To Have A Heart (A New Adventure Begins - Star Elite 7)

“Well what?” Phillip asked.

“How is Sir Hugo?”

“He is still with us. The doctor said that he cannot be moved, but Sir Hugo has other ideas,” Oliver replied, throwing her a rueful look.

“He is awake?” Mallory blinked at him and smiled.

Oliver’s lips quirked. “Yes, he is awake, and don’t we all know it.”

Phillip shook his head. “Sir Hugo makes a lousy patient.”

Will coughed. “He wants to go back to Cornwall, but the doctor has advised against him travelling anywhere.”

“He has multiple broken bones, and a gunshot wound the doctor stitched up. He has lost a lot of blood but will heal with plenty of rest,” Oliver added.

“His wife is a healer. Harriett uses herbs and the like, and fixes people. We just can’t get Sir Hugo to her in the state he is in, and he won’t allow her to come to him because this is a safe house. It would mean bringing her into the middle of one of our investigations.”

“So, what happens?” Mallory asked.

She shook her head when Oliver lifted a piece of pie and silently motioned if she wanted some.

“He is adamant that he is going home,” Oliver sighed, dropping the pie back onto the plate. “We were just discussing how to get him to Cornwall, because he cannot go in the back of a cart.”

“Don’t you have a carriage?” Mallory asked.

“We can get one, but we need to find Melrose.”

Mallory also suspected they were trying to decide on what to do with her.

“We had word last night that Melrose is still in the area,” Will added. “That means he might still be waiting to ambush whoever leaves this house.”

Mallory edged into the room and glanced around in search of Callum, but he was nowhere to be seen.

“If we were followed yesterday, Melrose’s men could be watching us,” Oliver said.

“We have to find a way to get everyone out of the house and away from here in a way that makes it impossible for Melrose to follow, not matter how many men he has at his disposal,” Niall added.

“We killed a lot of them yesterday, as you know,” Will said. “We just don’t know how many more of them there are.”

“Who is leaving?” Mallory asked, looking from one man to the other.

“All of us,” the men replied in unison.

Mallory quaked at the thought. She instinctively stepped back, a denial on her lips. She wanted to stay where she was. The thought of travelling anywhere was simply terrifying.

“We have to go today before Melrose can muster any more gunmen,” Oliver added.

“Do you know where Melrose is? Can’t you go and arrest him?” Mallory asked.

“We have men trying to find Melrose. While we know he is in the area, Leicestershire and Derbyshire are big areas. We don’t know exactly where Melrose is. We have had men out looking for him all night,” Oliver said. “What we do know is that while we sit here, we run the risk of being attacked.”

“Even inside the house?”

“Especially, inside the house,” Phillip replied. “We are sitting targets.”

Mallory emitted a squeak of surprise when hands suddenly circled her waist. Glancing over her shoulder, her heart blossomed to life when she saw Callum. Their eyes met. He smiled at her, silently asking if they were back on friendly terms. Unable to find any animosity toward him, Mallory smiled back. The sight of him, so tall and incredibly handsome, was enough to steal her train of thought. All she could do was watch him avidly as he stepped into the room and made his way over to the table to sample the pie Oliver had cut.

Even though they were in broad daylight, the memories of what they had shared last night were still present. When their eyes met across the length of the room, there was a wealth of hidden knowledge that shimmered between them. Mallory had no doubt he was remembering their kisses just as much as she was. Moreover, he was remembering their conversation. Despite the way it ended, there was a connection between them now that was tangible.