The Robber Bride (The Daring Debutantes, Book 1)

by Jerrica Knight-Catania

  “Oh, no!” he returned with a scowl. “Why on earth would I want to do such a thing?”

  Was he serious? “Why, for the adventure, of course. For the opportunity to explore new places and cultures.”

  For the first time in their acquaintance, Woodmore gave Victoria what she would deem a condescending look. “Oh, Miss Barclay, I’m not sure you know what you’re saying. You might think you would like to explore foreign lands, but you must know you live in the greatest country on earth. Why would you ever want to leave England for such a barbaric country?”

  Victoria dropped her arms and stopped dancing, forcing another couple to swerve quickly in the other direction so as to not barrel into them. “I know exactly what I’m saying, Mr. Woodmore.”

  “Please, Miss Barclay.” He held his arms out, inviting her to join him in the dance again. “People are staring at us.”

  Victoria could not have cared less who was staring at them, but when he said, “Your mother will be most disappointed if she hears you made a scene,” she had no choice but to resume the dance.

  “I did not mean to offend, Miss Barclay,” Woodmore said as they picked up the tempo again. “It’s just that, well, I can’t imagine such a delicate flower as you in such a rugged environment.”

  Victoria wanted so desperately to laugh at his description of her. Delicate flower? Was he truly so blind to her character? At the same time, she found it rather flattering. No one had ever referred to her in such a way, least of all Fin. He chastised her all the time for her rebellious and rash behavior. Well, it didn’t matter what Phineas Dartwell thought of her anymore, did it? He had written her off. Now she was free to bask in the glory of a real gentleman’s praise.

  “Well, that’s very kind of you to say, Mr. Woodmore,” she said with a bat of her eyelashes, and the pit in her stomach grew larger. Could she really go through with robbing this man at gunpoint? Part of her wished that his intentions had not been so honorable, that he would have said something along the lines of “Women shouldn’t travel; they are meant to stay at home and birth children.” That would have made things much easier.

  The music stopped, and it was as if the trance had been broken. She shook her head of the fog Woodmore had put her in. What was the matter with her? Were his flattering statements really stronger than the suffering she witnessed almost every day in the slums? The death she was privy to in the hospital?

  “It is time to depart, Victoria.” Her brother greeted them at the edge of the dance floor, a flute of champagne in his hand. He downed the last of his drink but his eyes never left Woodmore.

  Victoria had told Tom she didn’t want to stay past midnight. That suited him just fine, apparently. “Of course, Tom.” She turned to Woodmore. “Thank you for a lovely evening, Mr. Woodmore.”

  “No, thank you,” he returned. “May I call on you again tomorrow?”

  Victoria hesitated. It wouldn’t be easy to face him after tonight, but she figured it wouldn’t be nearly as awful as having to face Fin as she’d done last week. “That would be wonderful,” she said, and then she and Tom made their departure.

  With any luck, Woodmore would remain at the party long enough for her to feign going to bed and then turn around to go back to the venue. Gil would wait for her, as always.

  As they rode home, Tom fell asleep. Victoria had never been able to sleep in a carriage, no matter how comfortable. It was rather inconvenient on long trips, but it wasn’t as if she’d be able to sleep now, anyhow. Her body hummed with anticipation. Robbing people made her incredibly nervous, but at the same time, incredibly alive. Every nerve sizzled as she stepped down from the carriage and climbed the stairs to her room. It took all her strength not to break into a run.

  When she was sure Tom was in his room, probably changing to go out again, she darted down the stairs to the carriage. She and Gil sat outside the Randall’s townhome, waiting for Woodmore to emerge. It was late when he finally did. Very late. And Victoria’s bottom had gone numb from sitting for so long. She only hoped her legs would work when it came time to do her job.

  Everything went to plan. Woodmore wasn’t headed to the Great North Road, so they decided to corner him in a quiet, deserted area of Westminster.

  Victoria approached the carriage that carried her prey and swung the door open. Woodmore looked terrified, as expected. Only Victoria didn’t get the same rush from seeing him frightened as she usually did with her other victims.

