“Ah, so we shall allow, honest,
entertaining…and what other qualities
do you
think you
possess?”
“Should I enumerate? I don’t think so. Why
don’t you tell me what very excellent qualities I possess,” he
returned on a tease.
“Ah, so you think you have so many--too many
to count?” She released a short laugh and shook her head. “Well,
for one, and not an attractive one, I think you are a bit too
puffed up in your own consequence. To be certain you have reason
and I am sure London’s
haute ton
dotes on you, but it is not
a good thing, is it?” His expression coaxed the tickle of a laugh
and her laugh sugared the hard words.
His eyes met hers and he said low and
seductively, “Then I must endeavor to improve myself for my lady.”
He had already reached for and taken her gloved hand, but as he
raised it to his bent head, he did not kiss the covered fingertips,
but instead found and kissed her bare wrist.
Star felt a rush of sensation shoot through
her veins. Had she a fan, it would have been working hard. She
found she couldn’t speak, but as he continued in that low hoarse
voice, “The moonlight becomes you, Miss Berkley. I am nearly
overcome with…”
“Star,” she interrupted him. She was sure he
was going to say something outrageous and she wasn’t ready. “You
may call me Star. As far as the moonlight is concerned, I rather
think it would become everyone.”
He laughed and still holding her gloved hand,
walked with her down a stone path to a lovely set of evergreens and
there he stopped her. Easily, gently and before she knew what he
was about, he had her expertly in his strong embrace.
In truth, Star admitted to herself, she had
been waiting for this moment. She knew what was going to happen the
moment he took her outdoors. In her heart, she knew. In her head,
she knew. If she listened to both, she also knew she wanted this to
happen. She probably wasn’t ready, but that didn’t matter.
She wanted this.
His lips brushed hers lightly and beneath the
gentle pressure she parted them as his mouth closed on hers.
All at once, what had started out as a light
kiss upon the lips, grew into something quite out of control.
Yearning for more filled her veins as her mind went blank and she
gave herself over to desire.
His tongued tempted hers to meet and join
his, as she found herself clinging to him, wanting that kiss to go
on and on and never stop. She had never had a kiss like this. She
had never known that her body could respond in this way.
However, the kiss did not go on, but abruptly
stopped.
He yanked himself away and set her apart as
though he had been burned. He stared at her with a look that said
he couldn’t believe his eyes and he frowned darkly at her almost
accusingly.
Star was surprised. She could not understand
what was wrong. She had not expected this from him. In fact, she
had expected more kissing, much more kissing. Her eyes were wide
open with shock as she whispered,
“Is that it?”
She saw that her question had nearly bowled
him over.
It was obvious by the expressions that
flitted across his countenance that he was torn between laughter
and chagrin.
He opened his hazel eyes wide and she could
see her question had him off tilt. He responded to her in
astonished accents, “And what, then? Did you expect me to ravish
you just outside our hostess’s ballroom?”
She nearly laughed, but bit her bottom lip
and answered, “Don’t be hipped, sir. I only meant that if you were
going to bother stealing a kiss, you should not then set the lady
adrift, should you?”
He did not have the opportunity to respond to
this however, for at that moment a commotion of some size took
place in the ballroom and the noise that ensued made its way
outdoors.
Chapter
Eleven
VERN HAD WAITED only long enough for his
sister and Georgie to leave the house before he took the laudanum
potion Star had left him.
He drifted off, but was not yet in a deep
sleep when he heard the sound of heavy footsteps just outside his
door.
He frowned as he roused himself and began to
sit up. His door opened wide and Vern reached for and found the gun
he kept under his right side pillow. He placed it in his lap
beneath the quilt, cocked and ready.
The candle on his nightstand was low, nearly
spluttering off. He waited a long time, for the footsteps had
stopped, he thought just outside his door.
He made a decision and carefully, quietly and
in his nightshirt, made his way across the room to the hall door.
He planted himself against the wall and waited. When the door
opened, he was certain it would partially obscure his presence.
He had done this just in time, for his door
did indeed open slowly, and Vern got a good look at the intruder.
