Lies and Misdemeanours (9 page)

Hetty studied the determination on her friend’s face and nodded. “So, what do we do?”

Mabel sighed and looked around them. She drew Hetty with her toward the shadows and lowered her voice. “We have to get off the streets, or we are going to be stopped and searched.”

As if to emphasise her point, the low murmur of voices in the distance suddenly began to grow louder. Another search party was on its way toward them. She didn’t know whether it was the darkness or not but, for some reason, she started to feel incredibly alone and frightened, in spite of the fact that Mabel was with her.

“I can’t do this, Mabel,” she whispered frantically as she listened to the voices grow louder.

“In here,” Mabel declared suddenly, and grabbed hold of Hetty’s elbow in a firm grip as she dragged her into an empty yard at the back of one of the terraced houses which lined the street.

They closed the gate and stood perfectly motionless while they waited, and listened to the sound of many boots on the cobbles on the other side of the wall. A couple of minutes later, a small group of jailers walked past, and the noise they made began to dim. Hetty slumped with relief and rested her forehead against the cold wood of the gate for a moment while she willed her nerves to settle.

“We need to rest, sweetheart,” Mabel sighed. “I am exhausted, and so are you by the looks of you. Once we are rested, we can leave just before dawn. Nobody will think anything of us moving around the tradesmen going about their business. We can move a bit more freely then. Especially once the place has been searched and the jailers have come up empty handed. They will have to expand their search, and will focus on other areas. By then, Meldrew is likely to have searched the surrounding villages, including Hemsley. You can come to my house. We can say that we have been there all along, and that you have come to stay with me overnight because of your brother’s hanging.”

Hetty couldn’t see any argument with her logic, and nodded. “Come on then. I have money with me so we can find somewhere to stay, if this damned place isn’t too over-run with people to be full.”

She linked arms with Mabel, for her own comfort more than Mabel’s and, together, they headed off in search of a bed for the night.

Charlie began to pace backward and forward in front of the fire; oblivious to the warmth emanating from the roaring flames.

He glared out of the window at the darkening sky, and shook his head in disgust as his frustration and fear grew. He was so focused on Hetty, and what had happened to her that he was oblivious to the splendour of his surroundings.

“They should be back by now,” Charlie declared to nobody in particular as he stalked toward the kitchen table and stared blankly down at the scarred surface.

“Aye,” Wally nodded. “Unfortunately, we don’t know what happened once we had left town. They were supposed to have met with the men from the tavern, and then go to Mabel’s house in the village. Because the men most probably got carried away by the crowd, the women will have to make their way back to the village by themselves. It shouldn’t take this long, even on foot. Something tells me that they have been forced to stay in town.”

“I don’t think I can stand another minute of waiting like this,” Charlie growled. “I hate it.”

The sudden rattle of the kitchen door drew everyone’s attention.

Wally shot to his feet and picked his gun off the table. Charlie and Simon were right beside him.

At first, when Joshua appeared in the doorway, everyone heaved a sigh of relief. The dark look on his face warned everyone that he was alone.

“Where are they?” Wally demanded querulously, and hurried to the door to peer outside, as though he expected them to materialise out of the darkness. He turned to look at Joshua almost accusingly only Luke to nudge him aside as he entered the house behind him.

“They must have decided to stay in one of the taverns because there is no sign of them,” Luke reported darkly. “I have ridden around several times, and been to the meeting place Wally told Hetty to go to by the church. They have not appeared at Mabel’s house either. Joseph is there still, but he hasn’t seen anyone.”

“Hasn’t Meldrew made a house call yet?” Barnaby’s brows lifted when Luke shook his head.

“Not yet, but it is inevitable I suppose.”

“There is nothing to link the two. Hetty and Mabel are friends, but there is nothing to suggest that Mabel had anything to do with this morning,” Wally said firmly.

“Joseph knows to bring them here the moment they arrive.” Luke helped himself to an apple and took a bite of the zesty fruit. He chewed thoughtfully for a moment.

“Is there any sign of the men from the tavern?” Wally growled with a frown.

Luke shrugged. “I don’t know what many of them look like. There is nobody out and about around Hemsley, if that answers your question. The entire town is almost deserted. Only the jailers are out in Derby. I think everyone there has gone home to wait for their houses to be searched. Those who don’t live in town have taken to the taverns. It was quite obvious that I was one of only a handful of the public who dared venture outside, the rest were jailers. I think Hetty and Mabel must be hiding somewhere so that Hetty doesn’t get stopped.”

