"A ship's captain. A Spaniard." Richard spat the word like a curse. "Someone hired the blighter to kidnap Elspeth and kill her. Damn!" He slammed his fist onto the arm of his chair. "First that damned pirate pushes me to the edge of penury with his stalking of my ships, now this!"
Alex sat down across from Richard before the fire and studied him. He'd known Richard's weaknesses from childhood, but not until this recent series of events had he really understood his brother's actual problem: Richard had no soul. It confirmed Alex's decision to free Elspeth from him. No matter how he had to do it. Even death would be preferable to life as the wife of Richard March.
Pity he hadn't accepted that fact sooner.
"Are you listening to me?" Richard asked.
"No, not really."
"Alex! That damned pirate is determined to destroy me."
Hal Merritt's words suddenly echoed in Alex's head.
My reasons are my own.
Perhaps it was time to get the story from Richard.
"Why does Hal Merritt stalk you, Richard? Why not simply call you out?"
"Dueling is illegal."
Alex guffawed. "By the gods, that is a non-answer. Why not simply fall upon you when you come staggering out of a gaming hell or a saloon or a whorehouse then?"
"He is a coward."
Alex chuckled again. "I think rather he is toying with you, cutting at you. You've told me he is part Indian. Isn't that what Indians do to their enemies? Make small cuts all over, causing much suffering before the final blow? Acting right in character, I'd say. But you have evaded my question. Why? What did you do to him to cause him to hate you so?"
Richard rose and stalked to the window. "It is none of your business."
More or less what Hal Merritt himself had said, Alex mused.
A knock at the door interrupted them. Thank God.
"Come," he said.
FitzWilliam stuck his head through the doorway. "Excuse me, Mr. March. Milord." He bowed to Richard. "Sir, may I have a private word with you?"
"Certainly, FitzWilliam. We are finished. Weren't we, Richard?"
Richard nodded and stomped past both men. Within a minute, the sound of his horse headed back to Sandgrove sent a breath of relief through the whole house.
"What is it, FitzWilliam?"
"The Countess, sir. She's planning to ride for Lancaster tonight."
"Why?"
"The man Merritt has been arrested by the sheriff there for the Countess' murder."
"Yes, I know. That is what has the Viscount so worked up." He shared a sardonic look with the steward, then Elspeth's purpose became clear. "So, she intends to save him from the gallows?"
"Yes, sir. Merritt's first mate came to me when I got to Lancaster to retrieve the horses."
"And he asked that the Countess come to Lancaster to prove she's not dead?"
"No, sir. He only asked that the information be conveyed to the Countess. I suspect he only wished her to send a letter to prove his innocence."
"FitzWilliam!" Elspeth's voice preceded her into the parlor. When she entered, she was pulling on her leather riding gloves and had dressed in a splendid habit of hunter green. "Are you ready? Ah, Alex. Good. I shall require some funds. How much is there in the house?"
Alex sighed. He wouldn't be able to dissuade her, he could see. Turning to FitzWilliam, he said, "A horse for me, too." When the steward, shaking his head and muttering, left to carry out his orders, Alex turned to Elspeth. "I suppose we can scrape a couple of hundred if we sweep under the furniture."
She chuckled warmly. "So, FitzWilliam has told you my mission? And you disapprove. But you'll go along anyway." Crossing the room to him, she stretched up on her toes and kissed his cheek.
Alex nodded and patted her shoulder. "Yes, chick. I'll go along. Allow me to pack a few things and I'll ride with you to Lancaster to rescue your champion."
* * * *
They rode through the early evening, pushing their horses to reckless speed over the rutted roads. Even with the five surrounding guards, large, burly men all, and each armed with two pistols, Elspeth felt exposed. Hal had been hired to kill her. Who would have made such a bargain? Who hated her enough to want her dead? Only one name presented itself. But she knew that until she presented him with an heir, she was worth far more to Richard alive.
"The inn is just ahead, my lady," FitzWilliam shouted to her.
