“You, sir, are no gentleman,” Redfield said, his expression disgusted. “You should apologize to us right now, and the lady herself, for speaking that way about her.”
“She was no lady,” Thistlewood sneered, “so I’ll speak about her as I want. Anyway, that’s quite rich, coming from a man of your reputation.”
Grove had to grab the back of Redfield’s collar to keep him from leaping at Thistlewood, but Nathan had stopped listening.It’s her! She’s here!He had no idea why or how, but as he turned and scanned the casino, he felt as if every nerve in his body were on fire. He had to save her before it was too late.
Lord Cain opened the door for her, and Rosalie went inside. It was a small bedroom, richly furnished with fabrics of satin and velvet in reds and yellows. The door closed behind her, and Rosalie’s throat went dry. She turned slowly. Lord Cain was watching her. She drew herself up.
“Now, we can talk,” he said.
She nodded and took a step toward him. “I’m not agreeing to go away with you.”
He smiled slowly. “We’ll see about that.”
“Show me first,” she murmured. “Show me why I should go with you.”
His eyebrows went up. “What do you mean?”
She swallowed and forced herself to be brave. “Kiss me.”
For a moment, he looked as if he could hardly believe her. Then he crossed the room in two long strides and took her in his arms. She closed her eyes and let him draw her closer. Every single inch of her revolted against his touch, but she didn’t dare pull away. Instead, she brought her hands together at the back of his neck and slipped her fingers into the cuff at her wrist.
Lord Cain’s mouth was so close to hers that it was difficult for her not to pull back in disgust. His breath smelled rancid, and she felt for a moment like she might be sick. But she forced herself to focus. Just a second more…
Her fingers found the blade.
His lips lowered toward hers, and as revulsion spread through her, the blade came loose from her cuff. Triumph surged inside of her, and then she pressed the small blade into the side of Lord Cain’s neck.
Immediately, he froze. She pulled back so that her lips were as far from his as possible while keeping the knife at his throat, and she smiled up into his shocked and horrified face.
“What are you doing?” he whispered.
“What I should have done a long time ago.” She raised her voice. “Violet, Iris, you can come in now.”
The door banged open, and her sisters burst inside, both wielding their own small knives. Rosalie couldn’t help but laugh when she saw them. Her sisters looked so fierce and so wonderful. She had never seen a sight she loved more.
Iris turned and slammed the door shut then locked it.
“You’ve got him?” Violet asked as she began to pull the ribbons from her hair.
“I’ve got him,” Rosalie said, and she pressed the blade a little deeper into his neck. “And he’s not going anywhere.”
“They went in there,” the footman said, pointing nervously at the door at the far end of the corridor. “Lord Cain gave me a few pennies and told me not to disturb him.”
“Thank you,” Grove said. He had drawn his pistol as had Nathan although Nathan was too agitated to try and speak. “Now you best get out of here,” Grove told the footman.
The footman took one look at the guns and then scampered away.
“Stay here,” Grove said to the other officers, who were gathered behind them. “Make sure that Rilkin doesn’t try to ambush us.”
He then nodded to Nathan and Redfield, and the three of them began to creep along the corridor. As they approached the last door, they heard noises coming from inside of it: bangs, groans, and heavy breathing. Nathan’s heart was pounding in his throat. He thought he might be sick.
Grove and Redfield positioned themselves on either side of the door while Nathan got ready to knock it down. Grove looked at him and mouthed,“Three… Two… One!”
Nathan threw himself at the door with all his strength and in one go, it came clean off its hinges and fell forward, crashing to the ground.
Someone inside screamed, someone else yelled out a muffled cry, and Nathan leapt into the room, his gun raised high.
Then he lowered it again as inside, he was met with one of the strangest sights he’d ever seen.
