by Beth Byers
“I’m coming with you,” Victor and Violet said in unison. Neither of them fought with the other. Both kept their attention of Jack.
“No,” Jack immediately replied, only to Violet. “It’s too risky.”
Victor let him direct his objections to Vi while he ordered his coat and cane.
“I’m going,” Violet said, but Jack didn’t even reply again. Just headed for the door while Victor followed.
“Sorry, luv,” Victor mouthed and then followed Jack down the street to the main thoroughfare where a cab could be found more easily.
“Ginny,” Violet ordered, “be sneaky. Listen for the address they give.”
The girl nodded, a smirk on her lips as she left. Violet ran up the stairs to Victor’s office. She dug through it, looking for that monstrous folding knife. Just in case. She ran into her room, grabbed a big overcoat and slipped the knife into the pocket.
By the time she’d reached the front door, Ginny had returned. They followed the path of the gentlemen, catching a cab, and heading towards the docks where Hugo Danvers intended to escape England with Violet’s sister.
When they arrived, there was no sign of anyone, and Violet wasn’t sure where to go. Ginny glanced around. “Wait here,” the girl said.
She ran past a warehouse and into an alley, and it didn’t take long before she came back with another grubby child who pointed out Hugo’s yacht.
“Did you pay that creature?”
Ginny nodded and Violet warned, “Stay back, love.”
Violet walked towards the yacht as bold as a child in a candy store. Just before she found the right boat, a hand pressed over her mouth and she was yanked against a large body. She knew the second her back pressed against his oversized bulk that it was Jack, so she didn’t struggle as he carried her into the darkness.
“What do you think you’re doing?” he demanded without removing his hand from her mouth. Violet waited patiently and when she was set down, she saw Victor smirking with a lifted brow.
“Getting my sister,” Violet answered calmly.
Jack cursed.
“They were seen getting on the ship,” Victor told her. “He had a knife, and a gun, and Isolde was taken below decks. No one has approached the boat yet. They’re waiting to get a few more men in position. But Hugo won’t be leaving tonight with her.”
“Let’s sink the yacht,” Violet suggested.
Jack shook his head. “You’re assuming they’ll flee to safety. Hugo just might be the kind of man who would rather Isolde die than be free.”
Violet stared at Jack and shivered at the sheer idea. What the devil? “If he loves her…”
“If he loved her, she wouldn’t have been kidnapped, terrified, and hauled away from what she loves. He’d be sending her flowers and trying to create a relationship with you two.”
“What are we waiting for then?” Violet demanded.
“They’re getting boats in place to ensure we can go after him if he takes off. And they’re getting divers ready in case we need to go into the water after her. Then we’ll try to bargain our way out. We need to be sympathetic.”
Violet waited while they were arranging the last of things and everyone was in place before she slipped away. Before Jack could catch her, she’d launched herself onto the boat and called, “Hugo Danvers! Hugo Danvers, Isolde is only 18-years-old. Even if you love her, you’re scaring her.”
The boat rocked a little and Violet didn’t turn. It could have been Jack or Victor following her, or it could have been Hugo hearing her and reacting horribly. The person stepped nearer, and Violet felt the warmth of Jack. Her body reacted to him in a way that it never did to Victor.
“Hugo, you’re a good man,” Vi called, lying through her teeth. “You don’t want to scare her. Angels shouldn’t be afraid.”
Slowly the hatch to below opened and Hugo pushed Isolde out in front of him.
“If you cared about her, you wouldn’t have brought him,” Hugo snarled.
Violet didn’t turn around, but she said gently, “What could a woman like me do to stop him from coming?”
Violet let her gaze flick to Isolde. She’d bitten her lip bloody, she was whiter than a ghost, and the kohl on her eyes was black circles from weeping. Vi could see her dress was ripped. She’s still wearing it, Vi told herself. By jove, she thought, I will peel his flesh from his bones if he did more to her than tear her dress.
