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CHAPTER25
William got Jack into the boat with John Caney and a few others and pushed them into the waves. He remained on the beach with Roger and Pippa, prepared to meet the law men. Three torches came toward them, bobbing down the path and onto the beach, and William crossed his arms over his chest. He wished Pippa wasn’t at his side, but she had no way to escape. These men were going to search every bit of this beach.
“Good evening, gentlemen,” William said jovially. “What can we do for you?”
“Do not play games with me,” Ainsworth spat. His eyes were crazed, a smile playing over his lips. “You’ve been caught.”
William lifted his arms in a gesture to indicate that he had nothing to hide. “Forgive me, is this your beach? I did not realize we were trespassing.”
An older man with a white mustache stepped forward. “What are you doing here?”
“I came to greet my brother, but he needed to be on his way.” William indicated the ship waiting in the harbor. “I’m sorry you missed him.”
“And his goods? Where are those?” Ainsworth asked.
“I’m not sure what you mean.”
The man with the white mustache nodded to Pippa. “Good evening, Miss Sheffield. Does your brother-in-law know you are here?”
She didn’t respond to his question. “Good evening, Mr. James.”
Mr. James held her gaze before his hand came up, waving his men forward. “Search everywhere.” He looked to William. “You won’t mind waiting here while we search the beach, will you?”
“Of course not. We have nothing to hide.”
That wasn’t strictly true.
Ainsworth remained near them while the others searched the beach. They started with the empty boat and combed the rocky edges. When they reached the rock pools, William could sense Pippa’s apprehension. He reached for her hand and slid his around it, holding her and squeezing her fingers in support. She curled her hand around his, and he could feel the tension leave her in waves.
Pippa shivered, her shoulders shaking, and William slipped his coat from his arms and laid it over her.
“I cannot take this.”
“Yes, you can.” He was glad when she didn’t argue further. The presence of the law must have subdued her. It certainly had that effect on him.
They stood on the cold, quiet beach for another half-hour, waiting while the men searched. William’s gut tightened when the torches neared the cliff-cave, and Pippa’s fingers clutched his firmly until the men passed the hiding place.
Caney’s boat splashed in the surf, and he pulled it up onto the sand with Samuel’s help before joining them. Caney must have done some smuggling in his earlier years, for he’d known exactly what needed doing and how to appear unaffected by Ainsworth’s presence.
The white-mustached man trudged back toward them, a frustrated look on his face that he directed to Ainsworth. “Nothing.”
“No, that cannot be. I saw it with my own eyes.”
Mr. James shook his head. “Nothing.” He turned to Pippa. “I will see you home, Miss Sheffield. Mac would have my neck if I left you here.”
She seemed to weigh his words and agree. She released William’s hand, and he wanted to reach for her again, but instead watched her leave at Mr. James’s side, his torch lighting the way up the rocky path.
Ainsworth stepped forward and grabbed William by the cravat so swiftly, he hadn’t seen it coming. “Where did you stash it?”
Roger’s arm reared back, and he punched Ainsworth in the jaw, forcing the man to let go of William before he fell on the sand. Roger shook out his fist.
“Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me yet.”
Ainsworth rose again on unsteady feet. “One of you killed my friend, and I refuse to allow you to get away with it.”
“You were shooting at us as well,” William said calmly.
