“I can’t promise anything,” King said. Joshua smiled and grabbed his hand. King shook him off. “I said I can’t promise, but I’ll try to find a way to help.”
“Thank you!”
“Don’t thank me.” King gave him the directions to find the surgeon then leaned on the building again, waiting for Miss Baker to finish. He would have liked to go back to the tavern, but he didn’t think he could find the way on his own.
“I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Joshua said, moving away. “And King? Thank you!”
“Don’t thank me,” King said again. “I haven’t done anything yet.”
“But you will,” Joshua said. “I just know it.”
King watched Joshua run off then dropped his head in his hands. He had to get out of here before he turned into one of those do-gooders. Where the devil was Henry?
Chapter Ten
Violet didn’t trustKing. He was unpredictable, and she didn’t trust people she couldn’t predict. One moment he was arrogant and entitled, the next, he was giving a woman he didn’t know the coat off his back.
What is he playing at?she wondered as she watched him draw ale at the bar. She wiped tables and delivered drinks quickly and efficiently, skirting the wandering hands of those patrons who felt entitled to a pinch. King had taken an hour or so to get his bearings behind the bar, but she and Joshua had helped him, and now he looked as though he’d been born to be a publican.
Of course, the night was young and the crowd thin. It would grow as word of the new publican—a handsome man with pretty manners—spread.
King seemed to play up those manners, doing everything with a flourish and generally charming almost every man or woman he spoke with. She supposed all the time he spent in Society had trained him in social interaction. He was much better at that aspect of the job than Archie or her. On the other hand, that wasn’t all the job entailed. As the night went on, men became drunker and more prone to violence. He’d have to manage that aspect of the tavern too.
Violet had little faith in his abilities on that front. He was used to causing difficulties, not preventing them. Speaking ofcausing mayhem, she couldn’t understand why he was still here. She knew he had some personal misfortunes. From what she’d seen of the merchants at his house the other morning, it looked like financial trouble. But surely he had other properties where he could escape and where he wouldn’t be required to serve ale and gin. Violet was under no illusion that King was staying because he felt obligated to repay her.
She stepped into the back room to wash a few glasses and found Joshua already there handing glasses to Georgie to dry. “You’re one step ahead of me, I see,” she said.
“Always.” Joshua grinned.
Violet emptied her dirty glasses into the soapy water and started placing clean glasses on her tray. “Did the surgeon agree to go take a look at Archie?” she asked.
“Yes, but he didn’t look happy about it. King said he owes him a debt. When I mentioned that, the surgeon went red with anger and said he’d go.”
“Good.” She placed more glasses on the tray.
“He’s not half bad out there,” Joshua said.
“No, he’s not,” Violet agreed. “But I can’t help wondering—”
“Why he’s still here?”
“Exactly. Do you know anything? You saw his man of business.”
“And King wasn’t happy with the reply I brought.”
“Did you read it?”
“My reading isn’t that good.”
Violet nodded. There had been little time for learning of late, and she was usually too tired to do much teaching. When she’d been young, her father had enough money to send her to school every day. She’d learned reading, writing, and numbers. She needed to find more time to tutor her brothers, especially Georgie.
“But the solicitor did say something that seemed to upset King when I told him.”
“What was that?”
“It was a phrase. Let me think.”
Peggy came in. “I need more—Oh, I’ll take those.” She took Violet’s tray of glasses and went back out again. Violet reached into the soapy water and began to scrub.
