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CHAPTER ONE

THE NIGHT WAS FRANKLY h the rain that had drenched the Kent countryside over the past two days had at last drizzled to a halt, the air was still thick with es and estates

A ht to be certain At least for decent folk

It was a perfect night for thieves, scoundrels and dastards

Too perfect, Josiah Wie and painfully tossed aside his brilliant criistrate would be on the alert The e Such easy pickings were far too great a tehwayman

Especially for the notorious Knave of Knightsbridge

With a grimace Josiah crossed the s fire Only then did he glance toward his shoulder, which was still seeping blood Dah to know that it was a dead man who underestimated his enemy

The previousfool as quite willing to turn a blind eye if the price was right, but this new man, Tom Harper, was cut from an entirely different cloth

In less than a month he had proved to be iht threats Nothing could sway his sense of duty or deter’s law

Even worse, the blighter possessed an uncanny knack for thinking precisely like a criminal

Any other istrate would look at the disands would be cozily drinking ale at the local inn, or war whore But not Harper He had taken stock of the rutted roads and thick fog and known instinctively that the Knave would be out hunting

Blast his interfering soul

Unwittingly a small smile flickered over Josiah’s weathered features Despite the burning pain in his shoulder, and the undeniable realization he was in a precarious position, he could not deny a istrate