A Gentleman By Any Other Name (31 page)

Chance kept his arm around her until the sound of hoofbeats faded, retrieved the lantern he'd brought with him from the beach, then helped her to her feet. He pushed back her hair, frowned as the thin moonlight hit her face. “You're bleeding.”

“I am?” Julia touched her cheek, her fingertips coming away wet. “I don't feel anything.”

“You won't, not for a while,” he said, dropping a quick kiss on her forehead, wanting to hold her tight but knowing there was no time. “Come on. Ainsley is going to tell me what the hell he was thinking, bringing you into this, and by the time I'm done with him, he'll wish Diamond was asking the questions again.”

I
T WAS LATE THE NEXT
morning before Julia awoke in her bed, coming instantly awake. “Chance,” she blurted out, sitting up, then winced as she realized she felt as if she'd been beaten from head to foot by someone who most definitely knew what he'd been about.

She moved her legs, and the sheet rubbing across her bare skin reminded her of the myriad angry scratches on her lower legs. Which served to remind her of the scratches on her face. Odette had promised they'd heal without leaving scars, but Odette had also said Ollie's baby was a boy.

Pushing back the covers, Julia went to look in the mirror overtop her dressing table, assured herself that her face hadn't been turned into a mass of ugly welts, then raced through her toilette, eager to be downstairs, more than eager to see Chance.

He'd been so wonderful last night, once they'd finally been back at Becket Hall and Lieutenant Diamond had gone on his way unhappy and empty-handed.

She hadn't realized that Courtland and his men had traveled by way of small boats they'd then hidden along the shore or that they'd returned so swiftly to Becket Hall, reaching there long before Lieutenant Diamond had even thought to search the village.

But what of the others? Jacko and Billy and Ollie and the rest hadn't reappeared by the time Eleanor had ordered Julia to bed.

She raced to the window, pushed back the heavy velvet draperies and sighed in relief when she saw the
Respite
riding at anchor offshore.

“Yes, sweetings, as Ainsley told me to tell you, all the chickies are safely back in their nests,” Chance said, closing her bedchamber door behind him. “And what are you doing out of bed and dressed? Heroines are supposed to keep to their beds for at least one day, where they recline in splendor, receiving their impressed and dazzled admirers.”

“Chance!” Julia had exclaimed halfway through his silliness and had launched herself at him, her arms now clinging around his neck. “I have never been so frightened in my life.”

“Or so invigorated?” he asked, whispering the words into her ear.

She pushed her hands against his shoulders so that she could move back, look up into his face. “Are you insane? There was absolutely nothing invigorating about anything that went on here last night. Please tell me it's over now, that the Red Men Gang is gone.”

“We can't know that for sure, Julia, but with many of them dead and the rest already in Dover Castle, it will be some time before they'll dare to venture this way again. Not when they've much more lucrative, less dangerous areas for their activities.”

“I suppose that will have to do,” Julia said, resting her head on his shoulder. “How many injured are there? Does Odette want my help?”

“You're all done helping,” Chance told her, kissing the top of her head. “Do you have any idea what I thought when I saw you lying facedown on the ground last night? I couldn't move, couldn't even call out your name—not until you tried to get up and I could be sure you were alive. I spent an hour last night yelling at Ainsley, and he let me.”

“You were really frightened?” Julia asked him, her heart leaping with joy, which should have embarrassed her but didn't. “Now you know how I felt, watching you sail off on the
Respite.
”

“So we're even,” Chance said, smiling as he pressed his forehead against hers. “It's strange, isn't it, how many emotions there are wrapped in that single word,
love.
Desire, fear, even anger. God, Julia, I can't imagine life without you.”

Julia reached up to lightly brush a misbehaving lock of hair behind his ear. “I've imagined life without you. Last night. I don't ever want to imagine that again.”

He covered his mouth with hers, slipping his arms more fully around her, and knew he held his world.

“Chance! You're needed!
Now!
”

Julia buried her head against his chest as Chance looked at his brother. “Spencer, you need to be taught some manners. Knock next time, damn you.”

“Right,” Spencer said, nearly dancing in place, his face flushed. “Next time. Right now,
Romeo,
you're needed. It's trouble that's knocking now.”

Julia lifted her head. “Spence? What's wrong?”

Spencer kept his attention on Chance, ignoring her question. “Chance, come on—move. He's talking, and you're not going to like what he's saying.”

“Who's talking?” Julia asked, grabbing Chance by the elbow as he went to follow Spencer, who had already turned and left the bedchamber.

“The leader of the Red Men Gang. Courtland carried him here last night. We've been…we've been questioning him.”

Julia swallowed painfully. “You've been torturing him?”

Chance's expression closed. “Spence was right not to tell you. This one isn't for women, Julia.”

And then he was leaving her—again—and she was left alone. Again.

He'd promised it was over. How could he have made a promise like that, knowing they were torturing someone for information that could only continue the fight?

How she wanted this madness to be over!

Since having a good cry didn't really appeal to her at the moment, Julia went in search of some breakfast, as being a heroine had turned out to be hungry work. But when she realized that it was nearly time for luncheon, she decided instead to take a walk on the terrace.

That's when she saw Cassandra running up one of the flights of stone steps. “Well, aren't you in a rush. Good morning, Callie. Or should I say good aftern—”

“He's got her,” Cassandra said, hanging on Julia's arm, bent over, trying to catch her breath. “He's got Alice. She was hiding. We were playing. We weren't doing anything wrong, we didn't go too far. And I saw him. I told her not to go to him, but she did and she wouldn't come back, and he—where's Papa? I was to bring Papa.”

Julia grabbed Cassandra's arm and gave her a small shake. “Callie, wait. Is this another game? Because if it is—”

“He's got her!” Cassandra shouted, her eyes wild. “Oh, never mind! Nobody believes me! Find Papa! I've got to go help her!”

