Deception in Emeralds (Ransomed Jewels Book 4)

by Laura Landon

  “How did your mother become acquainted with Roseneau?” he asked.

  Radburn refilled his glass and took a long swallow. “My upbringing was not ideal. My parents did not get along. When I was nine, my mother left my father. She took me with her to France, where I lived for part of each year.”

  Barnaby glanced at Millicent. She nodded, affirming that this agreed completely with what Lady Carlisle had told them. So far, Radburn seemed to be telling them the truth.

  “Mother adapted to life in France as if she were meant to be there. She was quite popular and attended all the social events. She was even a favorite at court. There was always a man in her life, but when their attachment became too serious, she would end their association.”

  Radburn slowly turned the glass he held and stared at the amber liquid as it swirled. “We never discussed her . . . lifestyle . . . but two years ago, she met Roseneau and was quite taken with him. I objected to their relationship and told her so. I related everything I’d heard about Roseneau and demanded she discontinue her association with him.”

  “But she didn’t,” Millicent finished for him.

  “No. She not only continued to see him, but her feelings for him intensified to the point where I feared he had an unhealthy hold on her.”

  “You said you told your mother what you’d discovered about Roseneau,” Barnaby said. “What exactly did you discover about him?”

  “Aside from the fact that he is a womanizer and well known by the authorities, he is also rumored to be associated with certain foreign governments that do not have England’s best interests in mind.”

  “Did your mother believe you?” Millicent asked.

  He shook his head. “She accused me of lying, then told me she didn’t want me to interfere in her life.”

  Radburn paced in front of the fire as he related the part of the situation that had him most distressed, confirming the theft of the tiara, bracelet, and earbobs. It was all as Lady Elizabeth had said. The pieces waited in a Swiss bank box while Radburn was forced to betray Elizabeth Carlisle by casting her aside, betray Millicent by drawing her into a loveless marriage, and betray his country by delivering munitions to a foreign dissident.

  He was locked in a vise with no possibility of escaping.

  “So,” Millicent sighed. “You convinced Roseneau it would be advantageous to coordinate the sale of the explosives with the time of our wedding, in order to show good faith.”

  Radburn grimaced. “Not exactly. He required it. Roseneau won’t release the jewels and the threat to my mother until you and I are married and Cliffside is secured.”

  “Or?”

  By the look on his face, Radburn did not want to answer her question.

  “Or something would happen to me.” Millicent answered for him, and Radburn cast his eyes to the floor.

  She frowned her understanding. “And by marrying me, you were ready to sacrifice your future to protect me the same as you protected Thomas and Polly. And by facilitating the transfer of those ungodly explosives, you would carry the weight of treason on your back, and in so doing save your mother. Lady Carlisle was right. You are in a world of trouble.”

  Radburn’s face turned serious. “Elizabeth,” he whispered, as if saying her name brought her close to him. “We were betrothed,” he said. “But Elizabeth invented the plan when the blackmail notes didn’t stop. Each one was more threatening than the last. And things . . . things started to happen. Elizabeth was the one who insisted we break our engagement and that I court you, Millicent. She was the one who came up with the plan to save my mother, to save you, and to destroy Roseneau.”

  Millicent studied Radburn as the horror of knowing he had nothing but bad choices left to him paraded across his face. He looked sideways at her, then murmured quietly. “Forgive me, Millicent. But I never—”

  Radburn couldn’t manage to finish his sentence. Then, with a stroke of clarity, Millicent knew what he would have said, and she spoke it for him.

  “—but you never intended that I suffer through a loveless marriage. Because you were going to kill Roseneau. And die in the explosion along with him.”

  The room fell silent. No one moved as in each mind the pieces of the puzzle tumbled into place and in every heart that scenario was found to be brilliant. And completely unacceptable.

  “Well.”

  Millicent dropped her hands into her lap and broke the silence.

  “Well,” she repeated. “It seems there are two men in my life who are prepared to throw themselves at a powder keg and leave me waiting at the door.” She stood. “And that, sirs, is out of the question. So I suggest you put your minds together and come up with a solution that does not require the untimely death of either one of you.” She strode with determination to the edge of the carpet and crossed her arms.

