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Chapter 12
Wayne’s head throbbed, and the pain blaring through him made him weak. He prayed his wound wasn’t still bleeding. Losing too much blood could kill him.
But at this moment, he couldn’t worry about his head. Slowly, one by one, the men who worked for Lord Penrose were becoming tired. Harold didn’t notice thatthe boyswere sitting down on the job, but Wayne was just relieved that nothing horrid had happened yet. Since Regina left the room with Jane, all Harold wanted to do was pace the floor and scowl.
The earl stopped in front of Wayne’s chair again, giving him the evil eye as he scrubbed his clean-shaven face.
“What do the Bow Street Runners know of my business?” Harold snapped.
“Nothing,” Wayne lied. “We don’t arrest people until we find proof of their illegal actions.” He didn’t want to let the earl know that because the Runners saw Harold on the waterfront several times a week for no reason, that moved him up on the suspect’s list.
“I don’t believe you.”
The earl scratched his chin and shifted from one foot to the other. Wayne knew this was a sign of restlessness, which was another effect that the poison had before it finally took over the body and mind.
“Believe what you want.” Wayne shrugged. “Because you are going to doubt everything I say, just as I won’t believe you.”
“Well, no matter. We must get rid of you. I cannot have witnesses alive.”
Wayne wasn’t sure how much poison Regina had given the earl, but it didn’t appear to be working as quickly as it was doing to the other men. Then again, perhaps the earl’s body was more accustomed to taking Opium. If that were the case, Penrose would be more alert. Wayne’s life would be worthless if that happened.
“Lawrence,” Harold called for one of his men, snapping his fingers and pointing toward Wayne. “You and Boswell carry Mr. Nichols back out to my carriage. We need to take him to the waterfront and dump him in the water.”
Harold paused for a few moments, not taking his eyes off Wayne. But when the two men didn’t jump to the earl’s command, Penrose huffed and turned to look at the others. The earl’s attention moved from one man to the other before releasing a loud gasp. He swung back toward Wayne. The man’s face was fiery red.
“How did they...” Harold shook his head. “My men are intoxicated with my drug.”
“Indeed, they are,my lord.” Wayne hated to use the man’s title only because the man’s illegal actions took away the man’s privilege.
It only took seconds before Harold’s eyes widened, and he pointed toward the door. “Regina did this.”
Wayne’s chest swelled with pride. He didn’t know how Regina had found out, but he was grateful for her assistance, nonetheless. “It was Regina.”
“How did she know?”
Wayne shrugged. “I wish I knew. Then again, she is an intelligent woman. She probably figured out that Jane was the one who poisoned her the night of the Montague’s ball. Knowing how clever that woman is, she probably followed you or Jane to the warehouse. After all, when she has questions, she will stop at nothing until they are answered.”
Smiling, his mind recalled how wonderful it had been when she wouldn’t leave him alone until he had told her about the poison.
Harold blew out a gush of air from his mouth. “That is most unfortunate. I have loved Regina as a daughter for many years. But now, she must die beside you.”
Anger boiled inside Wayne quickly. He wouldn’t give the earl the chance. Of course, at the moment, he wasn’t certain how to stop the titled lord, especially since Wayne’s head still swam from his injury.
The man’s gaze narrowed on Wayne again, and he stepped closer. “You think to be in love with the girl.”
Wayne nodded. “I can’t think of anything else. She makes me smile and laugh. I want to be with her constantly.” He almost added that it was Harold who made it possible for Wayne to fall in love with Regina, but he didn’t want to give the man any credit for that.
“Well, sadly, you and Regina will not be together unless it’s in Heaven.”
It irritated Wayne to think that all of Harold’s men had nearly passed out, and yet the earl didn’t show signs of feeling dizzy at all. Regardless, the odds of Wayne taking control over this situation were better now. Although his head injury took away some of his strength, he would find other ways to fight the man. Wayne would not allow the earl to lay one finger on Regina!
With a loud growl, Wayne made his move. Keeping his head low, he barreled into the earl, knocking them both to the floor. Air whooshed out of Harold’s mouth, and he started coughing as though he couldn’t catch his breath.
Wayne sat up enough to bunch up his hand and hit Harold square in the face. The man screamed and covered his nose. The dizziness continued to fill Wayne’s head, but he kept using the earl as a punching bag.
Suddenly, someone grabbed Wayne’s arms and yanked him away from Harold. Wayne landed on his back, which made his head wound worse. He grumbled, wishing he had more strength as he tried pulling himself in an upright position again.
