Page 66 of Rose and the Rogue
“You are calling me a liar?”
“No. I’m calling you a petty, sniveling, cowardly liar who would spread false rumors about a blind woman simply because you couldn’t make a fool of her at that party after you had bet your friends that you could.” Adrian was guessing, but his instinct was good, and he knew Hynes’s mind.
“Further, you sought to profit on a later wager made by a bookmaker, probably by suggesting the wager to him. Though you were careful not to bet yourself, you instructed a number of other men to do so, offering to cover their stakes. Which meant that every one of those men owed you. And you’ll see to it that they pay at very high interest, won’t you?”
Again, it was a guess. But from the hunted look in Hynes’s eye, Adrian felt sure he was right.
This was news to the crowd, and several men frowned and began to mutter to their neighbors. It was one thing to destroy a young lady’s life, but apparently far worse to offer poor terms on a loan.
Hynes blustered, saying, “This is all conjecture!”
“I’ve spoken to Evans, Lloyd, Atkinson, and Sir Richard. They’ll confirm what I’ve said,” Adrian told him in an icy tone. “And just to ensure that nothing unfortunate happens to them before they can talk, I’ve arranged for them to write their statements in front of a witness.” He was improvising, and it felt good.
“You are quite mad.”
“And, as I previously stated, you are a greedy, stupid coward.” Adrian turned to Carlos. “That is what I previously stated, correct?”
“Close, but you could add uncouth and bad dancer and repugnant to women,” Carlos noted. “Oh, and a dog could write a better poem than you can, Hynes.”
“That’s enough slander!” Hynes hissed. “I demand an apology!”
Adrian leaned back and smirked, summoning all his disdain for the other man and letting it show in his face. “Absolutely not.”
“Then you’ll meet me at dawn!” Hynes declared.
Adrian felt a burst of triumph. “Excellent. I’ll be there. Oh, and I choose swords.”
“Swords?” Hynes echoed, suddenly realizing what he had committed to.
“Well, you insisted on the duel,” Adrian said, not mentioning that he had very deliberately goaded Hynes into doing it. “I accepted, and it is my right to choose the weapon.” Once a challenge was issued and accepted, the thing had to be seen through. Such were the rules of polite society.
“That is correct,” Carlos noted in a detached tone. “I will serve as the viscount’s second. Who will be yours?”
Hynes glanced around, eyes wild. His former friends had made a wide circle around him. None looked at him. He cast about for an ally. “Eberling! You’ll do it!”
“I will?” a drunken man asked, looking rather chagrined to be singled out in this way.
“You’ll be my second,” Hynes insisted, looking as if he hoped the drunk would volunteer to fight first.
“Splendid,” Carlos said, grinning. “Darthmore Abbey at dawn, in the field by the elms. I trust you know it. We’ll even bring the surgeon. Good night, Hynes. I wish you pleasant dreams.”
So Lord Norbury and Mr. de la Guerra stepped out of the gaming hell, breathing in the night air.
“Lot of things to take care of by dawn,” Carlos said. “I’ll locate a surgeon and do what else needs to be done. Why don’t you go back to your house and relax for a few hours.”
Adrian gripped him by the shoulder. “You’re a true friend, Carlos.”
“Are you going to kill him? Ridding London of a snake like Hynes may be seen as an act of generosity.”
“I don’t kill.”
“But this is a special situation, far more personal than anything else you’ve been pulled into. Miss Blake isn’t one of those bored wives seeking an affair to liven up their existence. She’s a young lady with very little experience, and what’s more, you actually care for her.”
“That’s why I’m not going to kill him. I really don’t want to propose to her over a corpse. Not that she’ll be there, thank God.”
“For someone who pretends to be such a rogue, you’ve got an annoyingly consistent moral code,” Carlos said, but laughed as he did so, obviously rather proud of his friend.
“I’ve built it up over time,” Adrian said. “No one noticed because they were busy talking about the scandals.”
