Aggie flipped onto her back, scanning the thick of trees across the stream. By the quick succession of the pistol shots, there was either one assailant with several guns, or more than one person shooting at her. Not seeing a glimpse of a pistol in the trees opposite her, she started to flip as two more shots sent tufts of moss to the sky. Her shoulder twinged as she fell hard on it, then she scurried up the bank.
Out of nowhere, steel arms clasped around her waist, lifting her straight up. Aggie twisted as violently as she could, arms swinging out at the person who grabbed her. She felt her fist slam into a face, but he didn’t drop her. Petrified, she squirmed, trying to escape the tight arms that were squeezing the breath out of her.
“Aggie, enough.” Devin’s harsh whisper reached her ears as he moved them into the relative safety of the woods, trees blocking them from the opposing bank. Aggie calmed.
“Devin, let me down. I can walk on my own.”
“You have no shoes on.” He kept his pace, weaving through the trees back to the carriage. From her hanging position, Aggie could see Devin’s outriders, blades and guns in hands, splashing across the stream.
Devin walked past the carriage to two of the outriders’ horses. “We can cut the remaining trip in more than half by horseback, but no sidesaddle. Are you fine with that?” He set her down on the grassy side of the road, carriage between her and the woods.
“I will be.” Aggie numbly nodded as Devin raised the stirrups on one of the saddles.
“Good.”
Three shots came from the woods and Aggie jumped. Back to her in an instant, Devin plucked her from the grass and set her on the smaller of the two black horses, snugging her bare feet into the stirrups. He vaulted onto his horse and swung his head around.
“It is time for us to take leave. Are you all right? Ready?”
Aggie nodded, silenced by his complete, calm control of the situation and her own lack of awareness next to the stream.
What had she been thinking? Lying on the bank—a huge target—and not paying any attention to her surroundings or possible threats. She had abandoned all of her own defenses, and had put not only herself in danger, but Devin as well. He was extremely adept at showing up anytime she was in mortal danger, and that put him at risk.
Aggie swallowed hard against the thought of Devin getting hurt, or worse, and gripped the reins, putting her head down as he took off at a manic pace. Her horse followed his without question, so Aggie only had to concentrate on holding on.
No words were spoken, more because of the hard riding than anything else. After a half hour of flesh-bruising riding, Devin slowed the horses, pulling his steed in line next to Aggie’s.
“We are now only about twenty minutes away,” he said, looking over at her. Devin stared at her hard, brow wrinkled. “Aggie, are you sure you are all right?”
Aggie nodded, hoping she was hiding the fact that she knew she wasn’t fine. Her left arm had been of no use to her during the brutal ride thus far. She couldn’t feel anything on her arm or hand.
But she also knew they needed to get to the safety of Stonewell before she could do anything about the numbness. She guessed a bullet had grazed her arm, but couldn’t be sure, and didn’t want to investigate the problem while Devin was riding next to her. She had to wait until Stonewell.
“Down the road another couple of minutes is the lane for Stonewell, and then it is another ten minutes up the drive to the main building,” Devin said, and stepped his horse in front of Aggie’s once more. His concentration was on scanning the road, so Aggie took the moment to check her shoulder under her hair that had come loose.
No blood was on the outside of her jacket, but there seemed to be a small tear. She gave slack to the reins in her right hand and slipped her fingers under her jacket, only to feel warm, sticky liquid, and then the hole it was coming from.
She pulled her hand from her jacket and looked down at it in horror. It was soaked in blood. She looked up at Devin’s back, a couple of paces in front of her. Right beyond him, huge brick columns framed a wide black iron gate.
“Devin, we’re safe now, right?”
“Yes.” He looked over her his shoulder at her. Shock flooded his face. “Hell, Aggs.”
A whisper was all she could afford.
“Catch me.”
{ Chapter 13 }
Devin was to her before her hand dropped the reins. He pulled her onto his horse and ran his hands over her passed-out body, desperate to find the source of the blood that covered her hand.
