Debutantes Don’t Date (22 page)

They could see the house when a shout rang out through the streets. Startled, Grace
and Anne both jerked their heads towards the warning. A curricle barrelled down the
street, barely missing everything in its path. Anne let out a loud gasp and tried
to thrust Grace behind her. Grace stared in confusion at the scene unfolding before
her. It was like a film in slow motion and she didn’t realise she was a part of the
action until it was too late.

Anne’s arm pushed Grace back and she stumbled, losing time she could have used to
run. By the time she regained her footing, the vehicle was upon them and she could
see who was driving. Lord Wester. Anne and Jasper were right, she thought as she watched
him leap from the seat and grab at her. He does want her gone! Grace turned to run
but it was too late and Lord Wester’s hand was like a vice on her arm. He pulled her
up onto the seat beside him and flew his team back down the road. Grace caught a look
at her friend’s face as they went around a corner.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Lord Wester raced them through the streets, his curricle weaving in and out of traffic.
Grace didn’t dare try to escape for fear of being trampled by horses and carriages.
She could all too well picture her lifeless body bloody and broken on the frozen street,
last night’s snow slowly turning red around her.

“Where are you taking me?” she shouted over the sound of the wheels bouncing over
the cobblestones and the horses’ hooves and loud breath.

He didn’t bother replying. She supposed it didn’t matter where they were going just
that they were going. She hoped Anne would hurry to tell Jasper. The look on her friend’s
face as they sped away was one of shock and horror and Grace hoped Anne would be able
to think of what to do. Every minute Lord Wester raced her away was an hour it could
take to find her.

Jasper was looking forward to sitting in front of the fire with a brandy when he returned
home. Who knew planning a wedding was such hard work? He’d just finished having a
very long conversation with the minister who was officiating the service. A conversation
he thought would be over in less than a quarter of an hour had taken all afternoon.
Now the setting sun was stuck behind a cloud, casting an eerie light on the street.
When his coach reached his street he saw lights coming from a house at the far end.
As they neared he realised they were coming from his house. His driver must have noticed
as well. Before Jasper could order him to hurry, the coach sped up as fast as it was
able in the light evening traffic.

His footman opened the door before the coach came to a complete stop.

“Hurry, my lord, Lord Harrison is in the library waiting to explain everything.” His
butler, Madison, was unusually agitated. Jasper didn’t stop to find out why but raced
up the steps into his house and headed for the library, a knot thick in his stomach.

“I tried to warn her.” Lady Anne was sitting on the settee watering his upholstery.
“I told her he was mad.” She sniffed and blew her nose into the soaking handkerchief
she held crumpled in her hands.

Jasper turned to Neal who seemed calmer than Lady Anne. “What’s going on?” He looked
around the room and noticed someone missing and his heart stopped beating. “Where’s
Grace?”

“Apparently Lady Anne and Miss Lancaster went for a walk in the park this afternoon
and had started to head home when Lady Anne’s brother abducted Grace. They were only
a few doors from home.”

Jasper’s legs gave out and he fell into a chair. “Wester’s got Grace? When did this
happen? I thought Rupert was watching him?”

“We can’t find Rupert. It happened around two o’clock. Lady Anne was brought to our
house by the footman we had following them and then he and two others gave chase.
We sent messages to every place we could think of to try to find you. Where have you
been?”

“At the church.” Jasper’s mind was starting to work again. “Have you heard from the
footmen yet?”

“Not yet. I also sent for…” Before he could finish his sentence, the door burst open.
“Lord Lancaster.”

“What is this about my granddaughter being kidnapped? Why are you two not out there
trying to find her? Why is that girl blubbing in the corner?”

“We’re doing all we can, Lord Lancaster,” Neal replied. “We don’t know where he would’ve
taken her and we’re not sure if the men who gave chase were able to pick up his trail.”

Madison came into the room. “Sorry to disturb you, my lord, but the footmen who followed
Miss Lancaster are here.”

“Send them in!” all three men shouted.

“I’m sorry, my lord, but we lost them on the outskirts of town,” said one of the footmen
after all three had entered the room and bowed.

