A black, unmarked carriage rattled past Phillip, making his mind fill even more with worry. That had been Luke he’d seen climb into the carriage, he was sure of it, and it had been a difficult wait as the hackney drew closer to the Duke’s townhouse.

“Just here,” Phillip shouted, rapping on the roof and throwing open the door. The hackney had barely come to a stop when he climbed out, reaching up to pay the man before hurrying towards the front door.

“Lord Newford!”

He paused, about to climb the stone steps up to the front door two at a time, only to see Lady Amelia and her father, the Duke, coming towards him. They were both smiling, their cheeks bright from an afternoon’s walk in the park – and Phillip felt his heart slow back down to its usual pace.

He had been quite wrong.

“How good to see you,” the Duke said, inclining his head as they came closer. “You are here to see Harmonia, of course.”

“Indeed,” Phillip replied, trying to calm his quickened breath. “I must apologize for my ruffled appearance, I thought I saw Luke only a few minutes ago.”

The smile faded from Lady Amelia’s face. “Luke?” she repeated, glancing up at her father. “Here? In London?”

Phillip nodded, shrugging his shoulders. “I must have been mistaken. My mind has been playing tricks on me, it seems.” He turned enquiring eyes onto the Duke who was frowning slightly. “You have not seen your relative these last weeks?”

“No, I have not,” the Duke murmured, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. “Although my steward tells me he is not at home either, which is something that has been rather a concern to me. It has been difficult not knowing where the man is, which is why I still insist that Harmonia remain in the house for the time being.”

His lips curved into a smile as Phillip let his thoughts rest on his dear Harmonia, suddenly desperate to see her and hold her close.

“Might I ask where you thought you saw Luke?”

Caught by Lady Amelia’s question, Phillip was pulled from his own thoughts and tried to recall what exactly had happened. “If it was him – or even if it was not – the gentleman emerged from a small house I did not recognize, clad all in black. He climbed into a waiting carriage which bore no markings. That, I confess, made me somewhat anxious since I was not sure what Lord Darnsley was intending, particularly when I saw the carriage turn down the street that would lead towards your home.” He gave Lady Amelia a rueful smile, shaking his head. “I am being quite ridiculous, I know, but I have always been somewhat anxious over Lord Darnsley’s absence. I thought I saw him last evening at Lady Marmaduke’s ball, but he was gone before I could discover his true identity. Rather foolish of me to allow my mind to play such games with me, is it not?”

“You are concerned for Harmonia, which I quite understand,” the Duke replied, in a somewhat gruff voice. “I confess that I too have an equal concern. However, let us go inside and not stand out here talking so openly. It is best to inform Harmonia of what you thought you saw, regardless of whether or not it was Luke.”

Phillip nodded and waited for the Duke and Lady Amelia to ascend the steps, but the butler was not there, ready and waiting to open the door. Appearing a little confused, the Duke pushed it open himself, stepping inside – only for there to come a shriek from within.

Terror clutched at his heart and Phillip hurried in after Lady Amelia, only to see one of the maids sitting down heavily on the staircase, her hand at her heart. The butler appeared from nowhere, his face ashen, as he stared at the Duke as though he had seen a ghost.

“Your grace!” he exclaimed, looking as though he were about to faint. “Are you quite recovered? We have all been in such a state of angst!”

“Recovered?” the Duke repeated, frowning heavily. “Get a hold of yourself, man! Whatever are you talking about?”

His concern growing with every moment that passed, Phillip came closer so as not to miss a word.

“Your nephew appeared at the door and threw himself in without warning. He found Lady Harmonia and, of course, I arranged two footmen to come and remove him from the house – but then he said that you had been taken ill, that you were on death’s door.” The butler stared at the Duke, his eyes rounding. “Am I to take it that this has all been a…. mistake?”

“Not a mistake,” Phillip said, swiftly, buttoning his coat and turning to face the Duke. “Your grace, it appears that Luke has managed to get Harmonia into his carriage.”

The Duke frowned, his expression grave as he turned back to the butler. “Is that the case?”

