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was determined.”
    Uncle Frank’s eyes narrowed as he glared at her. Then, with a snap of his wrist, he gestured his daughter away. Rose took the chance and fled immediately, which left Maddy, Uncle Frank, and once again their three servants in the hallway.
    “They’re not violent, Uncle Frank,” Maddy urged with a glance at the servants. “You’ll see after they’re rested. He’s the earl’s cousin, and the younger one is ill.” Her uncle moved into the salon, his set face showing his every intention to barge in on the men without so much as a knock.
    “Uncle!” she cried, rushing to get in front of him. “I think it best if we let them rest. Even the older one has hurt his leg. Can barely walk. And the younger is just a boy.”
    Uncle Frank shot her an irritated look. “Doing it a bit too brown, don’t you think?” he drawled. “Didn’t they break five of the earl’s ribs?”
    As many as that? Maddy wondered. “I’m sure it was an exaggeration,” she said.
    “And who’s to pay for their food?”
    “They have money. Mr. Frazier has already offered to pay.” She didn’t add that it would be some time before he could get English coins.
    “Humph. My home is not a hostelry for every wayward—”
    “I know, Uncle. Perhaps we could discuss this somewhere else. Let them rest. Truly, I think everything will be fine once they get their bearings.”
    Uncle Frank peered once again at the closed door, but then reluctantly nodded. He was not a man to give in easily, but she was the daughter of a surgeon. He often deferred to her medical knowledge. So they stepped away from the bedroom door, but not even as far as the hallway. Instead, her uncle plopped himself down on the couch in the salon.
    “Uncle?”
    “I’ll not leave them without a guard. Not until I know it’s safe.”
    “I assure you—”
    “They attacked an earl. I’ll not be murdered in my bed by savages back from Africa.”
    She swallowed, seeing that he had decided. So she nodded demurely and took the seat opposite her uncle. She could tell he wanted to talk, and as her uncle’s talks could go on quite some time, she found the most comfortable seat she could. But rather than have him start on a lecture, she tried to distract him.
    “How did you hear about him?”
    “Was all over the club. Kit Frazier, back from the dead and insane. Attacked the earl like a savage—”
    “No—”
    “Had some mongrel boy with him. Had to be held back by seven men—”
    “That’s not—”
    “And then he up and goes home with my daughter. Some say abducted.”
    “Ridiculous!”
    Uncle Frank folded his arms across his chest. “Really? They’re here, aren’t they?”
    Maddy huffed in disgust. “They can hardly abduct anyone to their own home, now can they? And the boy simply became confused. And then he collapsed.”
    “On top of you.”
    She blinked. The way he said those four words made it sound like she’d been ravished on the earl’s floor. “No,” she stated firmly. “Mr. Frazier had him.”
    “Hmmm,” he returned, his expression unreadable.
    “Uncle, I can tell you exactly what happened . . .” she began, but he shook his head.
    “Not just now, Madeline. I have something else I wish to discuss with you.”
    She frowned. Her mind scrambled to figure out what he could possibly want. The accounts were up to date, and she had even managed to economize a bit. The servants were generally up to snuff, not like when she’s first arrived. She’d even managed to moderate some of Rose’s wilder ideas.
    “You’ve been with us three years now, haven’t you? And I know you regard Rose as something of a sister, but really, you’re more like a mother to her, don’t you think?”
    Maddy nodded, not sure whether he wanted her to voice her agreement or not. Apparently not, because he stroked his cheek and rumbled on.
    “What do you think of her chances this Season? Think she’ll catch a husband?”
    Perhaps, Maddy thought, if the man is