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She had solemnly given him her word as a gentleman!
A black carriage turned the corner and Tony stepped out to the curb as Dan Mackinnon drew up the horses. Her heart pounded inside her ears as the door was flung open and an arm dragged her inside. One of the colonel’s polished pistol cases lay on the black leather seat and next to it sat a case holding flasks and small silver goblets.
“This is Keate, His Highness’s surgeon.”
Tony gave him a look of alarm. “I begged you to keep it secret.”
“Damn it, common sense demands the presence of a surgeon. Could save your life, Tony. Here, have a tiger frightener,” Southampton said, pouring whiskey.
Tony shook her head. “My hand is quite steady,” she gritted between her teeth.
Southampton shrugged and drained the silver cup himself.
The carriage ride was of such a short duration, Tony thought time had suddenly speeded up. In fact everything had a surrealistic aura about it and she caught herself wondering if she was still dreaming. As the carriage drew up with a sickening lurch she knew this was no dream.
Southampton thrust a black domino mask at her. “Here, put this on before you open the door and make sure you can see through it.”
“Why the devil do I have to wear this thing?” Tony demanded.
“Dear boy, it’s a necessary precaution. You do realize we could be arrested for what we do today? Though duels are tolerated, they are highly illegal.”
As Tony stepped out upon Battersea Field, a feeling of dread washed over her. Patches of mist swirled about in the darkness and the masculine smells of horses and leather made her nostrils pinch with distaste. She closed her eyes and wished … nay, she was damned if she would wish that Bernard Lamb mightn’t show up. He would come. It was his big chance, his throw of the dice to take everything he wanted in one fell swoop. She would dispatch him to Hell!
In her heart she felt he had murdered her twin in cold blood, and in cold blood she would now murder him. In the open clearing a group of men were milling about and Tony strode toward them without hesitation. With steady fingers she undid the fastenings of the cloak and allowed Southampton to take it from her shoulders.
As in her dream the first fragile hint of dawn was lighting the sky as she waited for her seconds to finish their whispered consultation with the other masked men gathered. Mackinnon came to her and asked if she wished to withdraw. She was momentarily thrown off guard before she remembered it was all part and parcel of the code duello.
There was now sufficient light for the opponents to see each other. Mackinnon opened the gun case and the other second confirmed that they were loaded.
Two figures stepped forward to select a pistol. Two pairs of glittering eyes met through the slits of their masks. Their hatred for each other was palpable. Then they were being turned back to back. The Lamb cousins pointed their pistols skyward and cocked the triggers.
The drill was so familiar to Tony, she saw it all as if she watched herself from afar. She had lived these same few moments so often in her dream, she knew exactly what to expect. She paced off while the seconds were counting, counting. She turned on the count of nine and fired. Her opponent did the same. She smiled grimly as she saw that he faced her and shot at her exactly as she had known he would.
Tony had the deep, dark satisfaction of seeing him fall to the ground. Suddenly out of the dawn a big man was striding up to her. She blinked rapidly as a powerful hand grabbed her by the scruff of her neck and propelled her to a waiting carriage.
A deep, furious voice promised, “I’m going to thrash you within an inch of your life.”
She was thrown against the fine calfskin squabs so hard, the wind was knocked out of her. Savage flung himself into the seat opposite and swore, “Your word as a gentleman isn’t worth a pinch of bat shit!”
Tony began to tremble uncontrollably and her teeth began to chatter. Reaction from the duel had set in. A filthy oath dropped from Savage’s lips as he pulled off his warm cape and flung it across at Tony.
“If you’ve killed him you’ll go to prison or possibly the gallows, you reckless young fool!”
Tony didn’t answer him. She hoped with all her heart that she had killed him, and yet prison would unmask her identity and the scandal would sweep London. She fiercely told herself that arrest would be worth it, at least she’d have the satisfaction of knowing Bernard Lamb would never take what rightfully should have been Anthony’s.
“You callous young devil,” Savage muttered.
Tony’s temper flared. “Don’t be a hypocrite! I acted exactly as you would act if someone threatened to take everything you owned. Every chance you get, you hammer home to me to be a man. Must I fight you too? Damn you, I will! I’ll take on the whole bloody world.”
Savage heard the righteous indignation, the determination, and the total conviction in Tony’s voice, and realized he was convinced that his actions had been necessary, even justified. Savage at least admitted that facing an enemy upon the field of honor took courage.
“I’m putting you aboard theFlying Dragon,then I’ll find out if your cousin is dead or just wounded. In either case you’ll have to leave the country for a while. I wasn’t planning to sail to the Continent until the end of the week, but you give me no option.”
The silence stretched out between them. Tony was thankful for Savage’s strong presence. She had never felt more like crying in her life. If only she could cry on his shoulder and have him enfold her in his arms and tell her everything would be all right. Her throat ached unbearably with unshed tears. Finally she managed to murmur huskily, “Thanks for standing by me, even though you’re not convinced of my motives.”
“Your father was my friend. I shall try to take his place.”
Tony wanted to scream at him that she didn’t want him for her father, but fortunately they were at the docks and the carriage drew to a stop.
