Baron of Bad (Lords of Scandal 5)

Chapter One

Lady Grace Chase gripped the side of the carriage with increasingly stiff fingers as she eyed the pale-faced blonde woman who sat across from her.

Lady Cristina Abernath held a long dagger in her thin hand as she stared back at Grace. “It didn’t have to be this way.”

Grace parted her lips to reply, but hesitated. She wasn’t the most sensible woman in England. In fact, of her three sisters and two cousins whom she’d grown up with, she might be the least intelligent of the bunch. But she knew, instinctually, when it was best to keep quiet. And now was one of those times.

Not that she always listened to her instincts. A few hours prior, she’d ignored her feelings entirely and stomped out of the carriage after she’d had a rather heated disagreement with the Baron of Baderness.

He’d accused her of being spoiled and she’d stormed off because of what he’d said, which of course, had allowed her to be kidnapped right in the middle of a busy London Street. If he were here now, she’d smack him, or hug him.

Maybe both.

“If one of your family could have just agreed to help me, I wouldn’t have had to take these measures. And then you went and stole my Harry too.”

This time, words burned on the tip of Grace’s tongue, but she held them in. Accusations like Abernath had chosen to abandon the child in a locked room during a fire or that she’d stolen Grace’s sister, Cordelia, and attempted to take her other sister, Diana, recently. Instead, Grace tightened her hold on the wooden rail that trimmed the interior. It was a lovely carriage. She took in the rich red drapery and the shining mahogany of the interior. What an odd prison in which she was now held.

“We can still make a deal. Tell me you’re the most rational of the Chase women.”

“Hardly,” Grace murmured without meaning to. “But I’m willing to talk.” Grace was by no means the most rational, which was likely a good thing. Cordelia was far more sensible, for example. But that wouldn’t help her in this situation. Abernath was completely off her rocker.

Rather than relaxing, Abernath tensed, narrowing her gaze. “One of your sisters already made that promise. I’m not sure I trust your word.”

Grace shrugged, feigning indifference. She was being held at knifepoint in a carriage that was barreling down a country road with a scarred giant of a driver. Blood rushed through her ears. But she was the one who shouldn’t be trusted? “I’m sure Diana made you promises. If I’m not mistaken, she likes you.” That wasn’t entirely true. Diana was the oldest daughter of the Earl of Winthorpe and the boldest of the bunch. She’d likened herself to Abernath, saying that she understood the countess’s struggle. Being a strong woman, she’d been trapped into a corner by society.

Abernath, if Grace understood the story correctly, had cheated on her fiancé, the Duke of Darlington. He’d ended the engagement, but the countess had been pregnant and married the Count of Abernath out of necessity.

“Likes me?” Lady Abernath lowered the knife a bit. “I’m not foolish enough to believe that.”

Grace swallowed a lump while fisting up her skirts with her free hand. Perhaps she should have stayed silent. While stolen away, she was at least in one piece and she’d prefer to remain that way. She took a long breath. “Diana takes on the world with a strength and fight I could never imagine. Sometimes it’s a great asset, other times it makes her life infinitely more difficult. I suppose like is the wrong word. Kinship might be the better choice.”

Abernath slumped back against her seat, the dagger dropping to her knee. “That does sound as though it could be true.” Her face was frighteningly pale. “Can I tell you something?”

Grace leaned forward. “Of course.” Her breath was coming in short gasps and her eyes widened, but she kept her voice calm.

Abernath looked out the window. “I’m dying.”

Her confession sent Grace back in her seat. “I beg your pardon?”

“Not even Crusher knows.” And she nodded toward the front of the carriage. Grace could only assume he was the frightening driver.

“Are you shivering?” Grace asked, her gaze narrowing.

“Never you mind,” Abernath snapped. “Daring owes me for what he did to my life.”