“She needs a protector,” Violet said gently.
“That’s my role,” Hugo snarled. His eyes were wild, and his hair looked as though he’d been through a terrible storm. His tie was askew, and his clothes were wrinkled. The scowl on his face could have scared a devil.
“I’m sorry,” Violet said. “It’s all my fault. I was jealous. I could see that Isolde had made you love her and your father as well. I shouldn’t have tried to get between you. I just couldn't help but wonder why her, and not me. Please let Isolde go. Please, let’s be friends.”
Isolde was shaking like a leaf in Hugo’s hands. He kept her pressed to him with a gun in one hand. It was only then that Violet saw the knife in his other. It was pressed against Isolde side, and Violet choked back a cry at the sight of blood. Had he stabbed her deeply or was that a shallow cut? The blood didn’t seem to be such a large circle
“Put the knife down,” Violet pled. “She’s bleeding. Or just let me help her. Jack will stay back, won’t you? I’ll help Isolde, and you two can calm things down. We need you to protect us. To care for us. To look after us. Isolde needs you to do that, Hugo. She needs you to work things out so you can be together.”
Hugo waved Violet forward but told Jack to stop. Violet could hear Jack’s preparations in her mind. But she could see the blood on Isolde, and the blood in Vi’s ears was pounding so it seemed as though everything was coming through the rush of that sound.
Help was coming. Isolde was bleeding. Help was coming, but was it already too late? They needed to get away from this madman. What had Jack said? Hugo might be the kind of man who’d rather see Isolde dead than free. The need to flee pounded in Violet’s ears with her blood, and a horrible plan was forming.
Hugo grabbed Violet’s arm as she tried to pass him. “Let me help her. Let her sister help your angel. You don’t want your angel hurt. You don’t want her scarred. You don’t want to lose her by accident.”
It was the scarred that did it. Hugo pulled Violet forward and shoved both Isolde and Violet behind him, pointing a gun at Vi to keep Jack back. Behind Hugo was closer to the railing. How like a man to assume that a woman wouldn’t rescue both herself and her sister.
Violet wrapped Isolde up in a hug as Jack and Hugo hissed orders at each other, neither giving an inch. With Isolde clutched close, Vi whispered, “Men never give women the credit they deserve.”
Violet yanked on her sister, throwing them both into the drink and gun shots rang out over head. Violet could hear two grunts of pain but the water closed over her. She kept her hand on Isolde’s arm and as they surfaced, there were a series of splashes near them.
Violet glanced around, searching desperately for who had followed them in and saw Jack and Hugo fighting in the water while Victor was swimming closer. It was dark but the moment they hit the water, torches were aimed at the water.
“Vi! Give her to me.”
Violet pushed her sister in the arms of their brother. The fall must have terrified poor Isolde into a faint, or the terror had. Her eyes were wide and unseeing. She was just starting to realize she was free of Hugo.
“Steady now!” someone called. “We’re coming for you. Hold tight.”
Violet saw a lamp on a post and swam towards it. Victor swam next to her, tugging Isolde along. The sounds of struggling continued, but Violet didn’t let herself think of it.
Then another shot rang out, and everything inside of Violet stilled.
“I got him,” Hamilton Barnes called. “Are you all right, Jack?”
“Fellow pricked me. But it’s
not too back,” Jack said.
Violet shuddered with relief and saw that Jack’s bulk turned towards her. She waited until he reached her and then they swam side-by-side towards those who’d come to rescue them. They left the darkness and the terror to pursue the light. The poetry of it was not lost on Violet, though it wasn’t poetry she wanted but a bath.
So low only she could hear, Jack declared, “I’m going to wring your neck.”
She glanced over and pushed her hair out of her face, treading water for a moment so she could wink at him. “You might have to get in line after my father and Gerald hear of it.”
“I’ll just get to you first.”
