Wild Hearts (39 page)

Tabrizia lay in the big curtained bed with the curtain at the foot drawn back to let in the cheer and warmth from the fireplace. Sleep eluded her, no matter how she begged it to fly with her to oblivion. By her calculations they should have returned today. She touched Paris's pillow, finding it strange that she could not sleep without his possessive eyes laying claim to her body; or without that harsh voice constantly mocking her. Now she dreaded his return, for even if everything had gone well, there was still his anger to be faced over Alexandria. His anger could send shivers of fear along her spine. She sighed and turned over in the bed, and the next thing she knew, it was morning. The nausea threatened again, but Tabrizia tried not to think of what it might mean. Just the remote possibility of a child would make her delirious with happiness, but she could not bring herself to even hint at such a possibility to Paris, not with things the way they were between them at the moment.

Lord John Gordon rode with a single escort toward Cockburnspath. He came warily, not entirely trusting the information he had received in the anonymous note. However, as he approached the courtyard without challenge, his confidence soared, and he began to believe that this was going to be his lucky day.

He strode into the castle without hesitation, turning the heads of servants who were curious but not wary of the stranger. He made his way up to the solarium and, finding it empty, was encouraged to seek farther afield.

Tabrizia was just emerging from her chamber when he caught sight of her; and his eyes lit with recognition of the beauty who had said she would die before she would let a Gordon defend her honor. The instant she saw him, she fled back into the bedchamber and tried to put the bar down across the door, but the man's weight was too great, and suddenly he was in the room with her.

"I am not alone here," she bravely bluffed.

John Gordon laughed openly. "Lies will avail you nothing, madam. I am taking you hostage."

Her mind flew to the copies of the mortgages she held on Gordon properties, and she went to the cabinet. "I have something that will make you bargain, milord."

He saw the ivory casket and grabbed it from her. "I'll have the jewels as well as you, madam. Thank you for revealing their whereabouts." He walked to the table and scribbled a short note for Cockburn: "I have your wife. John Gordon."

He drew his knife and waved her toward the door. "Come quietly."

John Gordon took her up before him on his horse, and they rode up the coast road. Not five miles away stood the old castle of Dunbar. Part of it lay in ruin, but other parts were still habitable. One of the towers stood intact. He posted his man on guard at the entrance and took Tabrizia up into the tower.

There was little furniture in the tower room, only an old table and a stool on which years of dust and neglect had gathered. There was a cold, bare flagstone floor, so the first priority was a fire. When the room was warm John Gordon sat upon the stool and faced his captive. He was so handsome in a florid way, she could hardly believe anyone with such pleasing looks could be evil.

She stood before him and raised her eyes to his, willing herself to look like an angel of innocence. "Milord, why do you do this?"

"The Cockburn raids Huntly, and you ask why?" he replied silkily.

Tabrizia stared at him wide-eyed, incredulous. "Nay, milord, you are mistaken. Our ships suffered some damage returning from England. They repaired them yesterday and merely took them for a run up the coast to Tantallon. Look from the window; perhaps you can see their sails."

He glanced from the aperture and said, "Tantallon's towers can be seen from here, but not ships. Do not lie to me, I told you it would avail you nothing. I had a letter informing me of Cockburn's intended raid."

She laughed gently. "Perhaps it was from an enemy wishing to make you a laughingstock, milord. My husband was ordered by the King to sign a peace bond with your clan. He would not dare to mount a raid."

She saw a glimmer of doubt in his eyes, which he quickly crushed down. She spoke again. "If you cannot see the ships at Tantallon, you will surely see them later in the afternoon as they sail past here on their return to Cockburnspath." She saw the doubt return to his eyes, but she hadn't convinced him, not by a long way.

"I'll wait," he told her pleasantly, "and if you are lying, it will merely be added to the score of what you will be made to pay." John Gordon took food and wine from his saddlebags and set it on the table, then he drew the stool to the table and began to eat. He offered her nothing. Of course, she would have scorned an offer of food or drink from him, but he deprived her of refusing. There was nowhere for her to sit, so she removed her cloak, laid it on the flagstones and sat down upon the floor. His eyes never left her. She was very beautiful with that unusual shade of hair tumbling around her shoulders, and the deep pink mouth provoked many erotic thoughts. He knew what he was going to do with her, and he savored the feelings of desire that were building inside him.

He was waiting for her to offer herself, in exchange for her release. She had a great deal of pride, and he could tell he would have to exercise patience, but sooner or later she would bargain and then beg. How ironic that he and Cockburn had the same taste in women; first Anne, and now this beauty!

Her eyes fell to his hands as he touched the food. They were thick hands with short, blunt fingers; and the backs were covered with dark hairs. She shuddered involuntarily, and a growl escaped his lips between swallows of wine. He could see her imagination was evoking her fears. He knew how to double those fears. He again went to his saddlebags and produced a length of rope. She was up and across the room as swiftly as a small bird in flight, but there was nowhere for her to go. The distance between them closed, and in no time he had her arms bound behind her. He led her back to her cloak and pressed her down upon it. Then he knelt before her and took her breasts into his hands. They were full and firm to his touch, and he let them rest upon his cupped palms as if judging their size and weight.

She spoke up quickly. "Milord, I would bargain with you."

His eyes kindled at the thought of what she would offer. Her heart beat thickly. She knew men were driven by their lust, but in her experience, the only temptation greater than lust for a woman was lust for money. She had only one chance, one throw of the dice, and if it failed, she was totally at his mercy. She added quietly, "Open the casket,. milord."