  “So?”

  Barnaby looked at Radburn, who looked at Thomas, and all three looked at Millicent, who had just laid down the rules.

  “So,” Barnaby echoed as he stood. “We have four days until the wedding, and even less than that before your mother and Roseneau arrive. We have to have a plan in place before that. Perhaps you should begin by telling us what you know about the explosives that are hidden in the caves.”

  Radburn sat back in his chair. “I know that the explosives will change hands during the wedding festivities.”

  Radburn’s admission surprised Barnaby. “How do you know that?”

  “As you’ve no doubt noticed, Westview Park has a small army of guards patrolling the area. I hired them as soon as I discovered the explosives. Their orders were to eliminate the men guarding the cave and capture as many of them alive as possible.”

  “I assume you were successful, because I came across no guards at Cliffside.”

  “Yes. We’re holding several of Roseneau’s men in the old dungeon beneath the manor house. They’re tight-lipped, but we do know they were to transfer the goods to a ship that would arrive the night before the wedding. When I learned that the men guarding the area were Frenchmen, of course Roseneau came to mind, but I gave him the benefit of the doubt for my mother’s sake. The more I learned, however, the more I was convinced he was involved. And when I balked, the emeralds went missing. Soon after that the blackmail notes began arriving, and I knew it had to be him.”

  Barnaby shifted. “Would that be the same dungeon where you lodged the poacher?”

  Radburn was startled. “How did you—”

  Barnaby chuckled and shook his head slowly as he smiled at Millicent. “The poacher is Will Griffin. He’s my man—or rather, he works for the Crown. He’ll have had time to weasel some information out of those Frenchmen by now.”

  Radburn took another sip of his brandy, then set his glass back on the table. He dragged both hands across his face. “This is . . . this is too . . . My mother will be here tomorrow. I tried to keep news of the wedding from her, but Roseneau made sure she knew.”

  “Have you informed the authorities?” Thomas asked.

  “No. I intend to include them, of course. But not until we have spoiled the exchange and I can get my mother safely away. I can’t risk her being implicated. This is a treasonous event. Everyone involved will hang.”

  Radburn was correct. There was nothing he’d be able to do to save his mother once the authorities realized her connection to Roseneau.

  “There’s something I don’t understand,” Thomas said, moving his gaze from Radburn to Barnaby. “I understand why Roseneau wanted Father dead. He couldn’t risk his going to the authorities when he discovered the munitions. And even me, if he feared Father had told me. But why a fire to kill Mother and Polly? What did he have to fear from them?”

  Radburn offered the first answer. “I believe he wanted to eliminate your entire family.”

  “Why?”

  “He wants the land. He wants access by sea. He wants the caves.”

  “But he could never own the land,” Thomas insisted. “Cliffside will go to a cousin upo
n my death.”

  “Hence the fire. With the house destroyed, the land is useless, other than the profits that come from the tenant crops further inland. Unless the new owner intends to put several thousand pounds into rebuilding Cliffside’s manor house, the property will no doubt remain vacant.”

  “And Roseneau’s activities will therefore go unnoticed,” Thomas finished.

  “But what happens when Orsini’s uprising is over?” Millicent asked. “Surely the smuggling venture will be too short-lived to result in anything lucrative for Roseneau.”

  Radburn straightened. “Orsini? Ah. That makes sense now. But no matter. Rumors are circulating that America is on the brink of a civil war. Should that happen, Roseneau will be sitting on a gold mine.”

  “Then we have no choice,” Thomas said. “We have to stop him.” Thomas turned his head to face Barnaby, exposing the scarred side of his face. “How should we proceed, Mr. Linscott? Do you have a plan?”

  Barnaby rose from his chair and walked to the fireplace. He lowered his head between his outstretched arms and stared into the flickering flames. No one interrupted his thoughts for several moments. All eyes were on him when he turned. “Yes, I know what we have to do. But my plan doesn’t involve any of you. I will handle this myself.”

