Page 31 of The Swan Detective (The Swan Syndicate #2)
Stella leaned against the pillows and sipped her morning coffee. Beckworth lay next to her, reading a newspaper. It was strange that a simple morning ritual practiced back home in Baywood seemed more intimate in this timeline.
She didn’t interrupt his reading, not when she was focused on figuring out how she could follow women around at a ball while watching for a thief.
After the first couple of balls, Beckworth became more relaxed about her wandering off with her friends while he visited with his.
He still enjoyed showing her off, which she’d become used to, and they even danced on occasion.
But he was as unpredictable as she was, and if he thought for one second that she might be up to something, he’d never leave her side.
The ball the evening before had been a bust. She’d taught the women a few of the crew’s hand signals she’d learned from Beckworth.
With the crowded events, verbal communication was all but impossible and made switching who would follow which swan easier.
Rather than using the term target, Mary suggested using the word swan since they were regal creatures and it fit Stella’s persona. The women enjoyed their games.
Stella watched her friends for the first hour, amazed at their expertise in following someone without being noticeable.
No doubt a skill they’d developed after attending dozens or, more likely, hundreds of these gatherings.
If a thief had been out there, she didn’t see how they would have been scared off by anything their group of amateur sleuths was doing.
Once she’d been assured the women were working the room as they’d planned, she stayed close to the hallways in case she had to hurry to the solarium, but it was awkward being alone, and if Beckworth had been with her, he would have wanted to move around.
It was only their first ball, so it made sense the plan would require some tweaks.
There was another ball that evening, and two of their swans should be there.
“Am I remembering correctly that we have a party each of the next three nights?” Beckworth continued reviewing the paper.
“Yes. Then a bit of a reprieve for two evenings.” Stella finished her mug of coffee and swung it in his direction.
He laid down the paper and refilled it from the urn on the bedside table. When he returned the mug to her, he picked up his paper again.
She sipped and ignored him as she continued reviewing the women’s plan.
Once Chester had agreed to let them use the urchins, Libby worked out the fewest number they would need to watch all the exits from the manor.
Stella didn’t want to irritate Chester by overextending his charity while maintaining the coverage they required.
Libby had reviewed the plan with Chester, who’d quickly agreed.
While Inspector Littlefield seemed to have given up on the thefts, Elizabeth had learned that the duke was still applying pressure on the constables, and all crews were feeling it.
Chester had spoken with the other crew leaders, and they doubled Libby’s request for four urchins.
Chester had wanted to do more, but after Libby explained the women’s position on the topic, he agreed that a smaller surveillance team would have a better chance for success.
However, he insisted that once the thief was identified, they would bring in more crew members to help with surveillance.
Stella’s legs twitched. She was eager to get out of bed and discuss the weak points of their strategy with Eleanor and Libby.
“Stella?” Beckworth nudged her.
“What?” She startled, and a drop of coffee landed on the bed cover. She blotted it with the edge of her robe.
“You seem to be in another place.”
She snorted. “When aren’t I?”
He chuckled as he shifted and fussed with the pillows. “I was mentioning Jamie’s idea of spending a couple of days or so at the riding club.”
She blinked several times. The club sounded familiar, but she couldn’t remember from when.
Then it hit her. After Beckworth had been nursed back to health from his ordeal with Gemini, Finn had suggested a couple of days at the riding club to assist Beckworth in regaining his strength for horseback riding.
“That’s the club just west of town.”
“Yes.” He laid the paper down and turned toward her. “I know this is short notice and poor timing with the upcoming balls. I’d completely understand if you’d prefer I not go.”
“When is Jamie leaving?”
“Daybreak tomorrow. I’ll attend the ball with you this evening, but then I won’t be back until after the other two balls.”
She should have questioned the timing. She should have asked who was going, but assumed it would be men from the Daphne . But the timing of their male bonding trip couldn’t have been more perfect. This would give her the freedom to work two of the balls without his interference.
