A Dangerous Pursuit (Regency Spies & Secrets Book 1) - Laura Beers (macos ebook reader .TXT) 📗

man scrunched his nose. “You certainly smell like you live on Draper Street.” His eyes dropped to his boots. “Are you down on your luck?”

“No more than I suppose the rest of you are,” Baldwin replied.

“I want to search your place,” the man said unexpectedly. “That will tell me all I need to know about you.”

Baldwin furrowed his brow. “You want me to show you now?”

The man eyed him critically. “Unless you don’t truly have a place on Draper Street, and are trying to deceive us.”

“Not at all,” Baldwin replied. “I have nothing to hide.”

“Good.” The man turned towards the group and gestured to a broad-shouldered man with a thin mustache. “Tom will come with us.”

Tom rose from his chair and approached them. “I would be happy to.”

“Follow me, then,” Baldwin said, spinning on his heel.

Without saying a word, they exited the pub and walked down the street. Baldwin turned the corner and pointed towards a blackened building that was starting to fall in on itself. “That is where I live.”

“We shall see,” the man muttered, unconvinced.

Baldwin approached the main door and opened it, causing it to fall off its hinges. He rested it against the wall and headed up two flights of stairs, being careful to avoid the broken steps. He stopped at a door and reached for the handle.

“Isn’t it locked?” Tom asked.

Baldwin chuckled. “The lock hasn’t worked in ages.” He opened the door to the cramped square room and stepped inside. The smell of tainted air immediately assaulted his lungs.

Two straw mattresses were pushed up against the wall and his brother, Oliver, was sitting on top of one. He was wearing dark trousers that were too short on his long legs and a dirtied blue shirt, the top hanging open.

“What are you doing home?” Oliver asked, moving so his back was leaning against the wall. “You weren’t supposed to be home for hours.”

Baldwin gestured towards the two men. “They wanted to see where I live,” he remarked nonchalantly.

Oliver put his hands up. “Well, here it is. It ain’t much, but it’s ours.”

The man stepped forward into the room and asked, “And who are you?”

“I’m Baldwin’s cousin,” Oliver replied as a black rat scurried across the room, stopping briefly at the dirty bowls sitting on the floor. “Who are you?”

The man’s eyes followed the rat as it disappeared into a hole in the wall. “My name is Morton,” he said.

“Well, Morton,” Oliver drawled. “I wasn’t expecting Baldwin home so soon, and I have a lady coming over. Do you mind?”

Morton turned back towards Baldwin. “I’m sorry I misjudged you, but one can never be too careful.”

“I understand,” Baldwin replied. “I would be the same way.”

A redheaded woman stuck her head into the doorway. “This was not our arrangement,” she declared after glancing around the room, and moved to turn away.

Oliver leapt up from the straw mattress. “Hey, lovely lady, come back here,” he encouraged, closing the distance between them. “They were just leaving.” He glared pointedly at the men.

The woman pouted as she glanced between them. “Good, because I need to get home shortly.”

Smiling flirtatiously, Oliver said, “And you shall. After we have had some fun of our own.” He turned to Baldwin. “You and your friends need to leave—now!”

Morton placed his hand on Baldwin’s shoulder. “I think we can head back to the meeting now.”

Baldwin nodded. “I would like that.”

As they exited the room, Baldwin tipped his head at his brother before closing the door. They exited the building and headed towards the Blue Boar.

Morton glanced over at him. “Again, I would like to apologize,” he said. “Having a meeting with any radical views is a good way to get oneself locked up. And Runners are merciless.”

“I am well aware of that,” Baldwin replied. “That is how I ended up in the Royal Navy.”

“You are a criminal?”

“Aye,” Baldwin confirmed. “I was robbing a shop to get my girl some pretty ribbon and a Runner came across me. The judge gave me a choice; prison or join the navy.”

“Do you regret your choice?”

“Nearly every day,” Baldwin asserted. “I was fighting for a monarchy that I don’t believe in, and we were flogged for any infraction. When I was assigned to a ship that was bound for the Americas, I walked off and didn’t look back.”

“You deserted?” Morton asked.

Baldwin nodded. “I did, but I served my time. The Royal Navy refused to release me, citing stupid reasons. They just needed more men to fight in their blasted wars.”

“Aren’t you afraid you will get a court martial for desertion?” Tom asked as he walked next to Baldwin.

“Every day on that ship, I walked around like I was already dead,” Baldwin revealed. “I won’t go back. They will have to drag my bloody corpse back to the ship.”

Morton gave him an approving look. “We have something in common, you and I.”

“We do?”

“I’m willing to do whatever it takes to advance our cause,” Morton shared, “including dying for it.”

“I’ve come to accept that dying is easy, but living takes hard work,” Baldwin said.

“Well said, Baldwin,” Morton stated as they entered the Blue Boar. He walked to the back door and pounded on it.

The door was opened, and Morton brushed past the man guarding it. “I have seen the rubbish pile where Baldwin lives,” he announced, stopping in the front of the room. “I have no problem with this man attending our meetings.”

Baldwin stepped towards the wall and leaned his shoulder against it.

Morton straightened his shoulders. “The monarchy has abandoned us, gentlemen,” he proclaimed. “We are in desperate straits due to high taxes, the obscene price of food, and unprecedented levels of unemployment due to wartime trade restrictions. Some of our own neighbors have no choice between joining the army or starving, leaving their loved ones behind to fend for themselves. And what happens if we dare speak up about the injustice?” He paused before answering, “We will be arrested and labeled as rebels.”

Pacing the small room, Morton continued. “The people are rioting,