Page 88 of Temptress in Disguise
Aaron cursed. “Be on your guard. If he means to escape the noose, he cannot afford to let us live.”
But Adams wasn’t hiding behind the poplar trees lining the drive. He didn’t appear from the shadows, wielding two loaded pistols. A mere hundred yards ahead, he was shoving Lydia into his carriage while she protested. Then he slammed the door shut.
Was Naomi inside the vehicle, too?
“Adams!” Aramis locked eyes with the brute.
The fiend looked surprised to see them, though he didn’t fire a warning shot or pull a blade from his boot. While Aramis hurried to close the distance between them, Jacob Adams climbed atop the box. He gathered the reins and whipped the horses into action.
“You’ve lost more than the hairs on your forearm this time, lad,” Adams cried as the vehicle charged towards them, gaining momentum. “Your wife is coming with me. Let’s see who’s the cuckold now.”
They were forced to dive out of the way or risk being trampled to death on the driveway.
“If we run, we might catch him at the gatehouse.” Aaron dusted himself off and tugged Aramis’ sleeve, encouraging him to follow. “If not, we’ll cross the field and cut him off on the road. I vowed you’d have Naomi in your arms by nightfall, and I mean to keep my damn word.”
“Aramis! Help!”
He was about to take to his heels when he heard Naomi’s desperate plea and the sound of shattering glass. He would know her voice amongst a thousand others.
“Aaron, wait!” Hearing loud bangs and thuds, he stared at the manor’s facade. “Cursed saints! He’s locked Naomi inside the house and lit a blasted fire.”
Panic stole his breath.
“Help! Aramis!”
“Naomi!” He darted towards the house, treading on Lydia’s pillbox hat and crushing it into the gravel.
Jacob Adams’ coachman was rolling on the floor, groaning in agony and clutching the bleeding wound on his thigh. “She shot me.”
He didn’t have time to deal with the blackguard. “Tie your neckcloth tightly around your upper thigh, and you’ll live.”
“Aramis! Quickly!”
He tugged off his signet ring, turned to Aaron and thrust it into his brother’s palm. “If I don’t make it out alive, give this to your first-born son. Tell him his heartless uncle chose love over vengeance.” He didn’t care what happened to Jacob Adams. He didn’t care about anything but rescuing his wife.
Aramis was at the front door when Aaron grabbed him. “There’s no need to enter the house. I’m certain she’s in a room downstairs. Hurry. If she’s smashed the windowpane, the rush of oxygen will act as an accelerant.”
They raced to examine all the outside windows on the lower floor. The shutters were all closed and barred.
“Naomi!”
One shutter rattled. “Aramis. Hurry. It’s too hot in here.” Her voice was weak now, and she coughed after every word.
He was there in a heartbeat, unhooking the latch with shaky hands and yanking open the wooden screens.
The room was ablaze. Smoke poured out through the holes in the smashed panes. He tried to raise the sash, but the wood had swelled.
She thrust her arm through the window, desperate to touch him one last time. Blood dripped from minor cuts to her hand. Tears streaked down her dirty face. “I—I love you.”
He met her terrified gaze. “Step aside. We need to kick the bars through. Move!” He’d not meant to shout, but time was of the essence.
Aaron stood beside him. They gripped each other’s arms for balance and kicked the thin wooden bars. They snapped in seconds, fragments of wood and glass tumbling into the room.
Aramis reached for her, grabbing her arm and dragging her carefully through the gap. He fell backwards onto the ground, taking Naomi with him.
She didn’t move. She didn’t speak.
He lay still, too afraid to say her name in case the word was met with deathly silence. He held her tightly, tears filling his eyes. He’d not cried since the night Aaron almost bled to death on Mrs Maloney’s floor.
