Romancing the Earl

by Darcy Burke

  Did she want more? He was right—she didn’t want to be his mistress ensconced in some townhouse, waiting on his every move. No, she wanted to be his partner, as she’d been during this entire adventure. She thought of what her mother had said, how she and her father had fallen in love in a similar fashion. Could that be what Cate was feeling? Did she love Elijah?

  A bright warmth burst in her chest. Yes, she loved him. He’d treated her with more respect and care than any other man of her acquaintance. Yes, he’d tried to command her about, but only because he wanted to keep her safe. He was a man of pride and principle, and she wouldn’t have him any other way.

  But her feelings didn’t matter since he would never love her. He’d said before that he didn’t even know what love was.

  When they reached the other side of the river, she rode up beside Elijah. “I hope Kersey isn’t an early riser. We need every moment to catch up with him.”

  They’d discussed the timeframe when they’d set out. Assuming Kersey had stopped somewhere for the night, they should be able to overtake him.

  “Yes, the later he leaves the better,” Elijah said. “I’d guess he stayed somewhere in or near Bristol.”

  “That’s my thought as well.” Cate shot him a sidelong glance. He stared straight ahead. She would miss his profile.

  They continued in silence, riding for quite some time until they skirted Bristol. She slowed her horse to a walk. Elijah did the same. “What is it?” he asked.

  “I think I should tell you where we’re going now.”

  Elijah’s eyes flickered with surprise. “That would be helpful.”

  “Kersey is going to a house near Glastonbury to see a man named Timothy Foliot. I’m not certain of his route, but if we cut across the Mendips, we might be able to gain a little more time.”

  “That’s rougher terrain,” Elijah said.

  “Riding around them will add hours. And if he’s going that way, we’ll be able to cut him off and ambush him in return.”

  His eyes lit with appreciation. “I’d like that.”

  Something about the set of his mouth indicated that appreciation might not be the right emotion. She knew he was angry with Kersey—and he had every right to be. But was there more to it? Since their encounter with Kersey and his men at Kentchurch yesterday, Elijah had carried an air of something . . . sinister.

  “What do you want to happen with Kersey?” she asked tentatively.

  “I want you to regain Dyrnwyn.”

  “What of him? Are we going to take him to the local constable?”

  Elijah’s gaze hardened. “What will that accomplish? We’ll have him brought up on charges of theft? What else can we say he did?”

  Cate opened her mouth, then snapped it closed. They had no proof other than their own account of what had happened at Kentchurch. And his only true crime was stealing the sword, something she’d planned to do too. “The theft will be enough.”

  Elijah edged his horse closer. “His men held up your coach, attacked us at Harlech where they shot Grey, and they murdered my brother. You think prosecuting him for theft would be enough?” His lip curled, revealing his even, white teeth and making him look more primal than she’d ever seen him.

  “What else would you do?” She feared she knew the answer.

  He sat straight and walked his horse away from her. “You don’t have to come. I’ll leave you wherever you’d like and continue on my own.”

  She moved to catch up with him. “No, I’m coming with you.” If only to ensure he didn’t do something he might regret. She felt betrayed by Kersey—her own cousin—and he’d engaged in dastardly behavior. But he hadn’t shot Grey, nor did they know for certain whether he’d had anything to do with Matthew’s death. She couldn’t forget the way he’d kept her from harm at Kentchurch. His men would’ve happily killed her and Elijah, but Kersey had ensured they were safe. She clung to the notion that there was goodness in him.

  She spent the next several miles trying to think of how she could convince Elijah to at least delay his judgment. Or better yet, to allow the law to determine Kersey’s punishment. He could potentially be hanged for theft, yet she doubted they’d sentence a nobleman to that end. More likely he’d be transported or imprisoned.

  The terrain grew more uneven as they rode into the hills. They followed a modest path, which ultimately led them to the Cheddar Gorge.

  “There!” Elijah pointed to a single rider ahead of them, galloping east along the edge of the canyon. He kicked his horse into a dead run and gained on the rider, while Cate worked to keep up.