  Radburn rose to argue.

  Barnaby held up his hand to stop his words. “I will not involve you in this, Radburn. Nor you, Renfrew. I’m speaking for the Crown now. I will need you to keep an eye on Roseneau. And keep the women safe from him. I will also need the use of some of your men,” Barnaby said to Radburn.

  “Of course, but—”

  Barnaby shook his head. “Your jobs,” he continued, including Renfrew in his statement, “are to protect the ladies and the guests who attend the wedding.”

  “And what will your job be?” Radburn asked.

  Barnaby smiled. “To destroy the explosives in the cave, and . . . Roseneau.”

  “No, Barnaby,” Millicent said. Fear etched her features, and her eyes filled with tears. “You promised!”

  “It’s the way it has to be, Millicent. I have to stay in the shadows where I can do the most good.”

  Radburn studied him for several long minutes. “What are you not telling us, Linscott?”

  “I can’t risk Roseneau seeing me. If he does, he will realize he’s walked into a trap.”

  “How will he know that?”

  “Roseneau knows me. He knows that I work for the government.” Barnaby took a deep breath. “He knows that I will do everything in my power to see him hang.”

  Chapter 18

  Millicent lay with her cheek resting atop Barnaby’s chest and listened to his heart beat beneath her ear. Their lovemaking had been more intense than ever. There’d been a desperation in the way he made love to her. In the way he took her. As if he needed to show her how much he loved her without saying the words.

  She ran her fingers over the corded muscles that crossed Barnaby’s shoulder, then followed the contours down his arm. He was sleeping, but she knew her touch would awaken him. Which she was reluctant to do, but it was necessary. The house was still quiet, but it wouldn’t be long before the staff stirred. They couldn’t risk one of the maids catching Barnaby in her bed.

  She lifted her hand and cupped her palm to his stubbled cheek. The feel of his short whiskers against her flesh was strange to her senses, and when he moved his head, she pulled away.

  “Don’t you like it?” he asked with a groggy smile.

  “It scratches.”

  He grinned, then slowly opened his eyes. “You’re beautiful when you wake up after a night of lovemaking.”

  Millicent felt her face warm. His words reminded her of the things he’d done to her. The things she’d allowed. “You were quite bold last night, sir.”

  “Was I?”

  “Yes. And well you know it.”

  “Did you enjoy it?”

  She opened her eyes wide and pretended to be startled by his question. “That’s hardly a question a lady would answer.”

  “Did you?” he repeated.

  Millicent lowered her head and rested it back atop his chest. She couldn’t help but smile. “Yes,” she whispered.

  His arms tightened around her, and she reveled in the feel of his flesh pressed against hers. “Barnaby? Why do you want to see Roseneau hang?”

  His chest rose as he took a deep breath. “He’s evil, and the men he hires are ruthless.”

  “What did he do to you?”

  “Nothing to me.”

  “Then to whom?”

  There was a long silence before he answered. “To my brother. To Alexander.”

  “The marquess?”

  “Yes.”

  Barnaby shifted beneath her, and Millicent rested her chin in her palm and looked at him. He crossed his arms beneath his head and stared at the ceiling as if he were in another time. “You know the story of my sister Claire, don’t you?”

  “Yes. She was supposedly married to the Marquess of Huntingdon, but their marriage wasn’t legal since he already had a wife and family.”

  “Yes. What no one knew was that the Marquess of Huntingdon worked for the government, and while on an assignment, he stole some valuable jewels from Roseneau’s safe.

  “Roseneau was desperate to get the jewels back, and he assumed Huntingdon had given them to my sister.”

  “But he hadn’t?”

  “No, he’d given them to his legal wife. Roseneau kidnapped my brother Alex and held him captive to force Claire to return the jewels. Which of course she didn’t have.”

  Millicent could see how talking about what Roseneau had done affected Barnaby. He turned out of her arms and sat on the edge of the bed. “They tortured Alex, and God only knows what else, because whatever they did to him changed him.”

