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Sara looked her over. “I have never seen you up close. My, but I quite see why Godwin is so taken with you. Stunning creature…such violet eyes and beautiful red hair. You should do very well where you are going,” Sara said slowly. “There on the hearthrug you made quite a picture. If you hadn’t caused me such trouble, I might have wanted to…pleasure myself with you.”
Heather gasped, absolutely shocked at this.
Sara laughed. “However, I can see you have the heart of an innocent though you play the slut with my husband,” her ladyship sneered at her.
Heather did not know how she got the courage to stand tall and put up her chin. “Ah, and you play the innocent without heart while you are in fact a slut,” Heather enraged, snapped back.
Sara’s eyes flashed and she raised a hand as she moved in. Heather stood her ground and said, “I wouldn’t if I were you. I’m not so missish that I wouldn’t think twice about defending myself.”
Sara accepted the threat with narrowed eyes and controlled herself. Instead, she moved around the cottage and wore an expression of disgust.
“So this is where you two play house,” Sara said.
“What do you want?” Heather asked.
“I want my husband to remain my husband, what do you think I want?” Sara snapped.
“Why? You don’t love him,” Heather answered easily.
“No, and still I want the protection of his name and title. Did you think I would sit idly by and allow him to divorce me?” Sara answered quietly.
“I don’t have the power to give him to you. I have been trying to deter him from such a plan,” Heather answered softly, more sure than ever that she and Godwin were right to love one another. This woman was evil!
“Really? Should I be touched? Well, I am not. You underestimate your power over him. You underestimate me!” Sara said coldly. She opened the leather pouch she held in her gloved hand.
Heather watched, fascinated, to see Sara move to the desk and set quill and an inkwell in its place. What was she doing? What was Lady Ravensbury doing? If only Godwin would return from his business and appear.
Sara stared at her and quietly said, “Are you stalling? He won’t arrive in time, you know. I have planned this very carefully.” She made a grand gesture and said, “There, Miss Martin, please be seated and I will tell you what you are to write.”
“Write? What are you talking about?” Heather had a sinking feeling.
“I am talking about you saving Godwin’s life. You will sit and write what I tell you, for his life depends on it,” Sara snapped.
Heather closed her eyes. She knew this woman was capable of anything. When she opened her eyes, she stalled. “Who am I writing to?”
“You dimwit. What can he see in you aside from your youthful beauty, and that will fade in time.” Sara shook her head. “You will sit and you will write to Godwin, of course.”
“To Godwin?” Heather still did not sit as she had been bidden. Perhaps Godwin would arrive now—soon? He would see the smoke in the sky from the country road on his way home. He would know she was there and wonder at it. He would come. He had to come.
She had to stall this madwoman. “What would you have me write to Godwin?”
“Tell him you are leaving. Tell him you cannot bring shame to his household, that you never want to see him again…sit, write,” Sara insisted.
Heather eyed her and chose her words slowly. “That is a lie. He would know that I would never tell him such a thing in a letter. He would not believe it. I will not write such a thing to him.”
“Ah, very well. You are reluctant to do as I ask…so come here to the window,” Sara urged. “It is time you learned to what lengths I mean to go.”
Heather refused to budge, still stalling for time, still hoping for Godwin to appear.
Sara made an impatient sound and exclaimed, “For pity’s sake…come now to the window.”
“Why?”
“I want to show you what is at stake here,” Sara said grimly. When Heather still did not move, Sara clucked her tongue. “For Godwin’s sake…come look out the window!”
Heather did as she was bid and looked out with great misgiving at the two men on horseback not far from her cottage door.
“Those two men are here for a reason. Do you know what that reason is?” Sara said, and her eyes glinted with hatred, a hatred so deep Heather felt as though she had been slapped.
