The Dare-Devil Duke

by Barbara Cartland

  Up and up they went, and she understood why the man who had been carrying her first, did not want to continue alone.

  When the steps came to an end the two men walked across what sounded like a wooden floor before they put her down.

  It was then to her relief that the cloth was pulled from her head.

  For a moment after the darkness, and also because it had been difficult to breathe, Kasia could only blink.

  Then she realised she was sitting on the floor in what seemed like a small room.

  Standing looking at her were two coarse-looking men.

  She was sure from their appearance and the way they had spoken that they were from some town or City.

  She did not know why she felt this, but they did not appear to her like countrymen.

  She looked hastily around to see if Simon was with her.

  To her relief he had just been brought into the room.

  The man who was carrying him had him over his shoulder as a fireman might have done.

  He put Simon down next to Kasia and one of the other men said,

  “Ye be careful wiv ’im! ‘E’s worf good money!”

  The man who had carried Simon in laughed.

  “Tha’s wot we ’opes, and Oi’d rather ’ave ’im in me pocket, than me back!”

  The cover was lifted from Simon’s head.

  “Do us turn ’em loose?” the man asked who had carried him, “or leave ’em be?”

  “Let ’em be loose,” another man answered. “ ‘Sides, ’er’s gotta write th’ letter fer us.”

  He pointed at Kasia as he spoke and the other man nodded his head.

  “Oi left th’ paper an’ ink downstairs,” he said.

  He walked across the room, and Kasia could hear his footsteps going down the long flight of stairs up which they had come.

  The two men who were there took the gags from her mouth and Simon’s.

  They then pulled off the ropes with which they had tied down their arms.

  “Why are you doing this?” Simon asked when he could speak, “and who are you?”

  “That be a good question, Sonny!” one of the men answered, “an’ if ye be’ave yerself we’re yer friends, but if ye don’t, we’re yer enemies.”

  “Why have you brought me here?” Simon asked.

  The man put his finger to his nose in an age-old gesture.

  “Nah that’s askin’, but ye’ll soon find aht, when Bill comes back.”

  “I am sure you have no right to bring us here!” Simon said. “My Uncle will be very angry.”

  “We ’opes as ’e’ll be very worried,” one of the men answered, “in fac’, we’re bettin’ ’e will be.”

  “I think, if I am not mistaken,” Kasia said in what she hoped was a well controlled voice, “you have brought us here to ask for money.”

  “Now ain’t that clever of ye!” one of the men said in a mocking tone. “Oo’d ’ave believed, lookin’ so pretty, ye’d ’it th’ bull’s-eye first time?”

  As he spoke there was the sound of Bill who had gone down the stairs coming back.

  The men turned their heads to watch for his appearance.

  He was puffing as he came into the room.

  “Them stairs’ll gimme an ’eart-attack!” he complained. “Now, let’s get on wiv it. Th’ sooner we ’as th’ money an’ gets orf ’ome, th’ better!”

  “Oi agrees wi’ ye,” one of the other men replied.

  Carrying the paper and the ink-pot Bill squatted down beside Kasia.

  There was also, she saw, a rather dirty quill pen.

  “Now, write a note to ’is Nibs,” he said, “an’ tell ’im if ’e wants t’see th’ boy again, ’e’s gotta cough up two thousand quid, an’ we wants it in cash!”

  “Where will you wait for him to give it to you?” Kasia asked.

  Bill laughed and it was an unpleasant sound.

  “Oi ain’t so nit-witted as that! Ye can tell ’im ter leave it inside th’ broken door of th’ old mill.”

  Kasia remembered the Duke pointing out the mill when they were driving and she nodded.

  “An’ tell ’im when th’ money’s there an’ no one waitin’ to catch us, to put a white flag up on th’ top o’ th’ Castle.”

  “That’s right,” one of the other men said. “When us sees that we’ll go t’th’ mill.”

  “Jus’ one o’ us!” another man said, pointing with his finger at Kasia. “An’ if ‘Is Nibs don’t put it up, or ther’s any ‘hanky-panky’, ye’ll both die! Make that clear!”

