His Mistress (17 page)

“Ain’t that just like a fancy gent,” Hopkins gloated. “All talk an’ no ballocks.”

“I’m not quite the fancy gent you think I am,” Tobias snapped.

Irritated that he’d allowed Hopkins’ words to make a tiny crack in his icy control, Tobias grimaced. He needed to curb his anger and remain level headed. Anything less threatened his ability to drop Hopkins like a rock. He danced forward and brought his right fist up under the other man’s jaw.

The force of the blow made the large man’s head jerked back. The moment he recovered, Hopkins roared with anger and lunged forward with his fists flying toward Tobias’ head. They found nothing but air as Tobias darted to one side. When the man passed him, Tobias landed two more punches to the man’s kidneys. One hand now pressed to his side, Hopkins whirled around to face him.

“Ye think yer something, don’t ye? Well ye ain’t. Ye’r a guttersnipe and not fit to be called a man.”

Dark, violent memories erupted in his head at Hopkins’ words. They pressed a hot wave of fury against his granite-like control until his jaw ached from the effort it took to keep his rage under lock and key. Tobias narrowed his gaze at the other man as he struggled to hold onto cold reason. To lose control meant he could easily make a mistake.

“Bigger men than you have underestimated me, Hopkins,” he said grimly with a shake of his head. Whether it was in disagreement or a simple attempt to keep his anger in check Tobias didn’t know or care.

As they faced each other Hopkins glared at Tobias before the larger man launched himself forward. Despite his opponent’s speed of attack, Tobias was ready for the assault. Hopkins landed a heavy blow to Tobias’ chin, but Tobias leaped to one side and slammed his fist into the other man’s eye. A wild flurry of punches later left both men gasping for air.

“When I’m finished with ye, boy, yer gonna be running home with yer tail between yer legs.”

Hopkins’ goading weakened Tobias’ steely control until there was only a thin layer between reason and the explosion of rage ready to erupt out of him. Desperately, he struggled to suppress the fury building inside him. Losing control meant surrender, and not since childhood had Tobias allowed himself to yield to anyone. Tobias’ struggle to maintain his reason cost him dearly as Hopkins threw himself forward.

This time Tobias wasn’t able to avoid the bigger man’s fists, and Hopkins landed a solid punch to Tobias’ stomach. The blow sent him to the ground. As Tobias struggled to get to his feet, Hopkins delivered a brutal jab to the right side of his jaw. Bright flashes of light blinded Tobias, and he reeled backward then collapsed on the ground. A large foot viciously connected with his side, and Tobias groaned in pain. Cruel laughter echoed out of the man standing over him.

“Go home, ye bastard. Ye can’t beat me. Yer not man enough.”

The words echoed in his ears with a familiarity that drove Tobias to stagger to his feet. Pain tried to keep him from standing upright, but his rage shut off the nerve endings firing warning signals to his brain. All he could see in front of him was a man he’d hated for years. A man who’d killed everything he’d ever loved. With a low growl of fury, Tobias ignored every protesting muscle in his body and leapt toward Hopkins.

The large man cried out in surprise and anger, but the swirling red mist wrapping itself around Tobias made him see another man. A man he wanted to make pay. Like a wild animal, Tobias’ struck the man in front of him. One blow after another, he slammed his fists into his adversary oblivious to the few blows that Hopkins managed to land on him. Blinded by rage, he followed Hopkins downward, still striking the man without any comprehension of his surroundings.

“Oh, please, Mr. Tobias.
Please stop, sir. You’ll kill him
. Please, Mr. Tobias. You must stop.”

The urgency in Molly’s voice penetrated the red mist of rage twining its way around his limbs. As he slowly emerged from the dark haze of anger, Tobias stared down at Hopkins’ battered face. For a moment, Tobias thought the man was dead, but he sagged with relief when he saw the man’s large chest rise and fall.

Tobias slowly got to his feet and looked at his informant. Molly’s expression was a mixture of dismay, shock, and awe. Trembling with reaction, Tobias shook his head.

“Go find Doctor Wilson, Molly,” he rasped.

“But sir, what if—”

“Go, Molly.
Now
.”

The suppressed fury in his voice made the woman jump in fear. Molly nodded then scurried away into the dark leaving Tobias alone with Hopkins. With a shaky hand, Tobias shoved his fingers through his hair as he stared down at Hopkins’ still body. What in God’s name had he been thinking.

“Fuck,” he snarled.