Ripping back her jacket, terror seized him when he saw her blood-soaked shoulder and the bullet hole through her white shirt. Swearing, Devin set his horse into full gallop and got to the main house in minutes, praying that Aggie had passed out enough that the jolting wasn’t too agonizing.
Aggie in his arms, he dismounted and burst through the front door.
“Thompson. Where the hell are you? Thompson.”
Devin’s steward appeared at the back of the deep entry, rushing forward. “Your grace—my God.”
Devin almost ran Thompson over at the base of the sweeping stairs. “Get Christianson.”
“Immediately, your grace.” Thompson turned and retreated to the back of the house.
“And wet cloths,” Devin yelled as he tore up the stairs three at a time.
Setting her gently on his bed, Devin pulled the knife secured at his waist and cut through her jacket, shirt, and chemise, ripping it away from the wound. Her shoulder bare, he wiped the mess of blood and found the bullet had gone into her shoulder, just above her heart. He lifted her, scanning the back of her shoulder. The bullet had not passed through.
“Damn.” He swallowed hard at the horrible pain Aggie was about to have to go through.
“Devin.” Aggie’s eyes cracked open with her whisper. “I am sorry I got you involved. I—”
“Hush. Save your strength.” Devin considered for a moment not telling her what was going to happen. But as much as he knew of her, she would hate not knowing the full truth even more.
“Aggs…” He gently brushed back the hair on her forehead. “The bullet didn’t go cleanly through your shoulder. The doctor is going to have to dig it out.”
“Yes.” She closed her eyes.
Devin hedged, not sure she fully understood what this would mean. “Aggs, this is going to be extremely painful.”
She didn’t open her eyes, but did drag in a deep breath. “Stay? Please?”
Devin had to lean in to hear the words.
His hand went to her cheek. “I will be by your side throughout.”
Aggie nodded, then slipped into unconsciousness once more. Thompson delivered the wet cloths, and Devin cleared as much blood as he could.
Ten silent minutes passed. Ten agonizing minutes that Devin could look nowhere but at the rise and fall of Aggie’s chest, his breath held at each slice of time there was no movement.
Doctor Christianson entered the room, winded, and set his bag down. “What happened?”
“A bullet is in her shoulder.” Devin moved the cloth soaking up the blood from the hole.
“Is she aware of the upcoming pain?” Christianson asked.
“Yes, but I am praying she will remain unconscious, or at least pass out quickly once you start.”
“I can give her laudanum.”
Devin looked sharply at the doctor. “You will do no such thing.”
“It will help, your grace.”
“You will do no such thing.” Devin’s voice left no room to argue.
“But—”
“Leave it, Christianson.”
A hand gripped his wrist. Devin looked down at Aggie, swearing in his mind that she was awake.
“No. Devin, please. Give it to me.”
“You can make it through this without, Aggie. You can.”
“No.” She started to pull herself up.
“You need to hold her down,” Christianson said.
Aggie’s eyes swung to the do
ctor. Scalpel, tweezers and probe in his hands, he moved to the bed.
Desperate eyes locked onto Devin. “No. Devin. Please don’t do this to me.” She grabbed his shirt with her good hand, pulling, pleading. “You don’t know. Oh my God. You don’t know. Please don’t let him.”
Tears flooded her face.
Tapping all his will, Devin tore her wrist away from his chest and pushed her down onto the bed, steel in his words. “You can do this, Aggie. Don’t look at him. Don’t look at his hands. Look at me.”
“My grace, we need to stop the bleeding.”
Devin moved onto the bed, throwing his leg over Aggie’s and clamping his arm across her shaking chest. It didn’t stop her begging.
“Devin, please no, not this, anything—”
The doctor probed the bullet hole and Aggie thrashed, screaming.
“Hold her still.”
Devin moved, settling the length of his weight onto Aggie with his right hand pinning her left arm to the bed. He gripped her chin with his other hand, forcing her face to his, instead of at the scalpel going into her flesh.
It threw Aggie into jerking, tortured screams. Her body molded under his, Devin felt every anguished convulsion as the doctor probed deeper into the wound.
