Chapter Seventeen
Franny did not consider herself a dolt. Her mother had taught her to read and by the time she was five years old, she’d devoured every book she got her hands on.
She’d also taught herself mathematics, and her skills with numbers rivaled any male clerk’s.
And yet, once again, she’d allowed her desire to be fierce affect her common sense, announcing to a room full of gamblers that Edward was a lawman not to be messed with. Someone should gag her.
An image of Edward, silencing her with his cravat, his eyelids hanging heavy over pupils filled with desire, infiltrated her thoughts.
Something was seriously wrong with her. Their lives were in danger, for heaven’s sake.
However, in her experience, fear tended to muddle one’s thinking.
She shivered and then stared at her finger pressing into Bear’s chest. Her cheeks heated from embarrassment over both her thoughts and her actions. She dropped her hands to her side.
From beside her, she sensed Edward’s muscles contract. Her fighter instincts kicked in; he was about to stage an aggressive coup that would get him killed. She had to stop him.
Whatever she did, she could not trigger any of these men, or all hell would break loose.
Intending to send Edward a mental message pleading with him to calm down, she slowly faced him.
Before she finished her turn, someone grabbed her.
With her arms pinned behind her back, she watched with horror as Shark lifted Edward off his feet as if he were as light as a feather.
This was no small feat since Edward weighed at least fourteen stone.
Instead of pulling away from her restraints, Franny flung her bodyweight back and into her captor. Her move would have worked if Whale hadn’t been the size of a whale. He wrapped his arms around her and growled in her ear. His grip tightened until she struggled to take in a full breath of air.
“Let her go.” Edward slammed the back of his head into Shark’s face.
Hopefully, the blood spatter was from Shark’s nose or his ridiculous teeth biting off his own tongue.
Edward pivoted and dropped into a defensive stance.
His agile move would have been impressive if the pugilists who had been in the ring earlier hadn’t leaped upon him. One of them punched him in the jaw.
Edward hit the ground with a resounding thud that rattled Franny’s teeth.
His attackers wrestled with him until Edward was flat on his back.
Holding him in place, they patted him down, removing a pistol from beneath his red waistcoat.
For a defeated man, Edward’s expression remained proud and lethal. Franny’s heart melted.
Shark growled, and the light from the sconces bounced off his teeth. He bent so far forward that Franny was certain he meant to bite off Edward’s cheek.
“Wait!” The hold on her windpipe loosened, so she gasped in a breath.
“Bear, stop this nonsense. He is not here to serve you a warrant. He is simply trying to find out who is attacking us. Even my father, who is a superior fighter, was almost beaten to death.” Although her voice sounded weak due to the recent pressure on her windpipe and lungs, she had at least articulated her thoughts.
But her efforts to halt Shark had the opposite effect.
His expression pure evil, he leaned closer to Edward.
The intrepid lawman didn’t even flinch.
How had she ever thought this man anything but brave and heroic? She couldn’t let them hurt him. If these beastly animals wanted her to fight, she’d tackle her fears and return to the ring to save Edward. Simply put, she had no other choice.
Bile rising up her throat, Franny conceded her only bargaining chip. “You win. I will fight for you. Just please… don’t harm Mr. Robinson.”
“Shark,” Bear said, his voice a gentle reprimand.
The monster halted and backed away from Edward.
Edward sat up. So many emotions played across his face that she had no idea what he was thinking. “You don’t have to do it, Franny,” he softly said.
But she did have to do it if she meant to placate these men and keep them from killing Edward.
Ruffians probably took pleasure in torturing a lawman.
Although she’d experienced some sentimental moments, it wasn’t as if she truly cared about him.
She simply didn’t want his death on her hands.
This is the only reason for your capitulation to these rapscallions, she assured herself.
“Please, let him up,” she begged. “I’ve given my word. I will fight for you.”
Whale’s hold on her loosened and she rushed to Edward. The men holding him down backed away as she knelt beside him. “Are you injured?” she asked.
What a silly question. He had smashed the back of his head into a giant Shark and been attacked by two gargoyles.
Edward snorted.
“You have a deal,” Bear said. “A month from now. Here. Ladies fight before the men.” He inclined his chin toward the ring. “You against Ruth the Jewel.”
Franny moaned. Ruth the Jewel was a charlatan who pandered to lascivious crowds. “But isn’t she in prison for indecency?”
“She has been released and has changed her ways,” Bear said.
Franny scoffed, and then her soul withered as she realized what a fight in this gambling hell might mean. “Must I take a dive?”