  “I will write what you tell me,” Kasia said, “but I think you are all behaving very badly.”

  Bill laughed scornfully.

  “Badly! Wot’s bad be th’ Dook’s got money – bags o’ it – an’ us got nothin’! That’s wot’s bad!”

  “Ow, come on, let ’er get on wiv’ it,” one of the other men said, “Luke’ll be ’ere in a minute an’ ’e can take t’letter t’th’ old mill.”

  “’

  “’E’ll walk quick enough,” Bill replied. “’E’ll ’ave t’take th’ wagon back ter where us took it from.”

  He spoke impatiently as he put down the paper and pen beside Kasia.

  She was sitting up with her back against the wall as she said,

  “It is going to be difficult to write like this. Have you a box or something I can rest the paper on?”

  “Ow dear – Oi jes’ remembered! We ain’t smartened it up fer yer Ladyship!” the man said mockingly.

  But Bill said,

  “Let ’er do it right. Oi’ll find somethin’ downstairs.”

  He started to go down the steps again. Kasia looked towards Simon.

  To her relief, he was not looking very frightened, just staring from one man to another as if he could hardly believe what was happening.

  She put out a hand towards him and he said,

  “This is like a story, Miss Watson, isn’t it?”

  Kasia smiled at him.

  “Exactly! And of course we have to do what these men tell us to do.”

  “That’s right,” one of the men said. “Yer’ve got the right idea, an’ if, yer a Governess, which is wot us were told, yer gets full marks!”

  “Who told you I was a Governess?” Kasia enquired.

  “Oi ain’t givin’ away no names,” the man answered. “That could get us inter trouble!”

  There was the sound of Bill who had gone downstairs coming back.

  A few seconds later he came in through the door carrying a wooden box, and said,

  “There y’are, a table straight from Buckingham Palace! ’Oo could ask fer more?”

  Kasia put the paper down on it, and one of the men added the ink-pot.

  As she picked up the pen Bill said,

  “Nah, ye be careful wot ye says. No ’ints as t’where we be, or Oi’ll knock yer ’ead orf! An’ that goes fer th’ boy too!”

  There was ferociousness in the way he spoke that was frightening and Kasia said quietly,

  “You can dictate it, word for word, if you like.”

  “Ow, get on wiv it!” Bill said. “Yer tell th’ Dook wot ’e’s got to ’ear, an’ pay up quick – that’s wot matters.”

  “Aye, yer right,” another man agreed. “That’s all us wants.”

  “Very well,” Kasia said.

  She started the letter, which was far easier now that she had a box on which to write.

  She was wondering how she could give the Duke a hint as to where they were hidden, seeing that she did not know herself.

  Then as if he had been wondering the same thing, Simon said,

  “I know where we are! We are in the watch tower and it is dangerous – very dangerous!”

  The men looked at each other as if they were surprised by what he had said.

  Then one of them answered,

  “Yer right, an’ we shouldn’t be ’ere, an’ th’ sooner us can leave ’ere, th’ better!”

  “An’ if us ’as ter wait fer o
ur money, it might collapse round yer, an’ ye’ll be buried in it.”

  Simon turned towards Kasia.

  “Uncle Darcy said it was very dangerous, and that I must never come here.”

  “I know,” Kasia replied, “and I am sure he will be very angry that we have been brought here.”

  “Never mind ’bout that!” Bill interrupted.

  “Jus’ ye get on wiv yer writin’. Th’ sooner ’e coughs up the money, the sooner ye can go ’ome. If ’e don’t – we’ll lock yer in an’ no one’ll find yer.”

  He took a pistol from his pocket as he spoke.

  “Them as be dead don’t talk!” he said. “An’ talks wot Oi don’t want to ’ear.”

  Kasia thought Bill was obviously the ring-leader of the men.

  She was sure of this when a few minutes later the man called Luke, who had been putting back the horse and wagon, joined them.

