Devil's Daughter (Devil 2)

“Please do not hurt Raj,” she said after a while. “He did not know what I intended.”

“He has already been tortured and hung,” came the calm response.

“No. You could not be such a barbarian.”

“Hold your tongue, else I’ll stuff your mouth with cotton.”

Her voice broke on a deep, ugly sob.

He listened to her cries dissolve into hiccups. He said nothing more, and let the laudanum his physician had given him pull him into a deep sleep.

Chapter 20

The Earl of Clare waited patiently for Viscount Delford to finish his tirade before gracefully flicking open his snuffbox with his left hand and inhaling his favorite sort of Spanish Bran. He appeared to reserve all his concentration for the task.

“Perhaps you did not hear me, my lord,” the viscount said, gritting his teeth and striding around his desk.

“I did hear you quite clearly, my dear Edward,” the earl said calmly. “In truth, one remark most assuredly held my full attention. I believe your exact words were ’Your damned scoundrel of a son has run off with my daughter.’ Do I have that correct?”

“You know you do,” the viscount said, barely in control. “For God’s sake, my lord, where has he taken her?”

“I cannot imagine my son abducting a young lady of quality. Surely it is unlike him.” There was a mocking gleam in the earl’s eyes that the viscount chose to ignore.

“My silly daughter imagines herself in love with your son. I realize now that he must have told her who he is.”

“Ah,” the earl said. “I begin to understand. Is it that your daughter ran off with my son, my lord?”

“He should have brought her back, damn him.”

“Not, my dear Edward, if she stowed aboard his ship, which undoubtedly she did. Most enterprising of her.” For a moment he met the viscount’s furious eyes. “I would not have expected such dashing behavior from one of your offspring. I only wish Adam had restrained himself and awaited my arrival.”

“Dammit, Clare, where are they? Not in Naples, Lord knows, I’ve searched everywhere.”

“It’s likely they’re nearing Oran. How my gallant son plans to rescue his sister is quite beyond my simple wits.”

“Oran.” The viscount paled visibly. “My God, that’s in Algiers. It is a stronghold for the Barbary pirates.”

“Exactly,” the earl agreed.

“How do you know? Surely you can be mistaken.”

“No, unfortunately. Adam left one of his men here to tell me where he was bound. From what Vincenzo told me, it is clear to me he did not know your daughter would be joining him. But that hardly matters now. It occurred to me that Adam might offer himself in exchange for his sister as bait. He will not do so now. He must protect your daughter.”

“You do not seem terribly concerned, my lord.”

“Do I not? I assure you, my lord, I am very concerned. You see, I now know who engineered this fantastic scheme, and why. But I also know my daughter is relatively safe. She is not the object of the game. I am. I am sailing to Oran on the morrow. I will contrive to bring your daughter safely back to you, Edward.”

“I am coming with you.”

The earl cocked a thick black brow.

“You heard me, Clare. It is my daughter who might be brutalized by those savages.”

“Impossible,” the earl said curtly. “My son would never allow her to be taken. But I suppose you must come,” he added on a sigh. “Incidentally, my dear Edward, what is your daughter’s name? My lamentable memory—I confess to have forgotten.”

“Rayna.”

“Thank you. Adam is not lost to all sense of propriety. We shall both dance at their wedding.”