Or worse… was she feeling forsaken, afraid, alone in that hotel room with no idea of her fate, abandoned by the man who’d promised her safety? Liam scowled. He should have taken the time to explain, but Chen’s message couldn’t wait. And after the confrontation with Perry, Liam hadn’t trusted himself to maintain the necessary control.
Mac would test the control of a saint. Liam’s scowl became an edged grin. Mac, afraid? Ridiculous. She might want to kill him, but she wouldn’t be frightened even if she were here beside him, about to throw herself into danger. She’d march into the street, oblivious to her peril, and spit right in the eye of the boo how doy… .
“Mr. O’Shea! Mei Ling is ready!”
He turned quickly to acknowledge Chen’s whisper. Mac wasn’t here, thank God, and there was no more time for thinking. Liam tugged his mask over his face. Either he’d come out of this with twelve young girls on their way to freedom, or he’d die in the attempt.
Fierce joy swept through him—the joy of challenging fate itself. There was no deception in this. No posturing to prove himself a gentleman worthy of Caroline Gresham. Only the rush of blood, the racing heart, the bunching of muscles preparing for action.
A lone, timid figure draped in a silk robe and hood crept into the street in front of the guarded house, looking about fearfully. One of the hatchetmen noticed and signaled to his partner. They straightened from their gambling and moved to the gate.
Liam raised his hand. Chen followed suit. All around the house the raiders tensed.
And then the waiting was over.
* * *
It should have been a day for celebration.
The raid had gone perfectly. All the girls had been rescued, spirited away to the hidden safe house where the tong would never find them.
Liam abandoned his tie, heedless of the uneven knot, and walked to his bedroom window. The morning was beautiful and clear, perfect for traveling. If matters had gone as intended he would have made the necessary visit to Caroline, keeping his promise to her and providing the required explanations, and then he’d have gone to the Palace for Mac. A bit of reasoning and persuasion, and he and Mac would have been on their way to Napa by ferry and rail. Liam had expected to return by tomorrow evening at the latest, leaving Mac safely bestowed on the ranch.
But the new information from Bauer, received less than an hour ago, had overturned Liam’s best-laid plans. Biggs’s note had arrived only a few minutes later, carried by the Gresham stableman.
Both had conveyed the same message: Come at once. Only Bauer’s had mentioned Perry, but that was more than enough.
Liam tugged on his black cutaway coat, swearing under his breath. Had he underestimated Perry’s capacity for guile yet again—and his powerful desire for Caroline’s fortune?
Liam gave Chen a few terse instructions and strode to the stables to the rear of the house. Forster had the phaeton waiting. Liam took up the reins and turned the carriage toward California Street, driving blindly past neatly-kept houses basking in the hazy glow of the early autumn sun. His thoughts were as fouled as a fisherman’s net caught on a sunken ship.
He arrived at the Gresham residence in less than ten minutes. The stableman who took charge of the phaeton had the good sense not to offer a cheery greeting.
Biggs answered Liam’s knock so quickly that he must have been hovering very close indeed. His ordinarily stolid countenance was clearly being put to the test.
“Where are they?” Liam demanded without preamble.
The butler coughed discreetly. “In Miss Gresham’s sitting room. Mrs. Hunter is, as usual, indisposed and laid up in her bed. Another young lady is with them—”
Liam stiffened. “Another young lady?”
“She came with Mr. Sinclair. One Miss MacKenzie.” He noted Liam’s expression and arched a brow. “Ah, you know of her, Mr. O’Shea? I didn’t realize—”
Apparently neither had Bauer, who hadn’t mentioned a second visitor. And apparently Mac’s guard at the Palace had been bought—or tricked.
Liam brushed past Biggs and strode for the stairs. The sitting room door was open, and Liam paused in the hall to regain his composure.