Reluctantly, he removed his hands from her breasts and retrieved the ivory box from his saddlebags. He had no key, so he broke the lock and forced it open.

He looked puzzled. "It contains papers, not jewels," he said in disgust.

She urged, "Read them."

He took the broken casket to the table and sat down to peruse its contents. She watched him carefully to gauge his smallest reaction, any sign that would give her hope. His brow lowered dangerously as he scanned the first paper. He went a shade paler as-he read the second, and his shoulders slumped visibly as he noted the third and last. His eyes narrowed as he almost hissed, "How did these come into your possession?"

Hope soared within her breast, but she answered him courteously. "I am the widow of Maxwell Abrahams. They now belong to me."

"They are only copies," he exclaimed, clutching at straws.

"That is true. The originals are safe in the vault of the Bank of Scotland," she admitted quietly.

The room trapped him; he got up from the table to pace while he considered all the implications of what had just been revealed. He caught sight of two ships in full sail and easily recognized the one in the lead as the
Sea Witch
. He spun on his heel to face her. "Does Cockburn know of these papers?"

"If you will stop to consider for a moment, milord, you will know that he does not. If he had known, he would have acted upon them before now."

He took a grip on himself, determined not to let her know he had seen Cockburn's ship returning to Cockburnspath. He said carefully, "If I let you go, unharmed, what are you prepared to offer?"

She considered for a moment, quietly weighing her advantages, "The mortgage in your own name I am prepared to cancel."

He shook his head. "All three mortgages! Even then, how do I know you will keep your word?" he demanded.

She looked at him evenly. "You don't!"

"You will sign these copies and mark them paid in full," he demanded.

She shrugged. "They are worthless; signed under coercion."

"I will take my chances and let a court of law decide," he countered.

"We are at an impasse, milord, and the only way to resolve it is for you and I to trust each other. A few months ago, your son Adam came to me about a mortgage he had taken out on a property in Dufftown. He feared your discovery, so I canceled the debt, no strings attached."

He sneered his disbelief.

"Hear me out," she said quietly. "I know I can give you no proof of this at the moment, but I know Adam will tell you the truth if you question him because he is an honorable man. I will cancel your debts, if you give me your oath that you will inform my husband where he can find me."

It did not take him long to decide. He knew the moment Cockburn found his note he would search the surrounding area. He was probably familiar with the ruined castle of Dunbar, and it was conceivable that luck alone could bring him to the ruins. He smiled to himself as a diabolical idea came to him.. He took the eagle's feather from his bonnet, took his knife and fashioned a quill, but he lacked ink. He beckoned her to the table. "I will untie your hands so you may sign the mortgages."

She nodded. He took the rope from her wrists, and she rubbed the chafed skin carefully.

"There is no ink. We will have to use blood," he threatened, fingering his sharp knife.

She raised amethyst eyes to his, and he saw their color deepen with hatred. "If you spill one drop of my blood, your son will become the new Lord Gordon before the next full moon."

Her words sounded so much like a witch's prophecy, he quickly nicked the back of his hand, dipped in the quill and offered it to her.

Stubbornly, she said, "When you have dispatched your man with the note to my husband, I will sign off the debts, and not one moment before."

He called his man upstairs, only following her commands because he had one command of his own she would have to obey shortly. He wrote:"I am finished with your wife. She is at Dunbar. John Gordon."

She scanned the insolent words but made no protest. She had accomplished nothing until John Gordon quit this place without harming her.

He gave his man instructions to give the note to the first person he saw on Cockburn land, then head for Huntly. Once again he dipped the quill into his blood and offered it to her. She wrote across each paper, "This debt is canceled," then affixed the date and her signature to each. The moment she laid down the pen, he twisted her arms behind her back and rebound them.

A new fear sprang into her eyes as his hands began to roam her body freely.

"The bargain was that you let me go unharmed!" she flared.

He smiled slowly. "Without harming a hair on your head, I can destroy Cockburn's peace of mind for the rest of his life." He began to laugh ominously.

She held her breath and waited.

"I will simply leave you naked."

CHAPTER 17

As the
Sea Witch
-hove into sight of Cockburnspath Castle, Paris scanned the turrets. It was a habit he could not seem to break himself of. His lips compressed grimly as he saw no sign of a welcome.

James glanced toward the towers of the castle and said, "No point in my looking for my wife. She is off in Edinburgh, already squandering my money."

Paris shrugged; he would be damned if he would go running to her side like some eager schoolboy. He glanced at the sky. The light would be with them for another couple of hours, and it would-take them that long to safely get the horses off the ships and back into their stables.

He sent the twins ashore with the first boat, still undecided about their punishment. The sun was sinking fast as he and James finally took the last boat ashore. Each chest of gold coins took two men to carry up the cliff.

Paris went up to his chamber to bathe and change his clothes. When he saw no sign of Tabrizia, he thought cynically that she was off in Edinburgh with the rest of the little bitches, and it was a good thing he'd brought more gold, for she was proving damned expensive! Then his eyes fell upon the note. He took it up casually, then he read the words "I have your wife. John Gordon." He froze. Icy fingers closed about his heart and squeezed until all the breath left his body. The note was crushed to pulp as he threw back his head and screamed, "No!"

The bloodcurdling yell brought everyone in the castle. Alexandria clutched Mrs. Hall, whose poor face was swollen out of recognition from the tears she had shed. Paris was like a mad man, and it took the efforts of James and Troy combined to get a coherent story from him. They were all shaken as they learned that John Gordon had taken Tabrizia. Troy poured Paris a large brandy and brought it to calm him. He threw the liquor away from him savagely. "I need my wits about me to find her, you fool!"