Page 45 of An Unbending Lady for the Desperate Earl
How did she know that?Christian stood in awe of her, for the thousandth time since they had first met. She had a secret sense about these things that he would never be able to understand.
“There is no need to be embarrassed, Lord Mobberley,” Victoria went on. “I find it quite charming, that you gifted someone with a trinket of such personal meaning.”
Lord Mobberley cleared his throat. “My, I had forgotten the time. Sir John, we have that… lunch engagement, do you recall? We really must be hurrying along.”
Sir John frowned. “Lunch engagement? I do not remember any—”
“Yes, yes, a lunch engagement. Surely, you know the one?” Lord Mobberley hastened to interject. “Come, we will be late if we do not go now. It was a delight to have finally met you, Lady Laura. Truly, I believe you may be the most famous young lady in all of London, at present. I hope that our paths may cross again.”
Half-yanking Sir John, Lord Mobberley scurried away like a startled rat, the two men striding at a voracious pace down the central path of Hyde Park. Christian watched them leave, utterly bemused by what had just happened. Though, he reasoned Victoria would have some answers for him.
“Might you enlighten me as to what just occurred?” he said.
She smiled with a mixture of sorrow and satisfaction. “Lord Mobberley gave his ring to a lady. Judging by the softening of the indent upon his finger, he gave it to her some weeks ago. And, if I am to take his anxiety as a sign, it is my belief that he gave that ring to one of the ladies that has been taken.”
“What?” Christian gasped.
“He panicked when I mentioned the personal meaning behind the gift. He feared I might ask whom he gave the ring to, and there can only be two reasons for that: either she is a married woman; or she is someone who must be kept secret.” Her eyes widened. “My goodness, now it makes sense!”
Christian was none the wiser. “What does?”
“All of the ladies who were taken were engaged!” Victoria shrieked. “Some were secretly engaged, while others were openly so, butallof them were engaged.”
“Why would that be of importance?” Christian pressed, feeling a small shiver of relief. If these kidnappers only took ladies who were engaged, then perhaps he would not have to face the prospect of Victoria being taken, after all.
“If my suspicions are correct, they plan to blackmail the families once they have captured enough ladies to make it worthwhile. They are seeking an extraordinary sum, if that is the case. In order to achieve such an extensive, collective payment, they need more interested parties—more individuals whom they can blackmail. If they only take engaged ladies, they double their hopes of gaining a monetary exchange for the ladies’ release.”
Christian nodded, as understanding dawned. “They would be able to blackmail the fiancé and the family.”
“Precisely.”
“But I have not received any blackmail notes, as of yet,” he said, his mind racing.
“They are biding their time, putting together a list of what they want in return. That would be my guess.” Victoria tapped her chin in thought and her jaw suddenly dropped. “That means… Miss Longacre is in danger still!”
Christian frowned. “Pardon?”
“She is recently engaged, though it has been kept secret. Yes, the kidnappers did not take her on the night of her coming-out ball, but that does not mean she is not a target. Oh dear, why did I not think of this before?” Victoria hurried away, forcing Christian to run after her.
“What are you doing? Where are we going?” he called.
She glanced back at him, her face pale. “We have to go to Miss Longacre. We have to protect her. She is the next target. I feel it in my bones.”
Christian ran after her, his mind clouded.If that is true, Victoria, then why were those gentlemen watching you?
Chapter 19
“McCarthy? I didn’t expect to see you until later this afternoon. Did you want to select a gown for this evening’s party?” Miss Longacre looked up from her bureau in surprise, as Victoria burst through the door with Christian in pursuit.
“Thank goodness you are still here,” Victoria gasped.
Miss Longacre tilted her head. “Where else would I be?” Understanding drifted across her pretty features. “Have you discovered something? Am I in immediate danger?”
“Yes, we have discovered some new information, which I believe may put you at risk.” Victoria stooped to catch her breath. “We have come to realize that all the ladies who were taken were engaged. The kidnappers clearly wish to extort as much money from their captives as possible, though they have yet to make demands.”
Miss Longacre gulped. “Do you think they know of my engagement?”
“They knew of Lady Jane’s, and she had been engaged in secret for a meagre fortnight.” Victoria crossed the room and perched on the side of the armchair, while Christian lingered awkwardly on the threshold of the bedchamber. It amused Victoria somewhat, to see him so hesitant, but she had more important things to focus on right now.
