To Trust a Thief (18 page)

Chapter Thirty-two

Bryant felt strange, almost separate from his body. His side hurt, which he knew was good. If he could feel, he wasn’t dead. Yet. Though he was sure he should be in a lot more pain than he was. He could hear movement around him, felt himself being prodded, something cold on his skin. Blankets being drawn over his bare chest.

Voices. People talking. He could hear Julian talking to the doctor but couldn’t seem to make his eyes open.

“How is he?” Julian asked.

“Not good. The bullet went deep. I was able to extract it, and the wound should heal cleanly. But…”

“May I see him?”

There was silence for a moment, then the bed sagged on one side as if someone had sat down. Bryant could hear the curtains being drawn and the room felt dark and sinister, even through his daze.

“He’s very pale.” Julian’s voice was close but hushed.

“Yes. He’s lost a great deal of blood. And I can’t be certain how much damage was done internally. I fear a fever is taking hold as well. That is his worst enemy at the moment.”

Bryant felt Julian’s hand on his forehead and fought a twinge of fear at how cool his friend’s skin felt against his own. He forced his eyes open and wanted to shut them again to block out the fear on Julian’s face.

“How is she?” Bryant asked, the question nearly inaudible.

“Sleeping for the moment, I think. She didn’t want to leave you.”

Bryant smiled. “Nor I her.” He caught the way the doctor’s face twisted before Arthur turned from the bed, busying himself with his instruments.

Bryant took a shallow breath and reached for his friend’s hand. He tried to grasp it firmly but couldn’t seem to make his hand work.

“You must watch her for me, protect her. Rellik will not leave witnesses. You need to take Min from here. Take her home. Take her to my mother if you feel that is safer. But protect her at all costs.”

The force of his plea left Bryant breathless, and his eyes fluttered closed. Julian began to stand but was stopped once again by Bryant’s hand.

“Promise me,” he whispered.

Julian nodded and grasped Bryant’s hand. “I will protect her with my life, Bryant.”

Bryant’s breaths came in wheezing gasps. “Rellik will come after her if he cannot get to me.”

Julian’s head jerked up. “Why?”

Bryant didn’t answer the question. Instead, he winced as he tried to force back a cough, desperate to forestall additional pain.

“He’ll know…eventually… He’ll discover it… He’ll go after Min first. Protect her. Keep her safe…”

Julian frowned, and Bryant hoped he understood. He couldn’t seem to get the right words out. But Julian nodded again, assuring Bryant he would follow his wishes. Bryant smiled, his mouth trembling from the effort. He let his eyes close.

He could still hear everything going on in the room, though it sounded like it was coming from far away. Someone crossed to the armoire, rustled through the drawers. Probably Julian taking a shirt. Had he been wearing one? Bryant thought he remembered Julian taking his shirt off but couldn’t remember why.

Julian’s voice again. “What do you think his chances are?”

“Not good.”
The doctor?
“Honestly, I think it would take a miracle to save his life now.”

Bryant wanted to argue, insist that he’d be fine. In fact, he felt pretty good. The pain was almost gone. Fading.

The doctor shouted.

A tray crashed.

Why couldn’t they be quiet? He was so tired…

Chapter Thirty-three

The door opened and shut with a quiet
click
. “Bryant?” Min asked, sleep still dragging at her.

“Shh, it’s just me,” Charlotte said, coming to sit beside Min on the bed. “How are you feeling?”

“Better. Sore,” she said with a smile that probably came out more as a grimace. “Have you seen Bryant?”

“Yes.” Charlotte seemed reluctant to elaborate. “Min, I think…I think you may need to prepare yourself…”

“No.” Min wouldn’t even consider the possibility. “Bryant is a thick-headed, arrogant prat. He’s too stubborn to die.”

Charlotte gave her a ghost of a smile. “I saw him, Min. He was so pale, barely breathing. I just… I don’t know.” Her next words struck Min right through the heart. “Perhaps it is better this way.”

