by Wendy Vella
Something made Patience turn, a shiver of awareness as she struck out for the other side of the street, where Mr. Whitty had his premises. Looking over her shoulder, she saw a man watching her, so she picked up her pace, lifted her skirts and ran. The thunder of hooves stopped her, and, looking right, she saw two horses approach.
Silly fools, to be riding at such a pace on a busy street, Patience thought, stopping to await their passing. She looked once more behind her but did not see the man anywhere. Dismissing him, she realized she was becoming paranoid. Thankfully the horses started to slow as they neared her, which saved her issuing a warning about irresponsible behavior on such a busy street.
“Miss Allender?”
The man on the horse closest to her called her name. She did not recognize him, but seconds later he had drawn abreast. She did not see the arm that bent to catch her, but suddenly she was being lifted high and seated in front of him.
“Let me go!” She struggled and swung her fists, and then watched in horror as her reticule slid from her wrist and disappeared to the street below. She had no pistol now, and no one knew where she had gone to.
“Who are you, and what do you want with me?” she cried, but the man who was holding her did not reply. Patience knew it was useless to fight him anymore, as falling from a horse at this speed would only harm her. She must save her energy for when her feet were once again on the ground.
Slowly the streets turned less inviting, the buildings less grand, until they were winding their way through narrow, dirty streets. She saw some masts in the distance and shivered, realizing they were close to the water.
The horses slowed as they approached a large grey building. The man who had been riding alongside them dismounted and pulled her down, then threw her over one shoulder. Patience pummeled his back, but he merely grunted, trapped her legs and walked beside the buildings down a narrow alley. It smelled hideous, and she did not dwell on what could have made that stench.
She heard the creak of a door opening, then they were inside a darkened room.
“Lock her in and we’ll go finish the job and get the boy.”
“You will not harm my brother!”
“And what do you think you can do about it?” One of the men laughed at her.
Patience was then carried farther across the room, up some stairs, and through another door, then she was lowered to her feet.
“What will you do with me?” Spinning, she faced the man now walking back out the door. “Answer me!”
His smile wasn’t pleasant.
“Just getting you out of the way for a while, Miss Allender, while we take care of your brother. Then after that you’ll just have to wait and see, but it’s my thinking that by the time I get back here you’ll be mighty glad to see me.”
“No!” Patience ran across the room, but the door had slammed and the lock had been driven home by the time she reached it. “Please, I shall pay you more!”
Silence greeted her words.
“Dear God, Charlie,” she whispered as helpless despair gripped her. Her only hope was that her siblings would had gone against her wishes and left for the safety of Mathew’s household before these men got there.
On the other side of the room was a window that was leaking cracks of light through the boards that were nailed over it. Patience tried each to see if any were loose, but they were secure.
How long was she to be left here? Indefinitely? Would anyone come for her now, or once Charlie was… She could not even think it.
Pacing the small room, she tried to think as she looked for something, anything to loosen those boards, anything to help her escape. There was only a rickety, uncomfortable-looking chair on the foul-smelling floor, and nothing else. Patience lifted it high, then dropped it onto the floor, letting it smash into pieces. Picking up a leg, she turned toward the window.
She worked the narrow end beneath the wood, then pushed with all her strength, trying to prize it off. After repeated efforts she felt the nail loosen, and on the next attempt she had it free on one side. She gripped the loose board and pulled, and the next nail came free so easily that she stumbled backwards, landing hard on her bottom, the impact shuddering through her body. No one came to see what she was doing, or to check the noise, which suggested she was indeed alone in this building.
The work was tiring, and soon the muscles in her body were screaming at her to cease, but it was also giving Patience something to focus on rather than thinking about her brother and sister, who could right now be under attack.
Please stay safe.
The second board took longer, and by the third, blood was soaking into her gloves and her body was protesting fiercely. When the third board was free, she looked out through the dirty glass and her heart sank to her toes. Water met her eyes, lots of deep water.
Her legs lost strength, and she crumpled to the floor. There, she brought up her knees and wrapped her arms around them. She could smash the window if it did not open, but she couldn’t jump into the water, even if she did know how to keep herself afloat.
After her fall into the creek, her father had taught her to swim. She had tolerated his teachings because she knew they would save her if it ever happened again, but once the lessons were over she never stepped foot into deep water again. How could she now hurl herself from a building into the dirty grey depths below and survive?
But you have to, if you want to save your family.
She climbed to her feet, went back to the window and looked out once more. She could do this; she was strong, and it would be over in minutes…if she didn’t drown. Shutting out that thought, Patience tried to lift the window, but it wouldn’t move, which told her that it was nailed shut. She put the broken chair leg to use once again and jabbed it hard at the glass. It took four attempts but eventually she smashed it. Then she took off her bonnet, her spencer and dress, bundled the clothes around her hand and cleared out all the glass, not wishing to cut herself as she climbed through.
