Ravished (9 page)

Harriet awoke the next morning shortly before dawn. She lay in bed for a while, reliving the events of the previous evening. Aunt Effie had been both thrilled and horrified to find herself being introduced to the notorious Viscount St. Justin.

Effie had handled the situation with admirable poise, however. She had betrayed very little of her flustered condition. Felicity had been her usual straightforward, pragmatic self. She had accepted the introduction with charming grace.

Gideon had managed to compound the effects of his outrageous behavior at the ball by leaving as soon as he had met Effie and Felicity.

The moment he disappeared into the night the entire room full of people had erupted into excited conversation. Harriet was well aware that she had been the focus of several pairs of curious eyes.

On the way home in the carriage Effie had not stopped talking about the incident.

"The local people are quite right to call him a strange and unpredictable man," she said for the hundredth time. "Just imagine ordering up a waltz without so much as a by-your-leave and then singling you out, Harriet. Thank heaven he did not choose Felicity. She cannot afford to have her name coupled with his before she goes to London."

"Actually," Felicity said, "I was quite grateful to him. Now that the waltz has been introduced to Upper Biddleton we shall no doubt be able to dance it again at the next assembly. And it is all the rage in London, Aunt Effie. You told me so yourself."

"That is beside the point," Effie retorted. "I am convinced Mrs. Stone and the others are correct. The man is dangerous. He even looks dangerous. You are both to be extremely cautious around him, do you understand?"

Harriet yawned. "What is this, Aunt Effie? Some concern for my reputation at last? I thought you felt I was safe due to my advanced years."

"Something tells me no woman is safe in that man's presence," Effie said darkly. "Mrs. Stone calls him a beast and I am not at all certain but that she may be right."

"I felt quite safe with him," Harriet declared. "Even when we danced the waltz."

But she had lied to her aunt, Harriet knew. She had not felt safe at all in Gideon's arms. Just the opposite, in fact. And she had enjoyed every dangerous thrill that had shot through her when he had whirled her about on the dance floor.

Harriet knew she was not going to go back to sleep and it was much too early for anyone else in the household to be awake. She pushed back the covers and got out of bed. She would get dressed and go downstairs to make herself a pot of tea. Mrs. Stone would probably not approve. She was a great believer in ladies maintaining their standards, but that was too bad. Harriet had no intention of waking the housekeeper at this early hour and she was quite able to prepare her own tea.

The bedchamber was chilled from the long, cold night. Harriet dressed quickly in a faded, long-sleeved wool gown and pinned a muslin cap on her springy hair.

She passed the window on her way to the door and automatically glanced out to observe the dawn light as it struck the sea. The tide was out and it would have been an excellent hour to hunt fossils. It was too bad Gideon had forbidden her to go near the caves until after the thieves were caught.

Out of the corner of her eye Harriet saw a figure on the beach below her window. She halted abruptly and leaned out to get a better look. Perhaps it was a fisherman, she reassured herself.

But a moment later the figure scuttled, back into view for a few seconds and Harriet knew at once it was no fisherman. The man was wearing a coat and a rather squashed-looking, low-crowned hat pulled down over his ears. She could not see his face, but she saw at once that the man was making his way along the beach toward the entrance to her precious cave.

Harriet did not hesitate. This was an alarming occurrence and needed immediate investigation. The man below was obviously not one of the thieves. They appeared only in the middle of the night.

That left one other all too likely possibility. The man was very likely another fossil collector who was attempting to sneak into her caves.

Harriet knew she had to get down to the beach at once to see what the intruder intended.

Chapter Five

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The early morning air was chilled. Harriet wrapped the heavy cloak that had belonged to her mother more tightly around her. She made her way cautiously down the cliff path. The sun would be up soon, but for now there was only a soft, gray light reflecting off the sea.

When she reached the bottom of the path she turned and hurried along the beach toward the row of openings in the cliffs. She could see boot prints in the damp sand. If she could just be certain the intruder was not heading for the one particular cave she was most interested in these days, she could relax.

