She slowly made the sign of the cross and then stood up, turning slowly to face the man behind her. To her surprise, his face was quite unremarkable, almost nondescript, but then that was probably an advantage in his chosen profession. He would blend in anywhere. She judged him to be about twenty years her senior, his hair graying at the temples, and traced faint lines around his eyes and mouth.
Who was it that said the eyes were a window to a person's soul? She couldn't remember, but looking into his pale, dead gaze was like staring into an abyss. She suddenly shivered and he smiled.
"I knew you'd come."
She could only nod her head.
He held out his hand. "It's time for you to complete your part of the bargain and come away with me."
She placed her hand in his and gasped as the barrel of a pistol prodded her ribs. Although she knew that Patrick Kelly and Richard were watching her, she also knew they would be unable to reach her before her captor pulled the trigger. Her brain seemed to come out of its trance, but her feet kept walking.
"Don't think about fighting me, Miss Lennox. I have men stationed all around the perimeter of the graveyard. We'll find a quiet spot by the chapel wall where you will be quite overcome with guilt for murdering your brother and blow your own brains out. I've even written you a suicide note."
"How kind of you. I thought we were going to be together for the rest of our lives."
"I did consider it, my dear, but it seems that in the end you are just too sentimental for your own good. You fell in love, and that is the ultimate weakness."
They were close to the high exterior wall that bordered the rear of the chapel and the shadows were lengthening. A flicker of motion warned Violet that Richard and Patrick were attempting to reach her, but there wasn't enough time. Well, if Mr. Brown insisted she was going to die, the least she could do was make it look like a suicide pact.
She pretended to stumble, and as he recoiled, she was able to release her primed pistol from her pocket and shove it under his chin.
"I hope you wrote a note to cover your own death, Mr. Brown."
He went still and brought his pistol up to her head. Behind him, Richard shouted her name. Mr. Brown turned them both slowly toward him.
The grim determination on Richard's face turned to shock and he lowered his pistol.
"Lord Denley?"
"I'm sorry it has to be like this, Richard. After I told you that Violet was a traitor, I was hoping you'd kill her for me. Unfortunately, you decided to forgive her."
"But you're a cripple!"
"Obviously not." Lord Denley tightened his grip on Violet's arm. "Now, do put away your gun, dear boy, and accept that Violet wants to come away with me."
Violet stared straight at Richard. "Don't believe him. He intends to kill me."
Richard held her gaze and raised his pistol again, the agony of betrayal ripe on his face. "I trusted you, Denley. I thought of you as a father."
"Which is why I am offering you the chance to walk away."
Richard shook his head. "I can't do that."
Lord Denley laughed. "I'll kill her before you can kill me."
The barrel of Richard's pistol wavered. Behind him, a dark shape materialized on top of the high cemetery wall, making Violet blink.
"Leave me, Richard," she whispered. "Save yourself." She pushed her own pistol against Lord Denley's throat.
"No, I can't let you do that!" Richard protested.
"Are you absolutely sure that you have the right Lennox twin, Mr. Brown?"
Lord Denley's head jerked upward toward the wall. "What?"
The instant she heard Jack's voice, Violet relaxed her knees and rolled as far away from Lord Denley as she could. The deafening roar of two pistols firing at close range made her ears ring. The smell of gunpowder mingled with something more visceral made her feel sick. With a shaking hand, she disarmed her own pistol and crawled over to the wall, putting her back to it. Richard was running toward her, followed by Patrick Kelly, and both of them were shouting. She wrapped her arms around her raised knees and stared at Lord Denley's beautifully polished boots. His arms were flung out, his pistol still smoking, and his face . . . She swallowed hard. She couldn't look at the bloodied remains of his head. Jack had always been a damned fine shot.
"Violet, Violet!" Richard was holding her by the shoulders and shaking her now. "Are you injured? Did he hurt you?"
She could only stare at him and shiver like a newborn foal. Jack crouched down next to her and briefly touched her face. She could only thank God that neither of them had been wounded.
"You didn't have to do that for me," she whispered. "I was quite willing to kill him myself."
"And be killed?" Jack glanced at Richard, who stood up and began shouting for someone to help remove Lord Denley's body. "I didn't want you to have that stain on your soul."
"I've killed before."
"I know, but that is all finished with now." He took her hand, his gaze intense. "You wanted a new beginning, and now you have the chance to have it with Richard at your side."
She brought his hand to her lips and kissed it. "Thank you, my twin. I only wish you didn't have this on your conscience either."
He shrugged. "I'm a dead man. I have no conscience." He looked up as Richard came back toward them and rose to his feet. "Take care of her, Mr. Ross. I'll go and tell Lord Knowles the good news."
She nodded and managed a shaky smile for Richard, who took up Jack's vacated position at her side.
"Do you think you can walk, or shall I carry you?"
Before she could reply, he scooped her up in his arms and was striding toward the nearest carriage. He dumped her on the seat and climbed in after her. The carriage moved off, and he came down on his knees and buried his face in her lap. She stroked his hair and realized he was shaking as much as she was.
"I can't believe Lord Denley was Mr. Brown all along. I'm such a bloody fool. By going to him, I almost sealed your death warrant."
