‘Stay.’ She spoke firmly and pointed to a spot immediately outside the front door. Boris whimpered in protest, but obediently went down on his belly. ‘Good boy. Don’t worry. You will get your chance if I have any say in the matter.’
Athena took a deep breath and walked straight in, careful to leave the door ajar so Boris could respond when she summoned him. She pushed the door to the drawing room open and was confronted by the sight of the twins, gagged and tied to wooden chairs, but otherwise seemingly unharmed. Their eyes widened with a combination of alarm and relief when they saw Athena. Blake’s valet was standing directly behind them, looking impassive, and very large. Blake himself stood in front of the fireplace, an impossibly smug smile gracing his vile features.
‘Ah, there you are, Athena,’ he said. ‘How nice of you to join us.’
Chapter Seventeen
Eli strode into his study. Jessop and a man whose attire bore the dust and grime of travel awaited him there.
‘Close the door and stay with us, Salter.’ Eli pulled off his mask and sat behind his desk. When he looked more closely at the man with Jessop, he noticed both his eyes were blackened, and he had a deep cut on the side of his chin. He stood awkwardly as though further damage had been inflicted upon his body. ‘Good heavens, whatever happened to you?’
‘This is Manning, your grace,’ Jessop replied before the man could speak. ‘He is the person I sent to Nottingham on your behalf.’
‘I didn’t send him to go brawling. Sit down both of you. Manning looks as though he’s about to fall down. First compose yourself, and then tell me what you have discovered for me.’
‘I know the identity of the lady you sent me to make enquires about, your grace,’ Manning said without preamble.
‘Good man.’ Eli looked at him expectantly. ‘Well, don’t keep it to yourself.’
‘Have you ever heard of Cunningham lace?’
Eli shook his head. ‘Can’t say as I have.’
‘It’s handmade lace. Very fine handmade lace, produced as a cottage industry in Nottingham. It was started by Miss Athena’s grandmother.’
‘Athena is actually Miss Cunningham?’
‘No, she’s a Moncrieff. Her father was Lord Moncrieff’s youngest son.’
‘Moncrieff?’ This was starting to make sense. Athena’s ladylike qualities, her education, everything. ‘The Marquess of Worcester. That Moncrieff?’
‘Yes, your grace. He fell for Miss Cunningham, and married her against his father’s wishes. The father cut all relations with him, and the oldest brother didn’t want to know him, either. His wife’s lace saved them from ruin. Mrs Moncrieff made the patterns and employed the workers, who made the lace in their own homes. Moncrieff found markets for it. It was, and still would be, much sought after. Mrs Moncrieff taught her daughters to follow in her footsteps, and Miss Athena took over responsibility for production when her mother became unwell two years ago.’
‘Is she still alive?’
‘No, your grace. She fell victim to consumption, but survived longer than people expected her to. The mother was knowledgeable about herbal remedies, another skill she passed down to her eldest daughter. Those remedies eased her suffering and prolonged her life. She died a little more than a year ago. The father, by all accounts, was bereft, lost the will to carry on, and Miss Athena had to look after him as well as keeping the coffers full. Anyway, six months after the mother died, the father was also found dead, murdered—’
‘Murdered?’ Eli sat up and scowled. ‘Are you sure?’
‘Quite sure. It created a scandal locally. Mr Moncrieff was found in a derelict part of town and no one could understand what business would have taken him there. His throat was cut, and he was robbed of all his valuables, but the culprits were never caught.’
Eli leaned his chin in his hand as he listened, feeling great sympathy for Athena and her sisters. ‘Why didn’t Athena…Miss Moncrieff, carry on making Cunningham lace? It sounds as though there was a good living to be had from it.’
‘So there was, your grace. It was the father’s will that caused the problem. He still kept in touch with his middle brother. Joseph Moncrieff has a small estate just outside of Nottingham, where the estranged family were welcomed on a regular basis.’
