‘It was that Mrs Prescott, my lord.’ The maid looked primly disapproving. ‘Bold as brass she was, riding along in the carriage as if butter wouldn’t melt in her mouth. When all the time—’
‘Mrs Prescott!’ Gabriel thundered. ‘And the two of you were daft enough to follow her?’ When Diana returned he was going to lock her in her bedchamber and throw away the key for behaving so recklessly!
‘It wasn’t too difficult to do, my lord.’ The girl looked pleased with herself. ‘There are so many carriages on the streets at this time of the morning, and—’
‘So you followed Mrs Prescott to an inn here in town?’ Gabriel cut in, having absolutely no time or patience to deal with this young woman’s long-winded explanation.
‘Yes, my lord.’
‘And Lady Diana is there still?’
‘Waiting outside, my lord.’
‘Take me there now, please.’ Gabriel needed to get to Diana as soon as was possible. He dare not leave her alone anywhere near Jennifer Prescott—that harpy was more dangerous than she looked.
‘If you are intending to look inconspicuous in your attempts at window shopping, then you are failing abysmally!’
Diana stiffened at the first sound of that familiar taunting voice, drawing in a slow and calming breath before slowly turning to face Jennifer Prescott, her gaze coolly dismissive as she looked at the older woman. ‘I was attempting to decide which hat I might consider purchasing.’
The other woman looked unconvinced. ‘As this is one of the more unfashionable parts of town, I seriously hope you decided on none of them.’
The milliner’s was, Diana agreed, a particularly unimpressive establishment, but surely preferable to her simply lurking about on the street corner. ‘Perhaps you are right.’ She gave a falsely bright smile. ‘If you will excuse me?’ Diana turned with the intention of walking away, her heart thundering in her chest with the knowledge that she should not have allowed Jennifer to realise that she had seen and followed her back to the inn where she and, possibly, her husband were staying.
‘I think not.’ Surprisingly strong fingers reached out and took a firm grasp of her arm, preventing her from leaving.
Diana raised haughty brows. ‘Release my arm immediately, madam.’
The other woman took absolutely no account of the request. ‘Where is Gabriel?’
‘How on earth should I know that?’
Jennifer’s mouth twisted derisively. ‘Because I have learnt that wherever you are, he is sure never to be far behind.’
If only that were true, Diana yearned inwardly, at the same time as she sincerely hoped that her outward show of bravado was convincing—surely May must have reached Westbourne House by now and relayed her message to Gabriel? ‘I believe you will find that you are in error on this occasion.’
The other woman looked completely unperturbed. ‘You had a maid with you earlier; no doubt she has gone for Gabriel.’ She smiled mockingly as Diana gave a start of surprise. ‘Oh, yes, my dear sweet Diana, I was fully aware of your inexpert attempt to follow me. Just as you were intended to do when I deliberately showed my face at the carriage window,’ she added with satisfaction. ‘Charles and I have had someone watching Westbourne House the past few days awaiting your return to town. It was fortuitous indeed that you should venture out alone so soon, thereby making it easy for me to arrange for you to catch sight of me.’
So much for Diana having believed she had followed her stealthily and unobserved!
Jennifer’s fingers now dug painfully into her arm and her face twisted into a malicious mask. ‘Gabriel?’
Diana knew she could continue to lie, to prevaricate, but what would be the point? Her chin rose challengingly. ‘As you say, I have sent my maid back to Westbourne House to inform him of the whereabouts of you and your husband. I have no doubts he will be here directly.’
If she had intended to disconcert the other woman with this announcement then she was disappointed, as Jennifer smiled in satisfaction. ‘In that case I must insist that you join myself and my husband at the inn whilst we all await Gabriel’s arrival.’
Diana’s eyes widened as she realised the implications of this dictate. ‘Unfortunately it is an invitation I must decline—’
‘Sadly, you will not be allowed to do so,’ Jennifer jeered. ‘Ah, Charles.’ Her gaze shifted behind her quarry. ‘Lady Diana has decided to join us at the inn for refreshment whilst we await your nephew’s arrival.’
