To Love a Horseguard (15 page)

His mind wandered back to the kisse
s he shared with her. The memories haunted him in his dreams. He had never wanted to kiss a woman as badly as he wanted to kiss Rose. One kiss was not enough, he needed more. Suddenly he wanted to protect her, hold her, to kiss her lips again and again.

He shook his head and reached for the bottle of vodka on
the corner of the desk.
Have I completely lost my senses?
He was in the middle of the biggest international scandal since Napoleon and he wanted to make passionate love to the woman. Her father was probably on his way with an entire army to declare war on Russia. Even if he offered to marry the woman, he doubted the tsar or the English king would be supportive of the idea. He scowled as he poured himself a glass of vodka.
Marriage?
Now he knew he was insane. A man with his responsibilities did not marry a woman just because he enjoyed kissing her. A man who was in charge of the army married whom the tsar chose for him; besides Rose was in love with Victor. A knock on the study door roused him from his thoughts.

“Enter,” he called, and then took a deep swig of his drink.

A guard entered the room with Rose’s sniveling maid in tow. He saluted before shoving her forward to stand in front of the desk. “This one has something to tell you.”

The maid stood there wringing her
hands, a mixture of dirt and tears streaking her face.

Dimitry removed his feet f
rom the desk and sat up. “Well, what is it?” he asked in English.

“My lord, your grace...” The maid floundered, her eyes darting back and forth.

Her shiftiness pricked his ire. “Prince Dimitry will suffice,” he growled.

The maid stared at him wide-eyed
and cleared her throat. “I've done something horrible! I didn't mean to, well I mean I didn't intend it to go as far as it did. Oh, I don’t know what to do!”

Dimitry set down his drink. “Get to the point woman.” 

She began to sob.

He glowered at her. “Out with i
t! Nothing you could have done could be that bad unless you are helping Sergi. Your only chance to save yourself from Siberia is to confess.”

The maid
let out a wail and fell to her knees, great sobs bubbling from her heaving chest, strings of snot mixing with the tears streaming down her cheeks.

Dimitry shook his head and turned to the soldier. “Go fetch Victor. He is the only one I know who has the patience to deal with womanly hysterics.”

The guard nodded and left. Dimitry called for Anya, and then poured a glass of vodka for the maid. He forced the vessel into her hands when she shrank away from him wide-eyed and terrified. “Drink.”

The girl put it
to her lips as she sobbed. She choked on the first mouthful and sputtering liquid over the rim onto his priceless Persian carpet. He glared at her as Anya hurried into the room. “Wake Rose and bring her here.”

Anya glanced
at the maid cowering on the floor and shot him a withering look.

He ignored it and waved her out. “Go.”

A few minutes later she was back without Rose.

“Well? Where
is Rose?”

She shook her head. “She's not in her room.”

Dimitry frowned. Where is the blasted woman? “Check the garden; she was there a couple of hours ago.”

Anya was back again by the time
Victor arrived. “She is nowhere to be found.”

“What is going on?” Victor followed Anya into the room and removed his gloves.

Dimitry pointed to the crying maid. “This one says she has done something terrible, and now

Rose has disappeared.”

Tossing his gloves on the table Victor fixed Dimitry with a malevolent stare. “Well, I am not surprised after way you threatened her this afternoon.”

Dimitr
y waved a hand at the blubbering maid. “Will you please quiet her down and find out what she has done that has her so hysterical?”

Vi
ctor turned to the maid and favored her with a gentle smile. He patted her hand and talked in a soothing tone. “Calm yourself now, miss. Whatever you have done can be fixed.” When the maid sniffled and nodded he patted her hand again and continued, “Where is your mistress, Rose?”

The maid took a deep breath and began to tell them what ha
ppened. Dimitry fought to keep his anger under control until she was done. He vowed Sergi would pay with his blood when he caught him, as the maid told how Rose had been tied up and taken away in Sergi’s coach. She was just finishing her tale when another guard burst into the study.

