Prince of Ravenscar

by Catherine Coulter

  “All my life?”

  “I could have fathered you.”

  “You were that precocious?”

  “Perhaps not quite, but still—”

  She dropped his hand and stopped. When he turned to her, Sophie sent her fist into his belly. He whooshed out a breath, grabbed for her, but she danced out of his reach.

  “No, don’t you touch me, you baboon. If you ever again mention the years between us—the great number of years that separate us—I will hurt you so badly you will be on your knees, moaning. Do you understand me?”

  He stared at her, and Sophie knew he was staring, even though she could barely see the outline of his face.

  “Did you really tell Devlin you wouldn’t bed a woman until you were married to her?”

  If he was surprised she knew this, he didn’t let on. He supposed he was getting quite used to there being no secrets between Roxanne and Sophie, as there were no secrets between him and Devlin. “Yes, I said that.”

  “Why?”

  “Because a lady, a virgin lady, deserves more than a clandestine mauling.”

  “Well, that is something. On the other hand, you wouldn’t conduct this mauling in public.”

  “Don’t you make sport of me, Sophie Wilkie, you know very well what I mean.”

  “Why do you call it mauling? When you kiss me, I never think of mauling.”

  “Very well, an unwed lady doesn’t wish to have her purity in question before she is wed.”

  “Purity,” she said slowly, savoring the word. “Is that why a lady shouldn’t seduce a gentleman before marriage? She doesn’t wish to soil his purity?”

  He had the insane desire to laugh, to kiss her silly, and perhaps teach her a little bit about lovemaking, but the wind was whipping about outside, it was cold, and his men would be coming soon with the smuggled goods.

  “Come,” he said.

  She began walking toward the cave, aware he was right behind her. She could hear his steady, calm breathing. She intended to seduce him tonight, in the cave, not that she knew the first thing about seducing a man, but she was her mother’s daughter, with her rich and devious imagination. Yes, she would spread her black cloak on the sandy ground. Once all the goods had been stored, all his men had rowed back down the river to the channel and back to the ship, Devlin and Roxanne were safely away back to Ravenscar, she would jump on him, and—hmmm. She was so excited she wanted to shout with it.

  They heard the loud report of a gun and froze. Julian cursed, shoved her down, whispered against her mouth even as he held her down, “Don’t move.”

  He left her on her knees, her head down, her black cloak wrapped around her, her heart pounding hard, suddenly scared to her toes. The adventure had turned into something else.

  Julian made his way, silent as a shadow, weaving in and out of the thick maple and oak trees, to the river’s edge. They were only twenty yards from the mouth of the cave. He stood in the shadows, staring downriver.

  Another shot, then half a dozen more. He heard a man shout something, then another several shots.

  How had anyone found out about this?

  He saw her running lightly toward him, a black shadow weaving in and out of all the other shadows. She was at his side in the next second, breathing hard. He leaned close. “We’re going back to the cave. You will stay in there, safe, and I’ll try to find out what’s happening.”

  He led her to the entrance, pulled aside the branches. “Get inside. Don’t make any noise, all right? I’ll come to you as soon as I can. You know where the lantern is. If you light it, make certain you keep it partially covered. Everything will be all right.”

  “Of course it will be all right, because you will make sure that it is,” she said, and the certainty in her voice made something deep inside him expand with pleasure. He touched his fingers to her face, then he was gone.

  Sophie heard him piling more branches to cover the cave opening. She quickly lit the lantern and placed it beneath a narrow ledge to hide most of the light.

  She straightened, looked around, crept to the entrance of the cave, and listened. She heard more shots. Was that a man yelling? Had someone been hit? One of his men? Julian?

  Her blood ran cold. She desperately wanted to run out of the bloody cave and see what was happening, but she wasn’t an idiot. If she left the cave, she might cause more danger for Julian or Roxanne and Devlin.

  She waited, the hardest thing she’d ever had to do in her life. Time passed, but how much, she didn’t know.

  It had to be excisemen, and they’d been told about tonight’s smuggling run. But who had informed on them? Had Leah somehow overheard them? She didn’t think so. But who?

