Lord Melvedere's Ghost (23 page)

A pang
of longing swept through her at the thought of the intimate meal
she had shared with Jamie last night. The easy camaraderie between
them had felt so right, so natural, that she felt a physical sense
of loss for what might have been. Although he hadn’t asked her any
questions, she wondered if he had been trying to lull her into a
false sense of security in the hope that she would divulge
something about her father that might be useful to the Star Elite’s
investigation of him. After all, she now knew the reason he had
offered for her the first time round had been driven by his thirst
for information to aid the Star Elite in their investigations. It
seemed that there was nothing Jamie would stop at in his quest to
unravel a mystery.

She had
just finished the last of her cup of chocolate when she became
aware of a cold flicker of air across the back of her neck. The
hairs on her forearms immediately stood on end, and goose bumps
stood out on her bare skin. A shiver laced down her spine. She was
suddenly afraid to turn around, to look at the doorway to the
secret passage. Closing her eyes, the food heavy in her stomach,
she fought the trembling and tried to think calmly and logically.
She hadn’t heard any clicking, but the cold, steady draft was
enough to tell her that all was not as it at first
appeared.

There
was nothing else for it. She slowly pushed to her feet and brushed
out her skirts, taking the time to carefully study the half of the
room that she could see. What would she do if there was someone
standing behind her? Would she be able to make it to the door
before they did? What would she do if it was Jamie’s father? Ghosts
didn’t appear in the daytime, did they? Sending a silent prayer to
the heavens that she would make it through the day, she slowly
turned around, her eyes wide with fear.

To her
consternation there was nothing there. This time though the cool
breeze tickled her cheeks. At first glance the door to the passage
was closed. Slowly moving around the bed, it became abundantly
clear that the door wasn’t properly latched. Had Jamie left it
unlatched accidentally last night? Or had someone been in her room
while she had been asleep? Pausing long enough to light a candle,
she slowly walked toward the door. It was resting against the
panelling, not properly latched.

Easing
it open slowly, she lifted the candle and peered into the gloom.
Her scream locked in her throat when two firm hands pushed her
between her shoulders, propelling her forward into the darkness.
The resounding slam of the door behind her blew out the fragile
flame of the candle she held and she was immediately encased in
darkness.

Trembling, frightened beyond words, her breath sawed in and
out as her mind tried desperately to cling on to reality and not
give in to the hysteria that threatened. Someone had just pushed
her into the corridor. The urge to run was strong. So strong in
fact that she found herself moving forward, as though propelled by
unseen hands again, but this time logic kept her still.

She had
to think like Jamie. What would he do in this situation? She could
go back into her bedroom, but the owner of the unseen hands could
be in there. She knew enough about the corridor to be aware that
there were no stairs for now. Putting her hands out before her like
a sleepwalker, she slowly shuffled forward, trying her hardest not
to make any sound. Every nerve was stretched taught, every muscle
braced for flight. Her ears tuned to any sound of movement in the
passage but she could detect nothing. Her eyes scanned the darkness
before her. This time she found herself praying for any sign of
Jamie’s father. Dead or alive, he would be a welcome sight right
now, but there was nothing except for empty blackness.

The
journey along the corridor seemed to take an age. At some point,
she was fairly certain that she could hear the footfall of another
person behind her, or in front, it was really difficult to tell
with the heavy silence within the confined space.

Shivering against the cold, she quickened her pace to a
steady walk and moved swiftly toward Jamie’s suite on the east side
of the house. She daren’t stop, and certainly wasn’t going to look
behind her. It was too dark to see the stairs but she could tell
from the shifting of the claustrophobic atmosphere, and her vague
memory, that she had just passed the winding steps that would take
her downstairs. Should she go down to Jamie’s study? Pausing
briefly, she contemplated where he might be at that moment only to
jerk in alarm at the definite shuffling noise of footsteps behind
her.

Terror
clawed at her throat. Spinning on her heel, she blindly ran
forward, pushing this way and that for any sign of the door to
Jamie’s room. She was fairly certain that there was someone behind
her and that they were familiar enough with the passages not to
need any light as they followed her. Was it the owner of the unseen
hands who had pushed her into the passage? Her stomach lurched with
sickening fear until her hand landed on a slight dip in the wall.
With fumbling fingers she found the circular latch and, with
nothing short of desperation, she twisted and pushed at the
door.

She
stumbled into the room covered in dust, tears trickling steady from
her wide, fear-filled eyes. Jamie, who was in the middle of getting
dressed, turned around in alarm. His stunned gaze flew from her to
the empty doorway behind her and without asking, he knew what had
just happened.

“
What the hell?
Cecily?”
He stalked across the room, his eyes running
frantically over her from head to toe. She was covered in dust and
cobwebs, and was clearly terrified.

“
What happened? Are you hurt?” He patted her shoulders, cupped
her face and searched her hands, her arms, everywhere for any sign
of injury.

Cecily
hiccupped and shook her head. “They – he – she – was in my room,”
she whispered, “while I was sleeping.” Her eyes were so scared.
“They pushed me in there.” She lifted one grubby, trembling hand
and pointed toward the open doorway behind her.

“
It’s alright, darling. You are safe now.” He murmured
soothingly, ordering Warren to move away from the door. He lifted
Cecily, and held her for several long moments, savouring the feel
of her in his arms while he kicked the door closed. Placing random
kisses on her forehead he murmured soothing words to her while she
took deep, fortifying breaths in an attempt to steady her nerves.
Eventually, she began to relax against him.

“
Do you want me to send for a doctor?”

