Rhys told Mark that Oscar Linton was dead and explained the rest of what he’d overheard. When he finished, Mark leaned back against the chair and let out a long breath. He looked exhausted. Cassandra wanted to kiss the worry lines from his face, but he had not looked her in the eye since he’d entered the room.
She’d hurt him in her attempt to keep them from crossing a line that would only bring them worse pain. As long as an end to their relationship was established, Cassandra could prepare herself for loneliness. Anything else taunted her in a way she could not bear.
“I’m going to see her.” Mark’s voice was low and dark.
“What?” Cassandra and Stanton asked at the same time.
“Katherine. It’s possible she knows what her husband is up to, and I think I can convince her to tell me.”
“You don’t have to do this,” Cassandra insisted. The pain she saw on his face made her cringe.
“Yes, I do. I must do everything in my power to keep the two of you safe.” The intensity of his gaze made Cassandra shudder.
“What about your safety?”
“I hardly think Katherine intends to harm me. She’s much more likely to use seduction than violence with me.”
Cassandra decided not to bring up the emotional harm the encounter would cause. “Her husband will kill you if he finds you there.”
“It’s a risk I must take.”
Cassandra twirled an errant curl as she tried to think of some other way to get the information they needed. Cold fingers of fear played over her when she thought of him approaching Katherine alone. “At least take Stanton with you.”
“No. The only way I will get anything out of her is by pretending to accept her offer to renew our acquaintance. Stanton will stay here with you and Amanda until I return.” He glanced at Rhys who nodded in assent.
Would Mark bed Katherine to get this information? The thought sickened her. She could not bear the idea of that woman putting her hands on Mark. Cassandra had balked whenever Mark insisted she belonged to him, but sometime in the last few days she’d come to think of him as hers, and she’d be damned if she’d let Katherine hurt him again.
Mark rose. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
Cassandra followed him, but he did not turn around or stop until he was forced to wait for his great coat at the door. She took hold of his arm and turned him to face her. “I don’t want you to do this.”
“Why not? You made your feelings clear. You prefer taking a position where you will be treated like a servant to extending our liaison.”
“Mark, I never said that.”
He glared at her but said nothing.
“Whether or not I think it is best for us to continue our relationship, I do not want to see you hurt.”
“I don’t see why. You’ve used me as surely as Katherine did.”
Cassandra gasped. His words cut like knives. She ran for the stairs past a bewildered footman who carried Mark’s coat and hat. When she reached her room, she crumpled to the floor and let the tears flow. She cried harder than ever in her life, pounding her fists into the floor as the sobs bent her double.
Mark’s cruel words had prompted this emotional release, but once the tidal wave of tears began, she cried for everything cruel that had ever been done to her. In that moment, she hated herself for falling prey to Mark’s charms, and she hated Mark for making her feel something she never intended to feel. He’d shown her she would not be as happy on her own as she had thought.
She had fended for herself her whole life. Her mother had never been strong enough to stand up to her father so her sisters depended on her to protect them from her father’s cruelty. She’d had no one but herself to lean on.
Once she’d married Reddington, she spent most of the year in isolation at Reddington Abbey. Of course she had been able to write to her sisters and share some of her grief, but for the most part, she’d been forced to endure the hell of being Reddington’s wife on her own.
If only she’d had a strong ally whom she could rely on. Someone who made her safe. Someone she could trust. Someone like Mark.
Why hadn’t they met years before? She could have saved him from heartbreak, and he could have saved her from fear and guilt and loneliness. Now it was too late. Neither of them had the strength to open their hearts.
She was kneeling on the floor, tears streaming down her face when Amanda opened her door.
Her sister sank to the floor and drew Cassandra into her arms. Several minutes passed before they pulled apart. Amanda wiped at her eyes, and Cassandra realized her shoulder was damp where her sister had joined in her tears. “I didn’t mean to upset you, I—”
Amanda shook her head. “This is the first time you’ve let all this out isn’t it?”
