What A Rogue Wants (38 page)

A few moments later Abby was dumped
unceremoniously beside her. Madelaine opened her mouth to thank
Grey, but he cut her off. “Don’t speak, Madelaine. I’ve my temper
under control for the moment, but one wrong word from you might
make me lose it, and I’ll not be responsible for what I do to you
after that.”

She clamped her mouth closed at his
ominous words and then ate and drank without speaking. She was
almost positive that he’d lied to her too, but blast the brutish
man, without proof she dare not risk what he might do.

MADELAINE AWOKE TO DARKNESS LIKE she’d
never seen. She blinked, confused about where she was. Grey’s voice
floated to her. She froze as the memories flooded her and made her
shake. Cold air licked her bare face and hands but something heavy
covered her body, offering a little warmth. She ran her fingertips
over the fine material and when she got to the hard buttons, she
stilled, a lump forming in her throat. When had Grey covered her
with his coat? The small gesture of kindness filled her with hope
that perhaps he really did care about her, and made her cringe that
she should care at all.

Immediately, she moved to sit up and
realized she could. She glanced at her hands and feet. Grey or Lord
Gravenhurst had untied her while she slept. But which man had taken
pity on her? Her foolish heart wanted to think it was
Grey.

Glancing around, she located Abby
asleep on the other side of the clearing. Clever. Even if Madelaine
wanted to escape, they knew she’d never leave Abby and to get to
her friend, she’d have to cross right in front of Grey. She was as
good as stuck, unless she wanted to add Abby to the list of people
she had betrayed. If she couldn’t escape, then she planned to learn
as much as she could. She strained to hear what the men were saying
but only caught snatches of the conversation.

Inching her body along the dirt, she
moved a bit closer and froze when Lord Gravenhurst stood. She
squeezed her eyes shut and feigned sleep taking care to breathe
deeply.

“
So you didn’t recognize
the man either?” Grey asked.

“
No. The woods were thick
where we were. The trees and underbrush blocked most light. But
even in the shadow of darkness, I could tell his face was not
right.”

“
Yes.” Grey’s voice held a
note of curiosity. “The outline of his jaw and cheek was a
misshapen mess.”

“
I’ll tell you one thing
for sure,” Lord Gravenhurst said. “The man isn’t French. Whoever
they’re working with, it’s not the French.”

Grey spoke like a man who knew all
about the king’s spies. Her throat constricted as she waited for
them to speak again.

“
I got that much from his
accent,” Grey replied. “Why the hell are you here?”

Madelaine slowly opened her eyes and
stared into the dark. She wished she could see their
faces.

“
You’re damn lucky I am,”
Lord Gravenhurst said. “If it wasn’t for me, you’d be
dead.”

Grey scoffed. “By the time you came to
help me, I already had the man on the run.”

“
Ah, yes. He was running
to get into better position to shoot you again.”

“
Did my brother send you
to check up on me and make sure I was doing my job?”

Madelaine dug her fingers into the
dirt. Every word Grey spoke crushed her anew. He was a spy. He had
to be. What was his job? Seduce and destroy? Her heart thumped
heavily.

“
I’ve lost contact with
your brother,” Lord Gravenhurst said. “That’s why I came to you. To
see if he’d changed his mind and followed you.”

“
When did you lose
contact?” Concern filled Grey’s tone.

“
I sent a carrier pigeon
to tell Ashdon my lead had come up empty, and when I got no
response back as to what to do next, I went back to the castle and
tower. He was neither place, so I thought he might have come to
find you.”

“
I haven’t heard from him
either. Maybe he’s waiting for me in Kew. I sent a message to him
before I left the inn telling him I was going to Lancashire to get
Madelaine and bring her to Kew to stand before the
king.”

A cry threatened to escape her. She
bit down on her cheek and pressed her face into the dirt with
horror. He’d never intended to help her. He’d used her and lied to
her. He was no better than she was. He was worse.

And to think guilt had been her
constant companion since the moment she’d decided to help her
father. A big part of that guilt had been because she was betraying
Grey. Blast him. He’d never loved her. Her mind shrank away from
the truth. She’d thought she’d met a man who really loved her for
who she was, or had been, but it was a lie. Her breathing picked up
speed, until fear of alerting the men that she was awake forced her
to bite her lip. She bit hard until the blood came, and she was
able to control her breathing once again.

“
Shall I go with you to
Kew?” Lord Gravenhurst asked.

“
No. Go to my parents’
home―that is…I mean Edward’s, now. If he’s not there, meet me at
the tower. I suspect once the king speaks with Madelaine, that’s
where he’ll send her. I’ll take her there and then we can either
search together for my brother, or if we’ve heard from him, we’ll
set out to find whoever it is they’re working with.”

“
Do you think she’ll tell
you?”

“
I mean to try to get the
information out of her.” Grey sounded tired and reluctant. Or maybe
she just wished that was the way he sounded. She didn’t know what
was real and what was false anymore.

“
Seduction again, is it?”
Lord Gravenhurst’s voice was with filled restrained
laughter.

She couldn’t decide who disgusted her
more―Lord Gravenhurst or Grey. Grey won since he’d broken her
heart.

“
Shut up,” Grey snapped.
“And get going. I’m worried about Edward.”

