Wicked Wager

by Mary Gillgannon

  Now what should he do? He was alone in east London without a vehicle, a weapon or…Marcus felt in his pocket for his tasseled coin pouch. It was also missing. He had no money either.

  He could walk until he found a hansom. But with his aching head and churning stomach, it sounded like a formidable prospect. Yet, there was no help for it. He couldn’t stay here.

  He started walking, trying not to appear too unsteady. He’d made it a short distance when footsteps approached behind him. Someone was following him. Or several someones. He whirled around and knew a vague relief when he realized he was being pursued by a group of children—four hollow-eyed, raggedy children.

  “Evenin’ guvnor,” called out the largest one. “Out for a stroll, are ye?”

  The way the four were eyeing him made Marcus nervous. But surely he had nothing to be afraid of. The eldest one couldn’t be more than ten. And he might be able to get some information from them. He was fairly certain he’d seen them on the street when he and Withersby arrived.

  “I’m not exactly out for a stroll. Indeed, I was attacked and robbed.” He gave the eldest one a hard look. “I’m afraid I have nothing left to for you to steal.”

  “There’s your cufflinks.” The boy motioned with his head. “And your fine coat.”

  “Ah, but even the four of you would have a hard time taking those things from me. Perhaps we could work out some sort of barter instead.”

  “What sort of barter?”

  Marcus crossed his arms over his chest and struck an aggressive pose, even though his head was spinning. “You provide me with information and I’ll think about parting with some of my belongings.”

  “What sort of information?”

  Marcus jerked his head toward the dilapidated structure he’d just left. “Did you see a man and a woman around here?” Thinking he should elaborate, he added. “The man would be slender with sandy hair and carrying a heavy valise. The woman is tall and slender and very pretty.”

  “Aye, I seen ’em. But not together. The mort you’re talkin’ about left earlier today. The cove didn’t leave until a short while ago.”

  “How long ago would you say the woman left?”

  The boy shrugged. Then he turned back to his companions. “’Twas still fair light, it was.”

  Marcus struggled to process this information. Penny hadn’t left with Withersby. Did that mean she’d escaped? But if she had, where she was she now? “Which direction did the woman go?” he asked.

  “She set off toward the city.”

  “Walking?”

  “Aye. What else would she be doin’?”

  “Thank you. That’s exactly what I needed to know.”

  As the urchin stared at him expectantly, Marcus removed one of his cufflinks and held it out.

  The boy seized it. “What about the other one?”

  “To earn that one, you’ll have tell me a bit more.” As the boy glared at him, he added. “I arrived in a rig, driven by a tall, fair-haired footman. Did the man with the valise do something to force the footman to drive off?”

  The boy nodded. “He pulled a pistol and aimed it at the tall bloke. He got back in the driver’s seat and started to drive off before the other man was all the way in the vehicle. The cove was cursing and carrying on!” He gave a delighted laugh.

  “But the other man did get in and they drove away?”

  The boy nodded and held out his hand. Marcus took off his other cufflink and handed it over. The boy examined the ivory and gold object with satisfaction and stuck it in his pocket.

  “I believe you still covet my coat,” said Marcus. “I’m afraid the price for it is a bit higher. Since my rig was stolen, I find myself stranded here. If you can find someone to convey me into the city, the coat is yours.”

  The boy gave him a dubious look before consulting with his companions. After some hushed whispering, he turned back to Marcus. “We might be able to find someone to help you, but they’ll want to know what you’ll pay them.”

  “If they can convey me to my home, I’ll pay them there.”

  The boy nodded, then jerked his head toward one of his companions. The young child—who looked to be no more than six, dashed off. “Freddie will fetch Mr. Green,” the boy asserted.

  While they waited, Marcus decided to find out a bit more about the little band. If nothing else, it would help distract him from his body’s distress. “How old are you?” he asked the boy.

  The urchin frowned. “Don’t know for certain. Thirteen, I think.”

