The Viscount's Vendetta (Siren Publishing Everlasting Classic)
Page 1
The Viscount’s Vendetta
Damon Royston saw a lady berating a chimney worker, and Rook, his friend, tells him she is Caroline, Lord Halford’s only child. Damon is stunned. She is the daughter of his sworn enemy, the man he holds responsible for his father’s suicide and the one he has planned to ruin.
Sparks fly when they meet, but Caroline fights her attraction to him. Damon bargains with Lord Halford. If Caroline marries him, he might not ruin him financially. Her father refuses, but Caroline discovers her father’s problems and agrees to marry Damon. They go to live at his estate, in his new house, as Damon refuses to live in the ancestral home where his father died. Caroline meets the staff and instantly dislikes Damon’s cousin, Charles, the estate manager.
When Damon travels to London, Caroline visits the ancestral home. On one of her visits, she finds a diary Damon’s father wrote, and after reading it she suspects his father didn’t kill himself. Someone else was involved.
Genre: Historical, Regency
Length: 93,409 words
THE VISCOUNT’S VENDETTA
Paige Cameron
EVERLASTING CLASSIC
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
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A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK
IMPRINT: Everlasting Classic
THE VISCOUNT’S VENDETTA
Copyright © 2014 by Paige Cameron
E-book ISBN: 978-1-62741-640-5
First E-book Publication: April 2014
Cover design by Les Byerley
All art and logo copyright © 2014 by Siren Publishing, Inc.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.
All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.
PUBLISHER
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
Letter to Readers
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DEDICATION
This is dedicated to my son, Rob, who always takes time to help me when I’m having difficulties with my computer. I appreciate your patience. You are a good son. Love, Mom.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Epilogue
About the Author
THE VISCOUNT’S VENDETTA
PAIGE CAMERON
Copyright © 2014
Chapter One
As Caroline Winters stepped out of the bonnet shop, the altercation across the street caught her attention. A tall, brawny man gripped a chimney boy’s thin arm. His harsh voice rose above the noise of the passing traffic and hawkers selling their wares on the street corner.
Sara, Caroline’s friend, reached out to her. “Don’t, Caroline. The carriage is this way.” She motioned toward their left.
Joan, her other closest friend, moved to her side. But Caroline couldn’t look away from the fracas occurring in front of her. She stepped onto Bond Street, ignoring a wagon that almost hit her and the ugly words the driver shouted. She dodged carriages and other wagons to hurry across. Dust swirled around, coating her hair and clothes. She blinked rapidly to clear her vision from particles of dirt blowing in her eyes.
All she saw was a child’s face darkened with soot. Tears left white lines down his gaunt cheeks. When she stepped onto the walkway, she said, “Release him!”
Is the man going to ignore me? Then, he turned.
His black eyes glared at her as he moved forward dragging the boy along. His put his face close to hers and sneered. “Ah, if it ain’t the same lady back again. I suppose you want this one, too.” He nodded at the child.
His bad breath made Caroline step back. He laughed and deliberately closed the space between them.
“If I keep givin’ you my chimney boys, I won’t have any to do the job. This is the fifth one you’ve tried to take from me.”
She tipped her head and stared at him. “Hardly take from you,” Caroline answered in her most refined tone. “You have been well paid.”
Uneasiness crept over her as she noted a crowd began to form. With a quick glance, she realized some of the people watching were members of society. Her parents would be appalled if they heard of her behavior.
The man yelled. She forgot the crowd and turned back just as the child yanked his arm free. He ran to Caroline, grabbing her hand tightly.
She leaned down to comfort him. A low murmur came from the assembled group.
“Let the lady take him home. He won’t be much good to you. He can’t last long in those chimneys as small as he is,” a workman shouted.
“Stay out of my business!” The chimney boy’s boss grabbed the child’s arm and pulled him to his side.
“You’ll need more money this time, my lady.” His face had reddened with anger. He pulled the boy’s arm up and the youngster cried out. The man grinned sardonically at her.
Inside Caroline something snapped. She struck the man with her parasol. She and the crowd gasped as the angry sweeper turned on her.
