Chapter 18
Chapter Eighteen
Ada had so much she wanted to say to Jonny.
But she knew that if she responded in anger, in front of a number of unknown spectators, she might say something she would regret, sending all her anger toward all the men in her life in his direction. He deserved some of it, that was for certain, but not the entirety.
She was sick of everyone else planning her life, and Jonny stepping in and accepting David’s marriage proposal on her behalf just sent her over the edge.
The only way out of this was forward.
All of this had started with Gideon Sharpe and the rumors being spread about her ties to Blackwood’s organization. She was going to put an end to that right now.
Her parents were attending an event, giving her the perfect opportunity to slip out the back door and hire a hack to take her to the docks. It was not a foolproof plan, but she could protect herself.
That was one thing she could thank her father for, she thought as she tapped her hand against the trusty pistol sitting in her pocket.
The rattling carriage jostled her as it made its way toward the docks.
Ada gripped the worn leather seat, her resolve hardening with each bump in the road.
The scent of brine and fish grew stronger, mingling with the acrid smoke from the nearby factories.
She wrinkled her nose but kept her eyes fixed on the dark buildings looming ahead.
When the carriage lurched to a stop, Ada paid the driver and stepped down, her boots squelching in the muddy street.
She drew her cloak tighter around herself, one hand drifting to the weight of the pistol in her pocket.
She wasn’t sure whether she would call its presence comforting or terrifying, but it was better than being defenseless.
Dim lamplight flickered over the wet cobblestones as she strode purposefully through the misty docks toward the ramshackle tavern she knew served as a front for Sharpe's operation, remembering her father hurrying her past it on the way to his warehouse on the docks, telling her never to go inside.
Well, that would change tonight.
Her intent was to make Sharpe recant the rumors he was spreading about her family, especially tying her name to anything involving Blackwood.
She didn’t care about David Carter’s family, nor their ties to her father’s business, but she did care about her own life and reputation.
If the truth came out about her killing Blackwood, then so be it, no matter the consequence.
But she refused to be blamed for something she didn’t do.
The low rumble of drunken voices and tinny piano music spilled through the open windows of the tavern and out into the night. Ada hesitated for only a moment, about to push inside, when a figure emerged from the shadows between the tavern and the warehouse beyond.
She tensed, ready to draw her gun, but as the man stepped into a pool of lamplight, she recognized the sharp features and calculating eyes. Hazel eyes that were all too familiar.
But they didn’t belong to the man to whom she had given her body and, she hated to admit, a piece of her heart.
It was his brother.
“Will,” she hissed, as she yanked the pistol from her cloak and leveled it at his chest.
Jonny's brother smiled, apparently unconcerned about the gun aimed his way. "Well, well. If it isn't the famous Ada Jones. To what do I owe the pleasure?"
"I'm here to see Sharpe." Ada kept her voice low and even, hoping he couldn't hear the tremor of nerves. "Where is he?"
Will barked a laugh, seeming more amused than threatened by her show of force. He took a step closer, and she set the hammer to full-cock, her message unmistakable.
"Easy there, luv. Sharpe's not here. Seems it's just you and me." His eyes glinted with dark mischief. "Though I have to say, I'm curious what you want with him. Trouble in paradise with my dear brother already? Can’t help you there. Jonny’s always done whatever he’s felt like."
His eyes glinted with an emotion that Ada couldn’t quite name, but it looked an awful lot like regret. It quickly vanished behind that mask of cool indifference she had seen Jonny wear one too many times.
“That’s not it at all,” she bit out. “I know Sharpe’s the one behind those rumors about me. I need them to stop.”
Will's grin widened. He leaned against the doorframe, crossing his arms. "Is that so? And what makes you think he'd do what you say?"
"I'm done being a pawn in his games. In all of your games.
" Ada's finger tightened on the trigger.
"Those rumors have ruined my reputation. You and Sharpe nearly got Jonny arrested. I know enough about Sharpe’s past that I could talk to the police and make things difficult.
I want to make a deal and end this all now. "
Will's eyes flickered at the mention of his brother. His smirk faded. "Careful, luv. You're meddling in things you don't understand."
"Then enlighten me." Ada took a step closer, the pistol never wavering. "Why spread lies about me? What does Sharpe hope to gain?"
Will huffed a laugh, but there was no humor in it. "You've got it all wrong. Sharpe didn't start those rumors." He met her gaze steadily, leaning toward her. “I did.”
Ada’s lips parted in surprise.
“But why?”
Will shrugged, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Let's just say it pays to keep certain people looking the other way. Jonny's got a target on his back, whether he wants to admit it or not. I'm protecting him the only way I know how."
"By throwing me to the wolves?" Ada scoffed. "Jonny doesn't need that kind of protection. He's not part of that world anymore. You don’t have to be either."
