The compartment he was in was a shambles, seats at an angle, door hanging ajar. He almost put his foot through a hole in the flooring, and then felt the car shift very slightly. Rutledge paused, then gingerly swung himself around the splintered door into the passage beyond. But there was no access that way. He came back again and tried to shift the splintered door. At first it wouldn’t budge, then it gave way with a groan, nearly pitching him forward onto feet and a pale rose skirt. He caught himself in time, waited a moment for the carriage to settle again, and then crept through the opening he’d made.

From the far side, he was able to slide the door out of the way, then turn to the injured passenger.

It was a young woman, her trim ankles almost touching the toe of his left boot.

She lay on her side, her face hidden by a valise that had fallen next to her, and all he could see was a shoulder and dark hair. A crumpled hat lay beyond the crown of her head.

There was just room to kneel beside her. Rutledge said, “Miss? Can you hear me?”

He wasn’t sure what it was that warned him. But just as she moved her head, crying out a little with the effort, he recognized her.

It was Meredith Channing.

She was dazed, her eyes not focusing right away, but then she saw him, and there was an intake of breath as her gaze sharpened.

“Ian? Were you on the train as well? Are you all right?”

“I came as soon as I heard—I was in London.”

“But how did you know I was on board?” “I didn’t. I came to look for my godfather.”

She tried to smile. “Is he all right?”

“I haven’t found him yet,” he said, making an effort to keep the worry out of his voice. “How badly are you hurt?” He was afraid to touch her. But she had trained as a nurse and he waited for her assessment.

“I don’t know. My shoulder—I think it must be broken. Or dislocated.”

He could see blood on her stockings, and one shoe was missing. And there was a smear of blood across her cheek.

The carriage swayed again.

“I must get you out of here. It’s not safe.”

“No, please, it hurts too much to move.”

Glancing beyond her, he could just see a man’s legs. He got to his feet and leaned forward for a better look.

The man was dead, there was no doubt of it, and suddenly he wondered if the two of them had been traveling together.