With her shoes off, Patience took several deep breaths, and then lifted one leg onto the frame, then the other, until she was seated on the sill looking out. Below her was a narrow path that led around the building. She would need to jump out so she did not hit it. Trying not to imagine what would happen if she mistimed her jump, Patience quickly tied her clothes into a tight bundle using the ties from her bonnet, and she then lowered it, hoping it stopped on the ledge and not in the water. She then braced her feet beneath her, her knuckles white as they gripped the frame.
“One, two, three.” Closing her eyes, she pushed off the sill, and with her arms and legs flailing she started to fall.
Mathew ran into the Allender town house. He had received word from the family, saying that he needed to get there quickly, and he had done so, riding as fast as he could through the busy London streets.
“Lord Belmont.” His footman greeted him first. “It was I who sent for you.”
“What has happened, Tim?” Closing the door, Mathew moved inside.
“I followed Miss Allender from the house, as you requested I should do if any of the family were to leave. She then took a hackney alone to Castle Street, and after she left it, two men on horseback abducted her. I tried to give chase, but they were too quick and had soon disappeared. I questioned several people, but no one could enlighten me as to which direction they had taken. I then sent word to you and kept looking for another twenty minutes.”
Mathew clenched his fists as he fought the flood of panic. He wanted to roar at the man, shake him for letting someone take Patience, yet he knew he could not.
“I know you would have done everything you could to find Miss Allender, Tim,” he said as he swallowed down the fear inside him.
“It was as if she’d disappeared, my lord.”
“Where is the family now?” Mathew asked as he realized that only one person could be responsible for abducting Patience.
“In the parlor. They have the two footmen with them, and there are two o
f your men outside and another at the rear of the property.”
“Have you said anything to them?”
“No, my lord.”
“We must find her, Tim.”
“Mathew!” Charlie came running toward him. “Something has happened to Patience, I know it has! She would not have left us for so long without word!”
Mathew put an arm around the boy and held him close. “Yes, she has been abducted, Charlie, but we shall get her back, I promise.” Honesty was needed now; nothing else would do. “Tim, go to Lord Kelkirk, and take my card. Tell him I need him here immediately with as many men as he can spare. Ask him to alert the Duke of Stratton also, then find this Mr. Whitty, the private investigator Miss Allender hired.”
“My lord, I am Mr. Toots, the Allender family butler.” The man presented himself before Mathew, his face tight with worry.
As Mathew opened his mouth to issue instructions, the front door was flung open and two more of his men bundled another inside. They held his hands behind his back as he spat out several vile curses.
“We caught him and another at the rear of the house. The other one got away.”
Lucy appeared then, and he urged Charlie to her side before moving to stand before the man his footman had a good grip on.
“What was he doing?” Mathew said, looking the man over. He was short and solid, with a belligerent expression on his face. Mathew thought he looked like a thug whose services could be purchased for the correct price.
“He had these.” His footman held out a pistol and knife. “And he was looking to get inside this house.”
Mathew signaled for his men to release the intruder and moved closer, so he was now only inches away from him. “Lucy, you and Charlie go and organize your things. You will be leaving for my house shortly,” he said, keeping his eyes on the man.
“But Patience—”
“Trust that I will get your sister back, Lucy.” He said nothing further until the Allender siblings had left. Then he said to the captured man, “Miss Allender has been abducted and I think you were involved. She was taken so she would not interfere when you attempted to break into this house and take her brother.” The man pressed his lips together as Mathew went on, “Mr. Winston will be brought to justice for this, and you will go to jail at his side unless you tell me at once where she is.”
The man said nothing, so Mathew smashed his fist into his stomach, making him gasp and wheeze for several seconds.
“Now, we shall try that again. Tell me what I want to know.”
This time the man spat at Mathew’s feet.
“Mr. Toots, please retrieve one of the swords from the second floor and bring it to me at once. I will also require something to gag this man, and ropes to bind him.” That got a reaction. The man jerked his head back, eyes wide as he looked at Mathew.
“I care nothing for you,” Mathew said. “In fact, were you to die this day I would feel little, but the woman you abducted means a great deal to me. I will get the information I seek from you in any way I must.” He kept his eyes steady.
“I-I know where she is,” the man stammered.
Patience panicked as the water closed over her head. It was cold enough to take her breath away, and fear made her want to inhale, but if she did, it would be water she took in, not air. The skirts of her chemise wrapped around her legs, threatening to help drag her down. Kicking and waving her arms, she managed to make her way back to the surface, and finally her head was clear. Raising her face skywards, she drew air into her lungs in deep, gasping breaths.
Looking up at the window, she knew she would remember the moment she had plunged from it for a long time to come…if indeed she made it back to her home and away from this place, wherever this place was. Breathing deeply, she started to swim for the dock, where she would hopefully find some way to get out. The few feet seemed to take ages to cross, but finally her hands touched the wood of the dock, and she gripped it hard. Pulling herself upwards took several attempts, with the first two plunging her back into the water. Rage came to her rescue, and even though her body ached and her fingers stung, she now felt no fear. Heart thumping, she managed to get a foothold and pull herself slowly up again, this time out of the water, until she was lying like a landed fish on her side beneath the window.
