“Shh,” he whispered. “You asked me if I loved you. I do. I love you more than life itself. Nothing matters in this world but that you live. Can you do that for me? Can you live?”
What could she say? He was sacrificing himself, she knew that. Sacrificing himself for her and he wanted her to just walk out of this room and leave him here….She shook her head, her throat swollen shut with grief.
He took her face between his palms and looked at her, and for the first time since his return, she saw the laughing boy of the portrait in his black eyes. They stared at her, confident and whole, with the hint of a mischievous gleam.
“Yes, you can,” he said in that low, deep voice she loved so much. “For me. Live for me.”
“I love you,” she whispered, and she saw gladness in his eyes.
She turned, stumbling, and walked from that hellhole. Lord Hasselthorpe said something, and Lady Hasselthorpe babbled and chirped, but she heard none of it, because she was leaving Reynaud behind. She turned one last time at the door and looked over her shoulder.
Reynaud was kneeling next to the stone wall where she’d been chained. She saw that there were three iron rings set in the stone wall. She’d been chained to the middle one, but now iron links were threaded through the two outer rings. Reynaud’s strong arms were outstretched wide, and Lord Hasselthorpe was watching as the burly footman fastened chains to his wrists. The cold stone floor must’ve been hard against Reynaud’s knees, and she knew the chains were painful, but he met her eyes and smiled at her.
Smiled as they chained his arms in a cross.
WHEN HE’D ESCAPED from captivity, so many months ago now, he’d vowed that he’d never let himself be caught alive again. He’d sworn to himself that he’d die before being taken by an enemy. And he’d meant that vow, truly.
But now Reynaud broke that vow. He kneeled at the feet of his foe, his arms stretched wide and chained to the wall, helpless, and he was glad. None of it mattered as long as Beatrice was alive. He could face this and worse as long as she lived.
Hasselthorpe bent and opened the saddlebags. Mater’s sapphire necklace spilled into the lantern light. Hasselthorpe grunted and picked up the jewels.
“Very nice.” The dark blue stones sparkled as he examined them. “The Blanchard jewels, if I’m not mistaken.” He grinned at Reynaud.
Reynaud shrugged. “You’re not.”
“Very nice indeed.” Hasselthorpe shoved the necklace back in the leather pouch and began tying the cords as he spoke to the brute of a footman. “See that my horse is ready and my bag brought down. The boat sails in two hours, and I must be away to meet it in time.”
For the first time, the big servant showed signs of independent thought. He hesitated, glancing at Reynaud. “An’ him?”
Hasselthorpe looked at the footman coldly. “That’s none of your business.”
The man shifted from one foot to the other. “But, see, they’ll blame me.”
“What?”
“For him.” The footman jerked his chin in Reynaud’s direction. “You’ll be gone and I’ll have a dead aristocrat on me hands, and the first one they’ll be looking at will be me.”
Reynaud grinned. The man had a point.
“Oh, for God’s sake,” Hasselthorpe burst out just as the door opened to the dungeon.
Lady Hasselthorpe entered with Beatrice behind her.
Christ! Reynaud lunged against his chains, but the thick iron links held. Hasselthorpe swung toward the door, his gun pointed at Beatrice.
“Get out!” Reynaud ordered. Beatrice was looking at him, her sweet face set in mulish determination. He pulled at the chains with all his strength and felt a slight give.
Hasselthorpe turned toward him as the chains clanked. The lantern’s light glinted off the barrel of the pistol in his hand. Hasselthorpe raised it as Reynaud bared his teeth in defiance.
“No!” Beatrice screamed.
Lady Hasselthorpe rushed toward her husband. “Richard! Have you lost your mind?”
“Beatrice!” Reynaud lunged again, and the iron ring holding his right wrist burst from the wall.
Hasselthorpe swung toward him with the gun, but Lady Hasselthorpe was there, and Beatrice, damn her, Beatrice threw herself against the man.
The gun exploded with a deafening thunderclap, echoing off the stone walls and ceiling. For a moment, everyone froze.