One Night To Be Sinful

by Samantha Garver

  "Nothing," Calvin said through his teeth, "your spy discovered would make Abby leave her home. No amount of money would ever make me betray her trust."

  "Oh." Katrina batted her lashes, pantomiming regret. "We were afraid you would say that."

  He heard the whistle of air, felt the slight breeze in the hair at the back of his skull. From the corner of his eye he caught another figure materialize from the shadows. He had only begun to turn his head when something heavy and hard slammed into the space above his ear. He fell forward fast, unable to control his limbs, and collapsed in the hay he had just scattered across the floor. Before the blackness closed in on him, as the shadows formed around the edges of his line of vision, he saw expensive boots step into view.

  "Now we do it my way," Lord Raleigh said.

  Chapter 28

  Calvin returned to consciousness with a stealth that was at odds with the dull throbbing at the base of his skull. He did not jerk with alarm when awareness hit him, but remained exactly as he'd been while unconscious. Head bowed forward with chin to chest, hands tied to the chair behind his back, he let his eyelids drift upward only enough to look out from beneath his lashes.

  It was a ballroom, that much was evident in the overwhelming floor space and the crystal chandelier that dangled from the ceiling. They had put him in the middle of the room-they being the three individuals conversing casually in the corner.

  Lord Raleigh wore a bland smile as he watched Dobbs place a table atop the marble floor. Katrina Raleigh waited until Dobbs was finished, then arranged a quill and ink bottle, a sheet of foolscap, and a small vase on the table.

  "There!" She smiled as if she were a child who had just finished setting her first table.

  "Everything is ready then." Raleigh rested a hand on Katrina's hip, and Calvin felt something in his stomach churn at the odd affection that existed between the two cousins. "Now we just have to wait until our guest arrives."

  "Do you really believe she'll come, Edmund?" Katrina's frigidly pretty gaze moved briefly to the man tied to a chair in the center of the room. "You don't think Mr. Dobbs was mistaken in believing there was affection between the two?"

  "I wasn't mistaken." Dobbs's tone was slightly irritated. He stood with his large shoulders hunched and his neck sunk deep into the collar of his coat, glaring at his surroundings as if the upper-class frippery offended him. "I saw them going at it, I did."

  Calvin's jaw clenched, his hands curling into fists. His tongue itched to say something to the bastard who had been a silent intruder to their lovemaking. Then, hands fisted and arms tense, he pressed against the rope that bound him in place. Everything in him snapped to alertness as the binding gave a little.

  "We'll see," Raleigh was saying, "if you were right about what you said you saw, Dobbs."

  "I was," the other man grunted.

  With some effort, Calvin unclenched his hands and used his fingers to find the knot holding the rope together. The corner of his mouth twitched as he gave a brief tug and the knot loosened.

  "Then she will certainly come," Raleigh continued, "and we can be finished with this business once and for all."

  "Finished with her," Katrina snorted.

  Calvin kept both hands behind himself, holding the rope about his wrists now. He wondered briefly what Raleigh had planned for the night. His gaze moved from the trio on the other side of the room to the ballroom's only exit, an opening not far from his kidnappers.

  "There's someone coming," Dobbs said.

  Calvin's attention jerked back to the man peering out one of the tall windows.

  "It's her!" Katrina clapped giddily.

  "No." Dobbs shook his melon-sized head.

  "What do you mean, no?" Raleigh pushed the man aside to look into the night-shrouded land beyond the estate.

  "It's a man."

  Calvin frowned.

  "Who is it, Edmund?" Katrina pressed up behind her cousin, standing on her toes to look over his shoulder.

  "How the hell should I know?" Raleigh hissed, clearly disliking this change in his plans. "It's dark out there."

  "I couldn't see his face," Dobbs said. "He has a hat on."

  Calvin's heart stopped.

  Well" -Raleigh glared at his toady-"go find out who it is. Get rid of him, damn it."

  Calvin's head slowly lifted, and he watched with sinking dread as the bulky man, nearly four times the size of the "man" in the hat, left the ballroom.

  "Ah, you are awake," Katrina said.

