by Tracy Kay
“I think Maxine should stay in London watching over your family, Cat,” Raven suggested, as he poured more brandy into the glasses. “We should talk to Simon Malany and Garner Collins, and inform them of our plans. Gretchen and Corinna may be in danger considering their relationship with Madeline. On the outside chance Farrington doesn’t follow us, he or one of his sons may try something while we are gone, and between Maxine, Simon, Garner, and your brothers, Deirdre, Gretchen, and Corinna should be safe.”
“I like that, Raven,” Conrad agreed, nodding again and taking his glass from Raven. “Simon and Garner are turning out to be good allies, and we need to make sure the rest of Brandon’s family is protected as well as Gretchen and Corinna. Maxine, Simon, and Garner will see to that.”
“It is all too dangerous. We should stay here. Keep them well guarded. I don’t want Madeline or the other women in any danger.” Brandon shook his head, sitting in the vacant chair next to Damon.
“We don’t have a choice, Brandon. We need to flush Farrington out, get him to make a mistake. If we stay here, he has a better chance at getting to Madeline. Besides, she won’t be happy being guarded indefinitely, and Jeremy is certain to find a way around the guards if he is as clever as you say he is. As I said earlier, this is our best course of action. We get Farrington to do something rash and he may no longer be an issue,” Conrad stated with determination.
Damon put his hand on Brandon’s shoulder, wanting to ease his worry. “I will take care of Madeline, Cat. She won’t be harmed.”
“You don’t know Madeline. She can be a handful,” Brandon snorted, shrugging off Damon’s hand. “Trouble seems to follow her. Damon, she is stubborn. She gets these crazy ideas in her head and she doesn’t care about her own welfare. She does what she thinks others want her or need her to do, or she goes off trying to save someone on her own.” Brandon slumped in his chair sullenly.
“Sounds like someone we know and love.” Raven gave him a wink. He was amused by Brandon’s boyish behavior but concerned as well. It wasn’t like him to lose his control and show his emotions.
“You don’t understand. She will injure herself if she thinks it will help make other people happy,” he complained miserably.
“Cat, I will watch over her and keep her safe from herself and others,” Damon assured, certain Brandon was exaggerating due to his current distress.
“She gets frightened when she is alone, particularly at night,” Brandon said, not wanting to let her go even if it was to his best friend. He wanted her safe and with him. Brandon knew instinctively that once he gave her to Damon everything would change. She would no longer be his, but belong to Damon.
“I won’t leave her alone at night. I will take care of her,” Damon promised, his amber eyes intent and sincere.
Brandon studied him a long time before coming to a decision. He sat up, took a long drink of brandy and faced Damon. “All right, Damon. You protect her, and when you take her, and you will take her, try not to hurt her. She needs a man with a firm hand but a gentle one. And for god’s sake, keep her in your cabin where you can keep an eye on her; otherwise, she will find some way to get herself into trouble, and don’t let her go ashore alone. And if she needs to be punished, punish her.”
Damon squeezed Brandon’s shoulder in support, positive that nothing other than protecting Madeline was going to occur. He was sure that Brandon’s predictions of his taking Madeline were not going to happen. After all, she was his best friend’s sister, and he wasn’t the type to steal ladies’ hearts or treat them like the whores he occasionally used to fulfill his baser needs. “She will be fine.” Damon stood and put his hands on the back of his chair. “I need to go ready my ship. We will leave tonight. There is a slim chance Farrington might miss our leaving, but I doubt it. Bring her to me after dark.”
Raven and Conrad glanced at each other in mutual understanding. Neither of them would object to a match between Damon and Madeline. They would wait and see how things played out before intervening and deciding the matter for them. The men stood up, wished each other good luck, and left the room to prepare for their journeys.
Brandon walked into the parlor and leaned against the door jam, watching Madeline comfort their grieving brother. He was proud and amazed at her ability to put aside her own grief to help another.