“Get up!” she whispered, urging herself onto her knees, then to her feet. Staggering slightly, she braced a hand on the wall to steady herself. When her head was clear, she reached for her clothes.
She stripped off her chemise, then quickly slipped into her dress, hoping that no one appeared as she stood exposed to the elements. The day wasn’t cold, but her teeth still chattered. Perhaps fear could be to blame for that, she realized, looking back at the water and shuddering at what she had just done. She pulled on her half-boots and quickly laced them, her fingers struggling with the simple knots. After she’d wrung out her hair, she stuffed it all into her bonnet and fastened the satin ties at her throat. She hoped she would look at a glance as any lady should. She just prayed no one got too close.
“She’s down there!”
Looking up, Patience saw a man’s head poking out of the window she had jumped from. With her skirts in hand she started running along the narrow path and around the building until she reached the front. When she reached the road seconds later, she could hear the thunder of feet and knew more than one man was chasing her. Sprinting out onto the narrow street, she willed her weak knees to hold her upright as she turned left and ran. Where was she? Hoping a hackney would pass her soon, Patience went as fast as she could until the street veered into another.
As one street stopped, another started, and each seemed worse than the last. The cobles uneven and broken, debris strewn everywhere. Straining for breath, she ducked into a narrow alley between two buildings and moved as fast as she could to the end.
“Stop!”
Not bloody likely, she thought, tugging her skirt as it caught on something. She heard it rip, but simply tugged it harder for release and kept moving. Once free of the alley she put her head down and ran until her heart was pounding, her legs had filled with jelly, and she could simply not take another step.
Looking around, she saw that darkness was nearly upon her. Smoke from the chimney pots belched, forming fog to thicken and swirl in dense clouds The buildings nearby were stacked high, and she realized these were some of the tenements she’d heard about, homes for the poor. Everything around her was dark and foreboding, and she shuddered to imagine living in such a place. The stench made her retch, and she did not want to think of what the damp was under her feet.
She had to get out of here and back to her home. She had to save her brother and sister, but to do that she would need to ask for help.
Squinting, Patience saw the glow of dim lights up ahead. Moving closer she saw a sign swung from a stand, announcing that it was a tavern called the Speckled Hen. The façade was dark green, the paint was chipped and peeling, and the door had a broken pane of glass in it. Pushing the door open, she wished for a weapon, anything with which to defend herself should she need to.
The tavern was noisy and at a glance she noted it was occupied mostly by men. The few women who were here were not the kind she had ever met before, and not likely to inhabit the ballrooms of the affluent members of London society. As she stepped inside, the conversations slowly stopped as each person became aware of her presence. Realizing how out of place she looked, Patience schooled her features, refusing to show how intimidated she was. She made her way to the bar, then waited for the man behind it to approach her.
“My guess is you’re lost.”
He had a huge stomach and no hair, and several missing teeth. His hands were the size of the plates she ate her evening meal off of, and he was possibly one of the most terrifying people she had ever met.
“Yes, I am lost. Actually I was abducted and have just escaped, and men are chasing me,” she said, looking behind her once more. “I-I need to get home to my brother, as
the men who took me are also intent on harming him.” The man’s expression did not change as Patience spoke, and her heart sank. “Please, I must go to him.”
“Me curricle’s outside. I could take you.”
Desperately relieved, Patience turned with an eager look to see who had said those words. The shouts of laughter that followed told her the man was having fun at her expense.
“Or perhaps you would like to use my barouche?” another voice called. “’Twould offer more comfort.”
They were laughing at her, and Patience felt the wonderful heat of anger return and give her strength. “Do you have family, sir?” Patience snapped. Desperate now, she faced the man who had spoken last. Of about her height, he was as wide as an old oak tree. When he didn’t answer, she said, “Because I have only a brother and sister, and I am responsible for them, but as we speak, my cousin is intent on killing my brother for his title.” She felt hysteria begin to well up inside her and battled to keep it at bay. “My circumstances may be cause for hilarity to you, but to me they are dire indeed.”
“Was only having a laugh,” he muttered, lowering his eyes as around them everyone quieted.
“As you can imagine, I am pleased that I can provide you with entertainment at the expense of myself and my family, sir,” she snarled. “I just jumped from a second-story window into the water below, and am now wet, cold and scared. I hardly think I am asking a lot of you, requesting a small touch of human kindness toward a person in need.”
“’Ere, someone just take her. She’s not going to let up until you do!”
She couldn’t see who’d said the words, but sent a glare that way. Refusing to let these people see how upset and distressed she was that they would not come to her aid, she said, “I will pay whoever can take me, but you will not receive the payment until I reach my home.”
“Done!” another man said, and Patience felt a flutter of belief that she would get home, but no sooner had the words been uttered than the door opened and in walked two men. She knew they were looking for her. No one in this room cared if she lived or died, and she was sure no one would step in to save her, so she dropped to a crouch.