incriminating sounds as if you think I’m guilty of something, Father. I’m not. I visited The Soiled Dove because they allow females at their tables. And you know how I love to play cards.”
“I know no such thing. You don’t love to play, you simply have a gift when it comes to playing. A gift that allows you to deduce what your opponent has in his hand. You haven’t loved playing cards since you were called out for cheating at Lady Winsmore’s ball, and I had to assure everyone that you hadn’t cheated. You told me then that your ability to know what cards were out wasn’t a gift, but a curse. Which leads me back to my original question. Why were you a frequent guest at The Soiled Dove? Were you in need of money?”
Winnie opened her mouth to speak, but closed it quickly. The word she intended to speak would have been a lie. And she found it impossible to tell her father any more lies than she already had. Silence was the better option. So she said nothing.
“Why did you need money, Winnifred? What reason could you possibly have that you couldn’t come to me? Don’t you know I would have given you whatever you needed?”
Winnie couldn’t look at her father. She couldn’t face him.
“I take it then, that you were convinced I would not approve of the reason you needed the money.”
When she didn’t answer this time, her father pushed himself out of the chair and walked across the room. He didn’t look at her, but stood before the window, looking out. His legs were braced wide, as if for battle, and his hands were locked behind his back.
“What are you involved in, Winnie?” he said, without turning.
The fact that he was unable to look her in the eyes tore at her heart. Her father had never been disappointed in her. He’d never had cause to be ashamed of her for anything she’d ever done. But when he discovered the secret she was hiding from him, he’d hate her. He’d consider what she’d done the ultimate act of betrayal.
Her father turned from the window and looked at her. His eyes held a pleading she’d never seen before. An imploring for her to trus
t him. To tell him what she was involved in.
Tears welled in her eyes and a lump formed in her throat.
“Winnie,” he said, his voice soft, her name on his lips a supplication. “Let me help you. Tell me what I can do so you don’t have to go through this alone.”
The first tear spilled over her lashes and trickled down her cheek. “I can’t, Papa. Not yet.”
His shoulders sagged in disappointment. “I’ll be here whenever you’re ready, Winnie.”
“I know you will, Papa.”
Her father walked to the bed and pressed a kiss to her forehead. Then he walked to the door.
“Papa?” she said when he reached for the handle.
He turned. “Yes?”
“Encourage Anne and Lord Montroy to marry as soon as possible.”
A frown deepened across his forehead. With a sharp nod, he left the room, and she was alone. More alone than she’d ever been in her life.
For the first time in her memory, she couldn’t stop the river of tears from falling.
. . .
Winnie sat in her room and waited until the house was quiet and everyone was asleep. The blackmail money was wrapped in paper and tied with a string. She’d wait a few more minutes to make sure it was safe, then she’d take the servants’ stairs to the kitchen, and out the door. Hodgekens would be at the end of the alley. This wasn’t the first time they’d made this trip. They were both familiar with the procedure.
“Everyone’s abed,” Tilly whispered, “and from your father’s snoring, he’s dead to the world.”
Winnie smiled. “Thanks, Tilly. Wait here. I won’t be long.”
“Yes, you will. You’ll be gone nearly half the night. It takes that long to make the trip to King Street and back. And that’s not the time it takes to deliver the money.”
Winnie rose from the chair and Tilly helped her put her cloak around her shoulders. “Has Mr. Stillman said what he intends to do?”
Winnie shook her head.
“Do you think he’ll be there?”
Winnie stopped on her way to the door. “I don’t know. I think so. I don’t think he wants me to know his plans.”
“That would be the most intelligent decision he could make.”
“I’d rather know.”
“I know you would, my lady. But if you knew, you might interfere. And he doesn’t want you to get hurt.”
“But I may be able to help.”
“All your interference will do is cause trouble. Just deliver the money and come back safe.”
Winnie knew Tilly was right. With the money clutched tightly in her hands, she made her way down the stairs and to the waiting carriage. Hodgekens opened the door and helped her in, then closed the door behind her.
“Do you have the money?” Nick’s voice said from inside the carriage. He was on the seat beside her.
Winnie couldn’t stop the squeak of surprise. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m going with you.”
“What if the blackmailer sees you?”
“He won’t. I’ll make sure he doesn’t.”
“What are your plans?”
“A couple of brigadesmen are watching the area now. When you leave the money, we’ll watch to see who picks it up.”
“Then what?” Winnie’s heart beat a little faster in her breast. Was it possible that tonight might be the last delivery she’d ever have to make? Was it possible that Nick and his fellow brigadesmen could apprehend the blackmailer and arrest him? Or her? And she’d never have to worry about anyone finding out that her mother was still alive?
“We need to follow them when they leave the alley. It’s possible that whoever comes to get the money is not the blackmailer. Capturing the wrong person won’t tell us who is blackmailing you, and will only make matters worse.”
Winnie had to agree with Nick. It was very likely that the blackmailer wasn’t careless enough to take such a risk, when staying hidden would be safer.
A million scenarios played and replayed in her mind, but each one vanished before she could see any kind of clear resolution to the night’s mission. The silence inside the carriage was both blessing and agony until at last the carriage slowed, and Winnie knew they were almost there.