Hmm, this Joseph Moncrieff presumably traded on his connection to the Moncrieff marquisate to assure his place in local society. It would account for Athena’s high standard of education, social mores, and so much else about her character besides. His mother had remarked upon her poise and self-assurance after Athena had taken luncheon with her and Susan. Even ladies accustomed to the ways of society were generally struck dumb in the duchess’s presence. A ghost of a smile flirted with Eli’s lips. His Athena had, apparently, been an exception to the rule. It hadn’t particularly surprised Eli at the time. Now he better understood why.
‘The uncle became the girls’ guardian under the terms of the will, I take it.’
‘Exactly so.’
‘But Miss Moncrieff was of age by then,’ Eli said sharply. ‘He could wield no influence over her.’
‘Yes, your grace, but her twin sisters were not.’
‘Ah, I see, and the uncle could keep them apart, if he so chose.’ Eli was filled with a blinding range at the thought of it. He knew how close Athena was to her sisters, which was hardly surprising since they only had each other now. It also made sense of Athena’s comment about Eli not being above the law. She was in hiding because she was protecting her sisters from their guardian. But why? ‘What purpose would it serve to separate them?’ he asked aloud.
‘Everyone I spoke to agreed there was profit in Cunningham lace, but the uncle didn’t agree. He felt improper control was wielded over the workers because they were scattered all over the district, and were trusted with the materials given to them, no proper accounts being kept of them. He fixed on the idea of the new lacemaking machinery, convinced it would eclipse the far more time-consuming handmade version. Apparently, he had tried to convince his brother to go down that route when he was still alive, but Miss Moncrieff’s father would have none of it. Anyway, the uncle stopped paying the outworkers and laid out a large sum of money on machinery.’
‘The fool!’
‘Quite so, your grace. He and Miss Moncrieff argued quite violently about his methods, apparently. The uncle seemed to think they could replicate the unique Cunningham lace by machine. It has a large ‘C’ worked into each piece,’ Manning added in response to Eli’s quizzical look. ‘Miss Moncrieff argued that no one would be fooled, which proved to be the case.’
‘So, let me guess, Moncrieff found himself in dun territory.’
‘Indeed. And in the meantime, Miss Moncrieff and her sisters defiantly continued to produce handmade lace, although they couldn’t pay any of the ladies who had previously worked for them, and so new supplies of the lace gradually dwindled.’
‘And became more sought-after in the process, I shouldn’t wonder.’
‘Most likely so, your grace. But Miss Moncrieff was very distressed about the ladies, whom she looked upon as friends, no longer being in a position to earn the money they relied upon to feed their families.’
Eli could see the hypocrisy. Athena had been running the business with her father as a figurehead, and no one thought anything of it. But with her father gone and her uncle unwilling to put his support behind the hand-made lace, as a single woman, she couldn’t continue alone.
‘Her uncle became very unpopular in Nottingham when he was unmoved by the women’s plight.’
‘Good!’
‘Unfortunately for him, he hadn’t done proper research into machine lace. He was late into a market that was already overcrowded. When the machine-made Cunningham lace failed to take, he couldn’t find buyers for his products. Still, he had to pay for his machines, so he needed a partner.’
Eli didn’t like the sound of that. ‘Did he find one, Manning?’
‘Yes, your grace, but the man was only
prepared to invest under certain conditions.’
‘Which were?’
‘Miss Moncrieff’s hand in marriage.’
Eli half rose from his chair. ‘The devil he did!’
‘Miss Moncrieff adamantly refused. She hated the man and all he stood for. Apparently, he had an appalling reputation locally and, even though he was rich and well-connected, she wanted nothing to do with him. Her uncle, desperate for the man’s patronage, tried everything to persuade her, by all accounts. Threats, bribery, guilt.’ Eli snorted. ‘None of it worked, so he separated her from the twins, telling her she would never see them again unless she remembered the duty she owed to her uncle and did as she was told. They somehow escaped and have been on the run ever since.’
‘You’ve done well, Manning,’ Eli said, understanding Athena so much better now. ‘How did you come by all the bruises?’
He winced, presumably at the memory. ‘I must have asked one too many questions, your grace. Certain people asked me, very forcibly, why I was asking them and who had sent me. I did not reveal your grace’s name.’
