He smirked at her. “You are not pretty enough to be on the stage.”
“You promised,” Dinah whined.
“I make many promises my dear, some I keep, others that are not important, I do not.”
Her face reddened. “You used me!”
A lewd grin spread across his face. “I will admit you gave good sport in bed, but I am not interested in a long term relationship. After all, if my plan works I shall be the new tsar.”
Dinah shrieked and threw herself at him. “You bastard,” she howled, trying to claw his face. He captured both of her hands in his and laughed as he overpowered her. “You better be on that ship come morning or the tsar will find you and you’ll hang from the gallows.” As the coach slowed he opened the door and shoved the maid out. With a high pitched shriek she tumbled to the ground. Sergi slammed the door shut and banged on the roof of the coach to signal to the coachman to go on. Dinah’s angry obscenities echoed behind.
Sergi poked her with the toe of his boot. “It is just you and me now, Princess.”
Rose squeezed her eyes shut terror constricting her chest until she feared she was going to expire from lack of air. What does Sergi want with me? Is he going to rape me? Will Dimitry know I have been taken against my will, or would he think I ran away to help Sergi? Tears rolled down her cheeks and pooled in the dirt on the floor under her. I just want to go home. She winced as the carriage hit a bump and her head bounced against the floor. Her temples began to throb. Slowly memories filtered into her consciousness through the haze of pain. She shuddered as she recalled the events of her capture in England and her previous escape from Sergi.
The coach picked up speed and she bumped and banged against the floor unable to shield herself from the rough road beneath. Will I ever see my family or England again? The coach bounced on through the night. Rose’s arms and legs began to cramp from being unable to move or stretch in the close confines of the coach. She clenched her teeth, flexing her fingers against the pins and needles sensation. When she tried to sit up in effort to relive her discomfort Sergi gave her a poke in the ribs with his boot. Resigned to her torture she dozed off and on. Just when she thought she could not take it any longer, the coach slowed and came to a stop.
Sergi flung open the door and jumped to the ground. Reaching into the coach he grasped her by the arms and dragged her to the door. It was still dark she realized before he hoisted her up and tossed her in an unceremonious manner over his shoulder. He stalked down a trail in the woods with the coach lantern swinging from his belt. She wheezed as her stomach bounced against his shoulder with each step. The path became narrower the farther he walked until it was little more than a deer trail through the brush. Rose winced as branches slapped her face and snagged her hair.
Sergi came to an abrupt stop. He dumped her on her feet and pulled a knife from his pocket. A cold sweat broke out on her brow. Is he going to kill me? Her stomach recoiled at the thought until he reached down and sliced the rope binding her ankles. She sagged against him as her numb legs tingled and threatened to give way under her. With sneer Sergi spun her around and shoved her into the mouth of a low cave.
When she stumbled he yanked her up and pushed her against the cave wall. Reaching down he grasped the lantern at his waist, tugged it free and motioned for her to walk ahead of him. Her legs complained but she forced them to shuffle forward. The meager light of the lantern bobbed along the cave walls as they walked lending eerie shadows to the slick surface. Rose slipped on the loose gravel as they made their way down an incline further into the dark recesses. A squeaking above caught her attention. She looked up and shuddered at the sight of hundreds of little black creatures hanging from the roof of the cave. When Sergi swung the lantern some of the creatures flapped and she cringed as their wings brushed her head.
“You will have lots of company during your stay, Princess.” Sergi laughed.
Rose kept walking until he yanked her back against him. She was about to protest his callous treatment until she looked down into a deep, dark cavity in the cave floor at her feet. Sergi kicked a rope tied around a large rock and it tumbled into the hole. After hooking the lantern back onto his belt he tossed her over his shoulder again. Terrified, she tried to kick her way free as he grasped the rope and began to lower them into the abyss. He grunted and growled something in Russian, but kept sliding until his feet finally touched the bottom. He stepped from the side of the vertical incline and set her on her feet. She glared at him as he yanked the gag from her mouth.