  Don’t turn soft now, Victoria! He’s just another rich man whose money will go to much better use because of you. “Your money or your life.”

  “I—I don’t have anything,” he replied. This was a bold faced lie. She’d felt the purse beneath his coat while they were dancing earlier that night. Unless he’d spent the rest of the evening gambling it away, it had to still be there.

  “That’s not true,” she blurted out, and then added in a more sinister tone, “is it?”

  He stared at her, possibly trying to figure out if she truly knew he was lying or if she was bluffing to get him to pay up. She hoped he leaned toward the latter.

  Typically, she would have pushed him further into fear by cocking the gun and repeating, “Is it?” But she couldn’t. Damn, but she was becoming soft. And for what? A simpering dandy?

  “Ho, there!”

  Victoria’s blood turned to ice. Oh, Lord. How had Fin found her? How had she not heard the horse’s hooves on the cobblestones? Terror seized her, but there was only one way out of this predicament.

  She didn’t think—she didn’t have time to. Victoria simply began to run. Gil already sat atop the seat of their carriage. Still, there wasn’t time to get into the cab. “Go, go, go!” she yelled at Gil as she sprinted toward the carriage. Gil slapped the reins and the horses began to move. Victoria chased them for only a few seconds before she was close enough to jump onto the footman’s perch. Her muscles tightened as she held fast to the bar. If she loosened them, she would surely go careening to the ground, and at this pace that could be deadly.

  What the hell had Fin been doing there? She could hardly put two and two together, her head was spinning so fast. However, there was only one logical explanation: he had followed her. The implications of this discovery were monumental. If Fin knew, what would he do? Would he turn her in to the authorities?

  No. He may have been upset with her, but that didn’t mean he wanted to see her hung.

  A shiver raced up her spine. Tonight was the closest she had ever come to that particular reality. In two years, she supposed she had fancied herself invincible. But now…now she realized that her hanging could be an eventuality. An inevitability. And for the first time, she was truly scared.

  Twelve

  Fin watched the unmarked carriage as it sped down the road, out of sight. He could have followed it, and he probably could have caught up to it, but he didn’t. It had been his every intention to do so. Victoria was on the back of the carriage—he was certain of it. But if he caught up to it—if he caught Victoria in the act—he would be forced to deal with that. Suddenly he wasn’t up to that particular task.

  Instead, he approached the carriage to make sure whoever was inside was all right. Before he made it there, though, a familiar head popped out. What the devil?

  “Woodmore?”

  “Is he gone?” the man asked, a wild look of fright in his eyes.

  “Yes, he’s gone,” Fin replied as he climbed down from his mount. “Are you all right?”

  Woodmore stepped down to the street and stared off in the direction of Victoria’s carriage. “Just a bit shaken up is all. You saved my life, though.” He looked to Fin with adoration.

  “Yes, well, you’re welcome.” Fin wasn’t completely comfortable with the man. There was something about him that struck Fin as odd, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it. “Though I doubt he would have shot.”

  “But he certainly could have,” Woodmore persisted. “How may I repay you?”

  “No repaymen
t necessary.”

  “I insist.”

  “And I decline.”

  Woodmore stepped closer to Fin. Too close. He lowered his voice when he said, “I would really like to show my appreciation, my lord.”

  Oh, good God. Was Woodmore propositioning him? Fin suddenly understood why he’d always been a bit suspicious of the man. The bloody chap preferred men to women. Damn and blast. Fin didn’t give a fig what the man did in the privacy of his own home, but to make such a blatant proposition to someone he barely knew . . .

  Fin stepped back a half step. “Were I a less understanding man, I might have beat you to a bloody pulp. As it is, I’m quite understanding, but I’m a rarity.”

  “But—”

  “No, no!” Fin swung his leg over his horse’s back. “No buts, please. Just go home and try to forget that I saved your life.”

