“The Belton Street gang have taken Hattie, they are going to kill her!” cried Joshua.

Will saw the look on Edgar’s face. A look which Will had prayed he would never have to see again after the war with France. A look of unrestrained terror.

“I was at your house looking for Hattie, when this lad arrived. Your butler told me you were headed this way tonight. Thank god we’ve found you,” explained Edgar.

Will turned and to his relief saw that the Saunders’ family coachman was already in the process of unhooking one of the horses from the carriage.

“Where have they taken her?”

“Down to the river, near the new Waterloo Bridge. The gang have a hideout there for shipping stolen goods up river. They also do a trade in dead bodies,” replied Joshua.

Will felt a deadly chill run down his spine. These were not a simple gang of pick pockets he was dealing with tonight. The Belton Street gang were known even in polite society as vicious thugs.

Edgar leaped down from his horse and handed Will the reins.

“We were on our way there when we saw your carriage. If you are the man rumors at White’s say you are, you should take Joshua and my horse,” added Edgar.

To Will’s surprise and bone deep relief, Edgar produced a pistol and a knife from out of his coat. Will quickly took them. He leapt up on the horse, pulling Joshua close in behind him. Edgar meanwhile headed over to where the other horse was being separated from the carriage.

“Go! I will be but a minute behind you,” he said.

Will dug his heels into his mount and it leapt away. Joshua gripped on tight to Will’s evening coat.

Hunched low over the reins, Will urged his horse on. The streets were filled with carriages heading both ways. Several times they came to a halt as pedestrians stepped out in front of them.

“Get out of the way!” Will screamed.

The startled Londoners jumped back onto the pavement, waving their fists angrily at Will and Joshua as they sped away. Down Drury Lane, Will managed to make up precious time.

He looked over his shoulder as he turned left into the Strand. Edgar Wright was right on his tail.

“Surry Street,” cried Joshua.

As he turned the horse’s head into Surry Street, Will caught sight of Waterloo Bridge. He was grateful to have Joshua on board. The bridge was recently built and Will would never have found it on his own.

At the end of the street, he reined his horse in and jumped down.

“Where?” he asked.

Joshua pointed toward the river, where Will saw a small fire had been lit on the beach.

“They come down here all the time to look for bodies. They search them for anything they can sell and then offload the body to the body snatchers,” said Joshua.

Will turned as his ears picked up a familiar sound. Edgar had had the good sense to bring along a second pistol. He had it loaded and cocked. Will pulled his own pistol out of his coat and did the same. Joshua produced a badly battered pistol from out of his pocket. Will feared it wouldn’t fire straight but said nothing.

Bile rose up in his throat. He had not had the need to kill a man in some time, but the memory of the stench of death came close behind, whenever he saw a loaded and readied weapon. He had seen hundreds of bloodied and dead men on the battlefield at Waterloo. No one ever became immune to the agonizing cries of a dying man.

He turned to Edgar. If he was about to walk into a fight to the death to save Hattie, he needed to know the caliber of the man beside me.

“How useful are you with a pistol Edgar? And don’t be vain about it. Your sister’s life could very well depend upon it.”

He did not need to mention that all of them were currently in great danger. For himself, he would be relying on years of experience and muscle memory.

“I train regularly at Manton’s shooting gallery in Davis Street. The pistols are well maintained. Other than that, you are going to have to trust that I am prepared to do everything within my power to save my sister. That includes shooting any blighter who gets in my way.”

Edgar’s words were exactly what Will needed to hear. They moved down the street, closer to the water’s edge, keeping to the shadows to avoid being seen. As they crept closer Will was able to make out the shape of a half-dozen figures standing around the fire. To one side was a small hand cart.

“The tall one with the battered top hat, that’s Tom, he’s the gang leader. See that cart over there, we use it to carry bodies around. I would bet all my coin that Miss Hattie is in the back of that cart,” said Joshua.

Will prayed that Hattie was still in the cart.

Still alive.

* * *

A roar rose up among the gang as a fight broke out. Tom grabbed hold of what appeared to be a young boy aged about ten years old. He slapped the boy about the face several times. When the lad begged for mercy, he was punched cruelly in the face. The boy fell to the ground and lay still.

Will and Edgar looked at one another. They knew that when they headed into the fight, there would be no mercy shown to them.

Tom began to strut about, howling into the night air. When he reached the cart, Will’s heart sank.

