Zack nodded enthusiastically, and hurried off to fetch his coat.
The men within the study remained quiet until Harry closed the door.
“We could ask Sir Hugo to help them. After all, they are an integral part of this investigation,” Barnaby growled. “I will be damned if we just abandon them.”
“We aren’t going to,” Harry replied obliquely, but didn’t expand on what he had planned. Until he had the finer details in place in his own mind, he didn’t want to discuss the future with anyone.
“We will all help them out,” Marcus said quietly.
He knew from the look on Harry’s face that he was more than a little interested in the fate of the beautiful young woman who had, astonishingly, turned the house into a warm and welcoming home, seemingly overnight. If he was honest, he would have been more than a little interested in her himself; if it weren’t for his entanglement with the delightful woman he had left behind last year who he just couldn’t forget. He sighed deeply, and quickly turned his attention back to his colleagues.
Harry threw him a dark look. “I feel responsible for their plight. The Dandridges’ should never have been able to get their grubby fists on the Rectory seal. If I had done a better job, Tilly wouldn’t have been lured here under false pretences, and could have been in a secure position elsewhere by now. It was my mistake that brought her here, and it is down to me to correct it.”
“It’s not your fault though, Harry. You were sent here because the Dandridges’ were thieving goods and money,” Barnaby argued.
“I agree,” Marcus sighed and leaned back in the chair. “Nobody said anything to any of us about forged letters and false job offers, or even missing people. I don’t think Sir Hugo knows they are linked.”
“I wrote to him and explained.” Harry shook his head, and felt the heavy weight of guilt begin to ease. If he was logical, he knew that he couldn’t be to blame for the Dandridges’ stealing the seal, or Tilly’s fictitious job offer. Hugo hadn’t warned him about it, because Hugo most probably hadn’t known the depths to which the thieving servants had sunk. It had only been Tilly’s arrival at the house that had warned them there was more to the Dandridges’ crimes than theft.
“We will leave it to you to decide what to do about Tilly and Zack,” Barnaby assured him. “When the time comes, we will help you in any way we can. I will take Suzanna back to her family when we are done here and she is free to go.”
“When was the last time you saw Dandridge?”
Marcus threw him a dark look. “He went into the bloody lodgings yesterday, but nobody has seen anything of either of them since. We have been watching that place but, somehow, they still managed to get past us.”
Harry and Barnaby looked at each other.
“Has anyone been inside their room?” Harry asked Marcus with a scowl.
He knew that the Dandridges’ had definitely taken a room there because he had seen their bags on the end of the bed for himself. It was a little disconcerting to think that they had evaded Harry and his colleagues so successfully but, now that they knew that the Dandridges’ probably used disguises, they were better armed to know what to look for so they could make sure that it didn’t happen again.
Marcus nodded and threw them a dour look. “The bed doesn’t even appear to have been slept in.”
“Have they left town on a post chaise?”
Marcus shook his head. “Joseph has already been to ask the ticket master. No trace there either. Joshua is still on watch in case they try to buy a ticket.”
“They have a contact in town,” Barnaby growled in disgust
Harry and Barnaby looked at each other. “Bolsworthy.”
“Do we have a description of her?” Marcus asked as he looked from one to the other.
Harry frowned and gave his colleague the description Tilly had given him on the afternoon they had first met.
“If they have gone to ground, we need to be careful that they don’t creep back here,” Barnaby whispered, and threw a furtive look at the door.
“They have gone to ground at Bolsworthy’s house. I doubt that’s her real name, but I am positive that she is in town somewhere,” Harry growled.
“We need some more detail about this Bolsworthy woman, Harry,” Marcus growled. “See if you can get Tilly to remember if the woman had any distinguishing features; or whether there was anything about her that was different in any way. The sooner we know who we are looking for, the quicker we can hopefully find her, and the Dandridges’.”
Harry nodded, and went to find Tilly.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
He found her and Zack remaking the beds with the freshly washed sheets.
“Nearly done,” Tilly announced. The smile she gave him made his heart lurch crazily in his chest.
“Take your time,” Harry suggested with a smile, and sat casually in the chair beside the fire to wait.
Once they had finished, Harry nodded to the seat opposite him.
“Shall I go and fetch the rest of the washing in?” Zack asked as he hurried to the door.
“I don’t think you will reach the line, but ask Suzanna to help you,” Tilly said as she took the seat Harry had waved to. Her stomach fluttered nervously at the seriousness on his face, and she wondered if she was going to like what he had to say.
“I need a description of the woman, Mrs Bolsworthy, who recommended the position here. I know you have given it to me before, but I would like you to do it again, if you would? What did she look like, Tilly? This time though, I need you to think about whether she had any distinguishing features, or a regional dialect, or anything that might help the men find her in town.”
“Do you think she might be here, in Tooting Mallow?” Tilly asked in horror.
Harry nodded, and looked a little apologetic. “I am afraid so darling, but don’t worry. She isn’t a threat to you while you are here. We just need to find her and ask her a few questions; that’s all.”
