“I am wearing a corset beneath to hide my figure,” Lizzy innocently answered. She pulled down her shirt to place the banknote into her undergarment and William immediately turned around to avoid seeing more. He had a quick view of her chest and his body burned in heat.
“Do not do that again, Lizzy!” William coughed out. “When we are near the location, you can take it out and put it in your shoe like I showed you.” He let out a deep breath. “Oh, I have shoes for you. It is in the foyer. Go and try it on.”
Lizzy ran off to complete her costume while William stood by the fireplace to calm his heart. She had no idea how alluring she was, even when dressed like a boy with dirt on her face.
“Are we ready to go?” Lizzy asked when she returned. “The shoes fit perfectly and I am fully ready to perform my act. Where are we going? Why do we need money?”
William turned and saw her looking like a boy, albeit a very pretty one. “We will have to get a little more dirt on you, Lizzy. You are too beautiful, even with this disguise.”
“Oh, stop it, Will!” Lizzy blushed. She realised that he was looking at her fondly and still found her attractive, even in such a masquerade.
“A little more soot to hide your lovely blush,” he gently ran his fingers across her cheeks, “but there is no way to hide your rosy lips.” He glided his clean thumb against her soft lips. “You will have to press down your lips as much as you can so they look smaller.” He stood back and inspected her. “We are now ready.”
Lizzy reached for his arm to walk but immediately straightened. “I can walk on my own. I forgot I do not need your arm.”
“You can always have my arm but I know you are fully capable of walking on your own. You are capable of anything you wish to do, my dear Liam.” He grinned.
William and Lizzy entered the hackney that William had hired for the night with his bodyguard Matthews sitting next to the driver. They headed to their adventure tonight and anticipated great amusement to remember for many years to come.
Chapter 7
It was a loud and smoky hall where the sporting event was to take place. William gave the tickets to the large man standing guard at the door and they went up the stairs to find a viewing area. With Matthews always nearby, William knew Lizzy would be kept safe, but he guarded her with his own body as they moved through the narrow walkways were many people were already gathered.
Going to the window to make their bet, William nodded to Lizzy, “Liam, this is where you pay the man.” He looked inside the window and spoke to the burly man who was puffing on his cigar. “My cousin would like to place £5 for Richmond. I will also make my bet for £20. £25 total.” He tucked away the receipts in his pocket and they made their way to look down the arena to see at least five hundred people gathered.
“This is one of the smaller boxing events of the season, Lizzy. There are two fighters who will hit each other until one is knocked out completely or he can no longer stand on his feet. They hit each other with bare knuckles and ladies do not attend because it is violent, and the men do not don shirts and fight only in their breeches. If you feel squeamish at any time, you must let me know. Close your eyes and think of our tree but try not to faint.” William explained. “There are two fighters here, one is Richmond, the one that we hope will win, and the other is Gregson. They have both been boxing for several years and Bob Gregson has the advantage due to his size, but Bill Richmond, who was once a slave from the American colonies, I hope will be the winner because he is agile and quick on his feet.”
“How did he become a pugilist, Will?” Lizzy asked. “It is a great achievement to make something of himself after being a slave!”
William smiled, “Yes, he arose against expectations and he escaped to England, where he worked for Thomas Pitt, our former Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger’s cousin, until Mr. Pitt died in 1804. If he wins the next several bouts, he will have a chance to fight George Maddox, one of the greatest fighters of the times, and I hope Richmond wins. Here they come now. Watch them enter the centre of the arena. The roped area is called a ‘ring’.”
Lizzy gasped, “Gregson is gigantic! He will surely win!”
“He is the favoured one. He is known as the ‘Lancashire Giant’ and has won many bouts, although he has lost his share as well. If Richmond wins, we will win a large sum from our gambling.” William chuckled, “You have been good luck at the racetracks and I hope you will be lucky here, but I do not plan on taking you gambling too often, Liam. We might begin a terrible tradition and gambling is quite habit-forming. Many men have lost everything they own and tossed into debtor’s prison because they bet on sports to playing cards to raindrop racing.”
“It is your money, Will, and I am too frugal to gamble what little I have and I would not be able to come to such a place without you.” She hid her giggles.
“What did you do with the winnings from the horseraces? You