Now looking incredibly agitated, the butler nodded slowly, his hands clasping and unclasping together. “She would not remain here, your grace. Lady Harmonia insisted on going to see you. Lord Darnsley said that you had asked for her, that you were close to death and that she would regret it forever if she did not come to see you.”

“My goodness,” Amelia whispered, her face growing pale. “He has taken her.”

Phillip closed his eyes, trying to quell his emotions. Drawing in a steadying breath, he lifted his chin and looked at the Duke, who was swaying slightly.

“You have not failed her, papa,” he heard Lady Amelia say, holding the Duke’s arm. “This is not your fault.”

“I will go after her,” Phillip said at once, taking a step closer to the Duke. “I saw the carriage he was in and, whilst it bore no markings, I can guess where he might be taking her.”

Lady Amelia looked up at him, her eyes shining with tears. “To Scotland?”

Gravely, Phillip nodded. “It is the only reasonable course of action, although I do not think that Harmonia will go quietly. There is a fire in her, a determination that she will foster.”

The Duke drew in a long breath, steadying his gaze. “I would expect Luke to take the Highbury road, then. In my examination of his finances, I have discovered that he has a rather low-born acquaintance who owns an inn some distance outside of London where he has often stayed. Since Luke has very little money, I would suspect that he intends to use that inn to rest for a time since his acquaintance might be more willing to put any need for payment to the side for a time.”

“The Highbury road,” Phillip repeated, mentally working out where that would be. “Thank you, your grace. I will leave at once. I swear to you that I will bring her back. Please, remain here with Lady Amelia so that I might bring Harmonia home to you both.”

“Take my stallion,” the Duke said, clicking his fingers towards one of the footmen who hurried off at once. “He is fast but easily controlled – although he has not been ridden much of late.” He swallowed, his gaze filled with sadness. “I pray that you will find her.”

Phillip nodded, his anger over what Lord Darnsley had done beginning to burn deep within him. “I will, your grace. Have no fear.”

Without hesitating for another moment, Phillip left the house and descended the steps, waiting impatiently for the few minutes it took for the stallion to be saddled and brought to him. The beast was magnificent, clearly strong and ready to be on its way. Throwing his leg over the saddle, Phillip began to weave his way through the crush of carriages and hackneys, relieved that, as a single rider, he could move faster than any of the others.

“Where are you, Harmonia?” he whispered, making his way towards the outskirts of London and praying that Lord Darnsley had taken this route.

The carriages were all as dark as each other, although some bore coats of arms and others had a few brighter colors on display. Phillip kept his eyes trained on each carriage in turn, ensuring that he could eliminate them from his search. Hackneys he disregarded, knowing that Lord Darnsley would not have risked putting Harmonia into another carriage or hackney when he had only just got her into one. It would be too much of a risk.

The roads grew busier as he came to the Highbury road, as though all of the beau monde had chosen to leave London on the very same day. His heart was beating wildly as his horse continued to move through the crowd, panic beginning to surface in his veins.

“I will travel to Scotland if I have to,” he said aloud, his mind filled with thoughts of nothing more than Harmonia. He knew that she would not give into a marriage to Lord Darnsley without being seriously intimidated, for she knew that Phillip would not turn from her simply because her cousin had tried to ruin her reputation.

And yet he did not think that Luke would care how he got Harmonia into matrimony. There might yet be a man in Scotland willing to wed them even without Harmonia’s consent. The dowry was what he cared about, not Harmonia himself. Phillip felt his stomach tighten painfully as he thought of it, knowing that he could not allow Lord Darnsley to get away with what he had done. This time, he had gone too far.

A sudden shout echoed towards him, a few whinnies of startled horses following soon after. The crowd seemed to grow unexpectedly, carriages and hackneys coming to a stop. Gentlemen put their heads out of carriage windows, trying to see what was holding them up whilst the frustrations of the ladies echoed from the open windows.

“Harmonia?” Phillip shouted, urging his stallion forward through the crowd, growing frustrated with how long it took him to move through them all. “Harmonia? I’m coming for you!”

There was no response, no answering call. His heart in his throat, Phillip rode forward, his eyes searching the streets for any sign of his love. He had to find her, had to finally put an end to all of this.

Lord Darnsley would not escape punishment this time.