“
All right.” Shuffling
feet alerted Madelaine that Lord Gravenhurst was indeed departing.
Something was dragged across the dirt before whistling through the
air and smacking with a thud against what sounded like flesh. Then
a horse’s neigh filled the heavy air, followed by the clopping of
horseshoes.

Madelaine stood and waited for Grey to
face her. No point even trying to run. His outline was close in a
sliver of moonlight. She’d never make it farther than to Abby
before he caught her and tied her up again.

After what seemed an eternity, he
wheeled around and stared. After a moment, he walked toward her,
his boots crushing leaves and breaking twigs as he came near. He
stopped before her, his scent flooding her, his heat invading her
space. “How long have you been awake?”

A dam of hurt inside her broke. She
pulled her hand back and slapped him. In a flash, he slid his hand
around her neck. He flipped her onto her back with a thud. He
loomed over her, the weight of his body crushing her, his heartbeat
drilling into her chest.

“
You never loved me,” she
said on a half-broken sob.

He cupped her face and squeezed.
“Don’t you dare say that.” His voice shook. “I loved you. I risked
everything wanting to believe you. I would’ve broken my Goddamn vow
to the king for you. Forsaken my honor and my family to protect
you.” He released her chin and dragged her up by the arms. When
they were both standing he shook her until her teeth rattled in her
head. “I offered you my heart and you offer me lies.”

“
You speak of lies!” She
wrenched free, shaking from head to toe. “You lied to me,
spy
!” She flung the
accusation at him, too hurt to say anything else.

A guttural cry came from him. He
yanked her to him. He dove a hand into her hair and pulled her head
back. “That’s right. I’m a spy. Now you know my secret. I work to
serve our king while you work to bring him low.”

Despite her determination to stay
brave, tears stung her eyes. “I work to save my father. That’s all
I strive for.”

“
And what of the man who
tried to kill me? The same man who no doubt you and your father
conspired with to help kill Lord Pearson. What was the plan? Kill
all the king’s spies one by one, until there was none of us left to
fight against your father’s plan to overthrow the king?”

Madelaine’s shoulders sagged with
weariness. “I do not know the man who shot you.”

“
Lies,” Grey spat with
bitterness.

“
I know nothing of any
plan. All I know is my father believes the king is going mad, and
he did what he thought best when he took the list the king made.
Father intended to give it to no one but the prince, and only for
the prince to use it for England’s good.”

“
Since when is a son
stealing a throne from a father good? Tell me, my sweet, what good
can come of that?”

“
I don’t know.” She
pressed her fingers against her throbbing temples. She was so
tired, too tired to fight, almost too tired to carry on. “I did
what my father bid me. What choice do I have? He’s my father, and I
owe him fidelity.”

Grey clamped a hand around her arm
like a vise. “Not at the sake of your own integrity.”

She tried to wiggle her
arm out of his grasp, but he held tight. His blunt words drove into
her heart and stirred thoughts she’d had herself, but it wasn’t so
simple. “He stood by me for years when my mother tore me down with
cruel words and treatment.” She used her free hand to wipe away the
inconvenient tears. “If it wasn’t for me, they’d have never had
their last fight, and my mother would be alive. So you see, I owe
him fidelity as my father
and
as payment for the wrong I’ve done.”

Grey released her arm at the same time
he shoved her away. “Every time you speak, I wish my damned heart
would stop speeding up for you, but it speeds and it speeds. Maybe
only death will cure me of you.”

Her heart wrenched at the pain in his
voice. She reached for him with an unsteady hand.

He pulled back as if her touch was
poison and stared at her. “I welcome an early death if that’s my
only release from you.” He spun on his heel, his shoulders hunching
forward. “No more talking to me unless I ask you a direct question.
You’re an excellent actress, and I no longer wish to be a gullible
fool.” He pivoted toward her. “Now wake your friend. We’re leaving
for Kew.”

Unnerved by the fierce anger vibrating
in Grey’s voice, Madelaine rushed over to Abby. She kneeled down to
shake her, but Abby was already awake. “No need. Your voices woke
me.”

Madelaine pressed her hands to her
cheeks, an embarrassed flush heating her. “How much did you hear?”
she whispered.

“
Nearly every word, I
suspect. Enough to know he still loves you and enough to know you
are a fool. Your father is not the bloody saint you’ve built in
your mind.”

“
No plotting,” Grey
thundered and stormed toward them. Before Madelaine could utter a
protest, he shoved her onto the front seat of the carriage and
within seconds he deposited Abby into the carriage.

He took the seat beside Madelaine and
clicked his tongue at the horses. As they started to move, the sun
crested over the trees and shone the first rays of light down upon
them. The first thing Madelaine noticed was that Grey held the
reins so tight his knuckles were white. She turned her gaze to his
face where the muscle in his jaw ticked steadily. She didn’t know
what to say, but she felt she had to say something for her
deception, though he’d deceived her as well. “Grey, I―”

“
Not. A. Word,” he said,
cutting her off. “One word and I’ll pull over and stuff my
handkerchief in your mouth and bind it closed.
Understand?”

She nodded and clamped her mouth
shut.

A chant ran through Grey’s
mind as he drove the horses and gripped the reins so hard the
leather bit into his skin through his gloves.
Damn. Damn. Damn
. He kept the litany
going, afraid if he stopped the doubt would creep in again. Doubt
about Madelaine’s guilt would make him weak. Doubt about her part
in this disaster would make him break. Doubt that he could take her
to the tower knowing it would mean her death would make him let her
go.