A Scoundrel by Moonlight (30 page)

Who would have thought that Lord Leath turned out as slippery as his late-lamented uncle? Now Greengrass had lost the diary that had provided such a steady income. He was richer by a miserly fifty quid and piles of useless paper. Someone would pay for this unfortunate situation. Every penny he was owed.

It would be safer to retreat to his cottage in Lampton Wyck, but after that scuffle in the alley, he was angry. He’d easily tracked Leath and those other hoity-toity sods to the Royal Swan. Where else would men with such sense of their own entitlement stay?

Since escaping through the tunnels, he’d watched the inn. It would be easier to track his prey from inside, but even he wasn’t that cocky. Still he’d learned a lot about Leath and his cronies. Including the fact that they traveled with a woman.

He’d tipped a maidservant a penny to tell him about the rich gentlemen and their doxy. The whore had her own room and dressed like a nun. That didn’t gull Greengrass. A woman alone with a pack of men was at best, mistress to one, at worst, a strumpet brought to amuse the lot. After working for Lord Neville, Greengrass knew the peccadillos of the so-called upper classes.

The chit was his obvious target. Leath might cheat a poor man, but he’d balk at abandoning a female to a villain’s mercy.

Greengrass had paid the obliging maid another sixpence to smuggle him up the servants’ staircase. He’d glimpsed the slut as she went to dinner with her keepers. A looker. Rich men had the brass to pay for beauty. And that air of innocence never came cheap.

Aye, he could see why a self-satisfied ass like Leath wanted to tumble this wench.

Greengrass’s problem was getting his hands on her. If she slept alone, he could break into the inn and abduct her. But odds were that at least one lucky bloke shared her bed.

He’d asked the maid to keep an eye on the doxy. That hadn’t cost him anything but a quick tup against the stable wall. The girl was a plain thing with a wall eye and no acquaintance with soap and water, but Greengrass wasn’t fussy. As he emptied himself inside her, he’d found himself thinking about the pretty blond piece instead of the sturdy maid with her heavy thighs and grasping hands. The Fairbrother men might be a rum lot, but by God, they had excellent taste in trollops.

As if Satan himself eavesdropped on his thoughts, the door from the inn silently opened—no squeaky hinges at the Royal Swan—and a slender figure slipped into the walled
garden. Unable to believe his luck, Greengrass remained hidden as the girl wandered into the moonlight. Pale hair. A dress he wouldn’t keep for a dish clout. Graceful.

A slow, triumphant smile spread across his face and he gave a low hum of anticipation.

T
he cold made Nell shiver, but she couldn’t go inside and face James again. Not until she felt strong enough to resist him. Wiping roughly at her tears, she stepped onto the moonlit grass.

Could she follow her ultimatum through? How could she stay if he persisted in this ludicrous quest to marry her? She recoiled from more than just the prospect of conflict. She knew herself well enough to recognize that somewhere, someday, he’d find the words to persuade her. And she couldn’t do that to him.

A rustle in the shrubbery interrupted her frantic thoughts. She retreated a step, then exhaled with relief when a lithe black shape darted through the shadows. Tonight the Royal Swan’s cat was on the prowl.

The cat stopped to study her with unblinking eyes. Nell leaned down and made encouraging sounds, rubbing her fingers together. The animal flicked its tail in disdain and disappeared into the bushes.

Nell straightened with a sigh. She was feeling so low that even a stray feline’s rejection stung.

Another rustle. The cat must have company on its midnight revels. This garden would offer good hunting. Like everything at the Royal Swan, it was well kept, but filled with hidden bowers.

A cloud passed over the moon and the fairyland garden turned dark. Nell wrapped her arms around herself.

A twig cracked to her left. Her nerves pricked. That didn’t sound like a cat. With a quicker step, she turned toward the inn.

A huge hand covered her face, while a brutal arm clamped across her stomach and slammed her backward into a massive body. “Not so fast, lass.”

She struggled, but her screams emerged only as muffled squeaks. She kicked hard at the man’s shins.

“Stop that, you little bitch.” The low, menacing voice with its flat accent was unfamiliar. He jammed his arm against her so hard that she retched. Pain stopped her wriggling.