  Calvin bent his knees, preparing to rise. He could not have taken on both Raleigh and Dobbs, but the viscount alone was easily handled.

  When the other man turned to face him, he folded his hands behind his back. His coat parted to reveal the pistol he had slipped into the waist of his breeches.

  "What the hell are you doing?" Calvin demanded, staying in place.

  The viscount sniffed. "I don't have to explain myself to some insignificant servant."

  Calvin grinned darkly. "There's a lot you don't know about me."

  Raleigh blinked, his own smile fading.

  Lady Wolcott-

  If you ever want to see your man alive again, kindly pay your neighbors a call upon sunset.

  Abigail tore the note from the nail that had kept it on the stable wall; she had read the evidence that Calvin had been kidnapped half a dozen times in ever-increasing horror. It may have seemed unbelievable to anyone who did not know Lord Raleigh, but the woman who had seen the torn flesh of the mount that had failed him in the hunt and dealt with the pain of the carriage accident he instigated was unsurprised. Her hands trembled as she folded the note, her heart in her throat as she prayed Calvin had come to no harm.

  She reached into her jacket pocket as she drew Achilles to a halt, fingering the folded sheet of foolscap that served as her only link to the man and those who had taken him. For a heartbeat, standing alone in the dark and gazing at the lights of the enormous house, she wished she had listened to Margot when she insisted Abigail should not go alone. Sensibility followed her doubt, how ever, as it had when she began to remove her gown for more comfortable riding clothes.

  Timothy had not yet returned from the Black estate, so his assistance was not an option. Abby told Margot she wanted the older woman to stay behind with Mrs. Poole, just in case she didn't come back. At such a time, they were to go to the home of Sebastian and Bernice Black and get help.

  A shuddering sigh escaped her, the last of her fear as she would have it, and Abigail lifted her chin. She did not tie Achilles' reins, simply patted him on his muscled flank briefly before turning toward the house.

  She almost screamed when she slammed into the man.

  "I forgot, I did," Dobbs said, wrapping his fingers about one of her jacket lapels. "Ye like to play dress up."

  She held her tongue against a retort. Dobbs could perhaps learn a thing or two from her example. He wore breeches that were torn at one knee and a shirt bearing large stains beneath his shoulders. Abigail met his eye evenly, shifting her shoulder until her coat slipped from his grasp.

  "I am here to meet with your employer." Her voice hinted at none of her fear or the worry that had consumed her since finding Calvin gone.

  "He's inside."

  When the man did not move, Abigail's brows lifted.

  Dobbs's lips parted in a grin that exposed all his teeth and the places where several were missing. "I thought ye'd be all shriveled up underneath yer skirts, but when Garret had ye against that wall yer skin looked as nice as any naked lady I've seen."

  Abigail's features betrayed her distaste.

  Her heart began to pound in her ears as she was led through the maze of the Raleigh home. Not for the first time since receiving her note from the viscount, she wondered if this was some elaborate trick. The house was twice as large as hers-she'd give them that much-but she was certain they had passed the statuette of a bucking horse already. She parted her lips to insist Dobbs cease whatever game he was playing when they sto
pped before a closed door. Even as her guide-silent save for his grunting breaths-reached for the door handle, she heard Raleigh's voice and his cousin's high-pitched giggle.

  Abby took a deep breath before entering the ballroom. She frowned over the unusual setting for the meeting between her and her nemesis, but quickly realized what the viscount had done, he had done for shock value.

  The room was enormous, as big as her study and parlor combined. The floors were marble, the walls covered with a mural of plump cherubs dancing across the sky. A crystal chandelier hung from the center of the ceiling, directly above Calvin. Abigail came to a sudden halt when she caught sight of the blood on the collar of his shirt and then released a startled gasp when she saw where it had come from. His hair was matted down at one side, and brilliant red stains had dried around his ear and temple.

  Her gaze shifted quickly to meet Calvin's, and something within her, the beating of her heart, steadied. He had been placed in the center of the elaborate room in an effort to make him look frail and bruised, inconsequential in his well-worn breeches and work shirt. Instead, he bore a negligence that hinted he could belong in a rich man's ballroom and anywhere else he wished.

