Jaded Moon (Ransomed Jewels Book 2)

by Laura Landon

  Ross rolled the long, heavy flare between his fingers, but didn’t light the wick. Sam had been very explicit in his instructions not to send the signal too soon. Ross was to wait until the men were busy unloading the opium bundles so there would be little chance any of them could escape. It was important that they catch everyone involved, from the captain who brought the opium ashore, to the person at the head of the smuggling ring. Oh, yes. Especially the person who was the mastermind behind the smuggling operation—the person standing below him right now.

  The captain came out of the shadows and walked to the men guarding the shipment. Ross pulled the matches from his pocket and took one from the box. It was almost time. He stayed where he could see every movement from below and held the match steady, ready to light. The minute the men unloaded the last of the opium, he’d set off the flare so Sam and McCormick could converge on the smugglers and make the arrest. It was a well-planned operation, guaranteed to put everyone involved swinging from the end of a rope.

  Ross stayed ready. He swiped his damp palms against his pant legs. It was happening. The moment he’d been waiting for was unfolding before his eyes.

  The captain turned back and said something to the person standing in the shadows, then motioned to his men. There was a scurrying from below. One of the men picked up the first bundle of opium and carried it ashore.

  Ross stuck the flare into the ground and waited. His heart thundered in his chest as he watched the boat containing the opium empty. It was nearly time. He’d been given a second chance to redeem his name and nothing would stop him. Charlie’s future depended on it.

  When one of the sailors lifted the last bundle out of the boat, Ross struck the match and turned to light the flare.

  A movement from below drew his attention and he glanced down just as the person hiding in the shadows stepped into the moonlight. Recognition hit him with a force so painful it nearly took him to his knees.

  He closed his eyes, praying that when he opened them Josie wouldn’t be standing below with the full, ‘magical’ moon illumining her features and the last bundle of opium passing before her. He froze, unable to breathe; unable to move.

  Light the flare! a voice inside him ordered. But he couldn’t.

  Blood roared through his head, pounding against his ears like great clashes of thunder that stole the air form his lungs. Every part of his body was numb with shock and disbelief.

  Light the flare!

  He’d imagined so many different outcomes to tonight, the best being the smugglers would be captured and all would end well. The worst, that a gun battle would break out and someone would be injured, perhaps even killed. But not once had he thought he’d have to choose between his family’s honor and the woman he loved.

  Light the flare!

  Ross looked down onto the sandy beach. Josie stood like a sentinel while the men around her unloaded the rest of the smuggled contraband. They were nearly finished. If he was going to send the signal he had to do it now.

  He turned his gaze back to the flare at his feet. Then stopped.

  How could he light the flare, then live with himself when the woman he loved was hanged for her part in the smuggling?

  Ross didn’t feel the match burn his fingers. He dropped the charred stick to the ground where it flickered and died—along with any hope he had to redeem his name.

  A painful grip tightened in his chest. He pulled air into his lungs and pushed it back out even though his body didn’t want to function any more. Every instinct he possessed warned him to turn away from what was happening but he couldn’t lift his gaze.

  The small boats were unloaded now. There was still time to light the flare but he had to do it now.

  Now.

  Instead, he was unable to move as if he were a marble statue.

  The men pushed the small boats away from shore and still he didn’t move. He watched as their outlines became smaller and smaller and smaller, and finally disappeared. At last he tore his gaze away from the ship sailing out of the cove and looked back to where Josie had been. She was nowhere in sight. She’d undoubtedly gone back into the cave where the smuggled goods were stored.

  He tried to imagine what she was doing. Perhaps counting the goods that had arrived and estimating the profits she’d made from tonight’s delivery. Perhaps offering thanks to her magical moon that had brought her perverse, jaded miracle. Perhaps thinking of what she could buy for herself and for—

  That thought stopped him short. Something wasn’t right, but his mind was too numb to figure out what it might be.

  Bloody hell! She was an opium smuggler. She’d destroyed as many lives as her father. And he loved her!

  He tried to put the pieces together but they wouldn’t fit. How could she be involved in something so horrific? This was the woman who’d made one sacrifice after another for the children. Who’d tried to keep his son from him because of his reputation. Who kept the children at the orphanage long after they were considered old enough to leave because she wanted to protect them. Had she resorted to smuggling to provide for the children?

  She had. He knew she had. This was why she’d been so opposed to his cattle venture. This was why she’d warned him to stay away from this part of the estate. This was why she’d bargained with Lady Clythebrook for one more month. Because of the shipment she knew was coming in tonight.

  His mind whirled in confusion as he argued her case. For some reason a part of him still didn’t want her to be guilty. Even after seeing her standing there while they unloaded the opium, he still wanted her to be innocent.

  But she wasn’t.

  Ross stood on the cliff overlooking the cove, as still as if he’d been chiseled from granite. The ship was nearly out of sight now. The reality of what he’d done cut deep into him with the deadly aim of a rapier. He’d sacrificed his honor to save her. He’d thrown away his chance to redeem the Rainforth name rather than hand her over to the authorities. He’d lost everything he’d hoped to achieve.

  “Rainforth!”