Suddenly, a tall, well-dressed man stepped between Caroline and the burly, crude man moving to attack her.
The gentleman held up his hand. “Stop right where you are.”
“Move out of my way. This is my business,” the sweeper snarled.
“I’m making it mine,” her rescuer said without raising his voice. “How dare you accost this lady?”
Caroline couldn’t move. The people and activity around her clouded. She mustn’t faint. She never fainted. After taking several deep breaths, the unreal sensation faded. The chimney boy’s boss had moved back from the stranger, although he still glared around him at Caroline.
Her rescuer turned partway and caught Caroline frowning at the man. “You need to join the ladies across the street.” He nodded toward Sara and Joan. “I’m sure they must be your friends. They look quite alarmed.”
He was right. Sara and Joan motioned frantically at her to return. She looked at the gentleman and found herself caught in his dark gaze.
Straightening to her full height of five feet three inches, she shook her head no. “I will pay the man first and take the boy with me before I leave.” She saw displeasure flash in the stranger’s blue eyes. His lips tightened.
“I will deal with the boy and this man.” He spoke in a firm tone and nodded toward where the man stood holding tightly onto the child’s forearm. Caroline silently challenged her rescuer. The air sizzled around them during their silent battle of wills.
Surprised, she realized he wasn’t going to relent and change his mind. The unrest of the crowd and din of noise finally reached her consciousness. Her face flushed with heat. Reluctantly, she turned and walked to the edge of the street. Her friends looked across at her with anxious expressions on their faces. Her maid, Mary, waved.
The small boy, covered in soot, pulled himself loose again and threw himself against her, leaving smudges of black against her cream-colored pelisse. Caroline pulled him protectively against her body.
Her rescuer had put money into the sweeper’s hand. The gentleman frowned at her and the boy. He walked to them and put his hand on the child’s shoulder.
“Come with me,” he commanded. He turned his attention to Caroline and nodded toward the crowd. “You have exposed yourself to enough notoriety. Join your friends, now.” He spoke in a low voice, but it was nonetheless commanding.
“You have no right to tell me what to do.” She directed her frustration and anger toward him, even though she knew she was being ungrateful and unreasonable.
“A well-mannered lady would say thank you.” His eyes glinted with amusement.
Gritting her teeth, she forced a smile and curtsied. “Thank you.” She managed to get the words out. He chuckled.
Before she crossed the street, she glanced at the child. “You will treat him well?”
“Most definitely.”
She nodded and hurried across to join her friends. Joan and Sara urged her to move along. Mary followed. Caroline couldn’t resist taking a quick look back. The gentleman had knelt in front of the boy and wiped soot from the tiny face. The hateful sweeper had gone back to his work, and the crowd began to disperse.
Joan pulled on her hand. “Keep walking. I saw Lady Monroe at the edge of the crowd. I’m sure she recognized you. She’ll enjoy reporting to your mother.”
“Oh dear, she is such a gossip,” Caroline said. She hoped her bonnet had hid her face enough that most of the people gathered around hadn’t recognized her. If only Lady Monroe would not tell her mother, but that was highly unlikely.
Caroline’s parents, especially her mother, were going to be furious when they heard she had been the center of attention again. “There is no hope for it. Mother will learn of my actions, and I will receive another lecture.”
Thoughts of her mother’s anger and the resulting consequences sent a shiver of fear through Caroline. Another tremor, this one of a different sort altogether, passed through her as she considered her rescuer. He had radiated strength and self-assurance. She didn’t like the fact he’d had his way. She’d planned to bring the boy home and see he was taken care of, fed, cleaned, and given a job he could handle. What were the stranger’s plans for the child?
At her carriage she quickly said her good-byes. “I must be going. Hopefully, I can get home and freshen up before Mother sees me.” She brushed at her pelisse, but the dirt wouldn’t come off. “I’m afraid she will have a fainting spell if she sees me in such a disheveled state.”
She and Mary climbed inside and sat down. A sigh of relief ran through her when the door snapped closed behind them.
Caroline pulled off her stained gloves. It was a never-ending battle trying to rescue the helpless and abused children and women of the streets. For every child or adult she’d freed, two more poor souls filled the empty spots. Engrossed in her thoughts, she barely noticed the bumpy streets or the outside noise.
