Dominic's Nemesis (33 page)

“You don
’
t believe me then.”

Dominic eyed Stephan askance. “
I am not willing to take a chance either
way. She must be protected, both from herself and this mysterious
entity until such time as we are able to find a permanent
solution.
”

Ethan chimed in, speaking to no one in
particular. “Which ever of us is sitting with her in the morning
hours will have to make a show of changing the bandage. I am amply
supplied with pig
’
s
blood for authenticity
’
s
sake.”

“And if the entity
does
truly exist?”
Stephan probed Dominic.

He cringed from the very idea, but he could
no longer ignore the mounting evidence. Eden
’
s problems went beyond merely the
possibility of mental instability.

“I
’
ll take first watch.”
Kathleen offered.
“Since me mornings are spent
hunched over tha chamber pot with Ethan rubbing me back.”

“Dear, mightn
’
t you be a touch more delicate in describing
certain matters.”

The full board did not convene. Matthias had
expected as much when he made the decision to seek out an audience
with the pompous head of social reform. No matter. All he required
were one or two witnesses to legitimize his claim. He would have
rather dealt with Greyson individually, but anything less than a
formal accusation of misconduct and Greyson would know the
grievance for what it was, a personal swipe at him.

His charge must be irreproachable. A citizen
doing his duty towards his fellow man…or rather in this case, his
fellow lady.

He waited in the board
’
s meeting hall with Egan by his side
prepared to back up his claims. Finally, the clanging of a chime
signaled the period of consideration for citizen
’
s concerns and complaints. Matthias heaved
his stocky bulk from the squat rows of chairs in the public area of
the hall. The hall was divided into two areas by a waist-high gate
with a swinging door. The raised panel behind the swinging door
housed seats reserved for board members. Centered in front of the
panel was a speaker’s podium. The five members present were
scattered among the empty spaces along the semicircular panel that
spanned the entire far wall of the meeting hall.

Gleeful at striking his first blow at the man
he deemed the cause of his recent misfortune, Matthias squared his
shoulders and ambled to the podium with purpose. He scanned the
panel, bringing his gaze to rest on the straight-nosed, scholarly
mien of Davide Greyson.

“Ahem, Matthias Montgomery wit a
citizen
’
s concern.”

“What is the nature of your concern?” Greyson
inquired formally.

“I knows of a lady wot’s being held against
‘er will by a nobleman. Touch in tha head, most like. Dat’s tha
reason tha gent was able ta cart her off from polite society so
discreet-like. ‘Tis often tha case when madness strikes an
aristocratic family.” Matthias puffed out his chest. “Tis tha
general way of things, among tha genteel crowd dat such blights in
lineage must be kept quiet by any means, ya understand? If I had me
a nickel for every nervous, after-hours visit I
’
ve received from Lords seeking ta whisk
away a cousin or uncle a bit touched in tha head—”

Greyson held up his palm. “Mr. Montgomery, if
you will please focus on the matter at hand. Now then, tell us, who
is this young woman and on what estate is she being held.”

He had him right where he wanted him.
“Don
’
t rightly know tha
lady
’
s name, but I say
someone ought ta inquire immediate-like into tha goings-on at dat
estate of ‘is…Conte Dominic Ambrosi.”

He watched the furrow in the haughty Davide
Greyson
’
s brow deepen.
The self-righteous ass. Let him squirm. Matthias struggled to
contain his triumphant smile. Greyson would be forced to institute
some sort of action against Ambrosi or risk alienating the other
board members. Matthias scanned the faces of the four. A bloody
disapproving lot, they were. The chorus of resolved nods and
murmurs coalesced into a final consensus that something would have
to be done. Yes, his own board would help Matthias paint their
leader into a corner.

Just to be on the safe side, he stroked their
passion for justice by throwing another log on the fire. “Has her
housed in his private suites, he does, and uses her most
abominably.” His voice boomed like a rector working up his sermon.
“He must be confronted and stopped, tha bastard, for exploitin’ tha
young miss, featherhead dat she is.”