“
No, I’m fine,” Cecily quivered, reluctant to release her hold
on him. Although she was aware that he was only wearing his
breeches, she didn’t care, and ignored the curious butler who was
looking on in consternation.

“
I’m going to go and check it out,” Jamie whispered, his voice
cold and hard. “You stay here with Warren. He will see you get
warm, and have some brandy.” He shot Warren a pointed look and only
turned away when his efficient butler nodded. “Keep an eye on the
door, and don’t let anyone in or out,” he ordered.

“
Stay here,” he ordered, pausing only long enough to remove his
gun from beside the bed. “Look after her,” he demanded. Despite his
unclothed state, he took off into the corridor. The darkness didn’t
bother him. He had walked the passage several times himself and had
paced the distance between his room, Cecily’s room and the stairs.
He covered the entire length of the corridor to Cecily’s room
before doubling back, taking the stairs down in record
time.

Cursing
fluidly, he was breathing heavily by the time he returned to his
startled butler and the still shaken Cecily.

“
Are you alright?” He knew he kept asking her the same
question, but he hated to see her so pale and trembling. He threw a
grateful glance at Warren. Luckily the butler had taken great care
of Cecily, who now sat in regal glory in his bed, the thick covers
draped over her shoulders, and a large dose of his best brandy in
her hand. She was hanging on to the glass as though her life
depended on it.

“
It’s all right, Warren, I will take care of her now.” He
flicked the butler a dismissive glance and then stopped him before
he left the room. “Discuss this with nobody, Warren. I will tell
you all about it later, but for now, the least number of people
that know about it, the better.”

Warren
nodded warily and flicked a worried glance at the passage
door.

“
Did you know about the secret passages that run around here?”
Jamie demanded. He had seen the butler’s slightly worried look at
the panelling and wondered if he had something to hide.

“
No sir, I had no idea. Do they run far? How long have they
been here?”

“
Later, Warren,” Jamie urged, his tone softening slightly at
the sight of the butler’s confusion. He had known Warren long
enough to know that the man was as genuine as the day was long, and
he was thoroughly befuddled by what had just happened, for now at
least.

“
Do you want me to bring trays up rather than having the lady
come down for dinner?”

Jamie
nodded and smiled his thanks. “I think that would be best, don’t
you? We will eat in the sitting room, but take Cecily’s tray to her
room yourself, don’t send Doreen.”

Warren
nodded his head once, and disappeared out of the door.

Jamie
had no intention of telling Warren that Cecily was going to be
eating in his room from now on. He had made certain that the secret
door to Cecily’s room was closed firmly. As soon as his dinner tray
arrived, he would lock the outer door to Cecily’s room, and collect
her tray so they could eat together.

Cecily
might be terrified of the darkness of the passage, but he wasn’t.
He relished coming face to face with the person who seemed to revel
in frightening the lady of the house. He could only hope that the
secret passage user would be in the dark confines of the secret
passage when he got his hands on them.

Once
again ignoring his partially clothed state, Jamie moved to sit
beside her on the bed and drew her unresisting body into his arms.
He could feel her trembling even through the blankets, and it
unmanned him. He ruefully acknowledged the idiosyncrasy of the
moment in that he had finally got Cecily into his bed, only she had
to be terrified and half frozen to willingly be there.

“
Tell me what happened,” he murmured, urging her to take a sip
of her brandy. Several sips eased her trembling somewhat even
though she was still pale, but at least she didn’t appear to have
been unduly hurt.

Cecily
explained in exact detail, and finished in a flurry before taking
another fortifying gulp of brandy.

“
I am not all that frightened of the passage anymore and would
have been fine if someone hadn’t chased me,” she whispered,
grateful for the warmth that flushed through her from the
alcohol.

“
I know, darling. When I get my hands on them, they are going
to be extremely sorry they chose to frighten you. Are you certain
they didn’t hurt you?” Jamie studied her carefully. The cut on the
top of her head was hidden by the thick mass of hair that was
curled endearingly on the top of her head. At that moment, it was
liberally sprinkled with cobwebs and dust which made her look
several decades older than her early twenties. He wondered if this
was what she would look like when she was in her fifties, and knew
with certainty that he wanted to be the one to find out. She had a
timeless beauty about her that didn’t diminish with age.

“
I am fine, just a little shaken.” As though her body wanted to
contradict her last statement, she shivered once more, almost
violently. “Do you mind if I change rooms for the time being? I
don’t really want to go back to that room again.”

“
Of course you can change rooms, only we will keep it secret,”
Jamie declared softly.

“
They were in my room, Jamie, while I was asleep.”

“
I know, darling,” Jamie replied, his pale grey eyes turning
glacial as he stared harshly at the closed passage door. “They made
one fatal error though,” he added, tipping her head back until she
was looking up at him.

“
What’s that?” She whispered, her voice trembling with a
mixture of fear and desire.

“
They picked on you, and that is something I seriously take
very strong exception to.” The blatant possessiveness on his face
made her stomach flip and she was helpless to do anything except
watch and wait as his head started to lower.

She
should stop him. After what had happened earlier that morning, the
very last thing she wanted to do was re-open the argument, but
right now she wanted – needed, to feel the comforting warmth of his
strong arms around her. Instead of pushing him away, she sat
perfectly still and waited.

This
kiss was different to any others he had given her before. This kiss
felt like a branding; a sensual invasion to ensure that she was
indeed safe and well. It was brief yet thorough, leaving Cecily
with no doubt that he could claim her kisses whenever he chose and
there was little she could do about it.

“
God, Cecily,” Jamie growled, pressing tiny kisses along her
cheekbone toward her ear where he placed random kisses before
returning to her lips.