Odell’s lips pressed together. “I can’t say I’m surprised. If the good Lord hadn’t taken my son so soon, they would’ve been wed before he died. We’ll take them both and be glad for it. The babe is the only thing left of my boy.”
“Meet me here at sunrise.” The faster they reached London, the safer Miss Bywater would be.
The man rose with more energy than he’d had when he’d come in. “That I will.”
Nate came out from behind his desk and offered his hand, which Mr. Odell took and shook heartily. “I’m glad we found her.”
“And we’re more than glad for your help.” Although Odell didn’t smile, his eyes held a spark of hope. “Good country air and food will see them both right.”
“Will you tell Bywater?” The families had been cordial at one time.
“I can’t think of a good reason why I should.” Odell’s jaw jutted out belligerently. “In fact, if Emily will let me, I’ll adopt her. Change her name to Odell. Her and the child both. That’s what my son would have wanted.”
“Yes. I’m convinced you are correct.” From attempting to persuade the local vicar to marry the couple even though the last banns had not been read to obtaining a special license, which they had been denied due to their status, the family had tried everything to see the couple wed before John Odell died. “Until tomorrow.”
“Thank you again, my lord.”
Nate saw him to the front door. A light rain had begun to fall, and he hoped it wouldn’t go on for long. “Give your wife my greetings, and hurry home before you become too wet.”
“I’ll do that.” Odell waved his arm. “No need to worry about me. I’ll be fine.”
Nate watched his neighbor leave the room. Offering to find the girl had been only one of his steps to redemption, and he was glad he’d done it. He did not even want to imagine what Miss Bywater’s life and that of her child would be like if they had not been found.
* * *
The next morning dawned cold but clear. That in itself was a blessing insomuch as it meant the roads wouldn’t be mired in mud. Padraig followed Nate to the door. “I’m sorry, boy, but you can’t come this time.” He rubbed the wiry fur on the dog’s head. “I’ll see you in a few days.” Mr. and Mrs. Odell were waiting for him when Nate stepped outside. “I would have been happy to offer you tea.”
“Don’t I know it, my lord,” Mrs. Odell, a plump, good-hearted woman said. “But we’ve broken our fast, and I packed a flask of tea. You two get on your way, and I’ll follow. I don’t know how far behind you I’ll be, us not having bloodstock like yours, but if you tell me where to meet you, I’ll be there as soon as I can be.”
She’d most likely fall a good distance behind them. But the carriage appeared to be well sprung, and if the horses weren’t matched bays, they were still sweet-goers. “Go to Fotherby House on Grosvenor Street. We’ll meet you there.” Nate wished he could offer a change of cattle at the posting inns, but because only his mother had been making the journey, he wasn’t sure there was more than one team at each stop. “Let’s be off.” He bowed to Mrs. Odell. “If you allow, I’ll arrange for your changes when we stop. It will be faster that way.”
“Now that I’ll accept.” Her green eyes sparkled with happiness. “The sooner we get there and fetch our girl and the babe, the happier I’ll be.”
He said a brief prayer that both the woman and the child were in good health and able to make the trip home. It was only then that a thought occurred to him. “I’m an idiot. I must send my coach back for my mother. There is no reason you should take yours when you can ride back in mine.”
Mrs. Odell shook her head. “Thank you for the offer. But if Emily or the child are doing poorly, we might have to take a few days more to return.”
“It was just a thought.” It was frustrating to want to do more and not be allowed to.
“And a good one.” Mrs. Odell smiled. “I’ll say farewell now. Have a good journey.”
“You too.” He climbed into his traveling carriage. Mr. Odell kissed his wife and joined Nate. They followed the Odell coach out of the drive to the main road, but quickly overtook it.
The sun was still up, but low in the sky when they approached the workhouse that afternoon. They’d made good time to the metropolis, stopping only for changes. Nate had had his cook pack sufficient food in a large basket so they didn’t have to waste time halting to eat.
“I’ll tell you, my lord, I never could abide London. It’s the smell.” Odell watched out the window as they pulled up in front of the long brick building.
Well, this wasn’t the most salubrious area of Town. Still, the degradation of White chapel surprised Nate. And he was certain most people wouldn’t want to be walking around here at night.
The coach door opened and a footman let the steps down. “Do you want me to come in with you? Just until they allow you to see her? I have no idea what the protocol is.”
The older man frowned. “That might be a good idea. I suppose they won’t deny a peer much of anything.”
“No, I believe you are correct.” As sad a state of affairs that was, at least Nate would be able to speed things along. “As soon as you’re with her, I’ll come back out here and wait.”
Odell inclined his head. “Thank you.”
The soot-covered building stretched down the street in both directions, with one arched entrance in the middle. Men, women, and children were held in a queue waiting to be admitted to the single entrance. There was a time when Nate would not have thought anything of walking straight in ahead of everyone else, but the last four years had humbled him. Still, he was a peer of the realm and had some rights. He slid a look at his companion. Dressed in his good wool jacket and breeches, Odell would still no doubt be made to wait in a queue.
Taking his cane, Nate descended from the coach. “Go to the door and announce me.”
“Yes, my lord.” The footman hurried away to do as he was bid while Nate waited for Mr. Odell. “Stay beside me, if you will.”
Odell stared at the long queue. “I begin to think it’s a good thing you’re with me, my lord.”
Nate allowed himself a small grin. “We peers are good for something every now and again.”
The other man flushed. “My lord, you know I meant no—”
“I am not at all insulted. Come, let’s find your daughter.” He strode up the steps and reached the door as it opened. A man attempted to stop Mr. Odell, but Nate waved him away. “It is on his business we are here.”
By the time they entered the hall, his footman was speaking with a thin, stern-looking woman whose mobcap almost covered all the steel-gray curls at her forehead. “Here is his lordship now.” His footman bowed. “My lord, this is Mrs. Rankin.”
Nate handed the woman his card. “I am Fotherby. My companion, Mr. Odell, is here to take Miss Bywater and her child home.” Mrs. Rankin, a hatchet-faced woman of middle years, frowned. “We have been searching for her since she left and were only yesterday apprised of her location. Mrs. Odell is waiting at my home for her.”