“Yes.” Elizabeth opened the door, and a shadow fell over the doorway. She gasped and stepped backward. The barrel of the gun entered before the man holding it came into view.
Idle stood a few feet from him. The navy greatcoat he wore matched that of the man he’d seen fleeing. If Idle were part of a search party, he would have no reason to run away. Questions crowded his mind as he pasted on a false smile and willed his expression to remain friendly. Before he dropped his guard, he needed some answers. “Thank goodness you found us. We have been trapped in this hut for two days because of the storm.”
“Yes, it would appear so.”
“Lower the gun before you hurt Mrs. Adare,” Langdon said, taking in the four men who were standing behind Idle. One of them looked familiar. He smiled and recognition dawned. Mr. Jocko had been the man in Stanton’s office. A pit formed in his stomach. If Jocko worked for Stanton, then Idle was here because Stanton sent him. Or Idle could be working alone. He wouldn’t be the first man to go rogue.
“I am giving the orders here, my lord.” Idle pressed the muzzle of the gun into Elizabeth’s forehead, the smirk more pronounced.
She stood stock still, the speedy rise and fall of her chest the single indication of her fear. “I will gladly talk if you lower the weapon,” she said.
He met Langdon’s regard, ignoring Elizabeth. “I suggest you listen carefully to everything I am about to say, or she will pay the price. Jocko, Langdon carries two knives. Make sure you get both of them before you secure his hands.”
The gap-toothed man patted him down, the stench of stale gin and tobacco clinging to him. Langdon squared his shoulders, calculating the risk of fighting his way out of this. Without the weapon, he was even more vulnerable. Elizabeth still had the gun tucked into the waistband of her breeches. The pistol boosted her chances of escape, except it was inaccessible to her at this moment. All in all, the odds were not in their favor.
Jocko yanked his arms behind his back and placed the rough hemp over his wrists. The other three men appeared very ill-at-ease over the entire affair. But like the cowards they were, they stood silent. If he fought back, there was a slight chance he might escape, but if he cooperated, he would be close to Elizabeth.
The risks were too high to fail, and it would be better to be in her company until he could come up with a viable plan.
“Where are you taking us?” Elizabeth asked, chin raised. The wobble in her voice revealed her fear. He wanted to assure her everything would be fine, but he couldn’t lie to her.
“Down the path where we can talk without being disturbed.” Idle fell in step next to Elizabeth, one hand gripping her upper arm, the pistol in the other.
“We can talk here without being disturbed.” Fear for her safety threatened to derail Langdon’s calm. He couldn’t allow himself to go down that road. Until his last breath was gone, there was hope of getting them out of danger.
“You’re not in charge of this endeavor, my lord,” Idle said with chilling spite. Since the clerk was leading them back down the path to the smuggler’s cave, it meant he was ignorant of the other passage that led up to the cottage. The escape route might come in handy.
Until that time, there were so many questions he had. Elizabeth had suspected Randell. While Langdon had no doubt the man had some involvement, there had been another mastermind, and he was under their nose the entire time. Idle.
Chapter Thirty-Three
“You will never get away with this.” Elizabeth had no choice but to walk beside Idle on the strip of sandy beach outside the smuggler’s cave. The gun was tucked in the waistband of the breeches she wore, and there was no way to use it without removing her skirt.
Cold sea wind whipped around them, the briny scent adding to the nausea that churned her stomach. Ever aware of the gun pressed to her side, she tried to control her panic. Calmness would be key to escaping from the obnoxious clerk. One wrong move and death would be imminent; for her and for Langdon.
“Get away with what?” he asked, his fingers on her arm tightening to a painful degree.
“Killing me and Langdon.” The bile burned a path up her throat, and she inhaled the cool air. Sunshine caused her to squint, the brightness of a new day mocking the darkness looming up ahead. The second she entered the cave, blackness overwhelmed her until her eyes adjusted to the dimness. Until she and Langdon explored the caves, she’d never dared enter them for fear of bodily harm. She had no delusions that Idle would simply let her go free. “By now, my father will have sounded the alarm, I—”
Bitter laughter cut her off. “Your father? Really? That is the best lie you could come up with? Silly chit, everyone already thinks you were killed in the storm. If I were set to kill you, I simply wouldn’t have bothered to correct them.”
Her heart skipped a beat at the harsh words. Langdon’s life was in equal danger, and it was all because of her. She’d insisted on the investigation into Randell. He’d agreed out of guilt for misleading her.
The torches were lit in the main chamber and a decisive chill lingered. Idle pushed her towards a brandy barrel situated around the fire pit, the cheeriness of the fire in direct contrast to the horror she was about to endure.
