Chapter Nineteen
Patience glared at Loverly who sat across from her, pouring another glass of whiskey. “I suppose you are the reason my husband has had people following me around.” Since he had just removed the cloth from around her mouth, it was her first opportunity to speak to the horrid man who had feigned friendship and then kidnapped her.
Assuming Loverly was a friend of Alex’s, especially when he’d mentioned he’d been on the same ship traveling back with him from America, she had foolishly allowed the man to escort her and Polly back to their carriage. Except he had hailed a coach that had apparently been waiting for him. Confused as to what he was doing, and before she could ask him what he was about, he’d shoved her into the carriage, throwing her to her knees, then turned to Polly and thrust a piece of paper into her hands with instructions to give it to Alex.
Had her better senses prevailed, she would have shouted, but still stunned by the turn of events, they were well on their way before she realized what he had done. She’d opened her mouth and he’d shoved a handkerchief in and had whipped out a very large knife and waved it at her.
She’d fainted.
When she had finally awoken, she was in a dreadful room that smelled of liquor and other nasty things she did not care to identify. She jumped up from the bed that smelled even worse than the rest of the room. She would have to scrub herself raw when she finally got out of here.
“Yes, Your Grace, ’twas becoming quite annoying that you always had footmen behind you. And those three friends of your husband were even worse. I even wasted my time breaking into Andrews’s townhouse during his event. He grinned, stroking his beard. “Amazing how a few years away and a little facial hair erases a person from one’s memory. There I was right in the middle of their smashing success of a soiree, and no one recognized me.”
“What do you want? Why accost me? I have done nothing to you.”
He leaned forward, the stench of liquor wafting from his breath. His eyes were bloodshot and his lip curled in disdain. “No, not you. It’s your husband I want. I want his money so I can get on a ship and disappear—for good this time.”
Money. All of this was about money. “Why do you want to disappear? You are a lord. Surely you can raise the money in a more lawful way.”
Loverly snorted and took a large gulp of whiskey. “You see, Your Grace, there is the little problem of being hunted by the War Department.”
“The War Department?” This entire matter became more confusing and convoluted by the minute. “Why would the War Department want you?”
He leaned back in his chair, balancing on two legs. If only she could move fast enough, she could kick the legs out from under him and run. She shook her head. No, that was foolish, even though he’d been drinking, he was bigger and most likely faster than she was.
“Nosy little chit, aren’t you?”
Patience drew herself up. “I am a duchess.”
Loverly burst out laughing. “You know, I might decide to take you with me when I leave. I imagine you would be very entertaining in my bed.” Just as quickly, his mood changed, and she leaned back when he leered at her. “A few years back, my need for money led me to pass along a few items of interest to the French.” He pointed his finger at her. “His Majesty’s men did not like that.”
She took a deep breath, her eyes wide. “You are a traitor to the Crown?”
“Oh, how shocked you are. Imagine, an aristocrat turning on the Crown? My, my. How terrible it must all seem to you. Well, it supported a very nice life for me before it all came to an end. I managed to escape from France to America, where life was quite pleasant, even though they are all savages there.”
He took another drink and turned his angry eyes on her. “Then your husband, noble man that he is, was sent to America to drag me back.”
She breathed out the words. “The trip you said you took with Alex.”
“Ha. Pretty and smart. I just might take you with me.”
Patience tried very hard to tamp down the anger at Alex treating her so shamefully. He had never once told her this man existed, or that he would try to kidnap her. Here she was, followed around like a recalcitrant child, while all that time he’d known she was in danger.
She was not a stupid woman. Had she known, she could have protected herself, as well, and she certainly would not have walked off alone with Polly.
Her mind in a whirl, she knew Alex would bring whatever money Loverly wanted, but she had a sinking feeling in her stomach that Loverly had no intention of letting her go.
Kidnappers rarely did.
…
Alex crushed the paper in his hand and tossed it into the cold fireplace. “He wants ten thousand pounds now. I’m to meet him at the West India dock tonight.” His stomach roiled at the thought of Loverly having Patience in his control. Would he molest her?
Cam let out with a low whistle.
“What’s the plan?” Hawk had a way of always zeroing in on the important points. It helped to anchor him, kept him from thinking about his wife in the hands of that traitor.
Alex jumped up from his seat and paced. “If I give him the money, he has no way to disappear unless he takes Patience with him.”
“Agreed,” Cam said.
He looked around the circle of his three friends who had become such an important part of his new life. Even though they’d spent the past few years apart, he felt he could trust them, and count on them like no one else in his life. “The one thing we can be assured of is it will be foggy at the dock. We might be able to use that for some cover.”
“How long will it take you to get the ten thousand pounds?” Templeton, always the practical one, chimed in.