"No, you didn't. You forced him to have to plan to kill all of us and do it quickly. You made him reveal himself to us." She patted his shoulder. "It is all over now."
"When Jack appeared on that wall, I thought . . ."
"I know."
He raised his head to look at her. "Let's get married and live a very safe and unexceptional life in the countryside with our many well-behaved children."
She smiled tremulously at him. "You'll get bored."
"I won't, I swear it." He hoisted himself up to sit beside her. "As long as you are there to keep me happy."
"And we can escape to the pleasure house every once in a while."
He kissed her very gently on the mouth. "Whatever it takes to keep you from losing interest in me, my love."
She cupped his chin. "I'll never do that." She shivered. "I can't believe 'Mr. Brown' is really dead."
"You'll believe it when Jack is raised from the dead and takes control of his inheritance, making all charges against you meaningless." He put his arm around her. "It will probably take some time. I'll suggest to Philip that I take you away to the Continent for a prolonged wedding trip. By the time we return, everyone will have forgotten about poor Vincent Lennox and see only the Honorable Mrs. Richard Ross, my new wife and the love of my life."
"Oh, Richard, you make it sound so easy."
"It is." He smiled at her. "Christian told me that when it came down to it, nothing should be allowed to get in the way of my love for you. And when I thought I had lost you-" He swallowed hard. "I promised myself that if you survived, I would never make that mistake again. That I would take you, and love you, and never ever let you go."
She simply stared at him until he drew her back into his arms and kissed her. "Perhaps you should listen to Christian more often."
He drew back with a mock frown. "One piece of good advice does not make up for everything else he has subjected me to over the years." His smile grew tender. "But I might even thank him for this."
She kissed him again and finally managed to stop shaking.
EPILOGUE.
By the ton's standards, it wasn't a large wedding, but Helene considered it far superior in many ways. For one, it meant she was able to attend and not have to listen to the members of the ton either ignoring her or gossiping about her behind her back. When that inevitably happened, it made Philip angry on her behalf, and she didn't want to spoil a day that was so special for him.
After consulting with the happy couples, they had decided to invite only those people who were intimately connected with the Delornay-Ross family through blood or through their connection with the pleasure house. Helene smoothed down the skirts of her blue satin dress and contemplated the rapidly filling pews.
The pleasure house staff filled the back seats; Seamus and Patrick Kelly's red hair and height made them easy to spot. Marie-Claude sat in between them wearing a new bonnet with cream ostrich feathers curling at the brim. Just in front of the servants sat the plainly dressed couple Ambrose had invited and Lady Mary Kendrick. Helene waved at her daughter Marguerite and her husband, Lord Anthony Sokorvsky, who had chosen to sit in a row that also contained Lord Valentin Sokorvsky and his wife, Sara.
Philip came up behind Helene and touched her shoulder.
"Are you almost ready to take your seat, my love?"
"Yes, I am." She took a deep breath. "This is a magical day, isn't it? All our children will be married."
"Leaving us free to do anything we wish?"
She smiled into his beloved eyes. "Indeed, although I have promised the Lennox twins that I will return to France and meet with their grandmother."
"That is remarkably brave of you." He kissed her hand. "As Christian is too busy keeping an eye on his charges, let me escort you to your seat."
Helene smiled at her various acquaintances as she walked up the aisle and took her seat in the front pew. Philip left her and a gust of air from the opening of the door into the side chapel announced the arrival of the two grooms and their supporters. Ambrose had Christian by his side, and Richard had Adam Fisher, which made the arrangement very cozy.
As expected, both of the bridegrooms looked rather nervous. Ambrose was dressed in a dark blue coat and tan trousers, while Richard had opted for brown and black. Christian had time to wink at his mother before he arranged the wedding party to his liking and beckoned imperiously down the aisle.
Philip stepped forward with Emily on his arm. She wore a deep rose-colored satin dress that suited her complexion admirably. Helene's lips twitched as she noticed how Emily was trying to make Philip speed up so that she could get to her bridegroom in the fastest possible time.
Just behind them came Jack Lennox and his sister, Violet. It was the first time Helene had ever seen the younger Lennox twin dressed as a female. She wasn't surprised to see that Violet was taller than most women and very slender. Her expression was a little more apprehensive than Emily's, but Helene understood that all too well. Violet's life hadn't been easy, and she was probably afraid of her good fortune. But Richard would soothe those fears. He was very much like Philip at his core.
As the vicar read the opening lines to the marriage service, Helene let out a contented breath, said a quiet prayer, and prepared to sob quietly into her handkerchief.
ISBN: 978-0-7582-8612-3.
Books by Kate Pearce.
The House of Pleasure Series.
SIMPLY SEXUAL.
SIMPLY SINFUL.
SIMPLY SHAMELESS.
SIMPLY WICKED.
SIMPLY INSATIABLE.
SIMPLY FORBIDDEN.
SIMPLY CARNAL.
SIMPLY VORACIOUS.
SIMPLY SCANDALOUS.
Single Titles.
RAW DESIRE.
Anthologies.
SOME LIKE IT ROUGH.
LORDS OF PASSION.