The chief half-sagged, moaning and clutching the back of his head. Ash briefly glanced at Lila who held the poker aloft, ready to do more damage. Wherever she’d been hiding, she’d done a fine job of it.
He ducked to grab the gun, but he was side-swiped by Newton. The pain in his leg tore through him again as they crashed against the bannister. Lila screamed something, but he didn’t know what. Newton’s hands latched around his neck. He fought them, clawing at his hands while fighting for breaths.
Ash moved back on unsteady feet and swung at him. His fist connected with flesh and there was a crunch. Blood spurted from Newton’s nose. The hold on his neck released, and he went in again for another punch. They both fell back to the bannister and a creaking sound sent the hairs on the back of his neck on end. Wood gave way slowly, but neither of them were steady enough on their feet to move.
Suddenly the wooden struts ripped from the floor. Locked in battle, they both tilted as the bannister gave way. Ash had a brief image of what it would be like to meet the floor. They were three storeys up. He wouldn’t survive.
Another ripping sound and splinters spat up around him. Newton’s scream rang in his head. The bannister fell away and a thud sounded as it hit the floor. Newton spilled back, groping at Ash’s chest for purchase. He wavered there for a moment while Ash dug his fingers into the bannister at his side. Splinters cut into his palm and his balance was off. Their gazes met briefly before Newton fell. The chief was lost to the shadows, but he heard the thud of his body connecting with the floor.
He tried to right himself, but it was no good. His weak leg wouldn’t save him and the rest of the bannister was about to give way. Lila screamed. He hated his back was to her. If only he could see her face once...
Something tugged him back. He gripped the shredded bannister tighter. Lila, damn her. He’d take her with him. He forced all the strength he had into that one arm and ignored the movement of the wood as it began to buckle under his weight. Lila yanked him back and his feet slipped from beneath him. He fell to the floor, half of his body hanging over the precipice. He scrambled back with the help of Lila frantically tearing him toward her.
Rolling onto his back, he blew out a breath and stared up at Lila. She’d saved him.
“Oh God, your leg.” Her hands were all over him. He could hardly fathom where, they were just running up and down and then to his leg then all over his chest again. “Are you hurt anywhere else?”
His entire body hurt, but he just shook his head.
“Lila—” he hissed when she touched his leg “—I may need a surgeon.”
Her eyes were wide in the gloom. “Where will I find one?”
“You’ll have to go to the village.”
“I cannot leave you.”
“We need help, Lila.”
She tugged her bottom lip beneath her teeth and nodded. “I’ll find one.” She glanced at his leg. “Should we tie it up?”
He peered down at the blood coating his leg and nodded. “I think so.”
She moved into the bedroom and came back with his shirt. Twisting it into one long length, she wound it around his leg and pulled it tight. He couldn’t hold back a groan of pain.
“Forgive me.” She came over and kissed him on the forehead. “Don’t leave me, Ash,” she told him with only the slightest tremor to her voice. “I will be back soon.”
He nodded, his throat suddenly tight and dry. Lila hurried away and down the stairs. He considered the sight she’d be confronted with and wished she didn’t have to do this. But he’d used any strength he had left fighting Newton. Now all he could do was lie here and wait and pray he didn’t lose much more blood.
He stared at the ceiling, just able to make out the patterns sculpted onto it. The hallway began to grow lighter and his eyes kept threatening to droop. Though the pain in his leg remained, he distracted himself with thoughts of Lila and their lovemaking. Besides, he’d suffered pain many times before. This was easy to bear. Staying awake, however, was not, but he feared if he let himself, he might never wake again.
Eventually, the heaviness in his eyelids grew too much. He closed them, even knowing Lila would hate him for doing so.
“Ash!”
Behind the welcome darkness of his eyelids, a flicker of irritation ran through him. Couldn’t they see he was resting?
“Ash, you damned fool, open your eyes.”
Scowling, he dragged them open to find several faces hovering above him. He took his time in figuring out who they were. Jasper, Julian, Dante, Pierce. No Harris, though. Even Gideon had turned up for the occasion. He frowned at his youngest brother, more annoyed by his appearance somehow. He didn’t need his damned whelp of a brother interfering in his business.