Hell and Fire
, here was trouble!
A large dark ominous shape filled the
doorway.
Vern watched as the brute of a man surveyed
the empty bed and Vern stepped forward, choosing to take him
immediately by surprise.
“Farley!” Vern growled as he stood his
ground, his gun steady in his hand and aimed at the man’s back.
“Hands up, turn slowly and tell me what in hell do you want here
and how dare you come into my home uninvited!”
Farley was taken aback as he slowly raised
his hands and cautiously turned around but he grinned a toothless
grin. “Aw, now young lord…” he started to drop his hands, but Vern
motioned with his gun and said, “Oh no
, up,
keep those hands
of yours up, where I can see them.”
“Aw now flash, Oi waited fer yer sis to be
off, now didn’t Oi?” Farley said his hands high. “All Oi want is a
bit of conversation.”
“Put both your hands on your head. That’s
right…just like that. Now tell me why I shouldn’t shoot you as an
intruder and be done with you.” It occurred to Vern that was what
he should do. Kill the scoundrel. No one would blame him for
killing a thief who had broken into his home. However, cold-blooded
murder of even such as this one went against the grain and he found
himself reluctant to do it.
“Ye don’t want to do anything that will get
ye or yers killed, that’s why. And m’lads, they would be vengeful,
they would.”
Vern was fairly certain that Farley’s men
worked with him because it was expedient. None of them felt any
loyalty to the man and he knew it. He said on a low note full with
the promise of a threat, “Get out of my house, you blackguard
,
now!”
He felt sick to think he was the one that had brought
this evil into his home. What a complete and utter fool he had
been.
“So Oi will, when ye give over whot Oi wants
to know.”
“It’s finished Farley. I have nothing left to
tell you.”
“But flash, Oi ain’t ready to put an end to
our partnership. It’s been a good thing fer me and the lads.” He
eyed Vern. “And it’s been good fer ye as well.” He stood and
pointed a finger. “Oi hear there is a ball tonight…right? Yer
sister is there, at that ball.”
“What the bloody hell does that mean?” Vern
felt his insides, shaken with certain fear. Farley was getting
careless. Greed would get him caught and if he was caught, Vern had
no doubt he would be pulled in.
“All the smarts and their pretties will be
there, dressed…banged up to the nines, Oi’d wager and sporting
their sparklers for all the world to see, eh?”
“Rot in hell, Farley!” Vern growled.
“Methinks Oi might, but before Oi do Oi mean
to enjoy meself right here on earth, what say ye’ to that?”
Farley’s grin displayed his distorted lips and his missing
teeth.
Vern stepped forward, his eyes full with the
dislike and fury he felt, “You’ll not go near that ball tonight.
I’ve counted you many things Farley, but I have never thought you a
fool. Are you…a fool?”
“A fool, is it? How can ye say that, flash?”
Farley had stepped backward, bumped into a wall cabinet and leaned
back against it as he crossed his arms. “Oi don’t think ye be clear
on this. Me men know jest whot to do at sech a bang up affair and
whot hour to do it in.”
“You’ll be dead, because now I don’t have a
choice and your men will be surrounded before you can get out of
the place. Some of the swells, as you call them, know how to shoot
and their firearms are never far.”
“Is that so, flash?” Farley shook his head.
“Oi don’t think so. Whot Oi think is that ye don’t want yer name
dragged into this. Ye have naught to fear on that stand, fer as
long as ye be helping me, Oi won’t bring ye into it.”
Vern’s face fell. He was in trouble. He
didn’t care about scandal for himself, but it would ruin his
sister’s chances of ever making a match of it and having a decent
life.
Farley saw that he had made a hit and
continued, “Aye, that’s right. By midnight everyone will be well
into their cups, servants too and those servants with the barking
irons, well… we’ll ‘ave them neatly trussed up and hidden away
before we make our move. We’ll be in and out. No one knowing who we
are or where we came from and with any good luck, we won’t have to
kill any of the swells you speak of.” Farley’s leer was
pronounced.
