The Price of Pleasure

by Connie Mason

  “That’s my girl,” Reed murmured. “I should have known the Black Widow wouldn’t leave home unarmed. The pistol and knife give us much better odds. They won’t expect us to be armed.”

  Feeling more confident than he had since their imprisonment, Reed said, “Perhaps we should both get some sleep. We need to be alert when our captors arrive.”

  Though Fleur was certain she couldn’t sleep, she leaned into the comfort of Reed’s body, closed her eyes and knew no more.

  Lisette was beside herself with worry when Updike informed her that Hunthurst had already left for his meeting. She knew deep in her heart that something terrible had happened to her beloved Fleur.

  “You must go to his lordship’s rendezvous site, Mor-timer,” Lisette urged.

  Updike shrugged helplessly. “The countess failed to give me the direction. She wanted to make sure I didn’t go without her as I threatened.”

  Lisette wrung her hands. “You must find ma petite.”

  Updike headed for the front door. “Stay here with Madame Lisette,” he ordered Gordon. “I’m going for help.”

  Updike ran to the carriage. Before he could climb onto the driver’s bench, Reed’s carriage came careening around the corner. Updike waited impatiently for it to roll to a stop.

  “Is his lordship with you?” Updike called up to John Coachman.

  John leapt down from the carriage. Bates joined him. “They got him!” John exclaimed. “Those bastards got his lordship.”

  “Was the countess with him?”

  “Aye,” John replied. “I saw her face in the window before the bastards took them away. His lordship handed his weapons over without a peep of protest and got into the carriage.”

  “I recognized one of the men but not the other.”

  “Tell me what happened. Don’t leave anything out.”

  John launched into an explanation. “The man in the carriage with the countess was that Duvall bloke. When I saw his lordship give up his weapons, I pulled out my pistol and edged from the shadows where his lordship told me to wait. When he shook his head, I knew he wanted me to remain where I was. I think he was protecting the countess.”

  “Did you follow the carriage?”

  John looked properly affronted. “Of course I did. Do you take me for a fool?”

  Updike grew excited. “Good man! Can you direct me to him?”

  John nodded eagerly. “Aye, I can take you there. We had to hang back a ways to keep from being noticed, but we were able to get close enough to see them disappear down an alley.”

  “Then what did you do?”

  John and Bates looked at one another. “We waited until Duvall and the other bloke left in the carriage without his lordship and the countess. Then we came straightaway here to ask you what to do. Since his lordship didn’t confide the particulars to us, we didn’t know what else to do.”

  “There’s no time to waste. Stay here, I’ll take care of this. I know his lordship better than either of you.”

  Updike climbed into the carriage, took up the reins and sped off down the street. He knew where Lord Porter lived. He had heard the name brought up in conversation with Hunthurst often enough. Lord Porter was the only person capable of helping Hunthurst and his fiancée.

  Fifteen minutes later, Updike stood before Lord Porter’s townhouse, pounding on the door. It took considerable effort to rouse someone, but eventually an irate butler opened the door.

  “What do you want at this ungodly time of night? Come back at a decent hour.”

  “Tell your master I need to see him on urgent business. It’s a matter of life and death,” Updike said before the door closed in his face. Updike wasn’t to be deterred. Lives were at stake. He jammed his foot in the door.

  “What’s the meaning of this?” Porter shouted from the top of the stairs. “Can’t a man get a decent night’s sleep?”

  Updike pushed past the startled butler. “Lord Porter, I’m Updike, Lord Hunthurst’s man. His lordship is in serious trouble. I’ve come to beg your help.”

  Porter descended the stairs, his nightshirt flapping about his ankles. “Hunthurst, you say? What has he gotten himself into now?”

  Updike told Porter everything he knew, which wasn’t all that much. “So you see, my lord,” Updike finished, “the pair of them are in grave danger.”

  Porter cursed fluently. “I cautioned Hunthurst about getting in over his head. He wasn’t supposed to move against the traitor without my knowledge. Did the men who accompanied Hunthurst to his rendezvous recognize anyone?”

  “They recognized Mr. Duvall, his lordship’s cousin, but didn’t know the second man. That’s all I can tell you, my lord, except that Lord Hunthurst and Lady Fontaine desperately need your assistance.”