Bear stared at her as if she were insane. “Hell, no. My fighters do not cheat. This is a legitimate Irish-stand down fight. I told you. There is no fight fixing at The Purple Rabbit.”
Edward’s brow raised. “Just illegal fights in general.”
Bear glared at him. “Don’t make me change my mind, lawman. ’Tis time for Shark’s evening feeding and he is quite hungry.”
Smiling broadly, Shark showcased his teeth. At some other more appropriate time, Franny would examine his mouth to see what held the silver in place. For now, she fought the urge to sob.
“I hope you don’t plan on interfering with our mills, lawman,” Bear continued. “It would be pointless since many in Parliament support underground fighting within the city limits.”
Edward pushed to his feet. “I have no interest in stopping fights. I want to find out who is targeting Miss Valentine’s family and business. My instincts tell me you and your associates are not involved.”
Maybe Edward finally agreed that the vicar was the guilty party.
“But I think you know everything that goes on in this city,” Edward said. “So, I am asking you, do you have any idea who might be behind this?”
Not only was Edward valiant, but he was also quite good at swallowing his pride to lick a man’s boots. Undoubtedly, this quality made him a valuable investigator. However, there was no need for Edward to demean himself. What could Bear possibly know about an unpleasant, pious minister?
“You are no longer needed here.” Bear dismissed Shark and the two fighters with a flick of his wrist.
The podgy pugilist handed Bear Edward’s pistol before taking his leave.
“I’ll be keeping this for the time being. I’ll return it the night the lady fights for us. Extra insurance.” Tucking the weapon into his waistband, Bear proceeded to rub his jaw for a long time before saying, “I was afraid something like this might happen.”
“What do you mean?” Franny and Edward asked simultaneously.
Bear clamped his lips together and shook his head.
Franny’s temper snapped. “Mayhap you haven’t been listening. Someone knocked out my groundskeeper and then tried to burn down my gymnasium. A few days later, my father was violently attacked. If Mr. Robinson had not come along, those men might have killed him. If you know something, tell us.”
When he still didn’t respond, she gave him her most pleading puppy dog eyes. “You would not allow someone to harm one of your fighters, would you?”
“And someone tried to kidnap Lady Josephine last night,” Edward added.
Franny gasped. “Josie was in danger?”
“She was not injured, and she managed to fight off her attacker,” Edward explained. “Your friends enlightened me to the details during my visit with the Davenports today.”
Franny grinned. Of course, Josie had protected herself. The men were probably nursing injuries at this very moment, and it served them right.
“Ah, Lord Davenport,” Bear said appreciatively. “For an aristocrat, I do enjoy his company.”
Probably because there was never a dull moment around the fun-loving viscount who wagered without a care.
Franny was done with the stalling. “What do you know?” she asked, her tone firm and her attitude unyielding. These men had gotten what they wanted from her, and she was too exhausted to negotiate further.
“The West End Knights might be involved,” Bear said. “And let me tell you, they don’t have a chivalrous bone in any of their bodies.”
“Go on,” Edward said.
“The hang out at The Round Table in St Giles and they are a new entity. Young and reckless. They have their hands in everything from theft to fixing fights.”
“What makes you think they are interested in The Silk Knuckles?” Edward asked.
“They followed us the evening we come to see you,” Whale declared, speaking for the first time since Franny had met him. Interestingly, his childish voice did not match his hulking frame.
“Why were they following you?” Edward asked.
“Because they are rotten, thieving arses,” Bear said.
“They want to pin their crimes on us. But we don’t steal.
They fix fights. I told you; our fights are legitimate.
” He held up his finger, signaling he was about to announce the number one reason the Knights were despicable.
“And they want to take over The Purple Rabbit. But we showed them.” He chuckled.
“Whale here beat the hell out of Lancelot last night. Blackened his eye.”
Whale giggled like a happy child. “Now he gots a scar and a black eye. I only gots a hurt cheek. And Bear gived me sweets and tickles ’cause I did good.”
“A scar above his eye?” Edward asked.
“Yes, sir,” Whale said.
Franny met Edward’s wide-eyed gaze. Were they thinking the same thing?
“Have you met Lancelot?” Bear asked.
Franny had learned her lesson about providing too much information, so this time she let Edward respond. “We have not yet been formally introduced,” was all he said.
Bear sniffed Then, grinning, he pointed back and forth between Franny and Edward. “You two blowing the blanket hornpipe?”
“No!” they both exclaimed.
“Blanket hornpipe.” Whales put his hand over his mouth and giggled.
“Fear not, the night has barely begun,” Bear said. “Yes indeed. The night is still young.”
As the men hooted and howled, Edward grabbed her hand and dragged her up the stairs.