by Nancy Wells
“He never came,” she said gloomily.
Margaret did not say anything after that. She lay beside her on the bed and stared at the same ceiling. The only sounds in the room were coming from outside. Both sisters were silent. They were both sad for the same reason. Isabella’s heart was crushed which in return crushed Margaret’s heart. In a way, they were both sad due to the same person.
“Do you think he is making fun of me?” Isabella asked. “Can it be possible that he visits other girls too?”
A tear leaked from her eyes when she imagined him with another woman. The mere thought of him with another woman was causing her agonizing pain. She felt pathetic, thinking about a man who was sleeping in someone else’s bed at the moment.
“Bella, you should not think like that,” Margaret whispered.
It was the only thought she could think of. She hated to think that his golden hair would be touched by someone else. She had wanted to touch his face, hair or any other part of his body, but he had held her hands above her head, making her immobile.
“I will go mad with worry.”
He never promised her that she was the only woman he would ever touch, yet she felt possessive over him. She had no right to claim him as hers, yet her heart rebelled when she pictured him in the arms of another woman.
“You need a distraction,” Margaret said, sitting straight up in the bed. “We should visit the market. Buy some new hats and ribbons.”
Margaret was pulling her by her arms, but she was not budging from her spot. She groaned, expressing her displeasure at the notion of leaving her bed. She had no desire to face the world when everything felt bland and dull.
“I have no desire to leave this room.”
Margaret ignored her complaints and pulled her again with all her might. She was dragged slightly on the bed, but she moved back to her spot as soon as her sister got tired. She was being stubborn. Any other day, she would have accompanied her sister to any corner of the world, but not today. Today, she wanted to curse the whole world to oblivion because she had been dumped by a man she loved with all her heart.
“You can either come willingly or I can pull you by your hair,” Margaret warned.
When she did not react to her warning, Margaret pulled her by her hair. She winced, but her sister did not take mercy on her. She pulled her until she was forced to abandon her bed and stand on the floor.
“You are an awful sister,” she said, rubbing her scalp.
Margaret marched to her closet and pulled out her red cape along with a simple dress. Inspecting them for a few seconds, she threw them at her face.
“You love me nonetheless,” Margaret said smugly.
She changed into her dress begrudgingly. Margaret was right. No matter what happened, her love for her sister could never diminish. Her mother had Philip to share all her worries and she had her sister for unburdening her soul, seeking counsel, and complaining about everything wrong in her life.
SHE WAS NOT PAYING attention to anything in the market. Her mind was miles away, thinking about him. She had justified his reasons for breaking his promise in her own head with different excuses. She knew she was most probably wrong, but she was not strong enough to believe that he had abandoned her for someone else.
Margaret showed her a purple hat, asking her opinion on the quality. She nodded her head without feeling the material of the hat. She looked around at the crowded market, wishing to have a glimpse of him in this place. She would have visited his house if she knew where he lived.
Her obsession had made her so delusional that she thought she saw him standing with another man in the market and then after a few more moments, she saw him again, walking in the crowd. She saw his golden hair from some distance in the crowd. It was not possible to spot one person in two different places at the same time, but it would appear, her mind had stopped conjuring rational thoughts.
Ignoring everything else, she followed him at a safe distance. Margaret, Philip, and the maids were lost in the crowd, but she did not care. Her concentration was fixed on the man who was most probably making a fool out of her, but her heart yearned for him, nonetheless.
She hid behind a building when she saw him meeting a woman. She was dressed like nobility with an hourglass figure. Isabella looked down at her small chest and then at the lady’s large breasts. Her heart fell when she realized he was favored by far more beautiful women than her. She should run away from there, leaving him alone in the deserted alleyway with the voluptuous woman, but her legs had stopped working. She was rooted in one place, witnessing his betrayal.
She bit on her palm to muffle her voice when she saw him kissing the woman. The woman’s hands went to his coat and he did not stop her. He had never let her touch him, yet this woman was allowed to undress him. The noble lady meant more to him than her.
“You want me to take you in this abandoned street where no one can hear you screaming when I pierce your entrance with my large penis.”
Isabella closed her eyes for a few moments, holding her palms to her ears to silence the crude words coming out of his mouth. She was not strong enough to hear his traitorous words.
When she opened her eyes again and took another look at the couple, her world came crashing down around her. The woman was kneeling on all fours, her chest bare, with her skirts bunched around her waist. He was holding a riding crop and standing behind the woman in only his breeches. He raised the crop in the air and brought it down on the raised bottom of the woman. Instead of screaming in pain, she moaned in pleasure and asked for more.
Isabella slid against the wall, silently crying, all the while listening to the slapping sound of the crop hitting the woman’s buttocks, the shameless moans of the woman, and his words of encouragement. He was enjoying inflicting pain on the woman, which was evident from the bulge in his breeches. She could not believe that she had fallen for a scoundrel. She tried to avert her eyes but was not strong enough to look away from him. Her love for him had surpassed such boundaries that she wished to replace that woman. She wanted to be the one who brought him pleasure even if it meant he would hurt her with the implement he was holding.
