“Catherine, how did I know? How did I know about the passage?”
“I don’t understand.”
He shook his head. “I didn’t know it existed. I didn’t know it was there.”
“How could you not know? Someone must have shown you.”
“No, no one has ever shown me.”
“The previous earl.”
“No.”
He sounded so certain, so sure.
“But you went right to it. You knew what you needed to do.”
“Only after you said we had nowhere to hide. Until that moment”—he pressed the heels of his hands against his brow—“dear God, my head. I feel like it’s trying to split in two.”
Breathing heavily, he dropped his head back. “I’ll have to worry about this later. Right now, we need to decide what to do with Avendale. And make sure the servants are safe.”
He stood up, fell to his knees. She crouched beside him. “Luke, you’re frightening me.”
He lifted his gaze to hers, cradled her face with his palm. “My courageous girl.” Leaning in, he kissed her.
When he drew back, she asked, “What are we going to do about Avendale?”
“Find a way to kill him—without either of us being sent to the gallows for doing it.”
“If that was your intent, why not just leave him in the fire?”
“Because I want his death to serve a purpose. I need him alive for that to happen.”
“I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”
“Do you trust me?”
“With my life.” Suddenly she was in his arms, shivering and crying, feeling like such a ninny but they were alive, Claybourne was alive, and that was all that mattered.
Chapter 19
Using strips torn from Catherine’s underskirt, Luke bound and gagged Avendale after taking great satisfaction in delivering a blow to the man’s jaw when he’d begun to stir. Luke was not of a mind to be gentle or forgiving. It didn’t help matters that his head had begun to pound mercilessly. He actually envied Avendale his unconscious state.
With great effort, he hoisted Avendale over his shoulder. With Catherine at his side, they began making their way back to the manor. No path marked the way, but the terrain wasn’t too rugged. The rain, however, had increased in intensity, but Luke didn’t mind. With any luck, it might reduce the fire’s damage to the manor.
“If the house were still burning, don’t you think we’d see fire in the distance?” Catherine asked.
“Yes. The servants and village’s fire brigade no doubt got it under control.”
“Your head’s bothering you, isn’t it?”
“I’ll be all right.”
“What are you going to do with Avendale tonight?”
“If the manor still stands, put him in the wine cellar. It has a door with a lock and a bar.”
“And after that?”
“You and I will return to London. I’ll come back for Avendale once I’ve made arrangements. Until then, my most trusted servants will keep him imprisoned and fed.”
“What will the arrangements entail?”
Groaning, he shook his head. “I can’t think clearly right now, Catherine.”
She wrapped her hand around his upper arm as though to steady him. “You’re in a great deal of pain.”
“It’s never been this bad.” It was all he could do to put one foot in front of the other. He was still baffled by how he knew about the passage, but concentrating only made his headache worse and he thought if it got much more painful that he might actually lose consciousness. Instead he focused on Catherine’s hand on his arm. He thought about her silky body beneath his and the pain eased a little. He concentrated on remembering how wonderful it had felt to sink into her. The pain in his head eased a little more, but he began to ache elsewhere.
Better to simply concentrate on walking.
Eventually they reached the manor. It appeared undamaged until they went around to the wing where the library had been. A portion had collapsed and little remained except charred remnants.
“My lord!” His butler rushed over. “We feared the worst.”
Claybourne dropped Avendale onto the ground. “What’s the damage?”
“We were fortunate. Only this wing sustained any real damage. The other wing and the main portion of the house are unscathed and habitable.”
“Good.” Luke stepped over what remained of the wall near the chimney that had withstood the assault. The secret door was gone. A gaping hole revealed the stairs leading down into the passage. “Were you aware this passage existed?”
“No, my lord,” the butler said. “I’m sorry. Where does it lead?”