Cassandra said nothing.
“You didn’t even cry when you married that son of a bitch.”
“Amanda!”
“I’m nineteen years old. You do not have to censure my language. Now answer my question.” She handed her sister the handkerchief she’d extracted from her sleeve.
Cassandra blew her nose and attempted to dry up all her tears. “Reddington wasn’t worth crying over.”
“But Mark is?”
“No. Yes. I don’t know.”
Amanda smiled. “What happened?”
“We argued this morning, and I hurt him.”
“What did you say?”
“I don’t want to discuss it. Mark and I won’t be seeing each other after Reddington’s killer is found. Right now, I’d rather concentrate on keeping you safe.”
“So that’s it? You’re going to walk away from him?”
Cassandra nodded.
Amanda shook her head. “You love him, Cassandra. I know you do.”
“I will not discuss this further. Where’s Stanton?”
Amanda sighed. “He is quite well occupied with a scandalous novel I found for him. I was glad to have an excuse to abandon him. He looks at me as if he is thinking of doing things one could not mention in polite company.”
Cassandra sighed. Perhaps she had overdone the warnings she gave her sister. “Stanton’s a good man. You like Mark well enough, and he is the epitome of a rake.”
“Yes, but he’s harmless, and he’s meant for you.”
“No, he’s not,” Cassandra said, as a few last tears wet her face. “He is definitely not for me.”
Cassandra stood and pulled Amanda up with her. “Let’s rejoin Stanton. I promise to protect you from any unwanted advances.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Mark raised his hand to knock on Katherine’s door. Before he made contact, it opened suddenly. Katherine stood before him, looking him up and down, lust plain on her face. She wore nothing but a crimson wrapper so thin she might as well have been naked.
“I was glancing out my bedroom window when I saw a hack slow and then stop. Imagine my surprise when you descended. I had to race down to see if my eyes had deceived me.”
“No deceit. I’m truly here.” He swallowed his pride and gave her an appreciative glance. “Do you always wear so little where the servants can see you?”
“Oh, they’re quite used to my eccentricities.” She smiled lasciviously. “Do tell me you’ve reconsidered my offer.”
He willed his lips to curve upwards. “Indeed I have. You were right. Why should you be denied my skills because you are married?”
“Mmmm. Why indeed? Come. Have a seat. We should talk.”
They entered a dark, richly appointed sitting room. Katherine pulled on the bell, and two footmen appeared almost instantaneously. “Take Mr. Foxwood’s coat and see that refreshments are brought to us.”
He watched as both men let their gaze roam over her body. Was she bedding them too? She certainly made no effort to cover herself in their presence.
“Brandy?” she asked.
“Thank you.” He forced another smile.
She filled two snifters, handed one to him, and joined him on the sette
e, sitting suffocatingly close and resting her free hand on his thigh. He had to fight the urge to slide away from her.
“What prompted this change of heart? Did Lady Reddington prove too boring?”
Mark nearly choked on a sip of brandy. Katherine had recognized her at Langley’s. He tried to recover though he feared he’d given himself away. “Whatever makes you think I’ve been with Lady Reddington?”
Katherine sat her glass on the marble-topped table in front of them and brought her hand up to caress his cheek. “I would recognize that ridiculous hair of hers anywhere. No mask could hide her identity.”
“Katherine, you are quite mistaken. I told you my companion at the party was someone you didn’t know.”
She smiled, far too knowingly. “Whatever you say.”
Mark took a few more sips of brandy. “I enjoyed Langley’s party more than I expected. I’ve missed much by staying away from such events. I thought by resuming contact with you I could insinuate myself into a world I wish to learn much more about.”
“Ahhh. What is it you wish to know?”
The look of rabid anticipation on her face unnerved him. What was she hoping he would say? “I’ve heard that your husband is involved with men who procure young women and train them to entertain at parties. I thought perhaps I would give such a party myself and—”
He paused when Katherine began to laugh.
