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“What makes you ask that?” Carefully, I evaded his question.
“The way you spoke to each other,” he explained. “I don’t understand your language, but you did not address each other with the formality of strangers. On the contrary, the depth of emotion in your tone resonated with familiarity.”
“I am sorry to disappoint you,” I said coldly. “There is no mystery here. I do not know Baron Karol.”
A strange, fey gleam lit his eyes and unnerved me. “Perhaps not,” he said coolly, “but do you know our unexpected guest?”
I bit my lip but was prevented from replying when Eleanor came into the room, blushing prettily and apologising for being so late. Sandor bowed low over her hand, his eyes full of admiration. A shy smile trembled on her lips, and she raised worshipful blue eyes to his face. The rest of us looked on as, in that brief heartbeat of time, Eleanor appeared to tumble headlong in love with the most notorious, bloodthirsty—yet undoubtedly charming—villain in all Europe.
The room was redolent with hidden tensions. I was aware of Lucy studying Eddie with concern, Tynan watching Sandor, Cad watching me, Sandor also casting glances my way and Eddie’s annoyance as he observed Eleanor flirting with Sandor. Suddenly, I was wearied by the undercurrents in this seemingly bland domestic scene. Dear God, save me from Tenebris moods and unrelenting Jago intrigue!
Tynan drew me to one side as the others made their way toward the dining room for lunch. “Am I correct in assuming that Eddie’s affable new acquaintance is none other than the Sandor Karol we have discussed?”
I nodded, biting my lip again to keep it from trembling. “I am sorry.”
“Don’t be,” he said, and, although his smile was gentle, I sensed a steely resolve behind his gentlemanly facade. “At least you now know exactly where he is. The waiting is over.”
“But I would not, for all the world, have brought him to your home.”
“I was under the impression that it was my son and heir who brought him, Miss Varga, not you.” The familiar amber twinkle lit his eyes. He offered me his arm and we began to follow the others. “Don’t look so worried, my dear. Trust me to know how to deal with this man when the time comes. Let us not denounce him and send him packing just yet. We will play the ‘baron’s’ game just a little longer.”
* * *
“Leave Eleanor alone,” I told Sandor at the first opportunity. I found it hard to believe I was standing in the elegant parlour of Athal House facing the man whose menacing presence had haunted my life for so long. Although my heart was pounding, I was less afraid than I had imagined I would be. In a way, I wished this encounter had come sooner. I was no longer a frightened young girl. Tenebris had made me aware that there were monsters in this world even more fearful than Sandor. I thought of Lucy and Tynan and their enduring love, despite the horrors that life had thrown at them. “You don’t want her, so stop playing this odious game.”
“Of course I don’t want her,” he said contemptuously. “What man would choose the insipid primrose when he can have the rose?”
“The one who is wise enough to accept that the rose is not his to claim?” I asked caustically, and he laughed.
“You are a rose in truth, Judita. But never fear, I will strip away those thorns.”
“You don’t own me, Sandor. You never did and you never will. Accept it.”
“That is not true,” he persisted stubbornly. “I am Liviu’s heir. All that was his passed to me.”
“I am not a possession!” I declared. “I do not belong to any man!” The declaration instantly summoned Cad’s implacable image into my mind. I dismissed it with difficulty. “My father had no right to promise me to you, but I renounce that promise.”
His features set hard in the brutal cast I had seen so many times. “I watched you grow, Judita. Or should I become used to calling you ‘Dita’ from now on? I always knew I had to have you. As you grew into a woman, your beauty haunted my dreams like the jewels Liviu kept in his vault. I warned you—that day in Elek when Liviu named me as his heir before all the men—not to fight me. I told you then that if you dared to even dream of giving your body to another man, I would tear the flesh from his face with my bare hands and see how much you liked his kisses then. Luckily for you—or perhaps for them—I have not heard stories of any lovers. But when I look at you now and see your vibrancy and sensuality, I find it hard to believe you have remained celibate. There will be time enough to discuss the matter further and take what action is needed when we are gone from here. You have already pushed me to the limit of my patience. I have not hunted you across Europe because I am your devoted slave. I have done it to prove to you that I will never give you up.”
