Joshua reached to take her hand. She let him hold it, but it was lifeless. She stared at their connection, then slowly pulled away.
“I can’t marry you. This was a mistake. I’m sorry.”
“Dammit, Alex. This is a mess at the moment. I admit it. But we love each other.”
Joshua needed to convince her and quick. She shook her head and shrugged helplessly, numb to the entire conversation. “It doesn’t matter. Some things can’t be changed. I was foolish to think otherwise. There is something I have to do, and you will only try to stop me.”
“I’m trying to protect you!”
“No, Joshua.” Her calm acceptance and understanding scared him more than anger and shouting. “You want to save me. And you can’t.”
She went to the table and retrieved a small beaded bag. “I forgot my handbag,” she explained, before making for the door. Then she paused before leaving, deciding to share one more thing with her brothers and him.
“When the old lady gave me the carpet, she said I was the last kelile.” Her brothers sharpened at that information. “I don’t know if any of the prophecy is true. If there is an end of days. If there is some treasure or source of power that the map leads to. But I will protect the map and the astrolabe. Even from my family. Though I hope that is no longer necessary. If I am the last of some strange legacy, then I will do whatever necessary to make sure what needs to end, ends with me.”
With that she turned, nearly bumping into her aunt on the way out, and leaving the three of them, Joshua thought, to feel like complete bastards despite their good intentions.
Maggie surveyed them all, and shook her head with a frown, clearly having heard the entire conversation. “I’ll go talk to her.”
Just then Stephen walked in and saluted Alex and his aunt as they left. He had an unopened bottle of port in hand, his face full of concern. “What did you do to Alex?”
Silence.
“That bad?” he asked.
The men let out a collective breath of frustration.
“She had the map all along,” Matthew said.
“She heard us conspiring against her,” Joshua admitted.
“She called off the wedding,” Samuel added.
Stephen looked around the room, amazed. “I wasn’t gone but five minutes.”
Maggie joined her niece by the window seat in her room. The girl was pensive, confused, and definitely upset. She sighed, wondering if all her family would be cursed by the prophecy.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“Oh, Aunt Maggie.” Alex shook her head. “No. It’s all so complicated.”
“Hmm,” Maggie nodded. “Let me talk instead, then, okay?”
Her niece nodded, and Maggie began. “I understand Lord Heatherly told you about Lilith?”
Alex looked at her in surprise. “I thought you were asleep?”
“Really, my dear. Nothing goes on in my home that I don’t know about.” She smiled. “Being eccentric is just my masquerade.” That earned a smile from her niece. “So then, you know the myth of the two sisters—one destroys the other, then refuses to give her own child as payment for her success. Mother returns, destroys them all. Very dramatic.” Maggie waved a hand, personally quite sick of the story. “As Lord Heatherly said, supposedly there were survivors of both women who left the cursed place with all its knowledge and beauty sealed, they hoped, until the curse could be broken, or balance restored.”
“How is the balance to be restored?”
“Traditionally by a pure sacrifice of some kind.”
“I hate that answer,” Alex confessed.
“I know. Me too, dear.” She continued. “Now you know the myth. Let me tell you the prophecy, at least as I understand it.”
“You’ve known about this all along, Aunt Maggie?”
“Sadly, yes, though I’ve tried to put it behind me. But let me finish, as I really don’t enjoy this part very much.”
“Sorry. Please tell me.”
“The prophecy, whether true or not, has been spread by various so-called seers throughout the ages. Essentially it is said that the lines of the two sisters would mix again, creating one, and from that line two new sisters would be born, creating the opportunity again for a sacrifice that could restore the balance. Sort of pay the original debt and win back the riches and power of a new realm. It’s quite the fantasy, I always thought. A nice little bedtime story your mother and I were told as children.”
“Only not a bedtime story?”
“Not to some people,” Maggie agreed. “Because of my father’s pride in our genealogy, many who followed the prophecy knew, or at least believed, he came from one of the lines.” She paused. “And our mother from the other.”
