He scanned the people around him. Ah, the thin gentleman with the unhappy expression. “Mrs. Brown, what if you and Miss Douglas accompany this gentleman, Lord Denshire’s friend, as he searches? You because it’s your house, Miss Douglas because if her son is hiding under a carpet or in a closet, she’d like to know about it, and Denshire’s friend to ensure that the search is thorough?”

Denshire frowned, looking as if he wanted to tear the house up himself, but said grudgingly, “I guess I can trust Hollowell to do the job properly.”

Mrs. Brown didn’t look pleased, but she probably had the same concerns about Denshire’s behavior that Lucas did. “Very well,” she said reluctantly.

Kendra gave Lucas a grateful glance. “That seems a fair solution.”

“Good,” Lucas said. “Mr. Brown and I will wait outside. You can do the same if you wish, Lord Denshire, but there’s a tavern around the corner that might be a more pleasant place to wait.”

Resigned to his fate, Hollowell said, “That’s reasonable, Denshire. I’ll come find you when the search is finished. I’ll bring Christopher if we find him in the house.” He sounded as if he didn’t expect that to happen.

Denshire nodded and signaled for his ruffian to follow him down the street and around the corner. When they were gone and the women had gone into the house with Hollowell, Brown said in a low voice, “They won’t find the boy in there, will they?”

The Browns might have guessed that Christopher had been there once. “No,” Lucas said. “I’m hoping Denshire trusts his friend enough to believe the truth. Without the search, he might keep threatening you.”

“He seems the sort,” Brown agreed. He settled down on the steps of the house, then pulled out a pipe and lit it.

Lucas did the same, minus the pipe and sitting upwind of the smoke. “If Denshire tried breaking in some night, you have all those weapons decorating the drawing room.”

Brown gave a baritone chuckle. “Tempting that would be, but killing a lord would cause trouble, no matter how much he deserved it.”

They sat in companionable silence for an hour or so until Mr. Hollowell came out of the house. “We searched every nook, cranny, wardrobe, and under the beds as well. No hidden children.”

“Told you.” Brown got to his feet. “My bet is the women are making tea and complaining about the nuisance.” He extinguished his pipe and went inside.

Lucas stood and quietly said to Hollowell, “You know that Denshire has advanced syphilis?”

Hollowell sighed. “Yes, but he refuses to admit it. He’s been getting more and more erratic. I try to divert his more difficult behavior.”

Curious, Lucas said, “You’re old friends?”

Hollowell nodded. “We went to school together. He appointed himself my protector and drove off the bullies. I owe him a great deal.”