Chapter Eleven

Jack stayed in his second-floor office and worked on the railroad books. He knew Barnaby and Hanover would arrive soon, and he didn't want them to find him in his third-floor office. Mostly, he didn't want Barnaby anywhere near Lena or his accounting ledgers.

Before long, Brad entered the room. "Your guests are here. Do you want me to bring them up?"

"No, I'll go down to meet them," Jack answered with a sigh of indecision that bordered on frustration. "Did you get Russell taken care of?"

"Yes. You handled that nicely, Jack."

"I was impressed with the young man. He has a lot of character. He would have made a great soldier."

"I'm glad the war is over and he didn't have to serve. I often think how different my life would have been if I hadn't served."

"But if you hadn't served, we wouldn't have met, or gone into partnership. And if we hadn't started this club, we wouldn't have had to hire Lena, and you wouldn't have met Essie, and…"

"All right. All right. You made your point," Brad said, laughing. "And we wouldn't be filthy rich, either."

"No, we wouldn't. Now, aren't you glad you joined Her Majesty's army?"

"When you put it that way, I guess I am. Now, are you sure you don't want me to bring your guests up?"

"No, I'll go down. I have to take them to the railroad site and let them speak to Sean Mason."

"I'm sure he's as anxious to speak with them as you are," Brad said.

"I don't doubt it. Every time they meet with him, they have a dozen questions and complaints."

"I know. But it's good that Hanover is with Barnaby today. At least he has a brain in that head of his. I think Barnaby was absent when God handed out gray matter."

Jack couldn't help but laugh at Brad's comment. "When we're gone, take the deposit to the bank. Take George with you, but don't go until we're gone."

"You don't want our guests to see how much money we take in?" Brad asked.

"No, the less they know about our business, the better off we'll be. Now, let's get this pleasant afternoon over with," Jack said before walking to the door and going down a flight of stairs to meet with Hanover and Barnaby.

Jack found the railroad managers roaming the floor, stopping to watch the card games in progress.

"Hello, Corbin," Hanover said in greeting. "You have quite the fine establishment here."

"Thank you," Jack said, watching the rapt attention Barnaby paid to the cards being played and the bets placed. He was obviously someone who was more than mildly familiar with games of chance.

"Are you ready to go?" Hanover asked when Barnaby seemed reluctant to leave the gaming tables.

"Yes," Barnaby answered absently, but Jack was sure he would have stayed behind if given the chance.

Jack led the way out of the card room and through the front room, where a sizable group of men had gathered to discuss the latest progress on the railroad.

"So, what is the consensus of the railroad coming through Willowbrook?" Hanover asked when they were in Jack's carriage and on their way to the construction site.

"The majority of residents can't wait for the railroad to be up and running," Jack said. "When we return to Willowbrook, we'll stop by the train depot. The builders have made remarkable progress on it."

"I'm impressed by how quickly you're getting the railroad built, Corbin," Hanover said. "I've been involved with several such projects, and none of them have been built so rapidly. What are you doing that's different?"

"We're providing as much of the materials as we can right here in Willowbrook. The project managers turn in a list of items they'll need on a daily basis, and Sean orders them locally. Some items, of course, have to be ordered from London, but we can order those far enough in advance that they arrive before they're needed. Because of that, there is little if any downtime on the actual construction. Everything has progressed swiftly so far."

"Did you hear that, Barnaby?" Hanover said, turning to face his partner. "Make a note of how Corbin runs the Willowbrook project. We'll implement his procedure on all future railroad projects. That should cut costs down by at least a third."

"Yes," Barnaby replied, but Jack noticed his expression, which indicated that he was anything but pleased.

"No wonder your club is so successful," Hanover continued. "You have a talent for superb management."

Hanover's words of praise weren't endearing him to Barnaby. In fact, they seemed to alienate the man.

"We must be at the site," Jack said as the carriage slowed.

When the carriage stopped, Jack alighted first, followed by Hanover, then Barnaby. Sean Mason saw them and came to join them.

After introductions were made, Sean gave them a tour of the site. To say Hanover was impressed was an understatement. He profusely complimented Jack and Sean. This only seemed to anger Barnaby more, and Jack couldn't help but wonder why. Surely his position with Hanover wasn't that insecure.

But maybe it was.

*

Jack could thinkof little else all the way back to the club than the way Barnaby had reacted to everything Hanover said, and how unimpressed he seemed to be when Hanover complimented Jack. There was something about Barnaby's anger that bothered Jack. It was unnatural.

When they reached the club, Hanover requested a private meeting. Jack had an idea why he wanted to meet, but he was reluctant to hear any proposal Hanover might make. He could hardly refuse to at least hear him out, but that wouldn't change the decision Jack would give him.

