Page 60 of The Swan Detective (The Swan Syndicate #2)

Stella trudged up the stairs from the kitchen, tempted to search for the rooms where they put Fitz and the other sailor.

She’d have to ask Jamie his name. But her energy waned, and her first priority was to find where the men had gone.

They were probably in the study, but Beckworth might have returned to Hensley’s with Jamie.

When she reached the first floor, she noticed the blood on her day dress.

She sighed and climbed the stairs to the second floor instead.

Libby was in the bedroom already laying out another dress.

“Always a step ahead of me.” She plopped down on the bed, then immediately stood and moved to a chair. If she stayed on the bed, she was sure to tip over and fall asleep.

“I knew you’d be too stubborn to get some rest. You should let the men figure it all out. It will all look better after a few good hours of sleep.”

“I could fall asleep just sitting here. But if I go to bed now without having some answers for what happened, I’ll be staring at the ceiling in an hour.”

“Here, drink this.” Libby pushed a mug of coffee into her hands. “That should keep you going for another hour. If you’re not back up here ready for your robe by then, I’ll come for you myself.”

Stella sucked down the coffee, which was the perfect temperature. “This did the trick.”

“What did you plan to do with these?” Libby held out the jewelry Stella had stuffed in her pockets and a blood-stained linen pouch. “Beckworth found the pouch in the coach.”

“Oh, my god. I can’t believe I forgot all about them. It’s a miracle I didn’t drop the pouch getting in the carriage.”

“You had more important things on your mind.”

Stella set down her mug and rubbed her hands together. The blood stains were long gone, but at times, she still saw the blood drip from her fingers. She took a deep breath. “Too many things.” Her head popped up. “Where’s Elizabeth?”

“She should be with the men downstairs. That one is as stubborn as you.”

Stella chuckled, picked up her mug, and drained the contents. “Let’s lay everything out and make sure nothing was damaged.” She was energized again in anticipation of seeing Elizabeth with her necklace.

Libby spread the pieces out on the bed, and they went over each one.

“Do you see anything wrong?” Stella asked.

“Not that I can see. They’re beautiful pieces. I can understand why someone would pay a lot of money for them.”

“I’m not sure they were worth anyone’s life.” Stella wiped away a tear and picked up the necklace.

“You know what happened tonight had nothing to do with jewelry and everything to do with French arms.”

Libby was right, but it was difficult to accept in light of the fallen and injured. Who were those men who busted up the exchange? Leclair had been as surprised as she had been. She was sure of it.

“Time to get these back to their rightful owners.” She carefully placed the necklace and the rest of the items in the pouch and pulled it shut.

She left Libby and strode down the stairs, another burst of energy keeping her on her feet.

Images from the evening flashed, but nothing they’d done could have prepared them for what had happened.

She was so focused on the replay of events, she almost missed the voices coming from the library.

She backed up a few steps, and when she entered the room, she found everyone had gathered around the fireplace.

“There she is.” Hensley looked haggard at this late hour.

She wasn’t sure what time it was, but it had to be closer to dawn than midnight. “I didn’t know you were here.”

“I can’t sleep when a mission is underway. Even Mary found it difficult.”

Beckworth brought a chair to the informal circle the group had created. Jamie and Lando were seated by the fire on either side of Hensley. Bart and Lincoln were still up, though they looked twice as tired as the rest of them, with good cause. Eleanor and Elizabeth rounded out the group.

Stella dropped into the chair and waved off a glass of whiskey. She noted Elizabeth’s glance at the linen pouch before her focus returned to Hensley.

“Do we know who those men were?” Stella didn’t have to explain who she meant. They all knew.

Lando, who appeared uninjured though there were dark circles under his eyes and dried blood stained his shirt, answered the question.

“We managed to take two of them alive. The Horseman has a new captain with plans to take Cheval’s place in McDuff’s network.

He thought stealing the French arms would be easier than trading for them. ”

“Someone has a mole in their operation,” Beckworth added.

Stella turned her attention to Hensley. “Do you know who or how?”

“Not yet.” Hensley suddenly looked more tired than when she’d first walked in.