This was the last thing Tilly wanted to discuss, but there was something about the rather intent way Harry stared at her that warned her that any details she could give were of considerable importance.
She gave him as much information as possible, and recounted all of her conversations with the older woman. Her frown grew deeper as she scoured her memory for any word, any hint of something that might prove useful but, apart from the somewhat basic facts, couldn’t really come up with anything else of any use.
“I am sorry, I know it isn’t much,” Tilly sighed. “Now that I come to look back on it, I realise now just how naive I was to believe the woman. She was a total stranger. I was a fool to believe that she could be trusted.”
“Don’t judge yourself too harshly, Tilly. After all, she was a friend of a lady of high esteem, not someone you had just met in a tavern. From the sound of it, there was no earthly reason why you should question her integrity.”
He didn’t add that it had most probably been panic at the thought of being homeless that had stopped her from thinking logically. A deep sigh escaped him when her smile dimmed, and was replaced with acute sadness. He hated to see the sudden change in her, and leaned forward to brace his elbows on his knees so he could get closer to her without making her feel threatened.
“Don’t go over the past too much, Tilly,” he urged her quietly. “What is done, is done. You cannot go back and change it now, no matter how much you might want to. You need to focus on the future, and decide what you want to do with the rest of your life.”
“I need to find a job,” she replied simply.
The contrast in their situations had never been starker than it was at that moment. He was secure in his work for the government, his life, and was surrounded by like-minded friends who were all as strong and capable as he was. In contrast, she was really struggling to find direction in life. She only had Zack and Suzanna as close acquaintances now, and nobody to support her. All she wanted was an opportunity to find somewhere to stay so she could feed hersel
f and keep a roof over head.
Although she wanted a housekeeper’s job somewhere, she knew now that because of her age, the possibility of her getting such a position was looking less and less likely. As a result; she would have to focus her attention on trying to find a job that was considerably lower ranked. However, with very little in the way of references, she knew she was going to be lucky to find a job washing pots at the local tavern.
“Look, I know that you need to sort yourself out with somewhere to stay when this is all over but, there really is no rush. I have been working with the Star Elite for several years now and know, for a fact, that investigations like these can sometimes take months.” His eyes met and held hers. “Even if a job becomes available, I cannot allow you to go for any interviews. Not with this woman on the loose. Heaven knows where she is, and what she had planned for you.”
He read the doubt on her face and knew that if he wanted her co-operation, he had to take her into his confidence.
“We think that the Dandridges’ were responsible for using my seal so this Bolsworthy woman could send you that convincing letter.”
He looked up when she gasped loudly. She stared at him with wide, horror-filled eyes.
“Why? I don’t know the Dandridges’?”
“I know, sweetheart,” Harry sighed. “We think they, the Dandridges’, are connected in some way to the Bolsworthy woman. We just don’t know how yet, or what they had planned for you once they got you here. Now that we have heard Suzanna’s story, we know now that your letter wasn’t just some misunderstanding. It was a deliberate attempt to get you here where you would be vulnerable because you have no family, would have very little in the way of funds, and have nowhere to go.”
Tilly felt a little sick. “Did they want me in the poor house?” The very thought made her skin crawl, and she frowned as she tried to believe it, and couldn’t.
“I don’t know.” Harry sighed and gave her a frank look. “At the moment, we have more questions than answers, and it is going to take us some time to figure it all out. Just be patient for me; that’s all I ask. Let us deal with the investigation. I need my colleagues to work on trying to find the Bolsworthy woman, and watch what the Dandridges’ are up to. If you did get an interview for a job anywhere, I wouldn’t want you to go to it alone, but I cannot spare the men to go with you. We are trying to establish how many other people, just like you and Suzanna, are still stuck in that poor house and are not in the register. There may be some who are already on their way here still; we just don’t know about them yet. It would help us considerably if you just set aside all thought of finding a job right now, and concentrate instead on keeping yourself safe. Once the investigation is over, the Star Elite won’t just abandon you to destitution. I will help you, and Zack, and Suzanna. I promise.”
Tilly swallowed. Her mind whirled, but latched on to one phrase he had just said, and refused to let go. “The Star Elite?”
Harry nodded thoughtfully. “We are a government organisation that was initially set up with a handful of soldiers who were fighting in the war. We were tasked with protecting England’s borders from smugglers and the like. However, as time has progressed and, now that the war is over, we have expanded our work into other avenues; like the Dandridges’, gangs of pickpockets, that kind of thing.”
“Good Lord,” Tilly whispered.
She wanted to stand up and cheer for England, and especially the Star Elite, and suddenly felt so very proud of the man seated opposite that she wanted to hug him.
“I came here to gather evidence on the Dandridges’ thieving. They used to work for my boss’ now deceased aunt. He became aware of discrepancies in the accounts books and noted that several items were missing from the house. The only people who worked there at the time were the Dandridges’.”
“So you were sent after them to capture them.”
It wasn’t a question but he nodded anyway.