  Silence accompanied him as he rode away, and Fin was grateful for that. He had much to think about. What scared him was the discovery he’d made tonight. The confirmation that Victoria was doing something highly illegal and very dangerous.

  But why? That was the question that lingered in his mind as he returned his horse to the mews and went inside. The house was dark, save a single sconce in the entryway to illuminate his path to the stairs. He climbed them slowly; every step felt heavy and laden with sadness. The distance between him and Victoria had gone from a stream to an ocean in the matter of a day, and part of him wished he had never seen her in Southwark.

  It still puzzled him, though, and likely would for some time. He didn’t foresee getting any answers from her any time soon. But why was she trying to rob Woodmore tonight? And was it at all related to her being in Southwark the other morning? He let out a groan, knowing he was too tired to try and piece it together tonight.

  Once he’d divested himself of his clothing, Fin crawled into bed, eager for sleep to overcome him. However, as he continued to mull over the events of the evening, something dawned on him.

  Damn! Why had he not realized before? Of course it had been Victoria who had robbed him and Lady Beecham that night last week. And Lord Culver. That had been her as well. Why, why, why? And for how long? Could she really have kept this up for two years without being caught? Was she bored? Was she rebelling?

  Fin’s mind spun with possibilities, none of which pleased him. And then he began to ponder unpleasant outcomes for his friend. The most unpleasant, and the most likely given her activities, being hanging. That image sent Fin darting from bed to light candles around the room. He would never be able to sleep now. His only escape from the gruesome image would be to paint. He was sure he would regret it come morning, not trying harder to go to sleep.

  Oh, what the devil did he care? He was a lord. Everyone expected him to sleep all day and drink all night. And it wasn’t as if he had to escort Victoria about during the day as he had done for the past two years.

  He should have been working on the painting for Lord Bishop’s wife, but instead he pulled out the half-finished canvas of Victoria. His hand worked fast and furiously as he filled in her features. Rosy cheeks, pink lips, green eyes. His heart ached as he looked at her finished face sometime later. He couldn’t explain the turmoil he felt, only that he felt it. Deeply.

  Even harder to explain was the feeling that came over him when he moved lower on the canvas. He had already traced her breasts and waist. Thankfully the portrait stopped there. Painting her breasts proved to be difficult enough. Why the devil was he growing hard over the thought of Victoria? He had painted at least a hundred pair of breasts over the years, and none had ever elicited such a reaction. And she was the last person he expected to have this reaction to.

  Fin tried to shift his thoughts back to earlier in the evening, to his rage over her activities, to his fear over the outcome, and soon the painting was done. The sky was just beginning to turn pink with the day’s first light, and Fin’s exhaustion finally set in. Now he would be able to sleep.

  As he stared at the finished product in his deliriousness, he imagined a black mask over Victoria’s eyes. Before he had a chance to really think about it, his brush was working fast in the black paint. Back and forth, palette to canvas, until finally, the mask was complete.

  He stepped back, still wondering how he had missed it that night with Lady Beecham. Didn’t he know Victoria better than anyone else in the world?

  No. He didn’t know her at all, did he?

  Weary, Fin put down his palette and brush and left the studio before he got carried away and painted a noose about Victoria’s neck.

  ***

  Victoria paced her room. Her nerves had her stomach in knots. Good God, what was she going to do? If Fin knew about her—or even suspected what she was doing—

  “Oh, God.” She moaned and fell backwards to her bed, throwing her arm over her eyes. “I’m going to hang.”

  “For what?”

  Victoria sat straight up in her bed, shocked to find her brother in the doorway to her room. “Don’t you know how to knock?”

  “What the devil are you doing up, Victoria? It’s four in the morning.”

  “Yes, I know,” she replied haughtily. “I couldn’t sleep.”

  Her brother appraised her clothing, and she realized for the first time that she was still wearing her black men’s clothes. “Is that the new bed fashion?”

  It would be best to ignore him and make him feel bad for barging in. “It is when it is . . . ahem . . . a sensitive time of the month.” That ought to get him out.