“Time to go lovey! I’m sure the fish will love to hear your bible preaching,” he bellowed.

Several of the gang rushed over and dragged a sack out of the cart. It landed heavily on the muddy river shore. A muffled sound came from within the sack. Hattie was for the moment, still alive.

The gang members began to drag the sack to the water’s edge. Will turned to Edgar.

“Do not hesitate if you get a clear shot. You won’t get a second chance.”

As the sack containing Hattie reached the water, Will made his move. Brandishing his pistol in one hand he raced out onto the mud flat of the river. A gang member stepped out, waving a large military sword. Will shot him as he drew close.

Will then made a bee line for Tom who was now rolling the sack into the water. Cries from his crew alerted him to the arrival of Will. Edgar was in close pursuit.

With one last heave, Hattie went into the water and disappeared. The gang leader put his boot on top of the sack, holding Hattie under. In a matter of minutes, she would drown.

Will launched himself at Tom, knowing if he did not take him out, none of them would be leaving the river side alive. They fell into the dirty brown water.

In the sinking river mud, he and the gang leader struggled to their feet. They were now between Hattie and the shore, cutting off any hope that Edgar may have had in trying to reach his sister.

In the dim light, Will saw the flash of a blade. He dived out of the way.

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Joshua waving his pistol in the direction of the remaining gang members. Fortunately, none of them were stupid enough to attempt a move to save their boss and Joshua was spared having to fire his weapon.

Coming up, Will grabbed hold of Tom’s legs and tried to knock him off his feet. Tom raised his arm, in readiness to stab Will. Will saw the blade as it began its deadly descent. When it landed he would take the blow fully in his back. He braced himself for the knife’s heart stopping impact.

A shot rang out in the night and the blade went wide of its intended mark. Tom’s hold on Will was suddenly gone. Will looked up to see the gang leader, stagger backward on his feet. A large bloody hole was now in the middle of Tom’s forehead. He fell back and disappeared under the murky waters of the Thames as Edgar lowered his pistol.

The remaining members of the gang scattered in all directions.

Will got to his feet in time to see Edgar and Joshua both wading into the water. He reached them as they managed to drag the sack back to shore.

Joshua cut the sack open and Hattie spilled out onto the muddy beach. She rolled over and struggled up onto her hands and knees. She sucked air into her lungs in large gulps.

Utter relief washed over Will. She was alive.

“Oh, thank god,” he muttered.

Edgar pulled his sister to her feet and for a moment she stood and stared at him. The look of shock and anguish on her face, showed that she had not expected to survive her trip into the river.

She took two steps forward and flung herself into her brother’s arms.

“You came for me. You came!”

Edgar and Will exchanged a look of relief. They had done it. As Will reached their side, Edgar released Hattie.

“Of course, I came for you. I will always be here for you. But Will is the one who really saved you. That blackguard was going to hold you under until you drowned. It was Will who fought him. I just put a bullet in his head.”

She turned to Will with tears streaming down her face. In the chill night air, she began to shiver.

“I swear to you Will, I didn’t seek the gang out. I did everything I could to avoid them.”

He nodded in the direction of Joshua.

“I know. Joshua told me what happened. You did exactly what I would have done. You read the situation and you made the right choice,” he replied.

Edgar let go of Hattie and pushed her gently in the direction of Will.

“Go to him. He is where you belong. I will always be your brother, but Will Saunders is your future.”

She got to within a foot or so of Will and stopped. He sensed her hesitation. Will reached out and pulled Hattie into his arms.

“Come here my girl.”

She wrapped her arms around his waist and held on tight. Will sent a thousand prayers of thanks to the heavens. She was alive. He had saved her.

A carriage drew up at the end of the street and Francis jumped out. Edgar and Joshua walked toward him, waving.

On the beach, Will and Hattie held tightly to one another. As the others walked away, she looked up at him. He bent down and kissed her tenderly on the lips.

“You taste of the river,” he murmured.

“Yes, I need a large brandy to wash my mouth out. I always thought the Thames looked filthy. Having now drunk at least a pint of it, I know for certain.”

He ruffled what he could of her wet and tangled hair, and kissed her once more.

“Promise me this will be the last time I have to go into the water to save you. I would rather you didn’t make a habit of it.”

“I was doing just fine in Gibraltar as I recall, but yes, I promise this will be the last time,” she replied.

Will put his arm around her and they began to walk toward the carriage.

“When we get home, I have a plan I wish to discuss with you.”