Chapter Twenty-Three

The Reverend waited until Reinhardt had disappeared into the alley with Mercy, then lingered for a few more seconds to allow the blackguard enough time to get out onto the wharf, then yelling to Percy and Finn, he hurried after them.

Emerging from the alley, he stopped, watching in horror as Reinhardt dragged Mercy towards the ship. ‘I don't know what the blighter's doing,' the clergyman muttered, ‘but surely he doesn't think he'll be able to escape with her now.'

‘I think the man's completely addled,' Percy whispered coming up to stand beside him.

‘Wha' ye daein?' Finn hissed, sticking his head between them, ‘g'oan wi it. He be gaun tae get awa.'

‘We daren't get too close, lad,' the Reverend explained, ‘or he'll shoot Mercy.'

‘Who be that?' Finn pointed, just as Nate leapt from his hiding place behind the shed. The three watched with bated breath as Ruby came from nowhere to jump at the American and the two men crashed to the ground, a gunshot splitting the air.

Moments later, as Reinhardt escaped towards the ship, Finn could wait no longer and dashed out of the alleyway, racing towards the couple who were now embracing tearfully. Though the Reverend and Percy immediately followed, they soon fell behind - until halfway across, Finn suddenly skidded to a halt. When the two men reached him, he was standing immobile, tears streaming down his cheeks. ‘What's wrong, lad,' Percy asked, putting his arms around the distraught boy. ‘Mercy's safe now.'

Too choked to answer, Finn lifted his arm and pointed. The Reverend craned his head forward and squinted, until suddenly he saw what the boy was looking at.

It was Flossy.

***

As Nate ran towards the Western Star , he kept his pistol in his hand. Though he knew Reinhardt had spent all the shots, he couldn't discount the possibility that the American had another gun onboard the ship. By the time he reached the gangplank, the sailors had stopped what they were doing and were watching him warily.

‘Where is he?' Nate shouted. ‘I know he came onboard this ship.'

The nearest crewman shrugged and turned away, leaving Nate gritting his teeth. Did he dare go aboard? How would the crew react if he did? He'd just stepped onto the gangplank, throwing caution to the winds, when Reinhardt suddenly appeared.

‘Where is it?' he screamed. ‘It was here, I know it.' He spun round to the nearest sailor, waving his pistol in one hand and the locket he'd stolen from Mercy in the other. ‘One of you bastards must have had it. What have you done with the key?' His voice had reached a crescendo, and the same sailor who'd shrugged stepped menacingly towards him.

The Viscount had remained where he was, thinking Reinhardt had finally gone mad, but as soon as the American had yelled the word key , Nate abruptly remembered Flossy's small trophy. With difficulty he dipped his hand into his pocket and brought out the tiny brass key the little dog had carried off the ship. Clearly, she'd found it in Reinhardt's cabin.

‘Is this what you're looking for?' he shouted, holding his hand out, the key dangling from his fingers.

‘Give it to me,' Reinhardt spat. Spittle was flying from his mouth and for the first time, Nate realised just how truly deranged the man was. ‘Give it to me,' he screamed, lifting his pistol and pointing it.

Nate was aware it was the same spent pistol from earlier, so didn't react. The sailor in the rigging above him, however, must have believed the gun was loaded. Leaning forward, he lazily pulled a pistol from the top of his own breeches and shot the American in the back.

Shock held Nate immobile as he watched Reinhardt topple forward onto the gunwale, surprise etched on his face. On colliding with the ship's side, his body continued to slide and instinctively he reached out to grab hold of a rope, dropping the locket in the process. Realising what he'd done, Reinhardt cried out and lunged forward, trying to retrieve the necklace. Nate stared in horror as the American's body did a slow cartwheel before tumbling into the water.

At the same time, Mercy's locket somersaulted in the air, and landed on the gangplank at the Viscount's feet.

***

Christian, Adam, Max and Gabriel arrived minutes later, and the next half an hour was spent in a tearful reunion between humans and humans, humans and dogs, and dogs and humans, by which time, Jamie arrived with a full contingent of Runners.

All in all, it was a very emotional thirty minutes.

After speaking with the Western Star's captain, the magistrate was happy to agree that Reinhardt had been dispatched to prevent him going on a rampage of violence - or as the Reverend said afterwards, to stop him from putting a deuced pickle in the biscuit jar.

The body was fished out of the water and taken to the morgue where it would no doubt be buried in a pauper's grave. Reinhardt's belongings were removed from the ship and given over to Jamie.

