Without a second glance, she headed for the door. Alice was downstairs and out into the street before the tears finally got the better of her. After all that she thought she had felt for Harry Steele, the only emotion left this morning was humiliation.
In a matter of hours, she would hopefully be rid of Cuthbert Saint. And with the end of their contract, Harry would also be gone. Only then could she start to find a way to get him out of her heart.
“What happened to the sweet romance that was bubbling between the two of you?” asked Stephen.
Harry picked up the coin purse and tucked it into his jacket pocket. All night, he had lain awake and worried as to whether he had made a grave mistake in taking Alice to the Temple of Diana. Wondering if perhaps she had simply got caught up in the moment, and then once the haze of lust had cleared her mind, regret had swooped in.
“I have a horrible feeling that I may have pushed Alice North too far out of her area of comfort, and she is now in retreat. All I can focus on right this minute is Cuthbert Saint. If we succeed in frightening him off tonight, then maybe I will be able to address the matter of the two of us and whether we could have a future,” he replied.
Stephen got to his feet and came to Harry’s side, placing a brotherly pat on his shoulder. “This was always going to be a problem for us rogues when it came to be taking on wives. Harry, you have to succeed with Alice, because if you don’t then what hope do the rest of us have? Not that I plan to ever enter into the unholy mess of matrimony.”
Harry nodded. Apart from Stephen’s foolish aversion to marriage, he was right. Of all the members of the RR Coaching Company, Harry was the one with the most legitimate career. Angus and George were respectively, smugglers and thieves. Stephen specialized in acts of revenge. And Monsale was up to his elbows in every money-making scheme in the country, with a penchant for the illegal ones.
It was going to take a great deal of love and understanding on the part of any woman to sign up to a life with a husband who lived a secret life outside of the law.
The cold and distant way Alice had been with him this morning didn’t fill Harry with any sense of hope.
Damn.
He pushed the worry of Alice to the back of his mind as best he could. He and Stephen had a job to do. “Go and get your pistol. I will organize the theatre ticket. Let’s handle what we can tonight, and I will deal with the rest later.”
For a long while after Stephen had left the room, he pondered his predicament. Tell Alice everything and hope that she might feel enough affection for him to consider becoming his wife. That would mean her having to accept some hard truths about him and his friends.
The other option was for him to permanently step away from the illegal operations of the RR Coaching Company and try to eke out an honest living. To give up on his friends.
Bloody hell, what am I going to do?
There was one thing he was sure of right at this moment; he couldn’t build a future with Alice based on a lie.
She is an heiress; her dowry must be substantial. You could live off her father’s money.
“No. That would make me no better than Cuthbert Saint. And she would hate me.”
Chapter 15
A little before seven o’clock that evening, Cuthbert Saint left the Grand Hotel and started on the short walk to Drury Lane Theatre. He made it as far as Broad Court.
Passing number 15 Broad Court, he was suddenly grabbed from behind and dragged off the street and through a doorway. The door was firmly closed, and he was left standing in a foyer lit only by a small chandelier.
“You’ve picked the wrong gentleman to rob. I have no money,” he pleaded.
From out of the dark, a large figure, clad all in black appeared. He walked with measured steps, oozing menace. Harry, who was standing well out of sight in a corner, slowly shook his head. Stephen had a thing for dramatic effect.
“I know exactly who you are, Cuthbert Leigh. And what you are up to,” said Stephen.
A satisfying gasp came from their prisoner. Harry much preferred that to the haughty scoff which professional villains deemed as the hallmark of their trade.
“What do you want?” replied Cuthbert.
Stephen cocked his pistol and raised it, aiming straight for Cuthbert’s face. If he fired now, the shot would be at near point-blank range and most certainly fatal.
“You give up on trying to win Patience North’s hand and you leave London. Tonight. If you don’t then my friends and I will make sure you are the victim of a terrible accident.”
If it didn’t put his whole career in jeopardy, Harry would be the one holding the pistol. But a mask and a black suit couldn’t hide a man’s voice. He dared not risk Cuthbert recognizing him.
“But I love Patience. I wish to marry her,” replied Cuthbert.
The man had balls; he wasn’t going to take the threat at face value. He had more spine that Harry had expected him to possess.
“Have you asked yourself whether she cares for you? Who else do you think sent me?” snorted Stephen.
He retrieved a coin purse from his coat pocket and threw it to Cuthbert, who quickly caught it.
“There is enough money in that purse to get you a start anywhere else in the country. Though I would suggest you might want to forget about the north. There is a Scottish lord who might be very interested in your whereabouts and also that of some of his trinkets,” said Stephen.
Even in the poor light, Harry caught a glimpse of the shock on Cuthbert’s face. He clearly hadn’t been expecting anyone to know about his past life.
His head and shoulders dropped, and for the briefest of moments, Harry felt a twinge of pity. That could very well be him standing there while a stranger threatened to unveil his secret life.
Remember what you said to Alice. Steady your nerves.
“Alright, I will leave London. If Patience does not want me, then I will go,” said Cuthbert.
“Good man. In time, you will see that you have made the right decision. Now, you and I are going to leave by the rear entrance where a carriage is waiting. The late mail coach to Harwich leaves from the Spread Eagle Coaching Company in Gracechurch Street in an hour. I intend that you will be on board. My loaded pistol will make certain of it.”
Cuthbert closed his eyes and sighed. “I did love her. Could you please at least let Patience know that she held my heart?”
Bloody hell. Just go! Leave the poor girl in peace.
Harry moved farther into the shadows as Stephen guided Cuthbert out the door, only slightly relaxing as the sound of the lock clicking reverberated in the silence.
As soon as he had heard from Stephen that Cuthbert Saint had indeed boarded the coach to the English coast, he would send word to Alice. The job was done.
As he made his way back out into Broad Court, Harry had a sinking feeling that the easy part was now over, but what lay ahead may well be out of his control.
Chapter 16
Alice replied by letter early the next morning thanking Harry for his efforts but left it at that. A second note had reached the house late last night. He may well have quit London, but Cuthbert Saint had not gone quietly.
“He says he has to leave for a time but begged me not to forget about him. Oh, Alice, what could possibly have happened?” said Patience.