AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“He is in London?”
“Actually he is a resident of Newgate.”
Raine did not bother to hide her shock. “Newgate prison? You must be jesting.”
“I wish that I were.” A muscle twitched at the base of his jaw. “As irritating as I might occasionally find Jean-Pierre, he does not deserve this particular punishment.”
“What did he do?”
“He is accused of treason.”
Treason? She unconsciously stepped closer, her eyes wide with disbelief. “And you treat me as a criminal? I have done nothing more than take a handful of coins and jewels.”
His lips thinned, the green eyes so cold and hard that they sent a chill over her skin. “For once he is innocent of any crime. He is being used to punish my family by an old and nearly forgotten enemy. An enemy who realized that my brother was the most vulnerable and easily captured in his trap.”
It all sounded wildly improbable. A wealthy young gentleman of a good family accused of treason. A nefarious enemy from the past appearing and then mysteriously disappearing. Really, it sounded like something that Shakespeare might have invented.
But she couldn’t imagine that Philippe would make up such a tale. Not when it would involve his family in a scandal. His pride was nearly as inflated as his conceit.
“So you are here to rescue him?”
“If you are asking if I intend to charge the prison and set him free, then no. I am here to find some means to prove his innocence.”
She gave a short, humorless laugh. “No doubt a trifling matter for a man in your position. You can afford to convince any number of judges of your brother’s innocence.”
“Perhaps for any other crime, but not treason.” With a sudden movement he pushed away from the mantel and paced across the cramped room. “The king has always possessed a terror that he might be betrayed, and he cannot allow anyone to be seen as being forgiven for such a crime. It might give others the notion that he approves of sedition. If I do not find the means of clearing Jean-Pierre he will be sacrificed as an example to all.”
Raine bit her lip. Her heart was far too tender not to be touched by the idea of any young man being held in prison and confronting the thought of his own death.
He must be so terrified, so sick at heart, as he was forced to wait for his brother to find some means to free him.
Still, she was not about to forget that this gentleman holding her captive did not possess her own compassion.
“So you are anxious to keep your brother from the hangman?” she said.
He turned to face her. “Of course.”
“Just as I was anxious to keep my father from the hangman.”
He studied her for a long moment before the hard features slowly softened and that wicked smile began to play at his mouth. With a deliberate motion he moved to stand directly before her.
“Ah, but I have yet to break the law to do so,” he murmured. “And more important, I have yet to be foolish enough to allow myself to be captured.”
Instinct told her to back away. Even innocent young women understood that it was important to keep a distance between themselves and hardened rakes. Especially when they were already far too attracted to that rake.
Philippe, however, was not alone in possessing his fair share of pride, and the thought of cowering away was enough to make her spine stiffen.
“And what have you done to rescue your brother?” she scoffed. “Kidnapped a harmless woman as you travel to your fancy town house?”
“I have managed to use some of my influence to have Jean-Pierre placed in a private cell and hired a dozen solicitors to keep the trial postponed.” His fingers reached to trace down the curve of her neck. Tiny sparks of heat followed the trail of his knowing fingers, sending a rash of alarm through Raine. “And you were kidnapped because I hoped you would have information of my enemy traveling the roads.”
r /> She swallowed heavily. “That is not why you kept me.”
“No.” His eyes lost their icy glitter, warming and darkening to the deepest jade. “That is not why I kept you.”
Raine felt as if a spell was being woven around her. And perhaps it was. Why else would the air suddenly feel so thick that it was difficult to breathe? Why else would her wits be so clouded she could barely think? And why else would her body begin to ache in a manner that was indecent?
“Philippe?”