“Nicki, you will be all right. She loved you. Hold that in your heart, not your anguish. Joselyn would never want that,” Madeline comforted, holding onto Nicholas’ hand tightly.
“I can’t get it out of my mind. If I had arrived only a few minutes earlier, I could have saved her.” Nicholas stared at the floor, too much in despair to notice Madeline holding his hand or that Brandon had entered the room.
“You don’t know that, Nicki. Who is to say it wasn’t my fault. I arrived before you, maybe if I had done something differently. If I hadn’t . . .” She trailed off sorrowfully.
Startled at her words, Nicholas looked up at Madeline, put his arm around her, and held her close as much for her as for himself. “Darling, don’t think that. It is no more your fault than . . .”
“Than it is yours,” she pointed out, wrapping her arm around his neck.
“I miss her. How am I going to live without her?” He asked with tortured, imploring eyes.
“You will, but it takes time.” Madeline tried to console him, knowing that it was going to take them all a long time to get past their grief.
“She is right, Nicholas, in time you will stop grieving,” Brandon added. He turned towards Madeline, and leaving no room for argument in his voice, he commanded, “Go get some of your things together, Madeline. You are leaving in an hour.”
“Where am I going?” She questioned in surprise and reluctance. She didn’t want to leave her home or Nicholas at such a time.
“You are going on a ship with Damon Spencer. You are not safe here. With Damon, you will be safe,” Brandon spoke plainly.
“You are giving her to Spencer,” Nicholas protested in surprise. He held Madeline closer to him, not wanting to let her go. “I can’t allow you to do that, Brandon. That man is dangerous.”
“Damon is a good friend of mine, Nicholas. He will take care of her,” Brandon reasoned, not wanting an argument for something he himself had doubts about, but he knew it was the right thing to do, the only thing to do. Fate had a way of taking care of things, Brandon thought, and there wasn’t much he could do about it.
“At the price of her virtue,” Nicholas argued, stroking her hair to comfort her and himself. He didn’t know Damon Spencer that well, having only met him in passing a few times and when he had escorted Madeline to the Malany’s ball. Although the man had been friendly, Nicholas knew Damon had spent years at sea, and he was sure Damon was as ruthless as Brandon, Raven and Conrad. The four of them were formidable men, and Nicholas wasn’t sure he wanted his sister in the care of Damon Spencer.
“He will protect her,” Brandon vowed determinedly.
Pushing out of Nicholas’ arms, Madeline turned to Brandon and stared at him with large, green eyes filled with anguish and fear. “Brandon, I don’t want to go with someone I don’t know.” Madeline gave her own opinion on the matter. She didn’t want to go with a man she barely knew, even if it was one of Brandon’s closest friends.
Brandon crouched down in front of Madeline, held her face in his hands and met her eyes with his. She had been through so much already, and he hated that he couldn’t be there for her now, but there was no other choice. He caressed her cheek compassionately. “We need to get you away from Farrington, Madeline. It is too dangerous for you here, but out at sea, it is unlikely he can hurt you. Damon is a good man. He will take care of you, puss. I promise. Go get ready and pack sensible clothes, Maddy. You are not going to a soirée.” He stood up, took her hand, and guided her to her feet.
Standing up, Madeline gave him a scathing look. “I know that. I am going on an adventure, whether I want to or not.” She lifted her chin and flounced out of the
room.
“An adventure. She thinks running away from Farrington an adventure. I have to wonder if she will be any safer with Damon Spencer,” Nicholas grumbled irritably.
“She knows it is not an adventure, Nicholas. She is aware of the danger, but she is trying to make the best of it. And as for Damon, he will keep her safe.” Brandon sat in the chair across from his brother.
“He is a pirate,” Nicholas protested, trying to find something wrong with the man Brandon had chosen for Madeline.
“He is not a pirate, Nicholas,” Brandon chuckled. “He is a ship’s captain and your objection is that he will seduce Madeline. And knowing Damon as well as I do, he will.”
“She is an innocent, Brandon,” Nicholas argued, not at all pleased that Brandon was giving Damon Spencer their sister.