  Instead, he smirked. “You can’t get rid of me that easily. What’s going on?”

  “Tom, there is nothing going on!” Why couldn’t he just leave her alone? She needed to think. No, what she really needed to do was pack her bags and run far, far away.

  “I’ve never seen you so on edge before.” He moved into the room and shut the door behind him.

  Victoria sighed. “Yes, well, you haven’t seen much lately, have you?” It was a low blow, but she couldn’t help it.

  “You’re right, and I’m sorry,” he said. “But I don’t regret going to Jamaica.”

  “Nor should you. I’m sorry I said that. Just promise that next time you leave you’ll take me with you.”

  Tom laughed and crossed the room to her window. “Looks like Leyburn’s up, too. Perhaps we should all get together for a drink,” he suggested jokingly, but it still set Victoria on edge. The thought of being in the same room as Fin right now terrified her. Not that Fin wanted to be in a room with her now, anyway. He’d made that more than clear.

  Truly desperate to be alone, Victoria sought to move the conversation along. “Was there anything in particular that you wanted?” she asked.

  Tom turned to face her. “So eager to get rid of me.”

  “Well, I would like to go to bed.” She hoped she sounded sufficiently exhausted despite the fact her nerves were still jumping wildly beneath her skin.

  “Of course,” he said, moving to her. He pecked her on the cheek and ruffled her hair like he used to do to her when she was little. “Goodnight, Vickie.”

  Once he’d gone, Victoria dashed to the window. Indeed, lights were ablaze in Fin’s home. She wondered which room he was in, since both his bedroom and studio burned bright. Probably his studio. He always painted when he was upset. Only this time, he was upset with her.

  Victoria’s stomach turned over again, causing her to reach for the chamber pot just in case. Things had been going so well. For two years she’d lived her double existence with no consequences. Now, it seemed that everything was turned upside down, and she wasn’t sure how she could ever make it right again.

  Thirteen

  Victoria didn’t get a single wink of sleep that night, and when dawn broke, she wasn’t any more tired than she’d been hours earlier. Drained perhaps, but she never would have been able to sleep had she lain down on her pillow.

  Fin had gone to bed just a little while earlier, if the darkening of the studio and his bedroom we
re any indication. It was her only chance to safely go to the hospital now that he was sleeping soundly. She would have to be very careful going forward. Fin was far too close to discovering all her secrets.

  Victoria rang for Lily and instructed her to have Gil ready the carriage. Then she made quick work of getting ready. Time was certainly of the essence.

  The rain began just as she mounted the carriage, and she cursed the skies for their bad timing. It would take far longer to get to Southwark and back in this weather. Well, there wasn’t anything she could do about it now.

  She relaxed against the squabs and peeked out the window. They’d barely left Marylebone. The rain was coming even harder now. So hard she couldn’t see more than a few feet from the carriage. She kept her eyes fixed on the passing scenes anyhow; that was far more interesting than staring at the dark walls of her conveyance.

  Finally, they crossed the bridge over the Thames and continued on into Southwark. They were mere blocks from the hospital when Gil came to a complete stop.

  “What’s the matter?” she called up to him.

  “Traffic, miss.”

  Jittery from no sleep and just plain impatient, Victoria tied her bonnet at her neck and grabbed her reticule. “I will walk the rest, Gil.”

  “But it’s a bloody squall out there, miss!”

  Ignoring his warning, Victoria climbed out of the carriage and shouted back, “I’ll be ready in an hour!”

  The rain was cold and hard as it pelted her face. She didn’t run, though. Her feet moved at a brisk walk down the muddied street, and she was careful not to lose her footing. People crowded around her, everyone eager to get in out of the rain, but in the midst of it, she spotted a small child, hand outstretched, begging for money.

  Victoria stopped in her tracks and observed the little girl for a moment. Suddenly, she felt as if she were eight years old again, watching the beggar girl from the window of their carriage. She had been struck with the need to help that day, but of course, her mother would never have allowed it. But today . . . well, her mother wasn’t here, was she?