“My colleagues traced them here. My boss, Sir Hugo, purchased this house, and put me into position to gather enough evidence so they could be arrested before they could move on to their next unsuspecting victim.” He looked ruefully at her. “Then, one day, a beautiful young woman turned up on my doorstep, turned my life upside down, and opened up a whole new world of mystery that I needed to investigate.”
Tilly felt a blush stain her cheeks but she remained quiet because she was spell-bound by his words.
He thinks I am beautiful, she mused to herself.
“Unfortunately, at the time that you turned up, I was in the process of trying to lure Charles Dandridge to steal something out of my safe. The last thing I wanted was to have you under my roof and in the middle of my investigation, so I had to let you go. However, once you had gone, I realised I had made one huge mistake. By the time I came after you, you had already gone.” His voice trailed off, and a dark frown settled over his brow.
“You came after me?” Her voice shook with emotion as she tried to blank out all thoughts of that terrible day, but couldn’t. She had meant to ask him how he knew she had been in the poor house – now she knew. He had come after her.
Her heart swelled with an emotion she quickly pushed aside for the time being. She would take a closer look at the wild thrill of wonder that swept through her later, when she had time to herself. Right now, her attention remained firmly locked on the man seated opposite, who had turned her world inside out too.
He nodded. “I couldn’t find you at first. When I did, you were just going into the poor house.” He shook his head in disgust. “I tried to get you back out there and then, but they denied all knowledge of you being there.”
“That’s what I don’t understand,” Tilly sighed. “I know the food in there isn’t much, but why keep someone there, against their will, when they have to pay for their food?”
Harry looked at her and shrugged.
“Do you think someone inside is connected to all of this?”
“I don’t know, sweetheart,” Harry replied honestly. “I wish I did. For now, all we can do for now is carry on as usual. Keep an eye on Zack, if he goes outside. Don’t venture out anywhere by yourself.”
Tilly nodded. A companionable silence settled over them for several minutes but was interrupted by a quiet knock on the door. Before either of them could speak, Zack poked his head into the room.
“Suzanna says; can you give her a hand folding up the sheets please?”
Tilly nodded and looked askance at Harry. “I will go and make up the rest of the rooms now, unless there is anything else?”
Harry shook his head. It wasn’t lost on him that he could have spent the rest of the day talking to her about this, but was conscious of the fact that his colleagues were waiting for him downstairs.
“Tilly,” he said quietly when they were at the door.
Her eyes widened when she turned to look up at him and found him directly behind her. She had to tip her head right back to look up at him, and could feel the warmth of his breath brush gently across her cheek, but didn’t move away.
Familiar warmth stole through her. The memory of their kisses last night kept her still, and she waited to hear what he had to say.
“I don’t want you to feel that you are under house arrest or anything. However, the Dandridges’ have vanished. I don’t think it is a wise idea for you to go anywhere right now, not even to town for a broadsheet that you don’t need.”
Tilly gasped and stared at him. “Have they left town, do you think?”
“We don’t know,” Harry warned. “Keep an eye out for him, Dandridge, when you are outside and, for now, please keep the doors locked.”
Tilly nodded. “I won’t go anywhere, I promise. Unfortunately, Zack likes to be outside,” she smiled ruefully. “Now that he has had a taste of freedom, he wants to enjoy it as much as possible. I will have a word with him not to venture beyond the garden, but can’t make any promises.”
“If he does disappear, don’t try and find him by yourself,�
� Harry warned as he studied her. “I will have a word with him too. Between us, we might just be able to persuade him to listen to reason.”
Some of the colour had returned to her cheeks, and seemed to emphasise the hypnotic colour of her beautiful green eyes. His gaze traced the gentle curve of her smooth cheeks down to the soft contours of her lips.
The atmosphere shifted between them, and seemed to draw them together where they were bound by the sensual web of desire that neither of them could ignore. The tips of his fingers swept gently down the warmth of her cheek; which really was as soft as it looked. He felt her sigh, and read the curiosity and acceptance in her eyes. It was all he needed to see, and slowly lowered his head.
The need to taste those rosebud lips drove him to sample the desire that blossomed out of nowhere and, with a low moan, settled his lips upon hers.
The gentle sweep of his lips captured her soft sigh of surrender. She made no protest when he shifted his weight and drew her closer. The feel of his large palms on her waist made her feel tiny in comparison to his much larger masculine frame, and she sighed in wonder as she melted against him.
The world faded as his increased the pressure on her lips, and nudged her mouth open so he could plunder. She hadn’t realised that she had needed this but, now that his arms were around her, she knew just how much she had missed him. The protective feeling of love she always felt around him was something that was life-changing. Whatever happened between them, she would never forget this moment; never forget him, and suddenly wanted to savour every second of their time together.
Something soft and gentle began to unfurl inside her. It brought with it a sense of hope, and a feeling of completeness that startled her. Everything was right with her world now, with this man by her side. There was nothing she couldn’t cope with, and no obstacle life could throw at her that she couldn’t overcome with his advice, support and encouragement.
Shattered Dreams Page 16