“Myjobwill be to wait at the inn while the rest of them free my brother,” she said sulkily. “I might as well be here and keep you company.”
Xenia didn’t want the young woman anywhere near the property when her mama came. “You need to be safe,” she said firmly.
“Are you certain you will be all right, Mrs. Wood?” Lord Blackwood studied her. “I share Gigi’s concerns, but in the event your mama is watching, we must give the appearance of following her instructions to the letter.”
Earlier, Xenia had told the cook, footmen, and maids that, as a reward for their excellent service, the master had given them three days off. Everyone had seemed elated at the prospect and didn’t waste time vacating the premises. In case the manor was being monitored, the guards had been instructed to depart as well. Half would meet up with the Blackwoods and assist in freeing Ethan; the other half was to monitor the manor discreetly from afar. At the first sign of trouble, they would swoop in and help to capture Lady Jo and her gang.
“Hopefully, Ethan’s old retainers will have found the constable and conveyed our plan,” Lady Blackwood added. “Help will be on the way.”
Rawlins and his men were to serve as additional reinforcements. Like the guards, the constables were to surveil the manor while lying low.
“According to Owen’s reconnaissance, the abandoned farmhouse where they are keeping Ethan is only a few miles away,” Lord Blackwood said. “Once we free Ethan, we will return straightaway.”
“I will be fine.” Xenia managed a smile. “The only thing that matters is Ethan’s well-being.”
“That is not the only thing, my dear.”
To her surprise, Lady Blackwood pulled her into a hug. The maternal gesture swelled Xenia’s throat. She had to blink away tears as the other’s warmth engulfed her.
Releasing her, the marchioness said softly, “You are more than your past, Xenia. Youchoseto be more—to be the woman my son fell in love with. Do not doubt yourself, for Ethan never would.”
The Blackwoods left. Although she was alone, Xenia did not feel that way. Ethan’s family had bolstered her courage, and as she looked around the empty manor, she felt the support of another presence as well. It reminded her that she was the housekeeper: she had given Bottoms House care and attention, and now it would give her what she needed.
She straightened her shoulders, giving a nod.
“You’re right,” she said. “This ismyhome. And I will not go down without a fight.”
Xenia spent the day setting up reinforcements. She’d learned a thing or two from the years spent under her mama’s thumb. Her knowledge of the house gave her an advantage, which she utilized to the fullest. She hated undoing the work that had been done, but the manor could be fixed up again whereas she had only one shot at survival. After she was done setting traps and compiling weapons, she tidied up and left everything looking as it had before. Her housekeeping skills had come a long way, after all.
She spent what extra time she had looking for the stolen goods. She checked all the attic rooms, including the one where the bats had been, and even went to look in the coal cellar. She found nothing. A feeling niggled at her…as if she were forgetting something, but for the life of her, she didn’t know what it was.
By the time dusk was seeping through the windows, she still hadn’t found anything resembling treasure. Thank heavens for the Blackwoods’ plan. By now, Lady Jo ought to have left the farmhouse to come here. Knowing her, she would travel with most of her pack, leaving behind a few men to guard Ethan. If things were going as planned, the Blackwoods would have made their move, and Ethan might already be safe.
Xenia clung to that hope even as the doorbell rang.
Inhaling, she went to open it.
Lady Jo swept in like the mistress of the manor. She wore a frock of forest-green velvet, her braided hair wound like a crown on the top of her head. She’d brought eleven lackeys with her, all armed to the teeth…figuratively speaking, as the brutes were missing most of their pearly whites.
“Good evening, daughter mine,” Lady Jo said grandly. “Do you have my jewels?”
“Yes, Mama.” Xenia managed to keep her voice even. “If I show you where they are, what is my guarantee that you will set Ethan free?”
“There are no guarantees in life, dear heart.” Lady Jo pulled a pistol from her skirts, pointing it at Xenia. “Except for the consequences if you cross me. Now show me the loot, girl, and be quick about it.”
Her heart thumping, Xenia prayed that she could buy enough time for the reinforcements to arrive.
“Follow me,” she said.
Taking cover behind a hedgerow, Ethan spotted the two waiting wagons parked outside the manor, each handled by a driver. At the farmhouse where he’d been held, he’d counted fifteen cutthroats in addition to Lady Jo. Even minus the two who’d been left to watch him—those bastards were in custody, thanks to his family’s rescue efforts—that still left a sizeable number of enemies to deal with.
“In addition to the two parked out front, there are eleven brutes inside,” Ethan said in a low voice. “Plus Lady Jo. Rawlins, take your men through the back. My team will take the front. The priority is finding Mrs. Wood and keeping her safe. Is that understood?”
“Yes, my lord,” Rawlins replied. “Eyes sharp, men.”
The constable and his team kept under the cover of hedges as they made their way behind the house.
Ethan addressed his group. “Papa and Mama, keep watch out here. If the enemy tries to escape with Xenia, stop them.”