They stopped before a dingy place bearing the name Cock and Bull. A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth, but she was glad for any available lodgings at this late hour.
FitzWilliam took care of all the arrangements and after a plain, but adequate, supper she and Patsy retired for the evening in what had to be the best room in the inn. It faced the back of the building, so it was quiet, only the creaking of the bed as they settled in cracking the silence.
"Good night, milady."
"Good night, Patsy. Sleep well."
Soon Patsy's gentle snore soothed Elspeth's nerves, a sound bespeaking normal life.
How was her champion faring in jail? Did he have sufficient food? Was he warm? Had he been mistreated? How angry would he be that her pearls had landed him in this mess? Her experience with men being scanty, she feared the worst. Were most men like her late father and husband, quick to anger and slow to forgive? Did Hal more resemble her husband or his brother, her kind stepfather, Alex?
Would he be glad to see her tomorrow? How she had always longed for her presence to bring joy to a man's life.
"Oh, Elspeth, you are such a pathetic ninny." She brushed away her self-pity along with a single tear. Snuggling her back against Patsy's, she drew a deep breath and waited for sleep to come.
* * * *
Hal stood in the dock, more than aware of Richard March's eyes on him. Did March recognize the gangly boy in the man before him now? Did he ever think of the beautiful young girl who sat in a corner, day after day, rocking herself into exhaustion?
You'd better keep your mind on one thing at a time, Rabbit.
The jury, hastily assembled from local folk, eyed him with xenophobic hostility. He was a foreigner, he'd heard whispered. A Spaniard. Captain Garcia had again come in handy.
"Sir, explain, if you can, to my lord, how you, a Spaniard, came to speak English with an American accent."
"My mother was American." Stick as closely to the truth as you can, his father had taught him.
"And your father?"
"My father is a seaman."
"Explain your coloring, sir."
"Why?" Hal narrowed his eyes, hoping some of his anxiety would appear as irritation. "Do you usually confuse the situation by bringing a man's history into question? I am accused of murder. Where is the evidence such a crime was ever committed? Or that I committed it? Where is my accuser?"
"My lord," the prosecutor turned to the judge, "I had hoped Mr. Garcia would confess his crime and make this easy on everyone, but I see we shall have to proceed with a full-blown trial."
"Ass." Hal's quiet comment had the gallery tittering.
The prosecutor's jaw visibly clenched and his face went dangerously red against the snowy backdrop of his official wig.
"Sir," the judge addressed Hal, "you may step down for now."
Hal did so, returning to his side of the courtroom where he sat alone.
"My lord, I call Dovey Lovelace."
The blowsy pawnbroker took the oath and the stand with much preening.
"Mistress Lovelace, do you recognize the defendant?" The prosecutor waved toward Hal.
"Oh, yes, sir. 'E's the one as sold me the Countess's marriage pearls."
"How do you know the pearls belonged to the Countess, or that they were her marriage pearls?"
"I found a scrap of paper in the box."
The Prosecutor brought the damning note to her. "Is this the scrap you found, Mistress Lovelace?"
"Yes, 'tis."
"Read it for the jury please."
Dovey cleared her throat and piped
loud and clear. "To Elspeth, Countess Greymere, on the occasion of our marriage, October 22, 1839, from Richard March, Viscount Sandgrove."
A hum from in the courtroom. Hal had to resist the urge to swat at the irritating noise.
"Did the defendant mention how he had come into possession of the pearls?"
"Yes. It was-" Dovey pretended to think. Hal rolled his eyes. "It was a reward, 'e said, for a job well done."
The prosecutor strolled along the rail, his manner intended to impress the jury with the importance of this information. "A job well done. What was this job?"
"'E wouldn't say," Dovey replied.
"What did you pay him for the pearls?"
"Forty pound."
"Only forty pounds? These pearls are easily worth a thousand."
"That's what I thought, too, but I could see he was in a hurry and would take much less."
"Did the defendant at any time threaten you?"
"Yes, 'e did. Took me by my throat, 'e did and says, real sarcastic like, 'Do I look the kind of man who would kill a woman?' I could tell by the look in his eye he were just that kind of man."
