Shattered Dreams (29 page)

“
Come on, let’s keep moving. If we stop, we are going to
freeze in this weather,” she murmured. When Zack looked at her, she
gave him a reassuring smile and squeezed his thin shoulder
encouragingly.

Unfortunately, half an hour later, they came to a road
marker, but none of the names on it meant anything to
them.

“
We could be moving in completely the wrong direction. You do
know that, don’t you?” Suzanna sighed in disgust.

Tilly
turned around and looked at the road to the left and the right of
them. She opened her mouth to speak only to frown in alarm when the
low rumble of carriage wheels suddenly broke the
silence.

“
Oh no.” She shared a panicked look with Suzanna. “We can’t
take the risk that it is not them,” Tilly gasped.

She
looked around but, to her consternation, there were no buildings
for miles around. The only thing in the area they had to hide
behind was the thick hedge beside them. She studied it for a gap
that was big enough for them to fit through.

Panic
began to build as the rumbling noise got considerably louder.
Unfortunately, because they couldn’t see it yet, they had no idea
how fast the coach was travelling, or who it was, so each moment
they were out in the open, and visible, left them increasingly at
risk.

“
In here,” Suzanna gasped, spying a tiny space at the bottom
of the hedge that they could all clamber through.

The
spikes on the thick bramble tugged relentlessly at their clothing,
and scratched red welts on their arms and faces as they climbed
through. It was of little consequence though because they just
managed to pull Zack out of sight of the main road before a large
black carriage rolled slowly past. Although there was only one
driver, and the carriage looked smaller, they weren’t prepared to
take any risks, and remained perfectly still while they waited for
it to roll past.

“
He has to get out of this weather.” Tilly’s voice was laden
with worry as she realised that Zack’s trembling had grown
considerably worse now that they were on the ground.

“
If we stop, the cold is only going to get worse,” Suzanna
replied. “He needs to get warm and dry, but we can’t do that until
we get to Tooting Mallow.” She sighed and studied the area around
them. “We have to come across a town sooner or later. There must be
someone around who we can ask for help, surely to
goodness?”

Tilly
nodded. “If we can get to a town, there should be outbuildings or
something we can shelter in overnight.”

She
threw a frozen arm around Zack’s already cold shoulders, and gave
him a reassuring hug.

“
I will be fine,” Zack muttered grimly. “Let’s go.” He didn’t
wait for either of them, and started to walk along the edge of the
field with his head down, and his shoulders hunched against the
biting wind.

Several
hours later, they had all descended into misery. Darkness had
started to fall over an hour ago and had cast everything into
increasingly darker shadows. Although none of them said as much,
they all knew that it wasn’t going to be long before they couldn’t
see anything at all.

“
Over there look,” Suzanna gasped a few minutes later when the
faint outline of a small group of buildings became visible in the
valley ahead of them.

Tilly
sent a silent prayer of thanks heavenward and nodded encouragingly
to Zack.

“
Look, Zack, it’s a town. We won’t be long now. Then we can
get somewhere warm and dry.”

I hope
, she added silently although
didn’t say as much aloud.

As they
approached the small village, the lights of what appeared to be a
much larger town became visible in the distance. A wild thrill of
hope swept through her, and she began to pray that it was Tooting
Mallow. Unfortunately, now that dusk had already fallen, it was
difficult to know for certain if it was. It was so dark now that
she couldn’t see the rather notable bulk of the poor house on the
horizon, or any discernible features on the landscape to indicate
that it was the place they all needed to be.

The
thought of Harry being just over there filled her with excitement
and relief in equal measure, and she lengthened her stride
enthusiastically now that their final destination was in sight.
Even though it was several miles away, the realisation that they
could reach safety was immensely uplifting, and they all
immediately cheered up, in spite of the cold wind and
rain.

Zack
looked at her and smiled.

“
All better now?” she asked him.

Zack
nodded firmly. “I am alright, Tilly. I am just cold, that’s all.”
He looked at Suzanna. “I could do with some of that pie you made
this morning.”

“
Me too,” Tilly sighed. “With lots of potatoes and
vegetables.”

As they
walked they all began to talk about their favourite foods, and
quickened their pace as much as they could without actually
breaking into a run.

Tilly
held the memory of Harry’s beloved face before her as she walked.
She had never wanted to see anyone so much in her entire life as
she did him right now. She didn’t care how long she had to walk, or
what kind of weather she had to endure, she wasn’t going to stop
until she got back to him.

Harry
leaned over the desk toward Cragdale, the poor house’s now
ex-governor, and stared the worried man right in the
eye.

“
I warn you now that you will be arrested for hindering our
investigation on behalf of His Majesty’s government if you do not
answer out questions, and quickly. You are already facing trial for
abandoning your position as Governor to the poor house. I have it
on good authority that you are guilty of the kidnap and false
imprisonment of residents there as well. So, right now, it is not
looking good for you.”

“
I haven’t kidnapped anyone,” the governor snapped, clearly
panic-stricken at the thought of having to remain behind bars for
any longer than he absolutely had to.

“
You know about them though, don’t you?” Harry drawled
silkily. “You know that young people – women – have been lured to
the town with the promise of gainful employment. Then, once they
are in Tooting Mallow, you and your associates arrange for them to
be robbed so that they are destitute and have nowhere to go except
for the poor house. Once they are forced to go there for help, they
disappear because they are not in the registers. They simply
vanish. Their pleas to leave are ignored by Taylor and Cruickshank,
and so they are effectively imprisoned until you are ready to move
them on.”

