The letters were at the heart of this treachery, of course, and she wished to God she'd never found the things now. What was done was done, she reminded herself. It certainly wouldn't do her any good to have regrets. It would be wasted effort and Jade never, ever wasted anything. It was all very clear-cut to her. When she'd shown her brother, Nathan, their father's letters, she'd started this mess, and she would now be the one to mop it up.
Jade forced her worries aside. She'd inadvertently just given Caine quite a little time to think. Silence,
she decided, could very well be her enemy now. She had to keep Caine off guard… and occupied. 'Caine? What do you…'
'Hush, sweet,' Caine ordered. 'Do you hear…'
'That odd squeak? I was just about to mention it,' she replied.
'It's more like a persistent grinding noise… Miller,' Caine shouted out the window. 'Stop the carriage.'
The vehicle came to an abrupt stop just as the left rear wheel snapped. Jade would have been tossed to the floor if Caine hadn't caught her in his arms. He held her tightly for a long minute, then whispered. 'Damned bad timing, wouldn't you say?'
'I'd say it's probably trickery,' she whispered.
Caine didn't comment on that remark. 'Stay inside, Jade, while I see what can be done.'
'Do be careful,' she cautioned. 'They could be waiting for you.'
She heard his sigh when he opened the door. 'I'll be careful,' he promised.
As soon as he'd shut the door behind him, Jade opened it and climbed out. The driver came to stand beside his employer. 'I can't fathom it, mi'lord. I'm always checking the wheels to make certain they're sound.'
'I'm not faulting you, Miller,' Caine returned. 'We're far enough on the side of the street to leave it
here for the night. Unleash the horse, Miller. I'll…'
Caine stopped when he noticed Jade. She was clutching a wicked-looking dagger in her hand. He
almost laughed. 'Put that away, Jade. You'll hurt yourself.'
She slipped the knife back into the seam pocket of her gown. 'We're fair targets, Caine, standing out
here for anyone to grab.'
'Then get back inside,' he suggested.
She pretended she hadn't heard him. 'Miller? Was the wheel tampered with, do you suppose?'
The driver squatted down next to the axle. 'I'd say it was,' he whispered. 'Mi'lord, it was tampered
with! Have a look here, at the cuts made in the side bar.'
'What are we going to do now?' Jade asked Caine.
'We'll ride the horse,' he announced.
'But what about poor Miller? They might do him in when we leave.'
'I'll be all right, miss,' the driver interjected. 'I got me a big flask of brandy to keep me warm. I'll sit inside the carriage until Broley comes to fetch me.'
'Who is Broley?' Jade asked.
'One of the tigers,' Miller returned.
Jade didn't know what he was talking about. 'You have a friend who is an animal?'
Caine did smile then. 'Broley works for me,' he explained. 'I'll explain it all to you later.'
'We should just hire a hack,' she announced then. She folded her arms across her chest. 'Then we
could all ride together and I wouldn't have to worry about Miller.'
'At this time of night? It's doubtful we'd find a hack.'
'What about Monk's lovely tavern?' she asked. 'Couldn't we go back there and wait until light?'
'No,' Caine answered. 'Monk has certainly locked up and gone home by now.'
'We're a fair distance away from the Ne'er Do Well now, mi'lady,' Miller interjected.
When the driver moved to unstrap the horse, Jade grabbed hold of Caine's hand and moved closer to
his side. 'Caine?' she whispered.
'Yes?'
'I think I know what happened to your fine carriage wheel. It was probably the very same men who…'
'Hush now,' he whispered back. 'It's going to be all right.'
'How can you know it's going to be all right?'
She sounded so frightened. Caine wanted to comfort her. 'My instincts,' he boasted. 'Sweet, don't let your imagination get out of hand. It's…'
'Too late,' she countered. 'Oh, Lord, my imagination's at it again.'
The pistol shot rang out just as she threw herself into his side, knocking him off balance.
The shot flew past the side of his head, narrowly missing him. He could hear the whistle in his ear. Though he was certain it wasn't intentional, Jade had actually just saved his life.
Caine tightened his hold on Jade's hand, shouted a warning to Miller as he pushed her in front of him,
and then started running. He forced her to stay directly in front of him so he could shield her with his broad back.
