She’d had to lie to James about where she was going. It had been an awkward lie, for a woman going abroad during her mourning period was frowned upon. Amanda knew James thought it odd that she had decided to leave the house, so she said she’d promised Great Uncle Simon. James had acquiesced but reluctantly.
She was also aware of the hypocrisy of her lack of honesty. She had made James suffer for his untruthfulness. She told herself that her deceit was for his own good. In all fairness to him, she assumed he had told himself the same thing when he had misled her.
Amanda turned her attention to Alfie and Liam. “You’re certain Viscount Lindley is not at home?”
“Yes, m’lady.” The one called Liam said. “The bloke watching the house will let us know if that’s changed.”
“Can you manage the servant who answers the door?”
“Alfie and Liam looked at one another and then at her. “Yes ma’am,” Alfie said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
“Of course,” she muttered.
Minutes later they pulled to a stop at the front walk of Derrick’s city abode.
Liam opened the carriage door and leapt down to the street.
Alfie turned to her. “Give us time to secure the house, ma’am. We’ll let you know when it’s safe to come inside.” He followed Liam from the carriage.
Amanda’s nervous gaze tracked the two henchmen as they approached the front door. A third man joined them, and they stopped briefly to converse.
“Are you certain about this?” came a voice to her left.
Amanda turned to Betty. The maid looked decidedly uneasy, her eyes round and shiny in the darkened carriage.
“The viscount tried to kill my husband. If I don’t do something, I’m convinced he will try again. I cannot live with that uncertainty. And frankly, I believe Cousin Derrick deserves a little of his own medicine.”
Amanda looked back up the walk. A servant had appeared at the entrance in answer to the chime, and Liam and Alfie pushed their way inside, the door closing immediately. The third man remained on the step for a moment, appraising his surroundings, then melted into the shrubbery. She felt her stomach drop anxiously. She meant what she’d said to Betty. But she had to admit she was feeling some uncertainty.
Ten minutes passed before the front door opened again. Liam came down the walk at a brisk pace toward the carriage. He nodded at the driver before helping Amanda and Betty disembark.
He leaned down to speak in Amanda’s ear. “Please move quickly, m’lady. We don’t want to draw attention to ourselves.”
Inside Amanda and Betty were escorted to the parlor. She left her veil in place temporarily, wanting to assess the situation before revealing herself. Two male servants, one significantly older than the other, occupied the small sofa. They looked frightened, and that caused her to pause. She looked to Alfie who stood next to the sofa, his intimidating presence presumably keeping them from bolting.
“Has either of you been hurt in any way?” she asked the men.
Both servants shook their heads.
She made a decision then, unplanned. She pulled her veil up and looked each man in the face. “My husband Lord Lonsdale is your employer. You know that, correct?”
They both nodded.
“If you wish employment when this evening is ended, I will expect you both to cooperate with these gentlemen here,” she indicated Liam and Alfie, “and keep whatever you witness tonight in strictest confidence. Are we agreed?”
This time the nods were decidedly more enthusiastic.
Liam smiled, tipping his head at her in respect. “Better than force.”
“Just so.” Amanda sat in a parlor chair, adjusting her skirts. “Now we wait.”
***
Amanda was drifting off when the door chime rang out through the house, which immediately galvanized everyone in the parlor. Liam and Alfie were already moving across the room when she looked up.
The older of Derrick’s two servants raised his hand from where he sat on the sofa, stopping them. “Lord Lindley will expect me to answer the door.”
She shared a look with both big men, and then Alfie escorted the servant from the room. Amanda could hear the front door as it opened, quickly followed by a scuffle. Yelling filled the small entry and a moment later Derrick was forcibly thrust into the room. He stumbled, falling to one knee.
“What the hell is going on?” he bellowed, standing up. Even as he spoke, his gaze fell on Amanda. “Why are you here?”