“How can you say that?” Min asked, anger and grief beating a constant thrum in her chest.

“Min, he isn’t good enough for you. You never could have trusted him. He is a liar, a cheat, and a thief. A dangerous man who used you for his own gain. He even turned on his own partners. Even you can’t deny he was only here for the necklace. He didn’t care about anything else. Or about anyone. Look at what’s happened to you since he came into your life.”

Min shook her head. “You don’t know him like I do. Besides, I’m no better. I wanted that necklace too. Helping Bryant was betraying Arthur and my mother, and helping them would have betrayed him. And he does care about me. He loves me.”

Charlotte cocked an eyebrow, looking at Min like she was a stubborn child. “He actually told you he loved you?”

“Yes, he did. Just after…” Min’s voice trailed away.

“Just after he was shot? When he lay dying?” Charlotte asked.

Min nodded, turning her face away.

“Min…if he really loved you, would he not have told you sooner? Why wait unless he had never planned on saying it at all? Perhaps knowing he was about to meet his Maker, he wanted to die with a clear conscience. Maybe he just wanted to do a good deed before he died and thought that making you happy by saying what you wanted to hear most would accomplish that. I don’t know.”

“No,” Min seethed, “you don’t know. Why are you saying all this, Charlotte?”

Charlotte took a deep breath, her eyes filling with tears. “I thought maybe it would be easier… Min, Mr. Westley is gone.”

Min shook her head, every cell in her body screaming out in denial. “No he isn’t,” she whispered.

“I wouldn’t lie to you, Min, not ever. He is gone. I don’t know if he is dead, but when I saw him, he looked…” Charlotte choked on the words. “There was a long black carriage in the courtyard, the kind they use for dead bodies, and when it left he was gone. I looked in his room; he isn’t there anymore, Min. If he was alive and loved you as you say he did, would he have left you?”

“Get out,” Min whispered. She knew Charlotte meant well, but she couldn’t stand to hear another word. “Please, Charlotte, just leave me alone. I need to be alone.”

Min’s heart clenched at the sorrow on Charlotte’s face, but she couldn’t deal with anyone else’s pain at the moment. Bryant was gone, maybe forever. The necklace was gone. She had no hope of helping her mother. Rellik would be coming after Arthur when he couldn’t pay what he owed. He never forgot a debt. They were all done for. Min had never felt such a crushing, all-consuming despair. It strangled her, overwhelmed her with its grasping tentacles. She couldn’t breathe.

“I’m so sorry, Min. I’ll be here if you need me.”

Charlotte left Min alone with her misery.

Chapter Thirty-four

“Please, I beg of you,” Katherine complained. “It has been weeks and there’s been no mention of the so-called ‘Courtland Case.’ Everyone assumes the tomb was empty. There has been no sign of Mr. Westley. Why can’t we just sell the thing and be done with it?”

“Just be patient!” Rellik snapped at her, his head pounding. He was starting to tire of the little harpy. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do to be rid of her—at least not yet. Once they were married he could safely dispose of her and bribe a midwife to say she hemorrhaged to death during a miscarriage. Or better still, arrange for her to have a riding accident or other such mishap. Until then, he was stuck with her.

She was nervous and edgy and had been since they had taken the necklace. Bryant’s body had supposedly been taken to his family, but no formal funeral had followed. If one occurred, it had been handled with incredible haste and secrecy. This uncertainty had Katherine wound up, and Rellik was uneasy, as well.

He grudgingly admitted to himself that he did agree with Katherine in this instance. He wanted to be rid of the necklace as badly as she did but for different reasons. He needed money. His creditors were growing restless; he wouldn’t be able to hold them off much longer.

Naturally, he would break the necklace into small pieces and sell the individual gems one at a time, and never more than a few to the same jeweler. Old families often had stashes of jewels that they kept for emergencies, so no one would notice the sale of a precious stone here or there. But he wanted to be absolutely certain no one remained who would question his sale of a few jewels.