Another buzz swept the courtroom.
"Oh, damn." Grandfather had always said Hal's hot temper would get him into trouble.
"What did you take that to mean?"
"That 'e killed the poor Countess and he would do the same to me. I was powerful 'fraid."
Hal doubted the old crow had ever been afraid in her entire life.
"Thank you, Mistress Lovelace. I have no more questions." The prosecutor strolled back to his table.
"Mr. Garcia," the judge intoned. "Do you have questions for the witness?"
What could he ask? The tart had told the absolute truth.
"No, my lord."
Dovey was excused and the judge called for the prosecutor's next witness. Hal fingered his collar. He knew it was only his morbid imagination but his collar seemed much tighter than normal. Was it especially hot in here? Maybe all the bodies crowding into the small court room caused the air to be thin.
The prosecutor called the sheriff who had stepped out. A boy was sent after him. Finally, the door opened. Booted feet stamped smartly down the aisle toward the bench. Hal didn't look up until a scent ticked his nose. He wasn't sure what it was, couldn't place it, but he knew it. His eyes found the new arrival. It wasn't the sheriff.
Alex March approached the bench. "My lord, if I may interrupt?"
"Who are you, sir?"
"Alexander Whalley March. Brother-in-law and stepfather to the Countess Greymere."
Salvation seemed to have come in an unlikely form. However, Hal was more than willing to accept a hand from the devil himself at this point.
"You may speak, sir," the judge replied.
"My lord, I have not come to speak. There is one, a lady, standing outside, who would please address the court."
Chapter Nine
"A lady?" the judge asked. "Highly irregular. Ladies do not come to courts, sir."
"My lord, this lady has unique testimony to offer." The door creaked open. Alex announced, "My lord, may I present Countess Greymere."
Naturally, such a sight as a peeress in her own right coming into a courtroom in a murder case, where she herself was the apparent victim, caused every head to turn toward the door. One observer, however, had a reaction unrelated to curiosity.
Richard March stood, his face mottled in red and purple blotches. His huge fists balled at his sides. His whole appearance was one of a man ready to throttle the nearest living thing to death.
Elspeth froze. Even at this distance, Hal could see the fear in her eyes. His body tensed in preparation to jump the rail if March made so much as a move toward her. But Elspeth straightened her spine and turned her eyes toward the judge as she stepped up to the rail, smiling at the bailiff who opened the gate for her.
Hal marveled at her spunk and wondered, not for the first time since laying eyes on her, how Richard March could be such a monster as to not adore her?
"My lady?" the judge asked.
"My lord, I have come to offer my assistance in this affair."
"And what would you like to add, my lady?"
Elspeth actually smiled. "Well, my lord, this gentleman is on trial for abducting and murdering me. I can testify that he did not abduct me and," her smile widened, "obviously, I am not dead."
Good natured chuckles greeted her sensible reply. Even the serious jurymen exchanged amused glances.
"Just so, my lady. But how did the defendant come into possession of your marriage pearls?"
Hal waited for his carefully shrouded disguise to come unraveled. Once she called him by his true name, charges would be leveled against Hal Merritt, the pirate, which would put him at the end of a noose as fast as the charge of murder.
Elspeth, however, clever girl she was, said, "I am certain I have no explanation, my lord, as I have never met the gentleman before."
"Will you be sworn, my lady?" the judge asked her.
"Of course, my lord."
She turned to the bailiff who quickly saw to the business. When she stood in the dock, the judge asked, "My lady, when did you first notice your pearls were missing?"
"I hadn't noticed yet. I don't wear them, so I wasn't apt to note they were gone." She avoided her husband's scarlet-faced glare.
"My lady, how do you know Captain Garcia?"
"Who?" Her wide-eyed innocence had Hal smiling.
"The defendant, my lady?"
She smiled her charming smile. Ah, she had a tiny dimple on the right side of her full, kissable mouth when she smiled so.
