The Lady and the Earl (54 page)

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Declan
watched his friend tumble backward down the stairs.  It had been a random action, but fortunately, it disabled four of the six advancing guards and knocked Rupert to the ground. 
Declan
wanted to look and see how Connor had fared, but the remaining two men were advancing on him with their swords drawn. 
Declan
looked around for some leverage on the two men.  If only he could get his hands
free
. 

From
the corner of his eye, he saw something glisten at the bottom of the staircase that led upward.  It looked like a shard of some sort.  He sprinted toward the piece of the vase, which had continued down the remaining flight of stairs from Allana.  The men gave chase, but
Declan
was fast.  He slid feet first at the shard, landing in the perfect position to use it to cut his bindings.  Before he could get the rope cut, one of the pursuers had a sword to
Declan
’s
throat.

Lilly and Maggie followed in silence as the two men led them further into the woods and away from
Marcus
. 
More t
ears threatened to fall as Lilly thought of her husband lying unconscious on the ground
.  Suddenly,
painful cramps seared through her abdomen, causing her to keel forward.

“Ah!” she groaned as the pain persisted.

“Oh
,
please not here,”
Garret
said, eyeing Lilly with panic
on his face.

She would have laughed if she could have.

“My L
ady.
  Are you all right
?”
Maggie
asked with concern.

“Yes, I
’
m fine.  Just give me a moment,” Lilly said as she breathed deeply
,
waiting for the pain to subside.  “It was just a little pain, probably from all of this exertion,” she finished, but inside
,
fear gripped her as she thought of having this baby without her husband by her side.
  Yes, please not here.  Not yet.
 

Thomas
studied Lilly
.
 
“
Is the baby scheduled to come soon
?” 

“Yes
, any day now,
” Lilly said as she rubbed her tight belly.  The baby had dropped over the past week
.  This was not good.

“Have you had much pain to
day, or are those the first?”
he
then asked.

“I’ve been having them off and on for a while, but nothing serious and nothing that strong yet,”
she answered.

“My L
ady, why didn
’t you say something earlier?”
Maggie began.  “You shouldn’t have come.”

“I thought it was nothing.  I’
v
e had similar ones in the past month, so why would I think
the earlier ones were any different?  Besides, do you really think I would let Marcus out of my sight being t
his close to having his baby?”
Lilly argued.

“You should have at least said
something.  What if it’s your
time?”

“Then there i
s nothing we
can do to stop it, is there?”
Lilly answered, feeling slightly a
nnoyed.
  “Let’
s
hope this little one waits long enough for us to get somewhere decent before he comes.”  The two men were watc
h
ing them with uncertainty.  “I’
m all right now if we need to move on.”

“I think we’
ll stop here to wait for the others,”
Thomas
began.  He turned his attention to his companion.  “Garret, scout out our premises.  Make
certain
no one has followed us.” 

Garret
nodded then disappeared into the brush.

The three remaining sat in uncomfortable silence for a while.  The women huddled together as the Scot’s eyes scoured the forest alertly, searching for any signs of trouble.  Finally,
Garret
returned.

“All is well,” he said.

Thomas
nodded.  “Good.”  He turned his attention to the ladies, his eyes lingering admiringly on Maggie’s face.  “The others should be catching up to us soon.  Until then,
in case you did not catch our names earlier,
my name is Thomas McGrath and this is Garret Meredith.” 

Lilly could tell both were handsome men under their gruff exteriors.  Their scraggly beards and long hair could
not
hide everything. 

“I am Lilly and this is Maggie, and we are very grateful for your timely arrival,” Lilly said politely, purposely omitting their last names.  She still did not know who these men were or if they could be trusted
even though the name Meredith she knew well
.

Thomas’ attention had returned to Maggie, eyeing her with what Lilly thought was a look
of approval.  He
opened his mouth to say something, never taking his eyes from
the other woman
, and was interrupted before any words could come.

“Do
not
thank them.  Thank me.”  The three men who had stayed behind had caught up to the little group, and their leader was speaking to Lilly.  “
My Lady,” he said bowing.  “I am sorry I could not retrieve Marcus, but know this.  He was taken alive.” 

Lilly gasped.  “William
Meredith
?” she
asked in astonishment.
  Here was the Meredith whose name she new well, and he had come to her aid.
 
She’d
met
William
twice years ago.  Once when he had brought his dying brother to their door
for aid
, and again when he had repaid Allana’s speed
that day
with her dear Lancelot. 
Tears streamed down
Lilly’s
face.  She rushed forward and hugged
William
tightly. 

“My dear Lilly.
  I am so sorry.”  He hugged her in return then pulled away and forced her to look at him.  “Why did Rupert’s men attack you?” 

“
Who is Rupert
?” she
asked. 

