by tiffy
Just as heedless, he crushed her against him and breathed in the scent of violets, holding her as if he planned never to release her again. ʺElise, Elise, I was so afraid something had happened to youʺ
ʺMe? You were the one who vanished. I imagined you waylaid and killed in the swamps, mauled by a bear, evenʺ
ʺEven that I had run off with Juliette?ʺ he murmured gently. ʺI would never leave you and Orlena. Our daughter is well?ʺ He pulled away to look into her face.
She smiled radiantly. ʺYes, she is quite splendid. Flourishing, in fact. I waited at the plantation, letting Odine and Claudy spoil her outrageously until she had gained enough weight to travel. We must secure their freedom and that of all the Doubert slaves, Santiago.ʺ
ʺWe owe them a great debt. Yes, Iʹll arrange itas soon as Iʹm free of this noisome place.ʺ
She wrinkled her nose and inspected him, brushing tangled filthy curls from his forehead. ʺFirst a bath and clean clothes. You look and smell like a river pirate!ʺ
ʺMore like a river rat. Yes, letʹs have done with the Calaboose.ʺ He placed his arm about her shoulders, and they walked out of the cell into the blinding spring sunlight as she explained how Claiborne had located him.
He threw his head back and laughed at her encounter with Juliette Doubert. ʺI can just see you skinning her with that tiny knife! Fortunately for you, Julie is a cowardshe must outweigh you by at least two stone.ʺ
Elise sniffed. ʺIʹm tallerand tougher. Anyway, all of her weight is fat.ʺ
ʺYouʹre certainly not fat. Youʹve made an amazing recovery.ʺ He eyed her tiny waist and softly rounded slenderness with avid appreciation and was rewarded with a blush. He was very grateful to see that some things never changed.
They climbed into the waiting carriage at the side of the Cabildo. She squeezed onto the narrow seat beside him.
ʺWhere are you taking me now that Iʹm your prisoner?ʺ he asked with a devilish white smile on his bearded face.
ʺWhy, to my apartments, of course,ʺ she replied primly. ʺYou can talk with Governor Claiborne tomorrow.ʺ
ʺI wonder what heʹll do with Juliette. Sheʹs a danger if he frees her, and Claiborne strikes me as too sentimental by half.ʺ ʺDonʹt underestimate the governorʹs resolve. To help matters along,ʺ she smiled conspiratorially, ʺIʹve taken steps to see that sheʹll work no more of her wiles on the gullible young soldiers in Wilkinsonʹs command.ʺ
He arched one eyebrow in that beautiful brigandʹs face. ʺWhat steps?ʺ
A sly chuckle escaped her. ʺIʹve had my maid Ellen drop a discreet bit of gossip to Solange Pleshetteʹs household servants, telling them that Madame Doubert is quite poxed. Given the rumors about her these past years, every man in the city will avoid Juliette like swamp fever. I expect the word to spread by nightfall, else Madame Pleshetteʹs reputation is greatly overrated.ʺ
ʺPoxed!ʺ Santiago broke out laughing. ʺCome to think on it, you may not have spread a lie. She well could be!ʺ
They pulled up in front of her apartments and climbed from the carriage. Several people stared at the elegantly dressed American lady on the arm of what looked to be a Kaintuck fresh from sleeping off a week‐long drunk in some riverfront dive. Ignoring them, Elise and Santiago ascended the stairs and entered her apartments. Odine had the hotel servants fetching bath water in moments, while Elise proudly displayed their daughter for Santiago.
ʺShe has gained over a pound already and has a voracious appetite.ʺ
He longed to touch his daughter, but felt too dirty, His eyes moved from the baby to her mother. As he gazed at Eliseʹs breasts, full with milk now, his expression revealed raw hunger. ʺI remember her appetite,ʺ he said hoarsely.
ʺOdine will bring us a meal after weʹve bathed. Then I must feed Orlena.ʺ ʹʹMay I watch?ʺ he asked, waiting for that wondrous blush once more. When she nodded, and heat stole into her cheeks, his heart nearly burst with joy.
Santiago luxuriated in a long, slow bath to soak away the grime ground into his hair and skin from weeks of imprisonment. Odine supervised the hotel servants, who set out a feast in the parlor that Elise and Santiago fell upon with starving hunger. He had seen no edible food for nearly a month, and she had been too upset to eat with any relish. Now they both made up for it.
After the servants had cleared the table and departed, Elise and Santiago returned to her bedroom, where she unlaced the bodice of her gown and put the fussing Orlena to her breast. He sat across from her, feeling more at peace than he ever had in his life. Not wanting to disrupt the beautiful enchantment of the family scene, he did not speak, only watched.
