Bought for Revenge(7)

Suddenly she was uncomfortable being here alone with him. The gloom and  stillness were unnerving. She shivered and a few droplets of hot wax  dripped on to her hand, making her gasp.

'Here, let me hold that.' He took the candlestick from her, his fingers  brushing her skin and causing her to suppress another shiver, this time  at the shock of his touch. She began to chatter to cover her  nervousness.

'This was painted just before the manor burned down. It is one of my father's most prized possessions.'

To her relief he turned his attention again to the painting.

'It is a good likeness.'

'Is it? I have never seen another painting of the manor, so I cannot tell you.'

'Who is the artist?'

'I do not know … '

'There is a signature.' He held the candles closer and she peered at the faint scrawl.

'I have never thought to look before … M.M.B … '

'Maria Blackstone.'

She blinked. 'Blackstone was the name of the family who lived there. Look-' she pointed '-there is a small figure on the lawn.'

'Yes, I see it. A tiny detail, easily missed.'

She leaned closer. The painting had been on the wall for as long as she could remember and she had not studied it for years.

'It is a little boy, I think. I wonder who-'

'Shall we go?'

His tone indicated that his interest was at an end. At the top of the  stairs he put a hand beneath her elbow. Startled, she looked up and  their eyes locked. His were black, unfathomable, yet she sensed danger  and her breath caught in her throat. Panic gripped her, setting her  heart thudding wildly, and the blood pounded so loudly in her ears that  she was sure he would hear it in the gloomy stillness.

Annabelle swallowed nervously. She was being fanciful and foolish beyond  permission. Straightening her shoulders, she moved away from him and  began the descent, although she kept one hand lightly on the banister in  case her shaking legs failed to support her.

Back in the drawing room, the tea tray had arrived.

'It is a few miles to the Red Lion,' explained Samuel as they came in.  'I know you will want to get back while the moon is still high.'

'I will indeed, sir.' Lucas replied. He noted Annabelle's tense  countenance and could not resist teasing her, saying quietly, 'Patience,  Miss Havenham. Your ordeal will soon be over.'

Her brows rose and she muttered with icy politeness, 'It is no ordeal, sir, I assure you.'

'What thought you of the picture?' Samuel enquired, unaware of the interchange.                       
       
           



       

'Very interesting, sir.'

Samuel nodded. 'It is an accurate representation of the way the manor  used to be. Feel free to call again and look at it whenever you wish.  Bring your architect, he may want to copy the detail.'

Lucas felt a smile tugging at his mouth when he saw the flicker of alarm in Annabelle's eyes.

'I am not employing an architect, Mr Havenham,' he said. 'I have drawn up my own plans for the builder.'

'Such a lot of work,' sighed Samuel. 'The place has been sadly neglected. I always intended to do something about it, but … '

He trailed off and Lucas said cheerfully, 'I do not despair of returning  it to its former glory. The house is already under way and I have made a  start on taming the wilderness that was once the park.'

'I wish you good fortune, then, Mr Monserrat. If we can help in any way,  you only have to ask. In fact … ' Samuel straightened in his chair ' … if  anyone knows the lie of the land it is Belle. She grew up playing in  those woods and grounds.'

'Oh, no, Papa. I am sure Mr Monserrat would be better advised to study a map.'

'Nonsense, my love, you know every dell, every spring and stream at Morwood.'

'But surely you could be more helpful to him, Papa,' she persisted.  'After all, you remember the house and grounds as they were before the  fire. You have not yet given up your horses, a gentle ride would be good  for you.'

A strange look came over Samuel's face. Fear? Revulsion? Lucas could not  decide, but a definite tremor ran through the old man as he shook his  head.

'No, my dear,' he said quietly. 'I do not care to ride there any more.'

'I would be honoured if Miss Havenham would give me the benefit of her  knowledge,' said Lucas. 'Perhaps, ma'am, you would ride out with me one  day and show me these, er, streams and dells.'

'An excellent idea,' put in his host, rousing himself once more. 'And  you should do it soon, while the weather holds. What about tomorrow,  sir?'

