Wicked Proposition (29 page)

Sullivan was suspected by Chumley to have
arranged the killings of Lord and Lady Dunleavy and their daughter
to cover his trail. His eldest ward being alive troubled him now.
Her death had obviously been faked, but why?

His blood ran cold to think Catherine was being
pursued by the man now and he could do nothing. Another dark
thought made him ask if his ward was involved with Sullivan.

All they could do is wait it out and it was
driving him insane. Nicholas and Tieghan abandoned watching the
rooms on the waterfront. Catherine had never returned there.

Her trunk was delivered to him by Tieghan when
the rent on the room ran out. He had the servants put it in the
attic for now, not wanting to see it.

He knew Chumley believed Catherine was dead,
another victim of Sullivan’s. He refused to accept it. In his
heart, there still flickered some hope she lived. He was determined
to put her behind him, but every time he closed his eyes he was
beset with tortured images of her.

###

Nicholas stood on the deck of his ship. His warm
breath blew white as he and Tieghan looked out over the dark docks.
He gazed at his friend out the corner of his eye. Tieghan had come
to reason with him once more. He could see it in the hulking
Norwegian’s stance.

“You need to tell Chumley what you learned while
we followed her, Nicholas,” he said shortly.

“Chumley works for Gabriel now, may I remind
you?”

“He will see the necessity of keeping what you
tell him from Iverleigh.”

“Will he?” Nicholas replied tightly and shook
his head. “You were right. I should have not pursued her. Had I
gone to him when I caught her leaving Thornton’s office none of
this would have happened.”

“Oh, I imagine you would have still found
another way up the girl’s skirts,” Tieghan replied sarcastically.
Nicholas flung him a look of annoyance. “But at least Chumley might
find some means to get to the bottom of it. He must know the truth
that the girl is not this Sinclair woman.”

Nicholas nodded and said nothing. He knew his
friend was right. Chumley was going off in a completely different
direction in his investigation because of what he had failed to
disclose to him.

He was grim to think of the consequences now,
knowing Catherine still remained missing. His heart clenched to
think he had gotten her killed by staying silent. Chumley might
surprise him and keep the details of their affair from Gabriel. The
thought of losing his friend weighed upon him heavily too.

“The Countess has much to answer for, I think,”
Nicholas said quietly as he watched the dark water below lap
against the docks.

“You still believe Gabriel’s wife is involved?”
Tieghan asked in surprise.

“Why would Catherine take such a document?
Explain the notes sent back and forth between them? Then there is
Clarice’s visits to Iverleigh Manor as well.”

“Blackmail would have been my first guess,”
Tieghan replied evenly. “That document proves Thornton is an
imposter.”

“It also proves Lady Iverleigh was never
Gabriel’s intended wife, but her younger sister, who is also
conveniently dead! His marriage to her is not even legal. Then
there are the murders to consider, all from her own family,”
Nicholas stated coolly. “She had as much to gain as Sullivan in
this. No, I think it obvious his wife is involved in this. I feel
it.”

“Lady Iverleigh has been confined to her bed for
months, Nicholas,” Tieghan protested and shook his head. “You are
grasping at straws to remove any guilt from Catherine again.”

“Catherine is innocent. I’d stake my life on
it.”

“A day in your bed and she has your loyalty?”
Tieghan countered sharply. “Iverleigh deserves more from you,
Nicholas.”

Nicholas remained stubbornly silent. He knew
Tieghan disagreed with him about his handling of things these last
few months, blaming the girl for using her wiles upon both men.
Tieghan could not know how deeply his heart was involved.

He released the breath he had been holding.

Nicholas had been covering Catherine’s tracks
for months. He loved her, no matter what she had or had not done.
He refused to defend himself to Tieghan, knowing the man would mock
his feelings for her.

Nicholas didn’t care what anyone thought. He
loved the lying, deceitful wench and he would have her back.
Gabriel had now set the hounds upon her when Chumley failed to find
her. He was grim to recall his plan to spirit her away from London
before she could be arrested. Those were not the actions of a man
who just wanted to get up a woman’s skirts. He adored the little
tart.

