The Mysterious Miss Flint (Lost Ladies of London 1)

“Such places are never short of occupants,” Wild answered cryptically. “But it appears there is some mistake. The property was bequeathed to a Miss Flint, although she has yet to come forward and claim her inheritance.”

Who the hell was Miss Flint?

“Then I see no harm in riding there and introducing myself.” Perhaps his father’s jealousy stemmed from guilt. Could Miss Flint be his father’s mistress? To discover the old earl was a hypocrite would be amusing under less dire circumstances.

The solicitor’s eyes glazed over. “Good Lord, the manor is not somewhere one visits whilst in the neighbourhood. I cannot imagine why anyone would want to stop at such a place.”

“Really? Why ever not?”

“Because Morton Manor is an asylum.”

Chapter Two

With her ear pressed to the bedchamber door, Nicole Flint listened for the heavy trudge of the guard’s footsteps. The brute, Stokes, was ill with a fever, leaving Baxter to patrol the manor at night.

Once a home for the insane, the house was still a prison, despite the effort to transform it into a private dwelling.

“Can you hear anything?” Rose hovered in the shadows. She gripped the candlestick in her hand like a club although her trembling arm conveyed a reluctance to strike.

“No, but we must be patient,” Nicole whispered. If Rose stood any chance of escaping, they had to remain focused. “It will be a few minutes until Baxter makes his rounds.”

Baxter was the most conceited of the men the Earl of Stanton had hired to ensure they never left Morton Manor. With his pleasing facial features and full set of teeth, the women in the village found him irresistible. A few softly spoken words and a flirtatious grin would be enough to tempt him to enter the bedchamber. While preparing to put their plan into action, Nicole had spent the last two days batting her lashes at him and offering the odd coy pout.

“Please say you’ve changed your mind.” Rose stepped closer. “Please say you’ll come with me. I can’t bear the thought of leaving you here alone.”

“You know I’ve no choice but to stay, Rose.” Nicole closed the gap between them and rubbed her friend’s upper arm.

“But if we tie Baxter’s feet and gag him, it will be hours before someone notices he’s missing.”

“You need to get as far away from here as you can. The last time you escaped you’d barely travelled a mile before they caught up with you.” Nicole flinched at the memory. Stokes had bound Rose’s wrists so tightly the rope had rubbed red welts into her skin.

“Are you not paid to be my companion?” Rose said in desperation.

Nicole cast Rose a look of reproach. “That would be a valid argument had your father paid me. When I accepted the position, I didn’t realise I’d be locked in the house day and night without a penny’s worth of gratitude.”

Rose smiled. “Once I am married to Lord Cunningham, my father will have no choice but to pay you what he owes.”

Nicole’s reasons for deciding to work for a living had nothing to do with money and everything to do with hiding.

“One of us has to stay with Baxter,” Nicole said. And a night spent locked in a room with an angry guard was safer for her than a trip to London. “One of us must make sure he cannot leave this room until morning.”

Rose’s bottom lip trembled. “But what if they punish you?”

Nothing could be as bad as what her brother, Jeremy, would do if he ever found her. Other than the earl, no one knew she lived at the manor. And she had every intention of keeping it that way.

“What can they do, lock me in my room without supper?” Nicole snorted.

“But you’re faster on your feet,” Rose persisted. “You could cover the mile to the main road in no time.”

“You know I cannot take the chance of being seen in London.” Nicole’s tone conveyed the gravity of her situation. She attracted bad luck like a magnet did iron filings. Someone was bound to notice her.

“Which is precisely why you must come with me. My father will throw you out when he discovers I’m gone. You’ll be of no use to him. What will you do then?”

Nicole swallowed down her apprehension. “Hopefully, I’ll have a week before the earl arrives.” Stokes would scour the countryside from dell to dingle looking for Rose before admitting defeat. “Going back to London is not an option for me.”

“Then head north, far away from those who wish you harm.”

Rose’s suggestion proved tempting. Bless her. Despite her own misfortune, she always thought of others.