He threw his head back with a frustrated groan, then mounted his horse and set off after the carriage. The entire time he debated with himself about what an imbecile he was. If he had only sent a note, he would not be in this situation. He wasn’t even sure she was deserving of his heroism. She didstealfrom him, after all.
For a moment, he thought he had lost track of the carriage, and he began glancing down every side street he passed—until finally, he saw where they went and turned to follow them. They were about ten houses down when the carriage rolled to a halt, and the man jumped down from his perch on the front.
Leonard stopped his horse, trying to watch what was happening without being caught. A man walked by on the street with what appeared to be his wife.
“Afternoon,” Leonard said, tipping his hat to them.
They didn’t even slow, just smiled and returned the greeting.
He looked back to the carriage, where Mrs. Gillingham and her two muscled escorts were now at a door. The men didn’t even knock, just opened the door and nearly forced her inside.
“Excuse me,” Leonard said, calling out to the couple who had barely made it past them.
They stopped and turned. Their inconvenience at being so addressed was quite obvious. “Yes?” the gentleman asked.
“Um, could you tell me who lives in that home?”
They peered behind him, and the woman asked with curious eyes, “With the carriage out front?”
“Yes.” He nodded.
“I believe that’s where Mr. Balfour lives,” the man said, his brow furrowed.
The woman beside him sighed. “No, dear. That is where Mr. Hind lives. Mr. Balfour lives two houses down.”
“Are you quite sure?”
The wife tipped her chin. “Quite.”
“Thank you.” Leonard led his horse to the other side of the street. He would simply check on Mrs. Gillingham, find that she was completely fine, and then head home. Slipping his horse’s reins over a nearby hitching post, he begrudgingly made his way to the front door he had seen her enter through. And then, worry began to nag at his stomach. It was possible she truly was indanger, and he was hardly equipped to handle such a situation at present. His feet moved quicker with his last thought, and his hand flew to the door and knocked before he completely thought through the situation.
But no one came to the door.
He knocked again, harder this time. When still no one came, he decided more drastic measures might be necessary.
“Excuse me,” he nearly yelled. “I need Mrs. Gillingham to come to the door this instant, or I shall be forced to alert the authorities.”
This time, footsteps rumbled inside, and the door opened to reveal the second thug who had practically pushed Mrs. Gillingham.
“Can I help you?” The man was much bigger than Leonard, his jacket stretching unnaturally over his shoulders.
“Uh,” he stuttered. “Yes. As I said. I need to speak to Mrs. Gillingham.” So much for his confidence. He could slap himself for stuttering his words.
“She is unavailable at the moment.”
Leonard gritted his teeth. “No, I am afraid that is not acceptable. She needs to come to the door now.”
“Or?” The thug’s voice was threaded with amusement.
He refused to shift his feet. “As I said. I will alert the authorities.”
The shoulder man only rolled his eyes, stepping to the side to allow Leonard inside. As soon as Leonard stepped foot in the townhouse, he heard Mrs. Gillingham laugh and saw her walk down the stairs with a third man he didn’t recognize just behind her.
Mr. Hind, presumably.
“Oh, Mr. Stanton.” Mrs. Gillingham smiled as if it was perfectly natural for all of them to be in this bizarre situation. “What a lovely surprise.”
“I had thought . . .” He glanced about the room before thinking it better not to accuse all these men of some crime while in their own residence and while he was very much without any sort of defense.