"Don’t I?" Will's smile turned brittle, his eyes hard. "Funny, that's not the tune Jonny was singing when he waltzed off and left me holding the bag with Sharpe. Suppose I'm still the one to do all of the dirty work while he plays the hero."
Ada lowered her gun slightly, seeing the hurt and abandonment simmering beneath Will’s biting words.
Did he think that Jonny had purposefully left him to face Blackwood alone?
“You do know that your family’s name is written in that ledger, don’t you?” Will continued, lifting a brow. “Even if you aren’t involved with Blackwood, your father certainly is.”
“I know.”
“Did you know that he never stopped supplying Blackwood? That I’ve seen a fair number of pistols that look exactly like the one you’re holding?
He just learned to go about it a little more discreetly.
Here’s the thing, Miss Jones, and it’s something you should remember.
You can never get clear of men like Sharpe or Blackwood.
It’s best to accept your fate and live with the few rewards this life offers than to try to run from it.
It’s a lesson my brother hasn’t learned, and it’s one that you might fall victim to as well if you’re not careful. ”
At that, he turned and walked away, hands in his pockets, whistling as he went as though he didn’t have a care in the world.
Ada lowered her pistol as she watched him go, wondering if there was any way that she and Jonny were going to get out of this — if there was any chance that either of them would escape this – separately or together.
She had no idea where the two of them stood with one another anymore.
Through the dirty window, she took one last look inside the tavern for Sharpe before she walked away, but he was nowhere to be found through the dim light. Just as she was about to turn away, however, another figure caught her eye. One very familiar figure.
Jonny.
He was hunched over a table at the back, speaking to a man who was, at the moment, in the shadows. Could it be Sharpe?
Ada knew she should walk away, that to enter and speak to Jonny or Sharpe would only be inviting trouble, but she couldn’t leave now. Not when she had set out to put everything to rights tonight.
She pushed through the heavy door into the crowded tavern, thick smoke stinging her eyes.
She blinked rapidly, trying to adjust to the dingy interior.
Rough-looking men hunched over the bar, nursing pints of ale, while others huddled around tables, muttering amongst themselves. A few glanced up at her entrance, their gazes lingering on her a beat too long. Ada tugged her hood forward and wove through the crowd, heart pounding against her ribs.
In the last moment before she stepped forward to confront Jonny and Sharpe, she paused, reconsidering the situation, taking a deep breath to calm herself and think rather than act.
Maybe she should wait this out, see what came from this conversation before her.
Then she would strike.
Jonny stared at the man before him with loathing.
Sharpe had called him here for the ledger – or so Jonny had thought. Jonny had come because he was willing to take the chance to try to settle any differences and convince Sharpe to leave him be.
Sharpe, of course, had other ideas.
Jonny had thrown the ledger down on the table between them, and when Sharpe simply grinned, Jonny’s stomach sunk in the realization.
Sharpe didn’t care about the ledger.
He had only wanted to get Jonny to come, to give him a reason to be beholden to him.
“You know what it’s like to work with an organization like mine,” he was saying. “You want for nothing. You would make more in a week than you would in a month working as a shipping clerk.” He said the last words as though they left a bad taste in his mouth.
Jonny shook his head. “That’s not the kind of work I want to be doing. I thought I made that very clear when I left Blackwood.”
“Left Blackwood and your brother. Who was one of Blackwood’s most trusted men.”
“So it seems.”
“Barely a word has been said about you, and already your teammates have turned against you. If they knew the full truth, how would they react?”
Jonny didn’t say anything. He simply stared Sharpe down.
What bothered him the most was that Sharpe was right. They were already suspicious of his intentions, having missed a few practices.
He had considered telling them the truth, asking for help. But he couldn’t. They would never view him the same, would never forgive him for what he had done in the past, nor for keeping any of it from them.
He had to figure this out himself.
He was alone. As he had always been.
“Thank you for your offer, Sharpe,” he said, not hiding the sarcasm in his voice. “But I will be declining. Now, if you would leave me be, I would greatly appreciate it. I will bring nothing against you if you would just stay away from me and from my family.”
“How could I do that when your family has always been such an integral part of this organization?”
“My father is dead. Will does what he wants to do.”
“You would rather be in prison, then? I can make all of the accusations against you go away with your acceptance.”
“I’ll figure that out for myself. You have the ledger. Now, leave me be, Sharpe, you hear me?”
At that, he stood, lifting his jacket and whirling around, ready to leave this bar and this man and this life that he had left behind once before and now wanted to never see again.
Nearly blind with his rage, he began to stomp out of the tavern, so focused on his exit that he didn’t notice until too late that a woman had stepped into his path. He almost knocked her over, managing to catch her just in time to prevent her falling.
She let out a cry and slapped at him.
He blinked in surprise.
He knew that cry. In fact, it did something to him that he would never have thought was possible in a place like this.
He leaned forward, eyes narrowing.
“Ada?”