Vic hated Davy bossing her about, but what annoyed her even more was both his recommendations were logical and reasonable. Clearly, her discovery of pleasure had scrambled her brains.
She had barely stepped inside the door when Claire declared the battle over and hugged her.
Vic had no idea what battle she meant. Before she could ask, Gregory appeared. “Why are your clothes in such disrepair?”
“I haven’t time to explain. I’m on a mission!”
Gregory frowned. “Well go upstairs and change,” he ordered. “And in the future, hang your clothes up. We are not farm animals!”
Vic smiled as she ran up the stairs. She recalled Gregory making a similar declaration when she was thirteen. Being rather precocious, she had ‘mooed’ at him in response. Not only had her rebellious humor earned her a spanking, but also for two days, she had to walk about the house wearing cow ears and a long tail. She never again forgot to hang her clothes up. She hoped Gregory wasn’t downstairs searching for those cow ears and tail.
With such a possibility in her mind, she changed clothes, located her gun, wetted her hair down and rushed downstairs. Within the short time Vic had taken, Claire had constructed two baskets of food for her and Davy, a pillow and blanket for Vic so she could sleep, and another one for Davy to keep him warm while driving.
“You are a wonderful sister.” Vic kissed her cheek.
“There is something else you may wish to know,” Claire said. “I heard today Lord Conrad has had Lord Chesterfield thrown in jail for the fraudulent sale of horses. Moreover, while Conrad only lost ten thousand in the sale, he is demanding Lady Chesterfield surrender her entire estate as compensation.”
“My God! Where will she live?” Vic asked, suddenly fearing Claire had invited the old woman to live with them. While she had nothing against Lady Chesterfield, she didn’t think either of their secret lives could afford such constant scrutiny.
“She’ll live in her estate. She refuses to sign over her house. She says her son must solve his own problems.”
“Good for her,” Gregory said as he placed a clasp of money in Vic’s inside vest pocket. “Do you have your gun?”
She nodded.
“Excellent. Do not hesitate to use it. If your intuition tells you to shoot, do so,” he advised.
“I will,” Vic promised as she climbed into the carriage.
By the time they reached the bridge, five dangerous pirates waited. Had Vic not recognized the lead fellow, she would have been firing her gun, certain they were about to be robbed by highwaymen. Determined to make Jacko smile, she leaned out of her carriage. “I carry no gold or silver, but I do have a basket of food if any of you are hungry?”
Jacko rode up to the carriage and asked to see the contents. He reached in and tossed food to his men. Vic watched chicken legs fly through the air before getting snatched by the men, who devoured the meat within seconds. When Jacko had finished pillaging the picnic basket, only a platter of liver pâté and a lemon tart remained
Vic scowled. Last time she ever invited a pirate to rob her!
Chapter 35
By the time they arrived at Lady Anne’s, fatigue resonated from Vic’s bones and her head ached. However, her determination to send the young woman to France gave her a new burst of energy.
She knocked on the door and requested to speak to the mistress of the house. The butler eyed her over for a very long time. “What is the nature of your visit?
“I come with a message from a friend in London,” Vic said. “Beyond that I am not at liberty to say.” Vic gave the butler a stern glare that finally sent him on his way. Really, Lady Anne’s butler was more impertinent than Gregory.
The fellow returned and led Vic to the library. As she waited, she paced back and forth. What if Lady Anne refused to listen to reason? What if she refused to leave?
A young woman and man entered the library. Vic blinked several times. This innocent girl with worried eyes was the great seductress Lady Anne?
While she neither exuded the charms of a seductress, nor the behaviors of a whore, Vic thanked God Xavier would not need her services, for Lady Anne was very beautiful.
Vic held out her hand. “My name is Victor Hamilton.” She studied the fellow standing close beside Anne. His cheek had a tint of purple as if he’d recently been hit. “Are you David?
The young man squared his jaw and narrowed his eyes in distrust as he nodded.
