“What else, Harry?” she asked.
Harry turned and pressed his back against the wall beside the window. The sun shining through the opening made his features appear paler. Or, perhaps the news he was about to share was tragic enough to steal the color from his countenance.
The instant he began, Amanda realized that the news was responsible for his lack of color.
“When I realized I was involved in smuggling opium, I knew I couldn’t go on. I didn’t care what happened to me, but I wouldn’t be associated with anyone bringing in opium. I went back to the docks to tell the ship’s captain to tell whoever was in charge that I was done. I didn’t want any part of their smuggling operation.” He paused. “That’s when I discovered what the ship carried as return cargo.”
Harry braced his arm against the wood at the window and lowered his head beneath his outstretched arm. An unearthly moan escaped his body, as if the demons that possessed him were trying to escape.
Amanda couldn’t let him suffer alone. She rushed to his side and placed her arms around him. Harry turned to her and held her tightly.
“Oh, Amanda.”
For several long minutes he held her. His body shook, and Amanda allowed him to gather as much strength from her as he needed. Eventually, he breathed a deep breath, then pushed away from her.
Her brother suddenly seemed stronger, more determined. More resolved.
He turned to the Duke of Hadleigh, and addressed him squarely. “I want you to take my sister back to London, then see that she leaves for Mattenden Manor as soon as possible. Because of me, she’s involved in something that will only harm her.”
“No, Harry,” Amanda argued.
Harry grasped her shoulders and looked her in the eyes. “Yes, Amanda.”
“What are you going to do?” the Duke of Hadleigh asked.
“I’m going to stop whoever’s responsible for the heinous crimes I witnessed.”
The Duke of Hadleigh sat forward. “Other than opium, what crimes are you talking about?”
Harry paused. “Human trafficking. Murder.”
Amanda couldn’t stop the sharp gasp that escaped her. “Human trafficking? Are you talking about slaves?”
“Yes, but slavery of a different kind.”
“Explain,” Hadleigh ordered.
“When I returned to the docks, the men who’d just unloaded the opium were forcing three young girls up the gangway. All three struggled to get free. Two of them looked as if they’d lost their strength and were unable to fight any longer, but the third girl had more fight left in her than the others. She refused to give up.
“I yelled for them to let the girls go and earned the back of one of the brute’s hands for my interference. But my demand gave the girls a chance to break free.
“Two of the girls ran back toward the docks and escaped, but the third, the one who’d fought the most valiantly, lost her footing and fell. One of the seamen grabbed her and she pushed to get away. She wasn’t on solid ground yet and slipped. She fell into the water.”
Harry swallowed several times as if struggling for the will to continue. Whatever the outcome, Amanda knew it would not end well. Hadleigh must have known it, too, for before Harry found the words to continue, Hadleigh was at her side.
“The young girl screamed for help. She couldn’t swim and the weight of her clothes pulled her under.” Harry turned his gaze to her. “I tried to get to her. She was so close. I could have jumped into the water and towed her toward safety. But several men grabbed me and wouldn’t let me help her.”
A painful weight pressed against her chest, making it nearly impossible to breathe. Hadleigh’s arms held her more securely, and she was thankful for his nearness. Without it, she was afraid she might sink to the floor.
“They simply watched her die,” Harry said. His voice cracked and there were tears in his eyes. “She struggled to keep her head above water as long as she could, then lost her battle. She went under several times and came up, then she went under a final time. When she surfaced, she floated face-down in the water.”
Amanda couldn’t keep the tears from streaming down her cheeks. Neither could Harry. She didn’t know about Hadleigh because she didn’t have the courage to look at him. What she did know, was that his arms tightened around her and she suddenly felt safe.
“Where were they taking them?” Amanda asked when she found her voice.
“To the Orient,” Harry replied.
“Why?”
“I don’t know,” Harry cried out.
“I think I do,” Hadleigh answered softly.
Amanda tipped her head and looked at him. “What do you know?”
“Come,” Hadleigh said. “Let’s sit down and I’ll tell you what I think.”
Hadleigh led her to her chair and she sat. Harry followed.
“Describe the three girls, Mattenden,” the duke said when they were seated. “What do you remember about them?”
Harry hesitated. “Not much. They were all young. And pretty.”
“And blonde?”
“Why, yes,” Harry answered. “Now that you mention it, they were all blonde. I remember thinking that the girl who drowned reminded me of Amanda.” He looked at her. “Her long, blonde hair was the color of yours.”
“What does that mean?” she asked.
“There is a big demand for females with light-colored hair in the Orient. The lighter the better. They bring a high price on the open market.”
“They sell them?” Amanda asked.
“Yes,” Hadleigh continued. “There has been some discussion on the floor of the House about human trafficking to the Orient. Several members of the House are quite outraged about the rumors concerning young women who are being sold into slavery.”
Amanda was shocked into silence. Harry seemed distraught. The faraway look in his eyes hinted that he was reliving the nightmare he’d witnessed as he watched the young blonde girl drown. Hadleigh was the first to break the silence.
“What are your plans, Mattenden?”