"As I have said, sir, I have never been introduced to Captain Garcia."
"How did he come into possession of your pearls?"
"I have already stated that I do not know."
"He did not abduct you from your home?"
"No. Of course not."
"Why, then, has your husband not known your whereabouts, but has been searching the countryside in much anxiety for your welfare?"
Her eyes widened, their creamy jade vivid in the morning light. Her blush, like everything about her, only added to her allure. Hal drank in the sight of her.
"I am a little embarrassed, my lord," she finally replied, casting a cautious glance toward her husband. "I received word from my steward concerning a matter of some importance on my own lands to which I had to attend personally. As the hour was very late, I did not wish to disturb my husband over such a trifle. I must also confess to being something of a ninny and I forgot to leave him a note." She turned to the judge. "I do apologize, my lord, if my foolish omission has caused this dreadful mess."
March did not appear mollified by her answer.
"Nonsense, my lady, nonsense," the judge said. "You may step down now."
Elspeth stepped out of the dock and passed through the room. Hal couldn't take his eyes off her slender figure, and he wished for a glance, some small notice from her. She didn't turn her eyes to him as she stopped at the rail, waited for the bailiff to open it for her, and passed through to take a seat by her stepfather. Of course, she had done the right thing. No reason to raise any questions about the truthfulness of her testimony.
Still he waited for her to look at him again. He wanted it badly.
The judge slammed his gavel. "Case dismissed. The prisoner is free to go."
"My lord!" The sheriff had returned and strode forward. "The defendant has not yet answered how he obtained the Countess's pearls."
Every eye turned toward Hal. He looked around and decided to try the story he'd been working on since Elspeth's arrival.
"I bought them from a man in the pub. I can give the sheriff a description if that would be helpful and get me on my way."
"Why didn't you tell me that in the first place?" the sheriff bellowed?
Hal assumed his most imperious pose and looked down his nose at the sheriff. Not an easy task as the man overtopped Hal by several inches. "You didn't give me a chance."
The sheriff had no reply.
"May I truly go, my lord?" Hal asked the judge.
"Yes, Captain Garcia. Her Majesty's government apologizes for this inconvenience."
Hal bowed expansively. "It was my pleasure to be ground in the wheels of Her Majesty's justice." Chuckles followed him as he passed through the rail and paused by the Countess. He bowed to her. "My lady, I am in your debt."
"Not at all, sir."
Was it his imagination or did she sound breathless? Her eyes met his and he saw something flash across them before she regained her cool, regal bearing.
"I apologize that my carelessness brought you such inconvenience," she said.
"To meet you makes it worthwhile, my lady."
She offered her hand and Hal took it, bowing further, pressing his lips to the silky material of her gloves, wishing he was kissing her smooth, soft skin. He heard her quick breath and glanced up at her in time to see her lips part. What he'd give to put his mouth to hers, to taste her sweet honey, to suck her tongue into his mouth-
"Well," he croaked, fearful everyone in the courtroom could see how much he wanted her. It was, after all, painfully obvious. "Thank you, my lady. If I can ever be of assistance to you, I hope you will let me know."
"I thank you, sir."
Hal let go of her hand and it fluttered down to her lap. Another place he'd like-
"Sir," he said to Alex March, then turned and left without looking back.
* * * *
Before Elspeth had a chance to recover from the riot Hal Merritt had released on her senses, Alex whispered in her ear, "Let's go, Elspeth."
"Yes, my dove, let's go." Richard elbowed Alex out of the way and seized her elbow.
Elspeth's fear came rushing back.
"Where are you staying?" he demanded.
"Richard-" Alex's voice cut off at Richard's vicious growl. "The Cock and Bull."
Elspeth didn't make a sound as Richard dragged her along the muddy street to the inn and pushed her ahead of him up the stairs. She considered running, but knew she could never escape him. She had no recourse but to go ahead into the room and face him. She'd known this moment would come. Had she secretly wanted this confrontation?
If she had, she was completely mad. That was some consolation.
The Ladys Pirate Page 8