There had been only one other time he’d lost control like this before. The memory swelled up to haunt him, and he crushed it until every thought of that deadly day was obliterated from his mind. Tobias knelt beside the man and slowly reached out to check Hopkins’ pulse. It was a strong steady rhythm beneath his fingers, which meant he’d simply knocked the man unconscious.

Tobias followed the thought with a fervent prayer he’d not done any serious damage to the bastard. All he’d meant to do was make Hopkins think twice before the son of a bitch hit his wife again.
Christ
. Molly. His best informant was most likely going to loathe the sight of him, or at the very least Hopkins would make sure Molly didn’t have anything more to do with him.

“Bloody hell, Lynsted. They were just words. You didn’t have to let the bastard goad you like that,” he muttered fiercely.

Again the memories threatened to overwhelm him, but he pushed them back into the black hole they needed to stay buried in. Disgusted by his lack of control, Tobias sagged down onto the alley’s slimy brick road. Head bowed, he drew in a deep, sharp breath. Damnit to hell, he could have killed the man. Who said he hadn’t? In the dim light of the alleyway, Hopkins’ bloodied face was like a condemnation of Tobias’ actions.

With a grimace, Tobias jerked his handkerchief out of his pocket to staunch the flow of blood from one of Hopkins’ head wounds. A low moan of pain parted the man’s lips, and Hopkins’ eyes fluttered open. As Tobias met the man’s gaze, he saw a flicker of fear in Hopkins’ eyes. Almost instantly, the man tried to push himself away from Tobias, only to growl in pain.

“Lie still,” Tobias said quietly. “The doctor will be here in a few minutes.”

“And wha’ about the police? Is they comin’ too?”

“Police?” He narrowed his gaze at the man lying on the ground.

“I want to press charges, I do.”

“For what?”

“Ye attacked me.”

“No, I stopped you from beating your wife. And as a solicitor, I know what the law says about that,” Tobias said grimly. “So you have one of two choices. We call the police and when things are sorted out you’ll spend time in Newgate,
or
you can let the good doctor examine your injuries when he gets here, and you’ll be free to go.
But
with the understanding that if I ever hear of you hitting your wife again, I’ll find you, and I
will
kill you.”

Even in the dim light, it was easy to see Hopkins’ bloodied face had become gray at Tobias’ coldly spoken conditions. With a grimace, the other man nodded then closed his eyes. The sound of running footsteps made Tobias turn his head to see Molly and the doctor emerging from the shadows.

Tobias climbed to his feet as Doctor Wilson reached him and Hopkins. The older gentleman acknowledged him with a quick nod before bending to attend to his patient. After a few moments of gentle poking, the doctor made Hopkins sit up and remove his shirt. With efficient speed, the doctor bound Hopkins chest then stood up and offered his hand to Hopkins.

“You’ll be sore for a week or so and have some bruises, man, but you’ll live.”

Tension ebbed from Tobias’ body as the doctor’s helped Hopkins to his feet. At least he’d not injured Hopkins permanently. The large man accepted the doctor’s hand and slowly stood up. He swayed on his feet for a moment before regaining his equilibrium. When he was satisfied Hopkins wouldn’t fall down, the doctor turned to Tobias.

“Let me have a look at you, Lynsted.”

“I’m fine,” Tobias said with a wave of his hand. Doctor Wilson glared at him.

“Don’t argue with me boy.” The doctor’s white eyebrows almost became a straight line as he frowned at Tobias. “I’ll be the judge of your fitness.”

With a reluctant grimace, Tobias suffered the doctor’s examination while keeping his attention on Hopkins and Molly. The woman didn’t move for a long moment as she stared at her husband with hesitancy. She darted a quick look in Tobias’ direction before moving forward and murmuring something to Hopkins. The big man nodded then shuffled forward with Molly holding his elbow. The couple had taken only a couple of steps when Tobias pushed Doctor Wilson’s hand away from his face.

“Remember what I said, Hopkins.”

The quiet words rang out across the space between him and the other man. Molly’s husband drew up short at the lethal coldness underlying Tobias’ statement. The burly man looked over his shoulder and nodded sharply before he continued on his way with his wife at his side. As the couple disappeared into the shadows, Tobias uttered a sharp oath at the stinging sensation biting into his jaw.

“Christ almighty, Wilson. Are you trying to cure me or do more damage?”

“One of these days, Lynsted I’m not going to be
able
to heal you,” the doctor snapped. “Hopkins is almost twice your size, and from what I’ve heard, he’s more than capable of killing a man.”

