The Duke Conspiracy (36 page)

When the duke entered his house he was
surprised to see his butler pacing with his tiger in tow. Alex was
glad to see the youngster whom he had set off in pursuit of the man
watching him at Burlington House.

“Pete, am I ever glad to see you! You two
look troubled, which tells me you have information for me.”

The butler looked relieved to see his master
arrive. “There have been a few messages for you, Your Grace.”

“Excellent. I need to change and I need to
hurry. Could the two of you accompany me to my chambers so that we
can kill multiple birds with one stone?”

“Your Grace, I do not think that would be
entirely proper,” the butler huffed.

“Mayhap not, but a lady's safety is very much
in jeopardy. I do not think we can afford to be overly fastidious
at a time like this. Come along.” Alex did not await a response. He
was amused and relieved to hear his butler's heavy sigh, closely
followed by the sound of his footsteps following the duke up to his
chambers.

Alex was reminded of how happy he was that
his valet was not the usual highly strung sort as he walked into
the room with the other two in tow. He barely showed a reaction as
the duke started stripping off his elegant clothes. The valet was a
little more flustered when Alex demanded his roughest clothing to
be readied.

“But Your Grace,” he began to protest, but
quailed under the duke's stern glare. “Very well, Your Grace.”

Alex grinned. “All right Pete, out with it,
what do you know?”

Pete quit gazing about at the rich
surroundings and brought his attention back to his master. Gulping
back his nerves he launched into his tale. “That bad man what was
watching yer Grace and his lady friend he knew all the trails there
was to find and took me on a merry chase. But I managed no
problems, yer Grace, cuz I used to hunt with me pa before I came to
work for yer Grace.”

Holding onto his patience, Alex smiled
encouragingly as his valet fussed around him. “I am glad you
managed so well, Pete. Were you able to find out anything
useful?”

“I did, yer Grace,” Pete grinned. “The first
bad man met up with another bad man and he says to him 'tell his
lordship that the chit met up with who I swear was the Duke of
Wrentham.'”

“Wait a minute, Pete. So the bad man was
actually watching Miss Rose, not me.”

“Would seem so, yer Grace.”

“Were you able to find out anything
else?”

“The second bad man flipped him a coin and he
went off so I figured he wasn't going to be of much more use so I
followed the second chap as he left their meeting. I hope that was
all right, yer Grace.”

“I am quite certain you made the right
choice, Pete. Where did the second man go?”

“He was a fair bit harder to keep a track of
since the first thing he went and did was to climb into a hack but
I was able to grab onto the back just as it took off so I managed
just fine, yer Grace.”

“Would you be able to show me where the
places were that you have been?”

“I'm fair and certain that I could, yer
Grace. But I knows for sure where we was when the hack stopped so I
don't have to show you. The chap runs up the stairs to a fairly
posh house and goes in. I waits and waits and not much happened but
I did ask one of the kids what were running around who lived in
that there house. They says it's Sir Jason Broderick, yer Grace.
You would know where he lives, right?”

“Yes, thank you, Pete. I do know where that
is. And that just confirms what I already knew about Broderick. But
I might need you to help me find the men you saw. They might be in
a position to help us find the lady.”

“The lady? Has something happened to yer
friend, yer Grace?”

“Yes, Pete, I guess I failed to tell you that
bit. We believe that Broderick has abducted her. And we need to
find her as quickly as possible. She might be in grave danger.”

At this point the butler stepped in and said
what he knew. Alex was finished dressing and Wesley was waiting
impatiently to know what was going on. The two set off in search of
Rose.

Rose was beginning to despise this particular
adventure. She had been so excited about sharing in the intrigue,
trying to figure out what Broderick was up to. Now that she had
saved Alex she felt as though she had gotten herself in way too
deep. She could feel the warm trickle of blood as she struggled
once more against the ropes binding her wrists.