  “That’s good!” Bill answered. “Now we’ve got ’nother errand fer yer t’do, as ye be th’ one as runs fastest.”

  “Oi mighta known Oi be a-doin’ all th’ dirty work!” Luke moaned.

  “It won’t seem so dirty when ’ems coins be jinglin’ in yer pocket!” Bill replied.

  Kasia was writing quickly.

  At the same time she was wondering frantically how she could tell the Duke where they were without the men being aware of what she had done.

  She was quite certain that if she put in anything like “We are Watching for your reply”, they would be smart enough to know what she was trying to do.

  She sent up a prayer, feeling that only her Guardian Angel could help them in the situation in which she and Simon found themselves.

  “Help me – help me to show him – where – we are,” she begged.

  Almost as if she had a direct answer, she had an idea.

  She went over carefully what she had written, finished the letter and signed her name.

  Then she handed it to Bill who was standing watching her.

  “Is that what you wanted me to write?” she asked. He took it from her and read aloud what she had written.

  He mispronounced some of the words, but she realised that he could read.

  She felt the other men would not find it easy.

  Bill paused once or twice when he found something difficult.

  She knew it was due more to the thickness of the pen and the cheapness of the paper than to her hand-writing.

  Finally he said,

  “That’s orl right. ’Er’s signed ’er name, but it be one Oi ain’t never ’eard of afore.”

  It was then that Kasia gave a little gasp.

  She realised that because she had been so intent on surreptitiously giving the Duke a hint of where they were, she had signed ‘Kasia’ Watson, instead of ‘Kate’.

  It was stupid of her, but she thought it was of no particular importance.

  It would certainly be a mistake for the men to know she was disguising herself in any way.

  “Is the letter all right?” she asked.

  “Ye’ve made clear wot we wants,” Bill replied, “an’ Oi ’opes fer yer sake as ’e’ll put th’ money where ye’ve told ’im to.”

  “I have written what you told me to say,” Kasia replied.

  “Now it’s up ter ’im,” Luke said, “an’ Oi likes th’ idea of th’ white flag on top o’ th’ Castle.”

  “It means ’e’s surrenderin’, don’t it!”? Bill said with a gruff laugh.

  “That is something Uncle Darcy never did in the war,” Simon said unexpectedly, “so he may want to fight you.”

  “If ’e wants ter do that, us’ll be ready fer ’im, eh, boys?” Bill retorted.

  He patted the pocket into which he had put the pistol as he spoke.

  As the other men did the same, Kasia thought with her heart sinking that they were all armed.

  She only hoped the Duke would not approach them unarmed.

  Then she told herself that anyway it was unlikely he would understand what she had tried to convey to him.

  She was beginning to wish she had not done so, but had just written what they wanted her to write.

  After all, it was not a tremendous amount of money they were demanding.

  There would certainly be that amount of cash in the office.

  Apart from the wages to be paid on Friday, to so many men, she was certain that the Duke would have extra funds to pay for the necessary materials.

  Also for the animals and machinery for which the farmers were asking.

  Bill took one last look at the letter.

  He then folded the paper and handing it back to Kasia ordered,

  “Put ’is name on th’ outside!”

  “Yes, of course,” Kasia said.

  She wrote in capital letters,

  “TO HIS GRACE THE DUKE OF DREGHORNE.”

  She handed back the letter to Bill.

  “Right, Luke,” he said, “orf ye goes, an’ be careful no one sees ye shove it frough th’ door of th’ old mill, or push it through th’ winder.”

  Kasia gave a little cry.

  “Supposing nobody happens to find it? It might be months before the Duke has any idea of what has happened to us and what you want.”

  “ ‘Er’s got a point there, Bill,” one of the men said.

  “Oi ain’t goin’ up t’th’ Castle t’ get meself caught!” Luke said.

  “I do not see why there should be any trouble,” Kasia replied before Bill could speak. “You could just be handing in a note at the door. The footman will take it and no one will know what is written in it, until the Duke opens it and reads it.”

