“But if you tell your Leo about it, then he may go with you.”
Ella blushed and looked away. Her Leo? How could she tell Fran that she didn’t know if she could trust Leo anymore?
Fran sighed, as if she understood. “I see you’re being stubborn about it. Please, please be careful.”
Ella looked into her friend’s eyes. “Fran, if anything happens to me—”
“Don’t say it,” Fran whispered, her chin quivering.
“I hope…no, I believe Leo will keep his promise about the cottage.”
Fran nodded. “You’ll wait for the carriage?”
Ella shook her head. “If I want to leave, I’ll have to sneak out as soon as possible. This way I have a good hour.”
Before Fran could argue, she slipped outside and rushed down the path to the lane. She didn’t look back as she made her way to the castle; she couldn’t look back for fear she’d run to Fran and never leave the safety of the cottage.
Instead, she focused on Convey. Certainly his brother was the man Leo remembered. Was Fran right? Should she tell Leo? His disinterest over what she’d told him in his bedchamber yesterday made her hesitate. Was Leo even still here, or had he already left? She tried to focus, tried to feel his presence, but was too far from the castle to feel much of anything.
Branches rustled. A flock of birds darted out from the trees. Ella jumped back in surprise. Her heart raced in her chest, and a wave of fear skittered over her skin. Something or someone had startled the birds. She scanned the shadowed trees. The woods were eerily silent. Nothing moved; not even a breeze whispered through the branches.
She swallowed over the lump of fear in her throat and started forward, her steps long and hurried. Just ahead she could see where the trees gave way to bright sky. The blueness beckoned, called out safety.
The soft thud of footsteps sounded from behind. Panic flared through her body. She couldn’t take the time to look back.
An ungrateful servant, Lord Roberts had sworn. But why would a servant come after a lowly governess…twice? Blast it! Why hadn’t she trusted her own instincts?
Hiking up her skirts, she bolted toward that patch of open field. No sooner did her feet leave the dirt road than firm fingers bit into her upper arms. Ella opened her mouth to scream, but a hand clamped over her lips.
“Keep your mouth shut,” a male voice hissed in her ear as he slammed her back, against him.
His fowl breath stung her nostrils, making her gag…the smell of unwashed mouth and alcohol. Oh God, what would he do with her? How many times had Lady Buckley said she was courting trouble by walking alone? A real lady does not leave the house unescorted.
Tears burned her eyes as he dragged her backward, into the trees. Tall and gangly, this man was different from the man who had broken into her room yesterday. Could she possibly fight him off? She had to think—fast. She opened her mouth and bit down on his hand as hard as she could.
His hand dropped away. “Blast, you bitch,” the man growled. He pushed her forward, and she fell to her belly, hitting the ground with a thud that knocked the air out of her lungs. Her head whacked against a tree trunk, and for a few seconds her mind went blank. She blinked off the dazed feeling and attempted to focus on the trees that wavered in front of her.
A dark shadow of a man stepped into her line of vision. Like a nightmare, his face was covered with a sack, with holes for eyes. Ella scrunched back against the tree until the bark bit into her shoulders. It wasn’t a coincidence. It couldn’t be a coincidence. He was back. Whoever had tried to kill her during that fire at the orphanage was trying again, and it was all linked to Leo and her necklace; it had to be.
“What…what do you want?” She couldn’t keep the tremors from her voice, and she cursed herself for showing her fear.
“Want? I want the money they promised me to kill you.” He lifted a pistol. The metal caught a shaft of light and gleamed dangerously.
Shock held her immobile. She couldn’t run, couldn’t hide. There was no one to help. She was going to die.
Just when she thought the end was near, a lean figure jumped from the shadows. The dark hair and thin body were vaguely familiar…. He turned his head toward her, and she gasped. Akshay!
He tackled the man to the ground, and the gun flew into a patch of ferns. The man slammed his fist into Akshay’s stomach. Leo’s friend grunted. Dear Lord, Akshay was half the size of the attacker.
