by Lucy Monroe
"I know who is important," Calantha bit out, "What I do not know is why a duchess would stoop to such despicable behavior."
Ellen’s eyes narrowed. "Men can be very stupid, Lady Ravenswood. Just look at how your husband left you here alone and unprotected. He foolishly assumes that you are safe so close to the house. He underestimates me, of course. Men so often underestimate a woman."
"But why?" Calantha asked, her mind trying to wrap around the concept that the proper Duchess of Clairborne was a would-be kidnapper and murderer.
"Deveril, that idiot, wrote a most improper will. Can you imagine leaving half your fortune to your child and not stipulating whether or not that child was your by-blow?"
"Deveril left half of his fortune to Hannah?" Thea had been right. Money had been at the root of the terrible events, money due Hannah.
For a moment, unadulterated rage showed on the duchess’s face. "He wasn’t even that specific. He left half his fortune to a child, any child that was of his issue. One might almost forgive him, if one thought he had meant to care for a child not yet born to his proper wife, but we know differently. Deveril knew you could not have been increasing."
"How do you know that?"
"Come, Calantha, who do you think convinced him that you would lose your looks if he rushed you into childbed?"
"You?"
Ellen’s laugh was as cold as a winter day. "Do not be absurd. Ladies do not discuss such matters with gentlemen. However, a few veiled hints to Henry and he taunted his brother with the prospect. Henry was always jealous of Deveril’s place as the eldest. He enjoyed goading Deveril with the idea that you would no longer be the Angel if you grew big with child."
It made no sense. "What of an heir?"
"He would have taken you eventually and that is why he had to die. I could not risk him begetting you with a male child. I considered waiting until I had given birth to a son myself and taking care of Henry and Deveril in one grand gesture, but that Saracen, Deveril, had begun looking at you with a certain lustful expression. It wouldn’t have been long before he decided to consummate your two-year-old marriage. The thrall of being married to the ethereal Angel had begun to pall."
Even the thought of such an event taking place made Calantha’s stomach queasy. She could not imagine being touched in the intimate way Jared used with her by Deveril. The thought was beyond disgusting, it was beastly. Then something else Ellen had said, pricked her conscious. "You killed Deveril?"
That wasn’t possible. He had been shot by the jealous husband of one of his many mistresses.
Ellen looked bored. "Who do you think arranged for that slut’s husband to find her with Deveril?"
The full import of the other woman’s words hit Calantha. "You wanted the power of being a duchess. You planned to get it all along. You must have been furious when Deveril did not come up to scratch but chose to marry a lowly vicar's daughter instead."
"I am the daughter of a duke. He should have married me, but in typical male fashion, he was dazzled by your beauty and reputation as the Angel. There were bets on all the books at the gentlemen’s clubs the year you came out regarding who you would deign to wed. From the interest the gentlemen of the ton showed you, one would have thought you were royalty."
Instead she had just been a shy, frightened daughter of a vicar. "So, you settled for Henry."
"Yes." Ellen’s hand squeezed dangerously at the trigger of the pistol. "I began making my plans the day your engagement was announced. Deveril would still be alive if he had asked me to marry him. I would have been content to be his duchess, but he was a fool and he had to die."
"But why kill Hannah? We didn’t know about the will. Surely you realized that. We didn't even think the Clairbornes knew of her existence. The issue would never have arisen."
"I knew what Deveril had done to Mary. When I learned of her pregnancy, I spread the rumors that Ravenswood had sired her. All would have been well if he had not brought her to the district, but I could not risk someone else guessing at the truth of her parentage.
"What of Henry? Is he in on your dastardly plot to kill an innocent child?"
Ellen looked at Calantha as if her brains had gone to let. "Naturally not. Should he discover it, he might begin to suspect my other plans. Even a complete fool can have the occasional flash of insight."
"What other plans?"
"Why to kill Henry once he’s given me a male child of course. I have decided that I do not wish to share the consequence of the title with a fool. Besides, he once struck me. He soon learned I would not tolerate that sort of behavior, but a gentleman that would treat a duchess like a common trollop does not deserve to live."
