They turned and retraced their steps to where they had encountered Oliver, then crossed the street and continued down a slight slope. As they walked, the buildings around them grew increasingly smaller and more dilapidated. The street narrowed, and there was a distinct smell of fish and other, more unsavory, things.
Finally they reached the last street before the river, unimaginatively named Water Street. They looked around. It was not a pleasant prospect. Upriver lay the mill, and down the street stood several dark warehouses. On the corner was an inn and beyond that, a tavern. A few men loitered about on the street, staring at them with a mixture of curiosity and defensiveness.
Priscilla swallowed. She was glad it was broad daylight; this place would be frightening at night. It was easy to understand why she had never been in this part of town; it was obviously not a place where ladies spent their time, even in company.
"Where shall we start?" she began, putting a good face on it.
Her companion looked dubious. "Nothing looks very hopeful." He glanced at the inn, then back at her. "I suppose I would try the inn first, but I am sure it is not the sort of place where you should go. Why don"t we go back to Mrs. Whiting"s, and you-"
"No," she replied firmly. "You are not going to leave me out of this." The area might make her uneasy, but she wasn"t about to abandon their quest because of that. Nor was she willing to be thrust back into the parlor to mind her knitting like a good little woman while John did all the work-and had all the fun.
He glared at her, irritation written plainly on his face, and Priscilla crossed her arms and stared back at him. He sighed. "All right. Let"s try the inn first."
When they stepped inside the inn, every eye in the place turned to look at them. The room fell silent. Priscilla swallowed and glanced around. It was a small room, dim despite the time of day. Priscilla suspected that this condition was because the windows were as grimy as the floor. Cigar smoke hung in the air, mingling with the odors of sweat and ale to create a foul miasma. It was all Priscilla could do not to pull out her handkerchief and cover her nose with it.
She glanced at John. She noticed that his face showed none of the surprise or repugnance she felt. It made her wonder whether he was used to such places, or merely more skilled at hiding his feelings. John took her arm and strolled across the room to the man behind the counter. The man watched them come, his arms folded across his chest, his face wary.
"Good day, sir," John began. "I am looking for a couple of men."
The man"s only answer was a noncommittal grunt. John proceeded to describe the two men in a strong, clear voice that Priscilla was sure could be heard by every occupant of the room. The innkeeper listened, saying nothing, until John had finished his description.
""N" wot"ll ye be wantin" with "em?" he asked finally.
"They"ve done some work for me in the past," John replied. He had guessed as soon as they came in that this was not the place to tell his story of kidnapping and robbery. Now he grinned knowingly. "A certain type of work, you understand. One that not everyone is capable of doing."
The man regarded John silently. "I ain"t seen anyone like you"re talkin" about." He shrugged. "But mebbe some"n like that"ll come in "ere one day. If ye want, I could give "im your name."
"That would be very good." John smiled. "The name is John Wolfe. I can be found of an evening at the Sign of the Boar." He named a tavern he had seen closer to the center of town, one that he was sure was more respectable.
"I don"t know as whether "e"d go there."
"Well, if he does not, why don"t I check back in with you tomorrow? Perhaps he will come in and you will have a chance to discuss it with him."
The man shrugged again. John pulled out a coin and flipped it to the man. The innkeeper deftly caught it in the air and pocketed it. With a nod, John guided Priscilla out the door.
"Whew!" Priscilla breathed a sigh of relief. "Do you think he will follow up on it? Did he believe you?"
"I have no idea. But I doubt that he wants to forgo the opportunity to make a little money. He will tell our friends, at least. They may be foolish enough to fall for it. But if his description of me is adequate, they will know it is a trap."
He walked down the street and stepped into the empty doorway of a warehouse, pulling Priscilla in with him. "Let"s see if our bait brings any results."
"You think he will go find the men?" Priscilla"s breath quickened in her throat, and she peered down the street at the door of the inn.
"It"s possible. Worth waiting a little while to see, don"t you think?"