Ella scampered through the ferns, pushing aside fronds and frantically searching for the gun. There it was, gleaming under a leaf. She wrapped her fingers around the cool metal and spun around.
The two men were a tangle of limbs, and she wasn’t sure where one began and one ended. Her arms jerked back and forth, trying to aim the pistol at the attacker.
“Akshay!” she yelled. “Move!” He lifted his head and, seeing the gun, tore himself from the man’s grasp. The man’s hood had fallen back, and a round face with dark eyes leered at her.
“Stay still, I mean it,” Ella said.
“Will you shoot me then?” The man laughed. “Cause I doubt it.”
Ella’s arms trembled, and a fine sweat broke out on her forehead. Would she kill a man?
“She might not,” Akshay replied, his melodic accent calm, “but I will. Hand me the gun, Ella.”
She pushed the pistol into his hands, and relief brought tears to her eyes. “You said they hired you. Who is ‘they’?” she demanded.
The man grinned and dived behind a tree. The gun went off, echoing through the woods.
“Damn,” Akshay snapped and bolted forward. “Stay where you are!” he called back to Ella.
She held her breath, trying to hear the men over her hammering heart. Branches snapped, birds squawked, and her heart hammered, making their muffled shouts indecipherable. Another gunshot split the air. Ella jumped, gasping.
Then silence.
“Akshay?” she whispered.
A sudden rustle of branches made her heart stop. She lifted her skirts, preparing to bolt. Akshay stepped from behind a tree, and the air she held came out in a great gasp.
“Are you well?” she asked, rushing to his side.
He was breathing heavily, and it took an anxious moment before he could respond. “Yes. But he got away. Obviously knew the area. I may have nicked him, not sure.”
She fell back against a tree, her knees weak. “Why is this happening to me again?”
She didn’t realize she said the words aloud until Akshay asked, “Again?”
She nodded, unable to speak. Trembling, she pushed away from the tree and stumbled from the woods. The fire when she was a child had been no accident. She’d seen the man, his eerie, glowing eyes as he leaned over her bed. She’d barely escaped, and she’d been too frightened to tell anyone of the truth. She wasn’t an idiot. She knew they must be connected.
Akshay didn’t say a word until they reached the road. “What did you mean, ‘again’?”
She took in his hard, dark eyes, his stern jaw, and knew he’d not rest until she responded. “Yesterday. A man…an angry servant…was in my bedchamber. He escaped out the window.”
Akshay didn’t respond to her words, merely helped her over a stone fence. “Let’s get you back to the estate.”
She didn’t know why they were going back to the estate, as if it were any safer than the road. Hadn’t he just heard her say she was attacked there too? She shook her head, fighting back the tears. He’d found her. The demon man had found her. She’d never be safe here, and worse, those she loved would be in danger.
“Where have you been?” Akshay demanded the moment Leo entered his bedchamber.
Leo paused at the door, surprise holding him immobile. “Having an extremely cordial conversation with my grandfather in which we talked about everything but my supposed madness.”
He shut the door and waited. Something had obviously happened. It wasn’t like Akshay to be so curt. He watched his friend pace the room like a caged animal.<
br />
“Two hours ago we were attacked.” He raked his hands through his hair and continued to pace. “Well, Ella was attacked, and thank the gods I was following her.”
Leo’s body grew numb, and he slowly lowered himself into a chair by the fireplace. “Explain.”
“She was walking back from her friend’s, that ill woman in the cottage. I was some distance behind her when a man with a mask over his face jumped from the woods and grabbed her from behind. She fought him, she did.” Akshay smiled, as if amused by her tenacity. But all too quickly, his smile fell. “Then he pulled out a pistol.”
Fear and anger mixed, flaring through Leo. He wrapped his fingers around the arms of the chair, mostly to keep himself from rushing from the room. “A pistol?”
Akshay held up his hands. “She’s fine now. Nothing happened to her.”
Leo fell back against his chair, his heart thundering in his chest. “Who? Why?”
“He escaped,” Akshay admitted.
Leo slammed his fists onto the arms of his chair. “Merda.”
