“No, thank you, Gwen. I intend to find these devils today. And I won’t have anyone else placed in danger. The constable and the magistrate will be here this morning. If I fail, I’ll send for the Bow Street Runners. It depends on what Warren and I discover today.”
“Please be careful, Nicholas. They’re murderers.”
“We were soldiers, Gwen. Out of practice maybe, but we haven’t forgotten how to flush out the enemy and deal with them.”
“Of course. I know you do.” She stalked across the carpet, her skirts swaying. “I hate to leave Carrie saddled with all this,” she said, spinning around. “I shall stay.”
“No. Go home until this is over. The fewer people I have to worry about, the better.”
“But…”
“No buts, Gwen, I insist.”
She sighed and came to kiss his cheek. “Remember, we are only a few hours away. Winston will come if you send word.”
“I know he would. Have a safe journey. An armed groom will travel with you in case you strike trouble.”
“Surely there’s no need.”
“There’s every need.”
She gave a nervous nod. “Perhaps you’re right.”
After she left, Nicholas went in search of Carrie. He found her with Miss Scotsdale, Bella, and Jeremy in the morning room, where they worked on a puzzle. The children were laughing.
Carrie rose and came to greet him.
Miss Scotsdale stared owlishly at him but said nothing. Bella and Jeremy seemed mercifully unaware of what happened during the night.
Jeremy stared at him, his eyes bright with expectation. Nicholas gestured to silence the boy before he could make his usual demands. “You and Bella must be patient and remain indoors today. I will be very angry if I hear you’ve caused Carrie and Miss Scotsdale any trouble.”
“Can we play with our puppies, Nicholas?” Bella smiled sweetly at him.
He had expected this. “You may. But in the schoolroom. I’ll have the rug taken up.”
Carrie accompanied him to the front door. Outside on the drive, Warren waited with the two horses. “Please don’t take any risks,” she urged him, her eyes wide and troubled. Her hand on his sleeve trembled.
Nicholas suffered a swift, desperate desire to enfold her in his arms and kiss her. Instead, he grasped her chin with his finger and thumb, forcing a smile. “I don’t intend to. Don’t worry.”
Once mounted, they trotted their horses along the drive toward the bridle track which led to the river. Never in his life had he expected to face such a challenge to hearth and home and to those he loved. Rage tightened his stomach; he fought to tamp it down. He knew from experience anger clouded the brain and led to missteps. He didn’t intend to lose his cool; clear-headed thinking had always served him well on the battlefield.
They entered the woods. Bird calls and rustles among the bushes greeted them beneath the canopy. Nicholas breathed in the smells of damp and rotting leaves. He saw no sign of a disturbance made by this man or men. Had they ridden this way?
Nicholas rode out of the woods with Warren and made for the bridge over the river. “Maybe Vano can tell us more. He will know if any strangers are still in the area,” he said to Warren. They urged their horses into a gallop across the fields and headed north to where the coil of smoke wafting into the sky pinpointed the position of the wanderer camp.
The gypsies had begun to pack. Vano stepped forward and hailed them as they approached.
Nicholas leaned towards him from the saddle. “You’re leaving?”
“A day or two, milord. Time to move on once my child is born.”
“I hope the birthing goes well.” He didn’t ask how many children Vano had but suspected many of the children running about the camp were his progeny. Nor was he about to discuss with Vano what had occurred during the night. “Has anyone seen the man at target practice again?”
Vano nodded. “One of my men saw him on horseback this morning.”
Nicholas’s pulse quickened. “Could he describe the fellow?”
He shrugged. “Dark hair is all.”
