Then Came You (The Gamblers #1)(46)

Lily slipped her hand through his arm. “By this time Lord Raiford should be quite frantic, wondering where Henry is.”

“Did you leave him a note?” Worthy inquired matter-of-factly.

“No, the earl’s no fool—it won’t take long for him to figure out what became of Henry. He’ll be in London by nightfall. And I’ll be ready for him.”

Whether Worthy approved or not, he showed her the same loyalty he gave to Derek. “How may I be of assistance?”

“If by chance the earl shows up here first, direct him to my terrace. You must keep Henry hidden from him, or my plan will be ruined.”

“Miss Lawson,” the factotum began respectfully, “I consider you to be one of the most valiant women I’ve ever known—”

“Why, thank you.”

“—but are you quite certain you know what you’re doing?”

“Of course I do!” A smile of pure delight spread across her face. “I’m in the process of teaching Lord Raiford a lesson he’ll never forget.”

When Henry’s absence was noted and the search for him began, one of the housemaids revealed that she had seen the young master conversing with Miss Lawson shortly before her departure. The driver returned from London, and was startled to be on the receiving end of a barrage of questions. He admitted he had not seen Master Henry entering or leaving the carriage, but Henry was an agile lad and could have maneuvered about undetected. Alex was certain his brother was with Lily. The blasted woman had taken Henry with her, in order to make him come to London. Well, he would go and take the city apart, brick by brick. He couldn’t wait to reach her…and make her rue the day she had decided to cross him.

It was dark by the time he reached Grosvenor Square. Alex bounded out of the chaise-and-four almost before the driver had stopped the vehicle. Wearing a grimace, he strode up the steps of No. 38 and hammered on the door with his fist. After a few moments the door was opened by a tall, bearded butler. The man was impressive. Hewore his dignity like an invisible mantle, his expressionless face set with authority. “Good evening, Lord Raiford. Miss Lawson has been expecting you.”

“Where’s my brother?” Without waiting for a reply, Alex pushed his way inside. “Henry!” he bellowed, setting the walls to trembling.

“Lord Raiford,” the butler remarked politely. “If you’ll come this way—”

“What of my brother?” Alex barked. “Where is he?” Not bothering to match the butler’s decorous pace, Alex leapt up the stairs two at a time. “Henry? Henry, I’m going to tear you limb from limb! And as for Miss Lawson…she’d be wise to climb on her broomstick and escape before I reach her!”

Lily’s cool, amused voice drifted to him from the hall branching off the second landing. “Raiford. After being ejected from your home, I suppose you think you have every right to barge into mine!”

Following the voice, Alex flung open the first door he came to. He discovered an empty sitting room. “Where are you?”

Her maddening laughter drifted down the nail. “In my bedroom.”

“Where’s Henry?”

“How should I know? Do stop that atrocious bellowing, Raiford. I doubt a wounded bear could produce more noise.”

Alex charged to the next door. Flinging it open, he stepped into the bedroom. He had a brief impression of gilded beechwood and green silk hangings. Before he could turn his head, he felt a crashing blow to his skull. With a grunt of pain and surprise, he fell to his hands and knees. The scene blurred, and black mist rolled over him. Clutching at his head, he sank into the flooding darkness.

Lily lowered her arm, still holding the bottle. She stood over him, feeling a strange mixture of dismay and triumph. Alex looked like a felled tiger, his golden hair bright against the jewel tones of the carpet. “Burton!” she called. “Come here at once. Burton, help me lift Lord Raiford to the bed.”

The butler came to the door of the bedroom. For a long moment he stood there, his gaze traveling from the cloth-wrapped bottle in Lily’s hand to Alex’s prostrate form. He had witnessed hundreds of Lily’s scrapes and escapades, but this was the first time his composure had ever been visibly rocked. He managed to school his expression into impassiveness. “Yes, miss,” he finally said, and bent to heft Alex’s large body over his shoulder.

“Careful, don’t hurt him,” Lily said anxiously. “I mean…not any more than I already have.”

Panting with the effort, Burton lowered Alex’s slack body to the bed. Then Burton stood and restored his own appearance, straightening his coat, vest, and tie. He finished by smoothing down a tuft of gray hair that was standing up from the side of his head. “Will there be anything else, Miss Lawson?”

“Yes,” she said, going to sit by Alex’s prone form. “Ropes.”

“Ropes,” Burton repeated emotionlessly.

“To tie him up, of course. We can’t have him getting away, can we? Oh, and be quick about it, Burton. He might wake up soon.” She regarded her prisoner thoughtfully. “I suppose we should remove his coat and boots…”

“Miss Lawson?”

“Yes?” She looked up from her contemplation of Alex, her brown eyes fawnlike.

Burton swallowed hard. “May I ask how long the earl will be staying with us?”