Saving Grace (Victorian Vigilantes Book 1) Read online

  ‘You cannot return to your husband,’ Lord Isaac said passionately. ‘I won’t permit it.’

  The burning weight of his gaze caused something unfamiliar to tug at Eva’s heart. It was most peculiar. Only Grace now possessed the key to unlock the bars she had erected around her emotions and she was unable to think how Lord Isaac’s burning intensity had managed to slipped between the cracks. He looked as though he wanted to say something else but Eva was just discovering that pouring out her troubles to a sympathetic audience—troubles she had never fully disclosed to another soul—was cathartic. Her load felt lighter with every word she spoke and she was now anxious to tell it all.

  ‘I found lodgings in a small boarding house in Whitechapel,’ she explained. ‘I bought what few items I needed from stalls and second-hand clothing shops and eked out my coins until I was in danger of running out altogether. Then I pawned my wedding ring, the only item of jewellery I was wearing that day.’ She glanced at her bare finger and shrugged. ‘Not that I mind the loss of it. It was vulgar and ostentatious. Besides, the thought of being free of that symbolic link to William was intoxicating.’ She frowned. ‘Although I shall never be really free, of course. I am well aware that he will leave no stone unturned in his search for me, but I have been endeavouring not to dwell upon that depressing thought. Instead I’ve been thinking how best to earn a living so I can rescue Grace.’

  ‘And then you saw our advertisement,’ Lord Isaac said. ‘Jake thought it a good way to attract your attention. We knew you had flown with nothing but the clothes you wore and that if you did not intend to return to your husband you would soon need employment.’

  She offered them a ghost of a smile. ‘I wasn’t the only lady to reply. The advertisement said to apply in person to the address given. I joined a queue with more than forty applicants in front of me and as many more behind. Only desperation forced me to wait my turn.’

  ‘For which we are incredibly grateful,’ Lord Isaac replied with a lazy, persuasive smile that caused further stirrings within her dormant heart. ‘Did it never occur to you to escape your husband by returning with your daughter to your family?’

  ‘Certainly it did. I applied to my brother once and my mother twice, more desperate on each occasion. They politely declined; telling me I had made my own bed and must make the best of things.’

  ‘So much for gratitude,’ Lord Torbay said in a droll tone.

  ‘Don’t think too badly of them. I am sure William still has some sort of hold over them. He would have anticipated I might try and return home one day, I expect, and would never leave such a thing to chance.’

  ‘You can still defend your family, even after they deserted you?’ Lord Torbay asked, elevating one brow in evident shock.

  ‘I am not defending them, precisely.’ Eva shrugged. ‘It would cause a huge scandal if I were to walk out on William. I quite understand that much.’

  ‘Even so.’ Lord Isaac pursed his lips. ‘Their gratitude leaves much to be desired.’

  ‘Enough of all this.’ Eva fixed Lord Torbay with a determined look. Lord Isaac’s presence might be playing strange tricks with her emotions but she sensed Lord Torbay was the one in charge. This was, after all, his house. He stood beside the fire, hands clasped behind his back, looking steadily at her. She met his gaze head on. ‘You went to considerable trouble to get me here, gentlemen, so have the goodness to tell me how I can be of service to you.’

  Chapter Four

  Jake nodded to Isaac, implying he understood how deeply Isaac had been affected by Lady Eva’s heart-rending story, leaving it to him to explain. Jake might pretend to be a cynic when it came to emotional attachment but Isaac knew better.

  Isaac stood up and took a moment to collect his thoughts. Nothing Lady Eva had told them came as a complete surprise. They had already known about Woodstock’s ruthlessness and his obsession with his wife, but hearing the particulars spilling from her lovely lips still caused a virulent anger to surge through him. No one else—especially her ungrateful family—seemed willing to stand by her. She was completely alone. Isaac knew that none of the gentlemen working for Jake’s organisation would hesitate to offer a lady in such circumstances his help and protection. In Lady Eva’s case Isaac was surprised by the strength of his own determination to do so.