Her resolve broke when she saw him kneeling behind the woman. He lowered his breeches and pushed his manhood inside the woman in one rough thrust. She stood up from her spot, wiped her tears and rounded the corner.
She stood before him, letting him know of her presence. She had expected him to feel ashamed and apologize for his betrayal, but he did no such thing. He smirked at her and increased the ferocity of his thrusts, humiliating her before a wanton woman, letting her know of her value in his life.
“You are welcome to join us, sweetheart,” he winked.
She had not intended to cause him bodily harm, but his vile behavior made her run towards the bastard who had made a fool of her. The woman shrieked and rolled to the side when she saw her running towards them like a lunatic. He held his palms in the air, asking her to slow down, but she was not hearing anything.
“I did not mean that, madam,” he said. “I apologize for suggesting that.”
She tackled him to the ground and rained down her fury in the form of a stinging slap to his face. She pulled him by his hair, yelling at him for breaking her heart while he held his hands before his face in a protective gesture. He could overpower her easily, but oddly, he did no such thing.
“Who are you, madam?” he asked in confusion.
It made her more riled up. He had the audacity to ask her that question after the way he made promises to visit her chamber last night? She had waited for him all night while he was most probably gallivanting around the town from the door of one debauched woman to another.
“I am the girl whose bedchamber you were supposed to visit last night,” she screeched.
Her outburst made him further bewildered. He got a puzzled look in his eyes which made her suspect that either he was an extremely good actor, or she had been flirting with a madman.
“I beg you
r pardon?” he asked.
Russell was standing in the market, talking to an informant about their current case when he saw her following his brother. The market was so crowded he lost sight of her after a few seconds. It took him a long time to finally reach her, but he was too late. She had already witnessed his brother with one of his many dalliances. Before he could stop her, she had run like an avenging angel towards his brother.
He was dumbstruck at the amount of hurt he saw on her face. She cared for him as much as he cared for her. There was not an ounce of suspicion left in his mind that would suggest she had kept her window closed last night. She had waited for him all night long.
“Do I still sound like a Siren to you?”
He should stop her from beating his brother, but he was enjoying the scene. He wanted to see her devotion to their budding romance. He was not going to waste time and let her endure the company of Lord Harley anymore. He was going to make her his and keep her for eternity. He wanted a life with this deranged woman who was beating the crap out of his brother.
“I am not sure you want me to answer that question,” Shane said.
Leave it to his brother to respond even when his answer was not mandatory. He knew it would rile her up, yet he made the unnecessary comment. As was expected, she shook his brother violently and slapped him hard across his face once again.
“What had I ever done to you?” she yelled.
Russell was enjoying the scene unfolding before him when all of a sudden, a small ball of fury ran past him. Before the small bundle of energy, wrapped in blue frocks, could reach and give aid to his brother, his hand shot out and he grabbed her by her waist. He assumed it was one of the many women his brother was sleeping with.
“Easy there, love,” he said. “The man can handle himself.”
“Let go of me,” the angry girl said, thrashing in his hold to get free. “Bella needs me. I have to beat the stupid pirate who hurt my sister.”
The angry packet of energy in his hold was going to murder his brother if he let her go. She had called him a pirate, which meant she already knew the reason for her sister’s anger. Apparently, he had riled up two sisters instead of one.
Russell started to laugh. Luck was not on Shane’s side. His brother had dalliances with so many women, yet there was no one who was saving him from his Siren and her sister. The woman who was with him a few moments ago had fled the scene, leaving his brother to his fate. If Shane wanted what was best for him, he should sever ties with all these women.
“She is thrashing the wrong man, little one.”
The sister turned her head around. She looked from him to his brother, back and forth, trying to wrap her mind around the situation. He released his hold on her when she settled down. She was a clever one. It did not take her long to realize that he had a twin brother.
The girl raised her brow, silently asking him his reasons for not intervening. He rolled his eyes, took a deep breath and announced his presence to everyone present at the moment.
“Is your virtue in need of saving from a lady, Shane?”
Isabella would recognize his voice anywhere in the world. His voice wrapped around her body and made her feel a tingling sensation in her belly.
His voice should have come from the man lying beneath her, but oddly, it came from behind her. She whipped her head around towards the source of the voice and found him standing with a smug look on his face. Margaret was standing to his side, giggling at her. She looked down at the man beneath her and then at the one standing behind her. They were the mirror image of one another.
“I should have known,” Shane said angrily. “You are responsible for interrupting my good time. Son of a whore, you filthy rascal.”
Isabella jumped back from the man who had become victim to her violence. He sat up straight, glaring at his brother. Apparently, her secret admirer had a twin brother, who was cursing his brother to rot in Hell and a few other places that she had no inkling about. He was spitting obscenities at his brother without pausing to take a breath.
