by Dawn Brower
Rand folded his arms across his chest and glared at Noah. “I’m still waiting for you to tell me what the hell has you all fired up.”
“Not now, man. We don’t have time for this.” Liam smacked him on the shoulder. “Get in the bloody carriage, and we can fill you in on the way.”
Noah remained silent. He was afraid if he said too much he’d break down and crumble. All the lies and secrets—none of it mattered anymore. His only concern was finding Rubina and bringing her home safely…
“You two whoresons are going to get an earful from me on the way to wherever we are headed to retrieve the women.” Rand glared at them both before he hopped inside the carriage.
Noah couldn’t fault the man. He’d be cussing too. Hell, he wanted to do a lot more than that. He wanted to pummel something until it was torn to shreds.
Paolo would make a good target for all that pent up angst.
Marcus rattled off directions to the driver and hopped inside the carriage with them.
“Start talking,” Rand demanded. “What in the dickens is happening to our wives?”
Noah took a deep breath and steeled himself for Rand’s displeasure. “Rubina was kidnapped.”
“I gathered that,” Rand interrupted him. “Along with Gemma and Lily. Who would do that?”
“That was what I was trying to tell you.” Noah shook his head. “This dates back to when Rubina went missing the first time.”
If only he’d known she’d been held captive for so many years. She must have lost faith in him. No wonder she wanted to leave him. Why would she want a husband who didn’t protect her? Noah had been set to reprimand her for keeping it all a secret. The reasons why didn’t matter anymore. She could keep any bloody thing she wanted to herself—as long as she was safe. He loved her too much to try to cage her in. It was time he let her be as free as she wanted.
Rand nodded. “I remember you believed she died, but she just came home recently. Did she tell you what happened to her?”
If only she had…
“No.” Rand frowned. Noah continued, “I hired Marcus here to look into the matter. He was injured gathering the information for me and explained all the details earlier. When we arrived at my townhouse, the women were already missing.”
“I suppose that is where I come in,” Marcus interrupted. “My men were keeping an eye on the duchess. All I know for sure is they got in Lady Marsden’s carriage and went to visit Her Grace’s brother. Outside of the Albany, they were snatched. Duca d’Sordillo took Rubina, and the other two were taken in a different carriage.”
Liam’s mouth fell open. He closed it and clenched his jaw. Then after a few more seconds said, “Lily and Gemma were taken to a separate location?”
“I don’t even know if the duchess is being taken to where we are headed. This is the only place that I know they could’ve been taken. It’s a starting point.”
Bollocks… What a bloody mess this was all turning into.
“How long until we arrive?” Rand asked quietly.
Noah was getting a little worried about the man. He had grown silent with each bit of information they departed on him. It appeared as if his sole focus was on what needed to be done. At least one of them remained calm and collected. It would come in handy when they reached their destination.
“We’re not far behind them.” Marcus gestured toward Noah. “Shortly after you left, my man stumbled in. As luck would have it, the doctor got two for the price of one. He was still patching him up when I left.” He turned to Rand. “To answer your question, we should arrive soon. It isn’t far outside of the city—it’s well hidden.”
They all kept their thoughts to themselves from that point on. Each man focused on their own concerns. Noah ran his hands over his face. This was his fault. He should have demanded answers from Rubina sooner. If he had... His jaw tightened. Noah hit the side of the carriage with his hand.
“Easy now. That’s not going to solve anything,” Liam reminded him.
Noah glared. “Like hitting the door helped you.”
“Fair enough.” He frowned. “Now isn’t the time for anger. We need to remain as calm as possible. After they are safe, we can unleash it on the bastard that took them.”
“I’m going to rip him to pieces.”
They all focused on Rand—each man’s mouth hung open in surprise. He’d been so quiet and calm. His statement was unexpected.
“I think you might have to stand in line and wait your turn.” Liam shook his head. “It’s always the quiet ones that surprise you.”
The carriage came to a halt.
Noah stared at each man and nodded. “It’s time.”
They all got out and made their way to the place Paolo stashed the women—or at least where they hoped he had. If they were in another location…
Noah wouldn’t think about it. They had to be inside.
“Do you know anything about this place?” Noah asked Marcus.
He shook his head. “Not much. There are guards at each entrance. There are at least six men inside. At the top of the hour patrols go out and do a perimeter check.”
“No pressure at all…” Liam shook his head. “The good news is that it’s past their hourly checkpoint. If we can get past a couple of the guards at the back entrance, we might be able to break in and rescue the women without too much fuss.”
It was probably the best chance they were going to get to make it happen.
“Once we’re inside, we will split up and search. Liam, come with me and Rand go with Marcus.” He nodded to each man. “Let’s do this.”
They sneaked their way across the lawn. Two men patrolled the perimeter. Noah gestured to Liam and he nodded. They each circled around to deal with them and efficiently knocked out the two guards. One hurdle down, many more to go, until the women were safe. They remained as silent as possible as they entered the house.
