Kissing Cousins (20 page)

“
We should report it,
”
she said reluctantly.

“
Yes, but first I
’
ll get you out of here. I
’
ll take you to a hotel, and hire a carriage to take you to Miss Donaldson. We
’
d best extinguish these lamps.
”

He turned the wick down until the flames guttered out, throwing them into utter darkness. Samantha clung to his arm as they headed for the front door. He was just reaching for the knob, when a loud knocking on the door brought them to a halt.

“
Would it be Jonathon?
”
she whispered.

“
He
’
s supposed to be at the back door. He wouldn
’
t knock.
”

Without the necessity of further discussion, they turned and felt their way along the corridor, heading toward the rear of the house, stumbling over tables and chairs and finally banging into a closed door.

A loud voice echoed from beyond the front door.
“
Open in the name of the law!
”
Within two seconds the front door was wrenched open.

Salverton
’
s heart pounded in his throat. To his credit, his first concern was for Samantha as he wrestled with the door that had interrupted their flight. For a lady to be caught in such a predicament as this was unthinkable. He also realized it would do himself no good. He found the handle and got the door open just as Bow Street came pounding down the hall after them.

Once they were safe on the other side, Salverton held the door closed as the officer pushed against it.

“
A chair!
”
he whispered to Samantha.

A wan ray of moonlight showed her they were in a dining room. She grabbed the nearest chair. Salverton wedged it under the doorknob, grabbed her hand, and they continued their flight. They soon found themselves in a kitchen. As they made a frantic search for the back door, they heard the chair under the doorknob give way. Footsteps came hounding after them.

“
Stop in the name of the law! Stop, or I
’
ll shoot.
”

“
I can
’
t find the bloody door!
”
Salverton said in a frantic voice.

Even as he spoke, a door opened and a cool breeze entered the room. A sibilant whisper called,
“
Here, lads, this way!
”

“
Thank God for Sykes,
”
Salverton said, and pulled Samantha out the door into the yard, slamming the door behind him.

Sykes rammed a rake against the door to impede the officers
’
progress.
“
Follow me,
”
he said, and led them off through a garden, trampling early peas and carrots as they fled.
“
I
’
ve got the lay of the land. Right this way. Watch your step now. Ha-ha.
”

Salverton thought it a strange time to be laughing, but then, Sykes probably took all this for a prime joke. He didn
’
t know Sir Geoffrey
’
s corpse was in the study.

Sykes led the way, running pell-mell through a meadow, ducking around bushes and an occasional tree.
“
Watch your step
—
ha-ha,
”
he called, and vaulted nimbly forward.

Salverton followed. Not realizing why Sykes had suddenly decided to leap like a deer, he fell into the ha-ha, pulling Samantha in behind him. She landed in a heap in his lap, her arms and legs splayed in a most unladylike pose. The bottom of the ditch held a few inches of mud after the spring rains. And to complete his misery, he feared he had twisted his ankle rather badly. It was the perfectly wretched conclusion to a perfectly wretched visit.

As Edward felt the cold mud ooze into his clothing, Sykes
’
s bold face leaned in over them.

“
I told you to watch the ha-ha. Lucky I noticed it. When I saw the cows behaving so proper and not eating Sir Geoffrey
’
s clover, I said to myself,
“
There
’
s a ha-ha hereabouts, and surely enough, there was. Here, take my hand, love.
”
So saying, his long arm extended toward Samantha.

It was the last straw that this upstart should not only come to Samantha
’
s rescue, but suddenly speak to her in this grossly familiar manner.

“
Don
’
t touch her or I
’
ll kill you!
”
Salverton growled.

Sykes grinned.
“
In a bit of a taking, ain
’
t we, melord? Best come along before Bow Street decides to join the party.
”

“
Don
’
t be so silly, Edward,
”
Samantha said, and lifted her hand to Sykes, who pulled her out of the ditch in a trice. Edward clambered out after her, unaided. Mud dripped from his jacket and the seat of his buckskins. When he made the error of putting on his hat, muddy water leaked over the brim to trickle down his face and besmatter his cravat. He brushed it away with the back of his hand. At least he could stand on his wrenched ankle. It hurt like the devil, but it wasn
’
t broken.

“
Just come along to the carriage, Samantha. Here, take my coat. I don
’
t want you catching a chill,
”
Sykes said. He removed his jacket and put it around her shoulders.

“
Oh, thank you, Jonathon,
”
she said, shivering into it. Sykes led her toward the carriage, with Edward limping along behind until Samantha made Sykes wait for him.

“
What happened to put you into such a pelter, melord?
”
Sykes asked.
“
More than that bit of a tumble, I
’
m thinking.
”

“
Sir Geoffrey
’
s been murdered,
”
Salverton announced.

Not even this could phase the imperturbable Jonathon Sykes.
“
Good riddance,
”
said he.
“
Your brother did it, do you figure, Samantha?
”
he inquired with no air of condemnation.

“
Certainly not.
”

“
Then we
’
d best get busy and find out who did, eh?
”

Salverton drew a weary sigh. He could hardly cut up at Sykes as he wanted to, when he had just saved them from arrest, and would be required to help them out of this predicament.

Samantha noticed that Edward was limping, and began to make a great fuss over him. This did much to ameliorate his mood. He had stopped scowling by the time they were in the carriage and on their way back to Tunbridge Wells.