Of the American's two thugs for hire, there was no sign. Neither did the renegade clergyman show his face. The Reverend liked to think the Almighty had had a quiet word.

The next day, everyone convened in the Earl and Countess of Cottesmore's townhouse, and no one mentioned that perhaps Lady Mercedes was sitting a little close to Viscount Carlingford, and even more scandalous, holding his hand as though she would never let it go.

On going through Reinhardt's belongings, Jamie had found a letter from Mercedes Alfaro – Mercy's mother.

It was addressed to Christian Stanhope.

With a sigh, Jamie handed the letter over to the Earl, who opened it without speaking. Five minutes later, he put the missive to one side and shook his head, clearly fighting tears. Chastity took hold of his hand, whispering, ‘What does it say, love?'

Christian squeezed her hand gratefully before getting up to hand the letter to Mercy.

‘Your mother wasn't an orphan,' he murmured hoarsely.

‘She came from an old and noble Mexican family named Alfaro.' Mercy scanned the letter.

‘She couldn't go home,' the young woman cried.

‘Because of me.' ‘She loved you,' her father insisted, firmly, ‘and she wanted you to have what was yours by right.' Mercy shook her head, tears streaming down her face.

Gripping Nate's hand, she looked down again at the letter.

‘So where the devil did Reinhardt fit into all this smoky business?' the Reverend interrupted.

‘And what was the deuced key Flossy found?' Christian sat back down.

‘It appears that Mercedes wrote the letter to me not long after she delivered Mercy to my door.

Unfortunately, I never received it.' ‘The letter talks mainly about her hope that Mercy might one day be able to claim her inheritance and take her rightful place within the Alfaro family, should she wish to do so.

But then she goes on to talk about the locket Mercy was wearing when she came to me - the same locket Reinhardt attempted to steal yesterday.

She was adamant it had to be protected at all costs as there was something inside it that would prove Mercy's identity…'

He paused with a grimace, adding, ‘Clearly it should have been in a safe all these years.' ‘She told me never to take it off,' Mercy whispered.

The Earl nodded, giving her a tired smile before continuing.

‘The letter refers to a key that would open the locket.

It has to be the same key that Flossy found, though God knows how Reinhardt got hold of it.' He hesitated then, before addressing his next words directly to his eldest daughter.

‘Your mother wanted me to wait until you came of age before telling you any of this.

But now, I'm to tell you that once you open the locket, you'll have a choice as to whether you wish to reveal yourself to your Mexican relatives or not – and she asks that I abide by whatever you decide.' Mercy stared back at her father.

‘So how the devil did Reinhardt come to have the key and the letter?' she asked, anger and grief clearly evident in her voice.

The Earl shook his head with a sigh.

‘We'll never know, sweetheart.

He was an acquaintance of your mother.

Likely he stole them before she could send them to me.' ‘Or her illness overtook her before she got the chance to send them,' Nate commented.

‘The information you got from the nuns would suggest that Reinhardt had found the letter, but didn't know where she'd put the key.' ‘And that's what he was trying to force her to tell him when she was on her death bed.' Christian agreed grimly.

‘Clearly he succeeded.' ‘So, once he had the key, why didn't he just steal the locket years ago and open it himself?' Mercy asked in anguish.

‘It would have been useless without you,' her father answered.

‘I think that whatever is inside the locket will confirm your identity to the Alfaros.

The inheritance belongs to you - that's why Reinhardt was so desperate to wed you.' ‘So, are you going to open the deuced thing and put us out of our misery?' Augustus Shackleford demanded impatiently.

Mercy looked down at the locket around her neck, back where it had been since the day her mother gave it to her.

It was large, and quite heavy, but she'd become used to the weight over the years.

She'd had no idea that a part of it could be opened.

Nobody spoke as her father handed her the tiny key.

Nate removed the necklace for her and for a moment she held them both in her hands.

Then turning the locket around, she fiddled with the back, finally managing to slide the small covering to the side, revealing a tiny lock.

After glancing up at her rapt family, she took the key and inserted it into the minuscule hole.

With the only the slightest effort, she was able to turn it quite easily.

The locket parted, and an emerald the size of a pigeon's head fell into her lap.

This was the reason the locket was heavy.

It was also her mother's way of giving her a choice.

Instinctively, Mercy looked over at Nate and gave a small impish grin before murmuring, ‘I bet she'd have got out of bed for this.'