Page 97 of A Naughty Proposal for His Winter Countess
When Antony toppled like a fallen tree, Daniel rested a hand on the wall to grab his breath and then, grabbing the ax, ran out of the warehouse.
It was dusk so the wharf below him was alive, with the taverns open spitting out drunken men and painted whores who plied their trade on sailors and dockhands. Daniel dashed out down the line, dodging into the small passages between the warehouses.
And not too soon as a bullet slammed into the wall behind him and Daniel dashed through another pathway . Antony was after him and he had to make sure the man didn’t get any chance to kill him. He took a ramp above a warehouse, hoping Antony would keep searching down below.
On the roof of the flat building, he got a wide view of the scene below, with the river running into the bay and far off, the sight of a constable carriage careening into the wharf. When Harriet stepped out after the blue-frocked constables, his heart landed in his throat; she was not supposed to be anywhere near this place.
“You nodcock,” he snarled, leveling his pistol at Daniel. “You ran to the right place for your execution.”
“Carrington,” Daniel warned, “stop this.”
“Why?” he sneered, “I’m going to go home tonight, a free man. No one knows what I truly am, and I will get more when you’re dead.”
From behind Carrington, Daniel saw a constable edging up the ramp with his pistol drawn. The gun was aimed at Carrington’s back, but Antony was not aware.
“I’ll have Harriet as my mistress, Dawson will go down for the crime, you will be dead and I’ll have the best of it all,” Carrington crowed as came closer to Daniel. “It’s funny how things work out, isn’t it? I’ll be taking your woman from you, just as my Father stole your Mother into his bed. He tupped that bitch day in and day out.”
Fury made Daniel’s blood boil. “Your Father!”
“My Father,” Carrington grinned a foot away from the edge of the roof. “Goodbye, Barkley. Give my regards to God, will you?”
Before the shot rang out, Daniel threw himself to the side while the constable shouted for Carrington to stop. Enraged, Antony turned the pistol on him and sneered, “Leave us be! This is a private matter.”
Daniel’s eyes darted to the floorboards under Carrington’s feet and saw black rot. The boards were bending under his feet, but he didn’t seem to feel it.
“My Lord, please,” the constable tried.
“I said, leave!” Carrington let a bullet fly and stepped back for balance, when the board under his foot snapped and sent him reeling back. Seconds before Daniel could grab him, Carrington careened over the edge.
Rushing to the side, Daniel found secure footing, looked over the edge and grimaced; Carrington had landed on a pile of jagged black rocks that that kept the water from flowing over into the warehouses. The constable joined him just as Carrington’s body slipped into the water with a loud splash—he was undeniably dead.
Slowly, Daniel stood just as the constable rushed down the ramp to go to get help and retrieve the body while, Daniel took the other way and went to find Harriet.
As he walked to the constable’s carriage, Harriet turned to him and he could see the fear drain away from her face. She rushed to him while Ben stood away. He opened his arms to her and as she clung to him, Daniel felt his heart fill with love, relief and amazement.
“You’re alive,” she cried.
“A little battered and bruised, but yes, Sweet,” Daniel held her tight, “I am.”
“When I didn’t see you come to the hotel, I knew something was wrong,” Harriet divulged. “My life nearly shattered before my eyes. I couldn’t accept that you’d died.”
“He vowed to kill me,” Daniel said, stroking her back. “Carrington was a despicable excuse for a man. He told me…” he grimaced, “he bragged that his Father had seduced my Mother.”
He felt Harriet stiffen in his arms, and concerned he asked, “What’s the matter?”
She peeled away from him a little, “Your Mother is here, Daniel. She came to explain what had happened. She didn’t get to explain much about it, but I know she wants to make amends.”
Epilogue
When Daniel stepped into his home his mind was barely grappling with the news Ben told him about Carrington and how it was Martha who had given them the answer to the puzzle of where to find him.
And now, inside his home, he felt conflicted at seeing the woman seated on his settee, surrounded by Harriet’s relatives. His mother looked older, tired.
“Mother?” he asked.
She stood, “Yes, Daniel, its me.”
Martha stood as well and looked between the two, “I think we should depart now. Harriet?”