  As they neared the rider, she saw that the man was indeed Kersey. He looked back over his shoulder and urged his horse faster. Elijah pulled a pistol from his pocket and fired. He missed, but it frightened Kersey’s horse enough that it reared and threw Kersey to the ground.

  Cate struggled to reach her cousin, but Elijah got there first. He slid from his horse and stalked toward her cousin, just as he clambered to his feet. The sword was in his hand.

  Drawing her horse to a halt, she jumped down. “Kersey, stop, please.”

  His back to the canyon, Kersey held the sword in front of him. He’d lost his hat in the fall, and the cool breeze tossed his dark hair. “How in the bloody hell did you find me?”

  “Septon knew where you were going,” Cate said.

  Kersey looked past them. “Where is he?” he spat the question.

  “Not here,” Elijah said softly. “You get to deal with me.” He pulled his second pistol from his other pocket and transferred it to his right hand. Hatred burned in his gaze.

  Fear curled through her. “Elijah, don’t.”

  “He killed my brother.”

  Kersey flinched in surprise. “I didn’t. I had nothing to do with his death. I only wanted the tapestry so that I could find the sword. No one was supposed to be hurt.”

  Elijah strode toward him. “But people were hurt—Cate’s maid, my brother. Your secret Order will stop at nothing to get what it wants.”

  Kersey’s eyes narrowed. “I told you, that wasn’t me.”

  Elijah pointed his pistol at Kersey’s chest. “Even if you didn’t pull the trigger of the pistol that shot Grey or cause Matthew’s coach to crash, you were behind both of those occurrences. At least be man enough to own what you’ve done.”

  “Elijah, don’t!” Cate grabbed his arm and the pistol fired. Thankfully, the shot went wide.

  Kersey lunged toward him with the sword. Cate pulled her hand away as Elijah rushed forward. He lowered his body to avoid the arc of the blade. She held her breath until the sword cleared his back. He brought his hand up to dislodge the weapon from Kersey’s grip, and suddenly the blade erupted with pale flame from hilt to tip.

  Cate gasped as Kersey’s eyes widened. Elijah jerked back. Kersey pushed at him, and Elijah pulled his waist so they fell together at the edge of the cliff.

  Everything seemed to happen in a dream. Their motions were slow, the sounds around her muted. Kersey had Elijah pinned to the ground, the flaming sword raised. With one blow Cate was going to lose what she wanted more than anything—not Dyrnwyn, Elijah.

  She moved closer, her heart in her throat. “Kersey, take the sword and go.”

  Chapter 21

  Elijah clasped Kersey’s wrist and tried to wrestle the sword from his grip. He was aware of Cate, that she’d moved closer and said something. Had he heard her right?

  She said it again. “Kersey, take the sword and go. Please.”

  Elijah struggled to look past Kersey and saw the anguish in her face.

  “I don’t care about the sword. Just don’t hurt Elijah. I couldn’t bear it if you did.”

  Kersey’s arm sagged and Elijah took advantage of the opening. He flipped Kersey to his back, bringing them perilously close to the edge of the cliff.

  All of the rage pent up inside of Elijah—from Matthew’s death, from Cate being in danger, probably all of the anger he’d buried his entire life—gather
ed into a combustive mass. Elijah tightened his grip on Kersey’s right hand, so close to where the ground fell away. He wrapped his other hand around Kersey’s throat, intent on ending this right now.

  Kersey’s eyes widened as he tried to pry Elijah’s fingers from his neck. Failing, he reached up and grappled for Elijah’s shoulder, but Elijah only squeezed harder. Kersey next tried to wrench his wrist from Elijah’s grip. Their arms swung out over the canyon. Kersey’s grasp loosened. Elijah took in Kersey’s bright red face, bulging eyes, and felt Cate pulling at his shoulder.

  “Elijah!”

  Kersey began to weaken, his body ceasing to fight. Elijah could kill him, but the sword . . . Kersey’s fingers uncurled from the hilt. It was going to fall . . .

  Elijah let go of Kersey and dove for the blade, its flame going out the moment Kersey relinquished his grip. Stretching, Elijah reached for the sword before it disappeared into the canyon below. His hand closed around the hilt, but he was too far out . . .

  A firm hand clasped his calf, kept him from tumbling over the side. Blood rushed to Elijah’s head as he hung suspended for what seemed like forever.