“Rupert is the leader of a group of ruthless mercenaries.  They kill for pleasure, and only take prisoners if instructed to.  We followed them when they passed through our woods earlier last night.  We’ve been watching them since.  They looked like they were up to something.  Then they shot your driver, and now they’ve taken Marcus prisoner.  Do you know why or maybe for whom they are working?”

“I believe they are working for
Lord
Hoffman,” Lilly said truthfully.

“What?”
Meredith asked darkly.

“Lucas kidnapped Lady Allana,” Maggie blurted out.

“I see,” he replied quietly.  “Now he has
Marcus
as well, but for what purpose?”

“Why does it matter, Uncle?  It
’
s
Hoffman
.  This is the chance w
e’
ve been waiting for. 
The chance to avenge Josephine,” Garret said with conviction. 

Lilly looked at him in confusion.  What was he talking about?

“Yes, I know, Garret, but we must get details first.  Please, Lilly, tell me more,” Meredith instructed kindly.

“
H
e kidnapped Allana, who is
now
Lord
Cunningham’s wife.” 

“Yes, I had heard of their union,”
William
said
as he nodded
. 

“We were on our way to enlist the sheriff in our cause to rescue her. 
Lord
Cunningham and Connor have gone to the Hoffman Estates to try to sneak inside and rescue her themselves, but I’m afraid they may be in grave peril, especially after our attack.  We would probably all be prisoners if
not
for you—oh no. 
The pain
…it’s coming
again,” Lilly cringed, grasping at her stomach.  She moaned as cramps filled her lower abdomen once more.  How long had it been since the first one? 
Ten
,
maybe fifteen minutes, or had it been less?
  “
Please, not yet,
” she groaned as though trying to convince
the baby to wait a while longer.
  She clutched Maggie’s shoulder to prevent herself from collapsing to the ground.

“Erik.  Pick her up.  We
have
to get her to the camp and to my wife. 
And Thomas?”

“Yes, Will?” 

“Stop
staring
.  It’s not polite,” Meredith ordered. 

It was
n’t
until then that Maggie finally noticed the man’s eyes on her.  She blushed slightly, and he gave her an apologetic smile. 

A large fellow, one of the men who had
arrived
with William, picked Lilly up into his arms, ignoring her protests.  Meredith then proceeded to lead their little group deeper into the forest while staying by Lilly’s side. 

“Why would
Lord
Hoffman kidnap
Allana
?” he
asked.
 

“Well, I think he…does he really have to carry me?  I believe I would feel better walking,” Lilly complained.

“Do you think you can walk?”
Will
iam
asked in return.

“Yes, now that the pain has subsided,” Lilly retorted.

“P
ut her down, Erik.  Now, you were saying?”

Lilly dug in
to
her bosom, pulling out the letter
Declan
had sent with them.  It had everything in it from Allana’s brutal beating to
Lucas’s
kidnap
ping
of her. 
Declan
had wanted to make certain there was enough evidence in the letter to convince the authorities a grave injustice was occurring and help was truly needed. 
She handed the letter to William. 
“Read this.  It explains everything much better than I could
.
” 

William opened the letter and read the contents coolly at first.  Then his countenance changed.  Rage filled his features as he crushed the letter.  “We will help you,” he stated fervently.  Both women stared at him in surprise.  “Hoffman is a treacherous man,” he explained.  “He has ruined too many women’s lives, including my niece’s.  He will pay for his actions.  I had already
planned on lending my aid, but now I am determined to see it happen as soon as possible.  Justice must be met.
”

“Oh, thank you,
Mr. Meredith
,” Lilly said as tears seeped into her eyes once more.

“It is an honor, Lilly, and call me Will.  Marcus always d
oes
,” he said, smiling charmingly to her.

William walked by Lilly in silence as they journeyed deeper into the woods. 
She’d
met him so briefly those years ago, and he had been a fugitive of the law.  She never spoken to Marcus about him after, and when he brought Allana the tiny colt
that
would grow into her magnificent horse, Lilly almost insisted they refuse the gift. 
She
hadn’t
trusted this man. 
Marcus persuaded her William was an
honorable man even with his poo
r reputation.  She trusted
Marcus’s
judgment, but Marcus was not here now
,
and Lilly had questions. 

“I
a
m sorry, Will
iam
, but I
must ask
.  How do you know
Marcus
?”

He smiled at her.  “Marcus never told you?”

“I never asked.  To be honest, I was unsure of you,” she admitted.

“Ah, I see. 
Marcus and I grew up together.  My father worked for his father, and I could have worked for him, but I chose a different path.  My life
was
not a respectable one, but it suit
ed
me,” William replied nonchalantly.

“What do you mean?”
Lilly asked.  Maggie walked by her side in silence listening to the
conversation
.