“Language, Brother,” Russell said, putting his hands around Margaret’s ears. “Impressionable minds could catch your words.”
She was bewildered at his response. He was more concerned about his brother’s choice of words before a young maiden than about his brother’s state of undress. She picked up the linen shirt lying nearby and held it out to his brother.
“Here,” she said.
Shane took the shirt from her hands with unexpected gratitude and smiled at her. She had expected to hear a few colorful words directed at her too, but his brother was a strange person. He was cursing his brother but held no grudge against the woman who assaulted him a few moments ago.
“I believe there is no need for further introduction between us,” Shane said, lips twitching. “You are already acquainted with me… quite intimately, I might add.”
Her cheeks became crimson. She had seen more of him than she was comfortable with. She had seen his bare torso and a glimpse of his manhood, which could ruin her reputation if someone got wind of this.
She was saved from further humiliation by the arrival of Philip and the maids. Philip looked at the sisters, concern and worry evident in his eyes.
“What happened here?” Philip asked.
It was her good fortune that the only people who witnessed her straddling a strange man were her sister and Russell. Margaret was already privy to her dalliance with Russell. She only hoped that his brother would not shame her before her servants.
“My brother was attacked by ruffians and this valiant lady saved his life,” Russell said.
Margaret was giggling constantly while he was trying his best to keep a stoic face. She looked at his brother, praying he would not contradict his words. If Shane told them she had found him with his breeches down, tupping a woman in the alleyway, she would be ruined. She would be a target of mockery at every gathering.
“Yes, apparently, the ruffians were after my coat,” Shane said dryly. “If it were not for this brave lady, they would have succeeded in their nefarious agenda.”
Philip did not seem convinced. He gave them a disapproving glare, ignoring the brothers. Taking the hint, the sisters followed their servant and maids to the carriage. Without speaking a word, Philip had chastised the sisters, which was nothing compared to what they were going to hear from their mother. Philip did not hide anything from their mother. He was going to rat them out as soon as they stepped foot in the house.
When the brothers were left alone in the alleyway, Shane whistled. It was the first time a woman had behaved obsessive over Russell. Usually, it was only Shane who was followed by a jealous husband or a scorned lover.
“Who was that sugary morsel, Brother?” Shane asked.
Russell was used to his brother’s crude words for the fairer sex, but he did not appreciate it when his Siren was included among one of the thousand faceless women. She was special to him. He knew he was getting possessive over a girl who had promised him nothing, but he had no control over his heart’s desires.
“Show some respect, Shane. That was your future sister-in-law.”
Shane stared at him wide-eyed for a long time and then burst out laughing, but Russell did not join him. He remained silent as a statue, glaring at Shane for mocking him.
“Tell me you are jesting, Brother,” Shane said, holding his tummy while laughing loudly.
“I am not,” Russell deadpanned.
He was getting angry because his brother did not believe him. Why was it difficult for Shane to believe that he could fall for someone? Like any other warm-blooded person, he had a beating heart in his chest too.
“How much do you know about this girl?” Shane asked. “About her family?”
He knew nothing about her family except a little sister who seemed a bit mad to him. He could get used to living around her sister, who for some odd reason reminded him of his own brother. Maybe it was her overprotectiveness for her sister that made him like
her at their first meeting or maybe it was her association with the woman he desired that made her so special.
“It does not matter to me. I am interested in the girl, not in her family.”
“Well, well, well… Look at that. How the mighty have fallen.”
Russell rolled his eyes, exasperated with his brother’s theatrics. Shane had a knack for making fun of everything and everyone, which was acceptable to him as long as those people did not include her.
“Yes, I care for her. That is why you are not allowed to compare her to one of the million women that follow you around like a lost puppy.”
He would not stand to the side if his brother talked about her in the same manner as the ladies who were unfaithful to their husbands and slept with a scoundrel like his brother. She was off limits to everyone except him.
“I would not dream of it,” Shane said dryly. “I have no intention of dying at my brother’s hands.”
Russell was aware that if he did not put a stop to their discussion, his brother would not cease to talk about his love life. He knew he loved her, but he wanted to declare that to her before anyone else got wind of it.
“Enough with the theatrics, Brother. We are still on duty. We have a crime lord to find.”
Russell picked up his brother’s coat and threw it at his face unceremoniously. They left the alleyway, talking about their plans for trapping the criminal. They were both skilled at their jobs and that was why they were both assigned the most difficult cases. The criminal had eluded the authorities for a long time, but they were getting close to him now. It was only a matter of days before the man was hanging from a noose.
Chapter 5
Isabella and Margaret were both scolded by their mother for running around in the marketplace and then sent to their rooms. They were ladies and were supposed to act like one. Both sisters listened to their mother, heads bowed without making a sound. They were both trying to keep a straight face, acting obediently because they knew if their mother suspected foul play, she would not rest until they had spilled their guts about Isabella’s scandalous dalliance with Russell.