Akshay paced the room, his hands clasped behind his neck. “The thing is, Leo, it wasn’t the first time she’s been attacked.”
He jumped to his feet. “What the hell does that mean?”
Akshay stopped and leaned against the fireplace. “Yesterday someone was in her room. Ransacked the place, according to the servants. But the man escaped out the bedroom window. Your grandfather is searching for the culprit, but feels it was a disgruntled servant.”
“Someone was in her bedroom? Why the hell didn’t my grandfather mention it to me?” Icy fear trailed down his spine. Ella could have been killed…twice and no one thought to tell him? He’d find the man, and when he did…“Where is she now?” Leo demanded.
“Her bedchamber, I suppose. I escorted her there almost two hours ago.”
Without another word, Leo left his room and made his way down the hall. It was time Ella answered some questions. He didn’t need to be a bloody genius to know that two attacks in two days wasn’t normal. Was it someone trying to get to him, or did Ella have her own sordid past? He knocked on her door. No answer.
Without bothering to knock again, he pushed the door wide and swept inside. The soft scent of roses reached out to him, encircling his body and heating his blood. Her scent. He clenched his jaw and scanned the area. She wasn’t here.
The door opened, and Leo spun around. A maid, startled by his appearance, stilled on the threshold, her brown eyes wide. Juggling the linens in her hands, she dropped into a deep curtsy.
“My lord,” she mumbled.
Leo waved a hand through the air, dismissing her show of manners. “Do you happen to know where Miss Finch is?”
“I am not sure, my lord.”
Leo brushed past her on his way out. Where the hell had she gone? She certainly shouldn’t be racing around the countryside with a madman on the loose.
“My lord,” the maid called out.
“What is it?” He turned, impatient to find Ella. The maid had deposited the linens on a chair and was wringing her hands together.
“Miss Finch asked me to give this to ye. She said tonight, but since yer here…”
She pulled an envelope from her apron pocket and handed it to him.
“Thank you,” Leo mumbled, making his way down the hall. Anxiety clawed its way into his throat, sucking the breath from his lungs. He knew whatever she had to say wouldn’t be good. Had she left? Returned to that Buckley woman? Merda, if she were hurt because of him…
“What is it?” Akshay asked when Leo entered his room.
Leo shook his head and sat in the chair. He inwardly cursed when he noticed the slight tremble of his fingers as he opened the letter. Unfolding the paper, he read.
Leo,
I was hired to help you and I always finish my job. But it is not about money anymore. I know, Leo. I know you think my uncle guilty of murdering your parents. I saw the necklace. And I also know my uncle would never do such a thing. I know how skeptical you are, and that is why I will prove my uncle’s innocence. By uncovering the truth, I will not only clear my uncle’s name, but also do the job I was hired to do, help you. No longer will I put others in danger.
Yours,
Ella
He felt as if a boulder had just crushed his chest and he couldn’t seem to catch his breath. She’d left, most likely to walk into a lion’s den. What the hell was she thinking? Dear God, she was alone. Completely helpless.
“What happened?” Akshay demanded.
“Ella,” Leo got out and shoved the letter into Akshay’s hands. “She’s left. I assume to find Convey’s brother.”
“Dear God,” Akshay mumbled, slumping into the chair across from Leo. “What does she mean by not putting others in danger?”
Leo stood and started toward his wardrobe. “I haven’t a clue. You know how she is.”
“What was she thinking? What do we do?”
He pulled out his pistol and tucked it into his waistband. “Find her, before it’s too late.”
Chapter 18
“This way, miss.” The innkeeper flicked Ella a glance, then blushed and quickly looked away.
Exhausted, she brushed off the man’s strange behavior and followed him up the narrow steps to the room she’d rented for the night. The light from his lantern flickered across the walls, making eerie shadows that seemed to leer at her, mocking her nerves. She thought away from the castle she’d feel more secure. Yet, she felt worse, and, sadly, she knew why. Leo wasn’t here.
