Free Victorian Vigilantes 01 - Saving Grace by Wendy Soliman

funnier than most. She would give her life for that child. She’ll be pining for the brat and won’t be able to settle if she remains parted from her for much longer.”
    William wanted to argue. It hurt to accept that Eva loved the child more than she loved him, even though he knew it was true.
    “Of course, you could send the child to the country. If Lady Eva does have ears everywhere, she will hear about it and fancy her chances of rescuing her. It will be easier for you to spot her if she arrives at a country location.”
    “I will think about it.” William tapped on the roof with his cane. “Hyde Park, and make haste. I’m late for an appointment.”
    The driver knew which part of the park to head for without being told. Indeed, his options were limited since most of the park was off limits while the finishing touches were put to the magnificent building that would house the Great Exhibition. William had to admire his associate’s guile in arranging to meet in the shadow of the event they planned to cause great scandal and political unrest by ruining. They made this journey frequently and William always found a closed conveyance, blinds drawn down, awaiting them. As soon as they arrived William alighted from his carriage, telling his driver to wait for him. As soon as he entered the closed carriage, it moved off.
    “You’re late,” remarked the superbly attired gentleman inside the carriage.
    “My apologies. I was unavoidably detained.”
    “Have you located your wife?”
    William wanted to tell the man to go to the devil. It was none of his damned business. Unfortunately, he wasn’t in a position to do so and, in some respects, it was his business. This man was his ticket to a life of social acceptability. Not only had he singled William out to co-ordinate the theft of the Koh-i-Noor diamond, but he had also promised to pay him handsomely for the risk he was taking and sponsor his introduction into the right circles. By offering him a foot in the door of high society he had hit upon the only thing William wanted and couldn’t purchase for himself. It was those sorts of weaknesses that William looked for in others and so, even though he didn’t like or trust the man, he could reluctantly admire him for turning the tables on him.
    However, it would only work if he had Eva at his side. Even his high-born co-conspirator couldn’t make William appear socially acceptable without Eva’s impeccable credentials to ease his path. Infuriatingly, this man knew it and used William’s ambitions to keep him honest.
    “I know where she is,” William said, attempting to sound bored with the entire business. “She will be home before the sun sets today.”
    “That is what you said the last time we met,” the man replied languidly.
    “This time it’s true.”
    The man crossed his legs elegantly at the ankles and examined the sleeve of his coat. “I do hope so, for your sake.”
    William’s tone was as indolent as his companion’s. “Are you threatening me?”
    “I can’t help feeling you’ve lost your edge, Woodstock. First you allow one of our hot-headed Sikh guests to murder one of their fellows in broad daylight, where anyone might have seen. Where someone did see. Your wife to be precise. And then you carelessly manage to lose said wife and devote all your energy into finding her, instead of focusing on the things you have agreed to do for me.”
    “She ran because she was scared for her life.”
    The man flexed an indolent brow. “Too scared to return home and seek protection from her husband?”
    His upper class drawl was staring to wear on William’s nerves. “She has no reason to be afraid of me, if that’s what you’re implying. She’s frightened and confused after what she saw and lost her wits for a while. Any lady of quality would react in the same way, especially one of Lady Eva’s sensibilities.”
    “And yet she has the wits to…well, to outwit you, old fellow. It makes me wonder if