Alex, with Costa close behind, made his way through the night following the white bricks at the edge of the path to the beach. Jacob met him as he stepped down on the sand.
“None of the boats appear to be missing.”
“Then where the hell are they? Costa, did you send any men to check the path through the cliffs?”
“Yes. No sign of anyone going that way.”
“Then where the hell are they?” Jacob asked once again.
Alex paced the foreshore. Think, damn it. Where would you take her? He stopped and turned and began to run back to the village. “He hasn’t left. He’s still in the village.” Was he waiting for someone to arrive? Had he sold them out to Fredrick Cary? Or worse still, Murad?
Alex began to jog back to the village.
Jacob was at his heels behind him. “He may want the girl, but he’d never turn you over to Murad.”
“No, but he would give up her father to Fredrick Cary in exchange for Fredrick agreeing to let him wed Hestia. He doesn’t care about her money. He’d likely give it to Cary as well, as long as he gets Hestia as his wife.”
Jacob spat. “He can’t be that stupid. Cary can’t be trusted.”
“Perhaps he has another plan?”
They reached the cluster of white houses and Alex stopped so abruptly that Jacob almost crashed into him.
“Where would you hide?”
Jacob thought for a moment. “It can’t be in a house, unless one of the houses is empty.”
Costa, who’d caught up with them, shook his head. “None of the houses are empty.”
Alex’s nerves jangled. Where? Where could he be?
“The church.” Alex turned to Costa. “Is it left unlocked?”
“Of course.”
All three men took off at a run. Alex liked the feel of his two pistols banging against his hip in his coat pockets.
When they neared the church the men slowed and tried to be quiet as they stealthily surrounded the building.
“Alex, you and I will take the cloister rooms at the back. Costa and his men will cover the front.”
He merely brushed past Jacob and began to move toward the back of the church.
—
“Come on, Roberts, you’ve been paid enough money. There is no need to wait until she wakens.”
“She is unconscious. You told me it was in the woman’s best interest to marry you so I had assumed she was in agreement. I am not sure about being party to a forced marriage.”
“This is not about me being after her money. It’s about protecting her.”
The clergyman looked at Foxhall in disbelief. “Perhaps I should wait until she awakens and ask the lady. His Grace thinks he’s marrying the young lady, and I will not be party to wrongdoing where the Duke of Bedford is concerned, unless it is to save the girl.”
Foxhall’s fists curled and he bit back his terse reply. He looked toward the doors and wondered how long it would take Bedford to realize that he had not left Pentati. Not long. Alex was not stupid.
“It is to save the girl. His Grace is a man who will hurt her. He’s enthralled with opium and her life will be a misery.”
“During our discussion he sounded very lucid to me. I thought the lady was in fear of him, and that’s why I agreed to this plan. When we met in Mallorca you implied it was a matter of life and death for this young woman. That is why I agreed to meet you here at Pentati. It does not seem that is the case. No, I will not marry you until she can confirm her agreement.”
“That won’t be necessary, sir.”
David slowly turned at the sound of the stranger’s voice.
“Lady Hestia won’t be marrying anyone but me.”
Those were the last words David Foxhall ever heard as a bullet hit him right between his eyes.
—
The sound of the gunshot woke Hestia from sleep. She tried to push out the fog inside her head. Who had been shot? She looked down to see David’s lifeless eyes staring back at her. She started to shake. A noise to her left made her peer up from the hard pew she was lying on and she looked straight into the face of evil. Fredrick Cary. She began to shake even more.
He turned from her and addressed the whimpering clergyman. “Now, sir, you will marry us, and the lady, if she knows what is best for her, will capitulate.”
Still struggling to function, Hestia could do nothing more than lie back on the pew and watch her wedding as if in a dream.
Chapter 20
Alex crouched near the back entrance to the stone chapel straining to hear any sound. It was far too quiet for his liking. Perhaps he was wrong and Foxhall hadn’t hidden in the church.
