by Ann Chaney
Without saying a word, Serena went down the steps. The two men and their captive remained in the safety of the gazebo until they heard the gate squeak.
“Lady Serena Preston? I would have never thought. Moreham does have a wicked sense of humor tonight. Lady Serena helping us while he dances with Miss Plain Browning. So much for not attracting notice.” Alexander, Viscount Sturmbridge remarked in the dark with the hint of laughter bubbling under the surface. “I thought you cut all ties with the lady years ago. Something you want to tell me?”
“When will you learn thinking gets you in trouble? And, no, I don’t have anything to say. Just lift this poor excuse for a man so we can get out of this blasted folly without discovery,” Richard muttered back as he heaved Arnold’s legs upward and backed out of the gazebo.
The door of a nondescript hack was open. Sturm backed into the conveyance with Arnold’s upper body and Richard shoved Arnold’s legs into the void.
Richard turned to Serena to send her on her way and froze She did not look anything like she did earlier.
“It seems the duchess’ gardeners have not been diligent in pruning the rose bushes as they should.” Serena fanned out the skirt of her gown.
Richard was aghast at the sight of Serena’s dress. The flimsy overskirt was riddled with tears and snags. After he finished with this mission, he would return to Camberley, and order every rose bush pulled up and replaced with grass—safe, non-prickly grass.
He knew there was no other option. She could not re-enter the ballroom in that condition. “You must come with us.”
“I can’t do that. Aunt Philly is with me. When I don’t appear, she’ll be sick with worry. Imagine if anyone else realizes I’m no longer present. Gillian for certain will make note of my absence as well as Arnold’s.” She protested. “So much for simple, heh?”
“No matter. My friend will find Lady Philly and tell her you have a headache—”
“I never have a headache. I am as healthy as a horse and you know it.”
“Don’t quibble. My friend will pull her aside and explain about the ruined gown. My association with your family grants me a bit of leeway when needs must. Lady Philly will be over the moon at the notion we are in my carriage together without a chaperone. The old lady has always thought we’d make a good match. Tonight’s adventure will fuel her imagination about a wedding and babes.”
Grunts and bumps were coming from inside the carriage. Richard stuck his head into the coach and spoke quietly. Sturm left the hack with a nod to Serena and made his way back through the garden gate.
“Was that Sturmbridge?” she asked, her voice laced with surprise.
Richard ignored the question and nodded to the coachman who had been standing at the ready. He lifted Serena into the carriage before joining her and his captive.
With a quick look at his pocket watch, Richard knew his plans for Arnold were unraveling and there was nothing he could do about it. He’d planned to send whoever was with him back to the ball to tell Moreham they had their man. Once alone with the traitor, he intended to question Arnold about his father’s death.
None of that would be possible with Serena in the hack with him. The tattered dress was a complication he’d not anticipated. He may’ve been a scoundrel who’d once broken her young heart, but he still possessed enough honor to ensure she arrived home safely and without a whiff of scandal attached to her name.
Richard rapped on the hack to signal for the driver to depart. They’d deliver Arnold to the rendezvous point first, then he’d see Serena home. His stomach burned with disappointment at failing to have Arnold alone, but told himself there would be another opportunity. He’d see to it.
Moreham had stated Arnold was to be taken to the dower house at his estate outside of Richmond, near Putney Park, for the spymaster’s interrogation before turning his prize over to the Alien Office for further interrogation. The Alien Office’s sole interest was the foreigners living in Great Britain. Word was, the office had copious files on foreigners, mostly French émigrés. According to Moreham, the Home Secretary ordered Arnold’s transfer because he and others on the Privy Council believed the French were behind whatever it was the unnamed group of peers were about. From the rumblings about the activities of the Alien Office, Richard had no doubt the office’s interrogators would have Arnold spouting every secret and then some before they locked him up, or worse.
All Richard had to do was speak up and offer to remain behind so Moreham and the others could seek their beds for what remained of the night. A hefty bribe for the guards and he’d have his half hour with Arnold. He, much like the Alien Office, knew how to make a man tell all in that time with minutes to spare.
The carriage jerked and moved forward. Serena held onto the strap by the door. Richard manhandled Percy Arnold onto the opposite seat. Her only thought at that moment was a silent thank you to the Duchess of Whitney for filling her gardens with roses. A few swishes of her skirts against the thorny bushes was enough to render her gown ruined. That ruse was a flash of sheer brilliance on her part.
“We have to deliver Arnold to some friends of mine. Afterward, I will see you home.” Richard’s words broke through her troubled thoughts.
Serena smoothed her skirt before commenting. “You have my thanks for coming to my rescue. I do understand the importance of our delivery. I do also feel rather silly for getting too close to the bushes. I must have been more overwhelmed by all the excitement than I realized.”
Richard shoved his foot against their captive’s body to keep him from pitching to the floor. She reached under the bench seat and pulled out a blanket, unfolded it and handed it to him. He covered Arnold from head to foot.
