“
You
’
re not in the least lethargic. You
’
re a regular busybody when it comes to other people. You
’
re solemn.
”
“
I stand corrected. Between you and Sykes, I no longer have the bother of thinking for myself. No doubt he will pop up like a genie and tell us what our next step is to be, and we, like good puppets, will do precisely as he says.
”
Even as he spoke, Jonathon
’
s head appeared through the door of the tearoom. He beckoned to them rather imperatively.
“
The chase is on,
”
Salverton said, and throwing a gold coin on the table, he rose and offered Samantha his hand.
The shadows of evening were lengthening when they went outside. The jostle of daytime pedestrians on the promenade had diminished to a few stragglers. Some shops were closing. In another hour or two, the evening throng would be out, but for the present, everyone there could be clearly seen, and Mr. Fletcher
’
s hulking shoulders were not among the loiterers.
“
How did you get rid of Fletcher, Mr. Sykes?
”
Samantha asked.
“
That
’
s not a tale for such tender h
’
ears as your pearly shells, Miss Oakleigh. Suffice it to say, he
’
ll not bother us for a while.
”
“
I hope you didn
’
t kill him!
”
“
A man don
’
t die of a drawn cork and a pair of darkened daylights. I did it out of the way of prying eyes, behind the stable at the Mount Pleasant Hotel. He'll live to pester mankind a few years more till Jack Ketch claims him.
”
“
Let us go on to Rusthall Common before he finds us again,
”
Salverton said.
“
I took the precaution of taking our carriage to a friendly farmstead I know on the northern edge of town. You don
’
t mind a little stroll on such a fine evening as this, eh?
”
“
How far is it?
”
Salverton asked.
“
We can
’
t ask Miss Oakleigh to walk
—”
“
Lord love us,
”
Sykes said, laughing,
“
what harm can befall her with two such stalwarts as me and you to guard her, melord? She
’
s young and frisky. She
’
ll enjoy it.
”
“
I don
’
t mind, Edward,
”
she said.
They set off, keeping a constant look behind them to ensure they weren
’
t followed. At a small chicken farm on the edge of town, Sykes darted behind the hedgerow and came out driving the carriage. The only other vehicle on the road was a donkey cart. They waited to determine the driver wasn
’
t Fletcher, before leaving.
The Laurels was only half a mile farther north. They met a few carriages returning from Rusthall Common, where visitors had gone to view the fantastic Toad Rock. Ere long, they came to a pair of square stone gateposts. The posts lacked an actual gate, but did hold a painted sign proclaiming
THE
LAURELS
, with a sprig of laurel painted below.
Sykes didn
’
t have to be told to draw the carriage to the side of the road. He wasn
’
t such a flat as to be driving up to the door and giving the occupants an opportunity to dart out the back way. He alit and came to speak to Salverton.
“
I
’
ll do a reconnaissance for you, melord,
”
he offered.
“
You might guard the back door when we go in, in case they make a run for it,
”
Salverton replied.
“
H
’
excellent thinking. I
’
ll make a proper rogue of you yet.
”
He darted up the driveway ahead of them and was back just as Salverton was helping Samantha from the carriage.
“
Nobody home, it looks like,
”
he announced.
“
No lights burning.
”
“
All this for nothing!
”
Samantha exclaimed.
“
We
’
ll have a look while we
’
re here,
”
Salverton said.
“
At least we shan
’
t be disturbing anyone
’
s sleep at this hour, as we did in Brighton.
”
“
They might have dowsed the lights if
they
’
re
—
er
—
doing what Wanda does best,
”
Sykes suggested, and received a glare from Salverton.
“
Don
’
t worry about Miss Oakleigh,
”
Sykes said with a lecherous grin at the young lady.
“
She didn
’
t come down in the last rain. Farmers
’
daughters know what critters get up to, eh, Miss Oakleigh?
”
Salverton bunched his hands into fists.
“
Never mind, Edward,
”
she said in a low aside.
“
He means no harm.
”
“
You will try to remember you
’
re with a lady, Sykes, and keep a civil tongue in your head,
”
Salverton growled.
“
Seems to me it
’
s the gent what
’
s h
’
upset.
”
On this cocky speech he strutted up the driveway and disappeared behind the back of the house. Salverton, thoroughly irritated, went toward the front door. Bad enough they had made this trip for nothing, without Sykes flaunting his lewdness in front of Samantha. He lifted his fist to hammer at the door, as there was no knocker.
Samantha twitched at his sleeve.
“
Don
’
t alert her we
’
re here, in case they
’
re in bed,
”
she said.
“
Never mind scowling like an angry mule, Edward. I
’
m twenty-two years old. Just try the door and see if it opens.
”
“
If they
’
re upstairs, it is only common courtesy to give them an opportunity to arrange their toilettes before we go barging in on them.
”
“
You
’
re right. And Sykes will catch them if they try to sneak out the back way.
”
Without further ado, Salverton banged on the door. After a moment he banged again, and again, until it was clear the house was either unoccupied or the inhabitants chose not to answer the door.