Tieghan made a disgusted noise. “You will regret
taking the woman over your friend one day.”

Nicholas refused to think of what Tieghan said
as he left the deck. His own guilt nipped at him daily to know he
betrayed Gabriel the minute he set eyes upon Catherine. One look
into those deceitful green eyes and he had undermined every bit of
loyalty he had to his friend.

Nicholas entered his home late that night. He
abstained from his usual brandy and went straight to his room.
Christmas wasn’t a happy time for Nicholas, and had never been a
holiday he looked forward to. With it brought the awful memories of
his childhood in White Chapel.

He was startled to see a gift sitting in the
center of his bed. Lilly, he thought tensely as he read the brief
note, and looked around for some sign of her. He had not seen her
since he had broken off with her.

The room was empty. He approached the box with
trepidation and picked it up. It was small and he shook it
thoughtfully as he went to sit before the fire. He opened it,
tossing the colored papers into the fire. It was a fine, gold
pocket watch, and very old by the look of it. He flipped it open
and saw that it worked as well. He knew it was solid gold.

He fingered the writing scrolled upon the
inside. It was in strange script. He wondered how she got into his
house this time. Tieghan was ever vigilant in making sure all the
windows stayed locked. He placed the watch in his desk drawer.

He went to the window and watched the snow fall
across the sleeping city, cursing Lilly for ruining the peace of
his evening with her gift. He wanted nothing from her, no reminders
of the empty promises she had made to him.

His thoughts drifted to Catherine. His blue eyes
darkened in pain. His meeting with Chumley earlier went better than
he had thought. Chumley was far kinder to him than Gabriel would
have been. The detective was pleased Nicholas had come forward with
what he had seen. He understood why Nicholas wished to keep that
information from Gabriel. The Earl didn’t need to know how he came
by this news, Chumley assured him.

The document Nicholas gave him had intrigued the
tiny man. He wished to gain access to Gabriel’s papers immediately
to test his theory of why Catherine had stolen it in the first
place.

Nicholas leaned against the glass, grateful to
cool his heated face against the pane. His inner pain to know he
had probably caused Catherine’s death by keeping his silence
tormented him. He cursed and turned away from the window. He felt
such a sense of loss now he couldn’t bear to put a name to what he
felt. He refused to name it as grief. He refused to believe her
dead.

Gabriel might be easily convinced of Catherine’s
guilt. He could sleep easier thinking she merely got what she
deserved being involved in something dangerous. Nicholas refused to
resign himself to any of it.

She was out there somewhere. He smiled, hoping
the scheming little tart was somewhere pleasant tonight, gloating
over her success in getting away clean.

###

Catherine went into labor in the middle of the
night that first week of February, feeling the dull pain in her
lower back. Terror had assailed her to realize she was alone in the
basement. It was in the middle of the night. It would be hours
before her two captors arrived.

It was too soon, she knew.

Catherine fretted as she paced the cell and
placed her hand into her lower back to ease the pain. She was
trying not to give into her worry when her water broke, trying to
remember her mother helping birth a village woman’s child. Breathe,
lass, breathe, that’s it, her mother had said. Save your
strength.

Catherine heard her jailers coming in once it
was light out, and breathed a sigh of relief. When they came into
view, she was in a panic as she flew to the bars, her eyes wild
with fear.

“You must send word to the Countess!” she cried
in fear, sweat beads were forming on her brow. “It is time, do you
hear? It is time!”

“I hear ye, I ain’t deaf, lady,” the man said
sourly and spat upon the floor. “Grimes will be back shortly with
food and I’ll send him to inform Lady Iverleigh. Until then, pipe
down. Ye give me a fearsome pain in me skull!”

Catherine was never so happy to see her sister
when the Countess arrived.

She had an older woman with her she informed her
was a midwife, by the name of Mrs. Gates. Mrs. Gates entered the
cell, and after a cursory examination, informed the Countess it was
indeed time for the child to arrive.

Lilly sat on the stool and eyed Catherine
victoriously.