“That’s better. Do what I say or I’ll shoot. Do you understand?”

Her nostrils flared as she struggled for air.

“Understand?” he barked.

She nodded.

“Do you know who I am?” The very quietness of his voice iced her skin with terror.

She nodded again. The minute he’d grabbed her, she’d guessed that this must be Hector Greengrass.

“Clever puss, aren’t you?” He paused. “And I know who you are. Lord Leath’s fun.”

Horror tightened her throat. If he knew her connection with James, her chances of escape were nil.

She stared at the inn, praying that someone was awake
and looking outside. In the moonlight, she and Greengrass must be visible. But the windows remained dark. A high brick wall surrounded the garden, hiding it from the street. Even if anyone was out and about in the town at this hour.

“He’ll have to pay me twenty thousand to get you back in his bed. But first you’ll warm mine.”

Her instinctive jerk of revulsion made him laugh. “About time you got a real man between your legs.”

She gagged against his hand. She could smell his lust, that and stale sweat and tobacco. Nor did she mistake the ominous weight pressing into her lower back. She made herself stand still. Her squirming clearly excited him.

Oh, James, help me. Please, please, help me.

Only as she made the silent plea did she realize that she prayed to the man she loved rather than the Almighty. Hoping that blasphemy hadn’t doomed her, she sent a plea to heaven too.

The Lord helped those who helped themselves. She bit the hand covering her mouth until she tasted blood.

“Bloody hell,” Greengrass spat without, damn him, loosening his grip. He crushed her midriff until she near suffocated and kneed her in the back. Despite her vow not to cry, hot tears of agony pricked her eyes.

“No more of that, flower.” Greengrass hauled her around to face the gate. “If you’re too much trouble, I’ll wring that pretty neck faster than you can say King George. Do you understand?”

She nodded, too scared to muster further defiance. There must be something she could do, but with his heavy body wrapped around her, she felt powerless and thickheaded.

“Good.”

Abruptly Greengrass released her. She lurched away, but before she could take advantage of the moment, something
cold pressed into her temple. “No games now. I’d hate to spoil that pretty face.”

Nell gulped, more frightened than she’d ever been in her life. “You…” She stopped to lick her lips, her mouth was so dry with dread. “You’re wasting your time. Lord Leath doesn’t care about a doxy.”

Greengrass’s low chuckle made the hair rise on the back of her neck. “He’s a gallant fool. He won’t leave a woman with me. He knows what I’ll do to her.”

Bile soured her mouth. She knew too. “Twenty thousand pounds is a fortune. Nobody will pay that.”

“He will. And I have a feeling that you’re more of a bargaining chip than you say. Start walking. Slowly now, and no tricks.”

She should be relieved that he no longer held her. But the chill iron of the gun proved she was as helpless as ever.

Nell straightened and moved, only to stumble on a dip in the path. Nearly ripping her arm out of its socket, Greengrass wrenched her upright. “Careful.”

She took another step before he dragged her to a staggering stop. “What was that?”

Nell’s heart pounded so loudly in her ears that she’d heard nothing. The faint, unlikely hope that James had arrived crumbled to ash when the cat reappeared, a mouse struggling in her jaws. Nell knew just how that mouse felt.

“Move.” Greengrass released her arm and shoved her between the shoulders. With grim resolution, she obeyed.

Trees shadowed the wooden gate, making that corner of the garden as dark as a coalmine. Nell shivered with dread as she entered the tunnel of vegetation, although common sense insisted that Greengrass wouldn’t rape her so close to the inn.

“Open the gate,” Greengrass snapped.

She pushed without result. “It’s locked.”

“There’s a bolt. Find it and pull it back.”

She dreaded leaving the garden. Out in the street, she had a superstitious fear that she’d be beyond rescue.

Greengrass jabbed the gun at her head. “Let’s get out of here.”

“I’d rather you stayed right where you are.” The deep voice emerged from the impenetrable blackness further along the wall.

James?

Nell stiffened in shock. Then strangling fear rose anew. Now the man she loved was at risk too.

“Well, bugger me dead,” Greengrass said. “Don’t try anything smart, your lordship. I’ve got a gun pointed at your whore’s head.”

“And I’ve got a pistol leveled at your kidneys,” James said.

