“No, it will be tonight,” Redfield insisted. “I want this done and over with.”
“But…” Violet cast around for any excuse that might give James more time to find her. “I am exhausted from the trip. I have not bathed. I am not fit for a ceremony!”
“That is why I’m giving you several hours,” Redfield explained, looking displeased with her reaction. He turned to her father, scowling. “Is this the kind of wife I’ll have? A girl who talks back and questions my decisions? You assured me she was docile, Crampton.”
“She is docile,” Jebediah snarled, giving Violet a malevolent look. “And I agree with you, My Lord. It’s better if we move as quickly as possible. The Duke of Attorton may have signed the papers without any fuss, but I do not trust him. It is possible that he is on the way here even now.”
“He doesn’t know where we are,” Violet hissed, her voice high-pitched with fear. “He suspected nothing when I asked for the annulment, and as far as he knows, I’m at my sister’s house.”
“Be silent,” Redfield snapped. “This isn’t your decision. We have everything we need, yes? You have procured the special license?”
“Yes.” Jebediah nodded. “But before the wedding, I want assurance that you have the documents ready for me. I’d like to see them.”
Redfield looked at him with surprise. “I said I’d have the documents ready. My word should be enough.”
“I think you can understand why I’m eager to see them, Redfield. My future depends on them.”
“You’ll have them after the ceremony,” Redfield snapped. “And now that you are no longer my equal, you will refer to me asMy Lord. Or have you forgotten that you are no longer a peer of the realm?”
The look on Jebediah’s face was so incensed that Violet couldn’t help but feel a little awed by Redfield’s audacity to stare back at her father without so much as blinking. The two of them seemed to be in some kind of power game, neither wanting to give in. But at last, her father’s expression became neutral, and he nodded curtly.
“As you wish,” he muttered.
“As you wish…?” Redfield waved his hand as if expecting more.
Jebediah gritted his teeth. “As you wish,My Lord. I will inform the vicar that the ceremony will be held in a few hours. He has already told me that he is at our disposal whenever we need him.”
“Good,” Redfield said, smiling silkily. “Now, I have rooms for you upstairs. Go, both of you, and bathe and change for the ceremony.” He looked Violet up and down. “I will not have my bride smelling bad. I expect you to look magnificent, my dear. This may be a quick wedding, but I am still a viscount, and I expect my wife to look the part.”
Violet said nothing. Without a word, she turned and followed her father out of the room. The moment the door was closed, he began to curse in a low voice.
“That weasel,” he snarled. “He told me I would receive my payment ahead of the wedding and that I would be able to see the documents ahead of time.”
“What is a few hours?” Violet snapped. “You will still have the money and the documents in a few hours.”
“A few hours make all the difference to someone in my position,” her father said. “The authorities are after me, unless you haven’t noticed. Every hour, they get closer. I can feel them on my tail. And I want to begin making preparations for my trip. I can only do so once I have the money.”
“Maybe Redfield hopes you’ll get caught,” she snorted without thinking as she began to climb up the stairs. “Perhaps he hopes you will be arrested so that he doesn’t have to pay you the sum he promised.”
Her father was quiet as he climbed up the stairs behind her. At the top, a maid showed them to their rooms—they were adjoining single rooms, small and almost empty except for rickety single beds.
“You brought a gown, I assume?” Jebediah asked as he looked around her tiny room.
“Of course, I did.”
“Good. Because you heard Redfield—you need to look the part. Bathe and make sure you look presentable before you come back downstairs. I don’t want to give him any excuse to double-cross me.”
“How am I supposed to be presentable without a lady’s maid to help me with my hair and to iron my gown?” she argued, her mind suddenly beginning to race.
“How am I supposed to know? I know nothing about how ladies beautify themselves.”
“They do it with the help of maids!” Violet exclaimed. “And unless you want Redfield to say you sold him defunct goods, you better go and find me one who can make me look beautiful in thenext few hours.” She glared at him. “I don’t want to give him any excuse to double-cross you either. The sooner you are gone from my life, the better.”
“Fine,” Jebediah snapped, and he slammed the door on his way out.
The moment he was gone, Violet took a deep, steadying breath.
Please, God, let this maid be a brave girl, someone who will help me,she silently prayed.And please, let James find me.
