“You did well, milady,” Jane said.
“More luck than skill, Jane. We’ll watch him until Hart arrives. I don’t trust those bindings to hold him long if he gets into a rage.”
“He’ll certainly be annoyed,” Jane said, “but I learned my knots from my brother in the navy. They’ll hold tight.”
Maddie rested the pistol on her knee. She swallowed. “My throat is terribly dry.”
“I’ll go down and get you some water,” Jane said.
“No. Never mind, Jane. Another of my uncle’s men might come looking for him.”
“Then I’d best just go down and close the panel.”
“Good idea.”
Jane climbed nimbly down beside the ladder. A bang as the panel closed, then her head appeared at the top.
Maddie was profoundly glad to see her. She hated to be alone with this man for even a moment. He planned to kill them, to slit their throats. She recoiled in horror and thought she might be sick. “Now we must wait until morning,” she said, aware Jane would wish her to remain calm. “We’ll take turns to watch him. You rest first, Jane, and then I’ll wake you.”
“All right.” Jane lay down on her makeshift bed. After a moment, she said, “I can’t sleep, milady. I’m not sure I’ll ever feel safe enough to sleep again.”
“Let’s talk to keep ourselves awake,” Maddie said.
“We might sing,” Jane suggested.
“Yes, sing, Jane, but softly.” If Maddie tried, she would sound strangled.
Jane sung in a sweet, shaky voice. Some country song Maddie had never heard. It made her feel better somehow. Jane’s voice drifted away. “I’m sorry, milady. I’ve forgotten the words. It must be the shock.”
They fell silent and were drooping with fatigue when the man’s voice suddenly cut across the room. “Ow, me head. What have yea done? When I get free I’m going to…”
Jane put her hands over her ears.
Maddie picked up the pistol and pointed it at him. “You’d best be quiet. I shot you once. I can do it again. And if I must, be sure I will.”
He took her at her word, his cruel mouth forming a thin, hard line.
In the gloom with the candles fluttering, his yellowed eyes glared at her, reminding her of some dangerous jungle beast she’d seen in a picture book. But at least he’d fallen silent, and his head lolled.
A ribbon of blood ran down his cheek. She checked to make sure he was still breathing. She leaned back, satisfied. “I’m sorry to have dragged you into this, Jane.”
“Dragged me in?” Jane sounded shocked. “I’ve never had so much fun in all m’ life!”
Maddie disbelieved her, but was grateful, and even managed a breathy giggle. “I can’t imagine coping with him on my own. I would certainly have panicked.”
“We must look like a couple of ghosts covered in all this dust!” Jane shook out her skirts and sneezed.
“We shall both need a bath.” Maddie sighed, thinking of the state Hart would find them in. “Although I don’t know when we can manage it.”
“A bath?” Jane asked, as if the idea of immersing herself completely in water had never occurred to her. “A good wash will do me.”
Outside, an owl hooted in the chestnut tree and somewhere, a fox barked. “We’d best be quiet,” Maddie said. “We don’t know who else might be out there.”
Rain pattered on the roof. It forced Maddie to move to avoid a steady flow of drips from a hole in the thatch. She chose a dry spot and settled down again, her gaze remaining on the slumped figure. It was important to show Jane she was in charge of the situation, but so difficult with her nerves strung tight. Horribly stiff, she sat as still as a statue with her eyes wide open, her stiff fingers cramping around the gun.
They spent the rest of the night in tense silence. Finally, the dark, windowless space grew lighter with the warm glow of dawn. They heard the rattle of carriage wheels in the lane. For one fearful moment, Maddie feared it would be her uncle.
“Shall I go down?” Jane whispered.