It would be simple enough to follow the tracks and reassure herself that no one else had chanced upon the passageway that led to the cavern that contained the tooth.

But a few minutes later Harriet saw with horror that the boot prints disappeared straight into a familiar cavern entrance. It could be just coincidence, she told herself uneasily.

Or it could mean that someone else was about to put his grubby hands on her precious tooth.
Bloody hell
. She had been a fool to allow Gideon to keep her out of the cave until after his plans had been completed. This was what came of putting a man like Gideon in charge of this sort of thing.

Clutching the cloak tightly closed and wishing she had brought a lamp, Harriet stepped care fully, through the narrow entrance and into the yawning cavern.

She came to a halt at once when she realized she could proceed no farther without a light of some sort. For a moment she stood still, allowing her eyes to adjust to the gloom. She could hear water dripping around her in the eerie darkness.

Harriet strained to see down the narrow corridor of stone that led out of the back of the cavern. There was no sign of a light. The intruder had already passed from sight into the twisting tunnel that ultimately led to the cave full of stolen treasure and her tooth.

"Bloody hell," Harriet muttered aloud, thoroughly frustrated. There was nothing to be done. She would simply have to wait out here in the cavern until the man returned. Then she would tell him in very strong terms that she had Gideon's personal guarantee that these caves were to be explored only by her.

She was standing there impatiently, arms folded under her breasts, when a very large hand descended heavily on her shoulder. It gripped her firmly and spun her around.

"Dear God, what on earth—" Harriet gave a small shriek of alarm and then realized it was Gideon who had come through the narrow opening behind her. "Oh, my lord, it is only you. Thank heaven. You gave me quite a start."

"You deserve a lot more than a bad start," Gideon muttered. "I ought to put you over my knee. What the devil are you doing here? I told you that you were not to go into these caves until after the thieves have been apprehended."

Harriet scowled. "Yes, I know, my lord. But you will understand why I had to come down here when I tell you that I just happened to look out my window a short while ago and saw another collector sneaking in here."

"The hell you did." Gideon glanced toward the tunnel. He had a lamp in his hand, but it was not lit.

"I most certainly did," Harriet assured him. "I did not think to bring a lamp, so I am waiting here for him to return."

"And just what in hell were you planning to do when he showed up?"

She lifted her chin. "I was going to inform him that I have exclusive rights to explore the caves under your lands, sir. I intend to warn him that if he continues to trespass, you will have him arrested."

Gideon shook his head in disgust. "You and your bloody damn fossils." He was clearly about to continue in that vein when he was interrupted by a faint whistling from the tunnel.

"There he is now," Harriet said quickly. She turned around and saw the glow of a lamp deep in the corridor. "This is excellent timing, my lord. You will be here to back me up when I tell him he has no right to be in these caves."

The whistling grew louder and the glare of the lamp shone brighter. A moment later a small, wiry man dressed in a heavy coat, a low-crowned hat, and badly worn boots emerged from the tunnel. It was the same man Harriet had seen on the beach. The lamp in his hand revealed a narrow, pinched face and beady eyes. He stopped short when he saw Gideon and Harriet standing in the outer cavern.

"Mornin', my lord. I see you made it right on time. Don't know many of your sort who bestir themselves afore noon. Brought a friend along, I see." The little man gave Harriet a surprisingly deep bow. "Mornin' to you, ma'am."

Harriet frowned. "Who are you, sir, and what do you think you are doing in my caves?"

"Your caves?" The little man scrunched his face up into a twisted grin. "Not the way I heard it."

"For all intents and purposes, these caves belong to me," Harriet said firmly. "His lordship will explain."

Gideon gave Harriet a wry glance. "I think I had better do just that before this gets any more confused. Miss Pomeroy, allow me to introduce Mr. Dobbs of Bow Street."

Harriet stared at the little man. "Bow Street? You are a Runner, sir?"

"I have that distinguished honor, ma'am." Dobbs gave her another courtly bow.

"How exciting." Harriet glanced at Gideon. "Then your plans are in place and ready to be carried out?"