The loud snores of the culprit guarding her
were annoying and yet reassuring. Rose was frustrated by the
passage of time. She had hoped to have freed herself before
daybreak so that she could escape and make her way home before too
many were abroad. It would not do to be seen arriving home in her
gown from the night before, especially not looking the worse for
wear as she surely did. But it would matter very little if she
could not get herself free. She had very little confidence in
Broderick's desire to keep her alive.

Endeavoring to reassure herself she reminded
herself that if he had wanted her dead he could have just done it
the evening before. Why bother going to the trouble of tying her up
and having her guarded if he planned on killing her. Of course,
there were fates worse than death, her wayward imaginings reminded
her unnecessarily. Her struggles resumed to free herself of the
bonds.
Why did he have to tie the ropes so tight
?
she
wondered wretchedly, trying to decide if they had budged at all or
if it was just her wishful thinking.
Or maybe I have just worn
off a layer of my skin with my struggles and that is why it
suddenly feels a little looser.

A giant yawn surprised her as she continued
to twist and tug. She had been too terrified to sleep at all during
the night, besides the discomfort of her position. A faint sound in
the distance stilled her actions and she tensed in anticipation.
The footsteps drew closer.

“Squint, you lazy lout, what good are you to
me if you are going to sleep on the job? The girl could have gotten
away,” Broderick bellowed, waking the guard with a hard kick to his
midsection.

Rose winced in sympathetic reaction,
flinching in fear as he approached her before she could quell the
telling motion. Broderick grinned at her reaction, making her
stomach turn. She raised her chin defiantly.

She sat very still as the knight approached
her, keeping her eyes trained on his every move, cursing her
inability to escape before his return.

Broderick circled her, most likely just to
ratchet up her fear another notch. He chuckled over her injured
wrists. “I see you did not sit as demurely as you would like me to
think through the night, did you? That must not feel too good,” he
observed dispassionately. “Perhaps you shall get an infection and
die. It would save me a great deal of trouble.”

“I do not aim to be that helpful, my lord,”
Rose answered sweetly, causing her captor to laugh once more.

“I am glad to see my knots held up. I shan't
be tarrying here, I merely wished to ensure the guttersnipes had
not made off with you. There is some cheese, bread, and ale for you
if you would like to break your fast.”

Rose thought of defiantly rejecting his
offering but thought better of it as she heard her stomach growl
indelicately. Lifting her chin proudly she politely thanked him
before asking, “How am I to eat with my hands bound in such a
manner?”

Sir Broderick grumbled under his breath
something unfit for a lady's ears but stepped forward to untie her.
She almost wept from relief as she brought her arms back to their
natural position. She had to struggle to maintain her composure
when she caught sight of her mangled hands, though. Biting the
inside of her cheek, she was exceedingly proud of herself when she
detected that her lips did not even quiver.

She reached forward and grasped the flask he
was holding out to her and took a slow draft. The cool slide of the
liquid as it went down her parched throat was such a relief and she
easily ignored the fact that she didn't even like ale. At the
moment it tasted like the sweetest nectar. She took another slow
swallow, savoring the moisture and refreshment. Putting the flask
down, she slowly reached for the chunk of cheese he had laid out
for her, delicately taking a bite.

Huffing with disgust Broderick spoke up. “I
do not have time to wait for you to meander your way through a
meal. I have places to go. I will have to tie you back up before I
leave.”

Rose could not prevent the protest that
moaned through her lips. “No, please, I beg of you. I really am
terribly hungry.”

“But you're taking too long, Miss.”

“Why don't you jest tie her hands in front of
'er, milord,” suggested Squint, speaking for the first time since
the knight's arrival.

Rose had nearly forgotten he was there, she
had been so focused on the food her captor had brought. She eyed
him askance. She could barely tolerate the thought of being tied up
again, but if her hands were in front of her she thought she had a
much better chance of being able to escape. She hoped her face did
not reveal how excited she was at the knave's suggestion.

She could feel Broderick's eyes upon her and
avoided making eye contact with him. He stood there studying her
for a few heartbeats. Rose finally released the breath she had been
holding when he spoke.

