“Damn,” he muttered.
“Talking to yourself?”
Burke jumped up at the unexpected sound of Storm’s voice.
“It’s one person who never disagrees with me.”
“I don’t know,” she said with a smile. “You sounded agitated.”
“Were you looking for me?” he asked, feeling as agitated as she had suggested.
“Peter remembers something and I thought you’d want to hear what he has to say.”
“Let’s go,” Burke said, walking past her, though she was at his side in a flash.
They entered Janelle’s hut to find Peter sitting up in bed and looking somewhat better than he had. The swelling had gone down but the bruising hadn’t noticeably faded.
Burke and Storm squatted down on opposite sides of Peter.
“I don’t know if this is important,” Peter began.
“Anything you can tell us might prove helpful,” Storm encouraged.
Peter nodded eagerly. “I remember how the man grew angry when he learned they were removing him from Glencurry.”
“He wanted to stay there?” Burke asked.
“He claimed he belonged there,” Peter confirmed.
“How so?” Storm queried.
“I don’t know,” Peter said. “But whatever it was, he wanted to remain at Glencurry. Even with the torture they inflicted upon him he—”
Burke didn’t allow Peter to finish. “How badly was he tortured?”
“Not as badly as me, which I found strange since he seemed such a prize to them, but then maybe the jailers were instructed not to harm him.”
“Who would give such orders?” Burke asked.
“The Earl of Balford decrees the punishment for each crime,” Peter advised.
“You’ve done well, Peter,” Storm said. “We appreciate your help.”
“Anything. Anything I can do,” he insisted.
Storm smiled. “Rest and get well.”
Burke hurried out of the hut, and when they were a few feet away, he turned to Storm. “I think I should go speak with this Earl of Balford.”
“That would be a foolish thing to do.”
“Why?” he demanded. “Perhaps I could buy my brother’s freedom.”
“There is always that possibility.”
“See, you agree,” he said anxiously.
“But not now,” Storm insisted. “Not before we know for certain if this man is your brother—”
“All things point to it.”
“But we are not certain. Until we know without a doubt, you will sit tight and wait.”
“If I don’t want to?” he challenged.
“Then you will jeopardize not only your life, but your brother’s as well.”
“I hate it when you make sense,” he said, knowing she was right, though it didn’t help his concern for his brother.
She placed her hand on his arm. “I know how anxious you are, but if we move too fast we could do more harm than good. We will find your brother, but you must be patient.”
He agreed with a nod, and tucked the idea of contacting the Earl of Balford in the back of his mind in case it should prove necessary.
Chapter 17
“I don’t understand it,” Storm said, walking alongside Tanin through the camp. “It’s been a week or more and we haven’t gotten any closer to finding out where the prisoner was sent after leaving Mewers.”
“It is strange,” Tanin agreed. “First he’s moved around and then he can’t be found. You know what that can mean when a prisoner simply vanishes.”
Storm hadn’t wanted to voice her concerns, but with no news of the prisoner’s whereabouts, it was growing more likely that he had been disposed of, his body never to be found.
“We should have heard something by now,” Tanin said. “Philip and William have talked with people who have consistently provided us with accurate information and yet none of them know anything.”
“Either that or they’re not talking.”
“What are you thinking?” Tanin asked.
“That people might be afraid to speak of the matter. But why would the imprisonment of a man accused of theft cause such fear? I believe there’s more to this than we know.”
“What do we do?” Tanin asked. “The American grows more impatient by the day. He looks about ready to take matters into his own hands.”
“Which will not help us or him in the least.”
“We also need to consider who will take Burke to St. Andrew Harbor where he claims his ship with the money should have arrived by now,” Tannin said. “He insists that you go with him. I don’t think he realizes just how infamous an outlaw you are and how dangerous such an excursion can be for you.”