Fear wrapped around him, held tight in a viselike grip on his heart.
The organ beating so fast in his chest told him he’d been foolish not to grab her and never let her go.
“I can’t kill a man in a church.”
Jacob’s fierce whisper broke through Alex’s fear. “That is what Foxhall is counting on. Besides, I don’t want to kill him, just send a message that Hestia is not his.”
“So what’s our plan then?”
“We go in and bring him out.”
“I see. Do I need to remind you he has Lady Hestia? How are we going to force him out?”
If he knew the answer to that they wouldn’t still be crouched at the back door.
“David won’t hurt me. We are friends. He sure as hell won’t hurt Lady Hestia.”
“Aye, he won’t kill her, but you?”
Alex swallowed hoping he was right. “Why would he kill me after all the efforts he’s made over the years saving me? We shall just have to be persuasive.”
“Where a woman is concerned, I’ve found friendships count for little,” Jacob whispered as they entered the sacristy.
The room had no windows and they had to wait for their eyes to adjust to the dim light coming in the open door behind them. Alex could see light under the door into the church ahead of them and quickly made his way across. He put his ear to the sturdy wooden door but could hear nothing. He hoped the door didn’t creak as he pried it open an inch. He couldn’t see anyone near the altar, but thought he saw a shape near the pews.
Jacob and Alex stealthily crept forward, and what Alex saw sent him racing across the cold stone floor just as Costa and his men entered from the front. Costa halted by Alex and crossed himself.
“It’s the devil’s work. Who would kill a man in the Lord’s house?”
David. David was dead. On the stone floor near the altar. Alex closed the lifeless eyes of his onetime friend.
He could not get any words past the fear that David’s death instilled in him. He let the fear race free through his veins; it gave him the strength he needed to concentrate and take action. Someone had taken Hestia, and he prayed it was Fredrick, not Murad.
“Over here, he’s still alive.”
Alex raced over to the middle pew only to see the vicar lying on his back, gasping for breath, with a huge crimson stain over his chest. The wound was not survivable.
Alex leaned down, his ear close to the dying man’s mouth. “Who did this?”
At first Alex could not make out the words through the man’s bloody gurgle. Then he heard “Cary.”
He stood up and let Costa’s men try to make the dying man comfortable while the local Catholic priest arrived to give him his last rites. Two men carried out David’s body. Alex could not worry about him now. He had to rescue Hestia.
“It was Cary.”
“Better Cary than Murad.”
Alex wanted to agree, but that would be like agreeing a shark was better than a lion.
“He can’t have got far. Jacob, send the men to the seashore. He’ll have come by boat.” Alex strode out of the church heading toward the shore, bellowing orders as he went.
Jacob jogged beside him. “We would have seen a ship sail in.”
“He doesn’t need to sail a larger schooner into the bay. It’s far easier to slip in on a sma
ller boat, one we were not looking for, and have the schooner waiting on the other side of the narrow passage, in the ocean, for a quick escape.”
“Surely the men on the Angelica would have stopped the schooner.” Jacob’s curses issued forth into the night. “I have been sloppy. I didn’t think to tell the men to be wary of a schooner, or to look for small transfer boats.”
“We’ve both been stupid. Let’s hope Hestia doesn’t pay for that with her life.”
Jacob pulled out his gun as they continued down to the beach. Ned came running to greet them.
“A small craft headed out toward the gap only fifteen minutes ago. I’ve already had the men follow the boat. They can only be ten minutes behind; they’ll have the Angelica ready by the time we get out of the bay.”
“Good work, Ned,” Jacob said as the three men clambered into the rowboat. Soon the dinghy was moving quickly toward the gap in the cliffs.
Costa called from the beach, “I’ll keep an ear out for Murad’s movements and send word to the consulate in Corfu Town.”
“Perfect, thank you.”
“Why Corfu Town?” Ned asked. “Why would Fredrick be heading there?”