“Thus creating the new line?” Alex said the words with awe, concern on her face.
“It gets a bit stranger I’m afraid.”
“That would be impossible, Aunt, but please feel free to try.”
“Very well. Both of my parents, your grandparents, had a portion of a key. When your mother and I were born, we each received one of the keys—mine from your grandfather, your mother’s from your grandmother. We never thought they meant anything, not really. Until you were born.”
“I didn’t have much say in that, Aunt Maggie.”
“Of course not.” Maggie patted Alex’s hand. “But upon your birth, you were given a portion of the same key … by a stranger.”
Alex reached for her necklace.
“Yes. Prince Kelile had another part of it and gave it to you just before he died. Mine was stolen eventually, and your mother’s as well. Perhaps for the best. And quite frankly, if any of it is true, no doubt it’s best that all the pieces of the puzzle are kept apart.”
Alex still held her necklace, looking as anxious to learn more as she was not to. “There have been two astrolabes stolen recently. What are they the key to?”
Maggie shrugged. “No one knows. No one has all the parts of the puzzle.” She touched Alex’s necklace. “But someone or some group went to a lot of trouble to make sure this one was separated and sent to the ends of the earth.”
“Are the others decoys?”
Maggie shook her head again. “I don’t know. This one could be as well.”
“What did you mean when you said, ‘Until you were born.’ ”
Maggie hesitated. “Alex, when you were born, it was obvious even at an early age, you had an affinity for the sea … in a way, my dear, that was perhaps, shall we say, eerie to those who did not understand. It seems that there are some out there, followers of the prophecy, that believe you are the one to be sacrificed—that you have the gifts granted only to the last queen and her survivors.”
Alex gasped, then paled. “I have an understanding of the sea. I don’t have any magic!”
Maggie reached her hands out to Alex and held them. “Things not understood are magic to others, my dear.”
Alex was beginning to understand the past. “My mother.” Alex choked on the memories of her beautiful mother. “They wanted my mother to sacrifice me?”
Maggie nodded. “A group of fanatics. Yes. Naturally, your mother had no intention of following along. Nor would I. It’s not even a question.”
“So they killed her instead?”
“The true reason for her death, we may never know. Alex, I only want you to know this so you will not be foolish with your life. The prophecy requires the right sacrifice, at the right time, in the right place. My father believed that ‘the place’ is the altar where the first queen made the false sacrifice. So far as we know, that location is unknown. As for the time, I don’t know that either.”
“But you think I might be the target, and my map might have a clue as to the location.”
Maggie nodded. “Trust me, Alex. Paxton is the least of your worries. He seeks only treasure and wealth. The real followers of the prophecy are out there. And they are watching.”
“How do you know?” Alex asked, uneasy.
/> “A lifetime of living it, my dear,” Maggie gave a wry smile of acceptance. “I take it the real map is safe somewhere?”
Alex looked at her aunt in surprise.
“It wouldn’t have been entrusted to a fool, my dear. Don’t tell me where it is. Don’t tell anyone. While it is safe, you are safe. Though no doubt there are duplicates and copies out there.” Maggie gave her parting advice. “I have had my losses in this life, as you have. I only want to enjoy the family I have and the friends that are dear. All else is foolishness. I want no part in the thing that has killed my parents, my sister, my husband, and everyone else in my life that I have loved, Alex. If you decide to chase after this legend, it will be without my help. I hope you will realize what you have and let it go.”
“I don’t believe in it, Aunt Maggie. And I don’t want any part of it.”
She sighed. “Your mother and I said the same things, and as we learned, sometimes there is no choice. Time will tell.”
“Why did you wait until now to tell me all this?”
“I hoped you’d escaped this curse. It seemed happiness was very close at hand. It still can be, Alex. The duke is strong—in both character and health. If your future holds any kind of difficulty, he is a man who can survive it. Don’t turn him away now because of something, that in the end, might be quite foolish.”
