"Pray continue," Gideon murmured. "This grows more interesting by the moment."

"Yes, well, as I said, I was exploring a new passageway the other morning and—"

"Is that not a rather dangerous pastime, Miss Pomeroy? People have been lost for days in those caves. A few have died in them."

"I assure you, I am very careful. I use a lamp and I mark my route. My father showed me how to explore properly. Now, then, on one of my recent trips I came across a marvelous cavern. As big as a drawing room. And filled with the most promising formations." Harriet narrowed her eyes. "It was also filled with what appears to be ill-gotten loot."

"Loot?"

"Loot, booty, swag. You must know what I mean, sir. Stolen goods."

"Ah. Loot. Yes, of course." Gideon no longer cared if she was a madwoman. The lady was quite the most intriguing female he had encountered in ages. "What sort of loot, Miss Pomeroy?"

She frowned thoughtfully. "Let me see. There were some excellent silver serving pieces. Some very fine gold candlesticks. A bit of jewelry. It all appeared to be of the first quality, my lord. I suspected at once that it did not come from around Upper Biddleton."

"What made you think that?"

"We have one or two houses in the district that boast such excellent pieces, to be sure, but the theft of any items from those homes would have been news. There have been no such reports."

"I see."

"I suspect the items are being brought in at night from elsewhere and stored in the caves until the owners have quite given up on locating them. I was once told that the Bow Street Runners frequently apprehend thieves when the villains try to sell the goods."

"You are well informed."

"Yes, well, it is obvious some particularly clever villains have hit upon the notion of storing stolen goods in my caves until such time as the furor and concern have died down. The items are then no doubt removed and taken to Bath or London to be sold to various pawnshops and jewelers."

"Miss Pomeroy." Gideon was beginning to wonder for the first time if there really was something dangerous going on in the cliff caves. "May I inquire as to why you have not taken this matter up with my steward and the local magistrate?"

"Our local magistrate is quite old now, sir. He could not possibly deal with this situation and, if I may be frank, I do not have a great deal of faith in your new steward, Mr. Crane." Harriet's lips pursed. "I hesitate to say this, my lord, but I feel it is possible he is aware of the ring's activities and is turning a blind eye to them."

Gideon narrowed his eyes. "That is a very serious charge, Miss Pomeroy."

"Yes, I know. But I simply cannot trust the man. I have no notion of what made you hire him in the first place."

"He was the first one to apply for the post when it became open," Gideon said, dismissing the matter. "His references were excellent."

"Yes, well, be that as it may, I still do not care for the man. Now, then, on to facts. I have on at least two occasions witnessed men going into the caves late at night. They carried parcels into the caverns, but when they returned to the beach they were empty-handed."

"Late at night?"

"After midnight, to be precise. Only when the tide is out, of course. The caves are inaccessible when the tide is in."

Gideon considered that news and found it deeply disturbing. The thought of Miss Pomeroy running about unprotected in the middle of the night was a distinctly unpleasant one. Especially if she happened to be correct in her conclusions about what was going on in the caves. The lady was clearly not well supervised.

"What in God's name were you doing down on the beach in the middle of the night, Miss Pomeroy?"

"I was keeping watch, of course. From the window of my bedchamber I can see a portion of the beach. After I discovered the stolen goods in my caves, I began maintaining a regular vigil. When I spotted lights down on the beach one night, I grew suspicious and went out to have a closer look."

Gideon was incredulous. "You actually left the safety of your house late at night for the purposes of following men you suspected to be thieves?"

She gave him an impatient look. "How else was I to learn exactly what was going on?"

"Does your aunt know about this odd behavior of yours?" Gideon asked bluntly.

"Of course not. She would only worry if she found out there were villains about. Aunt Effie tends to fret about things like that."

"She's not alone in her reaction. I can fully comprehend her feelings on the matter."

Harriet ignored that. "In any event, she has enough on her mind right now. I have promised to try to find a way to give my sister, Felicity, a Season, you see, and Aunt Effie is concentrating on that project."

