Page 40 of Choosing Her Earl at Last
Emmeline sighed, chewing on her lip worriedly. “I will need to speak with Michael and Colin about what they found in their search of the locations where Rebecca and Martha would meet one another. After that, we will take action upon whatever they have discovered.”
“And if they have found nothing?”
Emmeline shook her head. “I do not feel comfortable leaving London without having found Rebecca.”
“There is nothing that you can do for her that the Bow Street Runners are not already doing. Today is the first time that I have truly seen you smile in days. It might do you good to get away from the city and connect with this last gift from your father.When Rebecca is found, she will have something pleasant to come home to,” Louisa suggested.
“I do not know.” Emmeline’s heart felt torn. “At the very least, we will need Michael’s permission to dig as part of the spot marked on the map is on his property.”
“Do you believe that he would refuse you?”
Emmeline shook her head. “I do not believe that he would, knowing what my father meant to me, but it is a place that will remind him of my betrayal. It is the place where we planned our future together, and it is the last place that I saw him before my family left for Scotland, and I was married off to another man.”
Louisa nodded in understanding. “Michael is a good man. He will not deny you.”
“We shall see.”
Chapter 18
Michael and Colin felt as if they had been to every poverty-stricken street in London. They had visited every place on the coachman’s list and followed every lead that had resulted from those places. They had tried their best not to draw attention to themselves, but their clothing and straight-shouldered carriage were enough to make them stand out.
No amount of discretion was going to completely hide who they were and what they were looking for. It seemed that one could not question anyone within the neighborhoods that Martha had frequented without having suspicion and recalcitrance as a response.
As they walked down the last street, they passed a sign that proclaimed seamstress and laundress services were provided within. Michael looked at the last address on the list. “This is the place,” he informed Colin, pausing in front of the door. Colin nodded, and they pushed through the door, a bell ringing overhead as they entered, announcing their arrival.
A woman with a kerchief over her hair looked up from a seat by the window. “How might I be of service to you two gentlemen?” she asked, rising from her chair.
“We are looking for Martha Gouldsmith. We have it on good authority that you are acquainted with said young woman,” Michael wasted no time in asking. He and Colin were tired,discouraged, and frustrated. It had been a long day, and his patience was wearing thin.
“Who is asking?” the woman challenged back, holding the needle in her hand as if it were a dagger to defend herself.
Michael would have found the ridiculousness of the moment to be amusing had it not been so serious. “The Earl of Ravenshollow,” his voice carried the authority of his title and station.
The woman’s eyes widened. “My lord,” she bobbed a curtsy, then stared at him in bafflement. “What would an earl such as yourself want with Martha?”
“We are looking for a friend of ours who was also a friend of Martha. She has gone missing, and we wish to bring her home to her family safely,” Michael explained.
“What friend?” Something warred behind her eyes that Michael could not quite interpret.
“Miss Rebecca Frampton,” Colin replied, the love that he felt for Rebecca clearly written upon his face.
“Miss Rebecca?” The seamstress deflated, all suspicion leaving her eyes as tears filled them instead.
“You know of her?” Colin asked, taking a step forward in anticipation.
“I do not know where Martha is. I have been worrying myself sick over her. She has disappeared, and I have not seen her for days.” She gestured toward a large pile of laundry in the corner. “She has not missed a day of work once since setting up shop with me, and yet her customers have not heard from her either.”
“When was the last time that you heard from her?” Michael asked, eyeing the mountain of laundry as if it might hold a clue, but finding none, he turned his gaze back toward the woman.
“She came to the shop and told me that she was going to attend a concert at the Vauxhall Gardens. That was days ago, and I have heard nothing from her since.” Tears threatened to spill down her cheeks as she pulled a handkerchief from her sleeve and wiped her nose.
“Vauxhall Gardens?” Colin nearly leaped upon the woman, his body was so wound with tension at the mention of the place where Rebecca had vanished.
The woman nodded, fear in her eyes as she took a step back from Colin’s intensity.
“Have you alerted the local magistrate?” Michael asked as calmly as he could manage, laying a gentle hand on Colin’s shoulder.
The woman shook her head. “I was afraid to.”