As he
spoke, Harry felt tension within the room rise several notches as
everyone waited for the man to speak.

“
Where are they taking them?” Harry demanded when Cragdale
didn’t speak.

Cragdale
looked down at his hands for several long moments. “I don’t know,”
he replied reluctantly. “I was paid to look the other way, and not
ask questions.”

Harry
leaned forward menacingly. “You, sir, are a liar. I know you are
involved in this. You were working with the wardens to make sure
that everyone allowed the young women into the poor house, but also
that their entrance was kept out of the registers. You were aware
that Taylor and Cruickshank were paid by someone to refuse to allow
them to leave. You were the one who has accepted regular payment,
and looked the other way when some of the resident’s vanished as
quickly as they arrived. You were the one who has lied to the Board
of Trustees, and carefully covered your tracks so they would never
find out about the residents who shouldn’t be there.”

Harry
snorted in disgust when the prisoner made no attempt to deny the
allegations. He thought carefully for a moment, and began to think
aloud. He studied the prisoner’s face as he spoke, but knew that he
was about right with his summarisation of the facts when the man
began to look more than a little defeated.

“
As soon as we took over the poor house, you and your people
knew that you had to do something with Tilly and Suzanna, or else
they would report that they had been confined in the poor house
against their will to us: the authorities. They are the only ones
around here who can testify what happened to them. So you sent the
Dandridges’ to get them out of the area. That way, you had a chance
of retaining your freedom.”

“
I don’t know what you mean,” Cragdale replied firmly. Harry
would have believed his denials too, if it hadn’t been for
desperation in the man’s gaze as he shifted uncomfortably in his
seat.

“
Put the man on rations. Keep him confined to his cell,” Harry
ordered the Head Jailer. “He is to have no visitors. No letters; in
or out. My boss from the War Office will come to question him. He
is to be arrested for kidnap, imprisonment, and abandonment of his
position of authority.”

He was
about to turn away when an idea suddenly occurred to
him.

“
By the way, your plan failed. We have them already. That’s
why we are here. We just wanted to know if you had the wisdom to
co-operate with us, that’s all. It would have knocked at least five
years off your sentence. Now though -” he shook his head, and
sighed almost dramatically.

“
Look, I don’t know where they were going,” the man snapped in
desperation. The thought of having to spend an additional five
years behind bars just for keeping his silence had clearly had the
desired effect because the man suddenly lost his belligerence, and
now looked truly horrified. He contemplated his options for a
moment before he shook his head in disgust.

“
They are on their way to Shepney Mallet. There is someone
waiting for them.”

“
Where in Stepney Mallet will they be handed over?”

“
The Dog and Crow,” the prisoner replied readily.

“
Who is the ‘someone’ they will be handed over to?” Harry
asked dully.

“
He is a people trader.”

Harry
went cold, and stared at Cragdale in horror.

Silence
fell over the cell.

“
Say that again,” he demanded in a voice that was cold and
deadly.

Cragdale
looked up at him, but his gaze quickly slid away and he studied his
hands instead.

“
A people trader is waiting to take all of them off the
Dandridges’. Cruickshank is with them. They are all in it together.
Cruickshank is Roberta Dandridge’s brother.”

“
What about Taylor. What relation is she?” Harry asked with a
frown.

Cragdale
shook his head. “She isn’t related to anyone. She is paid no
differently to the other wardens. She is just spiteful, and enjoys
tormenting the residents.”

“
What do they do with them?” Barnaby demanded in a voice that
was nothing short of a low growl.

“
You knew that the people trapped in the poor house; those who
had been manipulated into destitution; were going to be sold as
slaves?” Harry growled.

“
Jesus, it is barbaric,” the Head Jailer snarled. “Nobody
trades slaves these days. We are not in the dark ages. Who in the
hell buys them? Where do they go?”

Harry
stared at the prisoner, and slowly stalked back across the room
until he stood on the opposite side of the table. He placed both
hands carefully onto the desk, and waited. The prisoner eventually
looked up at him.

“
Let’s see now. Young, beautiful women, in their twenties.
They are capable of many years of hard work in servitude.” Harry
felt a little sick. “Depending on what kind of servitude you have
in store for them.”

The
prisoner had the good grace to look awkward and evasive. It was as
though what he was about to admit to didn’t sit comfortably with
him either, but Harry was determined to get the facts out of him if
he had to beat the man to within an inch of his life.

“
What kind of servitude are you selling them into? Washing
pots? Or something else?” He growled huskily.

The
prisoner looked up. “The worst kind,” he replied
quietly.

Harry
struggled to absorb the full horror of what could have happened to
Tilly if he hadn’t forced his way into the poor house. Of what
could happen to her still, if he wasn’t successful in getting her
back.

“
How many more of them have there been?”

When the
prisoner didn’t immediately reply, Harry beat his fist down on the
table and made him jump. Instinctively, Cragdale began to talk. His
words came out in a hurried rush, as though his very life depended
on him telling them everything as quickly as possible, and everyone
listened in stunned silence.

“
About three years now. They have been doing it about three
years. I don’t know how many people they have moved because they
pay me to look the other way. I only found out from Taylor what
happened when I noted that one of the girls was particularly
pretty. About last year it was. Taylor made a snide remark about
life on her back wearing her out early and that her beauty wouldn’t
last long. She told me then.”

“
So Taylor is in on it too?”