Considering the number of dishonest ships’ captains he had come across, that didn’t surprise him at all. He now realized why Lady Wivenly’s group was so careful. “How do we protect Mrs. Rymer and Peter until Mr. Rymer arrives?”
Everyone looked at Lady Wivenly, but it was Wivenly who spoke, “We take them out of London and hide them until he is in England.”
“My primary estate is in Surrey,” Frits said. “It’s not too far to keep an eye on them.”
“But they know who you are,” Adeline objected. “If I were them, that is the first place I would go.”
“My sister is correct, however, you are right as well. We will use the smaller estate of a friend of ours.” Wivenly grinned. “You might know of it. Broadmore.”
Know of it? Frits’s family had been trying to buy it for an age. “I know it quite well.”
Adeline glanced from him to her brother. “Where is it?”
“It is on the east side of Littlewood.” No doubt her brother knew how many offers he’d made on the property.
“Oh.” Her smooth forehead wrinkled as she looked thoughtfully at Wivenly. “Is it wise to have them so close to Littlewood?”
“I don’t see that we will have a problem. If they decided to search outside London, they won’t think to look anywhere other than Littleton’s estate. And there is nothing connecting us to the duchess’s estate.”
“It’s a fortified manor house with a large curtilage,” Frits added. “Peter will be able to play outside without fear of discovery.”
“There are also other children there,” Lady Wivenly said. Mrs. Rymer’s mouth opened. “Not mulattos or blackamoors. That would bring too much attention to the estate, and we would no longer be able to use it.”
She nodded.
“Mrs. Rymer.” Adeline placed her empty cup on a small side table. “Will you allow us to help you and your family?”
Frits had not even thought to ask the question, but, of course, it was the woman’s decision to make.
After gnawing on her bottom lip for a while, she finally nodded. “If you are sure you can get my husband away from Tortola, then yes.”
Although the sound wasn’t loud, they all breathed a sigh of relief. But there was still another problem to resolve. “Now that that’s settled, what am I to tell Lettsome?”
Silence settled over the room until Adeline broke it. “Mrs. Rymer, did anyone know you left the Lettsome house?”
“The cook knows, but she is the only one.” Mrs. Rymer glanced at them. “She knew—everyone knew—what was going on, and most of them did not approve. Yet, what could they do?” She picked up her cup, found it empty, and set it back down. “When your servant came to the door, she sent the scullery maids on an errand so they could truthfully say they did not see me leave.”
Adeline poured the woman another cup of tea, then turned to Frits. “You can say that you were out for the rest of the day and evening, and when you returned, the child was not there.” A cunning look entered her silver eyes. “You can even tell him that you thought Lettsome was responsible, and you are not at all happy about it.”
“What an excellent idea,” Lady Wivenly said approvingly.
“I wholeheartedly agree.” He had no idea his love could be so devious, and admired her even more. “That might make him think I don’t know anything about the lad’s disappearance.” At least he hoped it would.
“To further that story,” Wivenly said, “my groom was instructed to tell your servants, if asked, to say that the child was no longer there.”
With everyone saying the same thing, that should throw Lettsome off the proverbial scent.
The butler entered and bowed. “My lord, my lady, you will be overly late for the ball if you do not depart immediately. The coach is waiting.” He turned to Mrs. Rymer. “If you please, madam, your clothing and Peter’s have arrived. Mrs. Newton, our housekeeper, will show you to your rooms.”
* * *
The ball was the best one Frits had ever attended and it was all due to his ability to dance with Adeline three times and remain with her for most of the evening. He also learned the value of a well-placed scowl directed toward gentlemen who thought to ask her to stand up with them.
All three of their dances were waltzes, and it was hard not to hold her closer to him than propriety dictated. They didn’t dare discuss the boy and his mother, but there was nothing stopping him from telling her more about Littlewood. He suspected she would want to see the pair comfortably settled, which meant that he might be able to entice her to visit his home.
“You are in a very good mood this evening.” They made the turn at the end of the dance floor.
“I’m always in a good mood,” he lied, although it did take a lot to anger him. Such as seeing a man try to harm a child. “Still, it has been an excellent day.”
