An Unlikely Alliance by Patricia Bray Read Free Book Online Page B

alehouse. Too impatient to wait for his arrival, Magda decided to fetch him herself. And now that impatience could cost her her life.
    “I’ve only a farthing in my pocket, but you’re welcome to it.” It was difficult to speak with the knife blade pressing against her throat at every breath.
    “Keep quiet,” he hissed. “I don’t need your brass.”
    Magda’s blood froze at the implications of that statement. She licked lips that had gone dry with fear. “What do you want?”
    At the corner of the alley, the doors of an alehouse opened and a group of rowdy revelers spilled into the night. Her captor gripped her shoulder so tightly she feared it would break, but his caution was for naught, as the drunken men passed by the mouth of the alley without a second glance.
    “The master wants a word with you. Just tell him what he wants to hear and he’ll let you go.”
    He had been sent to find her. Somehow this made the situation more terrifying than a random act of violence. But what did his mysterious employer want with her, a lowly seamstress? Or was it Mademoiselle Magda that they were seeking?
    Her captor moved to stand beside her, grasping her right forearm. Then he slid the knife slowly across her throat until it came to rest just under her ear. The knife point was now a blossoming star of pain, but at least she didn’t have to worry about cutting her own throat should she stumble.
    “Start walking,” he ordered.
    Magda hesitated. Only a fool would believe his promises. Deep inside she knew that if she went with him she would be killed. She had to get away from him now, before it was too late. But how? The prick of the blade at her throat was a constant reminder not to make any careless moves. What she needed was a distraction.
    He tugged her arm and they began to walk toward the Grimes Street end. She would make her move there. The alley was a trap, but once in Grimes Street there were half a dozen ways she could run. All she had to do was pretend to stumble. Surely he would loosen his grip rather than risk killing her. After all, his employer needed her alive to question, didn’t he?
    It was a slim thread to base her hopes on, but it was all she had. Her lungs wanted to gasp for air, but she forced herself to breathe slowly, as if nothing was amiss. She concentrated on counting the steps. Five more. Four more. I can do this, she thought. Three more. What had she ever done to deserve this? Two more. If this failed, her friends would never know what had happened to her. One more. She gathered her courage—
    “What’s going on here?” Matt Sweeney stepped into the alley.
    She had never been so glad to see anyone in her whole life.
    “Keep walking if you want to keep breathing,” her captor growled.
    “Sorry, mate, but I can’t,” Matt replied, hefting his cudgel meaningfully. “That gel you got is mine, in a manner of speaking.”
    Her captor was not impressed. “Well, then I’m sure you’d hate to see me carve up her pretty face. She’ll be no use to you then. Why don’t you run along and find yourself a new toy?”
    A frown creased Matt’s normally placid features as he considered his opponent. Magda’s heart sank. She had known that Matt was no angel when she asked him to be her escort. Lacking the speed to make it as a prizefighter, he’d turned his hands to a dozen trades since then. Not all of them were strictly legal, but Magda knew better than to ask any awkward questions. He’d been willing to work for the shillings she offered, and his size and fierce demeanor should have meant that ruffians steered clear of them.
    Magda stared at him pleadingly, but he would not meet her eyes. “Matt, please, you’ve got to help me,” she begged, her voice cracking.
    “Sorry, gel,” he said. “It’s just not worth it.” He turned around as if to go.
    Magda felt the tension ease out of her captor as his grip on her arm became less fierce. “So much for your hero,” he taunted.
    But even as