‘Thank you, Manning. You will be rewarded for your loyalty. Presumably your attackers worked for Miss Moncrieff’s admirer.’
‘No, your grace, for the uncle. I heard his name and the name of his estate mentioned when they thought I was insensible.’
‘My God, he must be desperate.’
‘He stands to lose everything and blames Miss Moncrieff for his misfortunes.’
‘Does he indeed?’ Eli would be having a not-so-friendly discussion with Joseph Moncrieff in the very near future, he decided, grinding his jaw. ‘But you haven’t yet told me the name of the blaggard who was so insistent upon Miss Moncrieff’s hand.’
‘Oh, I beg your pardon, your grace. It was a Mr Blake.’
‘Blake!’
Perdition, now it all made sense! Blake had been beside Baintree at the harvest dance when Athena had gone so pale. Eli had always known there was something off about the man. He jumped from his chair. Athena would be safe at this moment with Harry, but he had foolishly invited her to the house at the same time her worst enemy was in residence. Why the devil had she come? Why take the risk of showing herself, even if she was masked? Oh, Athena, you little fool, don’t you realise how recognisable you are? No one who knows you could doubt your identity. And where was Blake now? Eli wanted the satisfaction of planting him a facer. Well, several actually.
The door burst open and Harry stood there, wheezing, deathly pale.
‘What the devil’s happened?’ Eli asked, jumping out of his chair.
‘It’s Athena,’ he gasped. ‘She’s gone.’
Athena looked at her sisters, checking for signs of physical injury. If he had harmed so much as a hair on either of their heads, Athena would make him pay dearly. He would pay anyway. It was all a matter of degree.
‘I think I preferred you in the blue ball gown.’ Blake ran his gaze down the length of her body in an insolently speculative manner and smacked his lips together. ‘But those breeches have a certain allure, too. They cling rather enticingly to certain parts of your person. I hope you don’t make a habit of going out dressed in such a fashion. Not that I will permit it in future. I don’t want others seeing what’s mine.’
‘Kidnapping children,’ Athena replied indolently. ‘That’s a low blow, even by your own standards. I really had no idea you were quite that desperate.’
‘Ah, but they are no longer children.’ Blake’s gaze rested upon the twins in a way that made Athena’s skin crawl.
‘Of course.’ Athena flapped a hand. If she showed how frightened she actually was it would give him the upper hand. He already had it, of course, but she had no plans to make matters easy for him. Would he really take her against her will? The answer was as obvious as the question was futile. He would hardly have gone to all this trouble just to prove a point. ‘Men like you wouldn’t bother to make the distinction.’
‘There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to get your attention, my dear. You ought to know that much by now.’ He shook a finger at her. ‘You really shouldn’t have run away. You only have yourself to blame for your sisters’ discomfort.’
‘Is it really necessary to restrain and gag them? I am here, that’s what you wanted, and you’ve made your point. There can be no profit in restraining them.’
‘They kick like the very devil.’
‘What did you expect? Quiet capitulation?’ Athena forced a laugh past her lips. ‘They are my sisters, after all.’
‘Remove their gags,’ Blake said to his man. ‘But if either of them utters a sound they will go back on, tighter still.’ He sent Athena a sickly-sweet smile. ‘There, you see how reasonable I can be when you do as I ask.’
Reasonable wasn’t a word Athena would use in the same sentence as Blake’s name, but refrained from saying so. There was a fine line to be trod between appeasement and goading this dangerously unbalanced individual.
‘Thank you,’ she said curtly.
As soon as the gags were removed, the twins flexed their jaws. Athena was furious to see lines etched in their cheeks where the gags had been tied so tightly. That was cruel and unnecessary, another reason for Blake to pay dearly.
‘Are you all right?’ Athena asked, crouching in front of them. ‘Did they harm you?’
‘No, but we harmed them,’ Selene said with considerable satisfaction.
‘We kicked them both,’ Lyssa explained. ‘Hard. Just like you said we should.’
‘And I scratched him,’ Selene added, nodding defiantly at Blake. Athena, who had avoided looking directly at him until that point, noticed a long scratch, coated with dried blood, down the side of his face.
