What A Rogue Wants (37 page)

Grey scrambled to his knees, raised
his own pistol and fired.

The man disappeared off the trail
leaving only the harrowing sound of a deranged cackle. Madelaine
breathed in as all the sounds of the forest crashed around her
sensitive ears. Twigs snapped, animals scampered, and somewhere to
the right of them a terrible voice rose out of the dark
shadows.

“
You’ll die tonight, Lord
Grey.”

She trembled.

“
Who are you?” Grey
demanded as he worked to reload his pistol.

“
I’m the man who is going
to destroy you.”

Madelaine’s breath caught in her
throat. Instinctively, she grasped the back of Grey’s coat. He
pushed her away, the hard bark from the tree scraping her legs
through the thin material of her dress. He moved directly in front
of her. “Let the lady go. She’s innocent.”

“
Innocent?” the man called
back. “No one’s innocent, young lord. Best for you to understand
that right now. If you’ve turned your back on the fair Lady
Madelaine, I suggest you turn round. The biggest threat always
comes from those you trust most.”

Madelaine’s breast swelled with a
silent protest. She couldn’t see Grey’s face and how the man’s
words affected him, but the muscles of his back tensed under her
grasping fingertips. To their left a horse came charging out of the
woods without a rider. A distraction. Her mind registered the fact.
She turned to the right, Grey did the same. But it was too late.
The hesitation had cost them. The stranger stood on the path
directly in front of them. She smelled his sweat and the gunpowder
that had discharged from his pistols. He stepped closer, his face
blanketed by the dark. “Hand over Lady Madelaine,” the man
growled.

Grey stood and moved out from behind
the tree with his pistol aimed at the man.

“
I wouldn’t shoot if I
were you, Lord Grey. I’ve two pistols. Even if you manage to hit
me, I could still shoot her. I don’t want to. But to save myself, I
will. Don’t make me.”

Though she thought the tree would
protect her, Madelaine shrank further behind the oak and away from
the man. Something about his voice struck greater fear in her than
the two pistols he aimed at them. Frantically, she searched the
ground for a stick to use to throw at the man to distract him and
give Grey a fighting chance.

“
Move and you’re dead,”
Grey snarled.

“
An impasse?” the man
taunted.

Madelaine closed her fingers over
dirt, twigs and leaves. None of that could help her. Her throat
constricted with despair. She couldn’t just let Grey die. She
pushed herself off the ground to charge at the man. A strong arm
clamped around her waist and a rough hand over her
mouth.

She was propelled backward through the
air by whoever had her. Not more than ten feet away, her feet
touched the ground, and she was jerked roughly around. Lord
Gravenhurst glared at her. “Don’t move a goddamn inch.” He withdrew
a pistol and crawled silently back toward the oak tree and Grey.
Relief threatened to buckle her knees, but there was no time for
respite or indecision. Grey would be fine now.

This was her chance to flee. She
waivered for a second, caught by wanting to make sure Grey emerged
alive and knowing if she didn’t go she might not get another
chance. A stick broke beside her, and her heart jumped and then
plunged as a figure emerged from the woods.

“
It’s Abby,” Abby
whispered.

Madelaine released a rush of breath,
all her nerves tingling. “We need to escape.”

Abby didn’t hesitate or question. She
yanked Madelaine toward her and pulled her up an incline. As they
climbed the small slope and deeper into the dark woods, branches
scratched Madelaine’s arms and face and tore at her clothing. Sharp
pains pricked her sides as she ran and her breath came in short
gasps. At the top of the hill, they stopped by a large
tree.

“
One minute,” she choked
out, doubling over. She put her hand out to keep from falling, but
her legs gave way. With a thump, she sagged to her knees, her hands
splayed atop gnarled roots meandering in all directions.

Abby fell beside her with a huff. They
sat for a moment, their ragged breathing the only noise Madelaine
could hear until a bang rent the night. She jerked and shoved at
the leafy ground to gain purchase. Her heartbeat roared in her
ears. Was Grey wounded? Should she go back or forward? Another
pistol fired into the silent night. Her heart pumped furiously,
indecision making her sick. If she went back, she could be killed
or captured. If she went forward, she’d save her father.

“
Let’s go,” she said, her
voice raw with pain and sorrow. “We’ve got to get to Kew and the
prince.” They barreled through the woods away from the stranger and
Grey. The muscles in her legs burned as she climbed the hill, but
she pushed herself to keep going. Through the thinning trees, a
steep drop opened to her right.

Tears burned her eyes, and her throat
ached with the need to cry. She shoved branches out of her path as
she ran, the tears breaking through her determination and blurring
her vision. Unable to see properly, she wiped furiously at her
eyes. A branch caught her in the chest. It knocked the wind out of
her and she stumbled on a root.

She teetered at the edge of the cliff,
her arms flailing for purchase through the air. Abby’s scream of
horror followed Madelaine over the side. Jutting trees jabbed into
her sensitive flesh as she fell. Her body rolled and bounced off
the brush, tumbling until she hit the bottom and struck her head
with a thud. Streaks of pain shot through her skull and blackness
swept across her vision.

“
Wake up,
Madelaine.”

Madelaine batted the noise away and
tried to turn from the hot breath tickling her face. Her neck ached
and her legs would not move to turn her body. Dear God, she was
crippled. Her eyes flew open. The fog of sleep lifted and Grey’s
concerned face loomed in front of her. Bright stars and moonlight
twinkled behind him making him look for a moment like her personal
angel. “How do you feel?” His voice shook.

