by Darcy Burke
She pressed down on him, feeling his thickening shaft between her legs. “I think we’re wearing too many clothes.”
“I think we might break this chair if you try to shag me on it.”
She laughed again, so glad for his humor. “Shall we try to find out?”
He shook his head and stood, carrying her up with him. “I have a better idea.” He took her to the bed and set her on her feet beside it. “Whoever gets undressed first gets to be on top.”
He’d barely finished speaking before she began unbuttoning her cloak. “No fair,” she said. “Your cravat was already untied.”
“Allow me to rectify that.” He reached for her cravat, and untied the knot, then slid it from her neck. Instead of tossing it aside, he looked at it and raised a brow, then laid it on the bed.
She shrugged out of her coat and asked, “Why did you do that?”
He lifted a shoulder. “Might come in handy later. As a blindfold. Or a…restraint.”
Heat flooded her body and gathered in her sex. She began to move faster.
“Would you have a preference?” he asked seductively.
“Whatever you think I might like.” She sounded breathless and eager. “Never mind. I like everything you do to me.”
He leaned forward and drew her earlobe into his mouth, sucking her flesh until she gasped. Raising his mouth, he whispered, “Good thing I have a cravat too.”
The following morning dawned gray but calm; however, the captain refused to leave until their scheduled departure time. Frustrated, Gideon returned to the inn where he and Daphne made sure they were prepared. The heart and cloak were in a bag with a long strap that Gideon could wear diagonally around his torso from shoulder to hip. And of course, he would carry Dyrnwyn on his belt.
Daphne surveyed him. “You almost look like a pirate with that beard.”
He’d tried to shave that morning, but Daphne had asked him to wait until they were finished with their quest. She’d said he looked dashing. He’d countered that she liked the feel of it in certain places. She’d blushed and said yes, provided he was careful.
“I’ll take that as a compliment,” Gideon said. “Let us be on our way.”
“Do you have the blessing Gwyneth gave you?” Daphne asked.
Gideon’s eyes widened. It was the thing she’d gone to fetch before they’d left Brue Cottage. “I can’t believe it, but I forgot about it.” He went to his saddlebag and rummaged around before finding the folded parchment. Turning back to Daphne, he tucked it into his coat. “I’m so glad you remembered.”
She smiled at him. “Now we’re ready.”
They left the inn on foot, and Daphne repeated her hope that Penn would arrive before they departed for Flat Holm. Either way, Argus would join them at the appointed time.
The captain was ready when they arrived at the boat. Jago was a burly man with thick sideburns and a gold tooth. He could have passed for a pirate—or more likely a smuggler—and Gideon wondered if he’d been one at some point during the war with France. He had no plans to ask.
Jago squinted at them. “I thought ye said there were four of ye, maybe five.”
“I said there were three for certain and perhaps as many as five,” Gideon replied.
“Still only two of ye.”
“The third will be along presently.”
“We don’t have time to waste. You can only stay a few hours on the island before we have to return.”
Gideon looked up the street and saw Argus riding toward them. Behind him were…five more horses? As they neared, Gideon recognized Penn and Amelia.
“Is that…Cate and Lord Norris?” Daphne asked.
“I believe it is.” Gideon recognized the earl’s excellent riding form. The man had clearly spent a good portion of his adult life on a horse. Bringing up the rear was Penn’s assistant, Egg.
They arrived at the dock and dismounted. Penn came toward him, and they embraced warmly. “I understand congratulations are in order.” Penn turned to Daphne and bowed. “Welcome to the family, Lady Stratton.”
“I get to hug her first!” Cate rushed forward and wrapped her arms around Daphne. “I’m so glad you married Gideon. I knew we were meant to be friends, but now we can be so much more.” She stood back and beamed.
“I didn’t ask you to stop for reinforcements,” Gideon said to Penn.
Penn grinned. “No, but they were on the way. If you think Cate would have let us live if we’d left her out of this, you don’t know her very well.”