She stared at him, unable to speak momentarily, shocked by the revulsion she felt. “I’m here to right a wrong,” she said at last.
“What are you talking about?” His belligerence did not hide the sudden uneasiness that entered his peculiar eyes.
Every person in the room was now standing, including the servants. Amanda motioned them all to hang back, especially Liam and Alfie. Both men clearly understood what they must do if Derrick posed a problem, but she did not want them hovering too closely. When all was said and done, Derrick was a coward, and she assumed any threat he posed was minor.
The limelight now belonged to Amanda, and she intended to use it to its fullest. “You’re going on a little journey, Lord Lindley.”
“That’s ridiculous. I’m not going anywhere,” he snarled, although there was fear in his gaze now.
“Actually, you are.”
“Why?” he asked, although his expression suggested that he was already beginning to understand why.
“All right, we’ll have it your way. Apparently, you need to be reminded of an event that took place about ten days ago. James and I were taking an evening stroll through our garden. We were set upon by two ruffians—”
“Very unfortunate, I’m sure, but what does that have to do with me?”
“Why, my lord,” she waved a hand at him, “it has everything to do with you. Those ruffians are your friends, you see, and you hired them to kill James and me.”
The younger servant gasped aloud, and all eyes turned to him briefly.
Amanda addressed the servant. “Shocking, isn’t it?” She returned her attention to James’s cousin.
“I never tried to kill anyone! How can you be so certain they are my friends?”
“Truth is, like you, they’re not very bright. During our attack a large man, who we deduced was George, spoke to a small man, calling him by name. Freddie.”
Derrick’s complexion drained of color. “I don’t know a George or a Freddie.”
“That’s odd. According to James you do. He says he met both men at an inn not far from Lonsdale. Apparently, you were having quite the fine time with them, drinking, causing a disturbance.”
“Those are common names.” He was sounding less and less certain of himself.
“True. However, we feel confident that we’ve come to the right conclusion.”
“Because a random person is called Freddie!” Derrick’s face had gone from white to red as he spoke, and spittle formed on his lips.
Amanda kept her own voice calm, in fact infusing it with a touch of humor. “Not entirely, no.”
“What are you trying to say?” He was yelling now.
“With the help of my two associates here,” she indicated Liam and Alfie, “we located Freddie and George. They’re a rather well known duo in the lower echelons of society as it turns out. Inseparable, apparently. With a bit of persuasion those miscreants admitted attacking James and me. However, they are unwilling to take the blame alone and are accusing you of being the mastermind of their little operation. We are currently holding them in a safe place before handing them over to the authorities.”
Derrick started backing up toward the parlor door, but Alfie moved into position, blocking his exit.
“This has nothing to do with me. They’re liars! How could you believe scum like that?”
Amanda shrugged. “We can bring them here, and you can discuss their lack of integrity with them in person. We certainly don’t want to accuse you of something
you didn’t do.”
The room went very quiet. Derrick looked around at the occupants, his strange eyes red-rimmed with unshed tears. Amanda would have found his lack of bravery when cornered pitiful if she hadn’t been so disgusted. He had tried to kill James. She would never forgive him for that.
“Just let me go. I promise you’ll never see me again.” He was begging now.
“That’s one way we could do it. However, I don’t trust you to simply go away. I believe the motivation that caused you to have us attacked originally is still there. James nearly died. Under no circumstances will you ever have the chance to hurt him again.”
“Think of my mother.”
“Tsk, tsk, shame on you Derrick. I do think of her—what a disgrace that you do not.” Amanda paused in dramatic fashion. “Here’s what we are going to do. You will pack a trunk and be ready to leave within the hour. I suggest you include anything that is truly important to you. Then you will accompany Liam to the docks and board a ship headed for the West Indies.”
“You can’t make me do that!”
“You do have a choice, of course. When we turn Freddie and George in to the authorities, we can turn you in at the same time.”
“I’ll simply board another ship and return home.”
