Coins and Daggers (7 page)

Her fingers ran a course down very
well-bounded spines and across several of such volumes, her palms
itching to remove just one for her own private perusal. It had been
a long while, roughly a year even, since she’d enjoyed any form of
reading material.

It had been
thus since she’d worn a dress also. And she’d never thought before
of how uncomfortable such an ordeal could be. Perhaps, she had
grown far too used to the freedom of wearing breeches.
Freedom
, she thought, cutting her eyes pass the many shelves
across the room. She was far from being free, at least not for
another week or so according to the bloke’s terms. By bloke, she
referred to Edwin Montagu or so he had said his name was. She was
to behave in a civil manner, act as lady’s maid to a Baroness--an
important one since said Baroness was also the sister to the
slighting Lord of Chastelle--and thereafter she shall be considered
liberated from her crimes and be set free.

They were hardly terms Audelia had found to
be agreeable seeing that she’d never waited on a soul in her life,
much less knew how to. Perhaps it could be no much different than
what she would do for herself, giving that the Baroness had proven
to be not too hard to please.

The one wide window in the room provided a
pleasing view of a garden Audelia had not imagined to be present on
such a property. While within the confines of a dark dusty cell and
a boarded up room, she had not expected the rest of the manor to be
so comely, least of all homely. A man such a Lord Chastelle ought
not to be allowed such fine a home, given that his manners were far
from. Mayhap she shouldn’t be the one to point out etiquette since
she’d long since banished that from her very short list of
attributes.

There had also been a time, even in its
briefest moment, when she’d been proud of such an attribute...

“
I hear you are quite skilled at the
viola,” Lady Dextrem remarked, tilting her head in a very
aristocratic manner.

Audelia glanced across the dining table at
Madame de Lucci who was smiling agreeably. “I admit that I might
need more practice, Your Ladyship.”

“
Oh, you are far too modest, child,” Her
Ladyship chuckled. “I have it on a good opinion that you are quite
the champion on that instrument. Your Madame has declared as
much.”

“
And if I may, Your Ladyship,” Miss
Darcott threw in, “she is rather proficient at drawing as
well.”

Lady Dextrem beamed. “Well, then. You ought
to be proud of such attributes, Miss Rolfen. They will bring you a
long way in circles like my own.”

“
A very
accomplished girl, is she?” Lord Dextrem interjected for the first
time since they’d taken dinner. His spectacled gaze had not left
his meal until now. “I believe we are very interested on seeing
just how much
more
accomplished you are.”

A fleeting glance passed between His
Lordship and his wife before he retired back to his meal...and of
course, silence.

Audelia sipped on her broth and smiled
despite her nerves. Such compliments were unusual and she supposed
she ought not to think too much of it, lest she failed to soak up
the pleasant feelings they evoked.

“Searching for something to steal, are
you?”

Audelia spun immediately from the
window--and her memories--to come face to face with the source of
those words. Her eyes wandered over the man and she forced herself
to curtsy; an awkward one, but one nonetheless.

“Milord.”

“A civil thief too.” He allowed the door to
click close and then moved in for the kill. “Who would have
thought?”

However hard
it was, Audelia chose to keep a reign on her temper and bit her
tongue. Managing another stiff bow, she moved around him quickly.
“Forgive me,
milord
, but the
Baroness must be in need of me now.”

One hand
snaked out and grasped her none too gently around the arm.
Audelia’s eyes widened, gaze planted on the manly hand enclosed
around the royal-blue sheer fabric of her long-sleeves. It was a
very big, handsome...
manly
hand; much like
the rest of its owner but she was hardly likely to admit that. Not
when her freedom was currently hanging by a thread, not to mention
her wits.

The grip was then loosened and the Lord
Chastelle lowered his hand.

“
You might as
well take a seat,
Miss
. My sister has
not yet waken from her afternoon nap and I would very much like a
word with you.”

Gritting her teeth, Audelia did as she was
told and took a seat as far away from the man as she could. It was
an armchair positioned near the window. Too bad, the window was
grilled from the outside.

“
As you wish,
sir.”
Damned big-headed, he
was
.

“Of course.” He offered a daunting smile and
reached for a flagon that had been left behind from his earlier
sitting with Edwin and Ryia. He poured himself an inch and turned
to face her again. “As you can see, I am quite at my leisure.”

The Lord of Chastelle--or even so, Lord St.
Rosso, took his own sweet time taking a turn about the room,
examining a few books and according to Audelia’s perception,
possibly to check if any had gone missing. She was a thief, she
acknowledged that as much, but hardly one to steal under the given
circumstances or rather, the lack of profitable circumstances.

But the fact
that he was moving about the room, ignoring her and expecting her
to sit unbothered by the act, deeply offended her and spurned an
icy retort that came far too late to withdraw. “I,
milord
, on the other hand, am not.”

“How do you find the library, Miss
Rolfen?”

Audelia’s gaze flickered upwards and stayed
there, eyeing the man as he regarded her with some air of triumph.
His gaze was cool but somehow managed to burn a hole through her
chest, revealing the thumping heart that lay within it. How on
earth had he...?

“And I see you have accomplished the task of
knowing my name.”

“Not a difficult task entirely. A fairly
easy one too.” He refused to let her know that she had been the one
to blurt it out, in a very deep sleep, last eve. “But that shall be
our little secret, won’t it? Since my sister has already seen it
fit to know you as Lia Moresen, according to your colorful bogus
references.”

Her breathing
steadied a bit as she pondered the guv’s statement. Men of his
stature always placed honor on their word while she, by experience,
knew better than to take a man’s oath seriously. “And are the
terms, the ones your friend had lain out, to be
credible?”

