“Tell me.”
A hint of a smile came to his lips. “Think on it,” he said. “The great hall of Northwood Castle will be filled with families celebrating our marriage. Good food, good wine, singing, and celebration. We simply start a fire, in the right place at the right time, and seal off the access doors so that everyone inside will burn to death. You wanted vengeance for my father, did you not? This is the best way to achieve it. What does it matter who I marry, so long as de Wolfe is in attendance? In the end, I will be a widower because I will somehow miraculously have escaped.”
Miranda loved the sound of that; God, how she loved the sound of the plan they’d spoken of for so long. Death to William de Wolfe. To think that it might actually come to fruition was something beyond her wildest dreams.
“And de Wolfe will be consumed by the fire,” she murmured, an odd twinkle to her eyes. “His bitch of a wife shall be, as well. I wish I could be there to see her pain as her children die before her eyes. As her husband burns to the bone. What a glorious sight that will be, Daniel. And you are correct. What does it matter who the bride is, so long as it is one of them? So long as they all die.”
Daniel nodded, thinking on the great hall of Northwood Castle, which he had been in several times over the years. “There will be some logistics to work out, of course,” he said. “I will need to bring enough men with me to stave off the Northwood army when the hall starts to burn so that they cannot help. I may have to sacrifice a few hundred men for this purpose because, surely, the Northwood army will not let them leave the grounds alive. I will hire mercenaries so they cannot be traced back to me. Mayhap, I shall even have them create a decoy battle to draw away the Northwood army so that when the hall burns, they will not be there to help. I’ve not yet decided the details of it yet but, in any case, there is no time to waste. I shall be leaving for Northwood on the morrow to visit the lady I intend to marry.”
Miranda agreed wholeheartedly. “Do what you must to woo her,” she said. “I cannot believe that all we have dreamed of will finally come to pass. Is it possible we are closer to our dreams that we realize?”
Daniel thought on the beautiful Cassiopeia, feeling no remorse that she was the key to his victory. That vengeance his mother had instilled in him had rendered him numb when it came to anything that stood between him and gaining what was rightfully his.
“Command of Deauxville Mount is mine,” he said. “I saw to that when we arrived here. Those foolish whelps who stood between me and command of the army were dealt with. With those men gone, control of The Mount became mine.”
Miranda was nodding firmly, her dark hair coming undone from the tight wimple she kept around her head. “And with de Wolfe gone, it will throw the north into chaos,” she murmured. “Revenge for your father’s death will be sweet, indeed. But we still must regain what is rightfully yours, Daniel – Deauxville Mount. It was your father’s holding and it must become yours. De Wolfe is only part of the problem. He killed your father, that is true, but we want The Mount. What will you do about it?”
Daniel was looking at the flames in the hearth as they flickered, his pale blue eyes hypnotized by the firelight as his mind, a sharp and cunning thing, pondered that issue.
“It is a simple thing, truly,” he said after a moment. “Think on the pity Viscount Wereford will give me when I am the only survivor of a fire at Northwood Castle that claimed my new wife and her family. Wereford has a daughter, you know.”
Miranda nodded. “I know,” he said. “She is only ten years of age.”
Daniel looked at her, a dark eyebrow cocked. “Royal brides have been younger. Imagine how sympathetic Wereford will be to my heartbreak, and when I profess my love for Deauxville Mount and Wereford’s family as being my only true and remaining family, I am sure I can convince him to entrust me with his only daughter. I will be the only one capable of protecting her and ensuring that my broken heart is healed. A betrothal contract, even at her young age, will secure my legacy.”
It was a convoluted but quite ingenious scheme, something Miranda hadn’t heard before. She’d encouraged Daniel, and even helped him, to remove the knights that stood between him and command of Deauxville’s army, but this was the first time she’d heard him mention Viscount Wereford’s young daughter in the context of regaining Deauxville Mount for himself, once and for all. For claiming a birthright that had been kept from him.
What a clever boy she had raised.
“Then the de Norville daughter will be used two-fold,” she said. “To destroy de Wolfe and to gain the necessary sympathy from Wereford so he will entrust you with his daughter.”
Daniel nodded faintly. “Vengeance and my legacy,” he murmured. “That is all I have ever wanted, Mother. Vengeance for my father’s death and the return of my legacy.”
Miranda smiled, a proud gesture. Aye, she was proud. Proud of the man she had given birth to. He’d been a shame in the beginning, a sin of the flesh and a tribute to the fact that she would spread her legs for most any man, but now he was becoming a source of pride.
Finally.
“And you shall have it, my son,” she said softly, running her hand through his dark, damp hair. “I hate to bring this up in the midst of everything that is happening, but Thaddeus is coming north to visit us. Have you forgotten? It is his second trip in a year to try and convince me to return with him to Sussex.”
Daniel shook his head. “That old fool,” he muttered. “You will send him away like you always do. He shall not interfere with my plans and if he does, I will be Lord Chessington sooner than expected.”
Miranda turned back to her hearth, quiet for a moment as she gave their meal a final stir. “It might be an opportunity for you to become Lord Chessington in any case,” she said quietly. “The man serves no purpose in this life and I am weary of dealing with his begging every year. I only married him to give you a name, Daniel. Thaddeus has served his purpose.”
