He would try the study first and then widen his search. He didn't want to go back into the crush of guests in order to look for his footmen, but he would dearly like to have them at his back. Not wanting to delay any longer, he moved silently to the study and pressed his ear against the door.

  *

  Emma was forced through a side door, along a passageway and was then bundled into the study. Her captor shoved her across the room and into an armchair.

  'You sit here, missy, and don't make a sound if you know what's good for you. Bloody stupid, if you ask me, bringing along a flash moll like you. Thought a runner would have more sense.'

  These remarks didn't require a reply so she did as she was told and sat quietly. The man cuffed her hard around the face and her head spun, and she was almost sure she heard him talking to somebody outside the door. By the time she'd recovered he was back by her side looking menacing.

  She cowered into the chair hoping her obvious submission might dissuade him from striking her again. The more he hurt her the greater chance there was that Samuel would do something violent to avenge her. No doubt in his official capacity he had a certain leeway when it came to apprehending miscreants, however, she'd no wish for her future husband to have more blood on his hands than was strictly necessary.

  The inside of her mouth was salty; cautiously she ran her tongue around her lips and tasted blood. Dare she reach into her reticule and remove her handkerchief or would this action promote further blows? Before she could decide the study door opened and Benedict Stanton stepped in.

  He minced over to her and this time her fear was genuine. He might be a macaroni but his eyes were hard and she knew him to be more dangerous than he appeared. He wouldn't hesitate to murder her if he discovered her true identity.

  'Who are you, madam, and what are you doing at my party?'

  'I am Mrs Ashfield, my husband's a Bow Street investigator and I accompanied him tonight as he could not gain entry on his own.' Her voice was commendably even, her fear not apparent from her speech.

  His face changed and his eyes glittered with something terrifying. He kicked the chair, almost tipping it over. 'How many men has he got with him?'

  She shook her head. 'We came, like everyone else, to attend your party. My husband just wanted to mingle in order to gain information of some sort. He wouldn't have brought me along otherwise.'

  This sounded plausible and she hoped he'd believe her. The sound of her heart hammering in her ears made concentrating almost impossible. This was the man who'd stolen all Richard's money, the man whose employee had murdered him.

  Stanton looked half-convinced but then he scowled and rushed to the desk. He removed a small key from his pocket and opened a desk drawer. The rustling of paper filled the room and she held her breath. He was going to discover Samuel had taken documents and then… and then heaven knows what would happen to her.

  She expected him to slam the drawer, to curse and storm across to her. What he did was far more frightening. Slowly he straightened and then his mouth curved in a facsimile of a smile.

  'I believe that your husband has something that belongs to me. I'm certain that he will be willing to exchange it for your life.' He turned to his minion. 'Remain here with her, I'm going to fetch her husband.'

  Her brother-in-law had abandoned his foppish persona and she saw him as he truly was – an evil and insane monster. The minutes dragged as she waited for him to return. She prayed Sam wouldn't be captured too.

  She hardly dared to breathe, kept her eyes fixed to the door as she tried desperately to think of a way she could prevent Stanton from killing them both in order to regain the missing papers. She wasn't tied to her chair; her hands and feet were free and she was perfectly able to scream if she thought that might help.

  The noxious odour coming from the man who had captured her was no longer as obvious – she thought this meant he was not standing directly behind her. Was this her opportunity to escape? She tensed her limbs and gripped the arms of the chair intending to use them to propel her forwards and pray that she reached the door before the villain reacted.

  As she shot out of the chair the door flew open and Samuel appeared. 'Get down, sweetheart, now.'

  She dropped to her knees and a shot whistled over her head. She crouched on the floor making herself as small as possible hoping that his aim was true.

  The heavy thud of a body falling to the floor told her it was safe to rise but for some reason her legs wouldn't respond to her command.

  'It's over, sweetheart. Here, let me help you up.' She was lifted to her feet and his arms enfolded her. 'Don't look round; I'll take you somewhere you can rest until our carriage arrives. Nothing more needs doing here.'

  She leaned against him, unable to respond with more than a nod. He gently guided her from the room and once she was in the passageway her voice returned.

  'I don't want to stay another minute in this house, Samuel, I'll wait outside for the carriage.'

  He didn't argue. A familiar face was there to open the door. 'Lock the study door, and tell the butler the party's over. Mr Stanton has been arrested.'

  The footman grinned. 'Them folk in there won't notice, Mr Ashfield. They only came to have a good time.'

  'If the guests are evicted, Samuel, there will be chaos in the square as none of them will have any transport home. Why not let things continue?' This was the first time she'd looked directly at the footman and his happy smile vanished and his eyes widened. She had forgotten her injuries – they must be worse than she'd realised. Maybe it would be better to remain inside until the carriage came.

  'Is there a chamber we can use where we won't be disturbed?'

  'I'll take you to an anteroom Mrs Ashfield, it's just across the hallway.'

  The young man showed them into a prettily decorated chamber, one that must have been used by the lady of the house to entertain her morning callers. 'I'll sit by the window, Samuel, then I can see when it's time to leave.'

  Once she was seated, he kissed the top of her head and then spoke in a low voice to the footman before returning to crouch anxiously at her side.

