Connor’s amusement slipped away as quick as it had come when Piper took another step toward the duke, her pistol centered on his chest. “What happens ifyouare the one to do me harm, Duke? Do you die, too? You should.”
Rutledge couldn’t know how serious she was. Connor had heard that detached tone from her only once but knew the unmitigated anger it covered. A smart man would be quaking in his boots, yet the duke did no more than scoff.
“Come with me now, Lady Phillipa, and no one need be hurt.”
“Except me?” Piper retorted in that flat pitch.
“You will be a duchess.”
“I will never be duchess of anything. I’m done running from you.” Her voice thickened with emotion on every word, her conviction growing. She took another step forward and Connor shadowed the movement. He wouldn’t let her go it alone. She’d never be alone again. “I will not marry you, or your toad of a son.”
“You will, or your friends will suffer the consequences.”
Her aim wavered at the warning, reminding Connor of what she’d shared of her tragic encounter with Rutledge. He’d used that threat before to sway her into capitulation. It hadn’t worked then. Piper’s shoulders elevated as she sucked in a deep, bracing breath, and a smile touched Connor’s heart. It wouldn’t work now, either. His lass stood strong in the face of adversity.
She glanced around at their growing audience. “Even you are not so far above the law that you can kill a man in the streets and walk away, Duke.”
“Nor can you, may I point out?”
A humorless huff of laughter escaped her. “What more have I to lose? Life as an imprisoned murderess is preferable to life as your wife. She tightened her grip on the pistol and steadied her aim. “There’s only one way I can hope to be me again. One way to truly put an end to it.””
For the first time, Rutledge had the good sense to seem uneasy. He glanced down at the gun with a hard swallow. Unfortunately, his brazen arrogance didn’t slip. “You think to threaten me?”
“This is no threat, Duke.” Determination filled her voice. “How else can I be assured that you’ll leave me in peace? That you’ll cease your pursuit?” Her hand quaked in rhythm to the heart-wrenching sentiment in her words. Connor’s chest tightened with an empathetic twinge. “I won’t live another day in fear of what you might do in the years to come.”
“Piper.” Connor appealed under his breath “Dinnae do anything ye cannae take back.”
Her aim wavered and steadied again.
At the crossroads beyond Rutledge and his lackeys, a group of men—some in uniform—descended from a trio of hired hacks. Relief flowed through Connor. Not wanting to startle her into firing as she had inside, he touched Piper’s arm lightly. “The authorities are here. It’s over.”
“You think this is over?” Rutledge sneered with a dismissive glance over his shoulder. “You think these friends of yours have the power to stop me? My friends are far more influential. I will have my way in the end.”
“He will pay for his crimes,” Connor assured her quietly. “More to the point, he’ll never hurt ye again.”
“How will he pay? There are only three things that matter to a man like Rutledge.” She leaned closer until the barrel of the gun was a yard from his chest. “Isn’t that right, Duke? Power, wealth, and reputation. He has all of them intact. He’s lost nothing. He won’t be punished for what he’s done. It won’t stop him from coming after me.
“Given Temple’s connections, I don’t think that will be a problem,” Connor murmured under his breath, scratching his jaw nonchalantly. He leaned closer to her ear. “He has friends in some distant lands. Far distant, if ye catch my meaning.”
“Not good enough.” Pistol cast a glance at him over her shoulder. “He deserves far worse. The coward.”
Connor could think of nothing to console her further. He couldn’t blame her for wanting more when mere arrest chafed at him as well. He was about to draw her into his arms when her posture changed. Her shoulders squared, spine straightened. Her head cocked to the side. Though he couldn’t see her face, he sensed a renewal of the spirit and fight he’d come to know in her.
“Reputation,” she repeated and scanned the area around them. Bystanders crowded forward for a better view. Piper turned to them and raised her voice to carry to the back of the crowd.“I am Lady Phillipa Brudenall, sister of the Marquis of Aylesbury. This mancoweringbefore me is none other than the infamous Duke of Rutledge.” A murmur of combined awe and astonishment rose. “You’ve heard of him, I see? His fearsome reputation precedes him. However, his reputation is far worse that you know.”
With a growl, the duke lunged, fingers curled into claws going for her throat, only to pause as she cocked her pistol.
“Two years ago, he tried to force me to marry his son, Viscount Dormer. Then to marry him instead.” The people booed and hissed at the duke. Piper nodded in agreement. “I refused him then. I refuse him again today as he kidnapped me and tried to coerce me by threatening violence upon these honorable men who came to my rescue.” More catcalls and jeers followed her words and Rutledge’s face reddened. She didn’t stop there, adding, “Even the title of duchess is not recompense enough to suffer the humiliation of marrying a bully who would try to beat a defenseless woman into submission.”
Rutledge’s lip curled with such venom, Connor felt it curdle in his gut. “You will pay for the humiliation I’ve suffered this day,” Rutledge ground out. “In the end, you will suffer my vengeance.”
“No, you will be the one to suffer now. Reputation, Duke,” Piper spat out. “It was already tarnished because of your son. What will you do when it’s gone? When all of London knows of your evil deeds?”
“Shall I share with them what I did to you?” he hissed.
She blanched but did not quail. “Do whatever you like. Say whatever you like. I’ll not go quietly or willingly. I will never let you lay a finger on me again.”
“Yet these fingers have been on you. Touched you.” He showed his hands as he taunted her, though a bead of sweat trickled down his forehead. “I made you mine. Youaremine.”