“They can’t stay in Derby overnight,” Simon protested. “If Meldrew catches them, they will be held to ransom, and all of this will have been a complete waste of time.”

Charlie took a deep breath, braced his hands on the kitchen table and leaned over them for a moment while he contemplated what to do. It was difficult to understand if he was angry, or worried sick. He knew he would go stark raving mad if he had to endure a single moment more of the torture of not knowing whether Hetty was safe or not.

Joshua sighed. “We went back to the tavern in the village but, in contrast to town, it was empty. We don’t know if people are just keeping their heads down because of what happened, or whether they are caught up in Derby somehow. The innkeeper has never known the place to be so empty.”

“There was something odd about that innkeeper,” Luke growled.

“Why?”

Joshua shook his head and took a seat beside him. “He kept asking us questions about who we were, and where we came from.”

“Innkeepers make conversation,” Charlie said quietly.

“I know, but he was too conversational; and too probing for an innkeeper,” Joshua countered with a scowl. “Damned if he didn’t want to know my boot size.”

“What did you tell him?”

“Just that we had been to see the hangings, but we making our way home seeing as the convicts had escaped,” Joshua sighed.

“Did he ask about me, or say anything about knowing us?” Simon asked.

“Not a thing. Strangely closed mouthed about it, but I got the feeling that he knew something,” Luke replied. “Damned shady character, if you ask me.”

“He wasn’t involved in today’s arrangements. As far as I am aware, he shouldn’t even know about it,” Wally replied.

“Any sign of Hetty at the mill house?” Charlie asked hopefully only to curse when Luke shook his head.

“Sorry, no.”

“We have to go into Derby again and take a look for ourselves,” Brendan sighed and glanced at Marcus, who nodded his agreement.

Charlie sighed. “If they have taken a room for the night, they will set out as soon as it is light. We need to make sure that we are in town to look out for them.”

“What if they have already got out though?”

“We will go to Mabel’s first and see if they are there. If not, then we know we have got to go into town,” Charlie countered.

Now that he had started to push his worries to one side, logic had started to work for him again. It felt like he was slipping on a comfortable pair of boots. For the first time in several days, he began to relax as his years of experience working with the Star Elite came surging forward, driven by his determination to find his wife.

The helpless prisoner facing death by execution was gone. In his place stood a ruthless warrior who would do whatever he needed to do to protect the woman who mattered more to him than anything, or anyone else, in the world.

He glanced at the clock on the mantle. “We have about three hours before we need to leave.”

Barnaby looked at Wally and Simon. “You two need to stay here.”

Wally and Simon stared at each other. “We are coming too,” Wally protested.

“We can’t stay here,” Simon protested. “We have to do something to help find her. Hetty is our sister.”

“You have to stay here.” Charlie looked pointedly at Wally’s wild mane of red hair.

“He can colour it like I have,” Simon countered.

Charlie was already shaking his head. “You are both still recognisable to Meldrew. He knows what you look like.”

“I know, but he can recognise you too,” Simon protested.

“Yes, but I am Star Elite. Fully armed, sober, and able to work with my colleagues. Meldrew doesn’t stand a bloody chance, no matter how many jailers he has with him,” Charlie declared flatly.

The ruthless determination in his voice was enough to stave off any further objection Wally or Simon might have had.

They lapsed into disgruntled silence while the men from the Star Elite got themselves ready. Although the hour was late, Charlie knew that sleep was impossible. He wouldn’t rest because, now that he had managed to keep his life, he knew that he faced a battle for his future. A future that he knew must include his wife.

Once he was ready, he settled down at the table to wait.

Hetty stared at the shadows on the ceiling as she listened to shouts and whistles on the street below. The clip-clop of horses’ hooves sounded loud in the silence of the bedroom and, for the first time in her adult life, she was so frightened that she felt physically sick.

During the first couple of hours she had been in the tavern, she had listened to the sporadic calls outside, and prayed that they didn’t mean the convicts had been found.

Now, three hours later, she was becoming accustomed to the shouts and muted orders, and found relief in the knowledge that the jailers were still looking for the escaped convicts.