Greyson narrowed his eyes on him. “Prey, tell
us, Mr. Montgomery, how did the Lady
’
s precarious position become known to you?”

The Asylum Keeper gestured to his most
trusted custodian. “My man Egan ‘ere, he keeps company wit one of
tha maids. She told him tha way of things at tha Ambrosi ‘ouse,
knowing Egan ta be connected ta those who would help folks in
need.”

Egan stood from his seat, a ways behind the
podium. Shoulders slumped in deference, and crushing his hat in his
hand he spoke low and reverent. “I passed my gal
’
s concerns for the young miss
’
s welfare along to Mr. Montgomery,
see.”

Matthias could have kissed Egan. Instead he
followed the
prompt.
“And I passed ‘is concerns on ta ya. I would ‘ave intervened
myself, but wot wit Ambrosi being a high-ranking noble an’ all.
Thought it best left up ta tha Board.”

“You did right.” One of the other members
returned, with a sharp decisive nod.

Three days had passed since Dominic returned
to find Eden in the grip of death. He’d scarcely left her side.
Though the five of them agreed to share the burden of sitting with
her, he couldn
’
t tear
himself away for fear some unseen evil would swoop down and take
her from him. Even as Ethan slipped quietly into the chamber to
relieve him, he resisted.

“Dominic you need to rest. If she wakes up
and catches a glimpse of your sleep-weary eyes and three-day beard
it will likely startle her back into unconsciousness.”

He gently laid her limp hand back down. His
gaze lingered on the soft rise and fall of her chest to reassure
himself of her continued safety. “Her coloring is better today. I
think she looks more…
alive.
”

“Yes…” Ethan lifted the same wrist with
careful fingers whilst he laid his other palm against her brow to
take her temperature. Next, he clapped his hands just inches above
her stoic face, poked and prodded her with a rubber tipped
hammer-like instrument. Dominic watched him perform the same
cursory exam for the past three days.

“How is she?” He demanded the second the
doctor had finished his tasks.

“I believe she will awaken soon. She is
responsive to stimuli. According to Kathleen, her sleep has become
increasingly restless.”

Dominic took his first easy breath in days.
He would soon have his heart back.

“Now, will you rest?” The doctor turned his
concern on his brother.

“No, I want to be here when she awakens.” He
missed her luminous hazel eyes and soft welcoming expression, the
warm seduction of her body curled around him beneath the very
sheets upon which she now lay. He even missed the silky feel of her
hair twined between his fingers…remembering its natural texture and
color. His eyes roamed to her current style. He winced at the
striped mess.

“Promise me you will rest once she is
conscious.”

He raised his gaze, odd eyes twinkling
mischievously. “You may tie me to the bed if you like, Ethan.”

Dominic nearly smiled at his
brother
’
s pained
expression. “I fear Kathleen is not a good influence on your
already atrocious lack of etiquette.”

Just then, an especially forceful exhale of
breath drew their attention back to the patient. Dominic was at her
side in an instant, caressing her uninjured hand against his
cheek.

“Cara?”

Her head lulled to the side, seeming to seek
out his voice. Her lips parted.

* * *

Eden struggled mightily to rise above the
lethargic haze that gripped her body like a vice. Her lids were as
lead, her mind a blur…filled with blank spots and indistinct
thoughts. She must focus.

“Dom?” Her voice sounded weak, confused even
to her ears.

“Yes, cara. I
’
m here.”

Her foggy mind became aware of her hand
caressing someone
’
s
stubble-roughened skin. Had the entity taken over again? At the
moment, she possessed neither the strength nor the coordination in
either of her limbs to navigate such a pleasing stroke.

The spicy scent of male wafted up her
nostrils drugging her with languid pleasure, making her forget her
thought. What had she been concerned about?

“Is it really you this time?”

“You are welcome to open your eyes and see
for yourself.”

His voice sounded urgent, anxious.