Calantha shook her head. "You’re mad."
Ellen smiled, her face taking on a disturbingly evil cast. "Mad? I think not."
"Where is Hannah?" As morbidly fascinating as their conversation had become, Calantha wanted to make sure her daughter was safe.
"As I said, she is in my carriage. I’m sure the child is getting fretful with only my driver and helpers for company."
The thought of Hannah in the company of ruffians like Willem chilled Calantha’s blood. But what if Ellen were lying? What if she did not have Hannah and her words were merely a trap? Could Calantha risk refusing to come? If Ellen did have Hannah, Calantha must go to her. And there was the gun to consider. She did not know if the other woman had the nerve to shoot her, but Calantha had no real desire to find out.
"Take me to my daughter."
CHAPTER TWENTY
The bloody, mercenary bitch.
It took a full measure of control for Jared to bite back the shout of rage at the sight of the madwoman holding a gun on Cali. The pistol gleamed evilly in the afternoon sun, an ugly contrast to the early summer beauty of his rose garden. Feelings that he had not experienced since seeing his younger sister threatened by a wolf, roared up in him. They were equal parts rage and fear. Cali could be hurt, damn it. Killed.
The same feral need to do whatever was necessary to protect his own roared through Jared.
He’d been so angry when Cali had accused him of having an affair with Mary that he’d left her alone to say her goodbyes to their dead friend, rather than stay and yell at her for her bacon-brained notions. Didn’t his wife realize that she was the only woman he had ever loved? Mary had been his friend, but she had never elicited the kind of reaction in him his angel did.
He needed Cali like he needed his next breath. It wasn’t just the passion he found in her arms either. Oh yes, he needed her body. He craved her sweet, soft curves with a hunger that could never be quenched, but it was so much more.
He needed the gentleness that gave her such a sweet nature despite the things she had suffered. He craved the strength that had kept her living in the face of pure evil. He desired her compassion which was so strong, it made her offer comfort when she was hurting herself. He was in awe of her intelligence and hunger for knowledge. He needed everything that made her his angel and he needed it for the rest of his life.
She made him feel like a man, not a beast.
And now she was being threatened by a duchess as half-baked as a loaf of bread with a sticky center. Thank God he had come back to set his angel straight on her confused thinking.
The two women were at the opposite end of the garden from him and he could not see a way to overpower the duchess without giving way his hand. If the mercenary bitch saw him, she might shoot Cali. Her hand was too firm on the pistol’s handle and her finger pressed too tightly to the trigger for his peace of mind.
He waited until the two women had left the small grotto before following them on silent feet, keeping to the shrubbery and trees so the gun-waving duchess would not see him if she chanced to look back.
The duchess directed Cali on a roundabout path to the road that led to Raven Hall from the north. Using the instincts of a hunter with his prey, he steadily closed the distance between himself and the villainous woman. He wanted to reach her b
efore she brought them out into the open and his approach would be observed.
He could see the black form of a closed carriage through the trees and knew if he moved in now, she could call for help. He wasn’t worried about dealing with the low-life bastards she might have hired to help her in her unconscionable plot, but he didn’t want to risk one of them getting to Cali before he did. If they had Hannah, his daughter would be put further at risk as well. There would be no way to predict what the duchess’s men might do once they realized their plans were going awry.
They were closer to the clearing now and he could make out the carriage with more detail. He saw no Clairborne crest on the doors, nor was the driver dressed in the livery of a servant to the nobility. The duchess was up to her old tricks using a hired carriage and dressing in Cali’s widow’s weeds again. She must have gotten his wife’s clothes from her attic at Rose Cottage in order to emulate the soft rose fragrance associated with the Angel.
He saw no sign of Hannah.
Had the duchess lied when she told Cali that she had their daughter?
As Cali and the duchess approached the carriage, the door opened. A heavy scoundrel, who looked like he could be Willem’s cousin, he was so foul in appearance, stepped out of the carriage. The coachman lounged on the seat, chewing on a twig. As if he had no clue that he was aiding a cold-hearted bitch in trying to kidnap Jared’s wife and child.