  Multiple hands dragged him back up, pulled him onto the grass and dirt. He collapsed onto his back, his lungs heaving. He stared up at the blue sky dotted with puffy clouds. It was so serene, so beautiful. Vaguely, he was aware of the sword resting in his hand. He glanced over at the blade lying against the ground and saw Kersey sprawled nearby. His eyes were closed, and he breathed as heavily as Elijah. Maybe more so, because Elijah had nearly choked the life from him.

  What had he done?

  Elijah closed his eyes briefly and saw red from the sun burning the backs of his lids. Sweat dotted his brow and he wiped it away, letting his hand fall over his forehead. Had he really meant to kill Kersey? He was a soldier, trained to fight and kill. Though he’d never had to, he’d been ready to do his duty. Was avenging his brother worth the weight of killing someone? Kersey had behaved despicably, but it wasn’t Elijah’s responsibility to play judge.

  A hand grazed his jaw. Elijah snapped his eyes open and squinted up into Cate’s face. She was paler than he’d ever seen her; her eyes looked hollow.

  He reached up and touched her cheek. “I’m sorry. I didn’t want him to get away with all he’d done. My brother, Grey, you . . .”

  “Why did you go after the sword?” Her gaze flicked to the blade, her brow creasing. “It doesn’t mean anything compared to you. If I’d lost you . . .”

  She could still say that after what he’d tried to do? “You aren’t angry with me?”

  “No. You were protecting yourself, protecting me. But you were foolish to go after Dyrnwyn. I meant it when I told Kersey that I don’t care about it. Not anymore. I’ve spent my whole life chasing a dream without realizing what it was I really wanted. You’re the dream, Elijah. You’re the treasure.”

  He clasped the back of her head and pulled her down, kissing her fiercely. She cupped his face and kissed him back.

  A moment later, she pulled back and smiled down at him. “I love you.”

  “Not nearly as much as I love you.”

  She sucked in a breath. “You do?”

  “Of course I do. Love has been a fleeting thing in my life. Never have I felt it as strongly and as surely as I do with you. It took me a bit to realize what it was, but I think I’ve loved you since Septon House. At least.” He smiled.

  “I love it when you smile. Promise me you’ll do it more.”

  “It’s hard not to in your presence.”

  A groan interrupted them. Elijah’s smile faded.

  “Kersey.” Elijah sat up and moved to the other man’s side, letting go of the sword.

  Kersey’s eyes were open, their gray pupils reflecting the blue sky. He didn’t look at Elijah or Cate, who had moved to his other side. “Now what?” he croaked.

  Elijah cringed, realizing the man’s voice was affected because of him. “Thank you for keeping me from falling over the cliff.”

  Kersey threw him an uncertain glance. “Maybe I was just trying to save the sword.”

  “I don’t think so. You could’ve made your way down into the canyon and found it.”

  “Maybe.” He shrugged against the ground. “You could’ve done the same after you’d finished me off.”

  He could’ve, but he hadn’t. “I wasn’t thinking about that when I dove for it, actually. And I suspect you did the same with me. I guess when we were pushed to the edge, we both acted nobly.”

  “Nobly. Ha.” There was no humor in the dark chuckle that followed Kersey’s words. He squeezed his eyes shut as he tried to sit up. Cate and Elijah helped him, supporting his back and shoulders. He looked around, his gaze settling on the sword. “What are you going to do with it?”

  Elijah waited for Cate to answer. It was her decision to make.

  “I don’t know. I’d like to give it to Penn for the museum, but it rightfully belongs to the Scudamores.” She looked at Kersey in puzzlement. “Actually, it might rightfully belong to you. Kersey, it burned.”

  His gaze darkened to steel and he shot a glance at the blade. “I know.”

  “This means that you’re worthy, that you must be a descendant of one of the knights.”

  Elijah watched a play of emotions across Kersey’s face—astonishment, frustration, and maybe hope.

  “I don’t even know what that means. Is my father not my father?” Yes, that had been hope in his eyes.

  Elijah heard the wistfulness in his tone and suddenly felt a kinship with this man who wished his parent wasn’t his parent.