Then he saw her. She pushed through his brothers as though they weren’t five strong, fully-grown men.
“Don’t you dare close your eyes, Ash Cynfell. The doctor is here.” She knelt beside him and peered up at the men. “Let him through then!”
If he’d have had enough energy he’d have been amused at her commanding his brothers, but relief at seeing Lila again made his body weary. The doctor came to his side, and Lila gave his hand a quick squeeze. She didn’t say anything, and he didn’t blame her with his brothers crowding around them. But he saw what she wanted to say in her eyes. She loved him. For her, he would have to live through this damned gunshot wound because he had a whole life of loving her ahead of him.
Epilogue
Lila helped Ash sit up in bed and offered him a glass of water. He took it and eyed her grumpily. Considering he was used to being bedridden with his headaches, he was a terrible patient.
She held back a yawn. They’d moved from the upper bedroom to one of the ones on the second floor. None of his brothers had questioned her remaining with him, and she doubted they would dare. As much as they tried to seem powerful and intimidating, they clearly cared deeply for each other and wanted Ash to heal quickly. If that meant her being at his side, they wouldn’t argue with that.
Unfortunately, Ash’s slowly healing wound meant he didn’t sleep very well and neither did she. She was looking forward to returning to London with him and setting up house properly once he was fully healed. A note had been sent on to her family to assure them of her safety, but there would be a lot of questions to field once she returned.
Lila sat on the chair beside the bed and shared a smile with Ash. A few questions would be nothing compared to what they’d been through.
“Julian says the police are continuing the investigation into the murders but that the chief appeared to be acting alone.” She shook her head. “He was a sick man.”
Ash snorted. “Sick and soulless.”
“At least he cannot hurt anyone again.”
“I regret that he killed Westerling. I regret I wasn’t there to stop it.”
She nodded. “I am sorry that man was killed. But if none of this had happened we might never have found out who this killer was. He could have continued killing and have hurt you and your brothers.” She leaned over and squeezed his hand. “And I would never have found you.”
He grinned. “There is that.” He shifted and winced. “Damn it, I can’t wait to be out of this bed and making love—”
“You bastard!”
Lila snapped her head around in the direction of the expletive to see her uncle, followed by several of her aunts and cousins filling the room. She stood, hands out to prevent her uncle from coming farther forward. Eyes wide, she took in the sight of what seemed like her entire family filling the room.
“Uncle...” she warned.
“You bastard.” He jabbed a finger at Ash, his round cheeks red and filled with rage. “You’ll pay for what you’ve done.”
“Uncle, he saved my life. I explained this in the letter.”
“We could have protected you. Now you’re ruined.”
Lila took a step back, unable to prevent a smile creeping across her face. She took Ash’s hand, and he grinned
back.
“No one could have protected me like Ash did, Uncle,” she said calmly.
“You’ll have to make this right, Cynfell,” he demanded. A ripple of agreement ran around the room. “You’ll have to marry her.”
Lila looked to Ash and his grin widened. Then he turned his attention to her family.
“Mr Radley, it would be an honour and a pleasure to marry your niece. I accept.”
Her uncle’s eyes grew so wide that she feared he might swoon. Her family erupted into conversation, but Lila could hardly make out who was saying what. And she didn’t care. Perhaps she hadn’t found her match as she’d intended. A background of murder and intrigue had been far from what she’d expected. But she knew what they’d been through had shown her the sort of man Ash Cynfell was far better than sharing a dance at a ball.
She leaned over and kissed him on the lips. “And I accept too.”
THE END
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Other Titles
Sinful Confessions (Free)
Sinful Deeds
Sinful Liaisons
Sinful Cravings
How to Marry a Rake in Ten Days
Christmas Seduction
Tempting His Mistress
Once Upon a Rake
Kissed at Midnight
About the Author
Samantha lives in a small village in England with her twin girls and a Dachshund called Duke. She has been writing for a living for over three years now and enjoys being able to use it as an excuse to wear pyjamas during the day. While the heroes in her books are very much fictional, she likes to draw inspiration from the history around her. Living near several wonderful castles, she can never fail to be inspired.
Sinful Possession (Cynfell Brothers Book 5) Page 12