“I know her well enough to acknowledge you have the right of it.” Gideon took Cate’s hand. “My apologies for not summoning you and Norris—we only had a way to contact Oxford.” His gaze flicked to Norris, who likely still despised him, which Gideon wholly deserved.
“By pigeon, I heard,” Cate said. “I’m looking forward to hearing more about that.”
“I can’t wait to tell you all about it,” Daphne said, her eyes alight.
“We are glad to be here,” Norris said. “What you’re doing is quite noble.”
Gideon appreciated the man’s support more than he could say. “Thank you.”
“Are we going to bloody Flat Holm Island or not?” Jago asked, disrupting the reunion.
Gideon turned to the captain. “We’re going. But we need to stable the horses. Give them ten minutes.”
Jago shrugged. “That’s ten minutes of time ye’re losing on the island. And the price is the same.”
“That’s fine,” Gideon said. They arranged for Norris, Egg, and Argus to take the horses to the Drunken Mermaid.
As they boarded the boat, Jago counted them. “That’s five, then.”
“Plus the three who are coming back,” Gideon said.
“That’s more than five. Ye keep acting as if I can’t count. Eight’s a tight fit. The price just went up.”
Gideon thrust a pouch of coin at the man. “This should be more than enough.”
“Aye, it should. Remember, if ye take too long, I’ll leave ye there overnight, and if the weather’s bad tomorrow, ye may be stuck there for a while. One gent was out there for a week. Found some old graves, though.” Jago hadn’t mentioned that part before.
“Do you know where?” Gideon asked.
Jago shrugged. “I think they’re marked now, but I can’t say for sure. It’s not a very big island.”
Gideon exchanged a look with Daphne and with Penn. “Do you think those could be part of Gareth’s burial site?”
“It’s hard to say,” Penn said with a shrug. “I daresay we’ll find out soon.”
“Should we split up when we get there?” Daphne asked. “We could cover more ground, since time is apparently short.”
“If one team finds it, how do we notify the other?” Penn shook his head. “No, I think we have to stay together.
Gideon agreed. Norris, Egg, and Argus returned, and at last they set out across the channel.
The boat was long, with a crew of four oarsmen, including Jago.
“So you have the cloak?” Cate asked with excitement. “Can we see it before you put it in the tomb?”
Gideon suspected they’d all want to see it before he hid it forever. “Yes, I’m happy to demonstrate it for you.” And then he would hide it away forever. “I wonder what the tomb will be like.”
“It could be a mound,” Penn said. “In which case, I suggest we bury these three treasures as deeply as possible within the mound.”
“Or it could just be a burial,” Cate said. “My fear is that we won’t be able to find it.”
They fell silent, perhaps deep in thought as the boat cut through the water. The island came into view, and Gideon could see that it was fairly small. Perhaps it wouldn’t be too difficult to find Gareth after all.
“There are a few places to land,” Jago said. “I’m going to the closest one on the southeast side.”
Gideon’s pulse began to speed up as they neared the island. He rested his hand on the hilt of Dyrnwyn and fel
t the familiar hum.
Jago landed the boat. Penn and Norris disembarked first and helped everyone onto the beach. “Ye’ve got about two and a half hours,” Jago said. “We’ll leave without ye if we must.”
“Understood.” Gideon led the group toward a path that wound up the hillside. The breeze was steady, and the cries of gulls filled the air.
The climb up the path took nearly a quarter hour, and Gideon worried they wouldn’t have enough time to complete their search. Perhaps they should split up.
However, he didn’t have a chance to raise the issue, because the moment he crested the hill, the sound of several pistols cocking jolted him to a stop. Standing before him, flanked by at least a dozen men, was Timothy bloody Foliot.
Chapter 20
Daphne gripped Gideon’s hand and squeezed with everything she had. The wind whipped her skirt and tried to take her hat from her head. She couldn’t believe her father was here. He had to have followed her. Defeat crushed her chest.
“I’m surprised to see you so far from Ashridge Court,” Gideon said, his voice dark.
