"Right you are, mate," she said with a defiant gleam in her eyes. Following Slade into his office, she sat next to him on the hard, horsehair-covered sofa and clutched his hand as if her presence would guarantee his safety.
As soon as the door was closed, Peregrine said, "Pack everything essential and close the house. You'll be safer at Sulgrave. It would only be for a few days. Whatever is going to happen will happen soon."
Slade frowned. "Can the guards stay here? I would rather not have my house burned down."
"Fine, though if you leave conspicuously enough, there probably won't be another attempt."
The lawyer gnawed on his lower lip. "How do you think Weldon located me so soon?"
Peregrine grimaced. "Probably he had me followed yesterday morning. I thought I had come early enough so that he would not have had time to arrange that. Instead, I must have led him here myself." He shook his head in self-disgust. "I should have known better than to underestimate him for even a moment."
"Your guards prevented anything serious from happening," Slade pointed out.
"I was half a move ahead of Weldon this time. Barely enough." His face was set like granite. "I will not let my friends suffer for my lack of foresight."
"Are we friends? I thought I was your employee."
"Would you have done all the strange and sometimes dubious things I've asked of you just for money?"
"No, I suppose not."
"I didn't think so." Peregrine hesitated for a moment, for it was very hard to say what he felt out loud. "I value you, Benjamin, and I don't want anything to happen to you."
Slade looked as embarrassed as Peregrine felt. "Thank you. I appreciate hearing that." He smiled, his eyes briefly touching the young woman at his side. "My life has become so much more interesting since I met you."
Peregrine's mouth quirked wryly. "The Chinese have a curse that says 'May you live in interesting times.' I hope you don't come to think that meeting me has been a curse."
* * *
Slade was impressed when Lady Sara welcomed him to Sulgrave without so much as a hint of surprise. The lawyer thought that boded well for the marriage; a woman married to Peregrine had better be unshockable.
He was allotted two comfortable adjoining rooms, one for an office and the other for sleeping. Right after dinner he excused himself and withdrew to his rooms, wanting to take care of the work that had not been done because of the break-in and move to Sulgrave.
The evening was well advanced when a soft knock sounded at the door. He invited the visitor to enter, thinking it must be Peregrine. Instead, Jenny came in with a tray and an uncertain expression. "Would you like some tea, Mr. Slade?"
He couldn't suppress his smile of pleasure. "You really shouldn't be here," he said as he rose from his chair. "It's not proper, and Lady Sara might object."
"I've finished my work for the evening, so she won't mind." Jenny set the tray down and poured two cups full. "In fact, she won't even notice. All she really sees is her husband."
"They're happy?" Slade pulled a chair out for Jenny.
She nodded as she sat down. "There's kind of a glow between them. I've never seen anything like it." Jenny's brows drew together as she offered a plate of cakes to her companion. "But I don't think he's telling her what's happening. That's not right. She should know because she's part of it."
"I understand why Peregrine doesn't want his wife involved. I doubt if anyone except he and Weldon will ever know the full story. He certainly isn't telling me."
"He's making a mistake," Jenny said darkly. "Lady Sara may have led a protected life, but she's not a child. She's going to be angry when she learns everything he's been up to. And it could be dangerous for her not to know."
"Tell him that, if you're brave enough," Slade said with a small smile. "I'm not."
"I'm not either," Jenny said ruefully. "I expect it will be all right. But there's trouble coming—I can feel it in my bones. When I heard that someone had tried to burn your house down..." She shuddered. "You could have died in your bed."
"But I didn't. Now I'm here and safe, and everything will be over soon."
Jenny just shook her head, her face grave. "Weldon and Peregrine—they're like two cocks fighting, and they won't stop till one or both of them are dead. And God have mercy on anyone who gets in the way."
Slade fell silent, uneasily aware that the girl was probably right. He had been caught between the two men, and it might have killed him if Peregrine hadn't thought to supply the guards.
Deciding that the conversation was too serious, he began asking questions about Jenny's life in the country. Her descriptions of a London girl's introduction to cows and harvests was hilarious, and the evening went quickly.