  She thought of Roxanne and Devlin down at the beach. She closed her eyes and prayed with all her might, promising God more good works than a single person could accomplish in a lifetime.

  Her heart jumped into her throat when she heard a man’s voice outside. It was Julian, whispering for her not to worry. When he came into the cave, she ran to him, stroked her hands down his arms, his chest. She dropped to her knees, her hands on his legs. He grabbed her hands, hauled her back to her feet. “Sophie, I’m all right. Now, listen to me.”

  “Roxanne, is she all right? It is excisemen, isn’t it? Someone told them.”

  “Yes. There are at least a half-dozen, not planted down at the beach where Devlin and Roxanne were supposed to meet the boat but near the mouth of the river, maybe a hundred steps away. My men know if there is ever trouble they are not to fight, they are to row back to the ship. Devlin and Roxanne weren’t to come with them to the cave, only guide them to the river entrance. They’re all right.”

  There was more gunfire.

  Julian quickly put out the lantern. He gathered Sophie to him and eased down to the cave floor and pulled her close. “They won’t find the cave. Don’t worry. Now we have to wait.”

  59

  Roxanne and Devlin greeted the men on the large boat at the entrance of the river. A dark-coated man stepped forward. He said quietly, “Jake doesn’t like the way things smell. I don’t like it, either. We want to get this done. Where is his lordship’s cave?”

  Devlin whispered the instructions. The man nodded, but no more words were spoken, and they were off, rowing up the river.

  Roxanne said, “I wonder what doesn’t smell right to Jake. This worries me, Devlin. Sophie and Julian are at the cave. What if—”

  He placed a finger over her mouth. “I don’t smell anything. It will be all right. Who could possibly know about tonight? You’re thinking about Richard—but he is in London.”

  “So Leah told us. All right, no one at Ravenscar, even if they knew about tonight, would betray the prince. I wish there had been room in the boat. I should have liked to help unload the goods and carry them into the cave. Do you know what they were bringing in?”

  Devlin shook his head. “The storm will hit very soon now. Come along, our part is played. Let’s go back to Ravenscar.”

  They’d only taken three steps when they heard gunfire, sharp and terrifyingly loud. Devlin grabbed her hand, and they ran up the cliff path. A bullet struck a rock a foot from Roxanne’s boot.

  All Roxanne could think was that their marvelous adventure had turned into a nightmare.

  She never broke stride. “I’m worried about Sophie. We must do something, Devlin.”

  “The best thing we can do is get to safety. Trust Julian to take care of Sophie.”

  Three men leapt out of the darkness, blocking the path, each holding a gun. “That’s enough,” the man said when Devlin would have gone after him. “Now, it’s the lady we wish, not you.”

  Devlin heard a whoosh of sound. He whirled around, his derringer in his hand, but he wasn’t fast enough. Roxanne screamed. A gun butt cracked down hard over his temple, and he collapsed where he stood.

  “Ye’re to come wi’ us, Miss Radcliffe.” She kicked him, hoping for his groin, but her foot struck hard against his thigh. He g
runted, jumped back.

  Another man yelled, “She’s only a woman, get ’er, ye fools.”

  But Roxanne didn’t go easily. Her fingernails scored down a man’s face, she managed to kick one man in the groin, and he dropped to his knees, groaning and holding himself. One of them clouted her in the jaw, and she went spinning to the ground, only to be caught by another man and thrown over his shoulder. Before she passed out, she heard one of the men say, “Wot were she doin’ wit’ this bloody duke’s son? Ain’t she supposed to be wi’ the prince?”

  Another man said, his voice sharp, clear, his English excellent, “I don’t know. Make sure the bloody duke’s son is still breathing. I don’t want him dead.”

  “Aye, he’s breathin’ nice ’n strong.”

  “Good. Let’s go, lads. I want to be off the moment she wakes up.”

  Roxanne thought the man’s voice sounded familiar to her, but she didn’t know, nor did it matter now, nothing mattered. She knew nothing more.

  60

  The gunfire abruptly stopped.

  Julian lightly patted Sophie’s cheek. “I’m going to see if I can make out anything in the darkness. Don’t move, Sophie.”