At the outskirts of town, Sykes stopped to discuss with melord where he wished to be taken.

“
At least we don
’
t have to worry about reporting the death to the constable,
”
Samantha said.
“
Bow Street knows about it.
”

“
The thing to do,
”
Salverton said,
“
is to get you home safely, Samantha. I feel it
’
s my duty to stay here and tell Bow Street what I know.
”

“
You won
’
t tell them about Darren!
”
she said, aghast.

“
They already know of Darren
’
s involvement. They questioned you regarding the theft, in London. My hope is to divert their suspicion to
—
other areas,
”
he said vaguely.

“
Wanda has a finger in it, I don
’
t doubt,
”
Sykes threw in, and for once didn
’
t receive a scowl from melord.

“
Very likely, and there
’
s Fletcher, as well, who was in the vicinity.
”

“
But how can I go home?
”
Samantha asked.

“
I
’
ll arrange it,
”
Sykes offered at once.

It went badly against the pluck for Salverton to ask Sykes to drive her to London. There was no saying what advantage the scoundrel would take of a helpless lady.

“
Lord Salverton will need you here, Mr. Sykes,
”
she said.

“
Nay, I didn
’
t mean I
’
d drive you myself. I can arrange something with a pal.
”

Conveyance by a
“
pal
”
of Sykes
’
s was not what Salverton wished, or was ready to accept.

“
I
’
d rather stay here with you, Edward,
”
Samantha said with a wheedling pout.
“
I can
’
t go on the public coach in my present state of disarray. They wouldn
’
t even let me into a polite inn to clean up, looking like a scarecrow.
”

Even in the shadowed carriage he could see she had not fared much better than himself in the ha-ha. Her bonnet was destroyed, her hair tumbling down, and her gown no doubt as dirty as his own buckskins. As Salverton wanted to keep her with him, it didn
’
t take much wheedling to convince him.

“
I daresay you
’
re right. It will be for only a day,
”
he rationalized.
“
We
’
ll ask around and see if Wanda and/or Darren were here. They might have come planning to use The Laurels. They wouldn
’
t have stayed here when they found Sir Geoffrey at his cottage, but we might pick up some word of their destination at a hiring stable. I wonder why Sir Geoffrey did come to Tunbridge Wells at this time.
”
He looked to Jonathon.

“
Chasing after Wanda and her lad, very likely. He might have known she brought fellows here in the past. We
’
ll never know for sure, nor does it matter a brass farthing to us. He came, worse luck for him. What you both need is somewhere to wash the muck off yourselves and get into some clean, dry duds,
”
Sykes said.

“
Do you have anything to suggest?
”
Salverton asked.

“
That pal I mentioned, Herbie O
’
Toole. Him and his missus run a rooming house. They won
’
t blink at the condition of your duds. I can get you a good price.
”

“
Never mind the price. Is it decent?
”

“
Top of the trees. They
’
ve had doctors staying there, and a schoolteacher.
”

“
High society, indeed!
”

“
Aye, it
’
s a flash ken. Herbie does a fair bit of business with priggers and prancers. He can sell you a change of clothes. A sideline, you might say, to change a fellow
’
s looks when he
’
s on the run.
”

“
Charming,
”
Salverton said.
“
Lead on.
”

Sykes drove them to a rambling brick rooming house behind the Common. It was rigged up with a deal of crimson draperies and gilt trim and highly ornate, mismatched furnishings from second-hand dealers and estate sales. But it was cleanish, and there was plenty of hot water. The change of clothes was not only vastly expensive, but in poor taste. They regrouped in the gaudy saloon an hour later.

A jacket with wadded shoulders and a pinched waist lent Salverton the raffish air of a racetrack tout. Samantha wore a low-cut emerald satin gown that would have done justice to a demi-rep (and probably had). To tame its exuberance and conceal her bosoms, she wore a patterned shawl about her shoulders.

“
That
’
s a bit of all right!
”
was Sykes
’
s opinion when he saw her. His blue eyes bulged an inch from their sockets. Then he turned to assess Salverton.
“
You don
’
t look so much like an undertaker in them duds, melord. Very niffynaffy, if I do say so myself. The muslin company will be all over you.
”

Salverton hardly considered this a compliment, but Sykes meant well, and he accepted it with good grace.

“
Was that the only gown O
’
Toole had?
”
he asked Samantha. He fully appreciated the effect of the gown. What brought that quick furrow to his brow was the knowledge that every hedgebird they met would also appreciate it.

“
No, there was a bright red one as well, but I thought you might not like it,
”
she said demurely.
“
It was shockingly immodest. What should we do now?
”

“
Go on the strut on the Pantiles,
”
Sykes suggested.
“
If Wanda was here, that
’
s where she
’
d have been. Ask around of the ladies of pleasure.
”

“
I hardly think that
’
s a suitable thing for Miss Oakleigh to do!
”
Salverton exclaimed.

“
Then I
’
ll do it myself, while you take Samantha for a glass of wine at one of the stalls. They play music at some of them in the evenings. She
’
ll enjoy that.
”
With a wink at Samantha, he added out of the side of his mouth,
“
You
’
d rather do that than sit here alone, staring at the walls, I fancy.
”