The hack rocked violently. The coachman took a corner at full speed causing her to fall over against Richard who folded her in his arms. A burst of excitement shot through her. She winced. All her intentions to remain aloof were for naught if she reacted thusly to his touch. After this escapade she intended to tell Moreham she’d had enough. The further she was from Richard the better. Her heart would not survive another assignment.
“What are you doing? Doesn’t your prisoner need your full attention?”
Richard leaned into Serena’s shoulder. “I would rather sit here beside you and enjoy the scent of your perfume.
“What a completely inappropriate comment to make, my lord.”
“My lord? So formal and proper? We spent summers together as children, last night in your bedchamber, tonight abducting an enemy of the Crown. We’ve been on a Christian name basis since you were in the nursery.”
She gave him a pointed look. “We are in the company of a man who I assume would kill us both without batting an eye. I would rather he did not know who you were. My identity has been compromised, while you are still unknown to him. One of us should be able to live through the repercussions of this night into their old age.”
Richard looked over at their prisoner. She was surprised to hear compassion in his voice when he spoke.
“The man is out cold. Even if he is pretending, he will not remember anything about this night. After my friends and I have a conversation with him, he’ll be remanded into the custody of the Alien Office. Those fellows have the means to make a man forget his own mother. I don’t know what the lads do, but I do know their methods are effective.” He turned his attention back to her. His mouth curved upward in a fulsome smile of lips and teeth. “I’m surprised at your concern on my behalf. Your empathy is most unexpected but rather sweet. Thank you.”
With a shake of her head, she leaned over towards him and removed his diamond stickpin and threaded the pin through the edge of her sleeve. Serena kept her head down as she reached for his cravat and unwound it. Serena bit down on her bottom lip as Richard’s eyes turned fiery with desire. Not one to back down, she threw the length of linen at Richard and shoved him toward Arnold.
“Use this to tie that blanket around him. There has been enough said between us for one night.�
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“I would’ve taken the blasted cravat off myself. All you had to do was ask,” Richard shot back before snaking the cloth under Arnold and tying a knot to keep the blanket in place. “I never knew you to be a tease.”
Serena settled into the corner of the seat meeting his stormy stare with an equally frosty gaze. “You know nothing about me or what I am capable of. A truth you’d do well to remember.”
The woman had the right of it. Shifting Arnold into another carriage would be much easier with that blanket secured around his body.
The woman? When had he started to think of her as a woman? She was his best friend’s sister. The proverbial pain in his arse from the first moment he met her.
Now was not the time to complicate his life by becoming preoccupied with Serena. His father always said no deed, good or bad, was ever executed without repercussions. Serena’s continued presence was one of those consequences he feared would have lifelong impact. No doubt his father was laughing at him from his celestial home.
He pulled the shades down as the carriage rolled to a stop. Best to keep Serena in the shadows. “No need for my associates to see you,” he explained as he made to open the carriage door.
A faceless hulk appeared in the opening. Neither man spoke. Richard grabbed Arnold’s shoulders and in tandem they lifted their prisoner from the nondescript carriage. Another fellow stepped in to take hold of Percy’s shoulders from him. Richard slammed the door shut and rapped on the roof. The carriage jerked forward, and the horses ran full out. The entire encounter took mere moments. Finally, a part of Moreham’s carefully thought out plan had gone as it should.
“Where are we?” Serena shifted the shade to peer out into the night.
“Drake Street off Red Lion Square. Do you know the street?”
“Of course, I know the street. Never ventured this far from Hanover Square. Word is the square is where many gentlemen have set up households for their mistresses. Is that true?”
“How do you know of such?”
“I’ve been out in Society for four seasons. You’d be surprised at what I hear in the drawing rooms and ballrooms. There is also the twittering in the retiring rooms to decipher. You didn’t answer my question.”
“No, and I don’t intend to do so. Visiting this part of London is necessary to diminish the chance of anyone witnessing the transfer of our friend there. As for riding through the more salacious neighborhoods in London, I think the fact you are alone with me is a greater risk to your good name. I think the actual route of said carriage is the least of our problems, wouldn’t you?”
Serena sat facing him with her hands resting in her lap amid the shredded fabric of her gown. He must find a way to replace the damaged gown without anyone finding out. Maybe her modiste would bill him for a replacement? He knew he could do no such thing. The on dit of such a scandalous action would run through the Ton with the speed of a house on fire. There was not a modiste in Town who would keep such a transaction to herself.
“As my father would say, that ship has sailed. I accepted long ago that one day I’d be compromised while helping Moreham. I do thank you for spiriting me away from the ball. Some of your ilk would’ve left me on my own to fend for myself…” The last two words trailed off into silence.
He pulled back a corner of the window shade and peered out rather than engage Serena in conversation. Nothing either had to say would be well received by the other. Better to keep watch for any activity out of the ordinary. He didn’t think anyone saw them carry Arnold into the hack, but better to keep an eye out.
Richard lowered the shade. “We’ll be in Hanover Square any moment. The coachman will drive around to the mews and I will escort you in through the garden gate. I am sure Nettie doesn’t seek her bed until you are tucked into your own. Safe and sound.”
Her somber gaze trained on him. “Is that how you see me? A child to be tucked into bed?”