“Excellent, could you close and secure the door?”
David hesitated and glanced at his sister.
Upon her approval, the boy locked the door.
He returned and sat beside Anne, while Vic sat across from them. “I work for a gentleman who is assisting Mr. Hart in your case.”
“How is Mr. Hart?” Anne asked.
“He is well. However, an unexpected event has occurred which potentially could result in your arrest. Nothing has happened yet, but it is important we do not allow for the opportunity.”
“Anne’s arrest?” David exclaimed. “For what? She has done nothing!”
“She sold you her horses, which you sold to Lord Chesterfield and which he sold to Lord Conrad. The Marquis took the horses back to France where his ownership is indisputable. Lord Conrad knows this. He therefore demanded Lord Chesterfield give him the Chesterfield Home in recompense.”
Anne pressed her hand to her chest. “Tom’s estate? How much did he pay for the horses to justify such?”
“According to my sources, he only paid ten thousand pounds, but Lord Conrad knew the animals were worth considerably more. He also knew Lord Chesterfield would be unable to repay him and decided to take advantage of the situation. However, Conrad has misjudged Lady Chesterfield’s character. The house cannot be sold without her signature, and she has decided she would rather her son go to jail than to lose their family home.”
Anne’s eyes rounded. “Tom is in jail?”
“He is,” Vic replied.
“How can we help?”
Her question surprised and outraged Vic. “I beg your pardon, ma’am, but why would you wish to save him? He has engaged in your ruin from the beginning. Lord Conrad, the Marquis’ steward, and Lord Chesterfield worked together to destroy you. The fact he pretended, all the while, to be your friend,” Vic said and glanced at David, “and your lover, makes his actions all the more despicable, not less.”
Anne pressed her hand to her heart. “I cannot believe it. I will grant Tom places his own needs before others, but…” she stopped and stared at David. Regret and pain seeped into her face. “No…I’m just blind to the truth. I’m sorry David…but I fear Mr. Hamilton is correct. Tom deserves no love or compassion. I do not say that because he sold our horses—our future. I say that because he has sold us into slavery, something a true friend would never do.”
David pulled his sister into his arms and held her tight even as he focused on Vic. “You said Anne is in danger?”
“It is possible Lord Conrad will have her charged for selling the horses to you, when she had no legal right to do so.”
“How can we protect her?”
“The surest way is to take both of you to France tonight. There the Marquis can safely protect you from English justice or miscarriage of justice, in this case. Additionally, if we can find the bill of sale and destroy it that will prevent Lord Conrad from having any proof Anne had ever sold the horses to anyone.” Vic spoke to Lady Anne. “If he locates the bill of sale, he can prove you guilty of intentional fraud and will no doubt lay claim to this estate as recompense.”
“The bastard!” David exclaimed.
“Understand, I have no evidence he has put this plan into motion as of yet. But it’s such an obvious action, I cannot imagine he will not do so, once it comes to mind,” Vic said. “So, the first thing we need to do is search Chesterfield’s room. I have searched his home in London, and I found no evidence of the document there, so it must be here.”
David rose and pulled Anne to her f
eet. “Victor and I will search for the document. You must pack whatever you wish to take with you.” He turned to Vic. “Have arrangements been made to see my sister safely to France?”
“Arrangements have been made to see you both safely to France,” Vic corrected. “She will not go without you, nor should she. You are in as much danger as she, and Lord Conrad certainly knows there is nothing she wouldn’t do to keep you safe.”
Finally, Anne came out of her shock. “I will pack for us both, while you search for the documents.”
“What are we to do with Albert and Stephen?” David asked Anne.
“I will talk to them. They are true friends. They will not betray us.”
David’s face filled with worry and anger. “How do you know that? We once thought Tom was our friend as well.”
His words caused Anne to grimace in pain, but after a moment, she turned to Vic. “Mr. Hamilton, do you have any reason to believe Albert or Stephen will betray me?”