  Barnaby rose and started to dress. “I swore that if I ever had the chance, I’d kill Roseneau for what he did to my brother.” He turned to face her when he was dressed. “I intend to keep that promise.”

  A slow ache clutched her heart. She knew what he was telling her but refused to accept it. “Even if it means your life?”

  “Hopefully it won’t. But yes, even if it means my life. Roseneau needs to be stopped. He sold secrets that cost thousands of British soldiers their lives. He’s the lowest form of man, not fit to be called human. He exists to take advantage of others and enjoys their misery.”

  Millicent wrapped her sheet around herself. “How do you intend to stop him?” she asked.

  “I’m not sure yet,” he answered. He crossed to where she was kneeling on the bed and leaned down and tenderly kissed her. “Go back to sleep, love. And don’t worry. Everything will be fine.”

  Barnaby kissed Millicent once more, then left the room. An emptiness she’d never experienced before consumed her. A fear greater than she thought she could bear.

  If Roseneau was as dangerous as Barnaby said he was, it was imperative that Barnaby wasn’t recognized. She didn’t want to risk losing him now that she’d finally found him.

  . . .

  Millicent sat in the drawing room with Lady Carlisle. It had been two days since she’d seen Barnaby.

  She didn’t know where he was, or where he stayed each night. She didn’t think he was in the house but couldn’t be sure.

  “Are you nervous about your wedding celebration?” Lady Carlisle placed the book she’d been reading in her lap and looked in Millicent’s direction. “You haven’t mentioned it lately, and it’s only two days away.”

  Millicent kept her gaze focused on the book that lay unread in her hands. She wanted Elizabeth to know the truth—that there would never be a wedding. That she had no intention of marrying the Earl of Radburn. That she didn’t love him any more than he loved her. But she couldn’t tell her. Not yet.

  “I . . . I haven’t mentioned the wedding because I’m a little nervous about it.”

  “There’s no need,” Elizabeth said with a wistful smile on her face. �
�You have nothing to fear from marrying Marcus. You are very fortunate. He will always be the perfect husband.”

  Millicent studied the expression on Elizabeth’s face. She looked beyond the pleasant façade and saw the hurt Elizabeth was trying to hide. She loved Radburn. That had been evident from the moment she’d arrived. And now Millicent knew the heartbreaking sacrifice Elizabeth had made by giving up the man she loved.

  Millicent couldn’t imagine how much it would pain her to see the man she loved marry another woman. For that reason alone, she considered relieving Elizabeth’s fears. And she would have, if the door hadn’t opened and Radburn entered.

  “Marcus,” Elizabeth greeted, as though his presence was a beacon of light that brightened a dark room. “I’m so glad you’ve joined us.”

  “I’m happy to know that, but I can’t help but wonder the reason.”

  The Earl of Radburn walked toward them. When he reached them, he placed a pastry on a plate and sat on the sofa next to Millicent.

  “Because your bride-to-be has been anxious to see you.”

  “Has she?” His arm halted midway to taking a bite of an apple pastry.

  “Of course she has. Even I have noticed you’ve neglected her dreadfully.”

  Radburn lowered the pastry to his plate and turned. “Then I must offer you my apologies, Millicent.”

  Millicent smiled. “Apology accepted, Marcus.”

  Radburn shared a look with her—they were in this charade together.

  “I haven’t seen Mr. Compton lately,” Elizabeth said, keeping the conversation going. “Is he unwell?”

  “Oh no,” Millicent answered. “He has returned to Cliffside. He wanted to evaluate the damage done by the fire and what repairs are possible.”

  Elizabeth lowered her hands to her lap and looked at Millicent with genuine sympathy. “I’m so sorry, Millicent. I know how painful it is to be reminded of the tragedy.”

  “Yes, but at least I have my cousin to take care of the most difficult matters. Perhaps someday we’ll even be able to repair the damage done.”

  From there, the conversation turned to other things, and Millicent noticed how relaxed Marcus seemed today. That was, until Childers rapped on the door and announced that Radburn had visitors—Lady Charlotte Radburn and Monsieur Phillippe Roseneau.