Gideon's brows rose. " You are trying to finance a Season for your sister? By yourself?"

Harriet heaved a small sigh. "Obviously I cannot do so on my own. The small pension my father left does not stretch far. I supplement it from time to time by selling a few of my fossils, but there is simply no way I could afford a Season for Felicity on what I obtain by that method. However, I have a plan."

"Somehow I am not surprised to hear that."

She beamed enthusiastically. "I have hopes that Aunt Adelaide can be persuaded to help out, now that her miser of a husband has conveniently passed on to his reward. He accumulated a fortune, you see, and contrary to his expectations, he was quite unable to take it with him. Aunt Adelaide will soon take control of everything."

"I see. And you are hoping she will finance your sister's Season?"

Harriet chuckled, obviously pleased with her scheme. "If we can get Felicity to London, I feel certain we can get her married off. My sister is not at all like me. She is actually quite stunning. The men will fall at her feet in droves with offers. But in order to bring that off, I must get her to London. The Marriage Mart, you know."

"I know."

"Yes, indeed." Harriet's expression turned shrewd. "We must dangle Felicity like a ripe plum in front of the Beau Monde and hope that some obliging gentleman will pluck her from the tree."

Gideon set his teeth, remembering all too well his own brief experience of the London Season several years earlier. "I am well aware of how the system works, Miss Pomeroy."

Harriet turned pink. "Yes, I imagine you are, my lord. Well, then, back to this matter of cleaning out my caves."

"Tell me, Miss Pomeroy, have you discussed your findings with anyone else?"

"No. Once I realized that I could not trust Mr. Crane, I was afraid to mention my observations to anyone else. I was concerned that anyone I took into my confidence might, in all innocence, feel obliged to go straight to Crane. If that were to happen, the evidence could be made to disappear. In addition, to be quite honest, I do not particularly want anyone else in that cavern."

"Hmm." Gideon studied her in silence for a long moment as he contemplated what she had just told him. There was no denying Harriet Pomeroy was serious. He could no longer dismiss her as a madwoman or an amusing eccentric. "You are convinced you have seen stolen goods in that cave, are you not?"

"Absolutely positive." Harriet lifted her chin. "Sir, it is very important to me that you act at once to clear those villains out of there. I must insist you deal with the matter as quickly as possible. It is your responsibility to do so."

Gideon allowed his voice to become very gentle. Those who knew him well generally ran for cover when he used this particular tone. "You insist, Miss Pomeroy?"

"I fear I really must." Harriet appeared totally oblivious to the soft menace in his words. "Those villains are in my way, you see."

Gideon wondered if he was losing the thread of the conversation again. "Your way? I do not understand."

She gave him an impatient look. "They are in the way of my explorations, sir. I am most anxious to search that cave for fossils, but I have hesitated to do so until the thieves have been gotten rid of. There is a possibility that if I start work in there now with my mallet and chisel, the villains will notice someone has been in the cavern."

"Good God." Gideon forgot his annoyance over her attempt to order him into action. Her impetuosity was of much graver concern. "If only half of what you are telling me is true, you are not to even think of going anywhere near that cave again, Miss Pomeroy."

"Oh, it is quite safe to go there during the day. The thieves frequent the place only at night. Now, then, about our plans to capture this ring of criminals. I have a scheme you may be interested in hearing. You probably have some ideas of your own, of course. It will be best if we work together on this."

"Miss Pomeroy, apparently you did not hear me." Gideon got to his feet and took one stride forward so that he was towering over the desk.

He braced both hands on the mahogany surface and leaned over it in what he was well aware was a thoroughly intimidating fashion. Harriet was forced to gaze straight up into his savagely scarred face. Her eyes widened in surprise at his unexpected tactics, but she did not appear unduly alarmed.

"I heard you, my lord." She started to draw back.

Gideon halted the small attempt at retreat by reaching out to catch Harriet's chin on the edge of his hand. He realized with a rush of sudden pleasure that her skin was very smooth and incredibly soft. He also realized just how very delicate she was. The fine bones of her jaw felt fragile in his massive hand.