Barnaby left to visit the gaming room, and Jack led Hanover to a private room where they could talk without being overheard.

"I'll get right to the point," Hanover said when Jack handed him a glass of brandy and they were seated. "As you probably know, I am more than a little impressed with you. You exhibit several of the traits I look for in the managing partners of my organization."

"Thank you, Mr. Hanover, but if you are going to offer me a position with your organization, I will save us both a great deal of time. I have worked my whole life to start Jackson's Gentlemen's Club and make it a success, and I have no intention of leaving it now. Or ever."

"Except you haven't heard me out. I am not asking you to come work for me. I am offering you a partnership—part ownership."

Jack was taken aback by Hanover's offer. "That's more than generous, Mr. Hanover, but the answer is the same. I have no desire to give up what I have here."

"Do you have any idea the amount of money I'm talking about?"

"No, nor do I care."

"Please, hear me out."

Jack heard Hanover's offer but didn't need to consider it. He had more interest in the questions he wanted answered about Barnaby.

"How long has Barnaby been with you?" Jack asked after taking a sip of his brandy.

"Going on ten years, if I remember correctly."

"Why haven't you offered him what you offered me?"

Hanover smiled, then chuckled. "How do you know I haven't?"

"Because if you had, he would be your partner now. He likes money too much to refuse your offer."

Hanover sat back in his chair with a serious expression on his face. "Yes, he does," he replied. "He also enjoys gambling too much, but he doesn't have any skill at it."

"In other words, he loses more than he wins," Jack said.

"Not only does he lose more than he wins, but he loses more than he can afford to."

"Are you saying he has a gambling problem?"

"Yes, that's what I'm saying."

"I see," Jack said, thinking he should cut this conversation short and go to the floor to stop Barnaby from running up too big a gambling loss.

"Don't worry, Corbin. I'll cover his debt before we leave. I won't let him leave you with a debt you can't collect."

"That's very generous of you, but may I ask you a personal question?"

"Of course."

"If you know Barnaby has a gambling problem, why do you keep him on?"

"I ask myself that same question all the time, and the answer is that I woefully lack the courage to fire him. Josiah Barnaby is my nephew, you see. My youngest sister's son. And years ago I promised her that I would take him under my wing and break him of his compulsion to gamble."

Hanover finished the brandy in his glass but refused Jack's offer for more.

"Obviously I have failed so far. Instead of curbing his gambling, Josiah has run up debts all over London that he cannot pay."

"I assume that you realize how dangerous that can be," Jack said, knowing he was stating something that was none of his business.

"Yes, so this time when he came to me for more money, I refused him. Hopefully, that will teach him."

Jack doubted Barnaby would curb his gambling. He'd seen too many gamblers who swore they could quit gambling anytime they wanted to but weren't able to. Too many who thought if they just kept gambling, they would win enough to get themselves out of debt. But they never did, and eventually the men they owed money came after them.

He hoped Barnaby was one of the lucky ones, but he doubted it.

"Are you sure I can't talk you into joining me?" Hanover said when he'd finished his brandy and was preparing to leave.

"I'm sure, sir. I appreciate your offer, but I enjoy it here in Willowbrook, and this is where I want to stay."

"If you ever change your mind, Jack, let me know. The offer is always open."

"Thank you, Mr. Hanover. I appreciate your offer."

Jack opened the door for Hanover, and they left the private room together. They walked to the game room and looked around but didn't see Barnaby at any of the tables.

"Do you see him?" Hanover asked.

"No—perhaps he wanted to show you that your threat worked. Perhaps he wanted to prove to you he could walk out of a gaming hall without stopping to gamble."

"I hope you're right. I can't think of anything that would make me happier."

Just then, Barnaby entered the hall slightly out of breath and a little disheveled.

"Where were you, Josiah?" Hanover asked. "You look like you've just run a race."

"Not a race," Barnaby said. "I went for a walk. I knew if I stayed here, I'd sit down at one of the tables and lose some money. I'm taking your advice, Uncle, and curbing my gaming."

"Good for you, lad. You'll make me and your mother so happy."

"I knew it was what you wanted. I'm trying, you see."

"You made me a happy man. Now, are you ready to head back to London?"

"Yes," Barnaby said.

Jack walked them out to their carriage and waited until they took the road back to London. He hadn't believed one word of Barnaby's tale about curbing his gambling. Nor that he'd gone for a walk. He was out of breath because he'd been running.

"Did you know the gentleman who just left in that carriage, Mr. Corbin?" George, his carriage driver, asked.

"Yes, George. Why?"

"I just returned from taking Miss Osbourne home, and that young man watched the lady get into the carriage, then followed us all the way to Corbin House at a run."

"Bloody hell," Jack muttered.