“Then know this,” Vern said refusing to back
down. “If you go within a mile of the ball tonight, I’ll see to it
that you never do anything of the kind ever again! For I won’t rest
until you are dead! Don’t think…a swell is above killing his man.
You are out of your element Farley.”
Farley laughed harshly, “Aye, lad, pluck to
the backbone ye are, but a killer?” he shook his head. “Oi don’t
think so. But we’ll see. It’ll take more than ye and yers to stop
me from laying out me kens and twigging me rigs. It will take more
than a pup to take down ‘ole Farley.” He moved away now toward the
hall door and tossed one final remark over his shoulder. “Oi came
‘ere Oi did to see if ye had any information that might help us get
in easy so that no one need get hurt. Oi see ye don’t mean to
cooperate with yer old friend.
So be it
.” He looked at Vern
thoughtfully and added, “If ye are so hell-bent against me going to
this fine ball…then give me whot Oi want and have done. Tell me
where next Oi’ll be finding a place to twig.”
“Do you think I am the sort of man that will
cower to your blackmail?” Vern was in a rage. “Get out of here and
Farley, remember my warning. I did not issue it lightly.”
Farley looked surprised, and said, “Oi didn’t
think ye had it in ye to stand up against me, flash. Oi was hoping
ye would give me whot Oi want and Oi would leave yer fancy friends
to their ball. Oi’m sorry ye don’t see fit to do the smart thing.
Brave lads, often die heroes
, but they die
…” Farley bowed
and made his exit.
Vern stood for a long moment filled with
indecision and a certain dread. His sister was at the ball with
Georgie. If Farley did indeed decide to do what he said, she could
be in danger. Even if she wasn’t in danger, he might get a good
look at her and recognize her as the lad she had pretended to be.
“Damnation!” he cursed out loud. There was no telling what the
devil thief would do. There was no telling how many innocent people
might be hurt. He had to get dressed. He had to get to Sefton House
and warn them…
Chapter
Twelve
STAR’S EYES FLASHED with surprise. People
were all whispering and gathering together and all she could see
was her brother in a state of disarray.
She looked with uncertainty to Sir Edward as
he put a protective hand to her back and led her toward the
ballroom doors. She couldn’t believe her ears when she first heard
her brother call out for the gentlemen to arm themselves.
She watched as Miles rushed across the floor
and put a supportive arm around his friend. She couldn’t hear what
Miles was saying to Vern, but she imagined it was exactly what she
was thinking, which was…what the deuce was going on?
Star looked up at Sir Edward again and said,
“I must go to him…”
“Of course,” he said and took her elbow.
“Easy my sweet, be easy.” He hovered over her as he led her to her
brother. She felt as though her heart was going to burst from her
chest and bleed.
Finally, she was able to reach out and grab
hold of her brother’s arm and asked fretfully, “Vern, what is it?
Why are you here? What has happened?”
She was aware, all too aware that a crowd had
gathered and was closing in around them. She could feel their eyes
darting between her face and that of her brother’s. Miles shot her
a warning glance and said to Vern, “There, there ‘ole boy, let’s
get you into another room. Here is your sister, safe and sound, so
you have nothing to worry about.” He turned to the crowd and
announced, “We have it under control…go back to your dancing.”
Vern reached out and took his sister’s hands.
“All my fault…have to warn Sefton, sis. We have to arm the
servants…be ready…we have to be ready. They will strike late into
the night.”
“Hush, Vern, it is the laudanum. You are
having a bad reaction to the medicine, nothing more.” Star also
attempted to give the people closing in around them this as an
answer to satisfy their curiosity.
Vern tried to break away from Miles and a
slight struggle ensued between the two, but Miles was easily able
to control his weakened friend. He held him upright and tightly,
and tried to lead the struggling man away from the ballroom.
Star bit her lip and found herself leaning
into Sir Edward. She could see that her brother was frantic. What
was it all about? Was it Farley? He had been about to say something
that would ruin them all…but why?
Sir Edward suddenly took charge.
In his quiet and authoritive manner Edward
said, “Come along, young lord. We will go into Sefton’s study where
we can discuss this matter without worrying the ladies, or the
assembled company.”