“One flick of my finger and she’s dead.”

“James, I’m so sorry.” Nell squinted to see him, but the gloom defeated her. Every time she shifted, the pistol barrel chafed her temple. The sensation wasn’t pleasant.

“Has he hurt you?” James asked.

“No.”

“Thank God.” She heard his overwhelming relief. She hoped Greengrass didn’t. It gave him too much power.

“Well, this is an interesting bind.” Greengrass’s tone was mocking.

“Grounds for negotiation at least,” James said with equivalent mockery. “Return to the clearing. And don’t try anything.”

Nell held her breath. Would Greengrass resist the order as she knew he wanted to?

After a pause, Greengrass grabbed her arm and spun her around. “Walk, flower.”

When they emerged from the shrubbery, the moon shone clear. Nell chanced a peek at the men behind her. Greengrass looked stolid and menacing. A quick turn of her head, although every instinct screamed to stand still with the gun so close, revealed James behind Greengrass.

“Let the girl go,” James said.

Greengrass laughed softly and jerked Nell back against him. “Why should I do that when she’s my only counter on the board, now you and those bastards gypped me?”

“We can wait here until dawn when I’ll undoubtedly have reinforcements,” James said calmly. “You can’t imagine that you’ve got a chance in hell of getting away.”

“The whore dies in any case. If I’m cornered, why keep her alive?”

“Release her and I’ll let you free.” Nell couldn’t see James’s face, but she knew what that offer cost him.

Greengrass chuckled. “The minute you’ve got her, I’m dead as a haddock.”

“I won’t risk her life in a scuffle.”

“James, don’t trust him,” Nell begged. She heard seething hatred in Greengrass’s voice and guessed that he’d sacrifice his safety to kill his enemy. “He wants you dead.”

“I do indeed.” His grip on her arm tightened until pins and needles pricked her fingers.

“Be brave, Eleanor,” James said. “I won’t let anything happen to you. Ever.”

“Rash words, laddie,” Greengrass scoffed.

“I promise that I’ll see this lady safe, even if it means rattling the gates of heaven.”

James declaration rang with certainty and valor. But God help her, she heard more. Anyone listening would know immediately that he loved her.

Her heart slammed against her ribs. Upstairs when he’d
declared his love, she’d believed him—up to a point. Now when they both faced such danger, she couldn’t mistake that love invested every word he spoke to her.

She’d been such a blind fool. How could she hesitate to become his wife? How could she weigh worldly considerations against their chance to live as one, to have children, to grow old together?

Nell desperately wanted to believe James when he vowed to save her, but at this moment, she couldn’t imagine that they’d both escape. Dear Lord above, she didn’t want to die. Most of all she didn’t want to die without telling James that she loved him.

She sucked in a deep breath and leveled her shoulders. A preternatural calm descended. She shut Greengrass’s loathsome presence from her mind. She shut everything out, except the endless universe of love she heard in James’s voice.

“I love you, James,” she said, surprised at how firmly the words emerged. “No matter what happens, I will always love you.”

“Eleanor?” He sounded shocked.

“Believe it, my love,” she said.

“I love you too.” Such simple words, but each heartfelt syllable reinforced her courage.

“How touching,” Greengrass said sarcastically.

Nell was immune to his jeers. Her heart felt clean, and finally her brain started to function. There must be some way she could help James and give them both a chance to seize the bright future that until now had seemed out of reach.

She’d wanted a weapon. What a ninny she was. God had given her two good hands, hadn’t he? And Greengrass currently held only one of her arms, leaving the other free to do some damage and hopefully create a diversion.

Without taking time to count consequences, she stretched up and back to dig her fingers into Greengrass’s eye.

“Bloody hell!” He lurched and his hand clenched painfully on her arm. Gritting her teeth against surging revulsion, she clawed deeper.

Fleetingly, the pistol slipped away from her head. Knowing it might be the last thing she ever did, Nell collapsed as a dead weight against his legs, screaming for help.

“You little bitch!” Like the sound of doom, she heard the click of the safety lock just above her, far too close to her ear. Automatically she curled up as small as she could.

Through James’s despairing “Eleanor!” the pistol blasted. The world turned black.