Daniel looked at her. “Are you asking me to make good on my threat?”
“It would play into de Norville’s sympathies, and mayhap sway his decision, should your father die unexpectedly and you became the next Lord Chessington.”
Daniel considered what she was saying. In fact, it made sense to him. One less player to worry about in this vast game he was orchestrating. With Thaddeus out of the way, he would have a title to impress a future father-in-law with.
“I am sure it can be arranged,” he said.
Miranda was feeling quite confident in the future they had planned for themselves. A dead de Wolfe, a dead Chessington, and a dead extended family. The truth was that, for Miranda, their deaths had far less to do with Daniel de Troiu and more to do with the humiliation Jordan de Wolfe bestowed upon her those years ago when she beat her down for flirting with William.
That was something Miranda had never forgotten and she’d never forgiven.
She remembered it as if it had been yesterday, even though it was more than forty years ago. She’d only been speaking to William in the garden of Windsor with a few of her friends when an enraged Jordan had rushed her and yanked her hair from her scalp. It had been most humiliating and Miranda had a penchant for carrying a grudge. But killing an entire family for the death of Daniel de Troiu sounded much better than killing them in revenge for a petty insult against a court whore those years ago.
Still… Jordan de Wolfe would be dealt with and that was all that mattered.
“Come, my son,” she said, bringing forth wooden bowls and spoons. “Eat with me and tell me of this de Norville daughter who shall bring about the fall of the House of de Wolfe. I would like to hear all about her.”
Daniel told her. He ate his mother’s watery stew and spoke on a young woman with flowing, golden-red hair and hazel eyes. She was quite the beauty, which made him rather disappointed to think that he would never truly get to taste her before he intended to cut her life short. As he’d told his mother, he wouldn’t even try to seduce her. He didn’t want to
do anything to damage his chances of Paris de Norville accepting his marriage proposal. Too much was at stake now for him to ruin his chances.
He had a man to kill.
A family to destroy.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Edward had just come through the trees that lined the edge of the River Tweed, being led by the hand by Lisbet, who was taking him to her aunt, as requested.
She was doing an eager job of it, giggling and pointing to Cassiopeia as she yanked Edward along. In fact, Cassiopeia watched them as they approached. Ever since her father had left her on the riverbank, she’d been waiting, watching that path through the trees and knowing that Edward would make an appearance at some point. As she watched, she fought off the unfamiliar pangs of giddiness. She wasn’t a giddy maiden by nature, but this was a very big moment for her.
The moment Edward de Wolfe ceased to become her nemesis.
Or, at least, she would cease to become his.
Odd how age and time could change something that she thought would never be changed. Dogs and cats fought; so did Edward and Cassiopeia. But maturity had changed the way she looked at Edward, and as he headed in her direction, she was seeing him through completely different eyes.
It was almost too good to believe.
“Greetings, my lady,” Edward said as Lisbet yanked on him one last time, trying to hurry him. “Lady Lisbet has been most gracious to escort me to you.”
Cassiopeia had looked at Edward a thousand times in her lifetime. She’d seen the man from when he was a small boy all the way up to this moment. But she felt like she was looking at him for the very first time; it was difficult to describe, but things were simply…
Different.
“She is very helpful,” she said, finally noticing that Lisbet was still pulling on him, trying to pull him closer, and she put out a hand to her niece. “That is enough, Lissy. Thank you for your escort.”
Lisbet stopped pulling, but she didn’t let him go. She was grinning broadly as she looked between them, and when Cassiopeia realized the girl had no intention of letting Edward go, or even leaving, she had to be plain.
“Release him, Lisbet,” she said pointed. “You may go now.”
It took Lisbet a few moments to realize that she wasn’t wanted or needed. Dropping Edward’s hand, she skipped off, giggling, following the path back through the trees. Cassiopeia shrugged helplessly.
“I apologize,” she said. “She is young and foolish.”
Edward rubbed at his right shoulder, rotating it gingerly. “And strong,” he said. “I think she pulled my arm away from my shoulder.”
Cassiopeia laughed softly. “Shall I call a physic?”
“As long as you do not send Lissy to summon the man. He will be in pieces before he arrives.”
Cassiopeia continued laughing. “Then I shall not send her,” she said. “I would hate to jeopardize you and everyone else at Northwood simply because she does not know her own strength.”
The witty comment caused Edward to grin. He stopped rotating his shoulder and simply looked at her. There was a glimmer in his eyes that hadn’t been there before.
“And now, we find ourselves here,” he said quietly. “I will be honest and say that this was not something I had ever anticipated.”
Cassiopeia knew what he meant, right away, and it was difficult to fight down the flush threatening to turn her face into a pink mess. “Life is full of surprises, I suppose,” she said. “Little did I know the rocks I threw at you those years ago would somehow endear me to you.”
“You awakened the ‘abuse me because I like it’ side of me.”
“Is that what I did?”
