The Lady of Bolton Hill

Chapter 18





It was a full thirty-six hours before a credible lead emerged, and in that time Daniel had not known a moment of rest. He remained stationed in his office, keeping a central command post where anyone could bring information.

Exhaustion poured from him in waves, but each time he felt himself slipping, memories of Clara blazed to the surface, searing him with anxiety and forcing him to keep turning over leads in a desperate attempt to find her. Was there ever a more delicate, dainty woman than Clara? She was afraid of everything from horses to speaking in public and everything in between, and yet for years she had been facing down those fears to do what she believed was right. What she believed God wanted of her. Now she was suffering for Daniel’s sins. He didn’t know who had taken her, but Daniel was certain it was his fault.

The memory of Clara’s face illuminated by the light of the fire that had destroyed his home haunted him. He had all but accused her of inciting the fire, even as she had vowed she would never give up on him.

And by all that was holy, he would never turn his back on her again, either. As the sun darkened on the day Daniel had made his impassioned plea in the Camden stockyard, his hope for a quick solution to Clara’s disappearance dwindled. A handful of people had come forward with flimsy tips. All of them were being investigated by men Daniel had hired, but it was apparent the people who had given them the leads were more interested in the financial reward and had nothing of substance to offer.

He clasped his hands together and prayed. Please, God, he thought. Please keep Clara safe. I’ve never been able to pray to you before, because I don’t even know if you exist . . . but Clara believes, and that’s good enough for me.

He had a mild feeling of guilt, knowing that he had only turned toward God when he was out of options and his back was to the wall. But it was for Clara—he asked nothing for himself, only that a woman of Clara’s startling goodness should not be punished.

The next day passed in the same endless torment. Lead after lead filtered in, and each time a man walked through the door, Daniel’s heart surged in his chest, hoping that this time the lead would prove solid. It wasn’t until the sun was low in the sky on the third day of Clara’s disappearance that the first credible lead came in the form of a nervous Eddie Maguire.

It seemed odd to see a man of Maguire’s size and reputation appear to be intimidated, but the sheen of perspiration on the man’s skin as he twisted a rumpled bandanna in his hands made his anxiety evident.

“This is an anonymous tip; is that clear?” Eddie stated as he sat in a chair opposite Daniel’s desk. Clyde came around the room to scrutinize Eddie as the grim-faced leader of the cannery union   cleared his throat several times before proceeding.

“I’m bringing this news from one of my men,” he said. “He is sick to his guts over being pinned as the man who squealed. He doesn’t want any reward for this, because he is afraid it might give him away. All he wants is to help the lady, since she seems like someone who doesn’t deserve to be mixed up in whatever foul deed Bane has up his sleeve.”

Daniel pierced Eddie with an intense gray stare. “Who is Bane?” he asked quietly.

Eddie shifted in his chair. “I’m not really sure. Nobody I know has ever seen him, but he runs a tight operation, and anyone who crosses him doesn’t live long enough to brag about it. I heard that he comes from somewhere out west . . . California maybe. He controls the opium shipments in and out of New England.” Eddie swiped his brow with the bandanna and Daniel could detect a tremor in his hand.

“Go on,” he prompted.

“Anyway . . . this man I know said he heard that Bane is using a warehouse down near the Locust Point harbor. He heard they were stocking it with supplies because they were going to be keeping a couple of hostages there for a while.”

Daniel leaned forward. “Which warehouse?”

“I don’t know.”

“There must be hundreds of warehouses down near that end of the harbor,” Clyde ground out in frustration. “Tell me the name of this guy and I’ll pin it down more.”

“You just don’t get it, do you?” Maguire broke out. “This man has a family. He took enough of a risk to tell me what he knew, and I’m not going to roll over on him so Bane’s jackals can peel the flesh from his body.” Eddie Maguire stood up to his full height and glared at Daniel.

“I only came here for the lady, not for you. For today, I hope you get her back, but tomorrow you and I are at war again. I want you to forget who told this to you. And if you are going to take on Bane, you’d better have an army when you do it.”