Elise was the one who worked up her courage and said, ʺWhat do we do now, Santiago? I love you, but Iʹm still not free to marry you.ʺ
ʺYou are my woman and this is my child. Iʹll never give you up, Elise.ʺ
ʺWe could simply return to New Mexico and get married. No one there would know about Edouard,ʺ she said tentatively.
ʺBut you would know. And so would I. For that matter, so would that overprotective brother of yours, who Iʹm certain would pursue us. I donʹt imagine he was exactly pleased when he learned that he was going to become an uncle.ʺ
She smiled drily. ʺHe wanted to kill you when I was forced to tell him last December. I think I can make Samuel see reason, Santiago. He wants only my happiness.ʺ ʺHe wonʹt want you branded an adulteress.ʺ He stood up and paced across the room, then stared out the window on the busy street below. ʺI must go to Washington and face Louvois.ʺ
ʺNo! You canʹt just kill himor be killed by him. Edouard is a deadly swordsman, a veteran of many duels. Weʹll go to Washington together. Years ago, President Jefferson offered to help me secure an annulment.ʺ
He looked at her with sad disbelief on his face. ʺAn annulment now would be rather difficult,ʺ he said, looking at his baby in her arms.
She swallowed the bitter taste of bile and said in a whisper, ʺThere are other circumstances, things I never wanted anyone to know . . . but the truth could perhaps free me.ʺ
Santiago realized that she was dredging this up from the darkest recesses of her soul, where it was buried much as he had buried memories of Colorado Quinn.
He knelt by her chair and placed her head against his shoulder, shielding her and Orlena. ʺDonʹt dwell on it, querida. I know he must have been brutal to you, but no matter how abusive a husband isʺhe sighed in frustrationʺthat is never grounds for annulment.ʺ
ʺAnd since we have Orlena, a divorce on moral grounds is out of the question.
Iʹm a sinful, fallen woman in societyʹs eyes,ʺ she said hopelessly.
He touched her tear‐stained cheeks and raised her chin. Their eyes met and he asked, ʺDo you believe the love we share, the love that created this beautiful child, is sinful, Elise?ʺ
She caressed his jawline, then touched those finely sculpted lips she loved so well. ʺNo, beloved. What we have shared is too beautiful. But I would not have it stained by Edouardʹs blood. You said the Apache prophecy was that he would die. Do you still believe thatʹs true?ʺ
ʺYes,ʺ he answered simply.
ʺIt must not be you who does it, Santiago,ʺ she implored.
So wrapped up were they in discussion, they did not hear the doors to the apartment open. Then a voice broke in on them. ʺWhat a touching tableau, little sister. For a man who deserted Liza, youʹve pursued her a long way, renegade.ʺ
Samuel Shelby stood silhouetted in the doorway, dressed in full military uniform.
Elise quickly refastened her bodice as Santiago took his daughter and stood up, blocking Shelbyʹs view.
Quinn studied the tall young man with the scowling countenance. He held Orlena out as a peace offering between them. ʺWould you care to greet your new niece?ʺ
ʺIt seems Iʹve arrived a bit late to see you married before her birthbut you will be married,ʺ Shelby said, trying to sound stern and at the same time ogle the baby.
When he reached out to touch her, he paled and winced, then lowered his arm.
ʺ
Damn nuisance.ʺ
ʺSamuel, youʹve been injured!ʺ Elise ran to her brother and touched his arm gingerly, inspecting him with a sisterʹs practiced eye. ʺYouʹre white as a ghost.
Here, sit. Surely you didnʹt ride from Washington?ʺ
ʺHardly in shape for that, little sister,ʺ he said as he sat carefully on the wicker chair near the window.
ʺIʹm your elder sister,ʺ Elise reminded him crossly. ʺHow did you get here and what happened to you?ʺ
He smiled at Quinn and said, ʺSheʹs always this imperious. Youʹd better get used to it.ʺ He returned his attention to Elise. ʺI sailed, and as to the injury . . .
Edouard is in far worse shape. In fact, heʹs dead. Youʹre a widow, Elise.ʺ His eyes moved meaningfully to Quinn, but before either man could speak, Elise did.