‘You did well, girls.’ She turned to Blake. ‘So what happens now?’ She saw hunger in his eye when he looked at her, and she thought she probably knew the answer to that. ‘I still refuse to marry you, if that’s what you’re hoping for, and you can’t seriously expect to get away with kidnapping all three of us.’
‘Marriage? Who said anything about marriage?’ Blake’s greedy expression gave way to a jealous glare. ‘I saw you at the harvest dance, down the side of that barn with Winsdale, acting no better than a whore. You with all your haughty disdain.’ His eyes blazed with resentment. ‘You’ve done nothing but sneer at me, pretending I’m beneath your notice, when the reverse is actually true. But still, I was willing to lower myself and marry you. I was prepared to give you a life of comfort, and the protection of my name, when I could just as easily have taken what I wanted by force.’
‘You could have tried,’ Athena replied, taken aback by his violently passionate tirade.
‘And I would have succeeded. Perhaps that’s what I should have done, and then I would have recovered from…well, from whatever it is about you that holds me captive.’ Blake shook his head as though his feelings still mystified him. ‘Your uncle wouldn’t have protected you. He was far too anxious for my help to care what happened to you. And yet, I respected your standards, only to see you give yourself to a man who hasn’t the slightest interest in matrimony. Which begs the question, why would I be interested in marrying a duke’s doxy?’
‘Why indeed?’ Athena’s tone was caustic. She added a careless shrug for good measure. ‘You’re wasting everyone’s time. I most emphatically don’t want anything to do with you, and you now feel the same way about me, apparently, so why this charade?’
‘Nobody takes what’s mine and expects to get away with it!’ Blake was falling apart in front of her eyes, which made him both unpredictable and dangerous. She had known there was a spoiled, depraved side to his character, which was the main reason why she hadn’t saved her family by marrying the man. He had always kept his debauched nature hidden from her—until now. ‘You still fascinate me, sweet Athena, in spite of everything. I do so enjoy a challenge, you see, and you are the most challenging woman in all of England. You’ve led me a merry dance, but that will make the prize all the sweeter.’
<
br /> ‘You’re deluded if you think I’ll willingly surrender to you.’
‘Oh, I hope you will not. I would so much prefer it if you fought me every step of the way.’
Athena sent him a damning glance. ‘Be careful what you wish for.’
‘You gave yourself to him. Now I want the same. You owe it to me after all the trouble you’ve put me to.’
Athena tossed her head. ‘I owe you nothing.’
‘If you please me, I shall marry you anyway and save your uncle’s miserable hide into the bargain. If not, I shall keep the three of you somewhere, and enjoy myself. So, too, will my friends when I’ve had my fill.’
Athena hid her alarm by laughing in his face. ‘How long do you suppose it will be before Millie raises the alarm?’
‘The old hag is dead.’
‘No!’ Selene and Lyssa cried together, looking devastated.
‘Sorry to disappoint you, but you didn’t hit her hard enough.’ She quirked a brow. ‘Out of practice at attacking old ladies, are you?’
‘What?’ Blake’s gaze swung accusingly to his henchman, who merely shrugged. ‘It doesn’t matter. There’s nothing she can do until morning, and we will all be long gone by then.’
Fear trickled down Athena’s spine. Why, oh why, hadn’t she let Eli know where she would be? Because she had known Blake really was depraved enough to harm the twins if she failed to arrive within the prescribed timescale, or if she didn’t come alone. Even so, she ought to have told him, and her failure to think rationally left her with no option but to delay Blake here until help could arrive. If not, he would spirit them all away to God alone knew where and no one would ever find them.
Harry and the groom would have missed her by now, and Eli would come after her. She had to believe that. His first port of call would be the cottage, and Millie would tell him where she was. All she had to do was keep Blake bragging about how clever he was to have found her, and buy herself some time that way. The only alternative was to whistle to Boris. He would come at once, but he couldn’t tackle Blake and his man at the same time because they were standing in different parts of the room. His man had a knife in his hand and the twins right in front of him, helplessly bound to chairs.
To Defy a Duke: Dangerous Dukes Vol 1 Page 21