  “Not this time,” she said, and stood beside him.

  He gave her a look that didn’t sway her at all. He was looking at his future, and he couldn’t help it, he both grinned and cursed. “At least stay behind me.” Julian eased out through the pile of branches that covered the cave entrance. He listened, didn’t hear anything. She came up to stand beside him. “Do you believe your men are all right?”

  “They rowed back to the ship. Those are the standing orders. Since we don’t hear any more gunfire, no shouting, I think they made their escape.”

  “Let’s go see. I want to make sure Roxanne and Devlin are all right. What if the excisemen got them, Julian?”

  He had no answer to that. He didn’t want to put her in any more danger, but he knew a set jaw when he saw one. He took her hand and led her through the woods, staying close to the river’s edge. They didn’t see anyone—no excisemen, no smugglers, no Devlin or Roxanne. When they reached the beach, Julian could make out the boat in the distance nearly back to his ship. His men and goods were safe.

  Sophie said, “Where are Roxanne and Devlin?”

  Julian didn’t answer. He didn’t like this, didn’t like it at all.

  They found Devlin unconscious on the path leading up the cliff. There was no sign of Roxanne.

  61

  THREE HOURS LATER, NEAR DAWN

  Devlin wasn’t about to move. He knew if he did, his brain would fall out of his head, roll about on the ground, and he’d be dead, naught but an empty husk. On the other hand, his suffering would be over.

  Slowly, the pounding hammer began to lighten, thank the munificent Lord. A memory came into his head—a long-ago night at Oxford when a group of friends had drunk six bottles of French brandy stolen from one of their father’s wine cellars. He’d awakened by himself the next morning in an alley, the agony in his head unbearable. That day he’d sworn never to drink himself insensible again, and he hadn’t.

  He hadn’t broken his vow, had he? He hadn’t gotten drunk; surely he wasn’t that great a fool. He didn’t want to open his eyes, knew it would bring him low. He couldn’t remember what happened, couldn’t—dear God, Roxanne.

  His eyes flew open to see Julian leaning over him, Dr. Crutchfield at his side, Sophie standing at the foot of his bed, her hair tangled around her face, her face haloed by candlelight. “Devlin, thank goodness you’re awake. Where’s Roxanne?”

  “Roxanne.” Devlin could only manage a whisper, and even that hurt.

  “You’ve a grand lump on your head, my lord. Hold yourself still, that’s right. The pain will ease. I’ll give you some laudanum as soon as you can tell me how many fingers I’m holding up.”

  Devlin counted twelve fingers.

  “Not quite yet,” said Dr. Crutchfield. “Keep yourself awake, my lord. Your brains are still a bit scrambled.”

  Julian said, voice pitched low, “Do you remember what happened, Devlin?”

  Devlin started to say no, but then everything came rushing back. “The boat came in. I told your head man where to find the cave, and they were off. I remember your head man, Jake, said he didn’t like the way things smelled. I suppose he somehow sensed danger? Still, they left, and Roxanne and I went back up the cliff path. Then there was gunfire and three men came out of nowhere. One of them struck me down.” He closed his eyes, felt curses fall out of his mouth. “Dear sweet Lord in Heaven, I don’t know what happened to Roxanne.”

  Sophie said, “They took her. Richard hired them to take her. But how did he know where you would be? Who betrayed us?”

  “There can be only one person to betray us,” Julian said. “And that is why Leah came back here. Somehow, she overheard our plan. Devlin, you hold still until you have yourself together. The laudanum will help.”

  Since it was near dawn, Julian and Sophie expected to find Leah in bed, but she wasn’t. Pouffer, so frightened he could barely speak, pointed to the drawing-room door. They found Leah reading a book by candlelight. But she wasn’t reading it at all, Sophie saw; the pages weren’t cut.

  She looked up. “What is this? What is going on? Was there a fire?”

  Sophie stared dispassionately at her aunt. Did you send your own sister to her death at Richard’s hands because you still believe Julian loves her?

