Page 10 of Eight for Losing, One for Loving

Chapter 3

It has been remarked that Lord A has been seen in company with the lovely Miss S on several notable occasions during the past weeks. The observant may have noticed that he danced with her twice at the Marchams’ ball on Friday night. This author wonders if the elusive lord, arguably the biggest prize on the marriage mart, has finally found his lady. Lord K will be disappointed indeed, having thrust his lovely daughter Lady B under the nose of said Lord A most publicly of late.

―Excerpt of an article in the society pages of The Morning Star.

24th June 1850, The Great North Road, London.

An anxious quarter hour passed as they overtook hackney after hackney, none of which was the one they were after. As they got farther out of town, however, the traffic thinned, but in the far distance, they saw an old hackney ahead of them.

“That’s it,” Leo said.

Vi glanced at him. “How can you tell?”

“The axle is lower on the left side than the right. I think it’s held together with string.”

Vi stared at him, rather impressed he’d noticed such a thing. “Well done,” she said.

To her surprise, he coloured a little. “I’m not a complete fool, Vi.”

“I never thought it!” she exclaimed, stung by the remark. She might think him a lot of things, but a fool was not one of them. “How did they get so far ahead of us?” she asked in dismay as it disappeared over the brow of the hill.

“They’ve not had to check each hackney carriage on the Great North Road before passing it,” he said in frustration.

“I wonder where they’re going?”

“I think you’re right, Vi. I think they’ve had to change their plans. What that means, however, I don’t know. We just need to stick behind them. Those nags won’t last forever. They can’t stop and change horses, for we’ll catch them then, and Persius there is fine fettle. We’ll get them, providing we can keep them in sight.”

Vi nodded her agreement to this, finding with a little surprise that she had complete confidence in Leo. So, she sat back and left him to the business of driving. Islington, North Finchley, and Barnet came and went before Leo turned back to her.

“All right, Vi?” he asked, concern in his eyes.

“Perfectly,” she replied, hoping she sounded calmer than she felt as she patted his arm. “Don’t you fret about me, Leo. Just concentrate on getting Mau back.”

“You’re a great gun, do you know that? A real Trojan,” he said with admiration. “I’ve always known it, but… but I ought to have told you before now. Long, long before now.”

Vi blinked, a little taken aback by what truly was high praise from Leo and meant far more to her than any flattery about her looks. “Thank you,” she replied cautiously, finding herself glowing with happiness at words which some women would have little appreciated. After all, women were supposed to aspire to be fragile creatures who would swoon at the least breath of chill wind, never mind a breakneck race to recover a kidnapped cat. Ought that to be catnapped? She wondered absently, before scolding herself for clearly losing her mind.

“Where are they?” Leo demanded as they reached Potter’s Bar.

They had been gaining steadily upon the hackney, but it had turned a corner and had been out of sight for a few minutes. Now, it had simply vanished.

“I can’t see them,” Vi exclaimed, turning in her seat as they flew down the High Street. “They must have turned off.”

“Hell and damnation!” Leo muttered, which Vi thought a most appropriate response and only wished she’d been brave enough to say it herself.

“Ask this lady,” she suggested, pointing to the side of the road where a woman was walking with a basket on her arm.

Leo nodded and did as she suggested.

“Good afternoon, madam. I beg your pardon, but might you have seen a hackney cab come this way in the past few minutes?”

The elderly woman, who appeared to be returning from the shops with a full basket, gazed up at Leo with blatant admiration and returned a surprisingly coquettish smile. “No, pet, sorry. Did someone run off with your sweetheart? More fool them, if they did,” she remarked with a chuckle. “I’d let you catch me, right enough.”

Leo shook his head, too worried to banter with the lady, as Vi suspected he would have otherwise done. “Not my sweetheart, but they are running away, the villains.”

“Perhaps they’re catching the train. Blasted noisy, dirty things,” she added in disgust. “They opened that new line this year. Horrid thing. My hens won’t lay since those great rattling engines started coming through.”

“Oh, Leo,” Vi said in concern. “You don’t think…?”