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“Good. Keep him at it. And remember, there will be sufficient compensation for information.”
Jolly’s eyes gleamed at the mention of payment. There was enough of a thirst there to confirm to Nick that at this point Jolly was on their side. Whether or not he had been the evening prior.
Robert stood and Nick followed suit.
“Actually, gents,” Jolly said, fingering his mustache, “I may have remembered a little something.” He stopped, his mouth clenching shut, and Robert stared at him, waiting.
“You’ll get paid when I get my information, Jolly. You know how I work.” Robert’s voice was calm, but Nick could hear the desperation behind the words.
Jolly seemed to consider this a moment and nodded. “Heard tell the woman was here a few months ago. Poked around and then left for a while. Foreign, they say.”
The silence was pregnant with various feelings. Jolly holding out, Robert trying not to seem too eager. Nick nudged the earl and he pulled a pouch from his pocket. Jolly’s eyes lit up as Robert slowly untied the twine, cinching the bag open and dumping half of the contents onto the table. He looked back at the innkeeper expectantly.
“She’s staying in a cottage near Hampton Park. Abandoned or some such thing.”
“If she is hiding in a cottage near Hampton then why was she found on the Green’s property?” Nick asked.
Jolly shrugged. “Begs the question; what’s her target?”
Nick got a sick feeling in his gut. He knew the target. Jules. His Jules.
Robert’s fist came down on the table in a quick thud, causing both Nick and Jolly to jump and the coins to scatter. “What do you know?” he said, the words coming out between his teeth in a slow, deep rhythm.
Jolly swallowed, the lump moving down his neck as his eyes twitched nervously. “It’s the girl. She wants the girl. The woman thinks Miss Pepper’s got something of hers and is holding out on her. It ain’t you they want, my lord.” He glanced between Robert and Nick. “Neither of you.”
“Then why shoot at her?” It was Nick’s turn to be angry.
Jolly’s hands came up in surrender. “I don’t know nothing about anyone shooting anyone. Alls I know is that if it was me and I was wanting something from this young girl, I’d maybe try to scare her into handing it over.”
“But she doesn’t have it!” Nick yelled.
Robert’s hand came to Nick’s shoulder, squeezing it firmly. He took a deep breath and watched as Robert threw the pouch at Jolly. “There’s more where that came from. You give me information, and you are compensated.”
“Yes, my lord.” Jolly greedily picked up the fallen coins and refilled his pouch as Nick followed Robert back up the stairs. They mounted their horses as the first raindrops began to fall.
“Where to, Robert? Hampton?”
“Not tonight.” Robert shook his head. “We know where she is. That is enough for now.”
Not enough for me,Nick thought.