  The men were silent and she said,

  “He can tie a scarf round his neck so that it does not reveal all his face, and give him a hat to pull over his forehead.”

  She paused a moment and then went on,

  “The letter will take some time to reach his Grace and by then Luke will be half-way back here.”

  “That be sense, sheer common sense!” Bill said. “An’ as soon as us gets th’ money us can be back where we comes from, an’ that’s all that matters.”

  “Oi don’t like it!” Luke said. “Oi’m afraid o’ goin’ up t’th’ front door an’ ’avin’ them servants starin’ at Oi.”

  “There are so many workmen going in and out of the doors at the moment,” Kasia said, “that I am sure no one will take any particular notice of you.”

  She looked at them to make sure they were listening to her and then continued,

  “But if it will make you any happier, go to the Service Entrance. They will certainly think there that you are one of the workmen. Tell them that the letter for his Grace has to go to him at once.”

  “That’s more like it!” Bill said. “Ye go to th’ Service Entrance, Luke, an’ that be th’ right place fer ye.”

  Luke, who was a crafty-looking little man, said, “Orl right, Oi’ll do as ye say, Bill, but Oi only lopes as Oi’m not runnin’ into a trap!”

  “If it is, this clever young lady knows what’s comin’ to ‘er!” Bill said.

  He gave Kasia as he spoke an unpleasant look that made her shiver.

  Then Simon said,

  “Uncle Darcy said he would be home for tea. He will be wondering where we are.”

  “That’s jes’ wot us be goin’ t’tell ’im,” Bill said, “an’ I s’pose, young jackanapes, ye was ’spectin’ t’ave a cup o’ tea. Well, that’s somethin’ ye ain’t ’avin’, as we ain’t got none.”

  He laughed, as if at his own joke.

  “If yer ’ungry,” he finished, “it’ll make ye all th’ keener to ’urry orf ’ome when yer uncle pays up.

  He turned to Kasia to say nastily,

  “Pity ye didn’t put that in! If ’e takes too long, th’ ’ungrier ye’ll both get!”

  He laughed again.

  Then crossing the room, he started to go down the stairs.

  The two other men followed him, looking back as they did so at Simon with what
she thought was an unpleasant expression in their eyes.

  The last man to leave shut the wooden door behind him.

  She wondered if he would lock it.

  As there was no sound of a key being turned in the lock, she supposed there was no key there.

  As soon as they had gone Simon jumped up.

  “They are bad and wicked!” he said. “They have made us prisoners, just like two people in a story.”

  He did not sound frightened, but rather excited by it, and Kasia said,

  “Come close to me and I will tell you a secret.”

  Simon moved quickly to her side.

  “What is it?” he asked.

  In a whisper, although Kasia was quite certain that by now the men were out of ear-shot, she said, “I have made a secret sign in the letter which I hope will tell your uncle where we are. Now we have to pray, and pray very hard, that he will understand.”

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  The Duke arrived back at the Castle just after five o’clock and walked quickly into the drawing room.

  The words “I am sorry to be late” were on his lips as he opened the door.

  To his surprise there was no one there.

  He thought they must have finished tea and left, but when he looked at the table he saw that the food was untouched.

  He rang the bell and the butler came hurrying to his side.

  “Where are Master Simon and Miss Watson?”

  “They’ve not yet returned, your Grace.”

  “Not returned?” the Duke said looking at the clock. “Surely they are very late?”

  “I were wondering what had happened, your Grace.”

  “Well find out if they are in the stables,” the Duke ordered.

  The butler went away to obey his instructions, and he walked across the room to the window.

  He was thinking of Kasia as he had been thinking of her nearly all the afternoon.

  He had admitted to himself a day or so ago that he was in love, more in love than he had ever been in his life.

  But he was not certain what to do about it.

  He knew that in his new position as the Duke the family would be expecting him to marry someone whose blood equalled his own and who was of Social importance.

  That he should stoop to marry one of his employees was quite unthinkable.

  He could imagine only too well the horror amongst his relatives.