It had to be difficult doing all the planning and then waiting to see the outcome.

“I lost one of my men, and the others are taking turns questioning the two prisoners. We’d originally assumed it was an unexpected move by Captain Leclair. ”

Stella shook her head. “He accused me of a double cross. And I don’t think he’s a good enough actor to have faked his shock.”

“I’d agree,” Jamie said. “He lost a few of his own.”

“Did we save the rifles?” Stella asked.

Hensley nodded. “They’re back where they belong.”

Stella nodded as she stared down at the pouch gripped in her hands.

“He wasn’t going to let me take these. I had to put a bolt into both of his bodyguards, though I think they’ll survive.

” Her hands began to shake, and she gripped the bag tighter.

“I might have mentioned something about another meeting to conclude our deal.” She looked up to meet Elizabeth’s gaze and gave her a weak smile before she opened the pouch and placed the four pieces of stolen jewelry on the low table in front of her.

Elizabeth’s loud gasp came seconds before she rushed over to pick up her necklace. Tears streamed down her face as she held it to her chest.

“A couple of the pieces fell off the crates when the rogue men showed up, and with all the gunfire, I just grabbed them and stuffed them in my pocket. I don’t think they were damaged, but I don’t know for sure.”

Elizabeth took a closer look, slowly running a finger over every inch of the necklace. Her voice was thick with emotion. “It looks perfect. It just needs a little cleaning.” She squeezed Stella’s arm. “Thank you for this.”

Eleanor led Elizabeth back to her seat and stroked the dowager’s back. “I’m sure all the ladies will appreciate what you did this evening.”

“It came at a great cost.” Stella stared down at her hands, still seeing blood stains.

“No!” Hensley’s emphatic response was emphasized by his fist slamming into the table next to him, almost dumping his glass of whiskey to the floor.

“There will be none of that. This mission was about smugglers and their attempt to use French firearms to stir up rebels against England. The retrieval of the jewelry is a welcome success in a rather dismal night. We were lucky to have only lost two men, though we have many injured. With good fortune, we’ll see them healed and back on their feet soon. ”

“Here, here,” Jamie said and lifted his glass in salute. “Slainte.” The men lifted their glasses and took a drink. “And as bad as it is, we might have discovered friction in McDuff’s network.”

Stella lifted her head. “How so?”

“The captain of The Horseman basically declared war against Leclair.” Lando, unable to sit still for long, stood to lean against a bookcase.

“Leclair already appeared tight with McDuff. He was seen moving cargo on the network’s behalf.

Based on our surveillance, we didn’t think he was a captain at the time, but we were either wrong, or he gained a ship in the last three months. ”

“That in itself wouldn’t mean that McDuff had anything to do with his rise to captain,” Beckworth added. “But, based on the information André has been gathering, it’s pretty clear he’s here on behalf of McDuff.”

“And the captain of The Horseman could argue he didn’t know Leclair had set up the exchange. That it was all a terrible mistake, and McDuff might look favorably on his initiative.” Jamie finished his drink and rubbed his eyes, the first sign of his weariness.

“Makes us much sense as anything else,” Hensley agreed. “We still have loose ends, but my men might be able to fill those gaps tomorrow. The question before us now is how to get back into the good graces of Leclair.”

Stella had been studying the remaining jewelry in her lap, going over each one to confirm they were in good condition, or, as Elizabeth stated, simply required a good cleaning.

She wished she could see Inspector Littlefield’s face when he was told the jewelry had been recovered and was stolen to finance a smuggling ring.

She hoped he choked on the news. That was when Hensley’s words caught up to her.

“Oh my god,” Stella sat up so quickly, she had to grab the jewelry from slipping to the floor. “I forgot about the deal I made with Leclair.”

Hensley’s hawk-like stare focused on her, and she squirmed in her seat. “Yes, you mentioned earlier something about another meeting.”

“No.” Beckworth gripped her hand. “I think Lady Swan needs to step out of this one. We’ve already told Leclair that she was leaving London in the morning. The surprise raid would only confirm her need to leave.”