Snowflakes covered Daniel’s cheeks, and she brushed them away. The Griest family lived just through the next clearing. They were German and didn’t speak much English, but they would help her. The pond was right in front of her.
She started around the perimeter, stepping near the withering cattails and grass before heading back into the safety of the trees. Careful to move as quietly as possible, she rocked Daniel against her chest, trying to keep him warm. Ben would come. Leo would come.
He’ll have to cross the river.Georgina had planned to make Leo a special tea, one her cook said would help soothe his stomach for the ferry. She had planned to hold him close to her, as she did Daniel, kiss him senseless until he stopped thinking about the water.
As she moved, Georgina concentrated on taking small, careful steps, not wanting to slide on the wet leaves beneath her feet. She despised her own foolishness at not telling Leo about Harold sooner. She hadn’t thought Harold would come here. How had he found William?
A sob caught in her throat. And Lilian. Her poor sister—
A branch snapped to her right.
* * *
Ben and Leodismounted from their horses after flying down the road in the direction of Lilian’s house. Mile after mile, the houses had become further apart, the stretches of forest longer. Eventually, Cooke turned his horse up a short drive with a large, brick home sitting majestically against the woods beyond. The snow was coming down faster now, wetting his cheeks and nearly covering the two people lying in front of the house. A man and a woman. A carriage sat off to one side, the horses stomping and shaking their manes.
Leo’s heart jumped into his throat at the sight of the woman, but it wasn’t Georgina. The woman’s auburn hair spilled across the snow, the small cap on her head askew.
“Nanny Gibbons,” Cooke said. “And William. I suspected she and William were involved with each other. I wanted to confront him but worried what the news would do to Lilian. She was far too young and pretty to be a nanny. She must have been helping him.”
Leo looked inside the carriage, but it was empty. He walked around the side, speaking in a soothing voice to the horses until he saw a dark form in the snow. “I found the driver.” The man was dead as well. Red splattered the snow around his body.
“It couldn’t have been that long ago,” Ben said, kneeling next to the two bodies. Steam came from the pool of blood forming around the man who Leo assumed was William Harrison. “They’re still warm.”
“Where are the servants?” Leo asked. The house and grounds were eerily quiet as he and Cooke made their way toward the porch. Suddenly, Cooke broke into a run, leaping up the steps. The front door was slightly ajar, a small bit of green fluttering in the doorway.
“Lilian.” Cooke’s voice broke.
At first, Leo’s heart nearly stopped at the sight of the woman lying at the base of the stairs, a pool of blood stretching out across the floor. It reminded him so strongly of what had happened to Tony’s mother, he had to shut his eyes.
“Where are you hurt, Lilian?” Cooke bent over her, his face stricken. “It’s Ben. Where are you shot?”
“She hasn’t been shot,” Leo said quietly, nodding to all the blood on the floor. “She’s lost the child and needs a doctor. Now.”
Lilian stirred in Cooke’s arms. She was beautiful, a slender, more delicate version of Georgina. “The woods,” Lilian croaked. “Georgina took Daniel.” A sob left her. “I told her to run. He—he shot William and Mrs. Gibbons. I tried to lock the door, Ben. I tried.” She clutched Ben’s arm. “I told her to go to the Griests.”
“Lil,” Ben said gently. “Where is he? The man who shot William.”
“I don’t know. He came up the steps and looked at me. I stayed very still when he nudged me with his foot. Then he mumbled that I was nearly dead anyway and didn’t...” A cry left her. “He didn’t want to waste a shot on me. Then he went after her. I—must have fainted. I yelled for help, but then I remembered no one could hear me. William gave all the servants the day off.” A tear escaped one eye. “He told me he wanted us to be completely alone because he had a surprise for me.” A trembling hand went to her mid-section. “The baby. He’s gone.”
“I’ve got you, Lil.” Ben held her. “I’m here.”
“What direction Cooke?” Leo snarled. “Point. You have to find her a doctor and stop the bleeding.”
“You don’t know the area,” he snapped back. “You’ll get lost.”
“She’ll die if you don’t get her to a doctor. Point.”
“I’ll take the carriage. Leave you the horses. Against my better judgement.” Cooke raised his arm. “Through the trees and across a small clearing. There’s a pond. You won’t be able to miss it. The Griests have a farm just on the other side. “I assume you’re armed.”
Leo jerked his head. “Of course. I run a gambling hell.” He touched Lilian’s hand.
Her eyes focused on him for only a moment. “Ah. Leo Murphy.” Her voice was weak. “Don’t let him hurt Georgina or Daniel.”
“I won’t.” He turned and jogged down the steps before he took off running, looking at the ground for any sign of either Georgina or Harold. He’d hunted a bit from time to time. Didn’t enjoy it. But still, he could follow tracks, especially in the snow. A bit of blue fabric fluttered on a branch, and he plucked at it with his fingers.
Georgina.
There were two sets of footsteps in the fresh snow. A woman’s. And a man’s.