“As much as it would be a relief to have you
off my hands as quickly as possible, I do not want you dying of
blood loss before your possible usefulness is at an end. If you rip
some strips off your gown, you can wrap your wrists with the cloth
before I tie your hands back up.”

Rose could hear the grudging reluctance in
his voice and hastened to follow his suggestion, although she was
unsure if she would be able to do so with her hands in their
weakened state. Feeling the heat rising in her cheeks as she
reached down toward her skirts she made every effort not to lift
them above her ankles as she struggled to find a suitable section,
thankful for the fullness of the style she had chosen to wear.
Realizing her petticoats would be made of softer, more absorbent
material, she thought to start with that. Blessedly it did not take
her overly long to tug two chunks of fabric from her underthings.
She sent up a quick prayer of thanks that her maid always insisted
that she wear multiple layers.

She quickly wrapped the fabric around the
worst of her wounds, hoping that she was not doing them more harm
than good. It certainly couldn't be any worse to have the fabric
protecting her flesh, as she anticipated struggling against the
ropes once again as soon as Sir Broderick left and Squint took his
eyes off her. Taking a deep breath against the anticipated pain,
she offered her hands to her captor.

Rose wondered if she was being too compliant
when Broderick shot her a suspicious scowl. She strove for
nonchalance. With a shrug she said, “I am hungry. I would like to
get back to my meal.”

Broderick grinned and Rose cringed inside at
the evil that she saw in his eyes but she refrained from further
comment. He made short work of tying her hands back together. Rose
bit her lip not to cry out, relieved that she still had
movement.

Before long, Broderick was gone after a brief
exchange with Squint and an admonishment to Rose to “behave.” Rose
smiled weakly at Squint and went back to her meal, concentrating on
chewing slowly and imagining that she was elsewhere.

She had been wondering how her parents were
handling her disappearance. Rose was surprised but grateful that
Broderick seemed to have forgotten that he had wanted her to write
a note telling her parents that she had run off with a seaman. She
had been trying to come up with some sort of message that would
tell her parents where she was but that Broderick would not be able
to see through. She had not yet been able to come up with anything
that made much sense. Thinking about her family made the bread feel
like sawdust in her mouth, so she thought of Alex instead.

Despite the feud, thinking about the duke
helped to steady her nerves and inspired her with hope. She allowed
herself to imagine the scold he would give her for being so foolish
as to allow herself to get into this predicament. Her imaginings
were so real to her that she almost laughed out loud as the scene
played itself out in her head. Rose shook her head at herself.
Mayhap this ordeal is making me mad. I shall be a candidate for
Bedlam before this is through
, she mocked herself.

But the daydream had done the trick, she had
fortified herself with the simple meal Broderick had provided and
her nerves were fortified too. She was resolved once more to get
herself out of this mess. Steeling her backbone, she thought to
herself,
If I survive this, mayhap I shall follow Mary's advice
and see about brokering peace between the Wrenthams and
Smythes
.
She smiled slightly as she tested the strength
of the latest knots.

Squint had gulped down the provisions
Broderick had left for him and settled himself back into his chair.
Despite the knight's violence and threats, he looked as though he
were preparing himself for another nap. Rose held herself very
still and did not utter a peep, hoping he would soon be fast
asleep. Before too long his reassuring snorts and snores were
filling the air and she got back to work on freeing herself. As she
struggled, she wondered absently what time it was.

****

Alex was cursing the time that was passing.
The sun was fully up in the sky and the city was bustling with
activity. He had not been able to discover the whereabouts of
Broderick or his captive. He was ready to go and confront the man
himself.

“That will not be at all useful, Your Grace,”
Lord Smythe was trying to soothe him. “If we lay down all our cards
we will lose any advantage we might have. As long as he thinks we
don't know anything, we have the element of surprise on our side.
If we confront him, he will merely deny it and be all the more
careful. We could even endanger Rosamund by doing so. I am hoping
that he will have her guarded somewhere and is feeding her. If he
feels endangered, at best he will abandon her, at worst he might
kill her. I think we should keep searching as quietly as
possible.”