  “I don’t know either, but I’ll help you find out,” Cate said.

  Kersey looked at her with disbelief. “You’d help me? After everything I’ve done?”

  She nodded. “I would. You said you weren’t responsible for killing Matthew.”

  Weariness sagged through Kersey’s frame. “That was the Order. The men who were assigned to me—the ones you saw at Kentchurch—they were cutthroats. They were instructed to go to any lengths to obtain the sword. They pretended to be highwaymen and stopped your brother’s coach to rob him of the tapestry.”

  “The tapestry wasn’t even with him,” Elijah said.

  Kersey’s lips formed a grim line. “I know. They tried a similar trick with you and Cate after they knew you’d found the tapestry. Since Cate’s vehicle was in front, they held it up as a means to lure you away from the map, which we knew was in your coach. However, they didn’t count on you being such a dangerous adversary.”

  Discussing this was sparking Elijah’s ire again. “How could you condone them threatening Cate?”

  Kersey’s gaze turned dark and fierce. “Every step of the way, I ordered them to keep her safe. I vowed to kill anyone who harmed her.”

  Kersey’s vehement protection of her mollified Elijah’s anger. Somewhat.

  “What about Grey? Were you there?” Cate sounded as though she was holding her breath.

  “I was in Harlech, but not at the castle. I never would’ve allowed them to shoot anyone.” He wiped his hand over his face. “They were furious that I wouldn’t let them kill you at Kentchurch. They were ready to mutiny. It’s why I snuck away from them this morning.”

  “That’s why you’re alone?” Cate asked. “Septon said you’d be traveling alone because Foliot prefers privacy—he wouldn’t have wanted you to have company.”

  “They were his hirelings, so he wouldn’t have minded.” Kersey stared at her, his lip curling. “What does Septon know of any of this?”

  “He and my father were supposed to accompany Elijah to find you and recover the sword.” Cate glanced at Elijah. “But we decided to come alone.”

  “They’ll follow you though, won’t they?”

  “Probably.”

  Kersey tried to stand, but it took him a second to find his feet. Elijah leapt up and helped him. “I need to go,” Kersey said. He looked to Elijah. “If you’ll let me.”

  Cate tou
ched his forearm. “Why?”

  “I can’t see Septon.” He looked around for his horse, saw it grazing a few dozen yards away.

  “Wait,” Cate said, “I still have more questions. Why did you join the Order? It only admits scholars and descendants of the knights. You didn’t even realize you were a descendant until today.”

  He arched a dark brow at her, looking more like the rake he was purported to be. “Are you saying I’m not a scholar?” He relaxed his features. “Of course I’m not. I wonder if Foliot somehow knew I was a descendant—he recruited me quite specifically.” He shook his head. “I can’t ask now, and anyway, my membership isn’t exactly with the Order.”

  “It’s with the Camelot group,” Cate said.

  Surprise flickered in Kersey’s gaze. “You know of it?”

  “Septon told us. Kersey, why not stay with us?” Cate asked. “We’ll explain to my father and Septon.”

  “No, I don’t want anything to do with Septon. I thought I wanted revenge . . .” He shook his head again. “Never mind.” He gestured toward the sword lying in the grass. “Take it, Cate. Do what you think is best.”

  He strode toward his horse. Elijah sent Cate a supportive glance and then hurried to catch Kersey. “I know what it’s like to be driven by resentment and revenge. I’ve taken care of the revenge part, but the resentment will always be with me. It’s up to you to decide how much power you give it over your life.”

  Kersey turned with a grunt.

  “You’re going to try to discover your heritage now?” Elijah asked.

  He looked at Elijah over his shoulder. “It’s all I have left.”

  Amazed at the compassion he could manage to feel for this man, Elijah clapped him on the arm. “You might be surprised to find what you have—what you’re capable of.”

  Kersey nodded toward Cate. “Take care of her. She’ll drive you to drink, but I daresay she’ll be worth it.”

  Elijah smiled. “I know she is.”

  Kersey lifted his hand and waved at Cate, then mounted his horse and rode away.

  Elijah watched him disappear over a hill and turned back to Cate, who was already striding toward him.