“You will doubtless be pleased with the names I
have chosen,” Lilly said and smirked as bleak green eyes met hers
from the pallet. “I believe Gabriel will approve of Giles after his
father or Mary after my mother. What do you think of my
choices?”

“It matters little, you will name the child
whatever you want, Lilly,” Catherine said tiredly as she lay upon
the mattress, looking at the ceiling and grimacing. “How do you
propose to fool the servants into believing you bore this
child?”

Lilly sighed and rolled her eyes dramatically
and tapped her finger on her cheek. “You realize I have thought of
everything? Right now, a woman lies in my bed crying her head off
as Doctor Farnham attends her. Money buys much, my dear. None will
know I wasn’t in that bed bearing this child. Farnham assured me of
that,” she declared as she reached under her gown and wrenched the
pillow she had stuffed there to disguise her pregnancy. “I will no
longer have to wear this! You are not the only one to have
suffered! I have had to wear that thing and remain abed for months!
It pleases me that the child arrives early. Farnham said it was not
unusual.”

“You are so blasted clever, sister, truly,”
Catherine said scathingly and clenched her teeth as another pain
wracked her and slapped the midwife’s hands away from her abdomen.
“I hope my child is my very image, and Gabriel sees through all
your deceit. You will pay for this one day and I will haunt you,
you heartless bitch!”

“As far as you haunting me, Catherine, I do not
fear your ghost. Had you not betrayed me, none of this would be
necessary,” Lilly replied cuttingly, her heartless gaze dismissing
her words.

Catherine could not answer her as a pain came
upon her. Mrs. Gates gazed at the Countess worriedly and rolled up
her sleeves. Grimes and the other man arrived with water, clean
towels and other items requested by the midwife. Hours passed and
the child still did not drop.

Mrs. Gates approached the Countess and spoke low
so only she could hear.

“The girl is weakening, my lady,” Mrs. Gates
whispered and shrank from the feral glare the Countess gave her,
but continued. “She is already too weak to push, and I fear if
something does not change, we will lose them both.”

“I care not for the girl!” Lilly grabbed the
paling elder woman’s arm and gripped her roughly. “You must save
the child at all costs! If you have to cut her open to get it out,
than do so! I cannot lose the child!”

“Dear God, my lady, what you ask of me is
unseemly! I cannot do this thing!” Mrs. Gates cried and as she
backed away. “I will do what I can and we can hope the birthing
progresses.”

“See that it does or I will gut the little
bitch, old hag,” Lilly threatened with a sneer and delighted in the
woman’s flinching at her words. “If it looks as though the child
will die, we will cut it free.”

Mrs. Gates worked tirelessly and spoke low and
encouragingly, praying to God the girl delivered the babe soon. She
felt her brow and uttered a curse.

Her brow was very warm, a sign of fever. It was
doubtful the girl would survive. She had seen it before. Catherine
was moaning hoarsely and she dribbled water on her parched lips.
She helped her into a sitting position and encouraged her to
push.

“You can do it, girl, don’t think of anything
else but your babe,” she whispered and rubbed her back as the pains
made her sob in anguish.

Catherine was sweating profusely and was
exhausted. She felt a horrible pain in her middle and screams
escaped her as Mrs. Gates shouted encouragement. She bore down and
felt the child slide out of her finally.

Mrs. Gates was cleaning the child off and she
watched dazedly as the midwife gazed at the pink wizened face of
her child, and beamed.

“It’s a boy! A trifle small, but healthy! Look
he already wants to suckle!” she chuckled as she put the baby in
Catherine’s arms while she attended to her, and suddenly she paled.
She stared at the sight of another child crowning between her legs
in amazement.

“Good God, she has another one coming! I will
need your assistance, my lady! Please!”

Lilly entered the cell and approached, growing
nauseated by the sight and smell of the birthing blood. She winced
delicately and covered her nostrils with a scented
handkerchief.

“She would have a litter, bitch that she is!”
Lilly complained sourly. “What do you need of me?”

“Hold the other child! Hold your son! I must
deliver the next one. Hurry it comes quickly!” Mrs. Gates cried as
Catherine stiffened with shock and began to moan in pain once
more.