A dainty hand slid over his arm as the woman, having briefly stumbled when Adrian passed her, approached him once more.“Somewhere nearby, I expect.How about we find him together after I show you how a good hostess should greet men like you?”
He scowled at her.“I’ve no interest in what you’re offering.”
“But—”
Eager to be done with his task, he stalked toward a pair of glass doors and flung them open so hard he heard their frames crack.“Macintyre?”
Not finding him in the gaming room, Adrian turned on his heel and shouted for him once more.“Macintyre?”
A thud came from somewhere upstairs.Adrian glanced at the woman, who suddenly blocked his path.“Get out of my way.”
“Please, don’t hurt him.”
He didn’t have time for this nonsense.Grabbing her upper arm, he yanked her sideways so he could pass then dashed up the stairs while she screamed words of warning to Adrian’s quarry.Maybe he should have tied her up and gagged her first.The last thing he felt like right now was a rooftop chase.
Turning left, he started along the hallway, thrusting doors open as he went, searching for the man who’d indebted himself to his father.He found him soon enough, half dressed and with one leg out an open window.
Adrian leapt forward and grabbed him by the shirt collar, yanking him inside with so much momentum they fell back together, onto the floor.Macintyre grunted and started to scramble, still hell-bent on his escape.
Unwilling to let that happen, Adrian jammed his fist into Macintyre’s shoulder, knocking the man sideways just enough to let Adrian pin him down.
“Please, please, please,” Macintyre cried.“I’ll do whatever you—”
Adrian’s fist connected with Macintyre’s jaw, splitting his lip and sending a thin stream of blood down his chin.“You’ve said so before.”
Another punch to Macintyre’s face cracked his nose with an unpleasant crunch.Adrian beat him until he stopped struggling and his head lolled to one side.Only then did he grab him by the front of his shirt and haul him upright so he could deposit him on a chair.
Adrian leaned in, his eyes boring deep into Macintyre’s soul.“Everything you own has been paid for by the Crofts.We’ve built you up and we’ll tear you down if you don’t meet the terms of our agreement.”
“I’m trying,” Macintyre wheezed.
“Try harder,” Adrian growled.“The club has been thriving these last three months since it was reopened.Your payment to us is long overdue.I want names, details, and fifty percent of the profits.”
Just to be sure the man understood how serious he was, Adrian drew the blade he’d concealed in his sleeve and held it against his throat.Macintyre’s eyes bulged.He started to tremble, and then the pungent smell of urine filled the air.He’d bloody well gone and pissed himself.
Good.
The greater his fear, the simpler this would be.Adrian pressed the blade closer, until he knew Macintyre felt a sting.“Well?”
“The Earl of Elmhurst cheated last night,” Macintyre rasped.“Paid me a hundred pounds to let the incident slide when I drew him aside.”
“That’s not the kind of information I’m after,” Adrian hissed.He already knew the earl to be underhanded.A series of similar incidents filled the file he’d gathered on him.
“All right…all right…” Macintyre’s gaze darted toward the door.He leaned back slightly, away from the blade, but Arian only pressed it harder against his throat.“One of the serving girls overheard something about Lord Glendale being pro-French.”
Adrian eased the blade a little.This was better.If word got out that the man who’d led a campaign against Napoleon’s army and lost might have done so on purpose, he’d be arrested and hanged for treason.
Adrian stepped back, removing his blade from Macintyre’s throat in the process.“I’ll take the fifty percent now.”
“But I—”
“Before you finish that sentence, I urge you to consider what will happen to you if you tell me you don’t have the blunt.”
“Right.Yes.Of course.I’ll fetch it for you right now.”
“And don’t try to cheat me,” Adrian warned.“I know how much you make on average per night.”
He left The Devil’s Den ten minutes later with nearly three thousand pounds in his pocket, and headed toward his next destination.
