Rogue Countess (17 page)

“Never say so.” His voice was a thin sigh now as he slid into unconsciousness.

Anna continued to work with calm competence. She cleaned away the rest of the blood and then started on the wound itself. She rinsed the gaping crevice and trimmed the jagged edges of his torn flesh so she could effectively stitch the wound together. Fortunately, Miriam had brought up the necessary materials, which also included a basic poultice, which Anna applied generously over the wound. The biggest concern would be infection, and she hoped, considering the loss of blood, that Leif would have the strength to fight off any fever that might try to overtake him.

Anna finished wrapping the bandages around the cleaned wound and pushed up from the bed with a heavy sigh. Turning to the table, she gathered the used rags and the bowl of bloodied water. As she started for the door, Jude stepped away from the window, like a somber spectre separating from the shadows.

Anna’s feet slowed as he approached. She stiffened in anticipation of a confrontation and her muscles reacted with a sharp aching resistance that nearly made her flinch. She turned to face him and defiantly returned his dark expression.

She expected some snide comment or harsh words. But he said nothing, just pressed his firm lips into a tight line and searched her face with blue eyes that pierced through the dim light of the room. Her arms began to quiver as she held the bowl of soiled rags to her chest, but she stood firm. It was likely only a scant few seconds that ticked by, but to Anna it felt like an oddly rushed lifetime as she stood tired and aching under his penetrating gaze.

She was unsure of what he would do next. Too tired to prepare a defense.

Then, without a word, Jude reached for the materials overflowing her hands. She allowed him to take them from her, and with the weight removed, her shoulders bowed and her arms fell heavily to her sides.

“What are you doing?” she asked in confusion.

“His bedding will need to be changed,” Jude said matter-of-factly. He glanced toward the bed and a faint suggestion of a sneer tilted the corner of his mouth. “In his current state, I doubt he will be of much help.” As if on cue, a loud rumbling snore echoed from the bed. “I insist on interfering long enough to assist you with the task.”

“Why?”

Jude lifted his brows. “As I explained, you will need some help…”

Anna interrupted with a rough shake of her head. “No, I mean, why would you offer to help?”

Jude didn’t answer right away. His blue eyes were flat and unreadable as he met her wary gaze. When he finally replied, there was an odd note in his voice that she didn’t immediately recognize.

“If I don’t, you will undoubtedly try to accomplish the impossible task yourself, which will lead to frustrated curses. Better I lend a hand than waste time watching you fail. The quicker the deed can be done, the sooner I can return to my bed.”

Anna searched his face, still suspicious of his offer.

Then she saw the almost imperceptible smile tickling the edges of his mouth.

He was teasing her for her stubbornness. The realization that he would do so softened her wariness at the same time that it heightened her conscious awareness of him.

She turned to look back over her shoulder at Leif’s figure draped heavily across the narrow bed and sighed, knowing Jude was right. The bedding was bloodied and wet from her administrations. She most definitely couldn’t leave him like that.

Turning back to Jude, she replied with reluctant acceptance, deciding for the moment not to question his motives further. “I suppose I haven’t got any other choice than to accept your interference for now.”

“How gracious of you,” Jude rejoined with light sarcasm.

Anna harrumphed.

“I’ll go discard of these,” he said, indicating the bowl of used rags in his hands. “I’ll be back to help you in a few minutes.”

Without waiting for her to reply, Jude turned and left the room, leaving Anna to stare after him, utterly perplexed.

She would have liked to indulge in a few solitary minutes pondering over Jude’s behavior tonight—his insistence in joining her, then his seeming lack of concern as she tended to Leif, and now this offer of assistance. Not knowing what was motivating him worried her. She took a deep breath and decided to sort it all out later. Right now, more important things needed to be tended to. The night had only just begun.

Remembering the cupboard at the far end of the hall, she exited Leif’s room in search of linens. She was nearly to the top of the stairs when she heard a loud wooden crash in the front hall below. Alarm momentarily chased away her exhaustion and she rushed to see what had happened.

“Riley, you cowardly scoundrel! Get your arse down here. I demand satisfaction.”

Anna was halfway down the stairs by the time she saw the man who had forced his way through the front door and was standing awkwardly in the center of the small entryway. He was of average height and build. His hair was black streaked with gray and framed a face contorted with rage. Apparently, the cuckolded husband who had tried to end Leif’s philandering for good was not content with issuing a few shots at his retreating backside.

“Riley!” the man shouted again then stopped abruptly as he saw Anna midway down the stairs. His reddened face twisted into a feral snarl. “Where is that damned whoreson? Are you his slut?”

Anna’s temper flared recklessly to life. In a more rational moment she never would have challenged the wild-eyed man, but she was tired and emotionally churned up and his insult fired her blood beyond her control.

“Now see here,” she retorted as she marched down the stairs.

Before she could say more, Jude interrupted in a deep and ominous voice that instantly commanded attention. “Enough.”

Anna wasn’t sure if he had directed the comment to her or the intruder. But her steps came to a halt just the same. She watched as the stranger turned to face Jude full on and noticeably straightened his spine as he recognized in Jude a more formidable opponent.

“Why don’t you tell me who you are and why you are here,” Jude suggested. Though his words were casual, they were delivered in a tone that was anything but.

“I’m here for Riley,” the man roared.

“You can’t have him,” Jude responded.

The intruder growled. “I demand satisfaction.”

“Trust me, you will have no satisfaction tonight.”

