An Unlikely Alliance by Patricia Bray Read Free Book Online

that he had paid her all that much attention that first evening. But in his mind he had pictured her as a coarse and blowsy female, the type who would turn her hand to any crooked endeavor.
    It had been a shock to find that his nemesis was barely a slip of a girl. There had been a moment there, as he gazed into her dark brown eyes, that he had almost believed her protestations of innocence. The moment had passed, as he reminded himself that he had seen her cheating with his own eyes. But the feeling lingered that there was more to the girl than appeared on the surface.
    Alexander shook his head briskly, trying to rid himself of such fanciful notions. It didn’t matter who the girl was, or why she had gotten involved in such a scheme. The important thing was that she could lead him to the men who had fixed the race.
    “Is that her?” Luke asked.
    It was indeed. His quarry hesitated at the top of the stairs, drawing the hood of her cape up over her improbably white locks. Alexander reached up and rapped the carriage roof with his cane, signaling the driver to be ready to follow.
    She paused at the foot of the stairs. A menacing figure stepped out from the shadows and confronted her. Before he realized what he was doing, Alexander found himself on the street, the carriage door open beside him. He hesitated, waiting to see what would happen. If she was attacked, then he would have to intervene. But then maybe she would be grateful enough to give him the answers he needed.
    But Mademoiselle Magda wasn’t in need of rescuing. She apparently knew this man well, for she paused and spoke to him. The big man nodded, then fell into step beside her, carrying a lantern in his left hand and idly swinging a cudgel in his right hand. The pair walked past the line of waiting hackneys and continued down the street.
    This was something he hadn’t counted on. London at night was no place for a woman to walk, even with such a fearsome-looking escort. It must mean that her destination was someplace nearby. Alexander turned to find that Luke had come up to stand unobtrusively behind him. “I’m going after them,” he said. “Follow with Dunstable and the carriage in case they decide to hail a hackney.”
    Alexander set off down the street, his leather-soled boots making little noise on the uneven cobblestones. There was no moon tonight, but this fashionable section of London had the advantage of streetlamps, along with late-night revelers which helped disguise his pursuit.
    But after a few blocks his quarry turned into a dark alley. Now the purpose of the lantern was made clear. This placed Alexander at a severe disadvantage, but then again he could hardly conduct a stealthy pursuit while carrying his own lantern. He drew closer, not wanting to lose sight of them. The alley narrowed further, the dim, half-seen shapes of buildings rising above him. There was a foul smell in the air that made him wonder just what was squishing ever so softly beneath his boots.
    His next step landed him in a puddle. It was only a small splash, but it was enough to bring the Gypsy’s head whipping around as she sought to find out what had caused the noise. Alexander froze, confident that he was far enough away that they could not recognize him. The girl finally turned back around and resumed walking, tugging her companion’s sleeve as if to urge him to greater haste.
    Alexander remained where he was for a moment more, until they had reached the end of the alley and turned. Then he sprinted after them, wishing that he had brought Luke with him after all. He could use the help. It had been years since he had used his tracking skills on something other than wild game, and it was clear that they were rusty from disuse. Still, Luke was a smart lad. Once he realized that they were sticking to the narrower streets, he would abandon the carriage and join Alexander.
    Alexander paused at the end of the alley, peering around the crooked brick wall. But his quarry had