Dropping the makeshift rope with relief, she moved to the window to lean out and watch silently as Bet hurried away up the alley. She then quickly dragged the rope back into the room and closed the window.

Lisa gathered up the rope as she moved back across the room. She untied it from the foot of the bed and then glanced around uncertainly before just stuffing it under the comforter. She started to straighten, but then had a thought and quickly bent to spread the thick, knobby rope about, fluffing the comforter around it as she did. Once satisfied with her effort to make it look like Bet was still asleep in the bed, she then began to pace, counting off in her head how far along Bet might be in her efforts to get to the Langley townhouse and Robert.

The problem was she didn’t know how long it would take. She hadn’t even thought to look around for her reticule to give Bet money to hire a hack, but didn’t see it now anyway. The girl would be on foot. Would she have the sense to hire a hack with the promise of payment on arrival at Robert’s? Or would she try to get there on foot? Dear God, if the girl didn’t hire a hack . . . well, Robert might not get here in time, Lisa realized with dismay and turned to move back to the window, debating the merits of tying the rope to the bed again and climbing out herself.

Perhaps if she moved the bed up against the window . . . But that might make a lot of racket and bring people to investigate. She could always just tie the rope around her waist, hold on near the top and slide out the window. That way if the bed scraped across the floor it would only lower her halfway down the wall and then she could climb down the rest of the way. Surely she’d be on the ground and free before anyone was drawn by the racket the moving bed would make? She—

Lisa paused, her gaze shooting to the door as she heard approaching footsteps. For one moment, she froze, but when she heard a key rattle in the lock, she moved toward the door, hoping to block the view of the bed with her own body. Lisa had nearly reached the door when it opened, but paused a few steps away when Mrs. Morgan appeared in the opening.

“Oh, good, you’re awake. It’s time.”

Alarm clutched Lisa at that greeting, and her mouth was dry as she squeaked, “Time for what?”

Mrs. Morgan merely tilted her head to glance around her toward the bed. “Bet’s still sleeping I see.”

“Aye,” Lisa murmured, struggling not to move to the side to block her view.