Lessons of Love (35 page)

Gregor lifted
Jolie
around the waist then dumped her unceremoniously to the ground, hoping the jolt would wake her.
She whimpered but then lay still. “
Little bitch ain
’
t gonna get out of what
’
s comin
’
to her by playin
’
dead I
’
ll tell you that.”
He grumbled to himself as he hoisted her over his shoulder, carrying
Jolie
like a rag doll as he tended his horse. Satisfied t
hat the beast was bedded down properly, he carried her to the rain barrel and dunked her face in the cold water but still
Jolie
didn
’
t stir.

“
Must have hit your head harder than I thought.”
He took her inside and threw her on the bed, wet hair streaming w
ater droplets across the floor. Gripping her face, Gregor squeezed then slapped her hard repeatedly but got no response other than another whimper. As a last resort he tugged of the makeshift bandage on her arm and poked at her bullet wound, the pellet ne
e
ded to come out sooner or later and the pain would most likely shock her awake.
Jolie
stirred as he roughly examined her but still didn
’
t regain consciousness. Gregor glared at her in disgust, hating her all the more for ruining his plans. He preferred pla
ying with a woman who had a lot of fight in her.
Jolie
would be no fun until she wa
s able to scream and struggle.

“
Damn bullet can stay in there for all I care. I need something to eat.”
Cursing, he stormed away and retrieved two cords, then proceeded to
quickly tie her wrists to the bed. “
You
’
ll wake up soon enough whore, and when you do, I
’
ll will be waiting.”
He opened her dressing gown and ran his hands over the silk of her nightgown, growing hard at the thought of the soft flesh beneath the fabric, h
i
s lip curling into a sneer. “
I bet you bruise easy, pretty one. Gonna mar your lily white skin. You and I are going to have such fun.”
~~~~~~~~~~~
 

Celia
’
s steps slowed as she neared the bottom of the cellar
’
s stairs. Fear gripped her gut, both from the
haunting memories of what Gregor had done to her in the chamber below and from the thought that she might find Jonathan
’
s lifeless body. She couldn
’
t bear it if something had happened to him. She simply couldn
’
t. All the time they had spent together over
t
he last few months had caused tender feelings to develop between them. Ones that Celia had ignored unti
l now out of shyness and fear.

It wasn
’
t that she was afraid Jonathan would do to her what Gregor had, not at all. Her momma had told her what went on b
etween a man and his wife and Celia knew Jonathan would be a caring and loving man. She was simply very shy and unsure of herself around men, even one as wonderful as Jonathan, and had therefore blushed and turned away when his hand had brushed hers or he
had given her a compliment. Now she might never have the chance to tel
l him that she cared for him.

She moved down the last step and through the cellar to the wooden door at the back of the room. It had a large padlock on it and Celia groaned in frustrat
ion. Unlike the other things in the cellar, the lock looked new and sturdy. Looking about, she searched for something that would break the lock and gain her entry. Finally she spied a pick ax
e
amongst a pile of brok
en tools. Picking it up s
he tested her sw
ing, feeling the weight of the ax
e
in her hand. She then approached the door and brought the point down in an arch, aiming for the center of the lock. The lock didn
’
t give but the wood of the door surrounding it splintered as she missed her target, giving
her hope.

Again and again Celia swung the pick ax
e
until the iron fixture holding the lock gave way. She emitted a little sound of triumph and rushed forward, retrieving her lantern as she went, intent on finding Jonathan. “
Jonathan? Are you here? Jonatha
n? It
’
s Celia.”
She went down the dark hall to the door of the room that still held a place in her nightmares. Fortunately it was unlocked and even more fortunately, when she lifted her lantern to look within, she saw Jonathan
’
s eyes staring back at her.
H
e was bound, gagged, a
nd bloody but very much alive!

“
Oh thank goodness. Oh Jonathan. I was so worried.”
Celia knelt beside him and shocked both of them by gently grasping his face and kissing his forehead. “
I thought I
’
d never see you again. Oh Jonathan,
thank God.”
She pulled his gag free and made quick wor
k of the ropes that bound him.

“
Celia. You
’
re a sight for sore eyes. What happened? Is
Jolie
all right? It was Gregor, Celia, Gregor must have put something in your tea and he attacked me on the stair
s. I
’
m so sorry, love. I tried to protec
t you. I failed you terribly.”

“
D
on
’
t be silly, Jonathan. You did everything you could. Gregor has
Jolie
now. He kidnaped me and took me away but
Jolie
caught up with us. She was so brave, Jonathan. You should
have seen her. She stood right up to him. Shot at him too but he caught her in the end. I... I ran away.”
Celia lowered her eyes, shame filling her over leaving her best friend