The breathless man
sputtered, “A fleet of English ships has just sailed into the harbor!”

Dimitry swore. Not only was Rose missing, but the English navy was here to declare war. He gave orders to call every soldier from their barracks across the canal and have them form a visible line along the harbor. Dimitry then summoned a messenger to inform the tsar of the developments.

When the soldier left with his orders, Dimitry turned to the sniffling maid. “Where did Sergi take Rose?”

The maid stared at him wide-eyed and sniffling. “To a cave.”

A cave? Is she jesting?
“What cave?” The girl stared at him in mute terror. He stood up and leaned across the desk. “What cave?”

Wringing her hands she cast
Victor a pleading look. “I don’t know.”

“Tell me where or I will send you to Siberia in a box,” Dimitry threatened, his patience already exhausted.

She let out a tiny shriek. “I don’t know!”

Raw fear, an emotion Dimitry
had never experienced before clawed at his insides. The woman he loved was in danger or possibly dead. Out of desperation he drew his pistol and aimed it at the trembling servant.

“Dimitry,” Victor barked, jumping in front of the cowering maid. “Stop!”

“Get out of my way, Victor,” Dimitry ground out.

Victor looked him in the eye. “Killing her is not going to help find Rose.”

Dimitry fought to control the anguish in his voice. “I love her, Victor, I am in love with Rose.”

“I know.” Victor's voice softened and he held out his hand, “Give me the gun, Dimitry.” When Dimitry’s ha
nd shook, Victor placed his fingers over his on the gun. “Give me the gun.”

In defeat
Dimitry lowered his hand, let Victor take the gun from him and sagged into the chair behind the desk. He had never been so close to losing his sanity than he was at that moment. All he could do was cling to the slim hope he wasn't too late to save the woman he loved. He looked to Victor for the first time, realizing the younger man was more than his cousin and friend, he was his ally. “What are we going to do?”

Victor set the pistol on the desk. “We find her.”

Dimitry got his emotions under control. “First we had better avert a war.” After ordering his war horse saddle he hurried to change into his army uniform. By the time he was changed his horse was waiting for him. Dimitry, Victor, and their personal guards rode to the docks to meet the Englishmen. They waited as the ships sent forth rowboats full of soldiers. Dimitry unbuckled his holster to ensure his gun was within easy reach and glanced back over the long line of soldiers behind him; the tsar’s army looked tense and alert.

He took a deep breath as the first of the British rowboats reached the dock. “Let us pray we can talk ourselves out of this one, Victor.” 

A tall man in a British naval uniform stepped onto the dock followed by a well-dressed gentleman and a handful of soldiers.

Dimitry and Victor dismounted as they approached. After handing
their reins to a horse soldier they crossed the dock and met the Englishmen in the middle.

“I am Jonathon Wellington, the Duke of Ainsbury. I have reason
to believe that Prince Nicoli has kidnapped my sister, Rose. I have been authorized by the king of England himself, to blow your dammed country apart unless she is returned immediately, unharmed,” said the chestnut-haired gentleman, with icy calm.

Dimitry looked the man over. There was no doubt that this man was Rose’s brother,
the Duke of Ainsbury, as their resemblance was remarkable. “Prince Nicoli was my cousin. He was killed before your sister was ever kidnapped,” Dimitry began to explain.

The Duke of Ainsbury drew his pistol and pointed it at Dimitry. “Liar!”

The click of the guns of his men being cocked was deafening and knew they were pointed squarely at the Englishmen. He raised his hands to show his own weapon was still secure in his holster. “I tell the truth. If you will let me explain perhaps we can avoid bloodshed.”

The duke's eyes narrowed. “Who are you and what do you know of the matter?”

“I am Prince Dimitry Peterlovsky. I am the captain of the Konnoguardeysky, in English the rough translation is Tsar’s Horseguards.” Dimitry gave the signal for his soldiers to lower their weapons. He waited for the Englishman and his soldiers to do the same.

