Page 83 of Betrayal from Beyond
“I have no reason to think so, but I cannot say.” Turner drew in a breath. “Your message reached us late last evening. I went upstairs, thinking to share the news with Harold. I knew that he would have been relieved to learn that we had heard from you. But he wasn’t in his room. Nor could I find him in the schoolroom or the gymnasium. I thought he must have gone out to visit with Mr. Hawkins.”
“He knew Hawkins was in the laboratory,” Niall said, remembering the discussion.
“Yes. After you departed, I took Mr. Hawkins out there to settle him in, making sure none of the staff realized he hadn’t gone with you. The lad was out there working when we arrived. They had quite a reunion.”
“Yes, Tom said he knew Harold,” Kara recalled.
“Harold remembered him, too. They had a grand time, reminiscing over old adventures and mutual acquaintances. They talked and talked, all the while I was setting up Mr. Hawkins’s cot. I asked the man if he needed to rest or if he wanted to go to work right away, as he had agreed to do. He was quite ready to dedicate himself to some useful task, he insisted. The duller the better, as he needed time to think. I set him to sorting the new shipment of gears and then pulled Harold aside and explained how we needed to keep Mr. Hawkins’s presence a secret. As I suspected, the lad was proud to be a part of it all.”
Niall could well picture it.
“I explained that Mr. Hawkins needed some time to himself. That he needed quiet to contemplate the choices that lay before him. Harold agreed to leave him to his work while he concentrated on his own. I left them to it, but several hours later, the lad came to report that he was done in the lab and that Hawkins had not even noticed his leaving, so engrossed was he.” Turner sighed. “That was before dinner, and it was the last I saw of the boy. He was eager to report to me and felt sure he could be a help, because the kitchens were used to him stopping in to get snacks to take with him before heading out to the forge or the lab.”
“That sounds like Harold,” said Niall. “All stomach and focus on his projects.”
“When I failed to find him, I thought that must surely be what happened, and I would find him out in the laboratory, sharing Cook’s ginger snaps. It took me a few minutes to arrange to go out there without any of the staff knowing and wondering. But when I made it out to the lab, neither of them was there.”
“Was there a note?” asked Kara.
“Any sign of a struggle?” Niall asked at the same time.
“Neither,” Turner said. “I questioned the staff. Harold had indeed stopped to raid the larder earlier, but no one had seen him since. It wasn’t until I spoke with the men posted at the gate that I learned that Mr. Preston had come back.”
“Preston?” Niall repeated sharply. “And he didn’t come to the house?”
“No. No one else had any notion of his visit. He must have gone straight to the laboratory.”
“Preston did not seem enamored of Tom’s request to stay at Bluefield,” Kara said.
“Would he have convinced him to leave? And taken Harold with him?” asked Turner.
“It’s just as likely that he might have convinced Hawkins to leave and Harold followed after them,” said Niall. “The lad has been itching to prove himself. If he heard something he thought valuable or found suspicious, then he would act.” He raised a brow at Kara. “Much like someone else I know.”
“Yes, it does sound like you,” she returned pertly before dropping her head into her hands. “Oh, saints,” she breathed. “What if he’s out there on his own?”
“He’s a capable lad,” Niall said.
“Yes. Iknowhe’s lived in the streets. I know he has good instincts. I know he’s learned much since he came to us. But does any of that make him capable of taking on Petra Scot and her ilk?” Kara demanded. “We have to find him. What if she gets him in her clutches?” Her voice lowered to a whisper. “But where? When do we start?”
“With Preston,” Niall said darkly. “What in blazes is the man up to?”
“Gyda is going to want to strangle us for the delay, but we need to find Harold.” Kara hopped to her feet and promptly swayed.
“Hold on there.” Niall was at her side in an instant. “You need breakfast.”
“I need to find Harold.”
He raised a hand. “I’ll send for train tickets and have the kitchens prepare a basket. We’ll take it with us.” He waved a hand before her. “While I am doing that, you have a wash and a change of clothes.”
“And a brush through her hair,” Turner murmured.
“All right,” Kara grumped. “Message received.”
Niall clapped a hand to his brow. “Odin’s arse, I nearly forgot Dalton. I’ll wake him.”
“I’m coming, too,” Turner stated.
No one argued.