It wasn’t as though she’d planned to bring home another mistreated child when she started out today. Nevertheless, she hadn’t been able to walk away when she saw the large man beating the boy to get him back up the chimney. Caroline bit her lip and rubbed her hand across her forehead. Some days all her good deeds seemed for naught.
Her face went hot again when she thought about her rescuer. She shouldn’t have returned his gaze so pointedly and spoken back to him. If her mother heard about the incident, she’d lock her up and marry her to the first available suitor.
Caroline glanced across the carriage at her maid. “You think I should have walked on.”
“I would never criticize you, my lady, especially since you also rescued me. Although, I do worry about you. Your mother’s reactions to your previous good deeds have been unfavorable.”
“You’re right, Mary. I must curtail my activities, for now.” Caroline nodded. “I see your smile. I will do much better. Watch me.”
The busy streets gave way to less crowded ones as they turned a corner. The stately houses and trees on Park Lane came into view as she returned to her secure world. Why couldn’t she pass by and turn her face away from the injustices and cruelty that were a common occurrence in London? Other people did.
If only her nanny, Mrs. Fowler, had not had such a strong influence on her. She’d been the one to point out the inequities of the world.
“Whatever we do in our life can cause changes. So be sure, Lady Caroline, to do good deeds, then you’ll have a positive effect. No one knows how even the smallest incident may touch others in ways unknown to us.”
At the impressionable age of eight, Caroline took her nanny’s words to heart and never forgot them. Still, she doubted the little she’d been able to do for the poor and abused would have any lasting impact.
* * * *
Damon Royston watched the petite woman and her friends disappear around a corner. He and his friend had seen the crowd forming, and, being curious, they’d stopped.
Having been away from London for many years sailing the seas, he found the bustling city fascinating. He certainly hadn’t expected to find a lady in an altercation with a dirty chimney worker. The social mores couldn’t have changed that much in the past twelve years.
He’d had to hold back a chuckle when she’d hit the man with her parasol. She reminded him of Hannah’s terrier. The little dog snipped and barked at anyone, except his sister, no matter their size. This lady aroused his interest.
Damon glanced down and smiled at the young boy still standing close to his side. “Go with my driver.” Damon pointed to his man waiting by the carriage. “Ralph, I’ll be a minute.”
Then he walked across to where he’d left his best friend, Rook. Most of the crowd had moved on. Rook wore a huge grin.
“Always the hero to the ladies,” Rook said.
“I couldn’t stand by and let the man beat her. I’ve never seen such a determined young lady.
Who is she?”
“The only child of the Earl of Halsford. Her name is Caroline.
His stomach clenched at Rook’s first words. He barely heard the rest. It was as though someone had punched him in the gut.
“She ignores all of us mere mortals. She’s too busy doing her good deeds.” Rook, known to be a rake and very popular with the ladies, spoke with distain about this particular debutante. “We lived close by as children. She’s changed. We call her Lady Icicle, beautiful but also reserved and haughty.”
Damon’s mystery lady was the daughter of his sworn enemy.
* * * *
The carriage stopped at the curb. Caroline wiped her face with her handkerchief and tried fruitlessly to brush the dust and dirt from her clothes. Her driver assisted her down from the carriage. With Mary at her side, Caroline cracked the front door open. When she saw the butler step forward, she put her finger across her lips. Then she tiptoed along the corridor toward the stairs. She wanted to avoid a confrontation. At least, until she was presentable. Caroline placed her foot on the bottom step to the stairs.
“Caroline.” Lady Halsford’s cool tone caught her daughter’s attention. She looked around. Lady Monroe stood behind Mama. Caroline’s heart sank and her cheeks flushed hot with anger and embarrassment.
“I must go,” Lady Monroe said. A wicked smile wreathed her face. She nodded to Caroline and bustled out the door.
Lady Halsford frowned at her daughter. She motioned with her hand. “Come into your father’s study. We wish to speak with you.” Her face showed her displeasure. “I have heard you’ve been out doing your good deeds again,” her mother remarked as they entered the study together.