Priscilla nodded, and they settled down in the shadow of the doorway to watch. They were rewarded a few minutes later when the door opened and the man they had spoken to stepped out. He looked up and down Water Street, as well as the side street; then, apparently satisfied, he struck off down the street in the opposite direction.
"How are we going to follow him?" Priscilla asked anxiously. "We stick out like a sore thumb in this area."
"I know. All we can do is give him a long lead and hope he doesn"t look back too carefully."
John slipped out of the doorway, his hand in Priscilla"s, and they walked swiftly after the distant figure of the innkeeper. They stayed far behind him, slipping into doorways now and then in the hope of staying hidden from his sight. The man turned up a side street, and John and Priscilla quickened their pace. When they reached the corner where he had turned, they stopped, and John peered cautiously around the corner of the building. He jerked back, looking amazed.
"What is it?" Priscilla asked. "Did you see the men we"re after?"
"More than that. Look for yourself."
Priscilla edged closer to the corner of the building and looked around it. She could not suppress a gasp. The innkeeper was crossing the street, walking, more slowly now, toward a doorway where two men stood talking. One of the men was the short man who had come to the door looking for John. The man who was speaking to him forcefully, gesticulating for emphasis, was Benjamin Oliver.
Priscilla moved back and gazed at John. He nodded. "It"s Oliver, isn"t it? The d.u.c.h.ess"s paramour?"
"Yes. But what on earth is he doing talking to your kidnapper? That is the fellow who was guarding you, isn"t it?"
"Most definitely."
"Do you think that he was in on the plot to abduct you?"
John shrugged.
"What reason would Oliver have for wanting to kidnap you?"
"I have no idea."
"Do you think you know him? Can you imagine what a shock it must have been when he saw you?"
"He certainly hid it well. I never suspected that he recognized me."
"Nor did I. But then, he saw us before we saw him. Remember, he called to me, and then we turned and saw him? We don"t know how long he was there. He could have had enough time to compose himself. And he was rather curious about you. He asked me to introduce you, and he wanted to know why you were here."
John nodded, frowning thoughtfully.
Priscilla peered around the corner of the building again. "Oliver is leaving now." She turned back to face John. "Shall we face your "friend" now, or wait for the innkeeper to leave?"
John pulled himself back from wherever his thoughts had taken him. "Now. I don"t want him to go back inside and join the other one. The innkeeper won"t fight for him, I think." He paused, then said without much hope, "I don"t suppose I can persuade you to stay here and let me handle this."
Priscilla shook her head. John sighed and started off around the corner, with Priscilla right behind him.
CHAPTER TEN.
JOHN MOVED ACROSS THE STREET ALMOST SILENTLY. Priscilla envied his quiet movement on even these old cobblestones. She had to walk on tiptoe to keep her heels from clacking on the stones. John, she thought, knew some rather unusual things.
Unfortunately, they had not yet reached the pair in the doorway when the kidnapper somehow sensed their presence. He looked up, eyes narrowed, then let out a noise when his eyes lit on John. Priscilla had expected the man to run away. To her surprise, he leaped forward, bellowing, "Will! Will!"
He startled Priscilla so much that she froze for an instant. John rushed forward to meet the man, and the innkeeper, after a hasty look around, took to his heels. John crashed into the kidnapper, but it was not enough to knock the st.u.r.dy fellow over. The short man wrapped his arm around John"s neck, trying to choke him. John rammed an elbow into the other man"s stomach. The man let go, staggering and trying to catch his breath. John gave him no opportunity to do so, but smashed his fist into the man"s face. The man reeled backward, yelling "Will!" once again.
John started after him again, but at that moment, the door of the building flew open and the tall kidnapper ran out, launching himself at John. They fell in the street, rolling and punching. Priscilla stepped closer to them, wishing she had thought to bring her parasol. It would make a fairly decent weapon, although at the moment, given the way the two were thrashing around, she would not even be able to strike a blow for fear of hitting the wrong man.