in the
hands of that monster.

“
No Celia, you didn
’
t run away, you ran to get
help. Now give me your hand and help me up. We
’
ll save her, I promise.”
Celia extended her hand and Jonathan took it, looking into her eyes as she helped him to his feet. He staggered and she put her arms around him, their bodies suddenly pressed close to
g
ether. Time stopped for an instant as Jonathan lowered his mouth to hers. It was a brief kiss, a mere brushing of the lips, but it said so very much. He pulled back and looked down at her and Celia silently nodded. Jonathan kissed her again. This one was
s
till soft as a summer breeze but held much more promise of things to come. His lips traveled lightly over hers, tasting her sweetness for a moment before moving his lips to her forehead. Her breath caught and her eyes filled with tears, tears of happiness
that she
’
d found Jonathan and tears of fear for
Jolie
. Jonathan shook
his head and kissed her eyes.

“
Oh my sweet Celia. My sweet girl, we
’
ll find
Jolie
. We shall get your Mistress back unharmed. Help me now, I
’
m a bit unsteady.”
Celia led the way out of t
he cellar, and the room of horrors, her arm tightly wound around Jonathan. She had all the confidence in the world in the man beside
her
and in Monsieur
Jameson
. Yes, they would get
Jolie
back, but would it be in time?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 

Cole
sat in the co
rner of the inn
’
s tavern, pointedly avoiding the eyes of the bar wench. She
’
d made it quite clear she that she was available for an evening
’
s dalliance, and he had no interest in her. The daring show of cleavage, the purposeful brush of her breasts agains
t
his arm when serving him, and her bold words, did nothing to stir his manhood. He wanted his wife, plain and simple. He should never have left for Natchez without her. Now he was desti
ned to spend six nights alone.

He watched the other patrons as he quie
tly drowned his sorrows, working his way through his fourth tankard of ale, and wishing to wash
Jolie
’
s image from his mind. So far he had been quite unsuccessful in that venture, and he seriously doubted a river of beer could manage to make him forget his
pretty wife, for even a moment. The barmaid approached again
but he waved her away. He hadn
’
t the
time
,
nor
tolerance
for her brazen ways.

A sudden outburst from the door caught his attention and
Cole
turned, astonished to see one of his young house boys stru
ggling with the tavern owner. The man was trying to bar him entrance while the child was
looking around wildly and seeming
ly trying to explain why he needed to be allowed in.
Cole
rose and walked over to the pair, his heart beginning to pound in his chest.

He gave the owner a steely look and jerked his head, indicating it would be in the man
’
s best interest to leave the child alone. “
He
’
s my slave, and it
’
s obvious from the looks of him that he has urgent business. What is it boy? How did you get here and
who sent you?”

“
It
’
s the Mistress
,
Monsieur
Jameson
. She
’
s gone.”
Cole
grabbed the boy by the shoulders, shaking him roughly in his fear. The boy
’
s lip began to tremble and his eyes welled up with tears. His joy at finding
Cole
replaced by terror over wha
t his Master
’
s reaction would be to the news tha
t the Mistress had been taken.

“
What do you mean she
’
s gone? Has she run off?”
Rage and panic filled
Cole
at the same time. Could
Jolie
truly have been angry enough to run from him the first chance she
’
d had
.

“
No Sir. She
’
s
been taken from the house. Ms. Celia was taken too, but she got away and came back. She sent me for you. You have to come home Sir, Miss
Jolie
is in danger.”
Cole
’
s heart stopped beating at that moment and ice water flooded his veins. Gre
gor, Gregor had taken
Jolie
. How could he have been such a fool? Oh God, Gregor had his sweet
Jolie
.

“
When?”

“
Early, Monsieur. This morning after the ladies had breakfast. Master Jonathan is missing too. Ms. Celia
’
s looking for him and everyone else is
looking for Miss
Jolie
.”

“
Run to the stables and tell them to prepare my horse. We
’
re leaving at once.”
Cole
raced up the stairs two at a time,
Jolie
was in trouble. His
Jolie
, the love of his life, h
ow could he have left her alone? How could he have been
such a damn angry fool as to put her in danger? The thought of losing her made a part of him die inside. “
I
’
m coming,
Jolie
. I
’
m so sorry love. So help me God Gregor, you will suffer tenfold for any bit of pain and terror you cause her.”
~~~~~~~~~~
 

C
ole
and the boy rode through the night at a breakneck pace, never stopping or slowing for an instant. He arrived back at the plantation to find it all but deserted. The young stable boy came for his horse just as Celia came rushing out of the house and as
an exhausted Jonathan rode into the yard. Upon seeing
Cole
, his face lit up with hope, and then plum
meted as his
shame filled him.