“What do you find so amusing?”
“My husband?” She laughed so hard she barely choked the words out.
He downed the rest of the brandy, needing fortification for what was to come. “Yes. I assumed you knew.”
“Southwood is the biggest prude I’ve ever met. I think he might have been a virgin on our wedding night. Oh Mark, you don’t get it, do you?”
“Get what?” His head pounded, and the room spun. Surely her presence couldn’t actually make him physically ill.
“Southwood is the perfect stooge. All I have to do is smile, and he lets me do whatever I like while staying quietly hidden away in the country.”
It hit him then. Katherine. Kat. The Cat. How could he have been so stupid? “It’s you, isn’t it? You’re The Cat.”
“Of course I am. Oh Mark, I’m so disappointed in you. I thought surely you would have figured that out by now.”
Mark’s vision began to blur. He couldn’t think clearly. She had deceived him once again, and this time, it wasn’t only his heart that was in danger. It was his life and the life of the woman he loved.
“Walter came to see me earlier this morning. Apparently, he found you most entertaining when he described what he wanted to do to little Amanda Halverston. The look on your face must have been priceless.”
Mark’s stomach roiled. “You disgust me.”
“Awww, you used to find me so delightful.”
Her maniacal laugh beat against his head.
“I’ve wanted you at my mercy for a long time. It will be so good to have you inside me again.”
“You won’t get away with this.”
She stood.
Mark reached for her, but his hands wouldn’t work properly. The brandy. She’d put something in it.
She pulled the bell rope and turned to face him. “Cassandra has to die and, eventually, so do you. It’s a pity. The two of us could have been so good together.”
He lunged for her again, but her image divided into two and then three. He collapsed at her feet.
“Tie him tightly and take him to the carriage.” The words echoed in his head as he lost consciousness.
***
Mark had been gone for hours, and Cassandra couldn’t help but worry. She paced the length of the drawing room, wishing Stanton and Amanda made better company. Both were reading at opposite ends of the room. Amanda studiously ignored Rhys while he spent far more time staring at her décolletage than at the pages of his book.
Cassandra supposed she should be concerned by his interest in her sister, but perhaps her sister could use an invigorating flirtation.
“Cassandra, do sit down before you wear a hole in the carpet.” Amanda laid her book on the sofa table. “Would you like a game of chess?”
Cassandra glanced at the chess set and thought of the wonderful afternoon she’d spent with Mark. He’d shown her such tenderness that day. An invisible hand squeezed her heart. He’d hurt her that morning, but the thought of him being injured made her tremble.
“Mark should have been back by now.”
Stanton looked up. “We don’t know what he had to do to get the information he needed.”
“All she needs is to be reminded of that,” Amanda snapped. “Do you have any sense at all?”
“Amanda, there is no need to be rude. Rhys is right. But, even if Mark had to be especially persuasive, he should be back now.”
Amanda went to her sister and embraced her. “I’m sure he will be here soon. Don’t worry.”
“I feel uneasy. I can’t explain it, but I know something is wrong.”
A loud, insistent knock interrupted their conversation. Cassandra raced from the room. When she threw open the door, she saw a young woman. A threadbare gray cloak was pulled tight about her head, but strands of fiery red hair escaped to frame her face. Cassandra looked closer and gasped. Even in the shadows of the cloak it was obvious the woman had been beaten.
“I’m so sorry to come here like this, my lady, but Mr. Foxwood said I was to find him if something happened and I—”
“You’re Susanna, aren’t you?”
“Y-yes.”
“Please come in.” Cassandra took the woman’s arm to draw her inside.
Susanna winced.
“I’m sorry.” Cassandra let go. “I should have realized. How badly are you hurt?”
“No worse than I’ve been many times before.”
Cassandra didn’t know what to say. She beckoned for Susanna to follow her to the drawing room. Amanda looked up and froze when she saw the woman’s battered face.