“Move faster, Christianson.”
“Just keep her still.” The doctor didn’t look up.
The screaming stopped for a breath. Then, broken, Aggie managed to form pleading, agonized words.
“Make it stop. Please, Devin. Stop. Why? Why are you doing this to me? Please—oh, God no—why? Please, please make it stop. Please.”
Devin had held down writhing soldiers at Waterloo as their legs were sawed off. But that was nothing. Nothing compared to Aggie’s convulsions. It ripped him to shreds, like nothing ever had, Aggie pleading for him to stop the pain. He was helpless. All he could do was hold her. He prayed she would pass out, yet she held onto consciousness, wrenching his soul with every word, every tremor of her body.
“Soon, Aggs, soon,” he said into her ear as he stroked the hair from her forehead. “I swear it will be over real soon.”
“Got it.” Christianson stood and dropped the tweezers and bullet onto the table next to the bed. “I just need to sew the wound, and it will be all over, dear child.”
“Devin.” Aggie thrashed. “Devin, where are you?”
“Right here, Aggs, right here.” Devin knew she was out of her mind then and was grateful for it. She still twitched under his crushing weight as the needle went through her skin, but was mostly still.
“That is all. I am done.” Christianson wiped the remaining blood from the stitches and put a clean cloth over the wound. “Now just pray the wound does not get infected.”
Devin nodded at the doctor, then turned back to Aggie’s ear. “It is all over, Aggs, rest now.”
An incompressible word, low and guttural, escaped Aggie’s throat. Then she passed out.
Devin eased himself off her body and stood up next to the bed.
Doctor Christianson had moved to the basin in the room, scrubbing blood from his hands. He shot Devin a look. “Don’t you ever dare try to make me do something like that again. That woman was in unnecessary pain, Dunway. Pain by your choice, not hers, not mine. Yours. Whoever she is, she is not your mother. Unnecessary.” Droplets splattered.
Devin didn’t look up from Aggie’s still form. “She is my wife and her pain is not your concern, Christianson. And you would do well to not mention my mother.”
Drying his hands, the doctor walked over and stood next to Devin. He lifted the cloth over the wound. The blood looked to be slowing. He set it back in place.
“I repeat, Dunway, if you ever attempt to make me do something like that again, you can find yourself a new doctor.” Christianson’s boots thudded hard on the wood floors as he left, but he closed the door gently.
~~~
Aggie’s eyes flew open, and the pain that was ravaging her arm instantly disappeared, replaced by an aching throb in her shoulder.
She closed her eyes, trying to gain lucidity. The pain in her left arm wasn’t real. The pain in her left shoulder was. She wondered if she had been screaming, the nightmare more vivid than ever after the doctor’s scalpel digging into her.
Deep breaths, and she opened her eyes again. Dark, and she was alone. She could hear heavy rain falling. A lamp on a far bureau held just enough light in its wick that she could make out shapes in the room. The room was enormous, as was the bed. This had to be Devin’s room. But where was Devin?
Exhausted just by looking around, Aggie wanted nothing more than to close her eyes again and let sleep overtake her. Nothing more, except to not get lost in the nightmares again.
Devin. He could help.
She took a deep breath and sat up, working hard not to move the left side of her body. Stiffly, she slid her legs off the bed and stood. She had been stripped down; someone had put a clean chemise on her, and a band of cloth was wrapped over her shoulder and the wound. She looked around but didn’t see a robe in the low light. Not that she would be able to get it on. So she shuffled over to the lamp, grabbed it, and found the door.
Stepping out along the hallway, she peeked into several rooms as she walked, having to set the lamp on the floor each time she wanted to open a door. After three empty rooms, she gave up on finding Devin on this floor. At the top of the wide stairs, she set the lamp on the floor again, turned up the wick, and took a deep breath. She needed her good hand on the railing if she wasn’t going to collapse. The light at the top of the dark stairs would have to be enough.