  Porter nodded curtly. “They shall have it. I’ll need time to summon help. Return in an hour with the men who can lead us to Hunthurst and we’ll take it from there.”

  Reed held Fleur close as she dozed against his shoulder. He had no idea how long they had been in this dark hole, but each minute seemed like an eternity. Fleur had no idea how difficult it was for him to control the panic racing through him. When he heard a scraping noise outside the door, his panic was replaced by cold reality.

  Their captors had returned.

  “Wake up, sweetheart,” Reed whispered against Fleur’s ear. “We’re about to have company.”

  Fleur awakened instantly. It took a moment for her to remember where she was, but when she did she clutched Reed’s sleeve and hissed, “What are we going to do?”

  “Listen carefully,” Reed instructed. “I don’t know how many men Duvall and Dempsey have brought to do their dirty work, but they’ll need light to see us. They’ll probably bring a lantern or torch. That means we’ll be able to see them too.”

  The bar scraped across the door.

  “Remove your gun from your pocket and hide it in the folds of your gown. I’ve hidden my knife in my sleeve; a flick of my wrist will place it in my hand. If more than one man enters the room, I’ll need a moment to assess the situation. Wait for my signal before you shoot.”

  The door burst open. All Reed could see was a nimbus of light spreading out from a lantern.

  “There’s a hook on the left beside the door,” someone ordered in heavily accented English. “Hang the lantern there so you can see what you’re doing. Hurry, it will soon be light.”

  Duvall.

  Reed blinked as his eyes adjusted to the light. Immediately he saw two thugs standing in the doorway, brandishing wicked-looking knives. Duvall stood behind them.

  “Steady, love,” Reed whispered.

  “There they are,” Duvall rasped, pointing at them. “Kill them.”

  “Where is your partner, Duvall?” Reed taunted. “Is he too cowardly to show his face while your hired killers make short work of us?”

  “Dempsey is keeping watch on the street.”

  “You’re both cowards,” Reed ridiculed.

  Duvall nudged the thugs. “You have your orders. They may fight; especially Hunthurst, but you are more than his match. I’ll wait outside the door. Come out as soon as you finish them off.”

  The men, both lumbering brutes, stalked menacingly toward their prey. Reed waited until the last possible moment before hissing, “Now, Fleur! Aim for the man on the left.”

  From that moment on, everything seemed to happen at once. Both men went down. Fleur’s bullet found its mark in one man’s chest while Reed’s blade protruded from the second man’s throat. Duvall appeared in the doorway, a stunned expression on his face. Reed started toward him, then stopped abruptly when Duvall produced a pistol and pointed it at Fleur.

  Reed shoved Fleur behind him. “You only have one bullet, Duvall. You’d better aim for my heart because if you don’t kill me, I’m going to kill you.”

  “At this distance, I can’t miss.”

  Reed shoved Fleur to the ground and crouched low, preparing to launch himself at Duvall. Then all hell broke
loose. Two men jumped Duvall from behind. His pistol exploded. The bullet whizzed past Reed’s ear and thudded into the wall behind him. Reed flung himself on top of Fleur to protect her.

  Duvall went down. Reed glanced up and saw Lord Porter standing in the doorway. “Take Duvall and the traitor Dempsey away,” Porter bit out. The disgust in his voice was palpable.

  “Are you and your lady all right, Hunthurst? We got here as fast as we could.”

  Reed climbed to his feet and helped Fleur to hers. “Are you hurt, love?”

  “I’m fine,” Fleur said weakly. “Just a little out of breath.”

  Reed didn’t care who was looking as he brought Fleur into his arms and kissed her soundly. “You’re also a great shot and more courageous than most men.” He kissed her again before answering Porter’s question. “We’re both well,Porter. But if you had arrived a few moments later, it would have been too late.”

  Reed stepped over the two thugs sprawled on the floor. “These two are dead. They’re hired killers. What about Dempsey?”

  “We got him. He’ll pay with his life for betraying the Crown.”

  Reed ushered Fleur out the door and into the dim light of a misty dawn.