Rhys’s book clattered to the floor. He rose, took Susanna’s arm, and helped her to the sofa.
“Susanna, this is my sister, Miss Halverston, and Mr. Stanton, a friend of Mr. Foxwood’s. You may speak freely in front of them. They know about Mr. Foxwood’s investigation, and they know I’ve been helping him.”
The young woman swayed. Cassandra sat next to her, helping her steady herself. “I’ll get you a brandy.”
“Should we summon a doctor?” Amanda asked.
“No, please.” Susanna’s eyes widened in fear. “I must tell you everything. They came and got me from my room this morning and started questioning me. They tried to force me to tell them what I knew about Mark and about you, my lady. When I wouldn’t tell them, they did this.” She indicated her face.
“Who were they, Susanna?” Cassandra asked. “The men who own the brothel?”
“Yes and another man, a Frenchman. He told them they were all idiots, and he would be running things from now on. She didn’t like that. They were fighting before they came to get me.”
Rhys handed Susanna a snifter. She extended her arm to accept it, and her breath caught. She pulled her arm back, cradling it against her body. He sat the glass on the small table beside her.
“You said ‘she’, Susanna. Did you mean Miss Caroline?” Cassandra asked.
She shook her head. “That’s why I risked coming here. I had to tell Mr. Foxwood. I was wrong. It’s not her husband. It’s Lady Southwood. She’s The Cat.”
A wave of nausea snaked through Cassandra’s body. “Dear God, what has he done?”
What little color had been in Susanna’s cheeks drained away. She looked around the room frantically. “What’s wrong? Where is Mr. Foxwood?”
Cassandra couldn’t make herself speak. Rhys joined the women on the sofa and took hold of Cassandra’s hand. “He went to see Lady Southwood. He wanted to convince her to help us.”
“Then, I’m too late. He was so kind to me. No one has ever…” Her voice trailed
off as tears poured down her cheeks.
“It is not too late,” Amanda insisted. “We’re going to find him.”
Rhys nodded. “Of course we are.”
Fear paralyzed Cassandra. What if Mark was already dead? What if she never got to tell him she loved him? Stabbing pain sliced at her heart.
“Cassandra, we can save him,” Amanda said.
Cassandra nodded. Yes. She had to pull herself together. She would not let Katherine win, but to help Mark she needed all her wits about her.
“Susanna, tell us what else you learned. We need to gather all the knowledge we can before we go in search of Mr. Foxwood.”
Rhys gave Susanna a handkerchief. She blew her nose and took a few more painful-sounding breaths. “Lady Southwood’s the one who’s been keeping the women after the men capture them. She’s hiding them at one of her estates, Southwood Grange. They don’t really need to keep the women locked up, though. They have a drug they give to all the girls. We crave more, and we can’t escape. I need some now. I’ll have to go back.”
Cassandra shook her head. “You cannot go back. They will kill you.”
“It’s my only choice. I can’t go long without their potion, and I can’t get it elsewhere. I don’t even know what they put in it.” Tears rolled down Susanna’s cheeks, and Cassandra pulled Susanna into her arms.
“We cannot sentence you to death after the service you’ve done us.” Looking up at her sister, Cassandra said. “Find Rebecca and have her summon a doctor.” Amanda left, and Cassandra focused her attention on Rhys. “We have to go after him.”
“I have to go after him,” he corrected. “But not until tonight.”
“He may not live until tonight.”
“We will have to take that chance. I can hardly waltz over there in broad daylight and ask them to hand him over.”
“We can’t let him die.”
“Mark is capable of taking care of himself. If they killed him on sight then we can do nothing for him. If he’s alive, there’s a better chance of him staying that way if we’re patient.”
Susanna took a tiny sip of brandy and coughed. One of her eyes was swollen shut, and the other had a cut beneath it. Seeing her like that made Cassandra want to track down Katherine herself and rip the woman apart with her hands.
A Carnal Agreement (Regency Intrigue Book 1) Page 20