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“Yes, you little fool. I thank you for falling so neatly into my hands. My brother, eh? I shall look forward to hearing how you met Rafael. What a shock to hear that he is here in London and that he has you in tow.”
There were so many men about. She opened her mouth to scream, but Damien slammed his palm over her mouth, pulling her inexorably toward the curricle.
She began to fight him in earnest, kicking out as much as her narrow skirt would allow, flailing her arms wildly, her fingers trying to score his face. He was stronger than she had imagined. She was panting, trying to jerk away so she could call for help. She saw that men were staring, but they were making no move to assist her.
His arm about her waist tightened, squeezing the breath out of her.
Suddenly Victoria heard the most welcome sound in the world.
“Victoria! What the devil.”
It was Frances. She felt Damien’s hold loosen just a bit in his surprise, and she managed to jerk her mouth away from his hand.
“Help, Frances! Help me.”
Frances didn’t hesitate. She gracefully jumped down from the carriage. “Mullens,” she said, “your pistol, please.” She very calmly took the pistol from her driver’s nerveless hand.
Damien was trying desperately to haul Victoria into his curricle, no easy task since the seat was so high off the ground.
“Let her go,” said Frances, pointing the pistol. “I take it you are not Rafael Carstairs, but Baron Drago. Release her, sir, or I will shoot you.”
Damien felt immense rage, and frustration so mighty he wanted to do violence. He looked at the woman holding that damned gun, and shouted, “If you do, you will likely hit this little slut.”
“No, I am an excellent shot. You would look rather alarming without one ear. But at least in the future Victoria would know it was you immediately and not your brother. You have one second, Baron.”
Damien cursed, then, seeing no hope for it, shoved Victoria away from him, sending her sprawling to the muddy gutter. He climbed into his curricle and was gone in the next moment. He shouted over his shoulder, “I will see you again, Victoria.”
Frances, smiling slightly, handed the pistol back to Mullens. “Victoria, my dear, are you all right? Come, let me help you rise. Oh, dear, you are quite wet and filthy. No harm done. All is well now. I am dreadfully sorry that I wasn’t here sooner.”
Victoria forced herself to draw deep breaths, Frances’ easy flow of words soothing her. “Thank you, Frances,” she said, and rose. She stood there vaguely aware of all the people standing about gossiping about her, and none of them had done a thing to help! “I was a fool,” she said. “I thought it was Rafael.”
“I know. I did too, at first.” She chuckled as she helped Victoria into her carriage. “I couldn’t imagine what the good captain had done to make you so angry. And vice versa, I might add.”
She boosted Victoria into the carriage and said to the unmoving Mullens, “Lady Cranston’s, if you please. Come, Mullens, everything is fine now, don’t frown so, and you needn’t tell his lordship, though from your sour expression I would wager my next quarter’s allowance that you will do so.”
The carriage bowled forward. Frances, looking at Victoria’s white face, said, “I thought you’d rip the skin off his nose. You were splendid.”
“Yes,” Victoria said, slowly, “I was holding my own, wasn’t I?”
It was unfortunate, in both ladies’ opinion, that Rafael was waiting at Lucia’s town house.
Didier, unruffled, told them of that piece of news.
“Let us go upstairs,” Frances whispered to Victoria. “There’s no reason to draw fire.”
“Hurry, Frances.”
But they didn’t make it. Rafael, hearing the noise, emerged from the drawing room to see Victoria, wet and filthy as his original ragamuffin, held against Frances, who was nearly as frowsy.
“What the hell.”
“Good morning, Captain,” Frances said, all bland confidence. “If you will excuse us for a moment, we will be down again presently.”
“The devil you will. Victoria, what happened to you?”
Then he saw her eyes. Saw the fear and the shock. Dear God, what had happened?
Frances released her, and waited, a twinkle in her eyes, to see what would happen now. Sure enough, in but another moment Rafael strode to Victoria and took her into his arms. “What happened? Tell me.”
