Page 42 of The Penitent Duke
“Wait a moment.”
Much to Rosalind’s surprise, Lord Westlake’s hand shot out and caught her arm.
“There is more that I wanted to say to you,” the gentleman continued, tightening on her arm. “Now, Lady Rosalind, you must –”
“If you would excuse me,” Rosalind interrupted, a niggle of fear in her heart now. “Please, I must return.”
“No.”
There was a tightness in Lord Westlake’s jaw now, a glint in his eye which made fear crawl over Rosalind’s skin, her breath quickening. Her stomach twisted sharply as the veiled lady’s words returned to her, making her eyes flare in shock. Could it be that Lord Westlake was the gentleman of whom she had been speaking?
“You will come with me, Lady Rosalind, without protest.” Lord Westlake’s fingers dug into her arm and he turned, beginning to pull her along towards the room he had just stepped out of. “You have saved me a great deal of trouble, I confess, for I feared that I would have to come in search of you! I am greatly relieved to see now that I do not have to do such a thing. You have practically landed on my lap!”
Rosalind made to cry out in both fright and in the hope of catching the attention of others nearby but Lord Westlake turned his head and glared at her, then yanked her, hard, into the room.
The door closed tightly behind him.
“Release me,” Rosalind cried, determined now to escape him. “You cannot do such a thing!”
“Oh, but I can.” Lord Westlake did not release her as she had asked but instead pulled her closer to him, making her cry out in pain as his fingers tightened all the more. “I will make sure that the Duke of Strathmore does not have a single moment of happiness for the rest of his days!”
Awash with fear, Rosalind stared into his eyes, seeing how they narrowed as though they were daggers, ready to press into her skin. “Then it was you?”
Lord Westlake chuckled darkly. “You have realised, then, that those two accidents were not accidents, as you believed? I did not think that you would. Mayhap I have underestimated you.”
Not knowing what to say, Rosalind could only look away, a slight trembling taking over her.
“The Duke deserves to suffer and I have every intention of making sure that he has nothing but pain the rest of his days,” Lord Westlake continued, angry now. “And if that means bringing injury to you, then so be it.”
“But… but you jumped into the pond to help me,” Rosalind said, aware of the shaking in her voice. “Why would you do such a thing?” When he laughed, the awareness of why he had done such a thing set itself into Rosalind’s mind. “You wanted to make sure that no-one suspected you?”
“I certainlyhaveunderestimated you!” came the reply. “Yes, Lady Rosalind, that is precisely it. I did not want anyone to think that I was in any way responsible so what better way than to try and save you? Though it did not quite work as expected.” He scowled, leaning close to her. “You were meant to hit your head on one of the stones and rocks at the end of the pond. I did not expect you to have recovered so quickly.”
Rosalind shuddered violently. “I do not understand. Why would you do such a thing? What did the Duke do that has caused you to hate him so much?”
Lord Westlake shook her, hard, his voice screaming across her ears. “Are you being deliberately foolish? Youknowabout Pearl. Youknowwhat he did.”
Letting out another cry, Rosalind wrenched herself away from him, stumbling back as she did so. Gathering herself quickly, she rushed towards the door but Lord Westlake hurried forward, putting himself between her and the door – and then leaning back against it.
“You will not escape me, Lady Rosalind. I am afraid that something more is going to be required of you this night.”
Rosalind’s breath ran from her chest, her eyes widening as she looked into Lord Westlake’s face, seeing a madness there. “You cannot mean…” She trailed off, not able to find the strength to say those words clearly.
“My sister died because of him. He took something precious from me and now, I will take something precious from him. That way, the burden on his shoulders will not get lighter but only heavier. And that is all that I want.”
“No.” Rosalind stepped back, making her way behind the couch as though that, somehow, would save her. “You cannot do such a wicked thing.”
“Yes, I can.” Lord Westlake shrugged as though what he had suggested was something to be easily dismissed. “I have tried to cause you suffering in the hope that you would turn away from him, but you did not. Therefore, if you will not cause him the pain that he so deserves, then I will do it for you.”
“By taking my life?”
“Yes. Precisely.” Lord Westlake sniffed and then, standing up straight, pulled something from his pocket – something that caught the light. “Now, I will not do anything to you here, for that would be somewhat distasteful. If you do anything or say anything that will result inothers being aware of your predicament, then this dagger will find its way through your clothing and into your flesh. Do I make myself quite clear?”
Rosalind nodded, her whole being suddenly cold.
“The Duke will know that he is responsible,” Lord Westlake continued, his voice quiet now as though he was speaking to himself. “I will make sure of it.”
He stepped away and, just as he did so, the door flew open, knocking into Lord Westlake. He fell forward, a dreadful cry coming from him as he hit the floor and Rosalind stepped back, just as a figure came into the room. She wore a veil over her face and Rosalind snatched in another breath, only for the lady to reach out one hand to her.