As a ploy to distract Diana’s attention it was not very original. If indeed, it was a ploy?
‘How pleasant to make your acquaintance, Lady Diana.’ The voice that answered Jennifer was lazily charming, and obviously belonged to her husband, Mr Charles Prescott. Obviously not a ploy, then!
Gabriel’s frustration and anger, already at a premium after learning of Diana’s recklessness in following Jennifer Prescott, only increased when he arrived outside the inaptly named Peacock Inn where Diana’s maid had seen her last and failed to find any sign of her.
Where could she have gone? Surely she could not have been idiotic enough to confront the Prescotts on her own?
‘Ah, Gabriel, you are come at last…’
He spun round to confront Jennifer, his eyes narrowing as he considered the implications of both the pleasantness of her tone and her complete lack of surprise in seeing him there. ‘Where is Diana?’ he demanded coldly.
She gave a mocking smile. ‘She and Charles are becoming acquainted at the inn. It really is too bad of you, Gabriel, not to have made the introductions yourself, but—’
‘Do not play games with me, Jennifer.’ The softness of Gabriel’s tone was more menacing than any show of anger might have been, even though the thought of Diana alone with his unscrupulous Uncle Charles was enough to turn the blood cold in his veins.
Jennifer’s eyes flashed angrily. ‘I suppose Felicity has told you all?’
‘You suppose correctly,’ he said. ‘Now take me to Diana before I give in to the pleasure I would find in wringing your neck.’
She looked unimpressed by the threat. ‘How anyone could ever have believed I preferred you over Charles eight years ago is beyond my understanding.’
Gabriel’s mouth twisted contemptuously as this statement seemed to confirm Diana’s suspicion that Charles was the man Jennifer had been involved with all along. ‘Most things are beyond your understanding, Jennifer. Now take me to Diana!’
‘Gladly.’ She eyed him greedily. ‘No doubt, with Diana Copeland as our…guest, you will be only too happy to dismiss any charges you may have thought of bringing against us, as well as paying all of Charles’s debts!’
Gabriel did not reveal his reaction to this statement by so much of the blink of an eyelid, his long years of forced exile from his family and home having provided him with the ability to hide his inner feelings. It wasn’t that he did not have feelings on the subject, only that they were too strong, ran far too deep, to be allowed out of his rigid control. A control that would undoubtedly snap if he were to learn that this vile couple had harmed one golden hair upon Diana’s head.
‘—and so you see it was easy for Jennifer to claim that she was with child and that Gabriel was the father.’
Diana eyed Charles with distaste as the two of them sat together in a private parlour of the inn. Oh, he was undoubtedly as handsome and charming as everyone had claimed him to be, with his dark good looks so like his nephew’s and his own ease of manner. A charming rogue, in fact.
Except Diana found him far from handsome or charming. Not only did she despise him utterly for having just confirmed his involvement with the youthful Jennifer eight years ago, so obviously without any thought or concern for the nephew whose reputation he had so casually destroyed, but the pistol he held in his hand, and pointed directly at her, also gave her reason to fear him.
‘For her to claim she was with child?’ Diana repeated mildly.
‘Well, yes, of course; she never actually conceived one—Jennif
er has never wanted children, and knows exactly how to go about not having them.’ Charles smiled lazily. ‘We knew, of course, that none of my family would be so indelicate as to demand Jennifer see a physician to confirm the pregnancy. Not the done thing to mistrust a lady’s word, don’t you know,’ he added. ‘It also made it so much easier to say she lost the baby only weeks after our wedding.’
In none of Diana’s thinking about the past had she ever considered the possibility that Jennifer had never been with child at all! It was unbelievable. Despicable. And so like the Jennifer Prescott she had come to know that she didn’t know why she was at all surprised.
Bright blue eyes narrowed on her admiringly. ‘I must say, my nephew seems to have done all right for himself now, inheriting the Westbourne earldom and now becoming betrothed to you. So obviously no harm was done to him in the long run—’
‘No harm was done!’ Diana was so angry she thought she might actually get up and strike the man, despite the pistol he pointed at her so unwaveringly. ‘How can you possibly say that when Gabriel was banished in disgrace for something he had not done and apparently never even existed?’
