“A pretty show of outrage, but no answer all the same. Did you entertain Jake and Steven and Daniel?”
“How dare you!”
“I don’t mind, you understand,” Parker shrugged. “I was just curious.”
Cheeks flushed, Aurora stood, bracing her arms on the table. “Well, it is a curiosity I have no intention of satisfying. Your gall is not to be believed. Sometimes I think you are quite mad.”
Parker’s smile was chilling, his voice soft with menace. “Take a damper, Rory. You are so easily riled; I wonder that I do not tease you more often. You’re quite something when you’re angry.” His expression softened. “Come,” he cajoled. “Sit down again. Please. There are other matters which beg our attention.”
Aurora sat slowly, the angry color receding from the taut planes of her face. “What matters?”
“I believe that with two attempts on your life already made, it is time we finish what we’ve begun. The Whittakers most strongly suspect Bran of the poisoning, don’t they?”
“Yes. It is clear to everyone that he has the most to gain by my death. He can hardly keep his hands off my sister now.”
Parker smiled enigmatically. “How well I know.”
Aurora frowned, wondering what he meant. Doubting he would explain, she continued. “Even Sir James warned him that if anything happened to me, Bran would be held accountable first.”
“Good. And, as you say, even if suspicion fell heavily on Cody, Brandon would take the blame. It would seem as if everything is falling neatly into place.”
Aurora glanced about the tidy cabin again. “I doubt you could arrange it any other way,” she said dryly. “Tell me, what is to be done next?”
“I have been giving it some thought.” He withdrew the wire wand from the barrel of his rifle and laid it aside, setting the musket on the table. “Cody and Brandon intend to go hunting on Thursday, do they not?”
“Yes, in three days. But how did—”
“And you know where they hunt?”
“Certainly. They plan to go upriver, to the woods northwest of the folly, along the Chickahominy.”
“It would be a simple matter for you to go riding there, wouldn’t it?”
“I suppose, though I will have to take an escort. Aaron is not likely to be assigned to me again after this morning.”
“That’s fine. Take your sister.”
“Shannon?”
Parker made a wry face. “Have you another?”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
“Then try not to be stupid. You have always known how our plan was to be carried out. Have you lost your stomach for it?”
Aurora hesitated, looking down at the table. She reached for her gloves. In a nervous gesture she began to smooth them out. “No, I haven’t lost my stomach for it. Still, you must see that it is hard for me. She is my twin, after all.” Her voice lowered. “I have seen a miniature of our mother. I do have some sensibilities, you know.”
“I never doubted it. Greed comes to mind immediately.”
Aurora tossed the gloves at Parker. “You are outrageous! It is you who wants the folly. I only want you.”
Parker blinked in surprise. “Really? Your confession touches me deeply.”
“You truly are a cruel bastard, aren’t you?” Agitated, Aurora stood up and began pacing the small confines of the cabin. “Why else do you think I didn’t want Bran to divorce me? What use would you have for me then? I’ve always known that I was merely a way for you to avenge yourself on Brandon. How do you think I was able to act so convincingly when I told Bran you had thrown me out? That he doesn’t suspect your fine hand in this affair is because I told him things I know to be true.”
Parker grabbed Aurora’s wrist as she passed him and, ignoring her struggle, drew her down onto his lap. His hand fisted in the thickness of her hair and he held her still, tilting her face to his. Parker’s mouth came down on hers in a brutal, punishing kiss. He didn’t stop until he felt her surrender. Her hands slid around his neck and her mouth parted beneath his. “My sweet, sweet Rory,” he whispered against her lips. “There is no other like you.”
Aurora’s fingertips traced Parker’s jaw. “I find I have no pride where you are concerned; certainly no will of my own.” She cradled her head against his shoulder. “Is the folly so important to you, Parker?”