  Marcus was shocked. The boy seemed far too small and undeveloped to be thirteen. But that age would fit better with the boy’s bold, confident manner than the eight or nine-years-old he looked. “What about the rest of you?” Marcus asked.

  The other two gave their ages as eight and ten. As the smallest one stepped forward and spoke, Marcus realized it was a little girl. Her dirty rags were just barely discernable as having once been a dress. Marcus felt a sudden stir of pity for these children. Although he didn’t doubt for a moment they’d have robbed him of everything he possessed if they thought they could get away with it, he found he couldn’t really blame them. They obviously had to steal to survive.

  “Don’t any of you have parents or other relatives to look after you?”

  The older boy shrugged. “I’m an orphan. So’s he.” He motioned to the other boy.

  The little girl spoke up, “I was staying with my uncle ’til he started doin’ nasty things to me.” She grimaced.

  The oldest boy suddenly looked wary. Taking a step back, he said, “If you was thinkin’ of tryin’ to snare us and cart us off the workhouse, you’d best think again. We can take care of ourselves, we can.”

  “I’m certain you can,” Marcus agreed, dryly.

  The little girl nodded vigorously. “If we can’t get food, it’s only a penny for a noggin.”

  “What’s that?” asked Marcus.

  The girl shrugged. “Some calls it ‘ruin,’ but it keeps your belly from grumbling.”

  “Ruin?” asked Marcus. “You mean gin?”

  When she nodded, Marcus repressed a shudder. No wonder these children were so small, if they were regularly drinking spirits, and of the cheapest, basest sort. They were lucky they hadn’t stumbled onto a bad batch and ended up blind or had their wits permanently damaged.

  He questioned them some more, eventually learning their names. The oldest boy was Robin, his brother was Timmy and the girl was known as Fancy. Despite their assertion they could take care of themselves, he felt the urge to try to rescue them from their wretched circumstances. If Penny were here, he felt certain she would feel the same.

  A short while later, Marcus spied a light moving toward them. Eventually he saw it was a lantern affixed to some sort of vehicle. The vehicle came in view—a rickety wagon drawn by a mule.

  “Your carriage, guvnor,” said Robin, chuckling.

  Marcus repressed a sigh. In this rig, it would likely take him half the night to get back to the townhouse. Even so, it was better than walking. Was that what Penny had done? At the thought of her making her way alone through this part of London, his stomach squeezed with apprehension.

  Robin broke into his troubled thoughts. “I’ll have your coat now, guvnor. You made a bargain, you did.”

  Marcus took off his coat and handed it to Robin. “I’m not sure why you want this. It’ll take you years to grow into it.”

  Robin grinned, his small teeth gleaming in the lantern light. “I ain’t gonna wear it guvnor, but sell it.”

  “See that you buy some food then. For all of you.” Marcus nodded to the other children. “Some decent food, too. No gin.”

  “Of course, guvnor. Whatever you say,” Robin responded.

  Giving up all pretense of dignity, Marcus climbed into the back of the wagon and lay down. The sparse straw smelled of dung, but that didn’t worry him as much as thoughts of Penny. Finally, he succumbed to the lulling motion of the cart and the swirling dizzines
s in his head and slept.

  The driver “Mr. Green” woke him when they’d reached the West End. Marcus sat up and gave him directions to the townhouse. He guessed it was well past midnight when they reached his dwelling. There were no lights visible in any of the windows. After reassuring Mr. Green that he would be paid, Marcus walked stiffly to the door and knocked. He had to do so for quite awhile before a disheveled-looking Mr. Bowes, a candle in hand, opened the door.

  The butler let out a gasp when he saw Marcus, then threw open the door. “My sincere apologies, sir, we thought you were staying at Mr. Ludingham’s.”

  “Don’t worry about it, Bowes.” Marcus entered. “But if you would be so good as to fetch some money from the box for household expenses and pay the man.” He gestured toward the door.

  Bowes approached the door and looked out. After giving Marcus a stunned look, he said, “Very good, sir. I’ll be right back. Then we can attend to you.” He hurried off.