Vic recalled Aaron’s opinion of both men from the notes she had typed. “No, I do not. By all evidence, they greatly admire you, and our only problem will be they will want to help and their assistance is not desired.”
“Will I be allowed to take any servants?”
“No. They should stay here to maintain your estate. When you leave, you can tell those servants you completely trust the truth, but all the others should believe you are going to London to see about Tom.”
She took in a breath. “Yes, of course. That is what I would naturally have done.” She stared at Vic. “You are proving to be most helpful, sir.”
Vic smiled, pleased with Lady Anne. She thought her most likable, even in these terrible circumstances.
***
Vic followed David to the suite Lord Chesterfield claimed as his in Anne’s house. The sitting room contained book shelves on the long wall, several settees, a desk, and oddly the bed. Curious as to what was in the back room where the bed would normally go, Vic opened the door. The hairs on the back of her neck rose at the sight of a similar statue to the one she’d found in Chesterfield’s London home, along with cords, chains and whips hanging from the walls and ceiling beams. Fear radiated from David as he stared at a table holding over twenty blades and knives.
“Is there a safe in here?” Vic asked.
David shook his head, but his eyes remained on the knives. “There’s one downstairs in the library, but the bill of sale isn’t there. I already checked.”
Vic gripped his shoulder and led him from the room. “Let us begin with the bookshelf and work through the room systematically.”
She moved the ladder over to the left edge and climbed to the top shelf. Opening a book, Vic flipped through the pages as she held it binding up, then returned it, and pulled out the next. David did the same on the lower levels.
They found nothing hidden in the books or in the desk. However, they discovered a box of papers beneath the bed. They split the contents and examined each document.
While they had yet to find the bill of sale, Vic located a ledger and other documents that indicated Tom skimmed a large percentage of Anne’s profits for himself.
When Anne entered and offered to help, David refused her assistance. Vic suspected he wished to protect his sister from the extent of Tom’s betrayal, but Anne had proven herself strong enough for the truth.
The young woman moved to the other side of the room and studied the bookshelf.
“We’ve already gone through those books,” David said in a voice low on patience and filled with anger.
Anne moved to the desk.
“The desk as well,” David added.
Despite his harsh words, Anne sat down at the desk and opened each drawer. A moment later, she pushed the chair out of the way and sat down on the floor. Leaning under the desk, she stared up at the bottom side of the desktop.
Sensing she was onto something, Vic abandoned the piles of paper and knelt down beside her.
“What do you seek?” Vic asked.
“I don’t know…but I think this desk may have a hidden cache.”
Vic pulled out all the drawers and placed them on the bed. She examined each one carefully then returned to the desk and studied the frame. Locating nothing that would indicate a hideaway, she was about to abandon the effort when the left edge of the desk shifted for a brief moment.
“Anne whatever you just touched or prodded, do it again.”
The wood shifted. Vic dropped down beside her. “What are you doing?”
She repeated her action.
Vic placed her finger on the same place and pushed. The side of the desk shifted slightly. Pushing hard on the underside, she prodded and poked the side until finally, a slender, inch deep drawer popped out.
Seeing papers inside, Vic pulled them out and sat down on the floor to examine them. She handed Anne half the documents to speed the search.
“This is it!” Anne declared, holding up her bill of sale.
Vic sighed with relief. “And I have David’s. David, have you a match?”
The three gathered by the fireplace and watched the fire consume the documents. Once the evidence had turned to ashes, Vic asked for a trunk to transport Tom’s papers.
“Should we not leave them?” Anne asked.
David sighed with heartfelt pain. “He cheated us, Anne.”
Vic placed a hand on her arm. “There may come a time when you need to prove what he did, so if you can locate a trunk, we need to leave as soon as possible.”
Anne shook her head. “But now that we’ve destroyed the evidence, why must we leave?”