Rellik glared at Katherine a moment longer and then rose from his chair. Indeed, the time had finally come. If anyone had intended to come forward about the theft of the necklace, he or she would have done so by now. Besides, who would believe such a story? In the long run, of course, Miss Sinclair would have to be dispatched. She had witnessed Rellik’s involvement in both the theft and Bryant’s murder…not to mention her own attempted murder.

Rellik went to the last bookcase on the far side of the library and dropped to his knees. He slid a panel to one side and opened the small hidden safe. Katherine leaned forward and held her breath as Rellik removed a velvet bag and a small leather pouch of tools.

He carried the items to a nearby table, opened the pouch, and withdrew the sparkling Courtland necklace. He held it up to the window for a moment, and Katherine smiled as the rainbow of lights shimmered on her face. Rellik ignored her, snipped off one of the smaller pendants, and replaced the rest of the necklace in the safe.

Katherine scooped up the pendant and held it to the light. Rage burned through Rellik. The jewels were
his
! The spoiled little brat obviously needed to be reminded of her place. A snarl escaped his gritted teeth. He reached her in just a few steps, spun her around, and cuffed her, the rings on his fingers slicing open her flesh.

Katherine shrieked, dropping the pendant as she fell. It crashed to the stone floor a split second before she did. Her head struck the pendant and the floor with a sickening crack.

“Get up!” Rellik roared, yanking at her arm. Whimpering, Katherine scurried back to her chair, cupping her hand to her bleeding cheek.

His blood ran cold as he caught a glimpse of several small blue shards of glass mixed with the blood on her fingers. Katherine raised her horrified eyes to his as he moved to stand over the spot where she had fallen.

His chest heaved, each breath fighting past the panic that seized him. At his feet were the crushed remains of the pendant.

“It’s not possible,” he hissed through clenched teeth. “It is just not possible! A fake? It’s a fake?”

Katherine cowered in her chair.

Rellik rushed to her. He grabbed her by the wrist and dragged her to where he had been standing. She screamed when he grabbed her neck and forced her nose inches from the ground where the shattered pendant lay.

“It’s glass! Glass! Look at it!”

Katherine shrank from him, staring in terrified fascination at the pile of colored shards that had, minutes before, been a beautiful diamond and sapphire pendant. Rellik threw her from him. If she didn’t stop her whimpering, he’d strangle her into silence and be done with her once and for all.

…

Katherine gathered her skirts in her hands and fled. She didn’t stop running until she had reached the front door and threw it open, blind to everything but her need to escape Rellik’s fury. She ran down the steps to the carriage. Her startled coachman jumped down from his perch and helped her inside.

“Oh, Miss! You’re hurt! Your cheek is bleeding. Should I go for help, m’lady?”

Katherine shook her head, terror clawing its way through her belly until her teeth chattered. She just wanted to be miles away. “No, no, please, take me to my father. Be quick!”

The coachman turned at the sound of Rellik’s howls from inside the house.

“Westley, damn you! You won’t get away with this! No one cheats me!”

The coachman hastened to close the door of the carriage and jumped back into his place, whipping the horses into an immediate gallop. The carriage lurched forward and Katherine sank into the cushions, tears mixing with the blood that coursed down her face.

Chapter Thirty-five

Min concentrated on breathing in and out, letting the cool morning air soak through her. There had been no word from Bryant. No sign of Rellik. Nothing. Min’s injuries were little more than dull aches now, but she feared if Bryant was truly gone, her heart would never heal.

“Here you are,” Arthur said, sliding down to sit beside her on the greenhouse bench. “What are you doing out here?”

“Just getting some fresh air.”

Arthur bumped her shoulder with his. “He’ll come back for you, Min.”

“If he can.”

Arthur snorted. “He wants you, Min. He might even love you. And that stubborn bastard won’t let a little thing like a bullet stop him from getting what he wants.”

