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She didn’t know what that meant, but it didn’t sound good. “No, Philip, please have some compassion.” Belle whimpered, but no amount of clawing her fingers at his arms would relinquish his hold.
A trace of fear went through Hawk’s eyes before it was hidden behind a mask of boredom. How he managed to dim his reaction, she didn’t know, but it was a wonderful trick. “You would kill your own sister-in-law? The woman who has kept this estate running and the Ravenscroft name beyond reproach?” Slowly, he advanced upon their position. “You owe her much.”
Philip snorted. “She is not more valuable to me than the fortune.” He tightened his hold on her as she whimpered in pain and fear. “I have debts some very angry men have called in, so my motivation is greater than yours to end this farce tonight.”
Fearing she would break apart by the myriad of emotions buffeting through her chest, Belle slightly turned toward him. He was nothing like Laurence, and it was a shame he was the title holder now. “Go to hell,” she said, and though it went against every rule of proper etiquette she knew, Belle spat into his face. “I want you off this property. No longer will you sully my husband’s memory or legacy.”
“Too bad you acquired a backbone much too late.” Philip released his hold on her only to bring the butt of the pistol down onto her temple.
Pain exploded in her head, and for a few terrifying seconds, the world around her spun and flirted with darkness. She sagged toward the ground.
“You will pay for harming her.” Hawk vaulted across the space toward Philip.
Bang!
The echo of a gunshot rent the air. Belle stifled a scream with her hand, but the inevitable occurred anyway. Hawk’s body jerked. Blood splattered. He fell to the ground with a string of curses and a hand pressed to his left shoulder. The dark stain of blood came away on his white glove.
Why no one from the ballroom came to help was anyone’s guess. Perhaps they didn’t hear the shot above the music and other noise.
“You shot me.” So much anger wove through the statement that it gave Belle pause.
“Montague!” When she went to go to him, Philip yanked at her arm, keeping her at his side.
“I’ll give your whore worse if you both don’t assist me in finding this damned treasure. I will not leave this property without it tonight.”
For the space of a few heartbeats, Hawk stared Philip down from his position on the terrace. “Let her go. Then I’ll help.”
“No!” Belle struggled to free herself from Philip’s hold. “We go together or not at all.” She refused to be left behind wondering if Hawk would survive the night.
“Enough!” His roared was deafening, but the door to the ballroom remained closed, and no one came out to assist. Perhaps that was a good thing. “You both will accompany me as leverage for each other’s compliance.” He shoved Belle toward Hawk. “Help him up. We are going to the Dower House.”
She fell to her knees at Hawk’s side, and cared not a jot about the state of her skirting. “Does it hurt terribly much?” When she would have touched his shoulder, he shook his head.
“Like the devil but it is nothing I cannot bear.” He met her gaze. Pain shadowed the depths. “Remove my cravat so I can press the fabric to the wound. If I don’t slow the bleeding, I’m done for.”
Her heart dropped into her stomach. Surely this wouldn’t be the end. With shaking hands, she quickly undid his cravat and then jerked the length of fabric from around his neck. “Be strong,” she murmured as she placed the makeshift bandage beneath his bloody evening coat and pressed it to the wound. “Promise me you will survive.”
A wheeze of a chuckle escaped him. “It will take much more to fell me.”
“Get him up.” Philip gestured with the pistol. “We are wasting time.”
“Yes, because who cares about the sanctity of human life when one can have a treasure instead.” Sarcasm dripped from her words as she helped Hawk into a standing position. When he wobbled a bit on his feet, she quickly wrapped an arm about his waist to steady him. “Let us be off then. My patience is wearing thin.”
And if Montague perished before she could tell him she loved him, there would be hell to pay, and she would extract it, bit by painful bit, from her brother-in-law.
Damn the consequences.
Chapter Fifteen
The snow continued to fall as they walked to Brambleberry Cottage, but the charm of the night had been erased due to the constant fear playing Belle’s spine and the worry sitting like a rock in her belly. At her side, Hawk wasn’t doing well. Though he tried to hide his pain, she knew he struggled with it. With every quarter mile they covered, more blood soaked the folded cravat to bleed onto his glove.
I cannot lose him now when I’ve only just found him!
As soon as they entered the house, Philip marched them into the library. Once there, she threw caution to the wind and whirled to face their captor.
“I am not going further until you let me tend to the captain’s wound.” Hawk had slumped to the floor with his back propped against one of the sofas. Even in the darkness of the room, she could discern the color had leeched from his face. Panic set in. “He needs a surgeon.”
Philip scoffed. “He will be fine.” Ignoring her, he went to one of the tables and laying his pistol down, he lit the candle sitting there.