The shorter kidnapper apparently thought the same thing, for he had moved closer to the struggling men, but was only watching them. Suddenly John was on top of the other man, his fist thudding hard into the man"s face. The short man ran forward, clasping his hands together and raising them to bring his fists down with all his force against the back of John"s head. Priscilla, shrieking, leaped onto the man"s back. Wrapping one arm around the man"s neck, she hung on tenaciously, and with her other hand she whacked her reticule down repeatedly on his head.
He let out a yowl and reached back for her, trying to pry her loose. His hand caught in her hair, and she shrieked again and boxed his ear. Clawing, hitting, kicking, they lumbered around in a clumsy, bizarre dance. Then a loud retort split the air, startling them all. The kidnapper froze, and Priscilla tumbled down from his back, ending up in an ignominious heap on the street. She looked over at John. He, too, was still, as was the man he was fighting.
Another man was standing over them, the end of a gun barrel pressed against the back of John"s neck. "All right, now," the stranger said loudly. "You get up, mister. Slowly," he added, as John began to move.
Priscilla struggled to stand up, hampered by her petticoats and skirts. "Wait! You have the wrong man! It is these-"
The stranger favored her with a contemptuous glance. "You shut up there, missy. Less you want your fella"s head taken clean off." At Priscilla"s shocked expression, he chuckled. "Guess he wouldn"t be such a handsome one then, would he? Now, the two of you get up and step back. I run a clean inn, and I won"t have any rapscallions bothering my customers."
John stood up and stepped back, his mouth tight and his eyes flashing with anger. The tall man on the ground staggered dazedly to his feet, helped up by his shorter companion. The two of them hobbled off inside the building.
"You are letting them get away!" Priscilla exclaimed indignantly.
"Shut your trap, missy, or I"ll do it for you."
"You don"t understand," John told him. "It is those two men who are the villains. They kidnapped me and took all my money."
"Yes!" Priscilla agreed. "Call the constable, and you will see. I am Priscilla Hamilton. My father is Florian Hamilton. I am not whatever it is you think I am."
The man looked her over drolly. Priscilla was acutely aware of the fact that her skirts were twisted, her petticoats were showing and her hair had slipped out of its pins and was sticking out all over the place. Her hat had gotten completely knocked off and was dangling down her back, held only by the ribbons she had tied around her neck.
"Oh, yes, I can see you"re a regular lady," the stranger agreed, chuckling. "Frankly, I don"t care who you are, or this one, either. Those men are staying under my roof, and I won"t have anyone bothering them. You understand? Now, get along, both of you."
"But-" Priscilla started again.
The man motioned threateningly with his gun. "Go on! I told you, I won"t have anyone messing with my customers. Now get away with you. Go on."
Reluctantly John started away, taking Priscilla"s hand and pulling her along with him. She shot one last fulminating look at the belligerent innkeeper and followed John.
"That man!" she fumed, twitching her skirt and petticoats back into place. "He let them get away. You would think he could at least listen to our story. He could have called the constable and let him straighten it out."
"I suspect he doesn"t much want the police in his establishment." John rounded the corner and stopped. "Nor is he overly worried about who is in the right. All he wants is to protect his customers. No doubt that is very important to his business, given the nature of his clientele."
Priscilla made a disgruntled sound as she reached up and started untying the ribbons of her hat. They had been pulled into a knot as she fought, and she had a difficult time undoing them now. John"s face softened into a smile as he gazed down at her, and he smoothed a piece of hair back from her face.
"What a fierce one you are."
Priscilla grimaced. "You needn"t laugh at me. I know I look a perfect mess. Oh, why won"t this stupid thing come undone?"
"I am not laughing at you. You don"t look like a mess. You look...utterly adorable."
He bent, taking her chin between his fingers, and kissed her. Priscilla"s knees went weak suddenly, and she leaned forward, holding on to his jacket for support. All thought of the two villains fled her mind, and she was aware of nothing but the feel of John"s mouth moving on hers. She moaned softly, and his arms went around her, pressing her to him. His kiss deepened; his breath was hot against her cheek. Priscilla clung to him, kissing him back fiercely. Desire flooded her, leaving her weak and trembling.
