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He started up, but instantly realised that he could not move. Someone had tied his wrists to his bedposts. Although the length of rope did not hold him spread out on the bed, they were short enough not to allow him the freedom of movement.
“Whoever did this, show yourself!” he demanded. Again, a heartbeat full of anticipation hoped that the person was Miss Everley, and the woman meant to have her way with him. He prayed it was not Susana or Lady Jenest. However, his imagination never would have permitted him to conjure up the vision of a man taking up a position at the end of Grand’s bed. “I know you,” he murmured.
“Yes, you do.” An amused smile marked the man’s lips.
“What the bloody hell is this all about?” Grand growled, before giving a tug on the ropes holding him in place, only to discover his efforts served no purpose but to tighten the knot further.
“I assure you, my Lord, you will not escape unless I choose to release you.” A devilish grin spread across the scoundrel’s lips. “We have business to conduct.”
“Then make an appointment on the morrow,” Grand hissed. “I do not conduct business in my bedchamber.”
“My — my. I had heard that you possessed a more agreeable nature. I cannot imagine how you are considered one of England’s finest agents, when your temperament is so volatile,” the man said as he leaned casually against the bedpost.
“Heaven help you when I free myself!” Grand warned, jerking hard against the binding, only to have it cut deeper into his skin.
The intruder shrugged nonchalantly. “Let us conduct our business, and then we will be done. I will release you and, quite efficiently, I may say, disappear from your life.”
Grand hissed, “Then, as I am a ‘captive audience’, I suppose the choice is no longer mine. State your purpose and then be gone.”
The man reached into an inside pocket and drew out a gold encrusted sapphire necklace and held it out toward Grand.
“I believe you have been searching for this.”
“You are the one who purchased the necklace from Ridgeworth’s debtors?” Fully alert, Grand attempted to sit up only to discover that one of his legs had also been secured.
His captor ignored Grand’s struggles. Instead, he said, “I do not pay for an item so easily accessible. Ridgeworth paid me a tidy sum to steal the necklace back. I attempted to warn him that the man from whom I stole it would blame Ridgeworth for the theft, but the Viscount would not listen. He kept saying that he must return the necklace to its rightful owner.” The man strolled to the side of the bed. “A man of my talents easily recognised who owned the necklace. I once saw Her Royal Highness wearing the necklace as she rode through the London streets with Prince William as her escort. Naturally, at the time, I took special interest in the piece. One does not often view such craftsmanship.”
Grand said sarcastically, “Naturally.”
There was a brief pause as the intruder studied Grand. At length, he said, “I am willing to place the necklace in your possession, although, in truth, there are several among the European royalty who have made inquiries regarding the purchase of the necklace.”
The man opened a cloth draw-string bag and dropped the necklace inside.
“You knew I searched for the necklace when you boarded the ship in Spain. Why did you not approach me then?”
“Because I still debated on who should have the necklace,” the man admitted with a casual shrug of his shoulders.
“Then why did you choose me and why now?” Grand asked. “I am assuming you are offering me the necklace. Yet, if such is so, you have not said what it will cost me.”
The man studied Grand carefully before responding, and the examination made Grand want to squirm.
“I want what any man wants: I want my dearest child to know happiness.”
Grand did not know why he had failed to make the connection previously, but he had not.
“Miss Everley?” he asked softly.
“Is my Colleen not spectacular? She deserved better than to have my Genevieve and me as parents.”
Grand would agree, but he, for the moment, he kept his opinion to himself.
“I thought you on your way to a penal colony.”
“I was,” the man said with a flippant flick of his wrist. “Yet, the ship put into a port in Africa for repairs from a storm, and so, I claimed the opportunity to disappear into the wilderness. I am certain Lord Liverpool will learn of my escape soon enough.”
“What terms do you require for the return of the necklace?” Grandison demanded.
Thomas Everley dropped the cloth bag holding the necklace onto the foot of the bed between Grand’s legs.