“Which way were they headed?”

“To the south, my lord.”

“Do you know where he might be going, Jasper?” Neal asked.

“Not a clue.”

“I do,” a small voice said into the stillness of the room. Jasper had forgotten she
was there. They all turned to Lady Anne who had risen from her seat and wiped the
last of her tears from her eyes. “He is headed to the woodsman’s cottage. My mother’s
family owned land in that direction and there’s a small cabin where we used to play
as children.” She brushed her hands down her skirts becoming all business in seconds;
a hard look in her eye. “If he was travelling south he’ll be heading there. Mother’s
father sold the land three years ago but Robin still thinks of it as his. He was to
inherit that land when grandfather died, but it was sold before then to help father
pay off my brother’s debts.”

“How far away is this cabin?”

“Two days by carriage. But he will switch to horseback at The Running Duck Tavern.
He has a friend who owns it and since he probably borrowed the curricle from there,
he’ll be wanting his horse back. Besides, he will be able to travel faster then. I
just wish I had thought of that earlier.”

“Yes, that would have been for the best,” Jasper said before he could stop himself.
Lady Anne looked distraught at his words and he could have kicked himself for causing
her pain. It was clear she was as worried over Grace as the rest of them.

“Pray don’t upset yourself, Lady Anne,” Neal said soothingly. “You have had quite
a shock and you have helped us now, isn’t that right, Jasper?”

“No, he’s right, Lord Harrison,” Lady Anne replied briskly, “I feel that it is my
fault. I knew Robin wanted to prevent the wedding so I would be able to marry Lord
Bingham as planned, but I didn’t think he would do anything like this. He insisted
I become friends with Grace. I wish now that I hadn’t. It has put her in danger.”
Lady Anne’s voice broke, but she managed to keep her tears at bay.

Jasper wanted to strangle Lady Anne for taking so long to think where her brother
would go, but Neal was right, at least they had somewhere to start. “Your brother
would have taken her whether you were her friend or not,” he said. “At least you were
there to tell Lord Harrison what had happened, and now thanks to you we know where
to look. That is more than we would ever have known if it wasn’t for you.” Jasper
raised his voice. “Madison!”

His butler had obviously been listening in the hallway; he appeared in seconds.

“Have Rogers saddle my horse and send a boy to Lord Harrison’s so his groom can do
the same, and see if you can find Lord Rupert Caine too, wherever the hell he may
be, and Lord Eaglestone too, if you can. We need all the help we can get. We shall
be leaving in less than half an hour.” Madison quickly left the room and Jasper turned
again to Lady Anne. “Tell us exactly how to get there. Even better, can you show us
on the map?”

They arrived at The Running Duck as the sun was starting to set. Robin spent hours
weaving their way through the city trying to hide their route. Grace was sure there
was someone following them for a while but Robin seemed more relaxed as they entered
the tavern’s yard.

“Behave yourself, wench,” Robin hissed at her as he helped her down from the curricle.
“One wrong word out of you and you won’t live to see our destination. Do I make myself
clear?”

Grace nodded. His fingernails were cutting into the palms of her hands and she admitted
to herself that she was scared. She’d never been kidnapped before but figured the
best way to stay alive was to do as she was told. She fought the instinct to run.
She knew she wouldn’t get very far.

A man came out of the tavern to greet them. “Wester, what do you have there? You never
mentioned you were bringing a lady friend. You know we already have plenty of them
here.”

“Thank you, Charles, I’d be delighted to once again make their acquaintance, but we
are in a bit of a hurry and are just here to return your fine horse and vehicle and
to pick up my horse. You don’t happen to have another beast to let for the lady do
you? Like I said, we are in a bit of a hurry.”

Through the whole exchange, Robin didn’t let go of Grace’s arm. If anything his grip
tightened with each word. Tears were forming in her eyes and she gave ‘Charles’ a
pleading look.

Charles ignored her and continued his conversation with his friend. “I’m not sure
I have one for you.” He stroked his chin. “You still owe me from last time.” Robin
looked to Grace, but she didn’t have any money. As if she would give him any, even
if she did.