“And she is two and twenty years old, refuses every one of her callers, and has decided not to get married. You have pointed this out yourself not long ago. It is time, Nicholas. And Damon will be good for her,” Brandon defended, not just for his brother’s sake but for his as well. Yes, Brandon thought, it was time. Cassandra was right, they would do well together. Damon was a reliable and honorable man, and he would be worthy of Madeline. He couldn’t think of a better man to have his sister.
“She should have love, Brandon,” Nicholas argued with one more effort.
“And she will. I know her and I know Damon. He won’t resist her. He will try, but he won’t, and she will fall in love with him.”
“But will he love her?” Nicholas questioned.
“What man could not love Madeline?” Brandon asked, raising one black, sculpted eyebrow.
Nicholas bit out a harsh laugh. “No one. All right, Brandon. I will have to trust your judgment.”
“You don’t have a choice,” Brandon stated, ending the matter. On to the hard part, he thought. Brandon took a breath. “Now, for what you are not going to like.”
“There is more?”
“I am going after Farrington, Conrad is taking Jeremy and you are staying here,” Brandon answered inflexibly.
“No, Brandon. I am not. I am going with you. Stephen can protect the family.” Nicholas stood and began pacing. He was not going to be left behind. He wanted vengeance. He wanted to be part of this, not left at home like some boy.
“I need you here, Nicholas,” Brandon reasoned, hoping his brother would understand. “If Farrington decides to stay here and go after Deirdre and Jared, I need you and Stephen to protect them. I can’t leave Stephen alone. He is resilient and intelligent, but alone with Farrington, he won’t stand a chance.” He ran a frustrated hand through his hair, again wondering if their plan was the right thing to do. He didn’t want to leave his family unprotected.
Brandon shifted in his chair and crossed his ankles. “Raven has informed Simon Malany and Garner Collins of our plans. They needed to be warned since Madeline is so close to Gretchen and Corinna. Farrington may get it into his head to go after them as well. Simon and Garner are aware of the dangers and are available if you need them. Raven wants you to do him the favor of checking in on Gretchen. He is worried about her.” Brandon loosely clasped his hands between his knees and studied his brother for a moment before telling him the rest. “One more thing, and you aren’t going to like it, Nicholas, but please try to understand. I am leaving someone here with you for extra protection, particularly for Deirdre.”
Nicholas exhaled and sat down again, understanding and agreeing with Brandon’s reasons for leaving him behind. Stephen wasn’t able to deal with Farrington on his own, maybe in a few years when he was older, but not yet. However, Nicholas didn’t understand why Brandon felt it was necessary to have someone else watch after the family with him. He was more than capable of taking care of them. “I understand why Simon and Garner needed to be told. The girls need to be protected, and yes, I will look in on Gretchen for Raven. But you don’t need to leave anyone here to watch me, Brandon. I won’t chase after you. I know you are right. Stephen can’t handle Farrington alone, and if he gets his hands on Jared or Deirdre . . .”
“I am leaving Max here.” Brandon stayed resolute. He needed to make sure his family was safe, and although he knew Nicholas was competent, he was still grieving, and Brandon wasn’t too sure how alert Nicholas would be if difficulties did occur.
“Max, as in Maxine Stuart?” Unbelievable. His brother was leaving a woman to protect his sister. He didn’t like this; indeed, he did not.
“She will be a good companion for Deirdre and she will keep an eye out. She knows Farrington well and she will be prepared for him.” Brandon tried to ease Nicholas’ mind that it wasn’t his lack of competence and ability to protect the family that was in question. “We can’t make our family prisoners here, but they need to stay in London. Don’t let your mother take them to the country. It is too open.”
Nicholas grimaced in acquiescence. “I don’t have to like it, Brandon, but I understand. You are worried and you want us protected.” He ran a tired hand over his eyes before looking back at his brother. “I have not met Maxine. What should I expect?”
“The unexpected.” Brandon gave a half smile and stood up. “I will go check on Maddy. It is about time we left.”
