Elizabeth Elliott Read Online Free PDF Page B

wave of dizziness struck so hard that his stomach protested its violence. The pace of his heart and breathing quickened, but this time from alarm rather than lust. Something was wrong. Very wrong. What was that pounding noise in his ears?
    “What are you … Oh, my head!”
    His eyes opened and he watched Claudia hold one hand to her forehead, her eyes squeezed tightly shut. She released small puffs of breath that ruffled his hair and seemed to brush at the fog that encased his thoughts, the haziness that blurred his vision.
    This was no dream.
    He jerked himself upright but had to stop and clap his hands over his ears. A hot burst of pain shot through his skulland set black spots before his eyes. The sound of his heartbeat became a deafening roar in his ears. The wine! Dear, God, they’d poisoned the wine after all.
    He thought of Stephen, who had drunk the fouled brew as well, then of Evard and the rest of his men as he murmured a one word prayer for their safekeeping. If he died—
    Even as that thought crossed his mind, the pain in his head subsided. He still felt off-balance, but no longer close to death. Either he hadn’t drunk enough of the poison to kill himself or the poison was meant to incapacitate rather than to kill. His eyes narrowed as he looked again at Claudia.
    She sat up with the sheets tucked beneath her arms, and held both hands to her head. Was she also drugged, or was she mimicking him to make it appear that way? He clenched his jaw. “Get out of my bed!”
    “Your bed?” She tried to meet his gaze but her head weaved from side to side and she finally placed one hand over her eyes and clutched the sheets with the other. “Baron, you are in my bed.”
    He glanced around the room. “Christ!” She was right. Another wave of dizziness caught him off guard. He closed his eyes in an effort to regain his sense of balance. The pounding noise that had plagued him since he awoke suddenly ceased, just as he realized it came from someone banging a fist against the door. The sound of a muffled voice came from the other side.
    “Break it down.”
    His first instinct was to protect Claudia. He reached automatically for his sword, but it wasn’t in its usual resting place next to the bed. This wasn’t his chamber. Why would his sword be here? And why would he be in bed with Claudia for any reason than to be discovered? The pieces of the puzzle fell together with sickening ease. With a curse, he searched for something to cover himself. He found all the clothes he wore the night before on the floor. He’d worn only a loincloth to bed last eve. Why would his clothing be here and not in his chamber with his damned sword?
    More incriminating evidence, came the silent answer. No one would believe that he’d ventured here near-naked. Even as he pulled on his breeks, he noticed that the clothes were flung about as if he’d undressed in great haste. Clever bastards.
    He no more than had his pants in place when the door burst open. A half dozen Lonsdale soldiers pushed through the opening, followed by Baron Lonsdale and Bishop Germaine. The soldiers wore Lonsdale tunics and light armor, yet Baron Lonsdale and the bishop still wore long sleeping shirts and dark robes.
    “So this is how you repay my hospitality!” Baron Lonsdale glared at the bed where Claudia clutched at the sheets to cover herself. “You seduce my niece under my own roof! You will pay for this, Montague, and pay dearly.” He turned to the bishop. “I thought the night guard made some mistake when he reported that Montague came to my niece’s chamber, yet you are my witness to this foul truth.”
    Guy felt an immediate urge to defend himself physically from the lewd charge, even as he realized that it was Lonsdale’s opening move in this game. The strategy. He had to remember his own strategy, to shake off the malaise that still held his mind and body in its grip. His hands clenched into fists and he concentrated on deep, steady breaths.