  And yet, if Jake was to carry out the mission set for him by the Home Secretary then Isaac would have to ask Lady Eva to return to that devil’s lair. That, after all, was why they had gone to so much trouble to find her. Isaac stood with his arms braced against the marble mantelpiece, looking down into the flames dancing in the grate. He shuddered. His duty as one of Jake’s most trusted lieutenants was now an onerous burden, one he would gladly forego in order to put his own interests ahead of those of Queen and country.

  ‘I understand how distressed you must feel at the separation from your daughter,’ he said, thinking how inadequate the words must sound to a desperate mother.

  Isaac turned to face her, crossed the room and took the chair next to Lady Eva. She swallowed and then nodded, her eyes swamped with fresh tears.

  ‘Thank you, Lord Isaac. Unfortunately I still have no clear idea how to get her back, or even if she is well. Not that I think William will actually harm her. He takes almost no interest in our child and is more likely to use her in some way to persuade me to go back to him, just as he uses everything he touches to his own advantage.’ Lady Eva hugged her torso. ‘He is well aware how much I love her, you see.’

  ‘Don’t upset yourself. You are no longer alone.’ Damnation, he shouldn’t have said that. He was giving her false hope. ‘After all, we have—’

  ‘We were accustomed to walk in Holland Park every day. I don’t know whether that routine is still maintained. Obviously, I was tempted to go and see for myself but couldn’t take the chance. It’s the first place William would look for me.’

  Isaac glanced at Jake, who had arranged himself in an elegant sprawl in a chair beside the fire.

  ‘Why not put Lady Eva’s mind at rest, at least regarding her child’s welfare?’ Jake suggested.

  ‘You know something about her?’ Lady Eva’s gaze swivelled between them. ‘I beg you not to leave me in ignorance.’

  Isaac flashed a reassuring smile, pleased there was one small way in which he could be of service to her. ‘Your daughter is in good health but is no longer taken to the park.’

  Lady Eva’s head shot up. ‘Then how can you possibly know she is well?’

  Isaac’s smile widened. ‘Do you recall a servant in your husband’s employ by the name of Franklin?’

  ‘Yes.’ A slow, curling smile lit up her eyes, temporarily banishing the sadness that never quite left them, and highlighting her delicate beauty. Isaac felt himself reacting in the time-honoured fashion and turned away to hide the evidence. She needed to trust him, not feel under threat because he couldn’t control his baser instincts. ‘He only recently joined William’s service. He always had a smile for Grace and made Mary, Grace’s nursemaid, blush with his outlandish compliments. He was polite to me and it was difficult not to warm to him.’ She paused, a frown wrinkling her brow. ‘But how do you know about him?’

  ‘Nothing could be easier,’ Isaac replied. ‘He works for Jake.’

  She looked up at Jake and gasped. ‘You? Why…how?’ She shook her head. ‘I do not have the pleasure of understanding any of this. Have the goodness to explain your interest in my husband’s affairs, Lord Torbay?’

  ‘With pleasure.’ Jake inclined his head. ‘Woodstock’s activities are of great interest to the people whom I serve.’

  ‘You’re talking in riddles,’ she cried impatiently. ‘Who do you serve precisely?’ Before he could respond, she spoke again. ‘You can have no idea how relieved I am to obtain news of Grace and I do thank you for that. As I said earlier, I don’t imagine William will actually harm her. Even he wouldn’t go that far, but still, he’s unpredictable, especially if anyone dares to cross him and so his possible
reaction to my leaving him are a constant cause for concern.’

  ‘Your husband sends someone to the park every day to look for you, but won’t risk sending the child,’ Isaac said. ‘He seems to think you might somehow snatch Grace before his people can get to you.’

  ‘That doesn’t surprise me.’ Lady Eva inverted her chin. ‘What does astonish me is that Franklin managed to get so close to William. Others have tried it but William is very cautious and slow to trust.’

  Isaac grinned. ‘We staged a little pantomime close to your husband’s warehouse a few weeks ago. Someone attempted to rob Woodstock when he was getting into his carriage. Franklin just happened to be passing by, went to his aid and saved the day.’

  Lady Eva opened her remarkable eyes very wide. ‘And that was sufficient to convince him? He isn’t usually so trusting.’

  ‘The attack on your husband was very realistic. We didn’t mind in the least if he was actually harmed, you see.’

