Douglas said slowly, “So Lady Arbuckle is another victim?”
“Well, she certainly isn’t my real aunt. Just look at that face of hers, the ugly old cow. To gain her cooperation, my brother and two of his friends took over their country home, Lindsay Hall, in St. Ives. She was to introduce me to London society, and I would meet you. In exchange, her husband would live. A fair trade, don’t you think?”
“And is Lord Arbuckle alive?”
“I don’t know,” she said.
Douglas said to Judith even as he moved another couple of inches away from Jason, “You ordered Lady Arbuckle to keep away from the family, didn’t you? And that’s why she’s kept to her bedchamber.”
“Yes, my lord. I no longer needed her. I had my real aunt here, already completely accepted in your precious household. Annabelle Trelawny-what a stupid name, but one she believed Hollis would find romantic, and he did, that pathetic old man.”
“He’s not all that pathetic, Judith,” Marie said. “He still has most of his teeth. Almost as many as I have.”
Judith laughed, a contemptuous laugh that turned all of Jason’s raw pain and soul-numbing fear to rage. He felt another bolt of anger for Hollis, a man so honorable and good, his soul shined through his eyes.
Jason wanted to leap on her, put his hands around her neck and squeeze the life out of her, but his father grabbed his arm and steadied him.
Marie said, “It was a treat to listen to you stumble around, to know that I could have poisoned all of you at any time, but Judith wanted to kill you, so what could I do? Don’t move, my lord, because if she misses you, then it is I who will shoot you.”
Douglas said, “You want to know what I see, madam? I see a young girl who wants what isn’t hers and is prepared to kill to gain it, a young girl you’ve twisted into a monster. As are you, her aunt. Did Georges ever see through you, madam?”
“Yes, but it didn’t matter. The madness had him, made him a pathetic creature. But he endured, remembering scraps here, telling Louis things he shouldn’t have. It cost me very little to hire a man to kill him.”
Judith didn’t seem to care that her aunt had killed her father. She said, “Enough! I don’t wish to kill everyone in this house. I must shoot you, my lord.” She flicked a look at Jason. “And you too, I fear, Jason. A pity. You really are such a beautiful lad.”
LOUIS CADOUDAL WAS nearly over the edge. James felt numbing fear, felt his heart pounding heavily against his chest; he didn’t want to die; he didn’t want to leave his family, leave Corrie. In that instant, James saw Corrie’s face, saw her smiling up at him, touching him, kissing him. She loved him, had always loved him, but now she loved him as a woman loved a man. And he would give his life for her, he always would have. It had happened so suddenly, this knowledge that he wouldn’t want to continue if she were no longer in his life. And he knew if something happened to him, it would destroy her.
James felt calm flow through him, and determination. He wasn’t going to leave Corrie, ever. He knew that he had to control this madman, and that meant keeping him talking. He said easily, “You know, Louis, your English is quite fluent. How did you manage that?” And as he spoke, his fingers were sifting through the ancient hay that covered the rotted floor, to find something, anything, to help him.
Thank God it did the trick. Louis Cadoudal took a long deep breath, the wild color in his face faded, and he even laughed. “After my father died, we went to Spain. And after that, Ireland. I even had an English tutor. Since I was young, I learned to speak your ridiculous language without an accent. If you are wondering, my father had rich Irish cousins, a very good thing. My poor father, how he wanted to go down in history as the man who’d dispatched Napoleon. But he didn’t. He loved you English, wanted me to be an English gentleman, and it appears that is exactly what is to happen.”
“I don’t think so. Everyone knows about you, Louis. How can you imagine that you can simply kill me and my father, present forged marriage lines to the magistrates, and expect them to welcome you into the fold?”
“How arrogant you English noblemen are. You think me stupid? I will kill both you and your father, then I will simply leave. I won’t return for several years, but when I do, I will have witnesses to say that I was in Italy, and that I only just discovered the marriage lines in my dead mother’s trunks. There might be those to suspect me, but there will be no proof. Your brother, Jason, will be the earl. He will step down, naturally-if we and our aunt decide to let him live.”
“Who is we?”
“My sister and I, of course. She is, at present, dispatching our father to hell, where he rightfully belongs. Judith told me she didn’t want my father’s blood on my soul, as if I would care. And you will shortly join our father in hell, brother.”
James wanted to be surprised, but he wasn’t. Somewhere, deep down, he’d wondered. “You’re telling me that Judith McCrae is your sister?”
“Yes, of course. She will leave Lady Arbuckle in due course-another pawn who has performed her role sufficiently well-and come to Europe with me with our aunt, whom you know as Annabelle Trelawny. Both will return with me eventually and take their places at my side.”
James couldn’t help himself, the words flowed out of his mouth. “And what about Corrie? Is Judith going to kill her as well?”
“Ah, that little wife of yours. I must say that I was quite impressed with her ingenuity. Imagine a young lady in a ball gown jumping in the tiger’s perch on the carriage back, then charging like a knight into the cottage to rescue you. A pity she got you away, I so wanted to kill you then, but it wasn’t to be.”
James had felt through nearly all the straw he could reach, and was losing hope. Then his fingers touched something cold and hard. It was an old bridle bit, still attached to one leather rein. It was solid and heavy. It took him precious moments to pull it close enough to tuck it into his right hand. He had it; now he had to ready himself. He’d have only one chance.
He saw that Louis was smiling, and that frightened him. He’d rather have a madman angry than amused.
Louis said, still smiling widely, “Yes, I find myself very impressed with your young wife. I have discovered recently that she is also an heiress, that she lined your pockets, stuffed them to overflowing actually. Perhaps she will be ready for a new husband in a couple of years. A young gentleman who is well-traveled, such as I, can certainly please her as well as you. What do you think, brother?”
James prayed harder than he ever had in his life when he lurched up to his knees and hurled the bridle bit at Louis’s face. “I’m not your goddamned brother!”
“GO TO HELL, my lord,” Judith said, and fired the derringer, the shot sounding loud and sharp in the drawing room.
Jason screamed “No!” and threw himself in front of his father at the moment she fired.