The Ghost Who Loved Me (23 page)

James chuckled to her consternation. “Percy falls into that category, I’m afraid.”

“Well good for him. What does it all mean?’

“He claims we can repeat the ritual, using him as bait. Isabelle will come. He’s sure of it. She’s bound to see the only means to her own release. We opened the catacombs to let her out. She won’t be able to resist on this night especially.”

Elizabeth scowled at his words. “Percy makes himself bait? Is he crazed?”

James shrugged. “He wishes to do battle with a real demon. I tried to talk him out of it but we cannot communicate well without you there.”

She stilled at his words. “You are ready for this?”

“I am as ready as I will ever be. You must organize the servants. We will need them all tonight to help us.”

Elizabeth sipped her tea more slowly. “You think they will help you? They despise you! As they despise me! How does that help us? They need to believe in this for it to work!”

“I need you to explain to Daniel what is required,” James told her smugly. “You must tell the servants they have all earned a place in your service if they comply and join us. They are willing. You will see for yourself if you but dress and go below.”

“Where is Annie?” Elizabeth abhorred the soggy toast on a plate and eyed him darkly. “I need my maid to help me dress for Edward’s arrival.”

James frowned at her surly tone. “She went to Tregaron on an errand. You must hurry. Get downstairs and seek the boys in the library. You must plan.”

“Oh, for pity’s sake! Fine! I shall greet my husband looking like a fishwife!”

“You have the temperament of one, certainly.” James laughed as she flung the toast at him and it sailed right through him. “I shall wait for you below. Do not tarry, my sweet.”

Elizabeth seethed as James summarily disappeared, fuming to know he failed to kiss her good morning. Suddenly he returned to her side, his ghostly lips meeting hers briefly in a chilling kiss, making her shiver in response.

“I love you, my dear, even if you act a deplorable nag upon rising.” He grinned and evaporated, his laughter echoing after him.

Annie sat in the tavern waiting for the man to arrive. She sat in the back of the taproom, glowering out the window as she watched the traffic in Tregaron pass by at a snail’s pace. He entered and joined her, ordering a pint of ale from the serving woman before smiling at the tight look upon her face.

“What news do you bring? I hadn’t thought to hear from you this soon. I apologize for my tardiness, but I couldn’t excuse my absence from London until now.”

Annie eyed him in disgust as he drank his ale. “Edward arrives today. We must act quickly. I know Simon has turned against us. We cannot count upon him to do what needs to be done any longer. You must kill Simon before all is lost. It is the only thing left to us!  I told you not to trust him!”

“What makes you think Simon betrays us?” The man listened to her without comment as she recounted all of her letters and his persistent stalling in coming to Westerleigh.

“He refused to come until I threatened to tell Edward everything! He sees more in this for himself. I told you that he would get used to being the duke’s beloved pet. He drags this out as long as he can. We run out of time!”

“Annabelle, I did warn you about the will,” the man said and shook his head sadly. “We have but two years until Edward is irrelevant and William gains the title and fortune. The estates aren’t selling and he has no money left to him. What do you seek to gain? You did us no good by not impressing upon your mistress in acting upon her passions back in London. That was your job in this, and you failed at it. Elizabeth took no lover. She is yet chaste and doomed to remain so out here in the middle of nowhere. At least in London, we had a chance.”

“She is no longer a virgin. I changed her bedding and saw it for myself,” Annie added coolly and enjoyed the man’s stiffening facial expression. “She took a lover recently. I know not who but someone shares her bed. The signs are all there. It has happened before, many times since we arrived. She would like me to believe it is a ghost who visits her bed in the night! Hah! I think we both know differently.”

The man’s face tightened reflexively. “Who was it? Do you know yet?”

“Two men recently arrived from London but neither seems her type. I think it is Tom, the footman. He beds all of the maids in the castle. It could only have been him. He’s a handsome one, to be sure. And he wasn’t at dinner last night. The maids took two meals up to her room. He was nowhere about. And I heard them beyond the door. She has a lover.”

“Very well, than we can only hope the liaison bears fruit. We can use it for our own gain. What more do we do? We have no choice. You cannot bleed a turnip, Annabelle, even if you are an able gardener.”

Annie glared at him. “You don’t understand. While you work your wiles on another in London, Simon betrays us. He’ll talk if we allow him! Where will you be then? In prison as I will be! We must deal with him when he gets here once and for all.”

“You think that is going to be necessary?”

“You think not? After all these months of waiting, we have the means to score a very high take should she become with child by someone other than the duke. We know it certainly isn’t Edward in her bed. We continue as we have. I’ll write to you as soon as I’m sure she’s with child. She must know how important her own survival is should she not have an heir.”