“Fredrick has to kill Lord Pembroke,” Jacob answered, still pulling hard on the oars. “Row faster.”
Alex concentrated on his oar because if he didn’t, he might simply stand up in the little boat and shake his fist at God, tipping them all into the sea. If they didn’t catch Fredrick, Hestia would be lost to him forever.
He’d been such a fool. He should have married Hestia and left her in London. He’d thought he was doing the right thing by not shackling her to his side, when really he’d made a complete mess. It was like Tulay all over again. He’d survived Tulay’s death but if he lost Hestia…
“We will rescue her. We won’t let Cary kill her,” Jacob said fiercely.
“He won’t bloody kill her. He’ll sail away where no one can find them for a year and then return to England with Hestia as his wife.”
The two men stopped rowing at his words.
“Bloody hell, keep rowing,” Alex screamed in a panicked voice.
Jacob began to row harder. “God damn the devil himself. We have to ensure we keep eyes on that schooner.”
“Exactly.”
“I don’t understand,” Ned said. “I thought he’d simply kill Lady Hestia.”
Alex gritted his teeth as his arms burned. “If her father gets back to England Cary’s deeds become public knowledge. But if he marries Lady Hestia, he survives. Too many people have learned of his deception. However, the earl will keep quiet to protect Hestia’s reputation. They could say Fredrick had been told the body he buried was Lord Pembroke and he was simply misled, and no charges would be laid. In addition, if he marries Lady Hestia he eventually gets everything, or his son does. A clever man would not kill the golden goose. No Hestia means no money and likely imprisonment.”
Ned scoffed and rowed harder. “Lady Hestia would never marry that buffoon.”
Jacob cursed again. “The lass won’t have any choice. Sail away, marry her by force, then wait to get her with child and return to England. She’d have no choice but to stay married to preserve her reputation and avoid scandal. And protect her child.”
Alex’s fury almost blinded him. “Lord Pembroke would recognize Fredrick to save Hestia’s reputation.” Those words cost him. His anger saw him almost snap the oar.
Chapter 21
Alex’s hopes began to rise as they rowed against the current through the narrow passage. The Angelica had engaged the schooner, and to his horror he watched as a cannonball came very close to striking the port side of the boat.
Cary must already be on board, and Hestia was obviously with him. The last thing he wanted was for the schooner to go to the bottom of the sea before he’d rescued her.
Jacob, of course, spoke his thoughts. “The silly bastards are going to sink the schooner.”
To add to the woes, Alex could see the anchor chain slowly rising out of the sea. Fredrick was going to make a run for it.
It seemed like an eternity before they managed to reach the Angelica. The three men clambered aboard and Alex instantly halted the cannon fire. “We can’t sink her, we need to get close enough to board. Lady Hestia is on board.”
The only thing on their side was that the usual strong trade winds were absent. The schooner’s sails barely moved in the light breeze. The Angelica, being a much larger ship, had larger sails. They were catching every bit of breeze available, which meant the Angelica was turning faster than the schooner. Just as Alex began to hope Fredrick’s escape would be short-lived, looking through his spyglass he spotted a larger ship rounding the bay farther down the coast.
A cold sweat broke over his body. He’d recognize that ship anywhere.
Murad.
He slowly lowered the spyglass and motioned for Jacob to join him. He pointed down the coast and handed Jacob the device.
Jacob looked long and hard and issued a curse. “Well, you wanted to go after Murad. Seems like he’s found you. He can’t be that ill then. Best we rescue the lass as quickly as possible and send her safely back to Costa.”
“It would be better if she could sail far away from here as soon as possible even if with Fredrick. But if I leave her with Fredrick, I probably won’t be able to find her again.”
“You better hurry and make up your mind what you are going to do. You can’t leave her with Cary. Her life would be over. Being married to that man would be enough to make anyone jump overboard.”
“How long before Murad’s ship’s cannons come into range?” Alex thought they probably had about half an hour before Murad could attack them.