Min’s startled laughter rang through the greenhouse. It felt good to laugh. For a moment. She took Arthur’s hand and threaded her fingers through his. “I’m sorry, Arthur.”

“Don’t be. I just want to see you happy.”

Min kissed his cheek but before she could say another word the door to the greenhouse crashed open.

Arthur jumped to his feet. “What the hell?”

Rellik and two of his henchmen marched in. Arthur lunged in front of Min but one of the men swung his fist, knocking Arthur to the ground. Min screamed.

Relllik marched right up to her and wrapped his hand around her throat.

“Where is it, you little bitch? What did you do with it?”

Min sobbed, trying desperately to loosen his hold. “What are you talking about? I didn’t do anything!”

Rellik’s grip tightened, forcing her to her knees. “The necklace! Where is it?”

“You have the necklace,” she whispered, gasping for air.

Oh sweet heaven.
Min remembered seeing the necklace, lying there in the casket, glittering, free of the dust that surrounded it…and perfectly whole. No missing gem. Somehow Bryant had switched the necklace with a fake. He must have. And Rellik had obviously discovered his treachery.

But Min was going to pay the price.

Her arms tingled and an icy cold flowed down her limbs, leaving her lightheaded and terrified.

Rellik let go and slapped her. Min’s head snapped backward and Rellik grabbed her by the hair. Black spots swam in her vision but she blinked at them, not wanting to lose consciousness with a madman at her throat.

“No!” Arthur shouted.

Min twisted free but didn’t get far. Arthur spun away from the man who’d attacked him and lunged for Rellik, but he shoved Arthur out of the way and grabbed Min by the hair before she could run. She screamed, the sound nothing more than a hoarse screech. Rellik dragged Min out of the greenhouse, yelling at her as she stumbled, trapped in his grip.

“Rellik!” Arthur thundered after them. “What are you doing? Let her go!”

Rellik tightened his hold on Min and had her out the door, hauling her to where his waiting horses stood just outside the greenhouse, pawing at the ground in their agitation.

Arthur flew out the door and launched himself at Rellik. Rellik, momentarily stunned, let go of Min.

“Run!” Arthur yelled.

Min hesitated. She couldn’t leave him!

“Get the girl!” she heard Rellik shout at one of his thugs.

The man was blocking her path to the house so she turned and dashed into the copse of trees behind the greenhouse, running as fast as she could.

A large body tackled her, rolling her to the ground.

“No,” she moaned, closing her eyes as the man flipped her on her stomach, wrenching her arms behind her. She struggled, kicking and thrashing, when she felt a thick length of rope being wound around her wrists. The man let go of the rope for a moment and shoved her face into the ground, grinding it against the twigs and rocks in the dirt.

“Just hold still, missy, and I won’t have to hurt you,” he grunted, giving her head one last painful shove before he resumed tying her. When he was finished, he picked her up, throwing her over his shoulder.

“Wouldn’t want you trying to run again, eh, girlie!” He laughed, giving her bottom a hard slap. Min sobbed against his shoulder, spitting dirt out of her mouth.

He brought her back to Rellik and dumped her to the ground on her belly. Min cried out at the pain pulsing through her body.

“You won’t get away with this!” Arthur shouted.

Min watched as Rellik and Arthur circled each other. Arthur was bleeding from his lip and nose but looked like he’d gotten in a few hits as well.

Rellik paced in a slow circle around him. Arthur stood rigid, standing his ground. He met Min’s eyes for a brief second, his face a mask of regret. It was all the time Rellik needed. He lunged at Arthur, knocking him to his knees. He wrapped his arm around Arthur’s windpipe from behind. Arthur pried his fingers beneath Rellik’s elbow, trying in vain to relieve the pressure on his neck. Rellik pressed a knife to his throat. Arthur froze in place.

The knife sliced into Arthur’s flesh and Min’s rasping scream echoed through the air.