“I think you assume much of what Elizabeth knows about Edward’s father’s will, Annie.”

Annie rolled her eyes. “She knows what she is doing. If she doesn’t have an heir soon, she loses her position. If I know Her Ladyship, that isn’t far from her mind. Why else would she be seeking out a footman?”

“I never thought that low of Elizabeth,” the man mused and shrugged. “I think you don’t know her as you think you do, Annabelle. She hasn’t done anything to further this for herself, even with your encouragement for her to do so.”

“We shall see,” Annie said coldly. “I haven’t bowed and scraped for five years as a servant to wind up with nothing at all to show for it! We see this thing through, you and I. We will deal with Simon after he arrives. I don’t trust him not to warn Elizabeth. He turns against us, I tell you!”

The man tossed a few coins onto the table before rising. “I will meet with Simon after he arrives tonight. You will send him a note telling him to meet me in the stables around ten. We do nothing until I talk to him, Annabelle. Do you understand?”

“Fine! Just be quick of it! We run out of time. We need to act or we can forget all of it!”

The man left as quickly as he came, his hat pulled low over his face. Annie waited a scant moment before she scooped up most of the coins on the table and left the tavern.

~ ~ ~

The servants assembled when the coach arrived at three that afternoon. Edward ignored them all as he and Simon entered the castle, the bags left to the footmen to see too.

Elizabeth waited in the hall, Pettigrew at her side. He eyed her in concern before her husband approached.

Edward appeared unwell to Elizabeth, seeing how thin he had become. His hostile blue gaze met hers as he approached.

“Ah, my dear wife. How kind of you to grace us with your presence. The months here have certainly not improved your looks, Elizabeth. You look positively horrid.”

Elizabeth bit back a fiery retort, knowing her attempts meet his approval fell short without her maid’s assistance. “You must be tired after your journey. Shall I have refreshments brought to the salon?”

Edward shook his head. “I seek a bath. See to it, Pettigrew. I also travel without my valet. See to that too.”

“Very well, Your Grace.” Pettigrew left her side as Simon approached his hazel eyes friendly as they met hers.

“Good day, Your Ladyship,” and he bowed, earning a scowl from Edward. “Your loveliness wasn’t exaggerated by Edward.”

Elizabeth glared up at Simon, only calmed by James’ presence at her side. “Mr. Ives,” she acknowledged shortly with a nod. “I’ve placed you near the west wing during your stay.”

Simon flushed under her frigid gaze, smiling despite the awkward silence that fell between them. “That was very kind of you, Your Grace. I shall look forward to your company at dinner.”

“I think I would prefer to dine in my room.”

“You will join us at dinner, Elizabeth,” Edward snapped, eyeing her angrily. “And do something to rectify your appearance until then. I pay your maid’s wages for this? You look as if you just rolled out of bed!”

“Should I tell him that you did?” James grinned at the way she flushed under Edward’s criticism. “You look beautiful to me, my darling. Do not let him bait you.”

She held her ground, smiling tightly. “Very well, I shall see you both at dinner. If you will excuse me, Mrs. Abbot needs my approval of tonight’s menu.”

Elizabeth left with James at her side, grumbling under her breath until they were out of sight. Then James used all of his strength to push her against the wall, his ghostly lips seeking her throat. She smiled as he used his concentration to lift her and propel her into a nearby linen closet, slamming the door shut behind them.

“What are you doing, James? I really do need to meet with Mrs. Abbot about dinner.”

James sighed and used his power to lift her higher, pinning her against the shelves behind her, raising her skirts with a look. “I want you now, my love. I can wait no longer.”

Elizabeth gasped as his coldness invaded her warmth, biting her lips to keep from sobbing aloud as he thrust against her, his power holding her in place as he merged his essence with hers, making her hang limply in his arms, her head thrown back as he took her beyond her reason.

“I want you, Elizabeth,” James whispered harshly at her ear as he moved faster, his ghostly hands stroking her naked hips, lifting her legs around him. “How does it feel with me inside you now? Does it soothe you after last night?”

“Oh, it feels wondrous, James,” Elizabeth moaned low, her sore innards immediately healed by every icy movement of him inside of her. “Love me, yes that’s it! Oh yes, my love! Harder! Yes! Oh my God! It feels so good! Don’t stop!”

James held her aloft pinned to the shelf, his body merging with hers, his silver eyes glowing in desire. “I want you to come for me, Elizabeth. Do it now!”