"Oh, G.o.d." John raised his head, gazing down into her eyes. "I did not mean to do that. I don"t know how-I must be mad to be doing this here. Now."
"Yes." Priscilla nodded dazedly. "I think that I have been a little mad ever since you came here."
"I want you so much." His voice was dark and husky with pa.s.sion. "I have never wanted a woman like this. But you-"
He drew a long breath and stepped back, holding her at arm"s length, as if he were setting her away from him. "We cannot do this."
"I know." With a sigh, Priscilla tore her gaze from his and began to smooth down her skirts and fuss with her hair-small, meaningless gestures to distract herself, to make her keep her eyes off him. But that was the only place she wanted to look.
John turned away, clearing his throat, and walked back to the corner. "The landlord is no longer there with his trusty gun," he commented. "But no doubt that means that those two have safely cleared out. Either that, or they have barricaded themselves inside. Either way, I have little chance of getting to speak with either of them now."
"We can get the constable and come back."
His face changed subtly, and he looked away. "I"m not sure that"s a good idea."
"Why not?"
"If we show up with the constable, I can guarantee that they will be out the back door, if they haven"t left already. No, I think we have no more hope of catching them today. Perhaps another day, if I come back disguised and loiter around the area."
"But the constable could be on the lookout for them." When he did not reply, Priscilla went on, "John? What is the matter? Why are you looking like that?"
"I..." He rubbed his chin, then sighed. "I"m not sure I will like what the constable finds out. What if I am involved with them somehow? I mean, what if I"m like that fellow Oliver? Some sort of scoundrel or cheat? Maybe I am just as wicked as they, and they are only after me because I stole something of theirs?"
"Oh, John, no! You could not be. Why do you even consider such a silly thing?"
"Because I know nothing about myself!" he blurted out. "I have no idea what I am really like. If I a.s.sociated with people like these, what is to say I was not like them? It would stand to reason."
"It is just as obvious that you are their enemy," Priscilla pointed out. "If someone wicked hates you, it is more likely to mean that you are a good person than a bad one."
He gave her a sideways glance, a smile quirking the corners of his mouth. "You have an answer for everything, don"t you?"
"Yes, I do. And don"t you forget it." Priscilla smiled back, relieved to see the darkness gone from his face. She knew, with everything in her, that he could not be a bad person. Even if it turned out that he had done some things that were wrong, he could not be, deep inside, a bad person.
"Now," she went on briskly, taking his arm and starting down the street. "We know they are in Elverton. We can return another day and start looking for them all over. If we found them once, surely we can do it again. Why do you suppose they are remaining here?"
"They must want something from me pretty badly. Since they went through all my possessions, it must be something I hid somewhere, or it"s something in my head."
"Something you know." Priscilla nodded. "That makes sense. Otherwise, why wouldn"t they have killed you and been done with it? They do not seem the sort who would hesitate at murdering someone."
"I imagine you are right about that. The larger question, though, is what do they have to do with our Mr. Oliver? Why would a man who is cozily installed as a d.u.c.h.ess"s favorite be fooling around with these two?"
"I have no difficulty believing that he was involved with criminals in his past. I have always thought he was a snake."
"Still, it is a risk for him to a.s.sociate with them. After all, the d.u.c.h.ess might find out."
"It might be even worse if she learned whatever it is you know." Priscilla brightened. "That"s it! Oh, this explains it all! You know something very detrimental about Mr. Oliver, and you were coming here to inform the d.u.c.h.ess of it. Oliver knows, as do you, that she will toss him out when she finds out this thing, whatever it is, so he and his cronies try to stop you."
"Why not just kill me?"
"This close to where he lives? No, it would be a scandal. n.o.body would talk about anything else but the murder for months. Why, people still speculate on that killing thirty years ago in Lady"s Woods. There would be an investigation, and it might easily turn up the fact that you were somehow connected to Oliver. He would be terrified of that. No, the best thing would be to hold you, to keep you from getting to the d.u.c.h.ess."