  Her fingers tightened around the grip of her crutch, her free hand clenched into a fist against her chest. She could not bring herself to speak, but asked him with her eyes-darting to the blood on his face then back to his-if he was all right.

  He nodded briefly. His own gaze, such a dark shade of blue it was nearly black, tried to communicate something to Abigail as well, but the viscount's words diverted her attention.

  "I'm glad to see you joined us, Lady Wolcott."

  "I had no choice." Abigail faced him, unable to forget the blood on Calvin's face, the way he had been tied to the chair and put on display like a trophy. "Did l?"

  "No." Raleigh smiled.

  "What on earth is she wearing?" Katrina spoke to the man next to her, but her gaze remained fixed on the newcomer. "I don't understand it."

  Abigail chose to mimic the same expression she had seen on Calvin's face as she watched him look the woman up and down in the stables. She surveyed Katrina's silken gown, low-cut bodice, and the lime green feather she wore in her hair with deliberate intent. "No, I don't suppose you do."

  The other woman's lips became a thin line.

  "Let's get down to the matter at hand, shall we?" Raleigh stepped to the side, allowing Abigail a better view of the table and single chair that had been behind him. "Would you care to have a seat, Lady Wolcott?" His gaze drifted to her braced leg, his smile too bright. "We wouldn't want you to take a fall."

  "I am not here to play games, Lord Raleigh." Abigail let her fisted hand drop to her side. "You will release Mr. Garrett at once."

  "Or else what?" Katrina pointed out, "There is no one to help you. Your lover is tied to that chair. Who will be of assistance, your friends? The Queen of Ice or the little nobody who married that monstrous earl?"

  "You know nothing about my friends, Katrina Raleigh." Abigail's temper was holding on by a frayed string. She glared at the other woman. "You know nothing about friends in general, I suspect."

  The other woman gasped. "Why, you bloody cripple-"

  "Enough!" Raleigh held up a manicured hand, ignoring his cousin's indignation to focus on Abigail. "I will release your servant after we've hashed out the rudimentaries of our arrangement."

  "I refuse to listen to anything," Abigail countered, "until you release Mr. Garrett."

  "A word or two, Lady Wolcott. Surely you cannot be so stubborn as to refuse that?"

  Calvin's low chuckle surprised everyone in the room. When Abigail turned her wide-eyed gaze upon him, ripples of awareness skidding down her spine, he had the decency to look chagrined. His eyes continued to gleam.

  "I am tired of your bullying, Lord Raleigh." Abigail began to walk toward Calvin, ignoring the expression he suddenly bore, the slight shake of his head. "I will not allow you to harm my ... servant. "

  "You will listen, Wolcott"-the click of the pistol being cocked punctuated her name-"or I will kill him."

  Abigail froze, dragging her gaze from Calvin's to slowly turn back to the madman. He appeared unflappable in his expensive attire, his face composed, as he held the pistol aimed at the man in the center of the room.

  As if from far away, Abigail registered Dobbs's pleased chuckle.

  "You cannot just kill a man," Abigail said once she found the breath enough to do so. "You will not get away with it."

  "Yes, he will," Katrina countered with relish. "We have concocted a plan. If it comes down to it, Raleigh will not kill your man Garrett. You will."

  Abigail glanced between the cousins, not comprehending their twisted logic.

  "Dobbs here has informed us of your, shall we say, passionate relationship with your servant. When he is found dead in the pond on your property, the whole village will know." Raleigh shook his head. "We will share what we heard of the fight you two had before the man disappeared."

  "How we heard Garrett tell you he was leaving you for another"-Katrina's teeth shone like a shark's when she smiled-"more appealing woman."

  "It shan't be long, I would imagine"-Raleigh shrugged-"before you are run out of North Rutherford, if not taken away in chains."

  "That's the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard." Abigail's voice was a near-whisper as she read the intent in the duo's eyes. It was quite obvious, however illogical, the cousins meant what they said. Heart pounding frantically, she grasped at straws. "I don't know why, but Mr. Dobbs has lied to you. I would never have a relationship of the sort you imply with a man under my employ."

  "I am not lying!" Dobbs blustered. "I saw them both in the stables."

