Page 62 of When a Lady Dares
“You won that round, fair enough,” Randall said. “Shall we have another go? Double or nothing.”
Gavin reached for his glass and took a hearty drink. The whiskey warmed his throat with a smooth heat. “I’d call it a draw. Another time, perhaps.”
“Good enough, Stanwyck.”
He took another drink. Around him, the jovial sounds of boasts and laughter and bawdy humor began to blend. Voices blurred into a discordant chaos. The room swirled.
Grabbing the back of a chair, Gavin steadied himself. Randall pitched another dart, throwing Gavin a glance over his shoulder.
“Something wrong, Professor?” His emotionless tone was all too knowing.
Bloody hell, had he been drugged? Had the bastard slipped something into his drink?
I have to get out of this place!Gavin staggered toward the door, fighting the vertigo threatening to engulf him. With any luck, Avery had returned with the coach.
Randall blocked the exit. “You look like you are in need of assistance. A bit of fresh air might clear your head.” His smile dissolved into a sneer. “A man of your standing should know better than to drink until he’s in his cups.”
Opening the door, the bloke caught Gavin’s upper arm, dragging him from the club. Through the haze of his vision, Gavin spotted his carriage. Why in bloody hell had Avery moved it to the alley? Why had he returned so soon? Damn it, his driver wasn’t supposed to be here now. Why had he cut short his visit with his lady, exposing himself to this treachery?
“Bloody shame about the old man,” Randall said, evil infusing his tone.
Avery…good God, what had happened? The ground tilted, and the world swirled around Gavin. He staggered forward, freed himself from Randall’s hold. His knees threatened to give out, but he focused his vision and struggled to stand.
“Who sent you?”
Randall smiled. “If I were you, mate, I wouldn’t be worrying about who sent me.” He motioned to the thugs waiting by the coach—the same bastards who’d attacked Sophie. Waiting by the coach, Jack tapped a billy club against his palm. “I’d be worrying about who sent them.”
Chapter Nineteen
As Sophie suspected, a well-timed smile and a bit of flattery was all it took to persuade Bertram to assist her. The carriage clattered over the cobbles as the driver set a breakneck pace. The Waterloo Bridge loomed ahead, magnificent over the moonlit Thames.
She pulled the curtain aside. At this time of night, the city had quieted, still not asleep, but far more peaceful than at the peak of day. The horses trotted briskly along the Strand. Over the rattle of the coach, a bellow of pain made it to Sophie’s ears.What the devil?
With a rap against the roof, she signaled her driver. “Bertram—what’s that commotion? Stop the carriage.”
With the window open as it was, she could hear the old man’s muttered epithet. Despite his curmudgeonly response, Bertram slowed the conveyance to a halt, steps from the darkened alley that seemed the origin of the miserable cry.
“Do you hear that?” Sophie strained to make out the angry voices coming from the backstreet. What in blazes was going on?
“Sounds like some unlucky sot is about to lose his tin.”
“I should investigate.”
“I’ll go.” Bertram retrieved his long gun from its spot beneath the bench. “Don’t even think about puttin’ yourself in reach of those criminals. I’ve already gone against my instructions by bringing you here on thiserrand, as you dubbed it. I cannot let you put yourself in harm’s way.”
“In harm’s way?” She slanted him a glance, then lowered it to the powerful weapon in his hands. “You could bring down a dragon with that thing. I have nothing to worry about.”
She opened the door. Maneuvering her skirts out of the way, she stepped to the pavement. As her heels touched the cobbles, a male voice reached her ears, low and slurred and so familiar, her skin peppered with a sudden chill. Despite the distortion of the syllables, she felt certain she knew the speaker’s identity.
“It’s Stanwyck,” she whispered.
Bertram shot her a scowl. “More likely he’s indulged in too much of the bottle.”
Sophie shook her head. “He’s in trouble. I feel it in my bones.”
“If I didn’t know better, I’d think you’ve developed a soft spot for the bloke.”
“Nonsense.” She covered her blond hair with the hood of her cape to avoid the moonlight’s reflection. “We must investigate.”