He truly did not want to hurt her, but he would. “Serena, you are an honorable and moral lady. Despite your age of two and twenty, you are still very young. Shall we leave it at that?”
“No, I do agree your reputation is deplorable if every tale one hears is to be believed. It is common knowledge you do not dally with innocents. No one would ever believe you would have any interest in me.”
Serena spoke so softly he had to lean closer to get the last few words. He could hear the sadness in her voice. It would appear she believed all that was said about him. A small twinge of regret resonated through his heart. He never realized until that moment how much losing her respect hurt.
The carriage halted. He helped her down then led her through the back garden. He wished he could say something. He wished he could say the words to express how much he esteemed her. Doing so would only cause a greater pain for them both. He wouldn’t relent. He would and mete out the justice demanded by his soul.
Serena disappeared through the same door he had exited almost four and twenty hours earlier.
He shook his head and headed back to the mews and his carriage. Just wait until her brother learned of this development. He didn’t know if Thorne would laugh himself insensible or challenge him to a duel. The laughter he could handle. The duel was another matter. Thorne was a far better shot.
He threw himself into his carriage and fell back against the seat as the vehicle charged forward. He wasn’t surprised at Serena’s stoicism in the face of danger. Between her father’s obsessive search for exotic flowers and Thorne’s assignment to Wellington’s command staff, she was alone in the world.
Her loneliness called out to his own sense of isolation. He wished he could tell John Coachman to take him home. A hot bath and bed was what he wished for more than anything.
His injured shoulder throbbed from hauling Percy Arnold in and out of carriages.
The only sleep he’d had in the last day was the couple of hours in Serena’s bedchamber. He couldn’t rid himself of the vision of Serena, standing in the middle of that room with her nightrail floating around her, pointing her ridiculously small pistol at him.
Of all the women he’d known, why was Serena the one who fired his blood and filled his heart with happiness just by being at his side? No answer came to him.
Chapter 6
Percy kept his head down. Two guards sat by the only door to the room. He wondered which one of Whitehall’s lords would come through the door to interrogate him. He was no novice at this game of political chess they all played. He needed time for his friends to find him and devise a way for him to escape. There was no other option. He was the only man who could do what must be done.
He fought to remember the events of the evening. His last memory was of dancing with Lady Serena Preston. That thought triggered a cascade of images of the lady and their visit to the duchess’ garden. Never had he thought a lady would be involved in the government’s dealings.
What about Miss Browning? Whitney’s niece seemed more concerned about what book to read next than the business of politics. He’d never thought much of educated ladies. As he saw it, his knowledge of Lady Serena’s involvement in his capture would provide him with a bargaining chip.
The door opened and the Earl of Moreham entered. “Arnold?” he ground out. “I hope you will be accommodating. The more you tell me, the more likely you will survive to live into your old age.”
Percy laughed and shook his head. “I have nothing to say to you, my lord. Now, if you will ask your fellow agent, Lady Serena Preston, to come into the room. I will sing like a canary in the sunshine to the lovely lady.”
“Lady Serena Preston?” Moreham looked shocked at his request. Either the gent was a consummate actor, or Moreham wasn’t as well informed of the night’s events, as he should’ve been.
“Burley’s daughter accompanied me into Whitney’s garden. She was the one who stuffed a handkerchief into my mouth. I think she owes me a few moments for such crude manners. I am a gentleman after all. Not well done of a lady to behave so violently.
What is our world coming to? No civility?” Percy replied. He glared at Moreham. “I’ll. Only. Talk. To. Her.”
The carriage jerked to a stop. Richard had dozed off dreaming about Serena and Whitney’s gazebo. The coachman had the worst timing, the dream had just turned interesting. Richard took a moment to straighten his cravat. Only then did he remember Serena had removed the pin earlier. The pin had belonged to his father. He’d have to see Serena again to retrieve his pin. So much for keeping his distance.
A door slamming was the only indication he had that something was amiss. The next moment the carriage door was thrown open. The man whose countenance was known for being stern and immoveable as a boulder looked ready to pull him out of the carriage and thrash him. All thought of Serena and his sapphire pin fled.
Moreham stood on the gravel drive with both hands fisted on his hips. His body shaking with anger. “I am sure you can explain why Percy Arnold is all agog about Lady Serena Preston being an agent. My directive was she’d see to it that Arnold went into the garden. His capture was what you and the others were there to handle not a lady of society. The man says she stuffed a handkerchief in his mouth. Please tell me he’s lying.”
“Hello, Moreham.” Richard cleared his throat and stepped from the carriage. “You know how these missions can turn unpredictable. You know as well I do that Serena has never been one to stand aside and observe. Cross had to deal with a family matter. She stepped into the fray and did exactly as Arnold has said.”
Moreham crossed his arms and glared at him. Any other agent would have been cowed by the spymaster’s intimidating demeanor. Richard had experienced this same predicament many times over the last four years. He’d learned long ago Moreham was a genius in deciphering any complication they encountered. He knew without a doubt Moreham had already sorted through their options. All that remained was the spymaster’s decree.