'Papa, I do not think-'

Samuel was so caught up in his own thoughts that he did not hear her.

'Yes, if you are free, Monserrat, I think tomorrow would be most  convenient. I know Belle intended to spend the day at home, but Dr  Bennett is coming over to play chess with me in the afternoon, and it is  very dull work for a young lady to be sitting with two such elderly  gentlemen when she would much rather be roaming free over the fields,  what?'

Annabelle opened her mouth and closed it again. Her father had anticipated every objection. Lucas rose.

'Then it is settled.'

Lucas came towards her, smiling with unholy amusement at her consternation.

'I must be going. I shall call for you tomorrow, Miss Havenham.' His  back was to his host and he added quietly, 'It seems you are not rid of  me quite so easily.'

She bit her lip before replying with much feeling, 'Nothing about you is easy, Mr Monserrat.'

Apollo was fresh. The big grey sidled and sidestepped playfully when  Annabelle rode away from Oakenroyd, and she was glad that she could give  her attention to controlling her mount and did not have to make  conversation with the man who rode beside her, mounted on a hunter of  equal size and strength to Apollo.

'I am somewhat surprised you agreed to ride out with me, Miss Havenham.'

'I did not choose to do so.'

'If you really did not wish to come, you could have told your father the truth about our first meeting.'

Apollo took exception to a wood pigeon flying out of the hedgerow and she quietened him before making her reply.

'That would upset him and he would be obliged to cut your acquaintance. I  would not have him on bad terms with a neighbour.' She glanced behind  her. 'And as you see, I have Clegg with me today.'

'You would be quite safe, even if you had not brought your groom.'

His tone was perfectly sincere, but Annabelle had not forgotten his  insolent manner, nor the hard looks he had given her when she had come  upon him at Morwood.

'Perhaps,' she said coldly. 'I would rather not put it to the test.'

'I can see I have some work to do to gain your good opinion, Miss Havenham.'

'A great deal,' she retorted.

'But you will allow me to try?'

'That implies good behaviour does not come naturally to you.'

'Of course not. I was in the army for fifteen years and they teach one  discipline, but not society manners. Pray allow this boorish soldier a  chance to redeem himself.'

He smiled, softening the harsh features. The dangerous look in his eyes  disappeared, replaced by something warmer, an invitation to share his  amusement. Annabelle was shaken by the transformation and had a great  desire to smile back. Instead she looked away, not ready to capitulate.  She pointed to a nearby lane.                       
       
           



       

'If we turn in here, we can go across the moors and gallop the fidgets out of these horses.'

The exertion, the sensation of flying over the ground, did much to ease  the tension Annabelle was experiencing. They raced neck and neck along  the track that cut through the rough moorland. The gorse was coming into  bloom; in a few more weeks there would be huge splashes of brilliant  yellow dotted over the moors, contrasting sharply with the black, almost  lifeless heather that would turn first dark green, then purple as the  summer progressed. She felt at home here, free to roam, but the  approaching woods reminded her that her freedom was now curtailed. That  wall of trees was her boundary. The land surrounding Morwood Manor was  no longer hers to ride over as she wished. She tried not to be  downhearted. Her father still owned sufficient land for her to enjoy a  daily gallop. She must not be greedy.

They pulled up in the shadow of the trees and waited for Clegg to catch  up before joining the track that wound its way down through the woods to  Morwood. Annabelle saw immediately that changes were in progress. The  encroaching undergrowth had been cut back to make the path through the  woods once again wide enough for a carriage.

A laugh escaped her. 'It is like "Sleeping Beauty."'

'I beg your pardon?'

She had been so engrossed in her thoughts she had forgotten her companion. A self-conscious flush touched her cheeks.

'When the prince arrives and wakes the princess. The forest has been  growing around the castle for a hundred years and he has to hack his way  through the brambles.'

He looked around. 'Just five-and-twenty years has been enough to change the woods out of all recognition.'

They continued towards the house. Even before it was in sight, the sound  of hammering could be heard ringing on the breeze, along with snatches  of song from the workmen.