‘If you shoot me, I’ll be washed up on the shore. They’ll find the bullet.’
‘They might, or they might be convinced not to notice. I have powerful friends. Now step aside.’
‘No.’
‘Robert...’ Ianthe put a hand on his arm.
‘You’re not going anywhere with him!’
‘I won’t let him shoot you!’ She rushed past him quickly, moving to stand beside the Baronet. ‘You don’t know what he’s capable of!’
‘And that’s supposed to convince me?’ Robert’s face was like thunder.
‘We don’t have a choice!’
‘You should listen to your wife, Felstone. She’s a smart woman.’
‘That explains why she never wanted you.’
‘How dare you?’
The Baronet’s finger twitched, and Ianthe reacted instinctively, hurling herself sideways at the same moment as Robert charged forward, barrelling into the other man with such force that it knocked them both off their feet.
Quickly, she lunged for the weapon, but Robert got there first, clamping one hand over Sir Charles’s wrist as they both fought with the other, rolling closer and closer towards the edge of the cliff.
‘Look out!’
She screamed and saw Robert lift his head at the warning, saw him register the danger a split-second before the Baronet slammed a fist into his jaw. Horrified, she saw him slump to one side, just as Sir Charles lifted the gun again and took aim, staggering back to his feet and heedlessly towards the edge.
What happened next seemed to take place in slow motion. One moment, Sir Charles’s face was contorted with a look of hate-filled triumph, the next he simply looked surprised as the gun fired and he tumbled backwards off the edge of the cliff into thin air.
‘Robert!’ Ianthe threw herself to the ground beside him. ‘Are you hurt?’
‘What happened?’ He pulled himself up to a sitting position, tenderly rubbing his jaw.
‘Did the bullet hit you?’
‘Bullet?’ He seemed slightly dazed. ‘No, I don’t think so.’
‘You don’t think so?’ She ran her hands over him, frantically checking for blood.
‘I’m all right, Ianthe.’ He laughed hoarsely. ‘There’s no need to grope me in public.’
‘What?’ She punched him hard on the shoulder. ‘I’m making sure you’re all right! Ingrate!’
‘What happened to Lester?’
‘He fell.’ She shuddered. ‘He was going to shoot you and he fell.’ She punched him again.
‘What was that for?’
‘Because you almost got yourself killed. You could have fallen off the cliff and been shot into the bargain. You should have let me go!’
‘Never again.’ He dragged her into his arms, clasping her tightly to his chest. ‘You’re all I want now, Ianthe. You can be whatever version of yourself you want to be, just don’t leave me again.’
She held out for another moment before throwing her arms around him too. ‘You’re all I want as well. I love you, Robert. Let’s go home.’
Epilogue