Lifting a shoulder, Daphne’s father seemed quite relaxed. “Sometimes you have to personally see to things, such as when your daughter misleads you and you have to follow her. Welcome to Flat Holm.” He grinned and spread his arms out as if they were going to have some sort of celebratory reunion. Daphne’s stomach turned.
“How did you find us?” she asked.
Papa pouted at her and took a step forward. “Well, it was no thanks to you, of course. Bardsey Island, indeed. It was clear to me that Gideon had somehow enchanted you—either with the heart or something else.” He slid a distasteful look toward Gideon. “You don’t really love him,” Papa said to her.
Daphne moved closer to her husband. “I do, Papa. I love him more than anything, and it’s not because of the Heart of Llanllwch or anything else aside from the man he is. I love his intellect, his kindness, and his honor.”
Gideon squeezed her hand back, and she clung to the faith that they would find their way out of this mess—all of them.
Papa narrowed his eyes at Gideon. “I’m not convinced. Your husband has proven himself to be a blackguard time and again.”
Daphne lunged toward him, but Gideon held her back. “Just stop with the lies! You’re the blackguard. You had Lord Norris’s brother killed, and you kidnapped a vicar to manipulate Gideon to marry me. You’re despicable.”
Sadness flashed in her father’s eyes, but it was quickly replaced with a dark rage. Daphne knew she was seeing the real man. Had he always been that way, or had he somehow become corrupted while she’d failed to notice?
“We’ll see if you still think so when we’re finished,” Papa said coldly.
“Finished doing what exactly?” Penn asked. He’d come to stand on Daphne’s other side.
Papa turned a bland smile toward Penn. “We finally meet. You’ve been a thorn in my side for quite some time, always reaching an artifact or finding a clue before I can. Until Davis and Vincent took the dagger from you. Quite easily, I might add.” He flicked a glance toward two of his men who’d stepped forward.
Daphne recognized one as the odious Davis, whom she’d spurned. The other was a large, rather ruthless-looking fellow she vaguely recognized from Ashridge Court. His gaze focused on Penn’s wife who had moved to his side. Penn put his arm around her.
“Pleasure to see you again,” Vincent said, leering at Amelia. “I believe we have unfinished business.” Daphne recalled Gideon telling her yesterday that when Penn had found the dagger, Amelia had tried to steal it from him. She’d actually shot at him and Egg. She and Gideon had shared many things yesterday. That felt like a lifetime ago.
“Look at her again, and I’ll pull your entrails through your nose.” Penn’s voice carried a deadly ice that matched the cold fury in his gaze.
Vincent laughed, and Davis joined him. Daphne felt Gideon tense. “You were protective of her then too, but we got the dagger anyway,” Davis said.
“Until we got it back,” Penn taunted.
Scowling, Davis took a step toward Penn.
“Later,” Papa said. “Our primary task must be finding Gareth’s final resting place. We arrived yesterday, though it was blessed difficult with the weather, and thoroughly searched the island. Unfortunately, we haven’t found anything.” He fixed Gideon with an expectant stare. “Now that you’re here, you can direct us where to go.”
“I haven’t the vaguest notion.” Gideon’s response held an edge of triumph as well as defiance.
Papa’s face fell. “That’s exceedingly disappointing. I suppose we’ll have to start digging all over the island. We could be here for days. Maybe even weeks.”
“Our boat is waiting for us,” Daphne said.
“I can easily pay him to leave,” her father said with a careless wave. “He’s quite amenable to money. How do you think I learned you’d hired him to bring you here?”
“Prick,” Gideon breathed. More loudly, he added, “We’re not going to help you.”
“Indeed? I think you can be persuaded.” Papa inclined his head, and Vincent strode forward to grab Amelia from Penn’s side. Penn surged toward the man, but Vincent pointed his pistol at Amelia while Davis directed his weapon between Penn’s eyes. “You may want to ask your brother to stand down,” Papa said to Gideon.
“I’m going to kill you,” Penn said through his teeth. It wasn’t clear if he meant Davis or Vincent or Daphne’s father. Probably all of them.
“With my help.” Norris had stepped forward, his formidable height and form causing at least one of the retainers to move back.
