Page 97 of Wedded to the Beastly Duke
“Please,” she said, making both men start. “Go to the kitchens. I’m sure there is something for you to eat, and take some water, too. Stay as long as you and your horse need.”
He bowed. “Thank you, Your Grace.”
Adam shot her a look that promised retribution for leaving the bed, but she ignored him, instead coming to his side and resting her hand on his arm.
“What is it?” she asked, looking at the sealed letter. It was from the prison. Fear struck her. “Do you suppose something has happened to Nicholas?”
In answer, Adam ripped open the letter and read through the scrawled note.
To His Grace, the Duke of Kant,
Please forgive this note, but I resolved to write as soon as I discovered the truth of what has come to pass. Lord Sarron has escaped, although as of yet we are unsure as to how or which person or persons assisted him. I will let you know as soon as I have any information, but I thought it imperative that you know.
The note was signed by the Chief Magistrate.
“Yes,” he said grimly and looked around for his coat. “Something has indeed happened. Where is the man? When can I leave?”
Emmeline folded her arms in the middle of the room. “Adam.”
“I must go, Emmeline.” He gave her a brief glance, but she could feel his frustration like a brand against her skin. “Do you understand? He is?—”
“I understand perfectly,” she said icily.
“Then you understand why I need to go.”
“Why? Will you bring him back?”
He paused then, glancing at her. “I have influence. I’m a duke, for God’s sake. I can hire men to go after him, I can set up blockades and?—”
“Things that the Runners will be doing already,” she interrupted, crossing the room to where he stood. Nicholas’s escape was threatening to destroy this fragile peace she had brokered, and the thought broke her heart. “Yes, Adam, you are a duke, but how will you arrange for Nicholas to be found? With what money? Your being there will do nothing but distract the people who are no doubt already doing what they can.”
His face tightened unbearably. “Then what do you want me to do? Sit here and do nothing?”
“Yes. Stay here with me.”
“I can’t.”
The words hurt her, and she stumbled backward. “You can’t stay here with me?”
“No, Emmeline, that’s not what I meant. I—” He caught her face in his hands and looked down at her. “I need you to stay safe.”
“He is not a threat,” she whispered, wrapping her fingers gently around his wrist. “What do you expect he will do, save escape and flee the country?”
“He is escaping justice.”
“Death? Is that justice, Adam?” She reached up to cup his face now. “The more I think about it, the less I think he should die for his crimes. And if he isn’t condemned to death, he will be sent to the Continent, never to return. How is that different from what he is doing now?”
Adam’s tortured blue eyes stared into hers. She knew he’d been having similar thoughts over the past weeks, but for him to give up on this quest for justice and to accept things would be difficult. She knew that.
But it was for the best. The best thing for him, and certainly the best thing forthem.
“If you testified and he was hanged,” she whispered, “would that not feel worse? As though you were somehow responsible?”
“The law?—”
“The law dictates that I am your property because we are married. The law is a cold, objective thing that sees neither people nor hearts. Does the law have the right to decide if a person lives or dies? Especially when the law is meted out by men, who are susceptible to weakness and foible?” She took his cold hands in hers and kissed his knuckles. “What Nicholas did was a terrible, terrible thing. And I’m not saying you must forgive him for it. But let God cast his final judgment. Let yourself be free of that burden. Let yourself be free.”
With me.
