“Well, because they’re our friends.”
“No, they’re not. They were our clients, nothing more.”
She gasped. “How can you say that?”
“Because it’s true,” he shrugged.
Two drunken sailors hobbled past them and knocked on a door further along the alley. A buxom woman wearing a tall white wig and red rouge opened the door and beckoned them inside.
The alley was not the place to partake in a heated conversation. Daniel took Daphne’s arm and guided her past The Mariners Tavern towards the main street. “If you must go to Elton Park, then I shall continue the investigation without you. You can learn of my progress upon your return.”
Daphne stopped and pulled her arm free. “This is my investigation, and you will do nothing without me.”
“Did you not hire me to solve your problem for you?” he said with an air of arrogance. “As no money has changed hands, I may do as I please.” Perhaps he sounded dramatic, but the thought of her travelling alone scared the hell out of him.
Hands braced on her hips, she glared. But the sudden eerie silence proved distracting. He scanned the alley but saw no one, heard nothing.
“Mr Thorpe,” she began as though about to offer a scathing reprimand.
“Hush.”
“No. I will not hush. A heavy-handed approach will not work with me.”
Daniel ignored her. The feeling of dread swamped him now. With keen eyes he scoured the darkness. He heard the click of the hammer, the sucking sound of a ball discharging. A flash of orange and a puff of white smoke confirmed his worst fear.
With no time for an explanation, he pushed Daphne to the ground as the loud bang echoed through the alley. Distant squeals and Daphne’s cries of protest reached him before the ball hit his upper arm.
“Bloody hell!” He dropped to his knees, more from the shock of the impact than from sustaining injury. “You’d better blasted run as I’m coming for you,” he called out into the darkness. Well, he was as soon as he found the strength to stand.
He glanced at Daphne, his heart beating so fiercely he could feel it thumping in his throat. Her face was pale, her eyes wide as she crawled to his side.
“Did he hit you?” She ran her trembling hands over his chest, his face, examining her palm as she searched for evidence of blood. “Tell me, Daniel, where does it hurt?”
“My arm … but it’s just a graze.” He dabbed at the hole in his coat sleeve, relieved to find it was not saturated with blood. Even so, he could feel the damp shirt sticking to his skin. Damn. He knew better than to linger in an alley at night. One way or another, Daphne would be the death of him before the week was out.
“Tell me you’re all right?” Her anguish soon turned to anger, and she jumped to her feet, thrust her hand inside her pelisse and withdrew her pistol. “He’s escaping. Wait here. I’ll be but a moment.”
Daniel staggered to his feet as the woman with pea soup for brains darted back down the alley.
“Daphne! Wait!” Of all the foolish, idiotic things to do. Despite the dull ache in his arm, he chased after her, charging through the group of drunken sots stumbling into The Mariners in a bid to find a safe place to hide. “Move,” he yelled, trying not to punch those who bumped into him and knocked his wound.
With the advantage of large strides, he was able to catch up with her.
“What the devil?” she cried as he scooped her up off the ground with his good arm and held her tight to his chest. “Put me down. He’s getting away.” She kicked her legs, the heel of her boot hitting his shin.
“Damn it, woman. Don’t make me throw you over my shoulder.”
“Quick, Daniel. It’s him. It’s my mysterious intruder. I’m sure of it.”
“Let him go, Daphne.” He squinted in the gloom but saw no one of interest. “We’ll not find him here. But rest assured, we’ll not stop looking until we do.” Damn. His arm throbbed, and he needed a drink. “If I don’t tend to the wound, it may become infected.”
At that, she gasped. Daniel released her, letting her slide down his body slowly until her feet touched the cobblestones.
“Forgive me.” She turned to face him, her frantic gaze falling to his arm. “I don’t know what came over me. All I could think of was that my silent stalker had finally made his move. I should not have left you.” She shook her head and glanced over her shoulder. “We should go to Lily, see if she can help.”
From the lack of light in the chandler’s up ahead, and the absence of ropes hanging from hooks on the wall, it was evident the fellow had heard the commotion and shut up shop.
&nb