  She felt anger, clean and pure, wash through her. “Why aren’t you in bed, Leah?” Sophie strode toward her. She still hadn’t donned all her petticoats again, and she felt a stone lighter.

  Leah shrugged. “I heard all the commotion and woke my maid. I saw Dr. Crutchfield hurrying past my bedchamber, as fast as an old man can move. I heard the servants talking about bad things happening, and his lordship was gravely wounded. What happened?”

  “Devlin was struck down. Tell us how you knew about the smuggling adventure this evening.”

  “I assume Devlin will be all right?”

  “It appears so.”

  “Well, that will relieve his family. What did you say? Smuggling operation? What is this?”

  Julian said, “Have you seen Roxanne?”

  “No, I have not. Is she still abed? What is going on here, my lord? Where is my sister?”

  Leah looked suddenly alarmed; Julian would swear it was genuine. “Your sister was taken when Devlin was struck down.”

  “Taken? What do you mean Roxanne was taken?” Leah jumped to her feet, sending the book sliding to the carpet. “What is this about a smuggling operation?”

  Julian walked to the fireplace, leaned against the mantel, his arms crossed over his chest. “How did you find out about the smuggling run tonight, Leah?”

  Leah rose, smoothed out her skirts. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, Prince. Smuggling? There is no such thing anymore. All know that, but if there is, if you are a smuggler, then you should be sent to Botany Bay. Were you all involved? My sister as well as a future duke of the realm?”

  Sophie said, “Don’t sound so disbelieving and outraged, Leah. You overheard us making plans for the smuggling, and you told Richard. Where is he? Where did he take Roxanne? What does he plan to do with her this time? Rape her? Kill her?”

  “That is utter nonsense, and you well know it.”

  Sophie walked up to her aunt, grabbed her arms, hauled her up, and shook her hard. “You will tell us the truth, you malicious witch, all of it, or I swear I’ll hurt you. I’m bigger than you are; you know I can do it. I can start with your face. How would you look with no eyebrows? Aye, I could hold you down and shave them right off.”

  Leah grabbed her wrist. “Stop it, you stupid girl! What is this? You are accusing me of willingly harming my own sister? Are you mad?”

  Sophie shook her again. “We don’t have time to do this ridiculous dance, Leah. Stop lying. Where is Roxanne?”

  Leah began to cry. Disgusted, Sophie push
ed her away. She landed on the sofa, bowed her face in her hands, and continued to weep.

  Sophie stood in front of her, hands on her hips. “You will listen to me, you viper-tongued harpy. You have made Roxanne’s life a misery with your spite, your malicious comments, your outright insults. She is gone, do you hear me? Your sister is gone, kidnapped—again. You are the only one who would betray her, who would betray us. You are a disgrace, madam, a miserable human being with so little heart and feeling you should dry up and disappear.” Sophie paused for a moment, drew herself up very straight. She pointed her finger. “You are no longer related to me. I disown you.”

  Sophie was breathing hard. She couldn’t think of anything more to say. She looked over to see Julian staring at her.

  “What?”

  He said quietly, “Come here.”

  Sophie, frowning at him, her heart still pounding with rage, walked to him. He took her arms in his big hands, and very slowly, he drew her to him. He said against her cheek, “You are magnificent. I will thank God every day for the rest of my life if you will marry me,” and he kissed her.

  Sophie’s arms went around him, and she hugged him hard as she felt him kissing her mouth, her chin, her nose. Everything was chaos and fear, endless fear for Roxanne. She was so afraid she wanted to choke on it. And she was magnificent?

  She leaned back in his arms. “Yes, I will marry you. I love you so much I will willingly cut your meat for you when you are old and have no teeth. What are we to do now?”

  “What is this?”

  Sophie didn’t release him, merely turned slightly to see Leah now on her feet, staring at them.

  “What is what, you foul-tongued fishwife?”

  “Don’t you dare speak to me that way, you ignorant spoiled brat! You are betraying your sister just as I saw her betraying the prince yesterday, kissing Devlin Monroe at the top of the stairs. All know your precious aunt is to wed the prince, no one else, certainly not the future Duke of Brabante, whose family would not allow her through the door.