“If Lord Conrad did not hold unreasonable sway over the British Justice system, you might safely remain. However, he is very influential and so you are not presently safe, even with the evidence against you removed. Lord Conrad must be destroyed before you can safely return to England.”
Anne shook her head.
Fearing she was not convinced, Vic strengthened her concern. “I have investigated the man. There have been many cases where well-respected gentlemen, completely in the right, lose their suits against him. Your reputation is in ruins. He need only accuse you and it will be sufficient for your imprisonment while he searches for the proof. No one will care if you remain in jail for years waiting for him to locate the evidence. No one will notice if you die while you wait.”
“I’ll find the trunk,” Anne said.
Vic smiled as the young lady left the room. “For someone who lives by her heart, your sister is a very rational person.”
Chapter 36
Xavier stared at the floor in astonishment. The Scarlet Nun had evidently entered the room, opened the safe, taken the documents, and left without Xavier seeing a thing. He would have sat here in the dark for hours had he not placed speckles of confetti in with the documents, confetti that now inexplicably covered the carpet of the First Minister’s library.
Cranking up Vic’s magic box, he followed the chatter of clicks to a window. Impossible! It opened to a sheer stone castle wall dropping down into a moat. He leaned out the window and pointed the box in various positions until he determined the thief had scaled up the wall. He left the room and took the stairs to the roof. He picked up the thief’s trail, which led back into the castle.
With a mixture of shock and disbelief, he arrived at the guest room Raphael always stayed in when visiting the Duke. Setting the box to one side, he pulled his gun and rapped twice on the door. His friend opened the door and stared at him in confusion.
Xavier jammed his gun into the man’s neck.
“So it is you who has betrayed us,” Raphael hissed, his eyes full of anger. “You will never get away with this!”
Xavier ignored the man’s clever cry of innocence. He handcuffed him, removed his gun, and tossed him into the closet. Returning outside, he retrieved the box and followed the path of the thief. The clicks led directly to the closet. When he opened the door, Raphael struggled for breath while his body twisted in desperation.
A garrote wrapped about his throat, but Xavier could not see the assassin holding the wire of death. Assessing where the person should stand to kill a man, he fired twice. A heavy thud and the gasping breath of the agent rewarded his efforts.
Setting aside the box, he yanked the fellow from the closet. Upon search of the enclosed space, he located what felt like a leg or wrist of his invisible assassin. He unlocked Raphael’s left cuff and attached it to the invisible appendage.
It felt surreal to pull ‘nothing’ from the closet, but that is what he did. By feel, he located the head and fired a shot directly into the skull.
“What have you done?” Raphael cried as he tried to pull his wrist away but the cuff held him firmly to air.
The gunfire brought the Queen’s men, and Xavier ordered the first man in to bar the door and send for the First Minister.
“We will have to secure the passageway before we can do that,” the man said.
“Do it.” Xavier examined the agent’s neck. Assured his friend would live, he picked up the box and held it over him. The clicks chattered as if the box contained angry chipmunks. He sighed and sat down, uncertain if that meant guilt or the consequence of being in close proximity to the invisible person.
Raphael glared at him with intense hatred. “So you plan to declare me the traitor. Do you have proof?”
Xavier didn’t reply. Instead, he watched the body materialize to Raphael’s left. How the hell could a man make himself invisible? Moreover, why was he becoming visible now? If the First Minister didn’t appear soon, he would never believe Xavier’s story.
As he watched the form solidify, he realized it was a woman, a beautiful woman dressed in men’s clothing. Fortunately, the garrote remained wrapped about her hand to prove, while beautiful, she was also deadly.
“Damn you to hell, Xavier.” His former friend buried his face into his arms.
There was no point in discussing invisible men now, for it would only get him relieved of duty. By the man’s lack of shock at a body appearing beside him, and his current state of mourning, Xavier had no doubt he had known the woman intimately, but more than that, he had loved this woman enough to turn against his own country.
The Troublesome Apprentice (The Adventures of Xavier & Vic Book 1) Page 26