"With any luck we will apprehend the thieves the next time they arrive to store their goods." Gideon nodded at the little man. "Dobbs here will keep a nightly watch on these caves for the next few weeks."

"I am delighted to hear that." Harriet looked at Dobbs. "I believe there are at least two men involved and sometimes a third man has accompanied the others. Will you be able to handle that many villains by yourself, Mr. Dobbs?"

"If it be necessary," Dobbs said. "However, I expect to have some assistance. His lordship here and I have agreed upon a signal. When I spot the villains on the beach, I will use a lamp to flash a message from the top of he cliffs."

"My butler and I will take shifts watching for the signal every night when the tide is out until the thieves are apprehended," Gideon explained. "When we see Mr. Dobbs's light flashing, we will come down to the beach and make certain all goes according to plan."

Harriet nodded approvingly. "It seems like an excellent arrangement. Every bit as clever as the one I, myself, was constructing."

"Thank you," Gideon said dryly.

"However," Harriet continued, "I do have one small suggestion to make, if I may."

"No," said Gideon, "I do not think that will be necessary, thank you." He looked at Dobbs. "Did you find the chamber where the goods are being cached?"

"That I did, sir. Followed your little sketch right to the proper cavern. A very impressive collection of loot, it is." Dobbs's eyes gleamed. "I recognize a good bit of it. Several of those items were reported missing and we've been keeping an eye out for 'em. No wonder we never turned 'em up in Town. They was bein' kept outa sight until everyone forgot about 'em. Very clever. Very clever, indeed. "

"As Mr. Dobbs will get rewards when he returns the stolen goods to their rightful owners," Gideon murmured to Harriet, "you may rest assured his enthusiasm for keeping a close watch on the caves is high."

"Yes, of course." Harriet smiled at Dobbs. "Do you know, I have never actually met a Bow Street Runner before. I have a great many questions I would like to ask you about your work, Mr. Dobbs."

Dobbs beamed with modest importance. "Certainly, ma'am. Ask away."

Gideon raised a gloved hand. "Not now. Dobbs, I am certain you will want to remove yourself from the vicinity as quickly as possible now that you have your bearings. No point taking any chances. We would not want anyone to see you hanging about."

"Right you are, sir. Well, then, I'll be off. Good day to you, ma'am." Dobbs gave Harriet another bow and ambled out of the cave.

Harriet watched him go. "Well, that is certainly a relief. I must say I am very pleased to see that things are going ahead at a rapid pace. Excellent job, my lord. But I do wish you had consulted me."

"I rarely consult anyone, Miss Pomeroy. I prefer to operate on my own."

"I see." Harriet frowned, but there did not seem to be much point in arguing about his autocratic methods. The plans were set and they seemed suitable. She would have to be content. "I suppose I had best be off, myself, before I am missed at the house."

Gideon loomed menacingly over her, blocking the entrance of the cavern. "One moment, Miss Pomeroy. I intend to get something quite clear between us before I allow you to return to your home."

"Yes, my lord?"

"You are to stay out of these caves until this business is finished." Gideon spaced the words evenly between set teeth. "I will not tell you again. Do you understand?"

Harriet blinked. "Yes, of course I understand. However, my lord, I am not a child. I am quite capable of exercising caution when necessary."

"Caution? You call it cautious to come down onto the beach this morning to pursue a strange man into this cavern? That was not an act of caution, it was the action of a brainless little twit."

"I am not a twit," Harriet flared, furious now. "I assumed Mr. Dobbs was another fossil collector and he was heading straight for my caves."

"Well, you were wrong, weren't you? He was not another fossil collector at all. It was fortunate he happened to be a Runner. He could have just as easily been one of the thieves sent here to check on the loot."

"I have told you, the thieves never come here during the day. And I would appreciate it if you would kindly stop yelling at me, my lord. I am the one who alerted you to what was going on here, if you will recall. I am the one who discovered the thieves in the first place. You should consider me, at the very least, a partner in this endeavor. I am only trying to protect my fossils."

"Damn your fossils. Is that all you can think about, Miss Pomeroy?"