Chapter 40
The carriage hit a rut, bouncing him from his seat atop the coach.
He’d needed to be beside the driver in case they spotted Jennings.
Eventually the viscount would attempt to flee the island, but Henry imagined he would not do so without his valet and things, so for now, he must intend to lie low.
Which most likely meant the White Hart. If they did not catch him on the way to town, that was where they would go.
A lone figure appeared in the darkness, galloping ahead of them. Henry could not be certain, but who else might it be but Jennings?
“Faster man!” Henry called. The power of two horses worked to negate the drag the carriage added, and they were gaining on the horse rider.
Jennings looked over his shoulder and cut left, off the road and toward the trees.
“Follow him! We have to cut him off before—” Except the carriage continued onward. Passing, in seconds, the location where Jennings had just split from the road.
“No!” Henry twisted in his seat. “You have to follow that man!”
The driver whipped the reins, but his eyes glanced off Henry’s, a smile twisting his mouth.
“I think we might have had a bit of a misunderstanding back there, Sir Henry,” he said. “I’ve no idea who this Carlton fellow is, but I require you to accompany us back to London to see your debts against the Hastings estate resolved.”
Henry’s hands turned white where they gripped his seat. What?
No. No, not now. Now could not possibly be the moment Lord Hastings tracked down Henry.
The man leaned forward, eyes on the road. “You’ve racked up quite a bit of gambling debt, Sir Henry. Hastings wants to see it paid.”
Icy fear gripped Henry, but not for himself. If this man was intent on dragging him off, Alice and Julia would be left alone at Windvale.
Even if Jennings remained in hiding, he was not a man working alone.
Carruthers was at Windvale, and if Henry was right, he and Jennings might well have taken on Commander Seymour’s role together.
She could be in grave danger if Carruthers grew concerned over where his accomplice had gone.
What if she did not listen to the butler’s relayed message to remain with others?
And Henry had left no message at all for Julia.
The wheels spun at an incredible speed beneath him and the man beside him was too large to hope that Henry could gain control of the reins. A jump from the carriage could mean a broken leg or worse.
It was worth the gamble.
In an almighty leap, he jumped from the seat, rolling down the embankment, preparing to spring to his feet. Then, with a skull-splitting crack, his head made contact with a rock.
And everything went black.