The duke studied him for a moment before nodding and giving
the signal for his own men to lower their weapons. “Make no mistake, Dimitry, if you or your men try anything, my marksmen on the ship will see you dead before your men can lift their weapons.”

“Fair enough,” Dimitry said evenly.

“Tell me what you know of my sister.”

Dimitry
explained how Rose had been kidnapped by Sergi and how he and Victor found her.

The duke's jaw twitched. “Where is my sister now?”

Dimitry swallowed. If there is going to be bloodshed it will be now. “Her maid deceived her, and she was kidnapped once more by Sergi, who has taken her to a cave.”

The duke swung his pistol up and pointed it at Dimitry’s chest.
“You let that whore-son steal her right out from under your nose?” he growled, cocking the gun.

Dimitry swung his pistol up, cocking
it at the same time.

“Hold,” Victor shouted, stepping between the two men. He turned and addressed the duke. “Dimitry did not know Lady Rose’s maid was treacherous. We think we know where Sergi has taken her. Dimitry will get her back.”

“He had better,” the duke said, scowling past him at Dimitry. “If my sister is harmed in any way, I promise I will kill Sergi first, and then I will come for you.”

“I respect that,” Dimitry said quietly, lowering his gun.

The duke holstered his gun and they stood eying each other in uneasy silence until Dimitry motioned for his men to stand down. His troops lowered their weapons. He waited while the duke did the same and then gestured to the office at the other end of the dock. “Come, there are some maps in the office we can look over and decide how to go about rescuing your sister.”

The naval captain and the duke followed Dimitry and Victor to the office. They paused on the threshold and peered into the room, undoubtedly to be sure it was not a trap. Dimitry called for his master scout and shut the door behind them. He sifted through the maps in a bin in the corner until he found the two he wanted and then pinned them to a bare wall.

Jonathon came to stand beside him. Dimitry nodded and turned to the map. “Here is where we found the rebel Cossack camp where your sister was first taken. There is a cave about four or five miles past it back in the forest, here.” He pointed to a small notation on the map. He paused as the duke studied the map and then moved onto the second one. “Here, north along the coastline are another three caves. I think this first one will still be under water this early in the season. The second two are farther up on the cliff side so they should be dry.”

“Which of the caves do you think Sergi took her to?” the duke asked.

Dimitry studied the map. “The logical choice would be the ocean side caves; they are closer, but not as easily accessible. On the other hand, Sergi knows the forest better than most. There is a cave four or five miles from where we found his camp which would be easy to get to with a carriage or a horse. If I were to wager, I would say Sergi has taken her to the one in the forest.”

The duke stepped back from the map. “Maybe we should split into two groups? When Sergi finds out we are here he might move her.”

Dimitry sized up the man. “How about half a dozen of your men go with half a dozen of mine to the coastal caves and you, your captain, Victor and I head to the forest with a dozen men.”

Jonathon nodded and held out his hand. Dimitry shook it, knowing they had at least reached a grudging agreement of sorts. He opened the office door and gave orders for horses to be brought for everyone and then chose the guards he most trusted to go with the English soldiers to the coast.

Within minutes they were mounted and on their way. They pushed their horses as hard as they dared for the first two hours until they came to the remains of Sergi’s first camp.

Dimitry held up his hand to slow his troops. “We had best use
caution from here, the cave is only a few miles up this trail. If Sergi has Lady Rose there, we do not want to alert him to our presence.” They continued on until they reached a small trail branching from the wider one. Dimitry dismounted and scanned the forest floor. He pointed to a fresh set of wheel ruts in the mud. “A coach stopped here,” he whispered. He studied the tracks leading away from and back to the fresh ruts. “It looks like a man carrying something heavy took the path to the cave, but came back without his burden.” He glanced up at the duke’s pale face. He had no doubt they were both wondering the same thing. Was Rose dead or had Sergi left her tied up in the cave alone?