Page 69 of Cousin Conundrum

She shrugged. “No more or less than I am now.”

His green eyes narrowed.

Could he sense what she’d left unsaid? To preempt him, Kitty demanded, “And what of the second?”

“The second?”

“You said, as to the first, you are a Runner, and as to the second…” She trailed off, waiting.

“As to the second, any information about the Archers is too dangerous to share.”

“Too dangerous?” How very interesting.

“Yes. I am afraid that even though you have me half convinced that women should be permitted a vocation if they so choose, I draw the line at endangering you.”

“Is that so?”

He nodded.

“I am afraid I will simply discover why they are of interest on my own, then. I will call on them, or bribe one of the servants.” All were the Longs’ staff, and all were known to Kitty. “Or I could sneak in when the Archers are out and rifle through their possessions.” She could think of at least one of the maids who would let her in for the sake of mischief and a half-penny.

What looked like true alarm sparked in Mr. Fletcher’s eyes. “You must never go to their dwelling alone.”

“Are they that dangerous, then?” How dangerous could a bevy of unwedded misses be? It wasn’t as if Kitty were an eligible gentleman.

“If they are who Mr. Hurst and I suspect, they are that dangerous, yes.”

Kitty didn’t trouble to ask who they suspected, as he obviously did not mean to tell her. Instead, she asked, “How can you not know if they are who you suspect?”

“We previously met only two of them, and only once, and they were in disguise.”

“And their disguises were that good?”

“Yes.” He grimaced. “And we thought we were looking for something, someone, else, and only saw what we were meant to see. But I am confident that if I saw either of the two again, I would recognize them. Mr. Hurst believes he already has.”

They must have been good disguises indeed if Mr. Hurst was so unsure, he’d called in Mr. Fletcher to corroborate. “Then you simply need to see them.”

“If they see me, they will know they are caught. Mr. Hurst is here because he is related to Mr. Bingley, and his presence does not seem to have scared them off. That means either they are not who we fear, or they do not deem him a threat. Based on what you overheard, I believe the latter. But if I join him, and they are who we fear, I doubt any excuse would keep them from fleeing. Then we would lose them again.”

Again? So, he and Mr. Hurst had nearly captured whomever they sought at least once before. She frowned. “You do realize you must act quickly? We do not normally have so many new people about. Word of your presence here will become local gossip soon enough. The Archers do not seem to pay that much heed, but eventually your name will reach them.”

He winced. “I had not thought of that. I am accustomed to life in London.”

“How closely do you need to examine them?” Kitty’s mind churned. “We could ask Mr. Bingley to invite them for dinner and you could lurk about on the upper floor and watch them as they disembark from their carriage.”

“We could do that, and we may need to, but I would prefer a closer look, and to observe them as they move and speak. The disguises they employed were quite good and I need to be certain before acting.”

Kitty considered that. “What about the other Bow Street Runners? If you call in more men before you confront them, then, if they are who you believe, they will have no opportunity to run.”

He was already shaking his head before she finished speaking. “I am afraid we made quite a mess of apprehending them last time. I was put on leave for two weeks, and Mr. Hurst was sent away indefinitely. If we call in more men, and we turn out to be wrong…” He trailed off with a grimace. “Did I mention that I enjoy my employment and would like to continue being a Runner?”

Kitty looked him up and down, wondering if he realized he’d just told her that Mr. Hurst had some sort of position to be sent away from. “If they used disguises to fool you, perhaps we should use one on them?”

“Meaning what? I believe they would see through servants’ livery. They seem to be rather keen.”

“We could dress you as a maid,” she said, mostly to tease him.

Rather than the horrified expression she expected, Mr. Fletcher appeared thoughtful. “Do you believe that could work?”