Page 67 of My Kind of Scoundel
They laughed again.
Now she was more at ease Theo cricked his neck, straightened his spine and led Eleanor into the Red Lion tavern.
Three unkempt sailors occupied the first table, clouding the air with pipe smoke. Their tanned, leathery skin suggested they’d returned from the West Indies, not a port in Hamburg or Rotterdam. The men watched Eleanor as if starved of female company.
More men stood around the oak counter, a distinct odour of fish wafting from the vicinity. An older fellow used his tankard to keep a map open on the table next to the hearth.
Theo met the landlord’s gaze and gestured to an empty table by the bow window. They’d barely sat down when a petite woman with auburn hair hurried towards them, wiping her hands on her pinny.
“What can I get for you good folks?” Emily said, not bothering to look at them properly until Eleanor whispered her name.
“Emily.” Eleanor glanced covertly around the taproom. “Is your uncle here? We were told we could find you both at the Red Lion.”
“Miss Darrow,” Emily said just as quietly. She stiffened as if to move might alert Satan’s minion. “What are you doing here?”
“Looking for you. We’re leading an investigation into a theft at my shop.” Speaking from her head, not her heart, Eleanor mentioned the Home Secretary. “I’m sorry, but we’ve come to arrest you for stealing a bolt of silk and a silver hat pin. You need to come to Bow Street and answer our questions.”
“Bow Street?” Emily’s chin hit the floor. The flare of guilt in her eyes confirmed her motives were immoral. “Please, Miss Darrow. Whatever I’ve done, it ain’t my fault.” Tears filled the young woman’s eyes. “I had no choice.”
Eleanor’s shoulders sagged with the weight of betrayal. “I trusted you. I tried to convince Mr Chance that he was mistaken. You’ve made me look a fool. You lied, lied about your parents. We know about Ivy.”
Emily’s knees buckled, and she grabbed the chair rail for support. “Who told you about Ivy? No one knows but Uncle Jack. Did he visit you? Did he break his promise? Did he tell you the secret?”
Eleanor looked baffled. “What secret?”
Theo intervened. “We seem to be at cross purposes. Why would Miss Darrow be interested in a secret about your mother?”
The woman stared at him like she had nothing in her head but straw. Her mouth gaped, her breath falling in ragged pants. “You said you knew about Ivy.”
“We know she was not the perfect mother,” Eleanor explained.
“Emily!” the landlord called from behind the oak counter. “What do these fine people want to drink?”
They ordered ale.
Emily hurried away and returned with two mugs. Her hands shook as she placed them on the crude table. “We can’t talk here. Don’t arrest me, miss. I’ll pay for the silk I took. A shilling a week once I find work as a seamstress. Now you’ve changed the locks, he’ll look for other ways to line his purse.”
“You’re referring to your uncle?” Theo’s blood simmered. He despised men who used children and women to do wicked deeds.
“Don’t look, but he’s sitting at the table behind me. The man with the red waistcoat who thinks he’s a gent. Down your drinks and leave. He likes to start trouble when he’s pickled.”
Theo did look.
Rogers had sunken eyes and a perpetual sneer that showed his crooked teeth. His bloated belly was incongruous with his thin frame. He had a cruel glint in his eyes, typical of most bullies.
“Perhaps I might persuade him to find employment,” Theo said through gritted teeth. “A legitimate way to fill his coffers.”
Emily clutched her chest. “No, sir. Best you leave now. I’ll come to the shop tomorrow while I’m out looking for work. I’ll find the funds to pay for what he took. I swear.”
Eleanor did not try to placate her and seemed determined to get answers. “Were you hiding at the shop the other day? Did you push me down the stairs, fearing I’d discover what you’d stolen?”
“Push you down the stairs? Good heavens, no.” Emily’s brow furrowed. “I could never hurt you, Miss Darrow. You’re the only person who’s ever believed in me.”
“Yet you stole from me the minute I turned my back.”
“It weren’t my fault. He made me do it. I told him there’d been thieves in the shop and it was in a dreadful state. He said no one would know if we helped ourself to a few things.”
Theo made to stand, but Eleanor touched his arm to stall him. “Wait. We’ll tackle Mr Rogers in a moment.” Her gaze sharpened on Emily. “You came to steal the silk at dawn. Hours after the incident. How did you know what had happened at the shop?”