It was time to divide and conquer, Noah looked toward the stairs gesturing to Liam to follow him. Rand and Marcus went left down the first hall. Liam and Noah made their way to the second story. They moved their way down the hallway at a slow pace. Careful to not make any noise and check each room they passed. A shrill voice filled his ears and he stopped to listen. Noah heard shouting as he crept toward a door at the end of the path.
“I told you.” A woman’s laugh filled the room. “You didn’t listen to me.”
“Cara,” the male voice coaxed. “Put the pistol down. You don’t really want to shoot me.”
“I assure you,” the woman said with conviction. “Not only do I want to, but I will.”
Rubina…
Noah pushed open the door and found his wife holding a pistol in her hands. Her golden blonde hair fell down her back in waves. Her eyes were the color of melted silver.
“Don’t be so hasty, Ruby dear. If you kill me, you will never find your brother.”
Rubina raised the pistol higher, aiming for Paolo’s head. “You implied he’s already dead. Now you want to change your story?”
“I may have exaggerated a bit.” His grin was filled with menace. “He was a thorn in my side. I had to take him or he’d have caused problems. He could be alive.” Paolo shrugged. “He could be dead. I don’t know for sure. If you put the gun down, I can tell you how to find out for certain.”
Her hand shook. “I don’t believe you.”
“You need to stop her,” Liam said. “Killing him would be a mistake, at least for now. Lily and Gemma are still unaccounted for. We can always end him later.”
“I know,” Noah agreed.
He eased his way inside, getting a little closer to Rubina. He had to get the gun from her before she did something she would regret. Taking person’s life, even someone as evil as Paolo, would haunt her.
“Ruby?” Noah approached her. “Give me the gun. You don’t want to kill him.”
She shook her head. “I do. You don’t know what he’s put me through. He needs to die.”
A tear fell f
rom the corner of her eye and trailed down her cheek.
“Rubina,” Liam’s voice was filled with panic. “Where are Gemma and Lily?”
She shook her head. “I don’t know…”
“Well, I do have some use left then.” The man laughed with malevolence. “You may not care for Damian, but those two women are important enough to stay my execution.”
“There is no reason to allow you to keep breathing. We will find Gemma and Lily without your help.” Rubina held the gun up higher. “I am going to send you to hell today, Paolo.”
Liam paled at her words. His hand raised as if itching to take the gun away from Rubina. His jerky movements raised Noah’s anxiety. He needed a new task before he tried to wrestle Rubina for control of the gun. Liam’s concern for Gemma was warring with his good sense.
“Liam, go help Rand and Marcus search the rest of the house. I will take care of this.” Noah turned to Rubina. “Please, Ruby. Give it to me.”
Liam stilled and stared at Noah. He didn’t want to leave. Noah understood. If it were his wife, he’d want more information too. Him being in the room wasn’t helping though. He could go do something productive, such as actually trying to find the women. Perhaps they were still inside, and he could aid them in exiting the premises. After several seconds, he nodded and left. Noah breathed a sigh of relief. Only one more pressing problem to get through before he could let go of his own anxiety.
Rubina’s hand shook. If he didn’t take the pistol from her soon, she might hurt herself.
Noah eased over to her side and wrapped his hand around hers. The hilt of the pistol was encased in both of their hands. “Let me do it.”
She shook her head. “No. It’s my vengeance to take.” Rubina shook his hand free of hers. They were both distracted and took their eyes off of their enemy for a few precious seconds.
Paolo rushed forward. Rubina flinched, causing her to squeeze the trigger. A loud boom filled the room as the gun went off.
The look of shock on the man’s face—he really believed he’d make it out of the situation alive. His body crumpled and hit the floor with a loud thump. Rubina’s hand shook and the pistol fell from her hand, landing on the hard surface with a sharp thud. Tears fell in a rush from her eyes.
“Is he really dead?”
Noah only had eyes for his wife. He pulled her into his arms and held her as tight as he could. “I’ve never been so scared in my life. Don’t do that to me ever again.”
“I’m so sorry.” Her tears fell harder with each breath she took. “Please forgive me.”
“Shhh.” He kept his voice as soothing as possible. Noah reined in his emotions. Rubina needed him to be strong. “No one will hurt you I won’t let them.”
It was a promise he intended to keep.
“I love you,” Rubina whispered. “I never stopped.”
“I know,” he reassured her.
A part of him had always known. It had taken him a little while to get over his anger. A love like theirs didn’t just go away. They were meant to be together forever, and now they wouldn’t have anything to stand in their way.
“There is something else.” She stared up into his eyes. “I wanted to tell you everything, but I was so afraid. There is nothing preventing me now.”
Noah ran his fingers through her hair relishing in the silkiness of her curls. “You can tell me anything. Don’t ever feel like you need to keep secrets from me. Nothing you could say would ever change how I feel about you.”
He wiped the tears from her eyes. A small smile formed on her face.
“This is good news.”
“You’re carrying our child,” he finished for her.
She glanced up with surprise. “You knew?”
He laughed. For the first time, his heart didn’t constrict with pain—instead only joy filled it.
“I suspected.” He kissed her lips lightly.
She bit her lip. “Are you happy?”
“More than words can say.” He wrapped his arms around her once again. “But it’s not all settled. Lily and Gemma need to be found.”