When Mabel snorted and turned over, Hetty looked at her friend through the darkness before she too turned over to stare blindly at the shutter that covered the window.

Inevitably, as they had done more and more over the last few days, her thoughts turned to Charlie. Now that she was alone, in the solitude of the midnight hour, she allowed herself to consider the enigma that he was.

The dimples that flashed in his cheeks when he smiled bespoke of a mischief that matched the twinkle in his beautiful grey eyes, and reminded her of a naughty boy who had done something he knew he shouldn’t. There was something about his quiet strength and calm demeanour that called to her. He was a man who was confident of his place in the world, and could be depended on in a time of crisis, but had not lost sight of the bounties that life could bring.

He was the kind of man that was difficult for anyone to forget.

If she was honest, she wasn’t sure what to make of the feelings she had for him. She was fairly confident that the ache in her heart was love, but then had no idea what love was, so had no way of knowing for definite. All she could do was think about how being near him made her feel; as though she was protected and cared for. The searing kiss he had scalded her with on his way to the gallows was something that still made her touch her lips in wonder and, once again, she felt her heart swell with something that felt distinctly like longing.

“Damn you, Cedric Meldrew,” she whispered into the darkness.

“Whasa?’” Mabel grumbled as she turned over once more.

“Nothing. Go back to sleep,” Hetty murmured.

She knew that she too should try to get some rest because tomorrow was likely to be a very busy day indeed, but her mind wouldn’t settle to anything other than the men who had escaped death today.

“Where are you now?” she whispered to Charlie whimsically.

Her only answer was a loud whistle blasted out directly beneath the window. Strangely, the sound continued to reassure her, for no other reason than it meant she had done her job well.

“Anything?” Marcus cursed when Barnaby shook his head.

“’Ere, what are you two doing out?” A jailer growled from the edge of the courtyard they were standing in. “Don’t you know everyone is supposed to stay inside?”

“We are going home,” Marcus replied.

“There shouldn’t be anyone out,” the man challenged with a frown.

“Is the town under curfew?” Barnaby grunted with his brows lifted. “It comes to something when a man can’t even drink his ale in peace.” He wondered if he was going to spend the night behind bars until the jailer shook his head.

“No, why?”

“Well, we don’t have any reason not to be out and about, now do we? I am only going to the bloody tavern for a drink before I am off to my bed. What’s wrong with that?” Barnaby grumbled.

“There are two convicts on the run,” the jailer declared dourly.

Barnaby and Marcus looked at each other.

“Well, it ain’t us,” Barnaby drawled challengingly as he patted the padding of his false girth. “So, unless you are going to arrest us for going home, I suggest you go about your business and leave us alone.”

He turned away with a grunt and pointedly ignored the jailer, who stood hesitantly in the gateway for a moment. 

“What’s your name?” The jailer demanded.

“Jack,” Marcus replied. “Stone,” he added as he snuck a peek at the stone wall beside him.

“Arthur,” Barnaby growled as he threw his colleague a dark look. “Wallsby.”

He threw Marcus a warning look when his friend made a strange choking noise. “Can we go now, or are you going to keep us talking all night?”

The jailer stood back to allow them past, but watched them avidly as they made their way out of the courtyard, and ambled unconcernedly down the main street.

“Wallsby?” Marcus grinned.

“It was all I could come up with, alright?” Barnaby grumbled as he shook his head in disgust.

“We can’t knock on each tavern door and ask if anyone has seen them,” Marcus sighed several moments later once they had turned out of the road, and were away from the jailer’s watchful gaze. “There is nobody out and about yet though. We are a bit early.”

“Let’s find somewhere to rest and wait for daylight. As soon as this place starts to come alive, then we can move about a bit better,” Barnaby suggested.

There was a slightly defeated tone to his voice that didn’t sit well with either of them. However, they couldn’t conjure Hetty up before them, so had little choice but to wait for dawn to arrive unless they were going to start to ask the jailers if they had seen her.

They made their way across time in search of a better hiding place that was closer to the meeting point Hetty should have gone to yesterday. As they walked down each road, they scoured the area for any sign of the women.

It was damned frustrating, especially because the women could be right under their noses, and neither Marcus nor Barnaby would know it.

They nodded at Joshua, who ambled past them in the opposite direction. The slight shake of his head warned them both that he hadn’t seen any sign of their quarry either.