“Did you bring a gun?” Marcus pulled on his gloves as they made their way down the steps to Mallory’s well-equipped carriage.
“I always carry one. As well as a dagger. Or two.” He climbed into the carriage. “I was raised on the streets, remember.”
Nick checked his timepiece as the carriage began the trek
over the cobblestones to the brothel. It was approaching ten o’clock, around the time most brothels were busy. They wanted the anonymity of a large crowd.
“As I told you in my note, it’s quite certain that Miss Davenport is at this brothel. She apparently has only been there a few days, however. I’m not sure why the lapse from when she was taken.” Marcus drew out a folded paper from his inside jacket pocket.
“I was also able to get a layout of the building with all the exits marked.”
Nick reached out and took the paper from Marcus’s hands. He leaned closer to the lantern hanging on the wall of the carriage to study the map. “This is quite helpful. How did you get it?”
“Money will buy anything. Trust me.”
Nick looked over the drawing. It was quite detailed. “I will reimburse you.”
“You will do no such thing. The price was well worth rescuing a young lady from the clutches of hell.” He took the paper from Nick that he handed back to him and tucked it away. “My sources tell me the first couple of hours the madam encourages the ‘guests’ to mingle with the ladies, drink, gamble, and otherwise spend money. Then they select their lady of choice and retire to one of the upper bed chambers.”
“That makes it all quite easy.” Nick shifted in his seat and leaned forward, his fingers linked between his knees. “Here is what I propose. We will enter together and go our separate ways but attempt to keep each other in view. I will approach Miss Davenport and let her know who I am and why we are there.”
Marcus nodded.
“I will select her as my lady of choice, and we will retire upstairs. As soon as it appears most of the others are settled in for a while, I will bring her to the end of the corridor where the stairs are. You will meet us there and direct us down and outside.”
The carriage came to a rolling stop in front of the building. There were no indications that this was anything but a townhouse in a fine middle-class neighborhood.
They exited the carriage and Marcus gave instructions to the driver as Nick bounded up the stairs. Once they were together, Nick dropped the door knocker. The door was immediately opened by a tall, bulky man in a liveried suit. “Yes?”
“Mr. Dennis Chambers invited us to join him tonight. I am Lord Mulgrave and this is Mr. Nicholas Smith.”
The man looked them both and up and down, then proceeded to pat them down, taking Marcus’s and Nick’s gun. The doorman handed the guns off to another equally bulky man. “You can retrieve these when you leave.”
He missed the daggers.
Satisfied, the doorman stepped back and they moved forward, following a third man to a large room that might have been a drawing room when the townhouse was originally built. Marcus leaned in next to Nick. “There goes our protection for the evening.”
“I still have two daggers.” He spoke from the side of his mouth. “But if all goes as planned, we won’t need them. I will pass one of the daggers to you when no one is noticing.”
Marcus nodded. They roamed the room, separately as they planned. Nick was just beginning to think they had bad information when he spotted the woman who had to be Miss Davenport. She was a beauty. Dark brown hair, slicked back to show off the fine lines of her face. She had full lips that would drive anyone paying for her services crazy and deep blue eyes that looked as sad as any he’d ever seen.
While the other women strolled the room, obviously looking for the best partner for the evening, Miss Davenport sat on a white padded chair with several men surrounding her, but not engaging her much in conversation. As he watched an older woman dressed in a deep red satin gown that hugged all the curves, she must have been proud of at one time, but no longer held appeal, walked over to her.
She bent and said something to Miss Davenport, who flushed and then stood, causing the men surrounding her to back up. It would not be easy to get to his quarry with the attention she was getting, but he had to do it, and do it fast. He would end up in fisticuffs if he watched one of these men take her by the arm and lead her upstairs.
He quickly decided on another course of action. He walked over to the woman in the red dress and gave her a slight bow. “Good evening, madame. I assume you are the owner?”
She looked him up and down with a sultry look and apparently finding him worthy, bowed her head. “Yes. I am Mrs. Parker. And who are you? I haven’t seen you before.” She waved a red feather fan in her face.
He took her other hand and kissed it. “That is quite true. I am Mr. Nicholas Smith, owner of The Lion’s Den in Bath.”
Her eyebrows rose, apparently impressed with what he said. She perked up, no doubt seeing money signs in her eyes. “Well, it’s a pleasure to welcome you to The Naughty Nest, Mr. Smith.”
Nick almost gagged at the name.
Instead he offered a smile. “I am here at the invitation of Mr. Dennis Chambers.”
“Ah, yes. One of our best customers.” She linked her arm into his and moved him forward. “May I offer you a drink, Mr. Smith?”