ʺYou challenged Edouardand of course he chose foils! He was a skilled swordsman!ʺ
ʺMore so than I wouldʹve liked, but I tricked him. When youʹre losing, fight dirtyone of Fatherʹs Virginia backwoods maxims Iʹve always lived by. I let him back me to a patch of tree roots and pretended to stumble. He hit me, but when he stepped forward to finish me off, he caught his foot in the roots and pitched headlong onto my blade. His was rather well anchored in my hide at the time.ʺ
He touched his side with a grimace. ʺI skewered his throat front to back.ʺ
ʺSamuel, he couldʹve killed you! Why on earth did you take such a risk?ʺ
ʺI found out, Eliseeverything,ʺ he said gently, yet with steel in his voice. ʺI had to kill him, else Iʹd never have been able to live with myself.ʺ
ʺWhat did the Frenchman do?ʺ Santiago asked as he laid his sleeping daughter in the basinette. He stood up and put his arm protectively around Eliseʹs shoulders.
Samuelʹs eyes met his sisterʹs. ʺHe has the right to know, Elise. The scandal had already rocked Washington when I arrived to report to President Jefferson.ʺ He waited for her assent, intent on explaining to the father of her child what sort of monster Edouard Louvois had been, but Elise shook her head.
ʺItʹs I who should tell it to you both, now that itʹs over and done.ʺ She shuddered.
ʺI wanted to protect you, Samuel, for I feared if you knew, you would do exactly as you did and die for it.ʺ She turned away from the two men she loved best in the world and struggled with what she had to explain. ʺEdouard preferred men to women, and if truth were known, boys to men.ʺ
Santiago felt too stunned to speak except for a growled Spanish oath.
ʺHe wed me to disguise his sexual tastes. After all, it would scarce have done if a promising diplomat from the emperorʹs court was revealed as a member of the third sex. Besides, I was useful to him, a hostess for social functions at the embassies.ʺ She paused and drew a breath, then continued. ʺHe used me in other ways, too. To take out his spite on all women. He quickly convinced a foolish, virginal eighteen‐year‐old girl that it was her coldness and lack of skill that caused him to perform his marital duties so seldom. But I was grateful, for when he did come to me, he was abusive, physically and verbally.ʺ
Santiago was trembling as he gathered Elise in his arms, comforting her as she cried. ʺNo wonder you never wanted another man to touch you.ʺ He wished Louvois resurrected so he could kill him the Apache way. Slowly.
ʺBut I used him, too. Mother couldnʹt have forced me to wed him if I had really taken a stand. I didnʹt defy her because I thought a diplomat traveling to world capitals would one day take me home to America. How naive I was.ʺ
ʺBut you could never have guessed what he was,ʺ Samuel said. ʺHe was evil, Liza. You have no guilt to own.ʺ
ʺI found out about his horrid perversions quickly enough. He loved flaunting his lovers in front of me. He brought them to our apartments in Paris, Venice, Madrid . . . the scum of the streets or, sometimes, elegant gentlemen. He threatened me with . . . unspeakable punishments if I didnʹt keep his secret.ʺ
She shuddered, but continued. ʺWhen I learned we were at last coming to the United States, I formulated a plan,ʺ she said in a cold, flat voice. ʺThe night we were at Senator Kensingtonʹs ball in Washington, he tried to force me to bed his new superior at the embassy. I refused. When he struck me, I retaliated for the first time and returned the blow.ʺ
She felt Santiagoʹs arms tighten about her as if feeling the abuse she had suffered.
ʺYou see, I had written letters and sent them to our Shelby cousins in Kentucky with instructions to deliver them to President Jefferson if ever I so requestedor in the event of my death.ʺ
ʺYou blackmailed him into giving you your freedom.ʺ Samuel at last understood the mysterious relationship between Louvois and Elise.
ʺSmall wonder you never asked for a divorce,ʺ Santiago murmured softly.
ʺI could never imagine marrying again. Edouard had made me feel so soiled, so . . . so filthy. And so inadequate as a woman. I never believed any man would want me or that I would ever want any man.ʺ For the first time, she dared to look up into Santiagoʹs face.
He kissed her eyelids as silvery droplets ran freely down her cheeks. ʺ Querida, youʹve been the victim all these years, and I had the gall, the cruelty to accuse youʺ
Her fingertips touched his lips, silencing him. ʺYou could not have known, any more than I knew about your relationship with your father. Can we put it all behind us now?ʺ
ʺYouʹre damn right you will,ʺ Samuel interjected, feeling an intruder who yet needed to remind them he was still presentand to see that Quinn did right by his little sister. ʺI didnʹt risk getting skewered by that scum Louvois just to see my niece branded a bastard. As an uncle, I do have some serious responsibilities, you know. Iʹm going to speak with Father Walsh at the Cathedral about a wedding. You can explain everything thatʹs happened since I left New Orleans when I return this evening.ʺ
With that stern pronouncement, Samuel walked out and closed the door, only to open it quickly again. ʺOh, by the by, what is my nieceʹs name?ʺ he asked, red-faced.
