“We’re the ones wot say where they go and who they go with, that’swho,” snarled Lucien. He dragged Beth towards the door. “I’ll give you wotfor when I get you home!”
Beth started to wail. Miles grabbed Blanche without hindrance fromeither of her would-be swains. As they got to the door, Beth saw thepistol Tom had put down and grabbed it. Then they were out.
As they ran through the back yard towards the mews, there was a roaredobscenity. “No little drap’s going to do fer me!”
“Tom!” Beth gasped and thrust the pistol into Lucien’s hands.
“What have you been up to?” he drawled as he quickly checked it. Aglance back showed the three guards in the doorway.
“Come on!” whispered Nicholas.
They all ran into the mews, heading for the exit into Upper BrookStreet where Tom Holloway was waiting with a carriage in case they neededa quick escape. A carriage entered the mews from that direction.
“Hell,” muttered Nicholas.
They looked back. Deveril’s bullies were coming into the mews and atleast one had a pistol. With a curse, Nicholas flattened himself againstthe wall out of sight. Lucien waved the pistol, and the men hesitated.
It seemed an age they were frozen there. Would the men raise an alarm?Or were they too disreputable to call attention to themselves? Would thecoachman try to stop them if they ran past him?
“Scylla and Charybdis,” murmured Lucien lightly. “Can we takethem?”
“Psst!”
They all looked in astonishment at the nearest carriage house. A smallfigure appeared and beckoned urgently.
“Robin!” Beth gasped.
“Come on!” the boy whispered and beckoned again.
After a moment they ran towards him, Nicholas carefully moving behindthem.
“Stop them!” bellowed Tom. “Thievery!”
“Oy there!” yelled the coachman. “Stop!”
They were in the coachhouse. “Follow me,” said Robin and darted throughthe vehicles towards the back.
Without question, they obeyed. He led them out an unglazed window andinto a narrow gap between the coach house and the wall of a nearby house.It was clogged with weeds, but they trampled along it after the boy. Hestopped and disappeared through the wooden wall into another building ofthe mews. When Beth got there she found two planks were missing, allowingenough space for a person to squeeze by.
They were in a stable with three horses standing in stalls. The beastsshifted lazily. In the distance they could here the bangs and voices oftheir pursuers.
Robin silently pointed to a ladder. They crept over and climbed up tofind themselves in unused sleeping quarters, dusty and almost pitch dark.Robin moved the ladder over against a wall then reached up. Getting hismeaning, Lucien leaned down, with Nicholas and Miles anchoring his legs,and hoisted the boy up.
They shut the hatch and collapsed in the dark to get their breath back.Beth could hear someone, probably Nicholas, trying not to laugh. Theycould hear faint voices but none nearby.
There were two windows. They were very dirty but they let in some lightand gradually Beth’s eyes adjusted so that she could see a little. Shewriggled over into Lucien’s arms.
“Exciting enough for you?” he murmured.
She laughed softly. “Truth to tell, I’m enjoying myself.”
“So I gather. What did you do to poor Tom?”
“Knocked him out with a skillet. He was taking liberties.”
He stifled his laughter against her shoulder.
“To what do we owe the pleasure of this rescue?” asked Nicholas ofRobin.
