As he ushered the Runners out the door and shut it behind them, Maura shook her head in bewildered awe. Even when Ash turned back to her, she remained speechless.
He stood there eyeing her warily, as if expecting her to explode at any moment.
“I cannot believe your gall,” she finally murmured. “You lied to them about stealing my horse and then bribed them to hold their tongues.”
At her calm tone, his guarded expression seemed to relax a measure. “So I did. But my tale was effective. You saw how they reacted to my confession of guilt … with complete indifference.”
“Oh, I understand your reasoning. They won’t be eager to inject themselves into the middle of a feud between two wealthy, spoiled noblemen.”
“Precisely.”
Maura gave Ash a reproachful look. “Why did you not tell me what you were planning?”
“Because I knew it would alarm you enough to send you haring out of here. I had no desire to continue our ill-advised trek to the wilds of Scotland, especially under such appalling conditions.”
“I could still take Emperor and ride for Scotland,” she warned, even though they both knew her threat was an empty one.
“You will not get far now that Bow Street knows where to find you.”
“You needn’t gloat, you devious wretch,” she muttered.
Ash allowed himself a small smile. “Why am I a wretch? I collect you should be thanking me.”
“Whyever should I thank you for deceiving me so completely?” Maura retorted.
“I had no choice. You wouldn’t wait for me to devise a rescue plan, or listen to reason, no matter how often I tried to persuade you to turn back. Consequently, I needed to come up with some means to force your hand.”
“You … you …” She broke off, devoid of appropriate words to express herself. She was profoundly relieved and grateful that he had actually come up with a good plan. It was the underhanded way he had gone about it that vexed her.
“Traitor?” he supplied helpfully as he ambled over to the table and rested a hip on the surface, as if preparing for a long argument with her.
He wasn’t even pretending remorse, Maura thought with renewed exasperation. “Traitor will suffice. You are utterly without shame. I thought Katharine’s scheming could rival Machiavelli, but you are far worse.”
“I should hope so. I am seven years her senior and a man to boot. Kate must contend with the limits of her gender.”
Noting how pleased Ash looked with himself, Maura crossed her arms defensively over her chest. “Some prince you turned out to be, betraying me this way. I never should have trusted you.”
“Yes, you should have, love. I have just solved your immediate problems, not only protecting your precious horse but saving you from prison or a miserable career as a fugitive.” His voice softened. “I was not about to allow you to be branded a felon and spend the rest of your life hiding from the law, Maura.”
His genuine concern mollified her to a large extent, yet she didn’t want to appear to capitulate too easily. Ash had too much annoying self-confidence as it was.
“But you just gave those officers of the law enough evidence to prosecute you,” Maura countered. “You could be branded a felon yourself.”
“That won’t happen. If my claim of a gaming debt is challenged, I can say I stole the stallion on a lark. We Wildes do such scandalous things all the time. At worst, the ton will engage in another round of tongue-wagging and head-shaking, and one more blot against my character will hardly matter.”
Maura shook her own head at his prediction. No doubt Ash’s rank would shield him from any legal punishment, since a nobleman could literally get away with murder unless convicted by a jury of his peers. “You are awfully sure of yourself, aren’t you?”
“I have faith this is the best way—and that you are wise enough to realize it.”
She hesitated. “Can you promise me that Emperor will be completely safe at Beauvoir?”
Ash gave a firm nod. “I’ll swear to it, Maura. Deering won’t dare trespass on my lands.”
After the trials her poor horse had been through the past fortnight, she was loath to let Emperor out of her sight. Yet she knew Ash’s trusted stablehands could be counted on to take the stallion safely to Kent, certainly if he was escorted by two armed Bow Street Runners.
“Very well, then.… Thank you.”
Apparently, though, Ash wasn’t finished. “We still have a serious problem. Deering will never believe that you had no hand in the theft, which leaves you vulnerable to his retaliation. Unless you have me by your side, that is.”