Page 20 of Betrayal from Beyond
I owed you that one, KaraLevett
For Clémence
Kara drew a long, shuddering breath. Shaking, she covered her mouth with a hand. “She’s not going to stop, Niall,” she whispered.
“No,” he agreed.
“We—” She stopped, cocking her head. “Listen. Do you hear shouting?”
They both jumped as someone pounded on the door. “Your Grace! Your Graces!”
Kara leapt to her feet, but Niall beat her to the door.
“A fire! There’s a fire!” the maid said, breathless.
Niall was out and running.
Kara grabbed the maid, who had fallen back out of the way and now stood staring off after him. “Where?” she demanded.
The girl sucked in a breath. “At your laboratory, Your Grace.”
“Harold? Is he still upstairs?”
“Aye, I believe so, ma’am.”
Kara took off.Damn these skirts. But she lifted them high and flew as fast as she could out the front, over the drive, and along the path, past the forge, on toward the lab.
A crowd had gathered at the far front corner of the building. Groomsmen and stable lads, mostly, along with a few gardeners—and Niall.
He nodded reassuringly as she pulled up, breathing hard. “It’s all right. It’s out already. One of the stable lads spotted the smoke. They dealt with it quickly.” He rested a hand on a young man’s shoulder.
Kara straightened. “Zachariah, isn’t it?”
The stripling, just on the verge of manhood and gangly with it, nodded shyly.
“Thank you.” She looked over the collection of buckets, a pile of wet and steaming horse blankets, and the black, charred corner of the building. “Thank you so much. Your keen senses and your quick action have saved the day.” She glanced around, meeting the gaze of everyone there. “Thank you all.”
The young man shuffled, wringing his hat in his hands. “We know how much your laboratory means to you, Your Grace.”
“It does, indeed. But your safety and the well-being of all of us here at Bluefield Park means more. There are chemicals and cleaning agents inside that could have sparked an inferno. The fire could have raged on or sparked and spread to the other outbuildings. You all prevented that, and I’m so grateful.”
Niall stepped forward and addressed them all. “We are under siege, lads. I know you’ve heard we have an enemy working against us. It is clear these people do not care who they harm in their quest for vengeance.” He looked at the damaged corner of the building, at his wife, and back at the group of men. “Today you’ve stolen their victory. Well done, all of you.”
Someone gave a whoop.
“We’ve all got an eye out, Your Grace,” said John Coachman. “They shouldn’t have got here at all.” He shook his head. “It won’t happen again.”
Murmuring darkly, the men broke off, leaving in groups.
Kara stood, staring at the smoke marks and the bit of damaged building.
“It will be a quick repair,” Niall said. “We’ll just have to make sure we brace everything well.”
She nodded. “They really did save the day. I doubt there is a mark on the inside.” She looked up at him, the ire inside her rising. “Niall, you know what this means. We cannot go on like this.”
“Wooten—”
“Wooten will do as he must. It hasn’t led to any results yet, has it?” She shook her head. “No.” Fury simmered in her belly and sent tendrils creeping up her spine. “We are done. No more waiting for her to come to us.” She looked at Niall with determination. “We cannot let her harm anyone we love, not again. We have to find her. Even if we do it ourselves.”