How did she feel? Her body throbbed.
Her head pounded, stars danced in her vision, and her throat was so
dry she might choke. “Water,” she croaked.

Grey pressed a leather pouch to her
mouth, his movements stiff and awkward.

Her eyes widened at the bloody bandage
wrapped around his arm. “You were shot.”

He nodded. “Surface wound. The bullet
scraped my arm.”

“
The stranger?”

All the concern that had filled Grey’s
eyes drained away. He stared at her with contempt. “Your accomplice
escaped.”

“
My what?” She struggled
to sit up, but her hands… her hands were bound. Her gaze flew to
her feet. Bound as well. At least she wasn’t crippled. She rolled
onto her side and awkwardly made her way up.

Grey watched her with raised
eyebrows.

Her head swam and bile threatened to
make her lose what little food was in her belly. She started to
fall back over, but Grey yanked her all the way into a sitting
position and leaned her against a tree. For a moment, she closed
her eyes and concentrated on not being sick.

“
Leave her alone,” Abby
demanded from somewhere nearby.

Madelaine inched open her eyes and
searched out her friend. Abby sat with her ankles and wrists bound
directly across from Madelaine not more than five strides away.
“Are you unharmed?”

Abby nodded. “My wrists
and ankles ache,
of
course
.”

Madelaine shifted her attention back
to Grey and blinked at the unexpected sight of Lord Gravenhurst as
well. “You move with disconcerting silence,” she snapped at Lord
Gravenhurst.

His teeth flashed with a gleaming
smile. “It’s a gift. I’m going to comb the woods one more time.
You’ll be all right here until I get back?” he said to
Grey.

Without looking at Lord Gravenhurst,
Grey nodded and waved him away. “Go. I won’t be foolish
again.”

Lord Gravenhurst rose and disappeared
into the woods before she addressed Grey. “Why have you bound Abby
and me?”

He rocked off his haunches and loomed
in front of her. “Because, my sweet, you tried to escape me while
your friend tried to shoot me.”

Madelaine snapped her gaze to Abby,
but Grey jerked her head back to him. “Not that friend, my
consummate little actress.” His hands had come to her arms as he
crouched in front of her.

She licked her dry, cracked lips. What
Grey said made no sense. “I don’t know that man. He was a stranger
to me.”

Grey reached into his coat and
withdrew a paper. “And I suppose you don’t know what this is
either?”

Her heart sank with recognition. “It’s
not as it seems.”

“
It never is, in my
experience.” The loathing and pain in his voice sliced at her. “You
lied to me. You said this was a goodbye letter from your father,
yet this is the king’s paper. The very one your father was accused
of stealing. So what’s not as it seems? Are you not a liar or is
your father not a thief? Not a traitor? Or are you saying you’re
not a traitor? A liar? An expert deceiver?”

She swallowed convulsively. She was a
liar and now a traitor. “I lied to save my father. He stole that
paper to protect England.” The words sounded foolish, but she
pushed on. “The king’s going mad and Father wanted to get the paper
to the prince, so he may have proof of the king’s unstable mind.
Then the prince will be able to rule in the king’s
stead.”

“
Your father’s the mad
one.” Grey shoved the paper back into his coat.

“
Grey.” Desperation made
her voice come out high and brittle. “You promised to help
me.”

He jerked away from her and stood.
“That was before your friend tried to kill me. I’d be stupid to
deny your part now. You’re helping your father and whoever he’s
working with try to kill the king’s men.”

Her mouth dropped open at his
accusation. “I vow I’m not.”

“
Don’t lie to me anymore,
Madelaine.” His tone was savage and unrelenting as the hardest
steel.

Anger flared in her chest. “You seem
to know an awful lot for a mere equerry.” Without replying, he
twisted and stomped into the woods. Hot tears coursed down her
cheeks. She was all the things he accused her of, but what was he?
Who was he? He was no mere equerry with all he knew. Doubt and
betrayal gnawed at her. Had he used her simply to try to prove her
father’s guilt? If so, it had worked beautifully.

“
Madelaine?”

She shifted to face Abby.

“
Tell me what’s going
on.”

Not about to shout all her secrets,
Madelaine scooted on her bottom across the ground. Once she was
beside Abby, she took a deep breath. “My father was a spy for the
king.”

Abby responded with a sharp intake of
breath, followed by, “And?”

“
And he has betrayed the
king. Father thinks it’s for the good of the kingdom, but I don’t
know.” She hung her head low. “I just don’t know,” she whispered.
“Now I’m a traitor too. And Lord Grey thinks I’m helping Father and
some other accomplice kill the king’s men.”

Abby nudged Madelaine’s shoulder with
her own until Madelaine reluctantly looked up. “Did you know that
man on the trail?” Abby asked, barely above a whisper.

“
No.” Madelaine shook her
head. “I swear I didn’t. And Father may be a traitor, but he’s no
killer.”

“
I know,” Abby soothed.
“What are we going to do now?”

Madelaine shook her head but didn’t
answer. Footsteps crunched through the woods toward them. Grey and
Lord Gravenhurst appeared side by side. Grey bent down in front of
her. “We will untie you to eat, drink and have a moment of privacy,
but then you’ll be bound again so we can sleep.
Understand?”

She nodded. She wasn’t about to argue
and cause him to change his mind. He yanked her ropes off her
wrists and ankles and pointed to a log. “Sit there. And don’t say a
word.” She sniffed at his command but held her silence.