Julia put a hand to her mouth as she watched Cassandra run down the steps once more and out onto the beach, turning to her right, heading toward—

“The sands,” Julia said quietly. “Oh, sweet Jesus. Alice, what have you done…?”

Julia ran toward the last set of French doors, the ones that led directly into Ainsley's study, and damn them all if they didn't care for the interruption!

But when she opened the door and stepped inside, she stopped dead at the sight of the bloody-faced man slumped in one of the leather chairs. “My God, what are you doing?”

Ainsley stepped in front of the unconscious man, blocking her view. “We're finished, actually, Julia. Chance, stop growling. What is it, my dear?”

Julia shifted her gaze from Ainsley to Chance to his brothers, all of them looking at her as if she should be anywhere but there. And she should be, because she had not wanted to see this, not needed to see this. The barbarity of men…

“Julia!”

She pressed her hands to her chest. “It's Alice. Callie says someone has her. On…on the beach somewhere. A man. I didn't believe her at first, but I don't think she's making up stories, I really don't. She ran, Callie did, toward the sands.”

Chance was the first one past her and on his way down the stone steps, with the others in quick pursuit, except for Rian, who Ainsley held on to by one arm.

“Cassandra went after her?”

“Yes, sir. I…I'll go get her, bring her to you.”

“Not necessary, my dear,” he said, walking around his desk and pulling open a drawer, revealing a pair of nasty-looking pistols. “These might be needed.”

“I want to go,” Rian argued. “Damn it, this is my fight, too!”

“Someone has to watch this one,” Ainsley said, inclining his head toward their captive. “Get someone to do that for you and you can join us.”

His cane left behind, Ainsley quickly walked outside, Julia right behind him. Together they made their way to the beach, just as Spencer came running toward them.

“It took too long to break that bastard. He's got her. He's got Alice and he wants to talk terms.”

“I don't…I don't understand,” Julia said, looking to Ainsley, who handed one of the pistols to Spencer.

“Give it to Chance. Hell, here, give this one to Court. Go!”

Spencer ran back toward the curve in the shoreline, toward the sands.

“What's happening?” Julia asked, all but begged, as she and Ainsley continued along the shore at a near trot. “Who's broken?”

Ainsley kept moving, limping badly. “The smuggler Court brought back with him last night. He was…reluctant to give us information until only a few minutes ago. And before you ask, that information had to do with who
his
leader is in this area. That's who has Alice, I'm sure of it. He wants to use her to force us to cooperate with him. But how he knew we're the ones…?”

“Perhaps we weren't as clever last night on the Marsh as we thought we were?”

Ainsley actually stopped for a moment to look down at her. “You mean that
I
wasn't as convincing as I wished to believe. Yes, that's probably it in a nutshell, considering who has Alice.”

They'd rounded the bend in the shoreline now, and Julia could see Cassandra standing well back of Courtland, Spencer and Chance.

Then she looked farther, across the treacherous sands…and saw Alice.

And Lieutenant Diamond.

“Oh, God,” she said nervously, trembling where she stood. “It's him? It's Lieutenant Diamond? Look how tightly he's holding Alice against him.”

“And with that pistol cocked. It would appear we're at
point non plus,
” Ainsley said as they approached Chance. “What does he want?”

“Out,” Chance said, not taking his attention away from Diamond or from his terrified child. “He wants out of England and the money to keep him comfortable when he gets where he's going.”

“He must have counted noses last night and realized our new friend had gone missing, realized who had to have him,” Courtland added, motioning for Cassandra to stay where she was, as the child was approaching, her fists to her mouth to stifle her sobs. “Callie said Alice went to him willingly when he called to her. Why would she do that?”

“Alice has no fear of strangers,” Julia heard herself say, then she winced.

“She does now,” Chance growled, hefting the pistol he held, knowing he couldn't use it. “We have to give him what he wants.”

“Until we get what we want, yes,” Ainsley agreed.

“No, damn it! I won't play with my daughter's life. We give him what he wants. No tricks.”

“He'll want to take her with him, as hostage. But he won't keep her with him, and we both know that, Chance. He'll kill her.”

The sun was shining. Julia knew that was a horribly silly thing to notice at a time like this, but the sun was shining. It was a beautiful day, warm, with a sweet breeze coming off the water. The sky was a gorgeous blue, with only a few lovely white clouds.

Nothing could be more beautiful, more peaceful.

So how could any of this horror be happening? She and Chance had finally found each other, found happiness. Last night had been a complete success, and there would be no more threat of exposure by the Red Men Gang bringing London down on them all. Everything was perfect. More than perfect.

How could this be happening!

“He'd really kill her?” Julia asked as all eyes were once more trained on Lieutenant Diamond and Alice, thirty feet away. So close but as unreachable as if there were a bottomless chasm between them.

As it was, the sands were between them, a fact Courtland pointed out at that moment. “He has to know the sands. This is all my fault. I'm the one who started this….”

“The button I found,” Chance said, cutting him off. “We've all been blind, Court. Completely blind. I thought we were playing him, and all along he was playing us.”

“He's standing where it's safe,” Spencer pointed out tersely. “But if we threaten him, if he moves the wrong way, if the sand shifts…”

“Well?” Diamond shouted across the sands. “I'm not going to stand here all day!”

“How much does he want?” Ainsley asked calmly, seeming to have come to a decision.

“Does it matter?” Chance stabbed his fingers into his hair, angrily getting it out of his way. “I won't let him take Alice.”

Julia had listened to every word, as they all seemed to have forgotten her, forgotten she was there. She blinked, looked past Diamond.
Rian.
Had anyone else seen him? He must have circled around, thinking to come up from behind the lieutenant. To do what?