When knocking failed, he tried the doorknob and found, to his considerable surprise, that it opened. Darkness had fallen during the interval since leaving the tearoom. Once inside, they advanced into pitch blackness. When Salverton bumped into a table, he felt about and found a tinderbox and lamp. He lit the lamp and held it aloft, looking all around.
They were in a wood-paneled entrance hall with a staircase leading above. Salverton called a few times. Upon receiving no reply, he looked around the hall. An archway opened on to a saloon on the left. A closed door giving on to another room was on the right. A glance showed him the saloon was unoccupied, but a clutter of journals on the sofa table and a wineglass spoke of recent occupancy.
Salverton went to the journal and picked it up.
“
It
’
s today
’
s
Morning Observer,
”
he said to Samantha.
“
They
’
ve been here today. London
’
s morning paper wouldn
’
t be here until afternoon, I shouldn
’
t think. They can
’
t have left long ago.
”
“
There
’
s only one wineglass. It might be the caretaker
’
s. Shall we go upstairs and see if their things are here?
”
“
Very well.
”
Samantha picked up a lamp and lit it before leaving. Even two lamps did not quite succeed in keeping the menacing shadows at bay. She feared a dark form would fly out at them, or a bullet. There were four bedrooms upstairs. In three of them, the beds hadn
’
t been made up. The bare mattresses, the dusty dressers, and general air of neglect spoke of long disuse. In the largest bedroom, however, the bed had a full complement of bedclothes tumbled in a heap at the end of the bed. A pair of gentlemen
’
s boots stood on the floor by the bed. A soiled shirt and cravat had been thrown onto a chair.
Salverton set his lamp on the dresser and took a quick look through the drawers.
Samantha put her lamp on the bedside table and examined the boots and linen.
“
These aren
’
t Darren
’
s. You could put two of him in this shirt. Sir Geoffrey
’
s a large man, isn
’
t he?
”
“
He
’
d weigh fifteen stone at least.
”
“
These must be his clothes. Have you found anything?
”
“
Just his spare linens.
”
She looked at the bed and picked up a nightshirt, also of a large size.
“
This has been a complete waste of time,
”
she said in exasperation.
“
Oh, where can Darren be, Edward? I begin to fear Miss Donny is right, and that wretched female has lured him to Gretna Green.
”
Her voice quavered in fear.
When Edward looked at her, he saw her shoulders slumped despondently. Unshed tears glazed her eyes, but it was the trembling of her lips that caused the wrenching inside. He felt his heart twist in sorrow to see brave, lively Samantha so close to tears.
He went to her and put a consoling arm around her shoulders.
“
Don
’
t fret yourself, my dear,
”
he said softly.
“
We
’
ll find them.
”
A hiccoughing sound issued from her throat. She daubed at her eyes with her knuckles. Salverton brought out his handkerchief and wiped her eyes.
“
Thank you,
”
she said meekly.
“
I can
’
t ask you to waste any more of your valuable time on this. You have your work and
—
and Lady Louise.
”
His arms tightened around her. At that moment the last place he wanted to be was with Lady Louise.
“
We
’
ll finish what we started,
”
he said.
Samantha looked up, and saw the glow in his eyes. She suddenly felt shy.
“
That
’
s very kind of you, Edward,
”
she said.
A shadow of a smile moved his lips. He didn
’
t speak, or even move, but just gazed at her a moment. She had the strange feeling they were alone in the universe, just the two of them, together. Not even the ticking of a clock disturbed the silent intimacy. Then he placed a fleeting kiss on her cheek.
“
We
’
ll go back to London and try to pick up the trail there,
”
he said.
“
Wanda must have friends we could talk to.
”
“
Oh, dozens of them! She knows everyone
—
well, not the sort of people you would know, but she does have friends.
”
They took up their lamps and returned below stairs. Salverton kept his arm around her waist. Their hips bumped familiarly as they descended. At the bottom of the stairs he looked at the closed door to the right of the entrance hall. On a whim, he opened it and peered into an oak-lined study with a big oak desk holding pride of place beneath the window. In the shadows he nearly missed the most interesting thing in the room. When he saw it, a gasp of astonishment hung on the air. He wasn
’
t sure whether it came from himself or Samantha.
He looked at her, and saw the lamp tremble in her hand. He grabbed it just before it fell to the floor. She clung to him as if he were a raft in a storm.
“
Edward! Is he
—”
“
I
’
m afraid so,
”
he replied in a hollow voice.
There was no question that Bayne was dead. The quantity of blood on his waistcoat left no doubt, even if he hadn
’
t been sitting as stiff as a statue, his eyes staring blindly at the doorway. He seemed to be looking straight at them.
They backed out of the room and Edward set their lamps on a table. He didn
’
t feel capable of holding on to a lighted lamp.
“
Was it Sir Geoffrey?
”
she asked, staring into the now-dark room.
Edward closed the door.
“
Yes.
”
“
Oh, Edward, you don
’
t think Darren
—”
“
We have no proof Darren was here.
”
“
But who else would kill him?
”
“
We don
’
t know what enemies he might have had.
”