“Welcome to your new home, Princess.” He unhooked the lantern and held it up.
Rose judged the hole to be about ten feet deep, round and four feet across. A straw pallet with a colorful wool blanket lay on the floor in the center. Sergi shoved her onto the blanket and held his water skin to her lips. Rose gulped the water, afraid it would be the last drink for a while. When she had enough she turned her head away. He re-tied the top of the skin and hooked it, along with the lantern to his belt.
“I will be back tomorrow, Princess, have a nice night.” He turned and grasped the rope.
Nothing but sheer panic registered to her. “Wait! You cannot leave me here alone.”
Sergi grinned at her over his shoulder. “You are not alone, the bats and rats will keep you company.”
Rose shivered at the thought and scrambled to her feet. “Please Sergi. Do not leave me here.”
Sergi climbed up the rope. When he got to the top he crawled over the edge of the hole and hauled the rope up after him.
“Sergi, please,” Rose pleaded.
“There is nothing to be afraid of Princess. I have not seen a tiger around these parts in months.”
With an evil chortle he disappeared from sight.
“Sergi! Sergi!” The light from his lantern and the crunch of his boots on the gravel faded away leaving her in inky black silence. “Sergi! Sergi! Please, come back.”
She called until her voice became hoarse and then groped her way back to the straw pallet in the dark. She huddled there not knowing what else to do. Somewhere above water dripped the sound echoing off the walls around her. The steady percussion made her eyelids grow heavier and heavier, until she finally lay down. Hands still bound she fumbled for the blanket and rolled up in it the best she could, teeth chattering as she tried to shift into a more comfortable position. Something ran across her feet and scurried across the floor of the cave. She screamed and scrambled to her feet. The bats above took flight disturbed by her cry. Her only defense was to crouch on the floor as they flapped about. After a few minutes they settled back on the cave ceiling. She listened. Except for the steady drip of water and the occasional squeak from a bat or a rat, all was silent again. When the beating of her heart returned to normal she walked along the perimeter of the pit in effort to keep warm. A scuffling from above made her freeze. The sound continued getting louder as it got closer.
Is Sergi coming back already? “Sergi?” When he didn't answer she tried again, “Sergi is that you?” The noise continued. Terror gnawed her insides. What if the noises are caused by a Siberian tiger? Sergi said one had been seen in the area before… Somewhere outside the cave an animal howled and she fought to control her fear before it overrode all reason.
“Go away,” she yelled, trying to frighten anything that might be in the cave away. The remaining bats screeched and took to the air and she dropped to cower on the floor. After a few minutes the bats flew from the cave or settled back on the ceiling.
Rose felt her way back to the straw pallet, knelt down and tried to work her hands free from their bonds, but her fingers were too stiff and cold. The rope scraped against the tender skin of her wrists, but didn't loosen enough to slip her fingers free. Frustration built in her and she sobbed in her distress. A few moments of weakness were all she allowed herself before she took a deep breath and took control of her emotions. Her teeth still chattering, she felt for the blanket and again rolled up in it. She lay there in the dark shivering
until something crawled across her face. Biting back a scream she sat up and brushed the offending creature off. I want out of here! I have to get out. How? How? Get a hold of yourself! I need to take my mind off the creepy crawly things…
Rocking back and forth she began to sing to take her mind off all the frightening things she imagined in the cave. By the time she sang all the church hymns she knew, her voice was no more than a croak, but she was calmer. She licked her cracked lips, desperately wishing for a drink of water. How long have I been here, a few hours or a whole night? It could be morning, but I do not see any light. Would the sunlight reach this far back in the cave?
Her mind wandered to Dimitry. Does he know I am gone? Is he looking for me? Does he know Sergi took me, or does he think I ran away? It seemed hopeless. Dimitry wouldn't find her. If something happened to Sergi, no one would know what happened to her. It was possible she would never see her brother, grandmother, Victor or Dimitry ever again. I do not want to die here all alone in the dark.