  “You can explain how you managed to keep your weapons later. I assume you’re anxious to take your lady home. Your man Updike and the two servants who followed you here are waiting with your carriage at the end of the alley. Without them, we wouldn’t have known where to find you.”

  They exited the alley in time to see Porter’s men shove Dempsey and Duvall into a waiting wagon.

  “Thank God you’re safe,” Updike said with a shaky sigh. “Where shall we take you, my lord?”

  “To the townhouse, Updike,” Reed replied as they piled into the carriage. “You’re all going to get a fat bonus for tonight’s work.”

  Updike closed the door and climbed onto the driver’s bench beside John Coachman. Bates jumped onto the tiger’s perch and hung on as the carriage rattled off down the street.

  Everything had happened so fast that Fleur’s world was still spinning. It seemed incredible that she and Reed were alive and Duvall and Dempsey had been taken into custody.

  Suddenly the murky confines of the carriage started to fade as dizziness and nausea struck at the same time. Fleur’s stomach lurched up into her throat. “Stop the carriage!”

  Reed must have noticed Fleur’s paleness for he rapped on the roof, and the carriage rolled to a stop.

  “I need to get out!”

  Reed flung open the door and stepped out. He held his arms up and Fleur jumped into them.

  “I’m going to be sick,” Fleur gasped. Leaning over, she emptied the meager contents of her stomach into the gutter. She heaved until she had no more left. Then she collapsed into Reed’s arms.

  Reed handed her his handkerchief and supported her while she wiped her mouth. “Don’t faint on me now, sweetheart. This nightmare is over. The traitor is as good as dead, and my cousin will hang for his crimes. He deserves death for what he did to my brother.”

  Fleur leaned against him while Updike stood nearby, wringing his hands.

  “Do you feel better, love? Shall we go home?” Reed asked.

  Fleur nodded weakly. Reed scooped her into his arms, placed her inside the carriage and climbed in beside her. “We’re ready, Updike.” Updike closed the door and returned to the driver’s bench.

  “I’m sorry you had to go through this ordeal,” Reed said, smoothing her hair away from her damp forehead. “Do you still feel ill?”

  “This isn’t the first time I’ve been sick,” Fleur admitted. “My stomach has been upset a lot lately, usually in the morning. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I feel fine most of the time.”

  A worried look creased Reed’s brow. “I’ll send Updike for a physician as soon as we arrive home.”

  “I’m sure it’s nothing,” Fleur protested.

  “I’m not taking any chances with my future wife.”

  True to his word, Reed sent Updike for the physician and had a worried Lisette put Fleur to bed the moment they arrived at the townhouse.

  Lisette and Peg helped Fleur wash and ready herself for bed.

  “Why didn’t you tell me you were ill, ma petite?” Lisette asked as she fluttered about Fleur.

  “It’s not the first time my lady has been ill,” Peg ventured.

  Lisette sent Fleur a concerned look. “You’ve been sick before? Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “I was sick yesterday morning, but then I felt fine.”

  Lisette and Peg exchanged knowing looks.

  “Ma petite,” Lisette began. “Is it possible . . . Could you be . . . ”

  A knock on the door interrupted Lisette’s question.

  “The physician is here,” Reed called through the door. “May I come in?”

  “Come in, Reed, but truly, I feel fine now.”

  Reed opened the door and ushered a dignified man carrying a black bag into the bedchamber. “This is Doctor Fielding. He’ll take a look at Fleur to make sure nothing serious is wrong with her.”

  Lisette swallowed a smile. “I’m sure it is nothing serious, my lord.”

  “Please leave me alone with my patient,” Fielding said, shooing everyone from the chamber and closing the door behind them.

  Reed paced the corridor outside Fleur’s chamber, his concern palpable.

  “Do not worry, my lord, I am convinced Fleur is not ill,” Lisette said. “In fact, Peg and I believe that Fleur is . . . ”

  The door opened. Doctor Fielding stepped out into the corridor and closed the door behind him. Reed’s heart jumped into his throat. What if Fleur was seriously ill? How could he bear it?

  “How is she, Doctor?”