He burst out laughing. He simply couldn’t help it. “Do you remember, years ago at Castle Questing, when I denied you the opportunity to go fishing with Nathaniel and Thomas and I? You wanted to come with us but I chased you away, so you followed us and spent hours throwing things into the water, scaring the fish away. When I finally caught you, I tied you to a tree and told you that the birds were going to pluck your eyeballs out.”
Her laughter returned. “I remember,” she said. “No one could find me for the rest of the day, as I recall, until Nathaniel broke under the pressure of questioning from his father and they all rushed down to the stream to find me tied to a tree, crying myself ill.”
Edward chuckled. “My father blistered my backside for that. I still bear the scars.”
“He gave you scars?”
“Nay, my mother did when my father was finished with me. I remember that Scott and Troy tried to distract her, trying to save me, but she swung the switch at them, too, and they were forced to retreat. I took my punishment, alone.”
Cassiopeia shook her head sadly. “You did not deserve it. It was all my fault and I apologize profusely for being so rotten to you.”
He shook his head, holding up a gentle hand to stop her. “You have already apologized and I have accepted,” he said. “There is no need to apologize again. It’s simply that as an adult, I can look back upon those times and laugh. Mayhap that was not true before we became reacquainted at The Lyceum but, now, I can definitely laugh at the beatings I took because of you.”
She lifted her eyebrows. “Then it is true,” she said. “You were avoiding me in London all of those years. We must have attended at least ten or more of the same gatherings, but you never acknowledged me in any way.”
He was caught and he knew it. “Mayhap that is true, a little,” he said. “I was afraid you were going to shoot pebbles at me again, or get me into trouble, for all to see.”
“And risk Lady de Russe’s wrath? There is not a chance I would have done such a thing.”
“Now I know.”
“Indeed, you do.”
A silence settled, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. Edward took a few steps, coming to stand beside her, but his gaze was on the river beyond. It was a lush, brilliant day, with the sky a color of blue that seemed richer and brighter than he had ever known. Everything about the day seemed richer and brighter because he was sharing it with her.
“So,” he said casually, “let us discuss why I am here.”
“Of course.”
“Your father wants to find you a husband.”
“I know.”
“I also know he has spoken to Daniel de Motte about you.”
“I am aware.”
“If you would rather de Motte court you, then I will not stand in his way. I will surrender to your wishes in this matter, whatever they are.”
Cassiopeia was watching his profile as he spoke. His profile was very much like his father’s with his strong jaw and straight nose.
“Daniel is my father’s idea,” she said, sounding resigned. “He feels that I should have more than one choice and that I should come to know Daniel before I make my decision.”
Edward turned to look at her. “When Daniel came looking for you in the garden of The Lyceum, you ran from him,” he said. “Daniel is not a terrible man, but he can be… aggressive, from what I have seen. That is not bad in and of itself, but when dealing with a lady, one must have a gentler touch.”
Cassiopeia was watching the way his lips moved as he spoke, upswept in their perfection. “I spoke with him briefly, right before The Lyceum was attacked,” she said. “In fact, it was just as the alarms sounded. He had asked me if he could spend time with me and I told him that I wanted to spend all of my time with family and friends I had not seen in years. I get the sense that he was not pleased by that but he did not argue.”
Edward nodded, returning his attention back to the river as he thought on Daniel and the progression of his attention towards Cassiopeia that night.
“He told me that he wanted to speak to your father about you,” he said. “I told him not to.”
She looked at him, curiously. “Really? Why?”
He cast her a sidelong glance, perhaps one of great hesitance. “I will not tell you unless you forgive me in advance.”
She smir
ked. “I forgive you. What did you say to him?”
“Are you sure you want to know?”
“I do.”
He took a deep breath before continuing. “I told him that you were not pleasant by any means.”
“What?”
“And that you were frustrating and childish and rude.”
Her mouth popped open in outrage. “You told him that?”
Edward held up a quick finger. “You promised to forgive me. That means you cannot become enraged.”
Cassiopeia had to rein in the building fury. “But… but…!”
Edward could see how angry she was, or was at least trying not to become, and he smiled. “Don’t you see? I told him that because I did not want him to pursue you.”
She was not amused. “I guessed that.”
“But it was not for the reasons you think… I did not realize it at the time, but mayhap I simply did not want his competition.”
Cassiopeia’s anger took a dousing. “I… I do not think I understand.”
Edward’s smile grew. “If I could discourage him, then I would have you all to myself. Do you understand now?”
She cocked her head as his explanation sank in. “Then… then you had… something… in mind even then?”
“I am not certain. It is possible. Your father has made it no secret that he is seeking a husband for you and my father has been his great ally in this. My father wants you to marry a de Wolfe – me.”
She eyed him as if she were not quite sure to believe what he was telling her. “And what do you want?”
His smile turned a bit sly. “I do not want tall, handsome Daniel de Motte impeding me, in any way. I would like to come to know a young woman I grew up with, a young woman who has clearly become a lovely, reasonable adult, and I do not need Daniel interfering.” He threw up his hands. “It is possible that we will spend the next few days together and realize that we do not wish to marry one another, but I would at least like the chance to explore that without Daniel breathing down my neck. So, I told him to avoid you because you were childish and rude. But that does not mean I believe that, not now.”
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