“Very much so, given that you abide by them.
But I do have one particular request.”

Lord St. Rosso approached her then, stirring
a finger in his cup of spirits. He was so close, she had to tilt
her head all the way back. And even then, from such a painful
angle, she could still make out the tiny laugh lines framing the
corners of his mouth. Though Audelia would have never imagined him
to be of the laughing sort. She still did not.

“And what is that?” She managed that out
coolly, and pass the lump in her throat.

“
Do not form
any attachments with my sister. I understand that she already
thinks you are
good
company
which we both know you
are very much
not
. I am to
understand that great lady’s maids are hard to find. Hers is quite
advanced in years and soon she might be searching for a
replacement.” He sipped on his drink and glared down at her. “You
are not to be considered for such an employment,
understood?”

Understood
quite clearly, Your Arse
. “I
would not dream of it. Anything else?”

“No. You may take your leave now.”

Much obliged, Audelia jumped to her feet,
wrestling her legs to move quickly beneath the restraints of her
skirts. The faster she were to walk, the sooner she would be out of
the man’s presence. In her opinion, Lord St. Rosso should be the
last person to comment on the virtues of good company and the fact
that he had, showed irony at its best.

Her hand had just closed over the knob of
the door when his baritone voice sounded again. “What brought you
to the library?”

She turned slowly. “I thought you’d already
convicted me of attempted burglary, milord. Again.”

He chuckled then, revealing a row of
perfectly formed white teeth. Audelia allowed herself a glance at
his countenance, silently pleased at the perfection in his
features. Lord St. Rosso was undoubtedly a handsome man. “With your
freedom hanging on the line, I hardly believe you would do anything
to sever our contract.”

A
handsome...and far from daft man
. Audelia looked about the room a bit before she met Lord
St. Rosso eyes again. “As far as I know, sir, a library is built to
store books, and books to enlighten the mind. If I am to be
punished for seeking good reading material,
milord,
let me
know so that I can better anticipate it.”

“And what, pray tell, is your idea of good
reading material?”

Audelia swallowed, her hand reaching again
for the door. In truth, she did have a favorite in reading
material. But the most reading she’d accomplished was during her
stay in that orphanage as a child, and even that mostly only
consisted of Latin and scrolls noting the teachings of the Church.
Within just a moment of fleeing the room, she decided a honest
answer. “Anything worthwhile, milord, and perhaps with the
occasional hint of humor.”

Eight

T
he first signs of
sunset threaded their way across the evening sky, the sun’s rays
barely visible behind the high mountains that sat beyond the dense
woodland, and far out from the estate’s neat trimmings.

Audelia’s hasty getaway from Lord St. Rosso
had sent her hurrying down three turns of a winding staircase and
towards the cool outdoors. She had found herself, some two hours
past, enjoying the gentle breeze and the fresh aroma of nature. All
the while, the robust-looking guard who hardly ever spoke a word,
lingered in the shadows as if she hadn’t a clue he was there. But
she knew, for a following shadow was something easily detected
especially for someone who had spent a great deal of time looking
over her shoulder.

But what
mattered now was that her treacherous heart had stopped hammering
against her left breast and her faculties were back in good order.
Surely, she had allowed her foolish mind to cultivate too idiotic
of thoughts and wanderings.
She
was Audelia
Rolfen. She was practical; and not one to give in to lascivious
desires. Not that she would have described herself as pure, for she
was not. A momentary lapse in judgment and sensibility had declared
her as such but she certainly
was
chaste and had no
problem with that.

She
had
had no problem with that until but a mere couple hours ago
when she had been in Lord St. Rosso’s company. Again. A very
handsome company, at that. She had admitted to herself that the man
was quite pleasing on the eyes and although she had come across
many a men of his caliber over the past few months, Audelia had
never met one so entirely attractive. She knew she should hate
him,
must
hate him and she did.

But God save her soul, she was thinking of
things she ought not to contemplate on, least of all to wish
for.

Lord St. Rosso had wonderful green eyes; the
type that could zone in on a wench and have her drooling at his
feet. His presence alone served much to be intimidated by for he
was a big man who had even bigger pockets as well. Pockets that she
might never have the chance to reach, which is why she had fully
decided to keep up her end of the deal as lady’s maid to his sister
and then go on her way. By that manner, she was sure to leave with
her neck...and her heart intact.

Stumbling to her cramping feet, Audelia
brushed pieces of straw from the back of her skirts and sighed. She
had almost forgotten where she had been sitting. The east stable,
as she had come to know, was a relatively large housing and the
closest of three to the main house. Gaze flickering over the empty
stalls and stale scattered straw, she frowned, wondering where the
horses were. Surely the Lord Chastelle was more than wealthy enough
to healthily maintain such fine creatures.

“Can I help you, ma’am?”

Audelia turned at the crisp voice behind
her. “Um...no. I was just taking a look around.”

The man facing her was somewhere near
middle-aged, with a gray receding hairline and a stout-ish frame.
“And who might you be, girl?”

Clamping her mouth shut lest she gave way to
any vital information, Audelia took a deep breath and smiled,
outstretching her hand. “Miss Lia Moresen, sir. And you?”

The man wiped one large palm against the
side of his buff breeches before accepting the polite gesture.
“Brutus Marchal, at your service.” He then gave her a once-over.
“You must be the maid to milord’s sister.”

“I am.”

Brutus
Marchal flicked his tongue noisily through the gap between his two
front teeth and nodded. “I’m the main stable-boy for this fine
piece you’re standing in.” He chuckled and shot her a wink.
“Stable-
man
, if you
will.”

Audelia smiled politely and returned her
gaze to the interior of the stable. “Might I ask you a question,
Mr. Marchal?”