he’d suffered in French prison hurt as deeply as hearing Belinda say she didn’t want to marry him. It was inconceivable. Planned almost since birth. What had changed?
He had ordered his coach and stepped toward it, when he caught a glimpse of yellow from the corner of his eye. He turned just in time to see Belinda climb into an unmarked carriage unassisted. He yelled up to his driver to follow at a discreet distance.
Her carriage crossed London Bridge into Southwark. Every sensible idea in his head demanded he order his driver catch and stop her. If he stopped her now, he might never find out what she had gotten herself into. Still, the idea of her making a journey across the river on her own sent chills down his spine. She must have lost her mind.
Try as he might, Gabriel could think of no reason for a lady of Belinda’s station to travel into the south side of London in the middle of the night. Even if she was involved with another man, it was unlikely that their assignations would take place in the dodgier side of London.
They turned a corner and he saw her carriage had stopped a block ahead.
He banged on the roof of the carriage, and the driver immediately slowed to a stop.
Gabriel peered through his window as Belinda alighted from her carriage alone and stepped onto the filth ridden streets of South London. With a lantern in her hand and a dark cloak covering most of her gown, she looked around cautiously. She stared briefly at his carriage parked a block away, but in the dark street, she’d have trouble making out the crest. He was surprised she’d noticed the carriage at all.
He stepped down as soon as she crossed into the alley. “Wait for me here,” he ordered the driver.
“Yes, milord.”
As soon as he stepped into the open, a woman slinked out of a shadowed doorway. Time and wear faded her red dress and left it frayed around the collar. It had probably come from someone’s old trunk or been handed out to the poor. It was far too tight on her and her ample bosom spilled over the top. She had rouged her cheeks and lips and there were dark rings under her eyes. “Lookin for some company, gov?”
The woman’s face was drawn and hollow. As he stepped in closer, he saw the cosmetics hid pockmarks and perhaps a few bruises from less caring customers. She pulled her stained and torn skirt up high enough to expose her left leg to the thigh.
The prostitute’s arms and legs were thin and streaked with dirt. He pulled several coins from his purse and handed them to her without stopping.
“Don’t you want nuthin’ for your coin, gov?”
“Not tonight, my dear. Go and get yourself something to eat before you fall ill.” He spoke over his shoulder not wanting to lose Belinda’s trail.
The prostitute said something, but he was already too far down the street to hear her.
He crossed one alley and turned down the next where Belinda had disappeared. The street was pitch, and he had no lantern. Ahead, soft footfalls lead the way and he followed. Sporadic lamps along the way revealed drawn faces in the arched doorways.
A bit of yellow turned the corner to the right. A cat cried then hissed in the distance. Gabriel followed her skirts, keeping far enough away so she wouldn’t see or hear him.
Another turn and he nearly fell over a man standing in his path.
“‘Elloo, gov. You seems in a mite of a hurry. Where’s it yur goin’ so late? Mayhap Taker can be of ’elp.”
Gabriel took a step back from the hulking figure of Taker. The man’s breath was putrid from rotting black teeth and his clothes had not seen a washday in a month or more. “I’m not in need of assistance tonight, my good man.”
“Oh, but I think you is,” Taker replied.
Initially Gabriel’s reaction was to dismiss the inconvenience of street rabble delaying his pursuit. Taker was not easily dismissed. Gabriel looked the larger man in the eye.
Taker’s pale-blue eyes stared back.
The memory of men in war flashed in his mind. The hatred twisting this man’s face was the same. “I’m curious Mr. Taker as to why you stopped me and not the young woman who preceded me down the alley. She would have been a much easier mark. I do not care to boast, but I’m rather tall and strong, whereas the woman was small and easily detained. So why stop me and not her?” His question was more than just curiosity. The answer could help him ferret out what Belinda was up to. Maybe she had a protector in this area and Taker could identify the rogue.
Taker’s eyes shifted down the lane where Belinda had disappeared, before turning back to Gabriel. “Simple, gov. That slip of a girl got bigger teeth then you might think and pays her way down this alley regular-like. Taker’s too smart to do no harm to a steady source of coin.”
It took a great deal of effort not to react to the knowledge that his fiancée frequented these back streets on a regular basis. He had no idea what the “bigger teeth” remark might mean. “I see. Would it then behoove me to offer you payment and be on my way?” Gabriel kept his tone polite.
“Naw, gov. You ain’t no regular. You strikes me as a one-shot deal.”
“I see,” Gabriel said.
“Taker’s a fair man. Gives you a chance to just hand over your purse and then you git to live to see the sun.” Taker smiled exposing his black teeth. “Course I’ll have to rough you up a bit just to keep up me reputation.”
“Yes, of course,” Gabriel conceded. “I’m afraid I cannot allow you to take my entire purse, my good man. Since you have declined my offer of a reasonable payment, I conclude that you will have to beat the money out of me.”
“Shame, that.” Taker shook his head and shrugged before he swung one meaty fist at Gabriel’s nose.
Gabriel easily ducked away from the path of the blow. Taker lost his balance, and Gabriel used the opportunity to strike Taker in the ribs and when he bent over to clutch his gut, Gabriel threw an uppercut to the chin.
The bigger man stumbled backward, but recovered quickly, shaking his head with unfocused eyes. Much to Gabriel’s surprise, Taker smiled at him before rushing forward, throwing several wild punches.
Gabriel dodged each stroke, and the forward motion of his opponent, gave him the opportunity to move left and kick the giant’s legs out from under him.
Taker’s head hit the mucky street with a sickening thud.
A woman cried out in the darkness, and the prostitute Gabriel had encountered earlier, rushed out of a dark doorway and knelt at Taker’s side.
“You didn’t have to kill him.” Her voice was a whining squeal.
Gabriel crouched down and felt for a heartbeat. The telltale sign of life was strong in Taker’s chest. “He will be fine.”
Rising from the filthy street, Gabriel dropped several coins on the thief’s shirt before moving off in the direction he’d last seen Belinda.
He raced down the alley turning right then left in a frantic sprint to find Belinda. A knot formed in the pit of his stomach.