Jared was poised, ready to spring at the duchess as Cali stepped into the clearing and the other woman was still concealed by the trees when all hell broke loose.
The sound of a child’s high pitch scream came from inside the carriage followed by the sound of a masculine yelp. Cali broke into a run toward the coach.
Hannah’s dark head popped out through the open doorway and the rest of her body followed. "Mama!"
She jumped down from the carriage as a beefy hand reached out to grab her.
The duchess swore, using a most unladylike phrase.
Cali’s entire body stiffened and she waved her arms wildly in the direction of the forest. "Run, Hannah. Run and hide in the forest! Papa will find you."
Hannah did just that, dashing straight toward the trees where Jared concealed himself. The owner of the beefy hand came stumbling from the carriage, rubbing at his shin and one hand covering an eye.
"Catch the whelp. She cannot get away," yelled the duchess.
She had turned from Cali, her gun now pointed toward her daughter’s running figure. Cali threw herself at the duchess’s back, knocking her to the ground. The pistol went off, it’s ball exploding into the earth and showering the two women with dirt. Cali had hold of the duchess’s hair and was pulling with all her might. Jared came out of the trees at a dead run.
Hannah stopped when she saw him.
"Do as your mama said. Run and hide in the trees. Now, Hannah."
His daughter’s eyes were wide and frightened, but she obeyed him and once again rushed toward the forest on her short but agile legs.
Jared veered toward the villain chasing Hannah and caught him a facer with an uppercut that sent the man flying several feet. He did not get up. Satisfied that he had been put paid to, at least temporarily, Jared went after the man that had first stepped from the carriage.
The dirty bounder looked like he was ready to spring on Cali, but she and the duchess were rolling on the ground, locked together in deadly earnest. Jared grabbed the man and swung him around, bringing his free hand up to connect squarely with villain’s jaw in the same motion. The huge man staggered, but he did not go down under Jared’s blow.
Jared did not give him a chance to recover. He brought his knee forward into the villain’s groin. With another sharp jab to the stomach, he sent the man to the ground.
The coachman finally seemed to wake up and started the horses in motion. The duchess and Cali had broken apart and circled each other like contenders at a prizefight. The sound of the moving coach caught both women’s attention and they turned their heads simultaneously. The duchess’s face turned livid with fury at the sight of her coachman leaving without her. She screamed very un-duchess-like invectives at the man as she chased after the conveyance, her torn and dirtied gown grabbed up around her knees.
The villain he had sent to the ground, now stood and rushed at Jared. He landed a blow that made Jared’s head whirl. Jared growled and used the opportunity to land his own punch against his opponent’s sternum, refusing to give into the dizzy sensation assailing him.
He brought his other fist in for a blow against the man’s nose. He felt bone crack and blood spurted. Jared kicked the bounder’s feet out from under him and then kicked the side of his head. The huge man remained in a heap on the ground where Jared had sent him.
He turned to make sure Cali was all right and saw her disappearing into the trees where Hannah had gone.
The duchess had managed to stop her coachman and was climbing into her carriage to get away. Jared couldn’t afford to go after her right now. The first man he had felled was nowhere to be seen and both his wife and daughter were out of sight in the forest.
"Put her down you scoundrel!"
Cali’s shout hit Jared more squarely than any of the bastard’s blows during his fight moments before.
He ran into the trees, his senses heightened by the danger to his family. Following the sound of Cali’s voice, he burst into a small clearing. The tableau presented made Jared’s blood congeal in his veins. The bastard held Hannah in one arm, a knife in his other hand. Cali, her hair in wild disarray, clung to his wrist like a limpet, preventing him from getting the knife near Hannah.
Jared didn’t waste time on words, but went forward in a silent rush. Grabbing the villain’s hand and Hannah at the same time, Jared yanked his daughter from the filthy man’s hold. He felt bones give under the steady pressure of his fingers as he tightened his grip on the other man’s hand. The man screamed and swung his free arm, sending Cali flying.