It was sort of amazing to watch the way Jude countered the man’s fiery demands with succinct and calmly uttered denials. For a moment, the two men stared at each other across the small space, each measuring the other’s conviction and determination. Then the intruder swept away from Jude with another low sound of anger and impotence rumbling in his throat.

At first, Anna thought he intended to leave, but he only took a couple steps before turning around again. He squared his shoulders toward Jude, glaring at him from beneath mussed locks of his hair with red-rimmed eyes.

“Anna.” Jude addressed her in a low voice without turning to look at her. “Go upstairs. This matter can be handled without you.”

Anna tensed to argue. But then saw with a startling jolt of panic a dark and heavy shape held tightly in the man’s hand, slightly hidden within the folds of his coat.

It was a gun.

Anna responded with immediate action. She turned away from the scene in the hall and started up the stairs at what she hoped would appear to be an unhurried pace.

“I’m not leaving until the bloody blackguard faces me like a gentleman.”

The declaration reverberated up the stairs behind her. A wave of cold fire washed through her blood and screamed for her to go faster, but the last thing she wanted was to bring more attention to herself.

Once she was out of sight from the men below, she sprinted back to Leif’s room, whispering prayers under her breath that the pistol would still be in the drawer of his wash stand.

She barely spared a glance at her friend snoring peacefully in the bed. Opening the drawer, she nearly whooped in relief as she saw the pistol right where it had been when Leif had showed it to her one drunk and melancholy night. It was one of a matching pair that had been used by his grandfather decades ago when the man had shot his wife and then himself. Leif’s father kept possession of the pistol’s twin and had instructed Leif to always keep his loaded near his bed, never knowing when he might need to use it on an unfaithful woman, or himself.

Anna had been deeply disturbed by the story at the time, but now she was grateful Leif had showed her the pistol. Never having held a gun before, the weight of it was disconcerting. She just hoped she could figure out how to use it if she needed to. Not wanting to waste another moment, she pointed the gun to the floor and held it close against her thigh as she rushed back down the hall to the stairs.

Everything was far too quiet. She descended the steps, clenching her bottom lip between her teeth. The cold fear that had leaked into her bloodstream created a chilling stiffness in her movements and her heartbeat was far too loud and distracting in her ears.

Her breath froze as she became aware of the fact that the entryway was empty and the front door was wide open.

The sweat on her palm began to make the gun difficult to hold onto.

Where on earth had they gone? Why was everything so bloody quiet?

Then Jude materialized from the dark night beyond the doorway. He stepped inside the house and closed the door behind him. He was alone. The intruder was gone.

Anna abruptly sat down on the step where she stood, setting the heavy pistol in her lap. Deep breaths filled her lungs and a strange shaky energy pulsed through her limbs.

Jude noticed her then and scowled as he came forward.

“I told you to go upstairs. I would have expected you to understand that I meant for you to stay there.”

Anna didn’t answer. She wasn’t quite sure her throat had relaxed enough to speak yet.

Then Jude noticed the weapon lying in her lap and his eyebrows shot upward.

“What the hell did you plan to do with that?” he asked incredulously.

Anna shrugged, her tongue twisting ineffectively in her mouth as she tried to think of a smart response.

Jude stood at the base of stairs, just a few steps down from where Anna sat, and stared at her with a shadow of bewilderment in his blue eyes.

She blinked and licked her dry lips.

“He left?” she asked finally.

“Yes, he left,” Jude answered. He reached toward the gun resting on Anna’s thighs, giving her a questioning look as he did so.

She nodded quickly, and he relieved her of its weight, then offered his other hand to help her rise.

“But he… How did you…?” she muttered in confusion as she stood and allowed Jude to guide her back up the stairs. Her hand fit surprisingly well in his. The warmth and subtle roughness of his palm provided a source of comfort and strength that Anna didn’t realize she needed. She almost shifted her fingers to link them with his but caught herself.

“Once he heard Riley was on his deathbed, unconscious from loss of blood, not likely to make it through the night, he agreed that his and his wife’s honor had been avenged.”

Anna was speechless. Jude had exaggerated Leif’s condition in order to keep him from further harm.

Even though Leif was rumored to be her lover. Even though Leif had publicly insulted him.

What manner of man would do that?

“Do you even know how to use this antique?” Jude asked with a touch of humor in his voice as he examined the gun in his hand.

“Leif showed me once. I hoped I would remember.”

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Jude shaking his head. By then they had reached the top of the stairs, and when Jude would have continued on to Leif’s room, Anna stopped and motioned toward the other end of the hallway.

“The linens,” she explained.

Jude released her hand and nodded. The brief amusement and surprise were gone. His features were once again organized into an unreadable expression.

“I’ll get them. Go check on your patient.”

Then he strode down the hall, leaving Anna to wander more slowly back to Leif’s room. With the excitement over and Jude’s strengthening presence departed, her exhaustion seemed nearly overwhelming.

Twenty minutes later, Leif was settled into a clean bed, having snored through the entire procedure.

Anna led the way from the bedroom. She lowered her chin and lifted her hand to rub at the bands of muscle along the back of her neck. Once in the hallway, she turned to lean back against the wall and watched as Jude closed the bedroom door behind him. Her eyes burned with the desire to close in sleep, but she couldn’t keep from staring at her husband in the shadowy darkness of the narrow hallway.

He had removed his coat before helping her with Leif, and dressed as he was in his dark evening pants and the thin white lawn shirt loosened around the throat and rolled up at the sleeves, he looked amazingly appealing.

He had proven himself to be a surprise tonight. For an insane second, she considered stepping toward him and wrapping her arms around his narrow waist and laying her head against the solid surface of his chest.