“Finley, take their pistols before they try something foolish,” Davis said.
A lanky fellow with a sharp nose went around and took pistols from all the men. He paused at Argus and looked back toward Davis. “Him too?”
“Argus, come here,” Daphne’s father said. “Have you also turned against me?”
“You charged me with keeping Lady Stratton safe, and that is what I have done.”
Papa cocked his head to the side and exhaled. “For now, yes, him too.” Papa gestured for Argus to retreat. Finley took his weapons—a pistol and a long knife, which he knew to ask for.
“Check the women too,” Vincent said. He grinned at Amelia. “This one at least knows how to shoot.”
“I don’t have a pistol,” she spat.
Vincent laughed. “I don’t believe you. Lift your skirts and show us, or I’ll do it for you.”
“Touch her, and it’s the last thing you’ll use your hand for,” Penn said.
“Just shut up already,” Davis said. “Or I will shoot you.”
“Not in the head, if you don’t mind,” Papa said as Amelia lifted her skirt and pulled forth a small pistol, which she angrily thrust at Vincent. “Penn is wickedly good at finding things,” Papa continued. “My wager’s on him locating this tomb.” He turned his attention to Gideon. “The treasures, please. Starting with the sword.” His gaze dipped to the weapon at Gideon’s waist.
Gideon’s hand had been on the hilt, but in the face of more than a dozen pistols, he apparently hadn’t wanted to draw it. That, and Daphne had been clutching his sword hand.
After giving her hand another squeeze, Gideon took the scabbard from his belt. With reluctance she could feel, he handed the sword to her father. “You’re actually going to touch it?” he asked with sarcastic heat. “You refrained before because touching the treasures would have revealed you aren’t a descendant. We all know that now.”
Papa glared at him. “You know nothing. I am a descendant, regardless of what nonsense you heard and put in my Daphne’s head.”
“Then take the sword from the scabbard. Let’s watch it flame.” Gideon’s lips spread in a feral smile. “I’d be happy to threaten you with mortal danger to provoke its power.”
But her father wouldn’t be goaded. His gaze turned frigid. “I presume the heart and the cloak are in the bag around you
r middle?”
Gideon whisked it over his head and threw it at her father’s feet. “This is temporary. I’ll be taking those back for Gareth shortly.”
Papa winced and handed the sword to the man nearest him. “Carry this. It’s heavy.”
“It will be for everyone but me,” Gideon said. “Only a descendant can easily carry it.”
“He’s right.” This came from Cate. “Let him take it.”
The wind gusted, surprising everyone, and Penn lunged at Davis. Vincent pressed his pistol to Amelia’s temple. “Don’t make me shoot the pretty. That’s not in my plans, and you’ll make me angry if you foil my plans again.”
Penn retreated, but Davis shoved him to the ground. “Stay there.”
Penn lay on his back, his blue eyes spitting fire and the promise of violence. “Vincent, before this day is out, you’re going to be dead.”
Vincent howled with laughter. “Doubtful. You may be, however.”
“Enough,” Papa said. “We must get to work. Penn, make yourself useful, and I’ll see Vincent leaves your wife alone. Though, I’m quite furious with the both of you for costing me Forrest.”
Papa was referring to Amelia’s former husband, whom Gideon had also told her about yesterday. He’d worked for Daphne’s father and had been tasked with taking the Heart of Llanllwch from Amelia and Penn, but he’d died trying.
Gideon had been right about Camelot and about Daphne’s father—they were evil. Her mind scrambled as to how they were going to escape this. She didn’t think her father would hurt her. It seemed he believed she was still under a spell. Could she somehow pretend to break it again? She wasn’t sure he’d believe her a second time, especially since it seemed he hadn’t believed her the first time.
How was it that she’d been able to convince him she loved Gideon when they’d first met at Ashridge Court but not that she hated him? Because her father believed what he wanted to, which was for her to be loyal to him. It was the only way he could reason that out in his mind. He was, she realized, mad.
“Let us walk around the island and assess the landscape,” Penn said, exchanging a look with Gideon.