Harry’s gaze lifted. His tightly-clenched jaw indicated a determination Amanda wasn’t used to seeing on her brother’s face.
“I’m going to find out who’s behind the smuggling and the human trafficking. And I’m going to make sure they pay for that young girl’s death.”
“You’re going to need help.”
“No! I’ll handle this myself.”
“Then you’ll fail and the girl’s murderers will go free.”
“I can’t risk putting anyone else in danger.”
“Your sister is already in danger.”
Harry turned his gaze. “What did you say?”
“I said that your sister is already in danger.”
“Hadleigh,” Amanda warned, but she knew Hadleigh wouldn’t heed her warning.
“What kind of danger?” Harry said, looking at her.
“It’s nothing, Harry,” she tried to say.
“Someone shot at her.”
“Why?”
“Hadleigh,” she warned again.
“You know your sister,” Hadleigh continued. “She realized that your attackers had something to do with the docks. She also thought she heard you mention the Calliope Anne.”
“That is the name of the ship that brought in the opium, the ship they were loading the girls onto.”
“Your servants also overheard your attackers say that the earl wasn’t going to be happy that they hadn’t killed you. She’s been investigating every earl in Society whose family is involved in shipping.”
“Amanda, tell me you haven’t.” Harry rose to his feet and paced the floor in front of her. “Don’t you realize how dangerous that is?”
Her brother was reprimanding her as if she were some errant child. Her younger brother. The irresponsible brother over whom she’d had to watch her whole life. Somehow he’d turned the tables on her. And it was the Duke of Hadleigh’s fault.
“Oh, it gets worse, doesn’t it, Lady A
manda?” Hadleigh said, relaxing in his chair as if he were telling a benign fairy tale.
Amanda clenched her teeth and narrowed her gaze. “I think you’ve said enough, Your Grace.”
“I’m sure you do, but your brother needs to know what you’ve done. Because I doubt you intend to stop. Am I correct?”
“Of course I don’t intend to stop,” she countered. “I’m too close to discovering the shipping company that owns the Calliope Anne! I don’t have that many earls left to investigate.”
Harry stopped in front of her and glared down at her. “This is my problem, Amanda. I got myself into this situation, and I’ll get myself out of it.”
“Without help, all you’ll do is get yourself killed!” she countered.
“Then I’ll get myself killed! It’s what I deserve. It’s what happened to the girl!”
Harry’s words stunned her. He blamed himself for the girl’s death. She rose to face him. “That wasn’t your fault. The fault for her death lies at the feet of the earl who is involved in smuggling and human trafficking. He needs to be brought down. And you won’t be able to accomplish that on your own.”
“I won’t be able to accomplish it with you underfoot either.” Harry turned to the Duke of Hadleigh. “I need your help. Convince my sister that she can’t get involved in this. Tell her how dangerous this could be.”
The Duke of Hadleigh rose to his feet and looked from Harry to her with raised eyebrows.
He was going to make this more difficult for her. She knew it. He was going to do what her brother asked and get in the way of everything she tried to do to keep Harry alive. She should have known.
Men can’t be trusted!
She’d discovered that over and over with her brother. As Celie had found out with hers. They did what they wanted regardless of what anyone else thought was best.
Amanda clamped her jaw tighter and got ready to battle both of them. The Duke of Hadleigh recognized her determination and held up a hand to silence her. To dismiss her.
“I couldn’t agree with you more, Mattenden. You are involved in something extremely dangerous, and your sister could likely get herself killed.”
The Duke of Hadleigh walked across the room. When he reached the fireplace, he rested his elbow on the mantel, and stared into the lifeless embers as if deep in thought. For several moments he stood without moving, without speaking. Then, as if he’d come to a monumental decision, he pushed away from the fireplace and faced them.
“Which is why I have decided that I will assist you in bringing down whoever is responsible.”
“You?” Amanda asked.
“Yes, me.”
“No!”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because someone needs to keep you from getting killed.” He shrugged his shoulders. “And with your penchant for finding trouble, your brother can’t manage that on his own.”
CHAPTER 11
If the situation hadn’t been so serious, Sterling would have laughed. The look of disbelief on Mattenden’s face was astounding. The look of anger that distorted Amanda’s perfect features remarkable.
“Let’s sit down and formulate a plan,” he said. “We have time before we can leave. My suggestion is that we don’t return to London before dark. The earl no doubt has men watching your residence, as well as Lady Amanda’s, and mine.”
Mattenden returned to his chair. Hadleigh did too. When they had time to calm, he took control of the conversation. This should be no different than heading a committee in the House.
“Why don’t you tell us everything you know about this man called the earl?” he said to Mattenden.
Mattenden shook his head. “I know very little about him. I never saw him, and only spoke to him once, but in the dark. He kept his face hidden. The other times I received messages from him with the arrival time and delivery destination.”
“Where were some of the destinations?” Hadleigh asked.
“They were always different, and they were never the final destination. They were simply places where another group would meet us and take over the cargo. Once they took over, I was free to go.”
“Did they pay you?” Amanda asked.
