She gazed at the gun in his hands. “Only a hunting rifle.”
“It is quite simple. Let me show you.” He explained about the workings. “Remove the safety catch. Then aim it.” He pointed the pistol at a fence. “And squeeze the trigger.” An explosion followed by wood chips raining down. He handed it to her. “I’ll reload it. It will fire two shots.”
She turned the small deadly gun in her hand. “I hope I won’t have to use it.”
He prayed she wouldn’t. Could Maddie shoot when faced with the scoundrel? Even if she managed it, nerves played a big part in accuracy. “Did you have some success with the rifle?”
“I only shot at targets. But I managed well.”
“Good. I’ll ride home for the coach. Remember the ladder to the roof space Jane found? Hide up there if anyone comes. I know it will be uncomfortable, but it would be wise to spend the night there.”
Jane gave a shudder. “There will be mice and spiders.”
“Better that than Wakeham’s men. I’ll leave now, Maddie, and be back by dawn.”
She put a hand on his arm. “You’ll ride through the night? Surely that’s not wise?”
“It won’t be the first time.” He gazed up at the sky. “The clouds appear to have blown away. There will be a moon.” He took Pearl by the rein and mounted Blaze.
Maddie clutched her hands, alarm in her eyes. “Can you manage both horses for such a long distance?”
“It’s less than thirty miles to Pembury. Pearl will be safe in my stables. If the men were to find her stabled here, it would confirm they’d come to the right place.” He gathered up the reins. “You wouldn’t want them to get hold of Pearl?”
“No…of course I wouldn’t, but…”
“I’ll return in the early morn with the coach. Pack and be ready to leave.” Hart rode out into the lane. He gazed over his shoulder to where Maddie stood with her hand raised. God keep them from harm until he could return. At Pembury, he’d grab a bite to eat and set out immediately. There was no time for rest. He was happy to forgo sleep to see them safe.
As he rode up the high street, Hart kept a sharp eye out for any of Wakeham’s men. They would stand out here lurking about. If they were here, he would go back to the cottage. But he saw no sign of the rogues and urged the horses on. Pearl soon gave up pulling at the rein and kept pace with Blaze.
While he hated to leave Maddie, he had no choice. He hoped the women would take his advice and hide in the attic. Once night fell, they were vulnerable, and now Wakeham knew where she was. He would waste little time sending his men to capture her, or worse.
When Hart arrived home, he dismounted at the stables, weary, his thigh muscles sore. He left the horses with a groom and gave the order to his coachman for the coach to be brought around. Then he went into the stables in search of Henry. He found him in a stall with his sleeves rolled up, raking straw. “Toss your clothes into a bag and join the coachman,” Hart said. “You are to accompany us to Scotland.”
Henry threw down the fork, his eyes shining with the sense of adventure. “I’ve few clothes to bother about. I’ll be but a minute, milord.”
“Good man.”
While the kitchen staff prepared him a hamper, Hart ordered his valet to pack a portmanteau while he quickly washed and shaved. Leonard remarkably kept his tongue as Hart dressed. Downing a cup of coffee, Hart took a piece of toast from a kitchen maid. A short time later, he climbed into the coach, sat back, crossing his arms, and wearily closed his eyes.
As the sun cast a warm glow over the fields, the coach reached the toll road on its way to Box Hill and Lilybrook Cottage. Hart raised the hamper and took out a chicken leg. He chewed without tasting it, tossed down the bone, and wiped his mouth and hands with a napkin. Then he turned to watch the countryside pass by while anxiety for the women’s safety filled his thoughts. Should he have dealt first with Wakeham? He had no proof. Probing his reasoning, he realized his aim had always been to take Maddie far away from all this and marry her.
An hour later, he awakened, surprised that he’d fallen asleep. Hart felt a good deal better as he planned their long journey to the Scottish borders in his mind: the best inns where he could exchange the horses and dine along the Great North Road and the women could spend a comfortable night. He would not waste a day once they arrived in Scotland. He and Maddie must marry immediately. Hart waited for the expected alarm at saying goodbye to his bachelorhood. When it failed to come, he allowed himself a small smile before apprehension about what he would find at Lilybrook cottage consumed him again.
*
Throughout the restof the day, Maddie and Jane took turns to watch out for any sign of her uncle and his men. Their spirits rose when neither he nor his cohorts appeared. But they dared not light the stove, and dined on cheese and biscuits left in the pantry.
Once the light ebbed, Jane opened the panel she’d found in the parlor, exposing the tall ladder leading up to the windowless space beneath the roof.
“I’ll pass up a blanket and pillows to you,” Maddie said. “We might as well make ourselves as comfortable as possible.”
Before it grew too dark, they chose a spot and settled down.
“I shan’t sleep a wink,” Jane said, moving about and prodding her pillow.
“Nor I.” Maddie had brought up a candle and the tinderbox for emergencies, but wouldn’t light it unless absolutely necessary. She lay crammed into a space between wooden struts and prepared for a long, uncomfortable night. “Talk to me, Jane. Tell me about your childhood.”
Jane spoke about her life growing up on the farm. “My brothers and I had to do our share. It was my job to feed the pigs, collect the eggs, and help Mama in the house. The boys worked outside on the farm. After Papa died, everything changed. Mama remarried, but her new husband didn’t take kindly to us. As soon as my brothers were old enough, one joined the army and the other the navy, and I went into service at fourteen.”