“Don
’
t rush her, Dom. Let her acclimate.”

Dr. Raine. She recognized him. Again she
tried to peel back her lids. This time she succeeded in slitting
them just enough to glimpse a visage looming large over her.

“I
’
m thirsty.”

The face moved away and then she heard the
splash of water being poured into a glass. Nell must have taken to
leaving a pitcher by the bed since she so frequently spent time
recovering from various follies. And almost always woke up craving
a refreshing drink.

In the next moment, her hand abruptly stopped
stroking his face. Two strong arms half lifted her into a sitting
position and held her there while a cool surface touched her lips.
She parted them on instinct and was rewarded with a steady trickled
of water poured carefully into her mouth. The coolness on her
parched tongue was like manna from heaven. She drank greedily,
somehow finding the strength to bring one hand up to tilt the glass
at a steeper angle. When it was empty, the arms allowed her to
collapse gently back onto the pillows.

She fought the lethargy to pry her lids
further open. Ahhh, she loved his eyes. Those mix-matched wonders
of his were so expressive.

“Thank you, Dom.”

“Are you hungry? You
’
ve taken only broth and minimal sips of
water for the past three days.”

Not until he posed the question did she
realize just how ravenous she was. She parted her lips to answer in
the affirmative, when her stomach howled quite embarrassingly.

“Ethan—” Dom began.

“Yes, of course, I
’
ll alert someone from the kitchens about
having a tray up for her.”

Eden watched Dominic through tired eyes,
turning the corners of her mouth to try for a smile. He must have
enjoyed the effort, because as soon as she heard the doctor close
the door behind him, Dominic was on the bed with her cradled in his
loving arms.

“Ahhh, cara, you gave us all quite a scare. I
ought to throttle you.”

“Are you back? From Italy, I mean.”

“Yes.” His answer sounded tentative, as if he
had more to say on the subject. “But that can wait.”

Eden slid her cheek along his shirted chest,
tilted her head back so that it rested on the crook of his elbow.
The sluggishness was slowly receding. Her eyes blinked more
readily, her vision clearer. For the first time she noticed the
strain around his mouth, the worry lines marring the usually smooth
olive of his forehead, his anxious gaze searching her face for any
sign of distress or pain.

“I am well now, Dominic. You can tell
me.”

His expression changed subtly, a vague
sadness enveloping him. “No, cara…
I don’
t believe you are. I cannot ignore the truth
any longer.”

She frowned, but before she could ask what he
meant, a firm knock came at the chamber door. Dominic
’
s body went rigid when Renfred
popped his head around the door and begged their pardon. Sans his
spectacles, Eden noted that Dom inclined his ear to the butler, but
angled his face in profile.

“Master Ambrosi, sir, there is a gentleman
claiming to be here to investigate.” He hesitated, his distaste of
the coming words apparent. “A rather rough-hewed lad with him
insists that he has second-hand knowledge of certain
‘goings-on
’
.”

Eden saw that Renfred
’
s watery eyes strayed to her for an
instant. Surely, he could not mean…that she was the victim of some
supposed cruelty? Depravity?

Jaw set in granite; Dominic put her aside and
was on his feet before Renfred finished speaking.

“Your brothers are downstairs, sir, they sent
me to fetch you.”

“Where
’
d you leave them?”

“In the foyer.”

“Find a maid to sit with Miss Prescott. I
don
’
t want her left
alone.”

Eden followed his movements with nervous eyes
as he stalked to the pine wardrobe with purpose, yanked a dress
jacket over the crumpled linen shirt and slept-in trousers.
She
’
d turned her head
without her vision swimming. But when she tried to sit up, every
muscle in her body protested.

“Sir, Master Ethan sent Nell to request a
tray be sent up. I shall instruct her to come up directly and wait
until she is relieved.”

“Very good, Renfred. Is Ethan in the foyer as
well?”

“Yes, sir. There is some difference of
opinion as to what is to be done with the gentleman and his
companion.”

“I would imagine so.”