  The sound of heavy footsteps pounding against the hard ground behind him was all the warning he had. The fury he heard in McCormick’s voice should have set his heart thundering in his chest. But he was too numb to have much reaction at all.

  “What the hell have you done?”

  He set his shoulders and watched the empty spot where the ship had been. Somehow he’d get through this like he’d gotten through the days and weeks after he’d discovered what his father had done.

  “That was the ship!” McCormick bellowed. “You let them get away!”

  Ross stepped back from the edge of the cliff and turned to face his accusers. The blatant fury on McCormick’s face was plain to see. The vicious rage was an emotion Ross could deal with. He understood it. It was even an emotion he knew he would feel as soon as the numbness wore off and what he’d done set in.

  What he couldn’t deal with was the harsh disappointment he saw on Sam’s face; the restrained anger Sam didn’t put into words; the coldness in his eyes and the open confusion that said no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t come up with one reason why Ross had done what he had.

  McCormick stepped in front of him and bellowed in his face.

  “You’re ruined, Rainforth. If you think your name was worthless before, the disgrace you suffered was nothing compared to the mud people will sling at it as soon as what you did tonight is common knowledge. And don’t think it won’t be. The twelve men with me can’t wait to get back to London to spread how you’re the second generation of Rainforths to betray his country.”

  “That’s enough, McCormick,” Sam said. “Why don’t you see if the men have found anything.”

  “You know they won’t find anything,” McCormick fired back, his voice brimming with anger. “Rainforth made sure the smugglers got away. What I want to know is why? How much is your cut from the smuggling?”

  Ross felt the barb and fought the urge to throw his fist in McCormick’s face. Sam h
andled the comment much better.

  “Check on the men, McCormick. Let me know if they’ve found anything.”

  Ross heard McCormick stomp off and he was left alone with Sam. “Do you want to tell me what’s going on here, Ross?”

  Another cloud covered the moon’s brightness. It cast them in semi-darkness that erased everything except the gentle slapping sound of the waves rolling ashore.

  “Answer me, dammit! What the hell happened?”

  Ross opened his mouth to say something. Anything. But no words would come. At least none that could justify the magnitude of what he’d just done. He closed his mouth and didn’t try.

  He saw a flash of anger, then concern in Sam’s eyes. He turned away.

  “I don’t know what game you’re playing, Ross, but be careful. These are dangerous men and you can’t fight them alone.”

  Ross arched his brows. “What makes you think I intend to fight anyone? You heard McCormick. I’m the second generation of Rainforths to betray my country.”

  Ross ignored Sam’s harsh expletive and stared at the spot where he’d last seen the ship. He knew Sam didn’t intend to let his statement go unanswered, but McCormick coming toward them stopped him.

  “The opium’s not there, Major. Only some wine and tea and bolts of cloth.”

  Sam released a heavy sigh. “Well, we can’t do anything more tonight. Take the men back to camp and get a few hours’ sleep. We’ll make a thorough check of the area in the morning when it’s light. Perhaps we’ll find something more then.”

  Ross knew Sam wanted to question him further but he didn’t. Instead, he followed McCormick back to where their men were waiting.

  Ross listened to him go and nearly sank to his knees under the weight of what he’d done. The moon shone bright and full again, the air washed over him with a gentle breeze, but nothing could erase the deathly pall that shrouded him.

  He’d lost it all. Given it up. Because he didn’t want to lose her.

  But because of what she’d done, he knew he already had.

  …

  Ross wasn’t sure how long he’d stood on the cliff overlooking the caves, but long enough for his life to come full circle. Long enough for every mistake he’d ever made to rise before him with overwhelming clarity. Sometime before dawn he made his way back to St. Stephen’s, where only a few hours earlier he’d looked forward to a future more perfect than any he’d thought he would ever have.

  Until his world had fallen apart.

  He walked into his study and sat in one of the two chairs flanking the fireplace, but didn’t light a fire. The darkness suited him well enough.

  As the hours slowly ticked by, the depth and breadth of his emotions ran the gamut from numbness to despair to disbelief to rage, and now, to a subtle anger that slowly grew inside him. Anger because she’d betrayed him. And, just as quickly, a determination to make her suffer for what she’d done to him.

  Ross looked at the cold, lifeless ashes in the fireplace. He could still see the long stretch of sandy beach where he’d seen her a few hours ago. He still battled the disbelief that engulfed him when she stepped out of the shadows. He recalled the exact moment he realized what her presence meant.

  He closed his eyes and wondered if it were possible to hate someone you loved.

  When he opened his eyes, the sun was peeking above the horizon, lighting the room in a dusky gray. It was time. Time to confront her. Time to let her know he knew about the smuggling and her role in it. Time she knew he saw her for the lying manipulator she was.

  Ross remembered what she’d told him when he’d asked her why she’d given herself to him. Because I knew I could trust you. I knew you would never hurt me.

  A hard knot formed in the pit of his stomach. She’d used him. She’d used her body as insurance in case he discovered her role in the smuggling. She’d slept with him to protect herself. She’d made him fall in love with her to keep from hanging from the end of a rope.