  Marcus sat on the chair in the foyer and sought to gather his wits. Although his body was desperate for sleep, his restless mind whirled with thoughts of Penny. Where was she? Had she ever made it back to the city?

  Despite his worry for her, a part of him felt relief. If Adrian had truly been holding Penny hostage, the note she’d sent him had been coerced. She might still be willing to marry him!

  The thought filled him with a wild excitement, but he reminded himself he still had to find her. The horrible dread that something might have happened to her after she escaped wouldn’t leave him.

  Bowes returned. “I’ve paid the man, sir. He asked if he could bed down in the cart for a while and I said that would be acceptable, as long as he left by daylight. I can’t think the neighbors would care to find him here.”

  “Probably not,” Marcus agreed. Although he knew it would be futile, he had to ask. “I don’t suppose there’s any chance Miss Montgomery came back?”

  “I’m afraid not, sir.” Bowes’s voice was gentle as he added, “Now, sir, I think we’d best get you up to bed.”

  “No, Bowes. I’m not going to bed. I need to send Jeremy—” Marcus broke off, suddenly remembering what else Robin had told him. “What about Jeremy? Did he ever come back with the carriage?”

  “No, sir, he didn’t. That’s part of the reason we didn’t think you’d be home either.”

  Where was Jeremy? Had Withersby done something to him, too? Dash it, all I need is another person to worry about!

  “If Jeremy’s not here, you’ll have to wake Will and send him,” he told Bowes.

  “Send him where, sir?”

  “To fetch James. I’ll need his assistance.”

  “Tonight, sir?”

  “Yes. This is something that can’t wait until morning.”

  “Certainly, sir. But perhaps you could meet with him in your dressing gown.” Bowes gestured toward Marcus’s disheveled clothing. Whips of hay clung to his garments.

  “I should probably change clothes and fetch a jacket and some cufflinks, but I can’t get ready to retire yet. As soon as James arrives, I plan on going out.”

  “Very well, sir. I’ll send Will after Mr. Ludingham, then meet you upstairs in the bedchamber. Here’s a candle, sir.”

  Marcus rose wearily and started up the stairs. As he passed Penny’s bedchamber, he couldn’t resist going inside. He glanced around the room, then paused and closed his eyes and inhaled. He could still smell her warm womanly scent. The effect on him was as profound as ever. A yearning built up inside him, keen as a knife blade. He had to find her and convince her to marry him. He had to.

  He left the room and went down the hall to his bedchamber.

  He’d barely had a chance to pull off his soiled clothing when Bowes gave his discreet knock at the door. “Come in,” Marcus called.

  A short while later, once again properly attired, he went down to the library to wait for James.

  He turned down Bowes’s offer of a brandy, feeling certain it would put him to sleep. “But I wouldn’t mind having something to eat. No, on second thought, I’ll fetch it myself,” he added as Bowes started to leave.

  “Sir?” Bowes gazed at him in surprise.

  “I can’t sit here, I’ll fall asleep.” Marcus grabbed up a candle and left the library.

  While Bowes watched in scandalized silence, Marcus raided the larder. After some searching, he located a chunk of cheese and some bread.

  “I could make that for you,” offered Bowes.

  “I think I can manage to cut a piece of bread. You’d best go wait for James to arrive.”

  “Very good, sir.”

  After a few bites of the bread and cheese, Marcus felt much better. His head still ached, but the rest of him was somewhat revived.

  He’d just finishing eating when James entered. “You’d better have a damned good reason for calling me over here this time of night!” his friend exclaimed.

  After swallowing, Marcus responded, “I do. It seems you were wrong about Penny. But not Withersby. The man’s a cunning little wretch.”

  He told James what had happened.

  “Gads, Marcus! You might have been killed! What if you’d fallen down the stairs and broken your neck?”

  “Fortunately, I didn’t. When I first woke I wondered about that. I was surprised Withersby didn’t finish me off. But I think he was too distracted when he discovered Penny was missing to worry about me.”

