Noble Scoundrel - Amy Sandas Page 0,19

pull free, his halting grip and sudden release was enough to send her careening forward into a passing cart. She tumbled hard to the street, twisting her ankle and landing on her side with a jarring force that cleared her breath. A horse coming up from behind barely managed to avoid trampling her, but his hoof caught her shoulder with a sharp kick.

Pain exploded, rushing hot to her fingertips as her arm went limp. She had only a moment to suck in a swift breath before Frederick was there, hauling her up. “We’ve got to hurry, Kit. They’re coming.”

Clenching her teeth against the numb heat flowing down her arm, she glanced back to see that their carriage had come to a full stop. Their would-be abductor’s accomplice—a small fellow with grey hair that brushed his shoulders and a cigar clamped in his teeth—leapt to the ground, his eyes on them as the other man pulled himself from the vehicle.

Both men started toward them with murder in their gazes.

Cradling her useless arm across her middle, Katherine stuck close on Frederick’s heels as he wove in and out of the gathering traffic. With the unmanned carriage now creating an obstruction, the thoroughfare was growing even more congested, which worked perfectly in their favor. Within moments, they managed to duck out of sight into a shadowed alleyway. Still they didn’t slow or pause as they twisted and turned along narrow lanes, around ramshackle buildings and darkened dens, leaving the teeming street—and hopefully their captors—far behind. Frederick led the way with a steady pace and unwavering confidence, as though he could sense what might be around each corner.

When they had finally gone a significant distance with no sign of pursuit for quite a while, Katherine came to a stop, leaning back against a soot-covered brick wall to catch her breath. Her hair had long ago tumbled from its pins, and she pushed the thick, tangled mess away from her damp face.

Somehow, they’d managed to go deep into the warrens of alleyways and back lanes without being stopped. She had not been oblivious to the sharp and curious gazes that followed their passing. The city was rife with pickpockets and other such cads and thieves who wouldn’t think twice of taking advantage of their obvious vulnerability. Their luck might not hold much longer.

“We lost them, Frederick. If we continue on, we’re just going to get more and more lost.”

Her brother looked back over his shoulder, concern evident on his expression. Then he jogged ahead to the next corner and took a moment to scan the surroundings before running back to her spot against the wall. “I know where we are.”

Katherine gave a short laugh of disbelief as she rested her head back against the wall and heaved a sigh. “How could you possibly? We’re nowhere near Mayfair.”

He gently took the hand of her uninjured arm and gave a little tug. “I know. Come on.”

Chapter Seven

Knowing very well they couldn’t stay where they were, Katherine allowed him to pull her onward. Pain throbbed in her ankle with every step and she suspected her shoulder had been dislocated. She’d witnessed the injury once years ago when one of their grooms took an unfortunate fall from the horse he was exercising. Her memory of his misshapen shoulder was undeniably similar to what she was seeing now when she looked at her injured arm.

The pain was nearly debilitating, but there was no slowing down.

Every now and then, her brother would glance back, as if he half expected their pursuers to catch up even though he kept a swift pace. They passed a row of merchants hawking wares before turning down a quieter lane lined with narrow brick houses, where pedestrians strolled and children played in doorways.

“Almost there,” Frederick muttered.

“Almost where?”

He didn’t reply, just kept moving. And she stayed at his side, trusting his direction implicitly. She’d started to suspect he had a destination in mind a little while back, but the intense pain in her shoulder was making it difficult for her to focus on where they might be heading. Nothing around them looked familiar.

“Here.” Frederick turned them off the sidewalk toward a modest-looking brownstone, and though she’d only been there once before and in a distressed state, she realized in an instant where he’d brought them.

Back to Mason Hale.

“Frederick, I don’t think this is a good idea,” she started, but the boy ignored her to rap sharply on the door. “We should hail a hack and return to