  "Stables?" Abigail let her eyebrows shoot upward. She shook her head, hoping her lips would not tremble as she curled them. "Not only am I having an affair with my servant, but I cannot even manage it upon my own clean sheets?" She would not look at Calvin as she took a deep breath. "I am crippled, sir, but not desperate."

  "She is lying!" Dobbs hissed as he stepped forward. He pointed at Abigail as he defended himself to the viscount. "I know what I saw."

  "So it would not pain you"-Raleigh ignored the other man, moving to where Calvin remained as a silent observer at the center of the room"Lady Wolcott, to have Garrett's blood on your hands?"

  "I'd rather you did not shoot him," she said thoughtfully, still unable to look at Calvin-fearing she had hurt him with her words. "It is very hard to find good help."

  "Very well." Raleigh's smile grew as he let the hand with which he was holding the pistol drop. "You shall have your servant back unharmed. All you must do is sign the agreement my cousin has been so kind as to put out for us."

  Abigail's attention moved back to the table at which Katrina stood, now dipping a quill into ink. Abby did not ask what the agreement was. She already knew.

  "Do not, Abby." Calvin spoke for the first time since she'd entered the room.

  Her gaze skittered to him in time to see Raleigh slam the broad side of his gun against Calvin's cheek.

  "Stop!" Abigail's voice betrayed her, she knew, revealing her fear and, perhaps, her love. She took a step forward, and Dobbs closed his meaty hand around her arm.

  Calvin's cheek had turned a brilliant shade of red, yet his face registered no pain. His gaze remained focused on the man who had hit him, his expression full of hatred that frightened even the woman who loved him.

  Raleigh cleared his throat, turning away from the other. "I've been generous, I think, in my offer. Your house is not all that impressive, certainly not so nice as this one. Your land is excellent, however, ripe with animals suitable for the hunt."

  "You shall even have until the end of the month to pack your belongings."

  Abigail's empty hand shook as she let her gaze drift back to the document set in the center of the writing table. What in God's name was she to do?

  Calvin moved almost imperceptibly behind the man who was using him as
a pawn in his greed and hatred for her. He met her gaze, moved his head once to the right and then the left.

  Her chin dropped and she moved to the table. The taper atop it flickered, illuminating the same words that had been penned on the document Dobbs had brought into her home the day before. The title she had burned.

  Katrina held the quill toward her.

  She looked to Calvin again-he did not shake his head, as Raleigh had turned to keep him in his line of sight. His eyes held hers, brooking no refusal.

  Abigail pressed the tip of the quill to the document and began to write in her most elegant script.

  She was very conscious of the woman looking over her shoulder as she penned Go to he-

  "Shoot him, Edmund." Katrina shrieked. "She's not signing it."

  Raleigh blinked with surprise, the pistol already taking aim at Calvin-Calvin, who had risen to his feet.

  Abigail gasped.

  The viscount released an almost comical sound before the other man wrapped his fingers around his wrist and twisted. The gun fell to the floor as Raleigh's body contorted backward then heaved forward when Calvin brought his knee up into his stomach.

  Katrina screamed, glaring at Dobbs, who had been stunned into immobility. "Do something, you bloody fool! "

  The blocky man moved surprisingly fast, but Abigail's mind worked faster. She closed both hands around her crutch, gritted her teeth as she threw back her chair. The base of the crutch, though she had swung it without bothering to aim, caught Dobbs at the base of his throat. He came to an abrupt halt, clutching both hands to his throat as his mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water.

  Raleigh had fallen, but not without taking Calvin with him. He slammed the other's head into the floor, leaving him dazed as he frantically searched his surroundings. Raleigh began to crawl toward the pistol that had stopped against the wall.

  Reading his intent, Abigail moved toward the pistol herself. She had taken only one step before something slammed into her back, knocking her facedown onto the floor. Katrina landed on top of her, releasing a string of curses. Abigail floundered, gasping for the breath that had been knocked out of her, but felt a rush of relief when Calvin propelled himself forward to catch Raleigh's stocking ankle. He began to drag the viscount-who was attempting to dig his nails into the marble floorback to him.