Page 46 of Daring the Forbidden Earl
“Who goes there?” She burst out of the doorway and scoured her surroundings, peering into the nearby nooks and hideaways with her bat raised.
Her gaze came to rest on the corner of the hallway to her right, where another hallway branched off to the left. It was the only place she could not see, and the perfect place for someone to hide. Especially someone who kept knocking on her door throughout the night.
“I said, who goes there! Show yourself, you coward!” she shouted, unafraid of waking her neighbors. For if they heard her, perhaps they would come and help her. Then again, they were not particularly fond of her, for she had never been good at making friends.
Edging closer to the blind spot around the corner, Johanna felt as though her heart was about to explode from her chest. In the deathly quiet of the hallway, she could hear nothing but the loud roar of the blood rushing in her ears.
“I know you are there,” she continued, swallowing the lump in her throat. “Show yourself this instant!”
She froze as she heard the rustle of someone moving, right there behind the wall that blocked her view of what lay behind. Bracing herself, she lifted the cricket bat to the level of her eye and paused, deciding what her next action should be. She had already lost the element of surprise, but perhaps she could claw it back if she lunged without further warning.
But it appeared the mysterious disturber of Johanna’s peace had that thought a moment before her. All of a sudden, a dark blur barreled out from behind the wall, the collar of a cloak tucked high to their nose and the shadow cast from a top hat concealing much of their face.
Johanna barely had time to swing the bat as the person charged past her. As the bat collided with the devil’s arm, she heard a deep grunt, followed by a reactive shove, delivered squarely to her chest. She staggered backward and hit the wall, though she rallied quickly and took off along the hallway, after the rogue.
“Stop!” she yelled, running as fast as she could with the ungainly bat in her hand. But the person ahead of her was much quicker, bounding down the staircase to the lower floor with athletic ease.
As she followed, she realized the strange individual was a man, judging by his height and the broadness of his shoulders. The deep grunt had also given it away, for he had sounded decidedly masculine. And while she knew that should be enough to make her turn around and hope she had scared him into stopping his nighttime knocking, she was too overwhelmed with adrenaline to give up.
Streaking out into the chilly night air, she looked for other people on the street who could help apprehend the wretch. But the street lay empty, for it was past midnight and those who were respectable were already indoors.
Then, she spotted the same group of urchins whom she had seen that morning. For a moment, she wondered why they were not at home. Did they not have homes and parents to go to? It would have broken her heart to find out that they did not, but she did not have time to dwell on it for too long.
“Stop that man!” she shouted to the children, for the fast-running fellow was getting closer to where they were standing.
They eyed her warily, then looked to the approaching man.
“I will pay you! Stop that man!” Johanna roared again.
This time, she seemed to pique their interest. All at once, the six-strong band of urchins surged toward the top-hatted figure and tried to trip him up as he passed them. A few of them took hold of his cloak, and tried to rip it from his body, or use it to drag him backward, but it was fastened tight at the neck… and he was much too strong for them.
Indeed, within a matter of seconds, he had sent them all sprawling as he continued onward, away from Johanna.
No! Goodness, this is not good.
She hurried after him, only to find her path blocked by the same children she had called to block the man. They glared up at her expectantly with their palms out. All the while, the wretched fellow got further and further ahead of her.
“I will pay you upon my return. I swear to you.” Johanna thumbed back at her apartments. “Wait outside that building, and I will come back as soon as I can. You will receive your payment.”
Apparently satisfied, the children stepped aside and allowed Johanna to run on.
She spotted the cloaked fellow hurtling along the street to her left, before darting around the corner. Pushing her legs as hard as they could go, she sprinted after him, and rounded the corner in time to see him cross over to the other side of the street, where he disappeared down an alley between two large buildings.
Undeterred by the threat of darkness, and the prospect of him lurking in the shadows to strike at her, she made it to the alley and careened down it with her bat raised.
As she burst out the other end, she spied the man slowing to a jog on her left, halfway down a very familiar street. Indeed, she had been here not five days ago, to speak with Miss Steele.
Curious, she ducked back into the alleyway and watched his movements closely. He glanced back over his shoulder a few times, as though looking for her, but she could not see his face at all in the gloom. Clearly confident that she was no longer chasing him, he crossed the street and headed toward the exact building where Lord Dresday lived.
He walked up the porch steps and looked back one last time, before he strode through the front door and closed it behind him. As he did so, Johanna realized who she was dealing with. Lord Dresday had decided to send a warning to her, too.
He must know… He must know that I am a threat to the marriage of Mark and Miss Steele.
She could only imagine what the Baron might do, if Mark did not meet with him tomorrow evening. Now, more than ever, it was vital that Miss Steele kept her word. After that, it would be up to all of them to keep Lord Dresday at heel, until Miss Steele could run away with her married lover.
Only then, just over two weeks from now, would they be free. And Johanna had a feeling those weeks would be the longest of her life.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