Charles gave a uninterested shrug. ‘The existence of a child made the accusation of Gabriel having seduced Jennifer so much more believable. It was Jennifer’s idea, of course, and a damned fine one, too, if I do say so myself.’ He grinned unabashedly before sobering. ‘Now all we have to do is convince my nephew to hand over a sizeable fortune to us, if he wishes to regain possession of his beloved fiancée, and we can all be on our way.’
He talked just as though Diana were indeed that pair of boots she had so recently likened herself to! ‘I am afraid in that you will be disappointed, Mr Prescott.’ She glared her contempt and dislike of the man.
‘How so?’ He raised dark brows so like his nephew’s.
She gave a smile of pure satisfaction. ‘For the simple reason that Gabriel—’
‘Will never negotiate with the likes of you,’ Gabriel finished firmly.
Diana was both relieved and frightened to turn and see him silhouetted in the doorway. Relieved because he had come to her, but frightened that he might be injured by having done so. She might no longer be betrothed to him, might never know the joy of having won his love, but she would not be able to bear it if anything should happen to him! ‘He has a pistol, Gabriel!’ she warned sharply.
He looked at her calmly. ‘So I see.’
‘With every intention of using it on your beautiful bride-to-be if you do not agree to our demands,’ Charles informed him.
Gabriel had entered the parlour in time to hear some of Diana’s conversation with his disreputable uncle. ‘To that end I intend to remove Diana from your possession.’ He crossed the room to take a firm hold of her arm and pull her to her feet beside him. ‘Out of respect for my mother’s feelings, you both have twenty-four hours in which to remove yourselves from England, never to return.’ He looked at each of the Prescotts in turn. ‘Failure to do so will lead me to disregard my mother’s sensibilities and result in you being arrested and charged with multiples crimes: theft, my mother’s enforced incarceration, and now the added charge of kidnapping. All extremely serious allegations.’
‘Do something, Charles!’ Jennifer prompted her husband fiercely as she moved to his side.
The older man rose slowly to his feet at the same time as he raised the pistol and once again pointed it at Diana. ‘You really do not want to do that, old chap.’
‘Oh, he really does,’ a chilling voice murmured from across the room.
Diana turned to see Lord Dominic Vaughn standing threateningly in the doorway, the pistol in his own hand pointed directly at the waistcoated chest of Charles Prescott.
Diana’s knees almost buckled in the relief of knowing Gabriel had not come here alone, that he’d had the forethought to bring his friend with him. As Gabriel had once told her, he had several times trusted Vaughn with his life, and now it seemed he was trusting him with her life too.
‘It appears we are at an impasse,’ Charles drawled.
‘Really?’ Dominic said pleasantly, only the icy greyness of his eyes a warning that his mood far from matched that tone. ‘I have already shot and killed one villain this past month; I would not hesitate to dispatch another piece of vermin.’
‘Do not waste your shot, Dominic.’ Gabriel acted so quickly and capably that Diana could barely follow his movements as he used Charles’s distraction with Dominic to move forwards and wrest the pistol from his uncle’s hand with a mere twist of the wrist.
Charles clutched his arm to his chest, his face turning deathly pale. ‘I believe you have broken my wrist, damn you!’
‘You cur!’ Jennifer turned to glare her dislike of Gabriel even as she tended to her husband.
Gabriel appeared unconcerned as he weighed the weapon he held in his hand before answering. ‘No doubt,’ he finally said. ‘I have no idea what ships are leaving the English docks today and neither do I care, as long as the two of you are on board one of them when it departs.’
Jennifer straightened, her expression one of indignation. ‘And how are we to live?’
Hard midnight-blue eyes glittered dangerously. ‘Why should I care how, or even where you live, as long as you are both safely out of my sight?’
‘News of your own behaviour will cause a scandal—’
‘Another one, my dear aunt?’ Gabriel eyed her disdainfully. ‘I assure you, I am beyond being concerned about any further scandal you might care to create with your lies and deceit.’
