Peter took her hands and gave them a little reassuring squeeze. “I know it’s a frightening idea, but we will not be able to fool him without actually having the otters in the coop. We will make sure to close them into the coop itself so he does not have an opportunity to take them before we can stop him, but they must be there.”
Georgie sat silent for a long time before saying, “I must be present as well, then.”
“No!” Peter had not meant to be so vehement. “I cannot have both you and the otters in danger at the same time.”
“I will hide in the stable with the blunderbuss. I can even have one of the men with me for extra protection. But the otters trust me more than they do you, and they will come to me if anything goes wrong.”
Now it was Peter’s turn to be silent. Everything in him wanted to refuse her request, to lock her safely in their room until it was over, perhaps even send her back to Mrs. Clarke’s if she insisted on being intransigent.
But… she was right. He could not be certain the otters would come to him if he called them the same way they would go to Georgie. They likely would run to her even without her having to call them if they saw her.
He sighed heavily. “Very well.”
“I… ” She paused, clearly on the verge of continuing to argue with him. “Did you just agree with me?”
“Yes. I am not fond of the idea. I am terrified for your safety. But you are right. If something goes wrong, you will be able to protect the otters far better than I can.”
She blinked again, and then a slow smile spread across her face, taking his breath away. “What is the rest of the plan?”
Once he and Georgie had agreed on their strategy, Peter took himself off to the church for that afternoon’s board meeting. If Sir John was watching the rectory, Peter would need to be seen carrying out his usual routine. If Robby, the stablemaster’s son, was hanging about the place doing odd jobs in Peter’s absence, that could be seen as a coincidence and not additional protection for Georgie and the otters, all of whom remained indoors.
He rehearsed what he was going to say on his walk to the church. He thought up and discarded flowery speeches. His notions of appealing to chivalry were discarded as well. Long, convoluted explanations would not do. If they would not help him, he would need to know as soon as possible so the plan could be altered.
In the end, he chose simplicity. He marched into the room where the men on the board already awaited him and looked around before drawing a deep breath.
“Gentlemen… I—we—need your help.”
The group looked at each other around the table for only a moment before they turned to Peter as one.
“Of course, Lord Peter,” Mr. Kilvington boomed. “Tell us what you need.”
Georgie wasin a dither the rest of the day. She knew their plan was the best one possible in the circumstances, but she could not stop envisioning everything that could go wrong. What if the watcher on duty fell asleep and the rest of them heard nothing until it was too late? What if Sir John escaped tonight only to try again? What if he brought a weapon with him and demanded Georgie choose between Peter and her otters? It was unlikely he would kill anyone over her otters, but she could not be certain. He was a desperate man, or so Peter’s solicitor had said in response to Peter’s inquiries. Sir John had been deeply in debt even before he inherited her father’s properties, and his extravagance had only accelerated once he had his hands on her father’s income.
If he could not ransom the otters back to the Prince, there was no telling what else he might do.
She spent the afternoon pacing the bedroom and keeping the bored otters as entertained as she could before they could become destructive. After Peter left for his meeting, she had decided to bring the otters upstairs to make it more difficult for her cousin to break in and snatch them.
At last, she heard the front door open and the murmur of Peter’s voice as he spoke to Mrs. Barwick. She flung open the bedroom door and sped down the stairs, the otters romping in her wake. Peter turned and stretched his arms out to her, and she stopped before she could fling herself into them.
She could not fully relax until she was certain Sir John had been neutralized as a threat to her, the otters... and Peter.
Instead, she gave her hands to Peter. He raised them and kissed them one by one, leaving pleasurable tingles behind, from both his touch and his smile for her.
“It is all arranged. They will start arriving shortly after full dark.”
Mrs. Barwick cast a baleful eye at the otters, who chittered at her as they twined around Georgie’s ankles. “I suppose I ought to prepare some refreshments if we are to have an onslaught of visitors.”
“I can assist you, if you like, Mrs. Barwick,” Georgie offered. The older woman looked scandalized at the very thought.
“Certainly not, Lady Peter. Tha’ll have enough to do taking care of those animals.”
With this pronouncement, Mrs. Barwick swept off to the kitchens as Peter and Georgie giggled.
“Do you know,” Georgie said, “I believe she has become fond of the otters.”
“Never say so!” Peter replied with a grin. “She would deny it to her dying day.” He extended his arm to Georgie. “Come. We must prepare for a normal night at home and follow our usual routine. We must assume your cousin has been watching the house and will notice if we do anything differently.”
Georgie sighed. “I wish this was all over.”