  “No need to worry, my lord. Your lady is in good health and will get through this with flying colors. I understand she’s been under a great deal of stress lately.” He wagged his head. “Not good. Not good at all for a woman in her delicate condition.”

  Panic seized Reed and refused to let go. “How serious is it?”

  The doctor smiled. “Most people count it a blessing. See that she stays calm, eats well, gets plenty of rest and exercises in moderation.” He sent Reed a stern look. “You do intend to wed the lady, do you not?”

  “Of course, as soon as it can be arranged.”

  The doctor leaned close. “I suggest sooner rather than later. By my estimation, your fiancée is two months into her pregnancy.”

  Reed staggered backward. “Fleur is pregnant? She’s carrying my child?”

  He heard Lisette and Peg tittering behind him and realized they had already arrived at that conclusion.

  Reed grasped the doctor’s hand and pumped it vigorously. “Thank you, Doctor. Updike will see you out and pay your fee with a little extra for arriving so quickly.”

  Reed rushed headlong into Fleur’s bedchamber and closed the door behind him. He found her sitting up in bed, a dreamy smile lighting up her face.

  “Did the doctor tell you?” Fleur asked, bursting with excitement.

  Reed searched Fleur’s face. She looked more radiant than she had a right to after her terrifying ordeal. There was no sign of the sickness she had suffered earlier. He reached the bed in three long strides and gathered her into his arms.

  “He did. Didn’t I tell you your worries about being barren were premature, that the fault could be Pierre’s?”

  “I’m so happy that I can give you an heir,” Fleur said.

  “Marrying you makes me happy. I love you, Fleur. It didn’t matter to me if you were barren. That’s how important you are to me.”

  As if to prove his words, he lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her. His emotions were so raw, so close to the surface that Reed struggled to contain the tears that threatened to fall. Fleur didn’t even try. Her tears flowed freely down her cheeks.

  Tenderly, Reed brushed the moisture away with the pads of his thumbs. “Don’t cry, sweetheart.”

  “These
are tears of happiness. I love you so much. It frightens me to think that I almost drove you away.”

  Reed chuckled. “I wasn’t going anywhere. You couldn’t have chased me away, no matter what you did or said.” He laid her back against the pillow. “And now, my love, you need to rest. Peg will bring a tray up to you, and then I want you to get some sleep. While you’re napping, I’m going to make my report to Porter. Then I intend to obtain a special license and call on Grandmamma to invite her to a wedding. How does the day after tomorrow sound?”

  Fleur sighed happily. “It sounds wonderful. But how can you possibly arrange it in so short a time?”

  Reed laughed. “With determination and a great deal of luck.”

  Peg knocked on the door and poked her head into the room. “Cook fixed my lady something to tempt her appetite.”

  “Come in, Peg. I was just leaving. Make sure Lady Fleur cleans her plate; we don’t want her fainting from hunger. And then she’s to rest.”

  Reed placed a tender kiss on Fleur’s forehead and strode out the door.

  Lord Porter listened intently to Reed’s explanation of the past events and expressed his gratitude for Reed’s help in capturing the traitor and unmasking a spy. He assured Reed that Dempsey and Duvall would likely hang for their crimes. Reed invited Porter to his wedding two days hence and took his leave.

  The special license was easy to procure when one had the blunt to pay for it. In a surprisingly short time, Reed had the license tucked in his pocket, had arranged for a clergyman to perform the ceremony and was on his way to pay his grandmother a visit.

  Reed was ushered promptly into Grandmamma’s sitting room. She greeted him warmly, stretching her hand out to him. “Dear boy, you have sorely neglected me. Have you brought your fiancée? She and I were to plan your wedding.”

  Reed kissed his grandmother’s wrinkled cheek. Then he pulled up a chair and sat down beside her. “I have startling news to tell you, Grandmamma, some of it bad but most of it good.”

  The old lady eyed him warily. “Don’t keep me in suspense. What is it?”

  “Gallard Duvall hired thugs to kill me. He wanted the earldom. He failed and is now in custody. The man who betrayed me in France is also in custody. It’s over, Grandmamma. I can wed the woman I love and live happily ever after. My service to the Crown is finished. Henceforth, I will devote my life to my estate and my family.”