  'I've sent for warm water and clean cloths, I'll do my best to clean you up. I don't think you'll require sutures.'

  'What I would really like, my love, is a hot drink and something to eat. Although my mouth is sore, it's not painful enough to prevent me from eating.'

  His eyes blazed and his hands tightened on hers. 'I'll never forgive myself, I shouldn't have allowed you to accompany me. All this could have been achieved with a search warrant, there was no need for the play-acting and…'

  'Hush, I don't regret a moment of it. If I hadn't insisted on coming to London we wouldn't be getting married in a week or two. Even if we'd failed, if Stanton had taken everything, we would still come out the victors as we now have each other.'

  He regained his feet and carried over a straight-backed chair and placed it beside hers. 'I've sent for a cart and constables – they should be here in an hour. The papers we needed to prove Stanton had stolen your money are hidden in the stable yard. I'll recover them before we leave.'

  There was a soft tap on the door and the footman came in with a tray of items Samuel had thought necessary to tend to her injuries. 'Put the tray on that side table. We'd like coffee and something to eat – presumably there's a buffet supper being served later – bring us a selection from that.'

  After a painful few minutes he had cleaned her face and was satisfied she wouldn't need the attention of a physician. 'I'm afraid you're going to have a black eye, sweetheart, but the swelling around the cut on your lip should be gone by tomorrow. You're going to have to stay indoors until you look respectable. Looking as you do our neighbours will think I attacked you.'

  'I can wear that hideous bonnet with a brim like a coal scuttle – I defy anyone to see my face if I have that on my head. And anyway, I'll be perfectly content remaining indoors with you.'

  His smile made her toes curl and only the arrival of the second tray prevented him from kissing her. The food was delicious and she managed to mumble her way through a prodigious amount of it. The carriage pulled up outside before the constables and cart had come to remove the prisoners.

  'I'm perfectly able to return home on my own, Samuel, you must remain here and do your duty.'

  'This is the last task I'll perform for Bow Street. Once this matter has been dealt with by the magistrate I shall hand in my resignation.'

  'I cannot wait to begin our new life together. Although you know little about running an estate, I'm sure after a few months you will have everything in hand. Once we're in residence our tenants will be all the better for having you in charge.'

  He escorted her to the carriage and lifted her in. On the journey home she had ample opportunity to consider how tonight's escapade had changed everything. Benedict Stanton was no longer a problem and what he had stolen would be returned. She hoped this wouldn't take more than a week or two because, once she was married and no longer a Stanton, it was possible there might be difficulties regaining control of the missing funds.

  As she had worked this out, she was quite certain Samuel would too. He might insist they delayed their nuptials until the lawyers had completed their investigations and the money had been restored. This was not an option she was prepared to contemplate. The longer it took for them to be married the more time there was for him to reconsider his position.

  He loved her as much she loved him, but if he for a moment believed she would be better off without him then he would vanish from her life as quickly as he'd come into it. She had no option but to take matters into her own hands.

  *

  Sam recovered the hidden documents and supervised the transfer of the prisoners and had intended to borrow a nag from the stables so he could accompany the constables and cart to Bow Street. The corpse was dumped in with the living and would be disposed of by the constables.

  Collins pointed out a serious flaw in this plan. 'You can't ride in that get up, Sergeant, you ain't got no boots on.'

  'I'll have to wait for our carriage to return for me and then I'll change and join you at Bow Street.'

  'No need to do that, sir, if you give me them papers, I'll tell the Beak what's what and get the prisoners logged in. You get on home, Sergeant, you'll not be needed until the morning.'

  Unless he was prepared to travel in the cart with the prisoners Sam knew he had no option but to agree with Collins. He returned to the house and paced the floor of the anteroom until his transport eventually returned. The light was fading by the time he arrived at Tavistock Place and he heard a clock strike ten.

  Foster was waiting to let him in and informed him that Emma had retired. Sam decided he might as well go up himself as he had no wish to remain in these ridiculous clothes a moment longer than he had to. Benton had been given the evening off so he would have his apartment to himself.

  He pushed open the door to his sitting room and was surprised to find light flickering from his bedchamber. He strode across and stepped in. His heart slammed in his chest. She was stretched out on his bed still wearing her evening gown.

  'At last, I thought you were never going to return.' Gracefully she swung her bare feet to the floor and stood up. 'This gown is impossible to remove without assistance and I gave Annie the evening off.'

  She turned and he had no option but to approach and he viewed with alarm the tiny silk covered buttons that ran from top to bottom of her closely-fitting bodice. Fiddling with those damn things was going to take all his self-control and he wasn't sure he'd be able to prevent himself from making love to her.

  When he had the last button undone his hands were shaking; he thought she would thank him and leave. Instead she slowly turned and allowed the gown to slither from her shoulders leaving her standing in front of him in nothing but her petticoats.

  Her eyes told him all he needed to know and he closed the gap between them. 'Are you quite sure, my darling, for once I start to make love to you I'll not be able to stop.'

  'As we are to be married in a week or so, my love, I hardly think it matters. I love you and I've no wish to wait a moment longer to show you just how much.'

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