Page 106 of Scandalous

She turned the page.

“Madam Sonia had many slaves but Valerie and I became her most popular attraction. To say it now makes me sick. I shuld have refused—may be we both shuld have. But we were yung and skared and without any power. And to refuse wood only leed both of us to wurs things, and we both new it.

I don’t know how many men and women paid to sit in a darkened room and watch us, but Madam was nothing if not a good bisnesswoman. She whipped her buyers into a frenzy and drove our value to the roof before finally selling both of us to the hiest bidder: the Marquis d’Armand bot us.”

“That bastard!” Sarah startled at the curse word and bit her lip. She stared down at the page, the name swimming before her eyes and the hatred she’d felt in the park that morning now making sense. Why had nobody told her? How could a man like that even show his face in decent society?

She glared at the letter and resumed reading.

“The man I speak of was the current marquis’s father. D’Armand was notorius in New Orleans for his debachery and when Madam told me the marquis had bot me, I paniked. D’Armand sent men to take Valerie away furst—and I never saw her again. D’Armand was to take me, but I ran.

I wasn’t ignorant of what went on between men and boys at the brothel, Sarah, but I did not want to live my life that way, being given to whoever wood pay for me.”

“Oh, Martín,” she whispered, staring blindly at the pages before her.

“I tried to escape the very night I fownd out but I had no money, no nowledge of anything outside the doors of the brothel, no friends other than those trapped inside. I acted impulsively and it was beyond stupid.

The marquis lerned of the escape and must have baulked at the notion of purchasing such an untamed animal. To convince him, Madam drugged me and invited the marquis to sample me while I slept.”

“Oh God,” Sarah murmured, her head bowed. For the first time since she’d begun reading, she seriously considered stopping. Half an hour ago she’d believed Martín Bouchard to be an arrogant, confident, wealthy, beautiful man whom she loved and who did not love her in return.

And now?

Well, he was still all those things—especially arrogant—but he was also unspeakably damaged.

But he had written this letter to her. It showed he must hold her in some esteem—mustn’t he? Perhaps, just perhaps . . .

She picked up the pages.

“The old man wasn’t satisfied. He told Madam he wanted compliance, not drugged and sleeping. Madam told me I would have one last chance to please d’Armand. She then pointed out there were other buyers waiting behind him. I new what she meant. Ether way, I would end up kept by some man. I could not live that way, Sarah, do you understand me? I wood do anything to escape. Anything. And if I culd not escape, I wood rather die.”

Sarah’s eyes began to brim over, and she dashed her tears aside. She turned to the last page.

“I pretended my spirit had been broken, that I had axcepted my fate. The old man came for me wearing a sly smile and making witty comments about how much he had enjoyed our prior engagement but how he was looking forward to an eager participant.

When he came toward me I flung him away and told him I would not submit. He became enraged and came after me again. I pushed him back but he wood not stop coming at me. The last time I pushed him he stumbled and struck his head on a piece of furniture.

He did not get up.

So, you see, I killed him, Sarah. I did not mean to, but the fact is, I did. And I could not be sorry.”

Sarah bit her lower lip until it bled.

“I injured myself jumping from the bilding and alerted my captors in the process. It was then that I encowntered Lord Ramsay. You know how Hugh is, he can be stubborn. He wood not let them take me.

When Madam Sonia lerned what had happened in her own brothel, she was glad to be rid of me and to take his help. Ramsay arranged for the marquis’s body to be found in the reckage of his carriage—just another victim of the poor roads in the area.

The rest of the story you no. I became one of Hugh’s crew and worked my way up to have my own ship. With every year that passed I worried less and less about discovery. But the feer was always with me and I cannot say I was surprised when d’Armand showed up in London.

My past had finally cot up with me—just as I was hoping to leave it behind and start a new life with you, Sarah.”

Sarah stared at the letter, but saw Martín’s beautiful face. “Why didn’t you tell me all of this before? Why?” she whispered.

“D’Armand showed me that my dreem of marrying and settling down was foolish. There is no place for me in England, Sarah. And I knew you would never want to leave your family and the life you were bilding for yourself heer.”

“You idiot!” she yelled at the top of her lungs.

Feet thudded outside the sitting room, and the door flew open. Her uncles’ staid butler stood in the doorway.