“And you will be arrested. We are filing a complaint against you, Derrick, but we won’t pursue it as long as you never step back on English soil—ever—or you will stand trial for attempted murder.”
His gaze flicked from side to side, now a mindless animal looking for escape. His breathing was panicked. At once his shoulders drooped as if he at last understood the futility of his situation. “How will I survive?”
“One of my father’s many businesses is in the West Indies. I’ve already sent a missive to the steward there letting him know to expect you. You will work for a living, Cousin, and James and I will pay your wage. And this is how I’m thinking of Aunt Henry. You’ll be spared the gaol, and she’ll be spared having your dreadful behavior thrust in her face on a daily basis.”
“You are banishing me from my home for the rest of my life?”
“Understand, Derrick, I am doing more for you than you deserve. I suggest for once you take what is being offered and be grateful. If it were not for Aunt Henry, you would be going to Newgate.”
Amanda motioned to Liam. “Please take Lord Lindley upstairs so he can prepare for his journey. I leave it to you to see that he is on that ship when it sails.” Liam nodded and she turned to Alfie. “I’m assuming your friend outside will help you bring Freddie and George to the authorities.” Again a nod. To both men, she said, “When your tasks are completed, please return to Lord Sutherfield for remuneration.” She turned to leave, waving at Betty to join her.
“Don’t do this, Amanda, I beg you,” Derrick said. “I suffer from seasickness.”
Amanda turned on him a stony gaze. “The knowledge of which gives me great pleasure.”
He tried one more time. “I never ordered James to be killed.”
“It doesn’t matter. Regardless of what you ordered—and I believe James’s death would have pleased you very much—that horrible little man Freddie nearly kicked him to death. My husband was unconscious for days because of your cruelty and spite. You did not spare James, and I will not spare you. Again, I implore you—be grateful. Your punishment should have been much worse.”
***
“Where the hell have you been?”
James was sitting in a wingback chair by the window in his room, having been helped there sometime earlier by his valet. He wouldn’t use the bath chair on the prideful notion that it was for invalids, and he refused to think of himself that way. Besides, he had demonstrated that he could walk—perhaps not very well on his own yet—but walk nonetheless. The leap forward in his rehabilitation was rewarding, and he basked in that momentous victory.
Amanda had come into the room at that moment to check on him. She was probably hoping he was asleep because then he might not discover that she was late—very late—arriving home.
Startled, she stopped just inside the door. “Oh! I didn’t expect you to be awake.”
As he had suspected. He glared at her. “When my wife says she’s visiting my great uncle and then doesn't return home until after midnight, I become worried about what has happened to her.”
“Why aren’t you sleeping?” Clearly, an evasion.
“Amanda,” he tried manfully to control his temper, “please don’t avoid the question. It is two o’clock in the morning, and my elderly uncle and his equally elderly wife would have gone to bed hours ago.”
By the look on her face, she hadn’t thought of that.
“And before you tell me an untruth, be aware that I sent a messenger to Uncle Simon’s townhouse to make certain nothing had happened to you. There seemed to be some confusion among his servants as to whether you had been there at all tonight.”
Amanda watched him for several moments as though coming to a conclusion of some kind. She walked into the room toward him. “You’re not going to be happy with me. But I refuse to apologize.”
He felt instantly apprehensive. “What did you do?”
She pulled up a chair next to him and sat down. “I went to see Derrick.”
“Damn it, Amanda! He’s dangerous. I don’t want you anywhere near him.”
“That will no longer be an issue after tonight.”
His brows lowered. “What does that mean?”
“It means sometime before morning your cousin will be on a ship sailing for the West Indies. It means that if he ever comes back home, he will be arrested for attempted murder.”
James was too stunned to do more than force out a single-word command. “Explain.”
And so she did, providing him the details of the evening and the eventual outcome. “Derrick was suitably horrified and—please forgive me—I was overjoyed to ruin his night.”