‘And what of Lady Diana—is she beyond the consequences of a scandal, too?’ Jennifer challenged triumphantly.
His jaw tightened. ‘She—’
‘—will be only too happy to go into a court of law at any time and give evidence against you and your husband for the atrocities you have committed against both Gabriel and his family,’ Diana said firmly as she stepped deliberately to Gabriel’s side in an unmistakable show of support.
The other woman appeared less confident now as she looked at Gabriel. ‘You cannot just dismiss us in this arbitrary way!’
‘Oh, I believe you will find that I can and I will,’ Gabriel said as he once again took hold of Diana’s arm. ‘Be on that ship tomorrow or risk finding yourselves arrested and incarcerated on the day following.’ The utter coldness of his gaze warned that he meant every word that he said.
Diana gave Dominic a grateful smile as he stepped aside to allow her to leave the oppression of the Prescotts’ suite of rooms, keeping his pistol levelled upon the other couple as he and Gabriel then exited the room and shut the door on the indignant faces of the Prescotts.
Diana looked up at Gabriel gratefully. ‘I—’
‘Don’t say another word,’ he warned her through gritted teeth as they began to ascend the stairs of the inn down to the street below.
‘But—’
‘Best not to speak to him just now, Diana,’ her future brother-in-law murmured softly as they stepped out into the sunshine. ‘Gabriel is slow to let loose his anger, but when he does it is best to beware.’
Diana looked bewildered. ‘But I have done nothing wrong—’
‘Nothing wrong?’ Gabriel repeated incredulously, his face furious as he turned to hold her up in front of him. ‘You followed that woman without thought for your own safety. You allowed yourself to be seen and to be taken to the Prescotts’ rooms and held there as their prisoner. Don’t you dare interrupt me, Diana!’ he said as he gave her a little shake.
‘I did attempt to warn you, my dear,’ Dominic said sympathetically.
‘Stop it, Gabriel!’ She pushed against the hardness of his muscled chest—a totally futile gesture as she still suffered the indignity of remaining firmly held in his grasp.
‘Perhaps I should take Diana back to Westbourne House, old chap?’ Dominic offered pleasantly as two carriages drew up beside them and both grooms jumped down to open the doors. ‘It will give you time to walk off some of that
temper, perhaps?’
It seemed as if Gabriel had not heard the other man for several long seconds as he continued to glare down at a rather dishevelled Diana for long tense seconds before a sudden stillness came over him. He drew himself up to his full and imposing height and then finally released her. ‘That will not be necessary, thank you, Dom.’
Diana turned nervously to Dominic. ‘Perhaps it would is best if I go with you, my lord—’
‘Dominic will return in his own carriage and you will return to Westbourne House with me.’ Gabriel looked down the length of his aristocratic nose at her as he stood waiting for her to step into his carriage. ‘And once there you will go immediately to your bedchamber and remain there until I send for you.’
‘I most certainly will not!’ There were two spots of angry colour in her cheeks as she turned to glare up at him. ‘How dare you order me about as if I were no more than—?’
‘I gave her every opportunity, did I not, Dominic?’ Gabriel turned and spoke conversationally to the other man.
Dominic gave a pained wince at whatever else he heard in Gabriel’s tone. ‘You did, yes. But she is young—’
‘Her youth is no excuse for the danger in which she placed herself and others.’ He no longer waited for Diana to step up into the carriage, but instead swung her up into his arms and carried her inside himself, the door immediately closing behind them and leaving them locked in the dark confines of the carriage together.
Chapter Seventeen
Diana immediately began to struggle in Gabriel’s arms to be released, a move that proved totally unsuccessful as he sat down on the padded bench seat with her still held firmly in his arms and the carriage began to move forwards.
‘You will release me this instant!’ she demanded.
‘No.’
She stilled. ‘No?’
‘No.’ He did not even glance down at her, knowing that if he did so, he could not be held accountable for what happened next. She had deliberately and wilfully placed herself in danger. Had made herself the victim of any action the Prescotts might have decided to take against her. Damn it, she had calmly sat in a room making conversation with Charles whilst the man pointed a pistol at her!
The Lady Forfeits Page 21