Page 9 of The Highlander’s Unexpected Wife

“All is well?” James sipped the earl’s twenty-year-old cognac from a snifter.

“Just as I thought, my valet returned early.” God, he was too good a liar.

James chuckled.

Cameron smiled and picked up his glass. “Back to the business at hand.”

“Napier wants six girls,” James said. “They must be blonde, between thirteen and sixteen and, of course, they must be virgins.”

“Six?” Cameron shook his head. “Six girls, virgins, regardless of their station, would be missed—particularly girls of that age. He must know that is impossible.”

“Quite a test, do you not agree?”

Cameron nodded. “Sallie could pass for sixteen, but we have no one who could pass for anything younger than fifteen.”

James’s brows dove downward. “We cannot actually involve women in this plan.”

Cameron snorted. “How do you suppose we will secure Napier’s trust if we cannot produce even one woman?”

“I just assumed we would arrange a meeting with his superior, then arrest them.”

Cameron liked James, but he’d worried that the Bow Street officer might not be experienced enough in infiltrating a crime organization like Napier’s. It seemed his fears were founded.

“You do no’ understand the law, James.” James opened his mouth to reply, but Cameron added, “Aye, you understand when a man breaks the law, but the law is not so clear when it comes to putting him in prison. It isn’t enough for Napier to discuss with us the kidnapping of women. We must catch him in the act. But, as you know, even that is not enough. We need to snare his superior. Napier has a great deal of power, but the man who runs this operation is far more dangerous. We must discover his identity.”

James released a breath. “Aye, ye are right, of course. ‘Tis just that they have stayed one step ahead of us. Damn it, Hunter, I want these bastards.”

A loud bang sounded at the front door. Cameron leapt to his feet. “Who the bloody hell could that be at this time of night?”

“Come on.” He dragged James to his feet and herded him toward the bookshelf on the left hand wall. “We will finish this later. You cannot be seen here.” His life was becoming more complicated by the hour.

They reached the bookcase and Cameron pulled the volume of Hamlet from its place on the fourth shelf and yanked down on the hidden lever. The shelf sprang open an inch.

“What’s this?” James exclaimed.

“This is your escape.” Cameron scooped up a small taper burning on the nearby desk and thrust it into his hands. “The passageway leads to the north side of the yard. The door is in the middle of the dead end. Simply press on the middle of the wall and release. The door will spring open.”

The pounding came again, this time loud enough to rattle the door.

Cameron shoved James inside, then pushed shut the shelf and whirled.

“Hunter, open the damn door,” a man shouted as Cameron hurried across the room.

Thank God, his father wasn’t due home for another night. The pounding continued. Cameron burst into the hallway and raced down the corridor. He flung open the door and stopped short at sight of Harrison Lennox standing at his threshold with Roger Selwick.

“Good hell, Lennox, what are you doing here at this time of night?” Cameron demanded

“Out of my way.” Lennox shoved past him. “Where is she?”

She? Lady Alison.

“Lennox, if you’ll give me a minute to explain—” he began, but the man charged up the stairs.

“As I am sure you can explain what happened in the garden two nights ago.”

“Garden?” Cameron followed Lennox, taking the stairs two at a time, but the man was a demon.

Lennox reached the third floor. “Erin,” he bellowed, storming down the hall.