“Marcus!” Alex sailed into the forward sitting room of the earl’s London town house with Stephen at her feet. She stopped short, causing Stephen to bump into her. Joshua was there. He stood instantly.
“Alex.”
She hadn’t spoken to him yet, but he kept showing up anyway. She gave a cursory nod, then greeted the earl with an overly friendly smile. Unfortunately, ignoring Joshua did not stop the hairs on her arms from standing up in awareness, or stop the tingle at the back of her neck where his thumb had made a habit of brushing when they stood near each other. They had had a perfect week before she discovered his betrayal. She was still coming to terms with it and all that her aunt had told her. All she could think about was that if she had died, instead of her mother, none of this would be happening. The prophecy would be over. The curse ended.
“Where is Emma? Recovering from our endless shopping?” Alex struggled with small talk, eager to take her leave of the men.
“Reading in the garden right now. She is expecting you,” Marcus said. “Any word on when you will forgive my dastardly friend?”
“Why, yes. Never, I believe was the answer.” She smiled.
“That’s progress,” Stephen encouraged the duke.
“Your brothers forgave you for not mentioning the map. Don’t you think you can forgive me for loving you so much I want to keep you alive?”
Alex spun, angry. “Don’t use love on me! You were going to destroy the map, steal my astrolabe, and kidnap me so I wouldn’t be able to go after Paxton. My brothers told me it was all your idea!”
“Joshua!” Marcus straightened in surprise. “Brilliant plan.”
“Thank you.”
Alex could feel the tension rising in her chest. “I did consider forgiving you this morning, but I’ve changed my mind. Excuse me, while I join Emma so you men can smoke and gossip.”
“Men do not gossip, Alex,” her brother informed her with a haughty look. “They discuss the quality and character of contemporary society.”
“Well said, Stephen.” Marcus grinned.
Alex gave her brother a level look. “My, Stephen, you sounded English just then.” It worked. She said to Marcus: “I’m glad you decided to accompany Emma to London. You are showing her the sights?”
“I’m trying. We are going to the opera tonight. I think she is very pleased about that.”
“Excellent,” Alex pronounced. “I want to keep her safe, and sadly that’s not with me for now, but I know she enjoys your company.”
“Wait,” Joshua interrupted. “You are allowed to protect Emma from you, but I’m not allowed to protect you from you?”
“Kidnapping is not protecting. Destroying my birthright is not protecting. Not trusting me enough to share your stratagems is not protecting.”
Joshua grunted, clearly intending to provoke her. “Obviously you do not take your duty as seriously as I do.”
“Joshua has always taken his duties very, very seriously,” Marcus assured.
Alex huffed. They evidently thought they were in the right. It boggled the mind. “Stephen, you explain. Excuse me, gentlemen, while I join Emma to discuss the quality and character of contemporary society and how it has dimmed the wits of modern man.” She stalked to the door mumbling in disgust. She ran into a servant halfway out and swiped his tray of tea to bring to the garden.
“She’ll come around once we are married,” Joshua teased.
“I heard that!” Alex’s voice yelled from down the hall. “And I won’t!” They laughed in response, and she accepted she would not get the last word when it was three against one.
She followed the hallway out to a small garden patio. It was quiet. Unnaturally quiet.
Alex put the tray down on the marble table and picked up a book that looked to have fallen open on the ground. She closed it and put it back on the table, enjoying the shade and privacy created by several trees and a large, enclosed wall.
Emma must have gone in. Odd, she left her book. Likely she planned on coming back.
Alex stood still a moment longer, trying to figure out what did not seem right. The garden gate was swinging slightly, the sound of it turning her attention. An instant later, a shiver of warning went up her spine as the movement of a figure flickered in the silver teapot.