After an agonizing descent, each step sending waves of pain from the tip of her shoulder into her chest, she rested, leaning against the newel post at the bottom of the stairs. That was when she saw the smallest sliver of light coming from below a door off to her left.
Fighting the dizziness that had set in, she made it to the door and slid the panel open. One lantern on a near wall produced the slightest bit of light, showing the room to be the library. Aggie scanned the room, at first thinking it empty; then she saw the top of a head above a fat chair facing a tall window. Heavy rain beat the glass, rhythmic and chaotic at the same time.
Aggie walked to the chair.
Short glass in hand, empty decanter on the floor, Devin sat, face to the window. Aggie stepped closer, trying to see in the low light if he was sleeping.
“You should be in bed.” His eyes stayed down.
Aggie jumped at the sound. She took another step, stopping in front of him. She waited for the sway in her head to stop before she spoke. “I wanted to find you.”
“You should not have found me.”
“Oh.” Aggie wasn’t sure what to do with that statement.
He looked up at her. “Aggie, I was wrong. I dragged you into marriage and I should not have.” His voice was low, blunt. “Us staying together will only cause you more pain. Pain I will not see you in. We will dissolve the marriage. I will arrange it so there is not the slightest mar on your reputation. You can go on to live your own life. I will hire an impenetrable barrier of guards to get you back to London, and they will surround you until the threat is past.”
“What? No.” His words a gut punch, she leaned back against the window for support, and instantly regretted it when the cold hit her back. “Dissolve the—I don’t understand. I don’t want guards. I want to stay with you.”
“I cannot protect you, Aggie. Arrogance. Too much arrogance. I thought I could.”
“You can. You have done nothing but protect me.”
“I cannot. I will fail you. You will die. You need to go.”
“What? No. I am fine. I will be fine. No.” Aggie shook her head against the confusion muddling her brain. How could he really mean this?
“Yes. When you have healed enough to travel, you will go back to London.”
“Devin, I don’t know what you are talking about. I am safe. I need to stay.” Heaven help her, she was too tired to let pride stop h
er words. “Please, just let me stay with you, Devin. I want you. I want to be here. I will be safe.”
He hadn’t moved a muscle. Done nothing but tilt his head to look at her. His eyes went down, avoiding her completely.
“Leave. Go back to bed, Aggie.”
Aggie recognized them as final words, and her breath caught in her chest. Stomach twisting, her pride manifested, and she pushed off from the window with her right hand.
Dizziness hit immediately, but Aggie moved her feet, fighting through it. She walked to the entrance, surprising herself by managing to stay upright.
She paused at the door, fingers going to the dark wood of the frame for support. She leaned her forehead on the wood, closing her eyes to stop the spinning. A few breaths to regain her balance, and then without control, words came from her mouth.
“I just don’t understand. I was stupid being by the woods. I should not have let my guard down. I am sorry. I really just came down here to ask…” She took a deep breath to both stay upright and to stop the sudden swell of tears that threatened. “To ask you to sleep with me. I woke up screaming just now. But last night, when you were with me, I slept. Real sleep. Sleep that didn’t turn me inside out. And I am so tired. You may not think you can protect me, Devin, but my dreams know different.”
She pushed her head off the wood, hand slipping to her side. “That was all. I am sorry to bother you.”
There was no response. Head down, Aggie stepped into the hallway, concentrating on moving one foot in front of the other. Was Devin really done with her? Just like that? He got what he wanted, and now he was done?
She proved to be too much trouble. Wasn’t worth the effort. That he had even helped her to begin with was a miracle. Why should she have expected the miracle to continue?
Stopping at the bottom of the stairs, she heaved a breath, trying to calm herself, trying to calm the pain shooting through her shoulder with each step she took.
Damn. Stupid. She had let it all go. Her responsibility. Her courage. She let it go. And that was the worst mistake. She was always the best one to protect herself, and then she let him. She got weak. Started to depend on him. And in the process, she let the fire that was keeping her alive, wane.
Hold Your Breath 01 - Stone Devil Duke Page 16