“I can have it in hand before five this afternoon. He wants to meet me at ten tonight.” Alex pinched the bridge of his nose. This was precisely why he’d kept Patience under wraps since they’d returned to London. He should not have allowed footmen to accompany her. He should have done it himself. Even though she’d been mad at him. Her safety should have come first. Problems caused by what she perceived as his bullying could have been dealt with later.
Realizing Polly had fled once she’d handed over the paper, he rang for Monroe to fetch the girl. She might know something that would help them. He had no problem with handing over the money for his wife, but since there was no guarantee the man would, in fact, let her go, it would be best if they could rescue her before the meet up at the West India docks.
“Yes, Your Grace.” The poor girl did not look any better than when she’d handed over the note. Her eyes were swollen and red and she clutched a handkerchief that she twisted in her hands.
“Take a seat, Polly. I just want to ask you a few questions.”
She burst into tears, and it took all his fortitude not to grab the woman by the shoulders and shake her. Taking a calming breath, he said, “Polly, please try to compose yourself. You might have information that could help us rescue your lady.”
Polly gulped a few times and nodded. “Yes, Your Grace.” She turned tear-filled eyes toward him. “I told her we should not fool the footmen and wander about without them.”
That explained how Loverly had gotten to her. “How did you get back here?”
“I was so upset when that awful man took Her Grace that I even forgot we had our own carriage with us, so I waved down a hackney that Monroe paid for once I arrived. I’m sorry he had to pay for a carriage for me.”
Once more Alex felt the need to shake her. What did he care about paying for a hackney when his wife’s life was in danger? “That is not an issue, Polly. Do you have any idea where the carriage and my footmen are?”
She wiped her nose with the now soggy handkerchief. “Yes. We left them outside of a store on Bond Street, and then we went out the side door so they wouldn’t follow us.”
Clever wife. So clever her life was now threatened. Once he got his hands on her, he didn’t know if he would kiss her to death or throttle her. Probably both.
Despite the wall he’d built around himself from the horrors he’d seen, and the things he’d been responsible for in the line of duty, he realized Patience had managed to chip away at it.
All those feelings he’d thought were long gone had not left at all. They’d been buried deep inside him, and it had only taken a matter of weeks before he’d fallen as madly in love with Patience as he had when he’d walked away from her four years ago.
And now he could lose her once more. Could he survive it again?
…
Loverly examined his timepiece. He’d been steadily drinking and checking the time for what seemed like hours. Patience had grown stiff sitting in the chair with her hands tied behind her. He’d done that when he went outside to relieve himself, but hadn’t bothered to untie them once he’d returned. When she had asked him to, he’d ignored her.
From the stench coming in through the window, they were near the water. If she did escape, she would probably be murdered before she could find a hackney. She had finally come to the realization that it had not been one of her better ideas to sneak away from the footmen. On the other hand, if Alex had only explained to her that she was in danger of being snatched off the public streets, she wouldn’t have done it. Once she was freed of this unspeakable man, she would certainly let her husband know how angry she was over his treatment of her.
Until then, nothing could change what had already happened. All she could hope for was that Alex came for her with a plan other than handing over money. Her stomach tightened when she thought of the possibility of being murdered in front of her husband.
“All right, Your Grace. It’s time to go.” Loverly stood and swayed, placing his hand on the back of her chair to steady himself. She turned her head from him as he leaned over her and breathed into her face. “Don’t think to give me any trouble. I have my very large knife and a surprise for His Grace.”
She stomped on his foot when he wrenched her from the chair.
“Ouch. You little bitch.” He backhanded her across the face. She stumbled, but his grip on her arm was tight enough that she didn’t fall. Tears streamed from her eyes, and her cheek felt as though it were on fire. “Move.” He pushed her in front of him.
They walked down a narrow, rickety flight of wooden stairs. With her arms tied behind her, she had to go slow since her balance was off. It appeared the building where he’d housed her had been abandoned. Loverly stumbled behind her, and all she could imagine was him losing his footing and crashing into her, sending them both tumbling down the stairs to end with broken necks.
Once they were in the night air, she attempted to look for any means of escape. Thick fog blanketed everything in gloom. Loverly continued to push her forward, farther into the mist. She stumbled a couple of times on the uneven stones. “Stop here.”
After a few minutes, Alex appeared out of the mist, walking slowly, carrying a satchel. “Let her go, Loverly.”
Instead of releasing her, the man whipped out his knife and, holding her against the front of his body, held the weapon to her throat. “Not bloody likely, Your Grace.”
In the scant light cast from the window of what must have been a tavern, she saw Alex’s jaw tighten. “As much as I would enjoy spending time with you, Loverly, my wife looks in need of assistance. I would like to get her home.”
Loverly pulled her closer, practically cutting off her air supply. “I am sure you would. However, there is the little problem of the money.”
Alex held up the satchel. “It’s all here.”
…
If he lived a hundred years, Alex would never recover from the sight of Patience, with her bruised face.
Loverly was a dead man.