  Lady Eva nodded. ‘I remember now. He had a bruise on his forehead but wouldn’t tell me what had happened.’

  ‘We must take the credit for that. Your husband wanted to reward Franklin but he declined, saying he was on his way to the docks to take a ship and seek his fortune in America.’ Isaac smiled. ‘Franklin’s disinclination to work for Woodstock made him determined to employ him.’

  ‘That was clever. William hates to be gainsaid and so rejecting any offer he makes is the surest way to hold his attention.’ She shared an impatient smile between them both. ‘But you have yet to explain why you are so interested in my husband’s activities.’

  It was up to Jake to decide how much to tell her and so Isaac deferred to him with a brief nod. Jake had been charged with preventing her husband from pulling off an audacious crime, and Eva Woodstock was vital to him for that reason. Having met her, Isaac was already having second thoughts about involving her, but knew it was necessary. He didn’t possess a single unpatriotic bone in his body—none of the gentlemen entrusted to help Jake did—and security of the nation always superseded personal interests.

  But now, faced with Lady Eva’s vulnerability and distracting beauty, matters no longer seemed quite so cut and dried. Jake had mentioned earlier that she had made something of an impression upon him during her season. Coming from Jake, who made an art form out of understatement, such an admission was akin to saying he had been desperately infatuated. As well as being one of the best looking of that year’s crop of debutantes, apparently Lady Eva had appealed to him because she also had a brain between her ears and didn’t feel the need to pretend otherwise.

  Isaac imagined she must have been hotly pursued for her looks alone, and he could now understand why Jake expressed astonishment at her engagement to Woodstock. An amoral man, so far below her socially, Isaac hadn’t been able to understand why her family would consider such a man an acceptable suitor. When he had heard of the engagement, Jake claimed to have put her out of his mind, bringing to an end his mild infatuation.

  When her name came up in respect of his latest assignment, Jake had assured Isaac the attraction he had once felt towards her would not cloud his judgement. Perhaps that was why he was sitting back now and allowing Isaac to comfort her. Was Jake still drawn to her? How could he not be? He couldn’t fail to be moved by the sacrifices she had made for her family’s sake. Family honour was deeply ingrained in all persons of their class, but Jake had made no specific reference to it and appeared to be trying a little too hard to distance himself from their fair guest.

  Isaac, on the other hand, was making no attempt to appear indifferent. He blamed the destructive power of those damned eyes of hers; the vulnerable and slightly bruised expression in their depths which so captivated him. It was deuced inconvenient and Isaac was angry with himself for allowing personal feelings to affect his judgement. Since first setting eyes on Lady Eva he had been obliged to remind himself that Jake had selected him to help carry out a mission of national importance. It was only when he understood what Eva had done for the sake of her family that he started to have doubts about asking her to return to a man whom she loathed and who would probably beat her black and blue for disobeying him.

  ‘Isaac and I, along with other gentlemen, sometimes carry out delicate assignments on behalf of the Home Secretary,’ Jake said when he could no longer delay answering her question.

  She wrinkled her brow. ‘What does that have to do with me?’

  ‘Tell me, Lady Eva, has your husband invited foreigners to the house recently? Anyone you wouldn’t normally expect him to associate with?’

  ‘No, he doesn’t conduct his business affairs from home, so I know nothing about them. However, he does have some Indians at the warehouse. They were the ones who…’ She gulped. ‘The ones who viciously beat that poor man to death.’

  ‘Precisely.’ Jake nodded. ‘Did you think it strange that he took up with such people? Is it something you would expect him to do?’

  Lady Eva lifted her shoulders. ‘I take no interest in William’s business activities and certainly wouldn’t ask him about them. I almost never went to the warehouse, either. We only did so on that fateful day because William told me to meet him there after our walk in the park. He had been in an exceptionally relaxed frame of mind for over a week, now that I think about it, which was unusual. He doesn’t have an agreeable disposition and his sunny moods never last for long.’ She frowned. ‘It was almost as though he had expectations of financial gain. Money is about the only thing that makes him smile.’

  ‘Did he say why he wished you to go to the warehouse?’ Jake asked.

  ‘Yes, he had a new consignment of silk in from India and invited me to select some for myself before he sold it on. He could be like that. Restricting my allowance one moment, showering me with gifts the next.’