“Fine, we’ll double. I’ll have to catch up with you next time.” Robin led Grace away
to get his horse.

Once they were out of town they moved at a quicker pace and covered ground quickly,
but Grace did wonder at the wisdom of doubling on a horse when they could be travelling
faster by curricle.

“Thanks to you, I don’t have the funds to hire one. I didn’t even have enough for
a horse for you, did I?”

“Explain to me again how it’s my fault you have spent all
your
money.” Grace knew to provoke her captor wasn’t the greatest idea, but she had to
find something to take her mind off the fact not only was she travelling away from
the man she now knew she loved, but she was pressed firmly against the man whom she
loathed. Besides, she had to get rid of the suspicious lump she could feel against
her ass.

“I was counting on the money from my sister to cover my investments and you have ruined
me by taking that money away.”

“But how could I take away money that was never yours? You yourself say it was going
to be your sister’s money. How can you say it was taken away from
you
?”

“It was mine!” He gave her a shake that rattled her teeth. “I needed it and it was
mine and you took it from me!” He screamed like a little child who had been denied
a favourite toy.

It was cold now that the sun had set, and Grace was reluctant to lean against the
crazed man behind her but it was March and the air was chilly and snow was still on
the ground. The air puffed like smoke from their lips and steam rose off the horse’s
neck.

“There’s a homestead up ahead that has a barn where we can spend the night,” Robin
said to her after another hour of riding. At least there was a full moon they could
see by.

When the barn came into view Grace was frozen and her muscles were so stiff from shivering
that Robin had to push her off the horse so he could dismount. She fell like a lump
to the ground and she couldn’t get up.

“Come on.” Robin dragged her to her feet by her hair and pulled her into the barn.

The hay was piled in the back and Grace gratefully collapsed amongst its warmth. Knowing
full well she would be extremely itchy tomorrow when she woke up, she dug herself
in and piled the hay over her, like a blanket. As the warmth seeped into her chilled
bones, the shivering slowed and her eyelids drooped. But she wasn’t about to go to
sleep while Robin was still awake. She needed to keep alert until he was no longer
a danger. She planned to wait until he was snoring before succumbing to the sleep
that beckoned her.

She would like to steal away in the night and head back to London, but she knew she
would perish in the cold and she was too tired to move, let along make a run for it.
Her bones felt heavy from the after-effects of the adrenaline rush.

Robin finished rubbing the horse down and gave it some feed before he lay down on
the hay as well. “Miss Lancaster?” he whispered into the darkness. At her grunt of
acknowledgement his hand flashed into the hay and grabbed her arm again. “Don’t even
think of stealing my horse tonight,” he hissed into her ear.

The bruises from this afternoon protested at being squeezed and Grace muffled a gasp
of pain. He hauled her out of her nest and pulled her against him. Panic clouded her
mind and before she could react he had her wrist bound with some rope he must have
found in the barn and tied the other end to his.

“You aren’t going anywhere tonight.” He threw hay over the top of her, turned onto
his side and went to sleep, his snores practically shaking the building.

Grace tried to snuggle deeper into the hay to regain some warmth, but every time she
tried to move she woke Lord Wester and he yanked her arm. The last tug he gave made
her sprawl up against his back, spooning him like a lover. The heat coming from his
body soon warmed her and despite the discomfort of being so close to the man who kidnapped
her, she couldn’t help but fall into an exhausted sleep. The memories of this afternoon
in the drawing room were lost in the darkness.

Chapter Twenty-Four

The night was cold but Jasper and Neal didn’t stop until they reached The Running
Duck Tavern. Their questions didn’t elicit any answers but they couldn’t go any further
until daylight. They were lucky to get a room for the night after the tense discussion
they had with the inn keeper.

“That didn’t go at all well did it?” Neal said as he shut the door. They would be
sharing a room tonight even though it didn’t look like the other rooms were full.

“No it didn’t. Wester must still have some friends even if he owes them all money.”
He gave a slight smile. “I hope if I am ever in the same situation, I will be so lucky.”