“Drop the bag and walk away.”
“You must think I am a half-wit to consider leaving the money and walking away from my wife. You let her go and I’ll toss the bag to you.”
“Now who is acting the fool?” He shook his head. “No. So sorry, Your Grace, but I get the money first.”
Alex had to bide his time. Cam, Hawk, and Templeton had arrived an hour before him so they could get into positon before Loverly appeared. They were out there somewhere in the mist. The plan had been for one of them to attack Loverly from behind while another one grabbed Patience. They were all carrying pistols, including Alex.
What troubled him was the knife. He had to let his cohorts know about the weapon at Patience’s throat. One slip and his wife would be dead. “Loverly, at least take the knife away from Her Grace’s throat while we work this out.”
Loverly shook his head, causing Alex to catch his breath as the knife moved and Patience whimpered. “Not a chance. I hang onto your wife until I have the money in my hand.”
“I don’t care about the money. I give you my word that I will slide the satchel to you once you release her.”
“Ah yes. The word of a gentleman. Or is it the word of Major Alexander Pemberton of His Majesty’s service? Wasn’t that your title when you dragged me back from America and held me prisoner in that ship’s cabin for weeks? Well, this time when I disappear, I won’t be so easy to find.”
“You were hardly easy, Loverly. It took me a year to find you.” Anything to keep the man talking. Somewhere out there, Cam, Hawk, and Templeton were listening and getting ready to take Loverly down.
“Well, no point in sending anyone this time. They’ll never find me. But I’m tired of all this chatter.” He nodded to the satchel on the ground. “Give me the money. Now.”
Alex reached for the bag just as Loverly grunted. The knife clattered to the ground, and he fell alongside it.
“Patience!” Alex shouted as she stood there for a moment, stupefied, then raced toward him, flinging herself into his arms. She sobbed against his chest, babbling something about sorry, will never do it again. He crushed her to him and inhaled her scent, closing his eyes at having her in his arms.
Cam appeared from the mist and kicked the knife away from Loverly, who was already coming around. He lunged for the knife, but Cam stepped on his hand and scooped the weapon up.
Hawk reached under Loverly’s arms and set him on his knees. The man shook his head, then looked at Alex who had one arm wrapped around Patience and held his pistol in the other hand. Templeton approached Alex. “Let me take her away.”
Alex nodded and released his hold on Patience. They walked to where Hawk and Cam stood. Hawk cut her hands free and all eyes remained on the man on his knees. “Don’t kill me. Let me go. I will disappear, leave England. You don’t have to give me the money.”
“You know you are wanted by the Crown.” Alex snorted. “Why would I let you go?”
“No one has to know. I can steal into one of these ships and be gone with the tide.”
Alex viewed him with disdain. “Stop blubbering like a girl. You were man enough to steal our secrets and sell them to the French. Men died because of you. Good men who were fighting for their country. Where is your backbone now?”
“I didn’t mean for anyone to die. I needed the money.” Loverly’s nose was running, and he continued to weep.
“You’re despicable.”
“Just don’t kill me.” Loverly shifted and his right hand disappeared into his overcoat pocket.
Instinctively, Alex pulled the trigger and blew a very large hole in Loverly’s forehead. The man slumped over as Alex lowered his hand. His stomach roiled at the sight of the crumpled body, with the pool of blood spreading from underneath him. He closed his eyes briefly, wanting to wash the sight from his eyes. He’d never wanted to take a man’s life again.
Patience covered her mouth with her hands and screamed. Her eyes grew large as she looked back and forth from the dead man on the ground to Alex.
Alex walked toward her. She backed up as he approached, shaking her head. He reached for her, and she turned from him and doubled over. “No. Don’t touch me. I can’t believe you killed him.”
Stunned, he said, “What? He was a traitor. He kidnapped you. Are you crazy?” With all the emotions racing through him right now, the last thing he needed was condemnation from his wife.
She shook her head. “No, you are crazy. He begged for his life. You could have brought him to the authorities.” She moved farther back. “You are a bully. And a monster. Once again you treated me like a child. You could have told me I was in danger. Do you think me so weak and stupid? Do you think I would have spoken to this man if I’d known? You don’t trust me, and you never will.”
She shook her head and backed up, her voice shaky. “I hate you. You’re everything I never wanted in a husband.”
Alex reached for her once more. She held her hand up. “No. I don’t want to have anything to do with you.”
“Patience, please. You’re overwrought.” His hands hanging by his side, he continued to approach her, talking softly. When he reached for her again, she swung at him, and missed, almost throwing herself to the ground. Hawk grabbed her to keep her from falling. Alex stared over her head at Hawk. “Take her home. Nothing is gained by having her here. I have things to clean up.”
Hawk nodded, tight-lipped. He put his arm around Patience. Sobbing onto his shoulder, she walked away with him, disappearing into the mist.