She shook her head, trying to clear her insane thoughts, and imagined her bed. With her few coins, the room would be small, but hopefully clean. Her bag thumped against her leg, and her back ached something fierce from the bumpy carriage ride. She’d eaten the biscuit she’d managed to pack away, and that would have to tide her over until the morrow. She’d didn’t want to waste unnecessary money.
“Here you go.” The man didn’t look at her as he pushed the door wide.
“Thank you,” she said and slipped into the room, eager to get away from the odd man.
The innkeeper shut the door without a response, and Ella was alone, thrown into darkness.
“Well,” she huffed, dropping her bag to the floor with a thud. Apparently one had to be wealthy to get good service.
Moonlight pierced the lace curtains, and she could just make out the outline of a small table with a lantern atop. With her arms extended, she shuffled across the room. Her toe hit something hard and pain radiated up her foot.
“Blast it,” she snapped, hopping up and down toward the bed stand. Finally reaching the table, she grabbled with the flint and lit the lantern. Light chased away the shadows and brought the room into focus.
The first thing she noticed was the large four-poster bed with its velvet coverlet fit for a king. Stunned, she merely stood there while her gaze traveled the expansive room. A massive mahogany fireplace dominated the wall across from the bed, while a copper tub lay in the middle of a plush carpet. What in the world was she doing in a room this richly decorated?
A chill of unease snaked across her spine. The innkeeper’s flushed face flashed to mind. The way he’d avoided her gaze and quickly led her to a room before she’d even asked if he had one. Something wasn’t right.
Ella breathed deeply. A familiar scent invaded her senses—male and pine mixed with salty air. Her heart stopped in her chest. With the lantern held high, she slowly turned. The light flashed across a shadowed form in the corner of the room. Ella squealed and dropped the lantern. It bounced across the carpet, before the light went out throwing the room back into darkness. She dashed around the bed, using the object as a barrier.
“So glad you could make it,” Leo’s familiar voice pierced the darkness and sent waves of heated consciousness through her body.
“How’d you find me?” she whispered, wishing her limbs would stop trembling, wishing she had the courage to tell him to leave, and at the same time thanking God
he was here.
Leo stood, and she stepped back, hitting the wall.
“Fran. She was afraid for you, traveling alone, and rightly so. That, and the carriage stops at the same inn every journey.”
She frowned. Fran had planned on telling Leo the entire time. She could curse Fran for her lack of good sense. Yet, the moment she’d realized Leo was in her room, she’d felt safe once more. She didn’t want to feel safe with him. She wanted to feel safe alone, because that’s what she’d be in the end…alone.
“Do you have any idea what could happen to a lone woman traveling across England?” His voice was soft. Too soft.
Ella swallowed hard and feigned a confidence she didn’t feel. “Of course I do. I was incredibly aware of my surroundings at all times.”
He started around the bed. “Really? So aware I was able wait for you in your room?”
She clasped her hands in front of her. “Well, yes, but it’s you.”
“And what if it wasn’t, Ella?”
He came closer, so close unease trickled down her spine.
“You…you bribed the innkeeper,” she exclaimed, trying to change the subject.
“Yes, very easily. Anyone could have. One would think that a person who had been attacked twice would be more cautious.”
“I had no other option!” she cried out.
“You could have told me,” he snapped. He was on the same side of the bed as she now.
“I couldn’t,” she whispered.
He paused. Silence descended. Could he hear her heart hammer in her chest?
“Because you don’t trust me?” he finally asked.
She didn’t respond. Did she trust him? Part of her did, and all she wanted to do was bury that part. She’d trusted so many and come out the worse for it. What if Leo wasn’t who he said he was?
“Very good, Ella,” he said softly. “Only a couple months at the estate and you’ve learned not to trust anyone.”
She wanted to shake her head, to deny his words; mostly she wanted to tell him about her past. But she found she couldn’t move, let alone speak. Leo was either evil and intent on murdering her, or he was exactly who he claimed to be and believed her uncle was a murderer. Either way, he obviously didn’t trust her. So instead, she held her breath, waiting…waiting. Damn him, was he angry? Worried? Why couldn’t she read the man?