Hadleigh was impressed. He hadn’t thought to ask that question.
“Yes, but not in cash. I was given one of my notes, or a bill from one of the merchants from whom I’d purchased an item. The words PAID IN FULL were always written across it.”
Hadleigh thought of several other questions that needed to be answered. “What about the men? Were they always the same men?”
Mattenden thought a moment. “Quite often, yes.”
“Could you recognize any of them if you saw them again?”
“Yes. Some of them. The ones I spoke with. Yes.”
Mattenden seemed more optimistic. There was a hopeful gleam in his eyes that hadn’t been there earlier.
“Was the ship always the Calliope Anne?” Amanda asked.
“Yes. Always the Calliope Anne.”
“We’re making progress, aren’t we?” Amanda said. Her voice held a hint of excitement. Hadleigh knew this meant he needed to be on guard.
“We’re making progress, my lady, but not enough that we have anything positive to go on.”
“But if Harry can recognize some of the men, we only need to find them and discover who they work for. And I need to discover which shipping company owns the Calliope Anne.”
He and Amanda’s brother turned on her simultaneously.
“No!”
“You need to do nothing, Amanda!” Mattenden said.
“Your brother and I will handle this. We don’t have time to watch over you, too.”
“I can—”
“And refrain from trying to convince us that you can take care of yourself, my lady,” he said. “You’ve already drawn the earl’s attention. That’s why someone shot at you.”
“But I’ve nearly completed my search for the Calliope Anne. There are only four more shipping companies left.”
A frown covered Mattenden’s face. “What do you mean? Left for what?”
Lady Amanda waved her hand in dismissal. “It’s nothing, Harry. I’ve simply been doing a little investigating on my own.”
“What your sister means, Mattenden, is that she spends most of her overnight hours breaking into the offices of any earl in Society whose family is involved in shipping.”
Mattenden bolted to his feet. “Tell me you haven’t, Amanda! You break into their offices like a common thief?”
“It’s not like that, Harry. I’m not a thief. I don’t break in to steal anything. I simply go through their files and ledgers to see if they own a ship called the Calliope Anne. And, I’ve made remarkable progress. I only have four more earls to investigate.”
Hadleigh couldn’t stop the hint of a smile from lifting the corners of his mouth. It was a treat to see the lady try to wiggle herself free from the corner into which she’d boxed herself. Unfortunately, she turned to face him and saw the humor on his face.
“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”
His humor expressed itself in a full smile. “Immensely. It’s time your brother realized the trouble you can get into on your own and assume his responsibility to watch over you.”
“I don’t need—”
“Everyone in Society knows you do, my lady. But we digress.” He shifted his gaze back to Mattenden. “As loathe as I am to admit this, your sister’s efforts to discover the Calliope Anne work to our benefit.” He turned back to Amanda. “You mentioned you only had four more shipping companies left. Which four are they?”
She gave him a very unladylike glare before she spoke. Hadleigh was getting used to her facial expressions—and enjoyed them. She was such an unusual woman. She hid nothing. And right now her countenance told him she was angry he’d exposed her overnight escapades, but appreciated that he included her in the plans to save her brother.
“I still have Bulford Shipping, ow
ned by the Earl of Stanwich, which I wouldn’t have left if a certain person hadn’t interrupted me in the midst of my investigation.”
That earned him another special glare.
“And Marquit Shipping, and Kroften Shipping, owned by the Earl of Lambert, and Flanders Shipping.”
“Do any of these shipping companies sound possible?” he asked Mattenden.
Mattenden shook his head. “As I said, I only spoke with the earl once. Other than that, I never saw anyone other than the seamen loading and unloading the cargo.”
“Do you think you could recognize his voice if you heard it again.”
Mattenden thought for a moment. “Yes, I believe I could. It was quite distinctive. As if someone were holding the man’s nose as he spoke.”
Sterling felt a surge of hope. “Well, we at least have a starting point. I suggest we say our goodbyes and rest until it’s time to leave. We’ll leave shortly before dusk so we arrive in London after dark. You will both, of course, stay at my residence.”
He was glad Amanda didn’t argue. Not that he would have changed his mind if she had. He needed to keep her as close as possible. That was the only way he’d be able to control her movements. Besides, her brother wasn’t fully healed. There was no way he could keep her out of trouble. No, he’d have to do the job himself. That was the only way she’d be safe.
He felt very confident he had everything under control.
Until he spied a fleeting glint of mischief in her eyes.
. . .
Amanda spent every minute of the journey back to London formulating ways she could escape Hadleigh’s watchful eye. She had no doubt that he’d use every means at his disposal to prevent her from continuing with what she’d started. Which, of course, she wouldn’t allow. She couldn’t. She was determined to discover who owned the Calliope Anne and wasn’t about to let anyone else take credit for the discovery. Not after the work she’d put into finding it. As well as the danger in which she’d placed herself.
The nighttime sky was dark now. They’d entered the outskirts of London several minutes ago. “How are you faring?” she asked Harry. He sat on the seat beside her, and each time they hit a bump or a rut in the road, he stiffened.
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