Elise managed a smile and quickly gave her brother a fond hug. ʺHer name is Orlena, for Santiagoʹs sister in New Mexico. I think youʹll enjoy meeting his whole family when you visit us.ʺ
After Samuel had departed, Santiago gave Elise a gentle kiss. ʺDo you wish to live in New Mexico, querida? Itʹs a long way from the United States, and I know how loyal a patriot you are.ʺ
She brushed the wayward lock of hair from his forehead tenderly and met his eyes. ʺAnywhere you are is where I long to be. I cannot bear the thought of living without you.ʺ
He smiled down on her. ʺDoes this mean youʹll give up political intrigue and become a dutiful wife?ʺ
ʺI shall be more than content to abandon the life of a spy. President Jeffersonʹs government is secure, Louisiana is in American hands, and the power of General Wilkinson has been broken. Now he and the men in the Mexican Association are turning on each other like ravening wolves. I think Iʹll like my new life a great deal better than I did my old one.ʺ
ʺI hope your President Jefferson understands,ʺ he replied drily.
She raised her lips and kissed him soundly, exploring all the familiar, beautiful contours and tastes of his mouth, then broke off the kiss and said with a touch of humor, ʺHeʹll be relieved to see me become a conventional female at last. As to my patriotism, Iʹm not worried about your Spanish king. I predict that in our lifetime, New Mexico will become part of the United States.ʺ
ʺJefferson never imagined what he unleashed when he purchased the Western lands bordering Spanish territory.ʺ
She smiled at him with pure love. ʺI think he did, although he knew this was no time for Americans to become embroiled in a war with the Spanish.ʺ
ʺFate worked in strange ways to bring us together. Perhaps it will bring Spanish land under the American flag as well.ʺ
ʺNot fate, darling. Destiny.ʺ
Chapter Thirty‐Five
ʺIt was a lovely wedding,ʺ Elise whispered in her new husbandʹs ear. They were alone in the suite of rooms Santiago had
rented. Across the hall in the apartment she and Samuel had shared, the doting uncle was well occupied with Orlena, under Odineʹs and Ellenʹs watchful eyes.
ʺIt was a small ceremony, just you and I, with Samuel holding Orlena. Father Walsh was scandalized to the core of his Irish soul,ʺ Santiago said, regretting that she could not have had all the beautiful trappings most women craved.
But Elise Quinn was not most women. ʺAt least our daughter was a lamb and didnʹt cry. I wish we could have waited to let your Franciscan friend, Fray Bartolomé marry us, but Samuel will be posted back to Washington, and you know how stubborn he was about seeing us wed before he leaves.ʺ She studied his pensive expression and said, ʺI had a big elegant wedding the first time, Santiago. It meant nothing. Saying my vows with you meant everything, husband.ʺ
He threaded his fingers into her lustrous ebony curls. ʺI love you, wife, my own.
Crossing mountains and deserts, trailing you through swamps . . . Iʹve dreamed of this moment for so long.ʺ He lowered his mouth and kissed her with poignant gentleness. ʺI have so much to make up to you.ʺ
ʺItʹs past and done. Now we begin again.ʺ She pulled him down to meet her lips once more, but he stopped short.
ʺElise, querida are you certain? Itʹs been only six weeks since Orlenaʹs birth. You almost died then. I donʹt want to hurt you.ʺ
She smiled, touched by his tenderness. ʺFor a renegade of such fierce reputation, you have a very soft heart. Iʹm well recovered, and Samuel no longer guards my apartment doors against a certain Spanish rogue.ʺ
She inspected her husband, splendidly handsome in his black woolen suit. ʺYou looked very solemn and impressive before the altar in your wedding finery, but now I think itʹs time to remove it.ʺ She slid her hands inside his suit coat and began to untie the white silk stock at his throat, then unfastened the onyx studs of his shirt and nuzzled the pelt of hair on his bare chest, breathing in his scent.
As she worked so seductively on him, he shrugged out of his jacket and began to unloop the satin‐covered buttons at the back of her lavender silk wedding gown.
ʺYou always smell like violets and feel like silk,ʺ he whispered as he slid his hands inside the open back of the dress and traced her delicate spine through her sheer lacy camisole.
