“Miss Miller may be right, My Lord,” Mr. Noonan said. “Once you are fit, we might lay some plans whereby you will be in a certain place at a certain time, alone, but with enough men in hiding to capture him alive, at all costs.”
Lord Willowdale nodded. “The sacrificial goat.”
“Freddie.”
He chuckled and winced again. “I was jesting, Thea. But I will not be fit for days yet.”
“Then if My Lord will permit a suggestion,” Mr. Noonan went on smoothly after a quick glance at Liam. “Teach a few loyal footmen the use of pistols and permit them to guard both you and Miss Miller.”
“The game is up if our rat witnesses this, Charles,” Lord Willowdale said.
“I will take them across a few hills, My Lord. I believe our scoundrel will be focused on you. He will be working toward his next opportunity to do you harm.”
“And in the meantime, Freddie,” Thea said, “you are safe enough in here. Keep a pistol close by you just in case he thinks he can storm the door.”
“I almost feel like I should hire a platoon of soldiers,” Lord Willowdale muttered, running his right hand through his hair. “But, all right, I will remain here for a few days.”
He turned to Liam. “You, Mr. Carter have proven your loyalty time and again. I would have you learn to shoot under Mr. Noonan’s guidance and conceal a pistol under your livery. I would also have you guard my sister, day and night.”
“Freddie,” Thea protested. “I am not the target. You are.”
“Notyeta target,” Lord Willowdale replied, tersely. “As we do not know why this rat wants me dead, or who hired him, we must presume he may also wish to kill you. Will you do it, Mr. Carter?”
Liam bowed. “Yes, My Lord.”
“Mr. Noonan, you two may go now. Select, say, another four footmen to teach, and arm them. When they are trained and reasonably proficient with them, station one outside my door.”
“I will begin immediately, My Lord.”
* * *
To his surprise and pleasure, Thea accompanied them on their trek through the hills. After Liam and Mr. Noonan left Lord Willowdale’s chambers, Liam accompanied the steward as he selected three other footmen to learn how to shoot a pistol, one of whom was Luke. As they walked out one of the back doors of the vast house, Thea, who had changed into a plain grey dress, stood waiting for them.
She grinned impudently at Mr. Noonan, who showed his shock with a faintly furrowed brow. “Miss Miller?” he asked, nonplussed.
“You heard my brother,” she said, gazing at the box in Liam’s hands. “We had already discussed me learning to shoot when we spoke of paying a call on the Duke of Bradford.”
“I had presumed that conversation regarding arming you was a theory.”
“Not to me. Shall we?”
Thus with Mr. Noonan and Thea leading the way, Liam and his fellows trailed behind them, exchanging amused grins that the mistress of the house would be learning to shoot a dragon along with them. “Makes her almost one of us,” whispered one of the footmen, Harold, to Liam.
Liam nodded, not bothering to hide his amusement, even when Thea happened to glance over her shoulder at them. Mr. Noonan decreed that a small hill about a quarter of a mile from the house would suffice as a shield from the sound of shots as they practiced.
“Fortunately,” he said gravely, glancing at Thea under his brows, “I happened to have brought an extra pistol. Now, Mr. Carter, if you would please pass them out to everyone.”
Liam offered Thea hers over his forearm with a grin and a bow, making her giggle as she accepted it. Once everyone had a dragon, Mr. Noonan showed them all how to load it with gunpowder and a ball, permitting only one of them to fire at the target, a tall elm tree, at a time. “I cannot have you be shooting one another while you practice,” Mr. Noonan said. “Miss Miller, if you please, point your pistol at the target and cock the hammer back.”
Thea did so.
“Now gently squeeze the trigger,” Mr. Noonan instructed.
The pistol went off. Thea stumbled backward from the force of the recoil and almost fell. Liam and Luke jumped to catch her if she fell, but she managed to remain on her feet even as she staggered. Her expression dazed, she looked from the pistol to the tidy round hole in the tree’s trunk.
“How extraordinary,” she exclaimed.
“Congratulations, Miss Miller,” Mr. Noonan said. “You just killed a tree. Mr. Carter, your turn.”
