“Our child! Have you gone completely mad?”
Catching him off guard, Evelyn tugged at the slackened rope in his hand and made a dart for the door. Before she could catch her breath, Sutherby was behind her, and he swung her around, pulled her to his chest and kissed her roughly on the mouth.
“Do not mistake my kind overtures,” he said breaking contact. “I shall spill my seed inside you before the night is out. Whether you wish it so or not.”
Without giving so much as a frown, he pulled her up the stairs and into the master chamber. Looping the rope around the bedpost, he secured it tightly, giving her no option but to sit on the bed. Taking another piece of rope, he grabbed her wrist and tied her other hand to the opposite post.
“I’ll be back soon, my love,” he said, offering a friendly smile full of warmth and kindness. “And then I shall make you mine.”
“I’m telling you we’ve come too far. We’re heading in the wrong d
irection.” Alexander folded his arms across his chest and leaned back against the carriage door. The feel of the cool night breeze upon his face brought a welcome relief from its oppressive confines.
“It won’t hurt to check,” Elliot said, banging on the door of the coaching inn.
“We need to turn around.”
They’d only come as far as Barnet. With every stage of the twelve-mile journey, he’d felt his connection to Evelyn weaken. Now, the invisible threads were strained to the point he feared they might snap.
Alexander had not set foot inside a carriage for two years, let alone take a long journey in one. During the first few miles, he had struggled to breathe. The lack of air to his lungs made it too difficult to think. When the faint images of Stony Cross first penetrated his addled mind, interspersed with pictures of a brooding castle and the Devil’s disciple, he dismissed them. But the forest in Bavaria was soon overshadowed by the forest in Hampshire, the mouth of Satan soon replaced by the soft, sweet lips of an angel.
“No one fitting their description has passed through,” Elliot said, coming to stand before him. “I’d have known if he was lying.”
Alexander straightened. “We need to go to Hampshire.”
Elliot glanced up at the night sky. “But it’s a twelve-hour journey, not including the two hours we’ve wasted travelling here or time to rest the horses.”
“She’s in Hampshire. I sense it.”
“If we turn back, and they’re on their way to Scotland, you’ll never catch up with them.”
“I know. But something feels wrong. I need to go back.”
“You’re certain this is the course you wish to take?”
Alexander fell silent, mindful of the strange sensation in his chest whenever he thought of Evelyn. Somehow, their souls were connected. He had to trust in the power of whatever wonderful spell fate had woven. He had to trust his instincts.
“She’s in Hampshire. I know it.”
Elliot sighed. “Very well. Hampshire it is.” His expression darkened. “We’ll not get there until dusk. Sutherby’s been alone with her for —”
“You do not need to remind me,” he said through gritted teeth.
Elliot held his hands up. “I just think you need to be prepared. There’s no telling what situation we may find.”
Alexander stepped forward, his gaze hard and unforgiving. “If he’s harmed her in any way, I’m going to kill him. I’m going to drain every drop of blood from his pathetic little body until there’s nothing left but a limp, withered shell.”
“I understand your need for vengeance, my friend. But I won’t let you. I won’t let you become the monster you’ve spent so long trying to avoid. Why do you think I went back for provisions?”
“Perhaps it’s time I stopped hiding. Perhaps it’s time I accepted who I really am.”
“And what will you tell Miss Bromwell?”
“The truth.”
She deserved nothing less. He should never have left it so long.
Elliot gripped his shoulder. “Whatever has happened in the past, you’re a good man, Alexander. Always remember that.”