He listened with equal parts anger and admiration, convinced he should be ringing a peal over her head but too in awe of her cleverness to do so. “And you organized this entire night all on your own?”
She swallowed. “Ah…not exactly.”
“Would you like to enlighten me?” he asked drily.
“Uncle Simon was very helpful.”
“Bloody hell! You enlisted my elderly uncle to help you with your clandestine plans? ”
“Uncle Simon is an old man, true. But I’m convinced he’s smarter than either you or I. I needed someone with power and resources, and he was more than willing to help me. He was as angry as I was at Derrrick.”
“Was he now? You don’t find his willingness to put you in danger a bit foolish?”
“James, he had no idea I intended to go on tonight’s mission. I feel fairly certain he would have protested mightily.”
He placed a forefinger under her chin, forcing her to look him in the eye. “Are you saying you lied to Uncle Simon?”
Her face reddened. “Sin of omission, more like.”
“I see.”
Amanda grasped the hand holding her chin. “I couldn’t let Derrick hurt you again, James. When I thought you might die, I realized how important our life together has become. What would I do without you?”
The rush of gratitude that filled his chest momentarily stopped him from responding. He pulled in a shaky breath, leaning towards her—carefully, in deference to his ribs—and kissed her gently. When he drew back, her eyes had filled with tears. But she was smiling.
She put her mouth close to his ear. “Are your hands healed sufficiently to help me with my stays?” she murmured.
Her warm breath puffed along his neck, tickling the fine hairs there. His heart rolled over and a shock of primal heat shot directly to his groin. He was taken aback by how quickly the mere hint of intimate contact caused his body to respond aggressively. It had been too long. And his wife was an amazingly attractive woman.
“Remember when I asked you not to toy with me?” His voice was husky. “This
would be an excellent time to remind you of how unkind that would be.”
“Never, my lord.”
Amanda combed her fingers through his hair, her nails lightly grazing his scalp, and every nerve ending beneath her touch reacted with a thrill of sensation. She stood from her chair and began the complicated process of disrobing, beginning with her jacket. Then button after button was pulled free until she was able to slip from her shirtwaist. She was still trussed up in layers of clothing—corset with chemise underneath, skirt and crinoline and petticoats, unmentionables—and yet anticipation kept his eager attention. She stared into his eyes all the while, turning a mundane activity into an erotic adventure.
She spun lightly on her heels, her back to James, and slipped to the floor on her knees so that he might loosen her corset. James was no stranger to women’s garments, but tonight he felt like a raw youth. His bruised hands, still achy, shook as he grasped the laces, pulling on them, up and down the length of the corset until he felt the boned contraption ease its hold on her. Fortunately, the plaster cast on his arm did not impede his movements.
Amanda looked over her shoulder at him. “Thank you.” She took a deep breath as she stood up. Now she was able to release the hooks at the front of the corset. Again she held his gaze as she dropped it to the floor. “Can you give me a few minutes?”
“Oh no, I’m enjoying the disrobing.”
“Please? I won’t be long, I promise.”
He tried to hide his disappointment but not very successfully, he suspected. “All right, love. I’m not going anywhere.”
Amanda stopped at the lingerie chest for a piece of clothing and dipped behind the dressing screen. She was humming to herself, and James found the melodic tune soothing. She sounded happy, almost carefree, and he felt his own worries gradually dissipate to match her mood. He heard the crackle of static a she wielded the brush through her long dark hair, the splashing of water, feminine rituals that were, in his present frame of mind, very tantalizing. As he listened, his thoughts drifted back to that night at Lonsdale when he had spied on Amanda taking a sponge bath. Perhaps it wasn’t his most admirable moment, but it was a memory forever burned on his brain, and he cherished it on a very earthy level. That was the night his desire for his wife had expanded into realms he not yet contemplated. That was the night he truly understood the potency of integrating deep feeling with physical desire.
In the Garden of Deceit (Book 4) Page 25