Elizabeth bit her lip as she felt herself splinter, giving herself up to James who laved hungrily at her nipples, making them hard and erect with the brush of his icy lips against them. He pounded against her warmer flesh, his silver eyes filled with need.

The hot surge was felt by them both. She bit her lip as the incredible heat spread through her lower body. James groaned against her, his transparent shape reeling against hers.

“You did that on purpose just to spite Edward,” Elizabeth whispered accusingly as he set her to her feet after several moments, her knees weak upon standing.

James stared down at her with a soft smile. “No I did it because I wanted you that badly, my love. Now by all means, see to their dinner. I’ll be in the library with Daniel and Percy.”

Elizabeth smoothed her hair and left the linen closet with all the dignity she could muster, her face flushed and her eyes bright. James watched her go with a satisfied gleam in his silver gaze. He chuckled as he floated to the library to listen to the plan for the evening.

~ ~ ~

Dinner was a rushed affair at six in the evening. Elizabeth grumbled while Annie made her sufficiently pleasing. Her maid had been acting strangely since her return from Tregaron, claiming she needed some time to herself. Elizabeth thought she was acting rather skittish; her eyes going to the mantle clock many times while she helped her dress and styled her hair.

Elizabeth arrived to the dining room and found all four men awaiting her. Edward was obviously not pleased she had guests, his scowling face a reminder she failed to ask permission to invite Daniel and Arthur to Westerleigh.

Mr. Pettigrew seated her. She was tempted to smile to see James looming behind Edward’s chair, his silver eyes holding menace within them. Simon tried to catch her eye and she ignored him during the meal.

“So what is it you actually do, Mr. Trask? Besides showing up uninvited to a man’s home?” Edward gazed at Daniel with a raised eyebrow, condescension thick in his voice.

Daniel stammered at first. “I’m a historian, Your Grace. I study lineages, as well as other matters. I most recently helped Lady Eldora with her family history. It’s all quite fascinating.”

“Fascinating? How so? Pulling skeletons out of good people’s closets to embarrass them with your publications?” Edward was drinking heavily, his words growing quite slurred.

“Mr. Trask is interested in writing a book of history on Westerleigh,” Elizabeth said brightly, coming to Daniel’s rescue. “He says it is quite profitable as well.”

Edward glared at her, gesturing to a footman to refill his glass, his hand shaking slightly. “And vulgar at the very least. Who would willingly offer up anything to be printed that might potentially embarrass their family? Elizabeth should know much about that. Hers has enough to hide.”

Elizabeth colored angrily, her eyes narrowing at the subtle insult. “You sometimes find out the truth too, my lord. I find that very fascinating indeed. You almost exonerate and condemn your own ancestors by examining the past.”

“There won’t be any book of history on Westerleigh,” Edward snapped, glaring down the table at her. “You should have asked me first before you invited Mr. Trask and his companion here, Elizabeth.”

Simon saw an opportunity to interrupt, asking Arthur about his own work.

Edward cringed to hear it, glowering once more at Elizabeth. “You went behind my back, didn’t you? All to give the imbecile readers of these absurd books some encouragement about James Carlisle’s ghost! I’ll not have it!” He hit the table with his palm, his face growing red with anger. Suddenly he began shaking, his face paling as he doubled over in his chair.

Simon rose quickly and came to his aid. All at the table watched in silence as Edward then began to cry, talking gibberish. With the help of the footmen and Mr. Pettigrew, he was removed from the dining room. Simon came back some time later as the last courses were served.

“Is His Lordship unwell?” Elizabeth stared at Simon questioningly. “Should we send for the physician?”

Simon shook his head sadly, his hazel eyes meeting hers apologetically. “We will speak of it later, Your Grace. Edward is over tired. Pettigrew gave him a sleeping draught.”

Elizabeth’s eyes met James’ and saw he regarded Simon with a distinctly predatory look. She shook her head quickly and sent him a warning look until he took Edward’s seat.

The meal progressed and became a jolly affair. Simon got on well with Arthur and Daniel, the three men all lamenting one of his last plays. He ducked his head at their praise for his performance.

“Do you intend to return to the theatre, sir?” Elizabeth regarded him coldly, her blue eyes filled with distaste.

Simon met her unfriendly look and smiled despite her obviously chilly demeanor towards him. “I miss it dreadfully, actually. I never thought I would. I think perhaps I shall one day.”

Elizabeth said nothing as desert arrived. James regarded her in amusement. The other men talked amongst themselves, Daniel looking around every once and a while, smiling and trying to maintain the ghost wasn’t there. He was dreadfully obvious, making Simon regard him questioningly.