Violet reached her hands up to Victor, who had already gotten into the boat. He pulled her out of the water while the oarsmen pulled out Jack.
“What’s this?” Victor asked. “Threatening Vi with a good beating for jumping in the river? You should have seen it coming. You haven’t been spending time with a rector’s daughter who embroiders. Shouldn’t expect her to act like that either.”
“Is he dead?” Isolde asked. She’d let go of whatever control she had and crawled to Violet, weeping.
“He’s gone,” Jack said. “They’ll pull his body out once we’re safe.”
“Thank god,” Isolde said. “Oh god, Vi, thank god. Thank god he’s dead.”
Violet pulled Isolde close, wrapping her little sister up tightly and Victor put a blanket around them both. They were taken to a cab, to their home, to the baths, and forced to drink hot tea and scotch until they were bursting.
A doctor came to Isolde and examine her side, but the cut hadn’t been deep. She might have a bit of a scar, but it wouldn’t keep her down for long.
Isolde couldn’t sleep alone, so Violet put her sister into her kimono and into Violet’s bed. They slept with the lights on even though Violet had become very suddenly sure that if she were in danger—or if she’d fallen into the river—or both—someone would go in after her. That warmed her far more than all the hot tea and scotch could have.
Chapter 23
Violet woke to flowers and chocolates but no Jack. Isolde woke to the screeches of her mother which only ended when their father literally picked up Lady Eleanor and carried her out of the room and told her to get ahold of herself.
In the end, they had a big family breakfast and plans were made far ahead of Violet’s capacity to control them. It only stopped when Victor said, “We aren’t going for that long. Neither Vi nor myself wish to travel the world for a year and more. I agree that Isolde needs distance and time to recover from her ordeal. You’ll need to find someone to come along for the longer tour. Vi and I will be doing Belgium and that is all.”
Violet’s look of thanks would have to be enough as everyone turned to Victor.
“Taking your sister traveling is too much?” Lady Eleanor demanded. “After her trials?”
“Yes,” Victor said. “We have concerns here.”
“I’ll do it,” Gerald said. “Halpert has the estates well in hand. He doesn’t need me. With Father to step in here and there, I’ll go with young ones. When Victor and Violet are ready to come home, I’ll take Isolde on the more extensive tour.”
“Well,” Lady Eleanor sniffed. “It isn’t only Isolde who needs to consider different company,” she said with an eye on Vi. “Perhaps that St. Marks fellow.”
“Nothing wrong with Wakefield,” Father said idly. “I say, what did you put in my coffee, Victor?”
Victor looked positively mischievous when he answered. “Chocolate liqueur.”
“Oh,” Father said, thinking it over. “Fill me up again, boy. That’s good stuff. I hope you got me a few bottles when you were buying yours.”
* * * * *
“You’ll be gone how long?” Jack asked. He wore pajamas and sat, very ungraciously, in a bed in the hospital ward. His wound had gotten infected from the river water and his fevers came and went. They were gone at the moment, but the doctors wouldn’t let Jack leave.
“Not as long as Isolde, but a good while,” Violet replied carefully. She rearranged the pillow behind his back and handed him the box of chocolates she’d brought him. They went rather nicely with the flowers. The expression when she’d given him his very feminine gift was all that she could have wished. Humor-filled and aware of the irony.
“You’ll tell me when you get back?”
Violet nodded, wanting to weep a little, but she’d given herself a good scold. Surely she hadn’t fallen for this great lummox quite so quickly? Surely this wasn’t love that made her chest hurt so? Surely she wasn’t lying to herself to make this separation easier?
“Bruges is beautiful,” Jack said. “It’ll be more beautiful with you there.”
He fell silent and she swallowed. They both looked up in gratitude to Victor as he entered the room as though trying to shake off a demon.
“These nurses are something else,” he said. “Bring a fellow a little box of things and suddenly you’re a purveyor of vice and shenanigans.”
“What did you bring?” Jack asked curiously as Victor set a wooden box on the end of his bed.