  “What do you mean, Penny was missing?”

  Marcus told him the rest of the tale, of how the children had seen Penny fleeing before he and Withersby had arrived. “Clearly, Withersby was holding Penny prisoner there. I found the button from her glove and bits of cloth he used to tie her up with. I don’t know exactly how she got free, but somehow she did. Which means…” He gave his friend a smug look. “The note Penny sent me was coerced. Withersby abducted her and forced her to write me the note telling me she couldn’t marry me. All your suspicions about Penny were wrong. She was, and is, an innocent victim.”

  “You called me here in the middle of the night to tell me this?” James snapped.

  “No, of course not.” Marcus gestured, his agitation growing. “The thing is, I’m worried for Penny. She may have gotten away from Withersby, but where is she? The area she was being held in is quite unsavory, and a long way from here. I was able to barter my way back to London proper. But Penny might not have been so fortunate.”

  “Why do you think that?”

  “If she was safe, wouldn’t she have come here? Or gone to your house? I find the fact that neither of us has heard from her quite distressing.”

  “What do you propose to do?”

  “Go back to the East End and ask questions. I got all my information from a band of children who live near the house. If we talk to people who live further west, we might find someone who’s seen her.”

  “And you propose to do that now? It’s three hours after midnight, Marcus. The nefarious sorts that lurk on the street at this time of night aren’t likely to be any help to us.”

  Marcus had to admit there was something to what James said. They probably would have to wait until morning to look for Penny. He began to pace. “I hate not knowing. I know it sounds as if I lost my wits, but right now I can’t think of anything but Penny. I had all that time with her and I never told her what I feel for her. Now I might never have the chance. Now that I realize how much I love her, it will be too late and I’ll have lost her forever.”

  James approached him and took his arm. To Marcus’s surprise he no longer looked angry, but almost pitying. “I didn’t want to tell you this, Marcus. I really didn’t. Not only because Lily made me swear not to, but also because I hoped you’d discover the truth on your own.”

  “The truth? What does that mean?”

  “The thing is…” James sighed. “There’s no easy way to say this. Lily has seen Penny since she left your townhouse two days ago. Indeed, she was with Penny when she wrote the note saying she couldn’t marry you.
”

  Marcus jerked back. “I don’t believe you.”

  “Lily has no reason to lie. And believe me, it wasn’t easy getting her to tell me this.”

  “But it’s still possible Penny was under coercion when she wrote the note. Withersby might have threatened her with harm if she didn’t do so.”

  “I’m afraid it doesn’t sound like that’s the way it was. I’m sorry, Marcus. I’m sure it would be much easier for you if Penny wasn’t part of Withersby’s scheme.”

  Marcus faced James defiantly. “Part of Withersby’s scheme? What are you talking about? It’s clear he was holding her captive!”

  “Is it? You said you found some pieces of cloth. Does that really mean she was tied up? Couldn’t the strips of cloth have been used for something else?”

  “What about what Robin told me—that they saw Penny leave the house hours before I arrived with Withersby? Clearly, she was running away!”

  “Isn’t it just as likely she was leaving because she’d fulfilled her part in the plan?”

  Marcus walked to the settee and sat down. Dash this awful headache! He couldn’t think clearly. Somehow he had to make James understand that Penny despised her cousin and would never intentionally collaborate with him.

  But was that true, or was it simply what he wanted to believe?

  When he looked up, James was gazing at him sympathetically. “Maybe I’m wrong, Marcus. At least about her plotting with Withersby. But I do think she left here of her own accord. I also think there’s nothing you can do tonight. You’re obviously half dead on your feet. And since you blacked out, you probably aren’t thinking very clearly. Penny was last seen hours ago. How do you propose to pick up her trail now, when everyone you might ask is undoubtedly asleep?

  Marcus nodded slowly. James had a point…or several points. In his current condition, Marcus was no use to anyone. “Very well,” he said, “I’ll go to bed.”

  ****

  Penny woke to the sun shining into her room. I’m home! I’m safe!