  ‘Not the only thing he just had in from India,’ Isaac remarked. ‘We happen to know the rogues whom you saw at the warehouse also came in with the silk.’

  ‘Please tell me what this is all about, gentlemen.’ Lady Eva turned, fixing them with an unimpeded gaze that caused havoc with Isaac’s equilibrium. ‘I am at a loss to understand why he has such ruthless Indians in his employ and even more curious to know why it should concern you.’

  Isaac picked up the hand that rested on the arm of her chair, turned it over and surprised himself by applying his lips to the inside of her wrist. The need to reassure her was simply too compelling to be denied. His method of so doing went beyond the acceptable, as evidenced by the elevation of both Jake’s brows.

  ‘You are aware of the Great Exhibition?’ Jake asked, observing Isaac with an expression of mild censure.

  ‘Of course,’ Lady Eva replied. ‘It is all everyone’s talking about. I have heard it described as a rare opportunity to showcase modern industrial technology. It’s widely expected to put us ahead of the French in the eyes of the world, which would please many people of my acquaintance. I understand Prince Albert is a driving force behind the scheme.’

  ‘Unfortunately, there are as many detractors as there are supporters,’ Isaac remarked. ‘A lot of people would prefer to see it fail and have the Queen and her government shown in a poor light.’

  ‘Yes, but…just a moment.’ She frowned, anger flashing through her eyes as she began to comprehend. ‘Are you suggesting my husband is one such?’

  ‘Your husband’s only loyalty is to lining his own pockets,’ Isaac said more severely than he had intended. ‘You already said as much yourself.’

  ‘That’s true enough, but I don’t think he would go so far as to be unpatriotic, even if it meant huge monetary gain.’ Lady Eva looked genuinely shocked. ‘Are you quite sure of your facts?’

  ‘Absolutely.’

  It was Jake who answered her question and her gaze remained focused intently on him. Her lush lips parted and a silent oh slipped past them. ‘Are you involved in this matter at the behest of the Home Secretary?’

  Jake inclined his head. ‘We have that hono
ur.’

  ‘But surely there are no threats to the Great Exhibition.’

  Jake shrugged. ‘As we already told you, a lot of people would like to see it fail.’

  She stared off into the distance, frowning as she thought it through. ‘I don’t love my husband, far from it, but still have trouble imagining him sabotaging an event that will show this country up in such a favourable light.’

  ‘Are you absolutely sure about that?’ Jake asked, fixing her with a probing gaze.

  ‘Please, Lord Torbay, just tell me what it is you suspect him of being involved with. You clearly require my help, and I can’t offer it if I don’t know what it is you want of me.’ She sighed. ‘Don’t try to spare my feelings. Just voice your suspicions.’

  ‘Very well’ Jake replied. ‘Were you aware that the Koh-i-Noor, the largest diamond in the world, is to be exhibited?’

  ‘Yes, I’m looking forward to seeing it.’ She paused. ‘Well, I was. But it hardly seems important now, given the turn my life has taken.’

  ‘The diamond is supposed to bring bad luck to any man who owns it,’ Isaac said, laughing. ‘Which is why it’s only safe in a woman’s hands. Legend mixed with fact, if you ask me.’

  ‘To cut a long and colourful history short, it was recently confiscated by the British East India Company and gifted to Queen Victoria,’ Jake explained.

  ‘How is that possible?’

  ‘A very good question,’ Jake replied. ‘The actions of the East India Company have caused friction between the two nations. A lot of powerful people in India take issue with that gift and want their diamond back.’

  ‘Yes, I’m sure they do, and perhaps they have right on their side.’ Lady Eva shared a horrified glance between them. ‘Please tell me William isn’t so lost to all decency that he’s involved in trying to steal it.’

  ***

  Even as Eva posed the question she knew she’d got it right. It explained the sudden appearance of the ruthless Indians in William’s warehouse; William’s prolonged good mood; the tightening of security around her husband’s affairs; the mysterious late night meetings he had suddenly needed to attend; and so much more besides. Even so, aware that William’s main desire was to be accepted by society, committing such a heinous act of treason hardly seemed the best way to go about it.