Brant really did not want her anywhere near the place but she had made sense in all her arguments against leaving her safely tucked away at the Warren. He could not use the boys and he had no one he could call on to go to the House as if he was a customer.
“We will go tomorrow night. That will give me and the boys a bit more time to thoroughly search the area and the outside of the House. We need to fully know the lay of the land before we creep up to do our spying. Easy routes of escape are most important.”
“Fair enough. I will make a few plans myself.” As Brant left with Thomas he wondered just what plans she believed she needed to make. Somehow he knew that she would surprise him.
“Do you like the gent?” asked Abel as Olympia led the boys up to the rooms they would use.
“I do,” she replied. “Why do you ask?”
“He has a bad reputation, y’know. I have heard some bad things about him.”
“Ah, yes. I fear most of those bad things are from rumors spread by his mother.”
“His mam said such things about him? And you are certain they are not true?”
“Very certain. The woman did what she had to to make very sure that the earl would be accepted nowhere, thus he would be hard-pressed to find the proof he needs concerning her many crimes.”
“That is the woman who has taken the boys, aye?” asked Giles as he skipped past Olympia and entered the bedchamber he shared with David whenever the boys stayed the night at the Warren.
“Aye, it is. I believe she has been doing such things for a long time.”
“So why has he not stopped her?”
“She is his mother.”
All four boys nodded solemnly and she had to fight the urge to hug them all. They were still wary of too much affection. Olympia especially wanted to hug young Giles. She was certain he was related to her in some way. The mark of the Wherlocke clan was strong in his young face. Unfortunately, he had no idea who his parents were, having been tossed away by his mother while still a babe and raised mostly by Abel. He was also too young to reveal what gift he may have gotten from his Wherlocke blood, something that could have helped in discovering which of the many rogues in her family his father was.
“Get some rest, lads. I feel the earl will be keeping you very busy on the morrow.”
The three younger boys quickly ducked into the two bedchambers, set side by side and connected by a door she could hear them open the moment they got inside the room. Abel remained by her side, studying her in a way that made her uneasy. He was far older in spirit than his twelve years and she was saddened by that. He had never had a childhood.
“Where are Artemis and Stefan?” Abel asked.
“Out trying to find out things just as you were,” she replied and gave in to the urge to smooth down a few wayward curls in his thick, bright hair. The way he hunched his shoulders yet did not back away from the touch both amused her and made her happy. “They will return soon and will be sleeping in the room across the hall from this one.”
“Good. I could help you if there was trouble but they are men and that would be better.”
He left her then and softly closed the door behind him. Shaking her head, Olympia went to her own bedchamber knowing her nephews would let her know when they returned no matter how late that was. She was just slipping on her robe and thinking about reading for a while when a soft rap came at her door.
“Ah, good, I was just starting to worry,” she said as she let her nephews into the room. “Discover anything of worth?”
“I think young Merry’s sister may have been sent away,” said Artemis as he sprawled in a chair by her fireplace.
“I feared that might be so,” she said and sighed as she sat down on the edge of her bed. “That means she is lost to us.”
“Maybe. Maybe not,” said Stefan as he moved to sit on the arm of the chair his brother sat in. “We know the name of the ship she was probably sent out on and it was headed up the coast to Scotland first and then out to one of those plantation colonies. It might be possible to catch her in Scotland if we can get word to someone there in time.”
“Talk to Pawl. He will know if there is anyone and if there is a chance to reach the person in time. I fear it would take me awhile to think through all of our kinsmen and where they may or may not be at this time of the year. Pawl has the sort of keen memory that keeps all that sort of information right at his fingertips.”
“Will do.” Artemis stood up and started for the door, pausing to kiss her on the cheek, Stefan doing the same, but Artemis paused in the doorway to look back at her.
“Something troubling you?” she asked.
“The earl,” he replied.
Olympia sighed. “I am a widow of six and twenty years, Artemis.”