“A little of this, a little of that. The good stuff.”
“The only things I will admit to helping choose is the sandwich, the chocolates, and the ginger wine.” Violet declared.
“I’ll take responsibility for the rest. Cigars, limoncello, grenadine, chocolate liqueur, Campari, and assurances. All but the last are the results of our recent travels. The last is because I know a man smitten when I see him and I’ll bring her back.”
“Do I look like I’m endlessly zozzled?”
“Not yet, but if you keep pursing Vi, you’ll be driven to drink.” Victor laughed uproariously while Violet elbowed him in the side. She rose and rearranged Jack’s things, putting it all away and leaving him with a tidy piece of the hospital ward.
“I’ll bring you back Vi and genever,” Victor assured him. “Chin up, cheerio. It’ll turn out all right in the end. A little time apart and the heart will grow fonder and all that. You know. So they say. Et cetera, et cetera.”
“Very eloquent,” Vi told Victor.
“One tries.”
Violet pressed Jack’s hand, and they were gone.
THE END
Hullo, my darlings, hullo! You are all fab! Are there words enough for how much I love you for reading my books and giving me a chance? Especially this new series! I have wanted to write 1920s mysteries since before I opened my first writing doc. Writing to support my family is simply the bees knees! Almost as wonderful are reviews, and indie folks, like myself, need them desperately! If you wouldn’t mind, I would be so grateful for a review.
I have heard those of you who commented about the grammar issues in Murder & The Heir and an updated copy is coming soon. Please turn on updates for your kindle library, so you will receive them! Thanks for your patience!
The sequel to this book, Murder at the Folly will be out soon! The preorder is up now!
I also have a brand new cozy mystery coming next month in my Second Chance Diner series. If you haven’t tried those, you can find the first by clicking here! Keep flipping for a free sample ahead!
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Also By Beth Byers
The Violet Carlyle Cozy Historical Mysteries
Murder & the Heir
Murder at Kennington House
Murder at the Folly (Coming October, Preorder Here)
A Merry Little Murder (Coming November)
The 2nd Chance Diner Mysteries
Spaghetti, Meatballs, & Murder
Cookies & Catastrophe
(also found in the Christmas boxs
et, The Three Carols of Cozy Christmas Murder)
Poison & Pie
Double Mocha Murder
Cinnamon Rolls & Cyanide
Tea & Temptation
Donuts & Danger
Scones & Scandal
Lemonade & Loathing
Wedding Cake & Woe
Honeymoons & Honeydew
The Pumpkin Problem
The Brightwater Bay Mysteries
(co-written with Carolyn L. Dean and Angela Blackmoore)
A Little Taste of Murder
(found in the Christmas boxset, The Three Carols of Cozy Christmas Murder)
A Tiny Dash of Death
A Sweet Spoonful of Cyanide
Also By Amanda A. Allen
The Mystic Cove Mommy Mysteries
Bedtimes & Broomsticks
Runes & Roller Skates
Costumes and Cauldrons (found in the anthology Witch or Treat)
Banshees and Babysitters
Spellbooks and Sleepovers: A Mystic Cove Short Story
Hobgoblins and Homework
Gifts and Ghouls (found in the anthology Spells and Jinglebells)
Christmas and Curses
Potions & Passions (found in the anthology Hexes and Ohs)
Valentines & Valkyries
Infants & Incantations (Coming Soon)
The Rue Hallow Mysteries
Hallow Graves
Hungry Graves
Lonely Graves
Sisters and Graves
Yule Graves
Fated Graves
Ruby Graves
The Inept Witches Mysteries (co-written with Auburn Seal)
Inconvenient Murder
Moonlight Murder
Bewitched Murder
Presidium Vignettes (with Rue Hallow)
Prague Murder
Paris Murder
Murder By Degrees
Curses of the Witch Queen
Fairy Tales Re-Imagined