“Good luck, Brandon.” Nicholas stood up to shake his brother’s hand.
“Keep our family safe, Nicholas.” Brandon gave him a subtle warning not to follow him.
“I will. You can depend upon it,” Nicholas proclaimed as Brandon left the room.
Madeline stared out the carriage window into the darkness, trying to process all the recent events. It was only this afternoon that Joselyn had been killed. She couldn’t help but blame herself. If she hadn’t acted so rashly and pulled the trigger, Joselyn would still be alive. She couldn’t help having the feeling that something had been wrong with Joselyn. It was as if Joselyn had disassociated herself from the situation and was unaware of what was happening. It wasn’t until Jeremy was at knife point again that she acknowledged they were in peril. If Joselyn had only been more alert or if she hadn’t shot Farrington . . . everything was happening so fast and here she was being sent away.
Madeline understood that she was in danger; however, all she wanted was to be surrounded by her family, not go off hiding on some ship with a man she didn’t know. She knew she should be terrified, but all she felt was a deep emptiness, a loneliness she couldn’t release. She was always sure of what would happen next in her life, the surety of attending the next social event, spending a nice day riding with her sister, laughing with Gretchen and Corinna, arguing with her mother, and running to one of her brothers when she had a problem or when her loneliness got to be too much. All that had changed. Joselyn had changed that. Farrington had changed that. She didn’t know what to expect any more. She didn’t know how she was going to manage being away from her family.
“Madeline, I want you to obey Damon as you would me,” Brandon instructed, interrupting her dark thoughts.
Madeline looked at him imploringly. “Brandon, I don’t want to go with someone I barely know and I don’t see why I have to leave.”
“It is not safe for you to stay in England, puss. Damon will keep you safe.” He lifted her chin up to meet his eyes. “Do as Damon tells you, and be a good girl,” Brandon commanded firmly, wanting to make sure she understood that he expected her to obey Damon.
“I am not a child, Brandon,” she scowled.
“I know, puss.” He smiled softly, giving her cheek a light caress before lowering his hand as the carriage came to a stop and the door opened. Brandon stepped out of the carriage and lifted Madeline down. Damon was quietly waiting there for them, knowing it was a difficult parting for both of them. Brandon shifted to Damon and quickly squeezed his shoulder in acknowledgement before he turned back to her and ordered, “Madeline, listen to Damon.”
She nodded, holding back the tears as Brandon gave her a tight hug. “I love you, Brandy.” She clung to him, not wanting to leave him or her home for an un
certain future. “And I love you, sweet.” Brandon kissed her brow before drawing away from her and handing her over to Damon. “Do what you need to,” he instructed Damon, giving him another squeeze on the shoulder while the carriage driver handed Madeline her bag.
“I will take care of her. Don’t worry,” Damon promised as Brandon got into the carriage and instructed the driver to return home. Turning to Madeline, Damon took her bag from her hand and put his free hand on her lower back, steering her towards the waiting skiff. “We are setting sail as soon as we board.”
He helped her into the boat which would take them to the Wayward Wind. It was a silent, short journey that left Madeline a little nervous and unsure of herself.
Once they reached the ship, Damon handed Madeline up to a waiting sailor who helped her aboard. Following behind her, he said, “Jack, here, will take you to my cabin where you will be staying with me. I don’t want you leaving the cabin until I say so.”
Madeline nodded her head as the tears she had fought off for so long slowly fell from her eyes.
Damon lifted her chin and wiped the tears from her cheeks. “Get some rest, Madeline.” He kissed the top of her head and left her with Jack.
Relieved that the ship was on its way and his first mate and crew were capable of managing for the rest of the evening without him, Damon made his way to his cabin to check on Madeline. He knew she was fragile. She deserved his attention and his ability of putting people at ease when they needed it most. It was his duty to protect this precious passenger, and Damon was going to do his best to lessen the fear and hurt he saw in her eyes when Brandon had put her into his care.