Page 86 of A Little Bit Dangerous
“We’ll need pistols and concealed blades,” Aramis said.
Aaron pulled himself together. “Someone send word to Daventry’s office. We need the law on our side if we’re to throttle Italian nobility.”
ChapterEighteen
The underground cavern was small and dim, the vaulted brick ceiling low. The place smelled of damp wood and fermented fruit. Isabella squinted in the candlelight, noting the line of empty green bottles in the corner and the array of old barrels stacked against the wall. Beyond the arched wooden doors was undoubtedly the conte’s wine cellar.
The blackguard had only spoken to her once on the journey. He’d pointed a pistol at her heart while wearing an arrogant grin. “You were always destined to be mine,cara mia.”
The thug beside him had bound her hands and tied the blindfold so tightly he’d yanked out strands of her hair.
Ethel Cartwright had tried pleading, offering the conte every incentive to release them. From the woman’s choice of words, it was evident she had been used as a pawn in the conte’s wicked game.
He said no one would get hurt.
He said if I did this, I could go free.
Upon arrival at their destination, which was almost certainly the conte’s mansion near Tothill Fields, it became apparentHewas known to her.
Get them inside with the others.
You’re sure no one followed you.
Her father’s sinister voice had chilled Isabella’s blood. She’d been shoved through cold corridors and down the stairs, tied to an iron ring in the cellar’s wall. But that’s not what disturbed her most.
It was the distant cries of other women.
Mournful cries, terrified cries, cries that echoed beyond the vault.
Now free of her blindfold, she faced Ethel. “Captain Snell wasn’t shipping fake artefacts, was he?”
Ethel sat on the dusty stone floor, her bound hands resting in her lap. “It’s best you know nothing of their plans. It’s safer for you that way.”
“Safer? It’s too late for me. All is lost. The conte means to steal me away on his ship.” Steal her away from the man she loved. From the only happiness she’d ever known.
Christian!
Was he awake and wondering where she’d gone?
Would he trust her enough to know she’d not left him?
Would he spend a lifetime feeling betrayed?
Ethel snorted. “A life of splendour awaits. It’s what every woman longs for. You should accept your fate and be grateful you’re still breathing.”
Isabella would rather live with Christian in Mrs Maloney’s tiny room than with the conte in his luxurious villa. “Yet you’re in this predicament because you tried to warn me.” The woman’s terrified glares and hand gestures made sense now. “Tell me. How did the conte get you to do his bidding?”
“The conte? I’m not scared of that pompous fool.” Ethel glanced at the wooden doors and lowered her voice. “Cross Lawton and you’re signing your own death warrant.”
Isabella dismissed a frisson of fear. “My father may be wicked, but I cannot believe he would kill someone.”
Pity flashed in Ethel’s green eyes. “No. Lawton likes them breathing, so he can keep beating them with a stick. There’s worse things than death.”
A sudden scream from beyond the vault sent Isabella’s pulse soaring. Gruff words accompanied a woman’s helpless pleas.
“Where are they taking her?”
Ethel sighed but said nothing.