“Half an hour or an hour if we’re lucky. Not much wind.” Jacob looked across toward the schooner. “We will be in gunshot distance in ten minutes. Let’s go get your girl.”
The schooner, being smaller, carried fewer men, and once the gun battle began, the attack was over almost before it started.
Alex swung on a rope across the sea between the two boats and onto the deck of the schooner, which was covered in fighting men. He stepped over one dead sailor making his way to the galley. Before he could step inside, Hestia appeared with Fredrick close behind her. He had a pistol pointed at the back of her skull.
“Well met, Cary. If you let her go I might let you live.”
“I don’t think you’re in any position to dictate terms.” Cary wrapped an arm around Hestia’s waist and pulled her back against his chest. “Did you honestly think your trick with her lady’s maid in England would work? It must be a surprise to see me here.”
“Not a surprise, merely a nuisance,” Alex bluffed.
Fredrick’s grip on Hestia’s arm tightened. “Now, why don’t you take all your men and get back on that large ship of yours, while I quietly sail away with my new bride?” He gave an evil smile. “Or I can simply shoot her.”
Hestia gave a small cry as she slowly nodded her head at the question in Alex’s eyes. They were married.
“That’s right, Bedford. The vicar was kind enough to marry us, and I have the papers to prove it.”
“I did not agree to this marriage, nor did the vicar marry us of his free will. Nor were there any witnesses.”
Frederick laughed. “Alex and I quite understand that once I get you with child no one is going to look too closely at the legalities of our wedding.”
Alex’s fury rose and his face paled. “That’s not going to happen.”
“Who says I haven’t taken her already?”
Alex gave a dangerous smile. “You haven’t had time. Although your reputation says otherwise, the necessity of your escape means even you wouldn’t have been quick enough.”
They were running out of time. Murad’s ship was inching closer by the second. All of them were in danger. Luckily, Jacob had boarded the schooner too and snuck up behind Fredrick. His evil smile vanished when Jacob hit him from behind with the butt of his pistol, knocki
ng him out cold.
Alex raced and gathered Hestia into his arms. The men had placed a gangplank between the two ships, and Jacob ordered the men to lower the schooner’s anchor. That would slow Murad down by putting the schooner between his ship and the Angelica. Alex let out a piercing whistle and all his men left the schooner. Jacob then picked up the unconscious Fredrick and followed Alex back to his ship.
Alex carried Hestia down to his cabin and laid her gently on the bed. She looked exhausted and had a split lip where Frederick had obviously slapped her. “Other than your lip, are you physically hurt?” She shook her head. “Did he hurt you in any other way?”
“I know what you’re asking, but like you said, he didn’t really have time. He was more interested in getting to his ship so he could slip away. I was so scared you wouldn’t come in time.”
He watched as tears welled in her eyes, and he gently brushed them away. “Don’t cry, darling. I hate it when you cry.”
She gave a sob. “I didn’t know if you knew to look for me. I had no idea that David was going to kidnap me, and I was sure you’d never think he’d do such a thing.” She took his hand. “I’m so sorry. Fredrick shot David. I saw his body in the church. So sorry that you lost a friend because of me.”
He pressed a swift kiss to her lips as he wiped the tear from her cheek. “I’m not sure how much of a friend he truly was. I’d like to think he meant well. I honestly think he thought he was saving you from me.”
Her brow wrinkled as she frowned. “I don’t need saving from you. I love you. I would never have married David.”
Her warmth and love embraced him. He loved her too, but now was not the time to tell her. “Jacob is lowering a boat. He’s going to take you back to Costa.” He bit back the fear that if he didn’t win this battle against Murad, it would likely be the pirates attacking Costa next, and she would be in grave danger. If Murad learned she was on this island no one was safe. Best send her to her father.
“So you are going after Murad.” Her smile dimmed and she pulled her hands from where he held them. “I thought I might be enough for you. That you might have given up your need to seek revenge and chosen me and a life we could have together instead.”
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