Chapter Seventeen
Dimitry finished his report and leaned back in his chair, putting his feet up on the desk. It was just past midnight and time he retired for the night. He had an early morning meeting with the tsar to inform him of any new developments in the hunt for Sergi and the rebel Cossacks. Maybe he should take Rose with him to meet the tsar. His heart told him she was telling the truth, and she really had been kidnapped from her home in England. Unfortunately, he could not release her without the tsar’s permission. Until a message was received from England, she would have to stay with him.
His mind wandered back to the kisses he shared with her. The memories haunted him in his dreams. He had never wanted to kiss a woman as badly as he wanted to kiss Rose. One kiss was not enough, he needed more. Suddenly he wanted to protect her, hold her, to kiss her lips again and again.
He shook his head and reached for the bottle of vodka on the corner of the desk. Have I completely lost my senses? He was in the middle of the biggest international scandal since Napoleon and he wanted to make passionate love to the woman. Her father was probably on his way with an entire army to declare war on Russia. Even if he offered to marry the woman, he doubted the tsar or the English king would be supportive of the idea. He scowled as he poured himself a glass of vodka. Marriage? Now he knew he was insane. A man with his responsibilities did not marry a woman just because he enjoyed kissing her. A man who was in charge of the army married whom the tsar chose for him; besides Rose was in love with Victor. A knock on the study door roused him from his thoughts.
“Enter,” he called, and then took a deep swig of his drink.
A guard entered the room with Rose’s sniveling maid in tow. He saluted before shoving her forward to stand in front of the desk. “This one has something to tell you.”
The maid stood there wringing her hands, a mixture of dirt and tears streaking her face.
Dimitry removed his feet from the desk and sat up. “Well, what is it?” he asked in English.
“My lord, your grace...” The maid floundered, her eyes darting back and forth.
Her shiftiness pricked his ire. “Prince Dimitry will suffice,” he growled.
The maid stared at him wide-eyed and cleared her throat. “I've done something horrible! I didn't mean to, well I mean I didn't intend it to go as far as it did. Oh, I don’t know what to do!”
Dimitry set down his drink. “Get to the point woman.”
She began to sob.
He glowered at her. “Out with it! Nothing you could have done could be that bad unless you are helping Sergi. Your only chance to save yourself from Siberia is to confess.”
The maid let out a wail and fell to her knees, great sobs bubbling from her heaving chest, strings of snot mixing with the tears streaming down her cheeks.
Dimitry shook his head and turned to the soldier. “Go fetch Victor. He is the only one I know who has the patience to deal with womanly hysterics.”
The guard nodded and left. Dimitry called for Anya, and then poured a glass of vodka for the maid. He forced the vessel into her hands when she shrank away from him wide-eyed and terrified. “Drink.”
The girl put it to her lips as she sobbed. She choked on the first mouthful and sputtering liquid over the rim onto his priceless Persian carpet. He glared at her as Anya hurried into the room. “Wake Rose and bring her here.”
Anya glanced at the maid cowering on the floor and shot him a withering look.
He ignored it and waved her out. “Go.”
A few minutes later she was back without Rose.
“Well? Where is Rose?”
She shook her head. “She's not in her room.”
Dimitry frowned. Where is the blasted woman? “Check the garden; she was there a couple of hours ago.”
Anya was back again by the time Victor arrived. “She is nowhere to be found.”
“What is going on?” Victor followed Anya into the room and removed his gloves.
Dimitry pointed to the crying maid. “This one says she has done something terrible, and now
Rose has disappeared.”
Tossing his gloves on the table Victor fixed Dimitry with a malevolent stare. “Well, I am not surprised after way you threatened her this afternoon.”
Dimitry waved a hand at the blubbering maid. “Will you please quiet her down and find out what she has done that has her so hysterical?”
Victor turned to the maid and favored her with a gentle smile. He patted her hand and talked in a soothing tone. “Calm yourself now, miss. Whatever you have done can be fixed.” When the maid sniffled and nodded he patted her hand again and continued, “Where is your mistress, Rose?”