“And yet I was the one left standing.”

“True, but next time you might not be the one to walk away.” The doctor took a step back to study Tobias with a narrowed gaze of curiosity. “I don’t know what happened, but from what little I gleaned from Molly, you fought like a madman.”

“Molly is prone to exaggeration,” Tobias lied as the doctor’s observation made him stiffen with the knowledge of how out of control he’d been. Doctor Wilson shook his head in disgust at Tobias’ stubbornness then pulled out his watch to study it as he took Tobias’ pulse. The moment the man did so, Tobias groaned and the other man’s head jerked upward.

“What is it? Where are you hurting,” the doctor exclaimed with concern.

“It’s not that,” Tobias muttered with irritation as he rubbed his side. “I’ve an engagement this evening.”

“Well, you can’t go dressed like this.” The doctor’s wry statement made Tobias scowl at the older man.

“Are we done here?”

“I need to bind your ribs. Hopkins isn’t the only one who took a beating,” Doctor Wilson observed. “We can do it here or at your townhouse.”

“My house after I’ve had a bath. I smell like a sewer rat.” Tobias bit out between clenched teeth. “And no sermons.”

“As you wish.” The doctor arched his eyebrows, but didn’t say another word as he followed Tobias out of the alley.

Almost two hours later, Tobias climbed the steps to Culverstone House. His side was sore as hell, and the bandage the doctor had wrapped around his ribcage was like a vise clamped tight across his chest. The door opened in seconds after his knock, and Tobias was certain the earl’s butler had been waiting on him to arrive. As he crossed the threshold to stand in the foyer, Tobias saw the butler stiffen with surprise.

“Good evening, Caldwell.”

“Good evening, Mr. Lynsted.”

There was an unspoken question in the man’s voice, and Tobias winced as he met man’s arched look. The butler might not inquire as to the cuts on Tobias’ cheek, but Jane and others would.

“I see you’re impressed with my award for meritorious service,” Tobias said with a wry grimace as he tugged off his white evening gloves with his ribs protesting the movement. “A young woman was in need of assistance.”

“It is an impressive award, sir,” The butler said with what Tobias could almost call amusement. “The gentlemen will find it admirable, and the ladies shall find it most dashing and heroic.”

“There’s only one lady’s opinion I care about, Caldwell,” he said quietly as he realized for the first time how much Jane’s opinion mattered to him.

The ring of truth in his simple statement earned him a small nod of approval from the butler. Tobias bit back a smile. Caldwell’s opinion of him had changed slightly since the earl had made it known Tobias was courting Jane. But over the course of the last week, he’d noted the butler’s approval had remarkably increased.

Laughter drifted out from the drawing room into the foyer of the Earl of Culverstone’s residence. At the sound, Tobias drew in a breath of irritation. At this moment, socializing was the last thing he’d want to do. Tobias dropped his gloves into his top hat and handed it to the butler.

“And who are we entertaining this evening, Caldwell?” His caustic remark caused a look of sympathetic disdain to cross the butler’s features.

“Lady Hounslow invited Lord and Lady Fielding, Lord Camden and his fiancée, Lord and Lady Ramsdale, and Lord Mallen as his lordship’s guests this evening, Mr. Lynsted.”

“A small gathering then,” he said with more than a hint of relief.

“Yes, sir,” Caldwell said with another nod of his head. “Shall I announce you, sir?”

“No. I’m late, and I’ve no intention of letting Lady Hounslow point that fact out at Lady Jane’s expense,” Tobias murmured.

“Very good, sir. Although, I’m certain Lady Jane will be pleased to see you, Mr. Lynsted.”

The man’s observation made Tobias arch his eyebrows slightly. It was more information than he was accustomed to Caldwell sharing with him. He eyed the servant for a moment, but the man’s face was a polite, unreadable mask. For some inexplicable reason, Tobias was certain the butler hadn’t meant to share his observations. Like all the servants in the house, he was protective of his mistress.

“Thank you, Caldwell.”

With a half-smile on his lips, Tobias quietly moved across the hallway into the main salon. His gaze searched the room for Jane, and he saw her sitting in a chair near the window with Lord Mallen engaging her in conversation. Every time he saw Jane, it pleased him to see she’d complied with one of his conditions almost immediately. Gone was her dismal, gray wardrobe. In its place were cool, soft colors that complimented her peach-colored complexion. Tonight her blue gown barely brushed her shoulders leaving the tops of her breasts exposed in a delectable manner.