Giving the feral shout of a male predator whose mate has been injured, Jared let go of the man’s hand to bring his fist back and then swing it forward in a deadly blow to the other man’s face. The villain crumpled to the ground.
Hannah hugged his neck with a fierce grip. "Papa, is Mama all right?"
Jared did not know. Oh Lord, let her be unhurt, he prayed. He turned and found Cali sitting on the ground several feet away. Her feet stuck out in front of her like the legs of a porcelain doll and her torn skirts hiked up to expose one thigh.
She stared at Jared, her expression dazed. "It was the duchess. She planned it all."
He carried Hannah to Cali, kneeling on one knee by her side when he got there. He reached out and touched his wife’s cheek. "Are you hurt, mon ange? Did you hit your head?"
Cali shook her head. "I hit my bum." She sounded bewildered by such an event. "It hurts."
He felt a grin split his face. She would be fine. "I’m sure it does, baby. We’ll look at it when we return to the house."
Her eyes widened. "I don’t think—"
"You can’t look at Mama’s bum, Papa," Hannah interrupted.
He hugged her close, but didn’t answer. He wouldn’t lie to his daughter. He had every intention of looking at his wife’s bottom as well as the rest of her at the earliest opportunity.
"Ouch, Papa, you’re holding me too tight."
Jared eased his grip on his daughter and pulled Cali into the embrace. "You were very brave, poppet."
"I tried to hide, but the bad man found me." Hannah sounded aggrieved, as if a game of hide and seek had gone awry.
"You did very well, darling. Mama is so proud of you." Cali’s voice was thick with tears.
"I didn’t kick him like the other bad man in the carriage. I kicked him good. I poked his eye too." Hannah’s voice rang with satisfied triumph. "Aunt Thea says not to poke people’s eyes ‘cuz they could get hurt. I wanted to hurt that bad man, so I did."
"You did exactly right." Both his daughter and his wife had handled themsel
ves valiantly today. He turned to press a kiss on first Hannah’s cheek and then Cali’s soft lips. "Can you walk, angel?"
"Of course," she said, just as if she hadn’t been through a brawl with a mad duchess and villainous snake.
He stood. "Will you be all right while I go check on the other bas— bounder near the road? I won’t be gone long."
She nodded, her eyes still a little unfocused. "What of this one?"
Jared looked at the man that had threatened his daughter with a knife and sent Cali flying. "He won’t wake up before I return."
If he woke at all. Jared felt no remorse at the possibility that he had mortally wounded the other man. The bastard had brought it on himself when he hired on to aid the mercenary bitch married to the current Duke of Clairborne.
When he returned to the spot where the carriage had been, he found it empty. The duchess and two of her cohorts were long gone, but Jared would find them. Later. Right now he had his wife and daughter to care for.
***
Four days later, Calantha paced the floor of Jared’s bedchamber. It was after midnight and the entire house was abed, except the Bow Street Runner who guarded the hall outside the door. Hannah slept in the connecting room.
It had been this way for the past three nights, ever since they had returned from their confrontation with the duchess to find the Bow Street Runner Jared had hired to follow the Clairbornes waiting at Raven Hall. He had informed them that the Clairbornes had not traveled to their northern estate after all. The duke was in London, but the duchess was supposedly visiting friends in the country. Calantha and Jared had known better. A second attempt at kidnapping could hardly be termed visiting and it would be a snowbound day in Hades before Calantha would claim Ellen as a friend.
The bounder Jared had felled in the forest had woken from his unnatural sleep, pale and weak, but able to talk. Jared had forced him to tell all he knew of Ellen’s plans. Although it was late afternoon by the time Jared had finished speaking to the Runner and Ellen’s cohort, he had insisted on going after the duchess that very day. He had instructed the Runner to stay and watch over her and Hannah and taken time to go to the village and hire two ex-soldiers who had fought in the war against Bonaparte to aid the Runner in securing Raven Hall.