“Of course. It was almost dark by then, but I walked to the shop and had a look about inside. The shop and the flat were empty.”
“Wait a moment.” Hew held up a hand. “When we stopped there just now, the door was closed and locked. How did you gain access?”
“How did I—”
“Get inside?” Belle said.
“The door was standing wide open,” Mrs. Price said. “I thought that strange as George isn’t in the habit of leaving the shop door open.”
Belle was gripping the table again.
“But I thought he might be trying to clear the shop of the smell of the smoke. Such a shame, that smell. The shop always smelled so comforting.”
“Mrs. Price,” Hew interrupted, “if the shop door was open yesterday evening then how did it come to be closed and locked when we arrived this morning.”
“I closed and locked it. Gangs of ruffians and thieves roam about the city at night. I don’t like to think they’d come to Fenchurch Street, but one can’t be too careful.”
“Do you have a key to the shop?” Hew asked.
“No,” Belle said at the same time Mrs. Price said, “Yes.”
Hew looked from Belle to Mrs. Price. Mrs. Price cleared her throat. “That is to say, I found the keys on the floor just inside the shop door. George must have dropped them when he was abducted.”
Until now Hew hadn’t been sure he believed George Howard had been abducted. The man could have gone on a walkabout, say to look for his daughter. But it was unlikely he’d leave his keys on the floor to his shop. He would have locked the door before setting out.
“Did you see anyone you didn’t recognize loitering near the shop or on the street?”
Mrs. Price considered. “The street was mostly empty by then. It was growing dark and time for supper.”
“What about when you were watching him walk to the shop?” Belle asked. That had been Hew’s next question. “You said you watched him through the window.”
“Oh, I can’t see much through the window.”
Hew rose and went to the window again. She had a very good view from her window, but she was right that she couldn’t see much of the shop front as it was on the same side of the street as her flat. She would have been able to see the street before it or the buildings across. He turned back to the table. “No one was standing about across from the shop, perhaps watching it?”
“Oh, not that I noticed. I wish I had known to pay more attention.”
Belle rose and came to stand with him at the window. “Mrs. Price doesn’t have a clear view of the shop, but I know who does.”
Hew looked at her.
“Mrs. Tipps,” she said. “We should call on her.”
“We’ll go now.” Hew turned back to Mrs. Price. “Thank you for your help.”
She rose, her hands fisted in her skirts. “You will find George? You will bring him back?”
Hew put a hand on Belle’s shoulder before she could pounce on Mrs. Price and rip her to shreds.
“We will, Mrs. Price. In the meantime, if you think of anything or remember anything, send a note to Mivart’s. That’s where I am staying now.”
“Oh.” Her mouth made a round O. “No longer with the fine lady who came in the coach?”
“No. I’m at Mivart’s,” he said, deciding he would make certain to mention it to Mrs. Tipps as well. With any luck, the ladies would spread that news about and the assassins would search for him there. If he didn’t find them first.
Mrs. Price’s gaze slid to Belle. “Where will you stay, my dear? You are welcome to stay with me, of course. I think that’s what your father would have wanted.”
“I’ll stay in my own home,” she said.