“All taken care of.” Marcus stepped into the room. “They are headed toward the carriage to go home with their husbands.”
“How are we going to get back?”
“Paolo took Gemma’s carriage. It’s probably still here,” Rubina explained.
“Her Grace is correct.” He nodded. “I will drive it back since the driver didn’t make it here with it.”
Marcus left to go prepare the carriage for their journey.
Noah smiled. “Everything worked out how it was supposed to.”
Rubina frowned. “Not entirely. We still don’t know what happened to Damian.”
He could see the concern in her eyes. She’d been so brave facing down Paolo. Her brother meant so much to her. How could he make it better? Damian could still be alive. Paolo never confirmed one way or the other.
“We will find him.”
“I don’t know if that is possible.” She nibbled on her bottom lip. “The duca was an evil man. I shudder to think what he did to my brother. Perhaps death would be kinder.”
Noah feared Rubina would never be able to fully recover from the atrocities she endured. “I will have Marcus investigate. If anyone can locate your brother, he can. Try not to worry overmuch. We will have answers. It might just take a while to get them.”
Once they found Damian, everything would be right in their world. Rubina’s happiness was all that mattered to him. They had a life to build together. The only blight on that was Damian’s predicament.
“Yes, caro.” Rubina cupped his cheek in the palm of her hand. A hint of sadness still lingered in her eyes. “Are you ready to go home?”
“I’m already home.” He kissed her cheek. “My home is wherever you are. But yes, let’s leave this place behind us and go somewhere inherently more pleasant.”
EPILOGUE
Rubina caressed his cheek. It was soft and beautiful. He was the most beautiful child in all of creation. Perhaps all mothers believed that of their children, but she couldn’t stop looking at him.
It gave her a small amount of joy through a difficult time. Knowing her son was alive and well while her brother…
She didn’t want to think about Damian. They had been grieving him for months. There seemed to be no reason to believe Paolo hadn’t murdered him. Throughout her entire pregnancy they had searched for any sign he might be alive. Whatever Paolo had done… They couldn’t find any answers. When Lucien was born, they were forced to give up the search. The family went into mourning. Now that her son was a year old, it was time to let her brother go. They had much to live for.
“Are you staring at Lucien again?” Noah entered the nursery. “Let the poor boy nap.”
She pouted. “But he is so lovely when he’s sleeping. When he’s awake, he often gets in touch with his impish side.”
Noah leaned downed and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. “This surprises you? The Marsden twins are his playmates.”
“You make it sound as if Alexander and Andrew have the ear of the devil himself.”
“No, but I don’t know how Liam and Gemma keep up with them. Once they started walking…”
Rubina laughed. “They are adorable.”
“Come with me,” he urged. “I have a surprise for you.”
Rubina looked down one last time at her son. He had his father’s dark brown hair and her silver eyes. He was the perfect mixture of both of them. It was hard to believe he was going to be a year old in less than a week.
“What do you have for me?” She turned toward her husband. “You give me the best gifts.”
The best one being their son…
He led her down the hall to her bedroom—turned dressing room. She never slept in it. Not when she could sleep encased in her husband’s loving arms.
“Why are we here?” She asked.
“Go inside.”
She stared at him, puzzled, but did as
he bid.
Inside, lying on top of her bed, was one of the most beautiful gowns she’d ever seen. It was pure white with silver lace embellishments. Tiny seed pearls were sewn into the bodice and shined against the lace.
“What is this?”
He grinned. “Do you remember our two week deal?”
Rubina nodded. It had been when he believed he needed to court her again. Foolish man—she never stopped loving him.
“I had this elaborate plan. It all fell apart—well, you know why. I put it on hold, but I think today is a good time to see it through.”
He pulled a ring out of his pocket and held it before her. It was a ruby flanked by diamonds on each side.
“Noah?”
“Will you marry me again?” He lifted her hand and kissed it. “I promise to love you forever. I even had it engraved inside. I know that Paolo took your wedding ring—I want you to wear this one as a symbol of how much I will always love you.”
Rubina took the ring from him and looked inside. Ruby, my heart beats for you—Noah
Tears fell from her eyes.
“So, is that a yes?”
She rushed into his arms and kissed him. “Did you think I’d be foolish enough to say no?”
Noah grinned. “Ruby, love—life wouldn’t be interesting if you became predictable.”
“This is true.” She laughed.
“A maid will be up in a minute to help you put on your new gown.”
“Today?” She asked surprised.
“Did you think I’d wait more than a few moments to make you mine?” He raised an eyebrow. “I can’t let the world believe, even for a second, that you are not my wife.”
Rubina laughed. “We wouldn’t want that.”
It didn’t matter that they were already married. This was the fresh start that had been denied to them. This was one thing she would do over and over again if it kept their love where it belonged.
Noah left the room and allowed her time to change.
When she came down the stairs, she had to choke back tears. Her father stood at the bottom to escort her to her groom.
“Papa.” She hugged him. “How long have you known about this?”
He cupped her cheeks in the palm of his hands and kissed her forehead. “Long enough to sail across the ocean to be here with you.”