Trusting instinct, Alex reached for the teapot and spun sharply. Hot tea flew into the face of a masked attacker. It burned the material covering his face, distracting him long enough for Alex to see Emma’s feet on the ground near the farthest edge of the patio. In a second she had reached the knife in her boot and launched it at the man as he was pulling off his burning mask. It landed in his throat. A wet spray of blood hit her face.
A warning cry broke from her lungs and was quickly muffled as another attacker grabbed her from behind pressing a wet cloth over her mouth and nose. She recognized the ether and held her breath, slamming her elbow several times into the man holding her, and stomping his foot to get free. It worked. She gasped for a breath of air just as something hammered her head. She thought she heard a woman’s voice before blackness drowned all thought.
“At least she didn’t deny you would be married, Joshua,” Marcus noted.
Stephen agreed. It had been three days since Alex called off the wedding. “She was much calmer today,” Stephen confided to Joshua and Marcus. “Maggie says she will come around, that Alex just wants you to suffer a little. And Matthew was very complimentary today.”
“About what? My horseflesh?”
Stephen laughed. “Uh, actually, it was along those lines. But that speaks of good taste. Um, and it was after he had to do his full day of escorting her around London shopping. I believe he would have pawned her off on even the enemy at that point.”
Marcus couldn’t stop his laugh.
Joshua cut his cigar and said dryly, “As always, refreshingly honest, Stephen.”
“Then this morning she nearly killed all the house staff practicing in the yard.” Stephen flicked his arm imitating, “ ‘Catch and release.’ She wants to master the whip. So far it’s catch, and …” Stephen cupped his hands around his mouth, pretending to yell. “Take coverrrr!” He took a weary breath. “We finally got her to practice with spoons.”
Joshua rubbed his jaw, as Marcus shook his head.
“Samuel had the best duty so far,” Stephen said. “She spent the day on her ship arranging dynamite in strategic locations.”
“I thought she sold it all.”
“Nope. Something about the importance of sparkly accessories. You’ll need to come up with something soon, Josh,” Stephen warned. “Her ship in London is ready, and repairs are complete in Po
rtsmouth. She could set sail any day.”
“One can only hope,” Marcus teased lightly. “Dynamite, indeed.” He was about to light a cigar when his butler burst into the room, pale as a ghost and a fearful look in his eyes.
It took Joshua less than a second to register his ultimate fear. Alex.
He was on his feet and running for her before he even heard the man speak. Marcus and Stephen were at his back.
Dread chilled his skin when he stepped out onto the patio. A silver teapot lay on the ground and blood covered the white marble table. He fought back the nausea that burst from fear in his gut. There was a trail of blood going around the corner of the marble deck. Stephen and he reached the victim at the same time. He was so relieved it wasn’t Alex or Emma, he couldn’t speak for a full minute.
“He’s dead.” Stephen pulled out the knife. “This is Alex’s. She didn’t go without a fight.”
“They’re both gone,” Marcus said, his voice cold. “Morton, the gardener, is dead as well.”
Joshua jumped over the deck wall and ran to the garden gate. He looked out into the alley. It was empty. He ran up to the main street. The world around him seemed to proceed as normal. Carriages went by. People chatted in the park. Only nothing was normal. Terror like he had never experienced gripped him. He reached for the ring that had always given him comfort and wanted to weep realizing it was no longer there. He took a calming breath and cleared his head. She was still alive. No one would go to this much trouble just to kill her or Emma right away. He would find her. But, there was no time to lose. Every minute counted.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Liz Beauveau had taken a risk, but it paid off. The Stafford home had been guarded like a fortress, and there had been very little opportunity to intercept the girl. She had waited patiently at Lady Emma’s, knowing it was only a matter of time before the two women would have a visit.
Two crates were brought into the warehouse, and her mouth widened in malicious satisfaction. She brushed the dirt from her gloves. Too bad about the Crowley fellow, but the Stafford girl had proven quick with the knife. At least dead men didn’t talk.
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