Page 8 of Eight for Losing, One for Loving

A muttered oath and more howling, yowling, and furious noises came from the small thicket of trees beside them.

“Mau!” Leo called, hurrying into the undergrowth as Vi followed, heedless of her skirts catching on brambles or branches, or the impropriety of dashing headlong into a secluded woodland with Leo Hunt.

Leo crashed through the assorted bracken and bushes in the direction the noises had come from, with Vi hurrying to catch him up. He stopped as he exited the small copse, so suddenly that Vi ploughed into the back of him.

“Where is he?” she demanded, rubbing her nose and readjusting her bonnet.

“I don’t know,” Leo said, and she could hear the worry in his voice. “I can’t see—”

“There!” Vi cried, suddenly spotting a stocky fellow in an ill-fitting suit carrying a heavy sack. He was holding it at arm’s length and the sack was writhing and occasionally emitting hissing noises. “Oh, Leo, look there, that man—”

But Leo was already moving, running flat out. The man must have heard the heavy footfalls and turned, the colour draining from his face as he saw Leo thundering towards him.

“Edgar! Edgar!” he shouted, as a hackney carriage pulled up beside him. With surprising speed for such a stocky fellow, he threw the sack inside and leapt in after it, slamming the door closed as it careered away, back through the park.

Leo was a second too late, his hand pounding on the side of the carriage as it took off. He reached out, trying to grab hold of something, but clutched only air.

“Oh, Leo! They’ve got Mau!” Vi cried, so appalled her voice trembled.

“Not for long,” Leo said savagely.

He turned, stuck his fingers in his mouth and gave a shrill whistle, gesturing madly at the stand of trees beside the Serpentine, some yards away where the tilbury and tiger were waiting for them. Norton leapt into the driver's seat and got the horses moving, cantering them over to where Leo was waiting.

“Some bastard took Mau,” he told his tiger.

Norton’s face contorted. “No, sir! Oh, surely not?”

“No mistake,” Leo said grimly. “Get down and see Miss Spencer safely home, would you?”

“Certainly,” Norton said at once, but Vi was already climbing up beside Leo.

“Don’t be ridiculous and don’t argue. Get after them, Leo, before you lose them.”

“Vi, I don’t know where this is going to lead or—”

Vi gave him an aggravated shove, bouncing on the seat with impatience. “Go! Go! Go!” she shouted.

Leo muttered an oath as Norton hurried to the back. He took up the reins, and the horses leapt forward at his command, so fast they might have been fired from a pistol. Vi swallowed a shriek of alarm, clutching at the tilbury with one hand and her bonnet with the other. People stopped and stared, some shouting in annoyance at their breakneck speed as they galloped in pursuit of the villains.

“Why would anyone take Mau?” Vi cried over the din as they flew through the park.

“Ransom,” Leo said. His face was expressionless, but she could well imagine his feelings. “It’s not the first time,” he added grimly.

“It’s not?” Vi asked in shock.

Leo shook his head. “I’ve stopped putting a collar on him. The first time, someone just took the collar because it had a gold tag with his name on, but left Mau.”

“I remember that. It was reported in the scandal sheets,” Vi said, clutching again at the carriage as they hit a pothole.

“Unfortunately, yes, which gave other people ideas, I think. I’ve stopped taking him into the city with me, but I never imagined the park in broad daylight would be a problem, damn me for a fool.”

He fell silent, his face impassive as he concentrated on keeping the hackney in view.

“Well, he’ll be well cared for, then, if they mean to extort money from you,” Vi said, hoping to calm him, for the unreadable look on his face frightened her more than any show of anger and told her he was beyond being reasonable.

“I’ll murder them with my bare hands before they get the chance,” he growled.

“I’ll help you,” Vi offered, earning herself a brief, if grateful, smile before he fell silent again. They reached the exit to the path and stared up and down the highway.