She did have the presence of mind to appear somewhat upset by his abandonment. However, he deserved the time to spend with his friends while in London, and she was a grown woman who had plenty of friends to keep her occupied.
She picked at the bedcover, then finished her coffee and handed the mug to him for another refill. “I’ll miss going to the balls without you, but there are plenty more for us to attend together. I’m sure Jamie and the men need a break from their confinement on a ship.”
“You’ll still go to the balls?”
She took the mug from him and drank most of the lukewarm liquid down. “Why not? I can’t imagine spending multiple evenings in a row with Bart.”
He chuckled and ran a hand through his hair. She wasn’t sure what he’d been expecting, but if he had an issue with it, he didn’t bring it up. Instead, he suggested something she’d been dying to do since they’d arrived in London.
“If you don’t have anything special planned for the day, how about a sightseeing tour of the city?”
And that’s exactly what they did.
B eckworth watched Barrington, who sat on the other side of the desk and assimilated his request.
“You want me to watch Stella while you’re gone in addition to caring for Bart, Lincoln, Eleanor, and Libby?”
Beckworth was going to argue that he hadn’t meant Barrington to watch everyone, but he couldn’t say that with all honesty.
As the presiding lord of the manor, it was his responsibility to ensure his guests were comfortable, not Barrington’s.
But he’d been too busy getting drawn into Hensley’s mission, though his upcoming travel to Norman Cross had been his idea.
They needed a Frenchman, and he hadn’t seen any other solution to the problem.
Hensley’s missions had become an addiction.
“Well, do the best that you can. This is the first time I’ve left Stella alone for this long.”
“Except for the moments when either you or she had been kidnapped.”
Beckworth eyed his butler and friend, and as irritated as Barrington was making him, he couldn’t fault him. “What’s your point?”
“Stella is going to do what she wants to do, whether I’m watching after her or not. Besides, she’ll be with Elizabeth and Mary most days and evenings. Then there’s Eleanor and Libby, both of whom are perfectly capable of watching out for her.”
Beckworth leaned back in his chair and grumbled. “That’s what I’m worried about.”
Barrington had the audacity to laugh. “Do what you need to do, and I’ll do the best I can. That’s all I can promise.”
An hour later, as he rode to meet Jamie for their ride north, he stewed over whether he’d made the right decision.
The last time he and Stella had been in this time period, he’d planned on leaving her at Waverly for a week while he went with the crew of the Daphne to hunt for a smuggler.
Why was he more worried this time? She had two evenings of balls and two luncheons to keep her busy.
She’d be fine.
“I assume Hensley was able to get the letter from Lord Langdon?” Jamie reined in his horse next to a pub at the northern edge of London, where Beckworth had been waiting. “I see you brought an extra horse with you.”
Beckworth, woken from mulling over his worries about Stella, patted his chest where the sealed letter rested in an inside pocket. “It was easier than Hensley had anticipated.”
They kicked their horses into a trot, and after the first mile, Jamie glanced over his shoulder.
When they moved their horses to a faster pace, and Jamie continued watching their back, Beckworth had to ask, “Did someone follow you from the ship?”
Jamie grinned. “I was just checking to see if Stella was following.”
Beckworth grumbled a few unintelligible words, and Jamie’s laughter increased as he gave his steed more rein. Once Jamie had pulled ahead, he couldn’t help but snort. His friend wasn’t wrong.
A nagging feeling came over him, and, at first, he wasn’t sure why. Then he remembered waking Stella to give her a kiss goodbye. She’d mumbled a few words before she rolled over and returned to sleep.
“Have fun and take as much time as you need. I have plenty to do.”
At the time, he’d been pleased with her words. Now, doubt replaced his ease. She hadn’t questioned him once about the hunting party. He replayed her last words to him over and over and came away with only one thought. He wasn’t sure what she’d meant by them at all.