  Well, that may have been what she’d thought was going to happen, but she’d play by his rules now. And she’d pay dearly for what she’d done.

  Ross bolted from his chair and walked to the window. With a violent swing, he threw back the drapes and stared at the rising sun. By the time he washed and changed, she’d be at the orphanage. He’d confront her there.

  When he was finished with her, she’d know what it felt like to lose everything she held dear. And still have to go on living.

  Jaded Moon

  by Laura Landon

  Ransomed Jewels Series Book Two

  CHAPTER 20

  Josie walked along the narrow path that led away from the orphanage. If she stayed to her right, she’d end up near the stream where she’d taken the children not that many weeks ago when Ross had seen his son for the first time. She remembered the look on his face and how her heart had ached for the years he hadn’t known he had a son. She would never be able to look at the bubbling stream again without being reminded that even though she’d done everything in her power to stop it from happening, she’d fallen in love with the Marquess of Rainforth.

  She swiped her hand across her eyes. She didn’t need to relive the memories from that day and took the less-traveled path that veered to the left.

  She wanted time to herself. Someplace quiet where she could hide for just a little while until her hands stopped shaking and her legs quit trembling. Someplace where she could come to terms with the fact that she’d just emptied twelve chests of opium cakes wrapped in poppy leaves and cotton cloths into the ocean and watched the tide wash them out to sea. Time to adjust to the knowledge that she’d been involved in something much more deadly than the innocent smuggling of goods to provide for the children. And time to adjust to the fact that Geoffrey Lindville wasn’t her greatest threat.

  Blood pounded in her head when she thought of what would happen when the real head of the smuggling ring discovered what she’d done.

  On legs that trembled with each step, she walked until she reached the small orchard where she’d sent Charlie to hide that first day Ross had come to search for him. She leaned against the sturdy trunk of an apple tree, then dropped her head to her hands and rubbed her fingers against her temples. Her head throbbed from lack of sleep as well as the stress from last night.

  Convincing Captain Levy that this would be the last shipment they would receive had been easier than she’d anticipated. The captain had heard about the agency the government had formed to combat the rising opium addiction problem. He and his men were only too happy to unload the contraband and leave as fast as they could.

  What he did question, though, was why she’d come instead of the usual contact.

  For a minute, she thought the captain was going to refuse to leave the contraband. Finally, with a shrug and a smile that only lifted one side of his mouth, he gave orders for his men to unload the boats.

  As each crate and box passed before her, she pretended to show significant interest in the delivery, while inside her, she thought she would be ill.

  For nearly two years, she’d not only allowed, but looked forward to the arrival of the goods Captain Levy brought each quarter. For nearly two years she’d been so thankful for the money Cornelius Sharpe gave her from the sale of the goods, she hadn’t once thought to question what else was coming in with the cases of wine and bags of tea the captain could purchase. Instead, she’d turned a blind eye, while the tunnels beneath the orphanage were being used to smuggle in a drug that had destroyed hundreds of lives.

  Josie clasped her arms around her middle and took one deep breath after another. What she’d been a part of made her ill. But the worst was yet to come. Knowing how Ross would despise her when he found out turned her blood to ice. Even the fact that she’d spent the last several hours breaking open each chest and dumping the cakes of opium into the ocean wouldn’t make him hate her any less.

  She pushed herself away from the tree and swiped at a stray tear that ran down her cheek. She didn�
�t think she had any more inside her that hadn’t been shed last night, but somehow one more drop filled her eyes and escaped.

  Such moments of weakness made her angry. Crying was useless. She had no one to blame but herself and would have to face what she’d done and suffer the consequences. But she was so frightened. Perhaps, the best she could hope for was that Ross would go with her when she went to the authorities. Not that she expected his title or his appearance to influence anyone, but only so she wouldn’t have to go alone.

  She swiped her hands down her skirt to dry her sweating palms and turned to go back to the orphanage. She took two steps before she lifted her head, and stopped short. Her gaze locked with Ross’s and held.

  He stood before her, more terrifyingly handsome than ever. Her heart lurched, then thrummed faster in her breast. Oh, how she wanted to rush into his arms. How she wanted to spill out her story in one long breath and rely on him to tell her what to do. Or just to admit to him what a fool she’d been and have him tell her everything would be all right. But of course she couldn’t.

  Even if confiding in him would have been possible, something about his stern countenance and the icy coldness of his gaze warned her to be wary.

  “You surprised me,” she said, gathering her self-control. “I didn’t expect you so early.”

  “I might say the same of you, Miss Foley. I thought perhaps you wouldn’t be here yet, but Mrs. Lambert said that you were in your office even before she awoke.”

  Miss Foley.

  He hadn’t called her Miss Foley except in public since he’d made love to her that first time. A wave of warning washed over her.

  “I couldn’t sleep and there was much to be done.”

  He took two menacing steps toward her and stopped. “Just what did you need to do that had to be done before dawn? Or didn’t you go home at all last night?”

  Josie braced herself as the invisible wall she’d often found necessary to erect around herself went quickly into place. There was no softness in his voice, none of the warmth she’d looked forward to hearing. Another alarming jolt slammed into her.