The maid took a deep breath and began to tell them what happened. Dimitry fought to keep his anger under control until she was done. He vowed Sergi would pay with his blood when he caught him, as the maid told how Rose had been tied up and taken away in Sergi’s coach. She was just finishing her tale when another guard burst into the study.
The breathless man sputtered, “A fleet of English ships has just sailed into the harbor!”
Dimitry swore. Not only was Rose missing, but the English navy was here to declare war. He gave orders to call every soldier from their barracks across the canal and have them form a visible line along the harbor. Dimitry then summoned a messenger to inform the tsar of the developments.
When the soldier left with his orders, Dimitry turned to the sniffling maid. “Where did Sergi take Rose?”
The maid stared at him wide-eyed and sniffling. “To a cave.”
A cave? Is she jesting? “What cave?” The girl stared at him in mute terror. He stood up and leaned across the desk. “What cave?”
Wringing her hands she cast Victor a pleading look. “I don’t know.”
“Tell me where or I will send you to Siberia in a box,” Dimitry threatened, his patience already exhausted.
She let out a tiny shriek. “I don’t know!”
Raw fear, an emotion Dimitry had never experienced before clawed at his insides. The woman he loved was in danger or possibly dead. Out of desperation he drew his pistol and aimed it at the trembling servant.
“Dimitry,” Victor barked, jumping in front of the cowering maid. “Stop!”
“Get out of my way, Victor,” Dimitry ground out.
Victor looked him in the eye. “Killing her is not going to help find Rose.”
Dimitry fought to control the anguish in his voice. “I love her, Victor, I am in love with Rose.”
“I know.” Victor's voice softened and he held out his hand, “Give me the gun, Dimitry.” When Dimitry’s hand shook, Victor placed his fingers over his on the gun. “Give me the gun.”
In defeat Dimitry lowered his hand, let Victor take the gun from him and sagged into the chair behind the desk. He had never been so close to losing his sanity than he was at that moment. All he could do was cling to the slim hope he wasn't too late to save the woman he loved. He looked to Victor for the first time, r
ealizing the younger man was more than his cousin and friend, he was his ally. “What are we going to do?”
Victor set the pistol on the desk. “We find her.”
Dimitry got his emotions under control. “First we had better avert a war.” After ordering his war horse saddle he hurried to change into his army uniform. By the time he was changed his horse was waiting for him. Dimitry, Victor, and their personal guards rode to the docks to meet the Englishmen. They waited as the ships sent forth rowboats full of soldiers. Dimitry unbuckled his holster to ensure his gun was within easy reach and glanced back over the long line of soldiers behind him; the tsar’s army looked tense and alert.
He took a deep breath as the first of the British rowboats reached the dock. “Let us pray we can talk ourselves out of this one, Victor.”
A tall man in a British naval uniform stepped onto the dock followed by a well-dressed gentleman and a handful of soldiers.
Dimitry and Victor dismounted as they approached. After handing their reins to a horse soldier they crossed the dock and met the Englishmen in the middle.
“I am Jonathon Wellington, the Duke of Ainsbury. I have reason to believe that Prince Nicoli has kidnapped my sister, Rose. I have been authorized by the king of England himself, to blow your dammed country apart unless she is returned immediately, unharmed,” said the chestnut-haired gentleman, with icy calm.
Dimitry looked the man over. There was no doubt that this man was Rose’s brother, the Duke of Ainsbury, as their resemblance was remarkable. “Prince Nicoli was my cousin. He was killed before your sister was ever kidnapped,” Dimitry began to explain.
The Duke of Ainsbury drew his pistol and pointed it at Dimitry. “Liar!”
The click of the guns of his men being cocked was deafening and knew they were pointed squarely at the Englishmen. He raised his hands to show his own weapon was still secure in his holster. “I tell the truth. If you will let me explain perhaps we can avoid bloodshed.”
To Love a Horseguard Page 11