“Do everything like you normally do,” Nick said. “After you leave the money, get back into the carriage and go home.”
“Where will you be?”
“I’ll be fine. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Nothing can go wrong, can it?”
“No, Winnie. Nothing can go wrong.”
“Promise me. Promise me you won’t get hurt.”
She saw his smile in the faint moonlight. “I promise.”
Before the carriage came to a halt, Nick leaned over and pressed his lips to hers. The kiss lasted longer than she thought it should. It didn’t last nearly as long as she wanted.
She ignored her bruises and kissed him back with all the passion she felt for him. With all the love she knew would never be possible for them.
The carriage stopped when it reached the alley. Winnie got out when Hodgekens opened the door, then walked down the alley and removed the brick from the bakery wall. She placed the money inside the opening, then replaced the brick, and walked back to the carriage.
Winnie stepped into the carriage, and Hodgekens shut the door behind her. From somewhere in the darkness, a shot echoed as it struck the bricks behind her.
“Get her out of here!” Nick’s voice called out from the blackness.
The carriage rocked as Hodgekens climbed above, then it moved with a jerk as it pulled forward. A second shot echoed from the alleyway as Hodgekens pushed the horses toward home.
And Winnie left Nick to face the gunman alone.
CHAPTER 25
Winnie paced from one side of the room to the other. The sound of the gunshots as she left the alley played over and over in her mind. The fear she experienced wouldn’t go away. The terror she felt that one of those bullets had hit Nick was almost more than she could handle.
Surely Nick wouldn’t make her wait forever before someone sent word if he’d been injured. Or worse.
The door opened and she turned, hoping it was Willis with a message. But it wasn’t. It was her father.
“Tilly told me I’d find you in here,” he said walking toward her. “Is everything all right?”
Winnie forced the corners of her lips to rise in what she hoped passed for a smile. She wasn’t sure it did, because the frown on her father’s forehead deepened.
“No, Papa. Everything’s not all right. But you already suspected that or you wouldn’t have come.”
“No, Winnie. I wouldn’t have.”
“What gave me away this time?”
“I’d like to say the dark circles beneath your eyes, but your face is still so bruised it’s hard to say with any certainty the circles are darker. Let’s just say it’s obvious you didn’t sleep last night.”
“I’ve had several things on my mind.”
“Would you like to share one of those several things?”
Winnie’s first instinct was to tell her father no, but she knew she couldn’t hide her worry over Nick from him any longer. “I found out that Mr. Stillman was on a case last night that turned dangerous. There’s a possibility that he may have been injured. I’m just worried, you see.”
Her father stepped toward her and gathered her in his arms. She needed his strength now more than she thought she did.
“I take it that Mr. Stillman has become somewhat important to you,” he said leading her to the sofa and sitting next to her.
“Somewhat, yes. But nothing that you need to be concerned over.”
Her father held her hand in his and gently rubbed her fingers. “Why do you think I might be concerned if you form an attachment to Mr. Stillman? Do you believe I think less of him because he’s not titled? Or do you think less of him because he’s not titled?”
“No, Father. It’s not his title that
concerns me. I don’t care that he doesn’t have a title.”
“Then what is it?”
Winnie fought the tears that wanted to well in her eyes. She wouldn’t cry. She’d cried enough last night to last a lifetime. She blinked away the wetness. “It’s what he does. It’s the chances he takes. The risks. It’s who he is.”
She wanted to add that she most feared his unwavering sense of right and wrong. That for as much as she loved Nick, her love ran parallel to the amount that she feared him. Feared that he wouldn’t give up until he found her mother. Feared that when he did, his ethics and principled honor wouldn’t allow him to consider permitting her mother to remain where she was. He would arrest her and take her to the authorities. He couldn’t do anything else and live with himself.
“Oh, Winnie,” her father said, gently squeezing her fingers.
Thankfully, she didn’t have to explain herself further. The door opened and Willis announced she had a visitor.
“Mr. Nicholas Stillman to see you, my lady.”
Winnie jumped to her feet. She barely stopped herself from running across the room when he entered. A small cry escaped her when she saw his arm bandaged and in a sling that kept it from moving.
She struggled to remain where she was, but her feet moved of their own accord until she was standing close to him.
“My lady,” he greeted. “Your Grace.”
“Mr. Stillman,” her father greeted. “I see Lady Winnifred’s fears were well founded. She said she received word that you’d possibly been injured.”
Nick lowered his gaze and held hers. “I regret that I was the cause of concern for my lady,” he said without lifting his gaze. “It’s nothing more than a scratch.”
“I’m glad to hear that,” His Grace said. “Perhaps now she will feel more at ease.”
“I am fine, Your Grace,” Winnie said, embarrassed that her father was telling Nick how concerned she’d been for him. “And Mr. Stillman did not come here to discuss my wellbeing.”
“Actually, I did. I wanted to call on you to see how you were improving since the other night.”
“I’m much improved, Mr. Stillman. Although I’m afraid the bruises on my face won’t go away anytime soon.”