“Oh, ho!” Rory laughed. “And now I have my leverage—the woman. Good of you to volunteer that, mate. But do come along. We’ll have a drink and talk before anyone gets hurt, and we’ll see if you have something to bargain with.”
Dominic put his arm around Brooke and held her tightly to his side before he started walking.
“They’re some sort of criminals, aren’t they?” she whispered. “This close to shore, maybe smugglers?”
“Without a ship? More likely highwaymen hiding in the woods if they have ‘fast’ horses—unless that was a lie.”
“But it sounded like they’ll dicker for our release.”
“For promises? Not likely.”
“Don’t underestimate the power of a titled lord. That Rory fellow probably knows if you give your word, you’ll honor it.”
She was trying to be optimistic to tamp down her fear, but it didn’t work. Dominic wasn’t armed. If he tried to fight their way out of this, he was going to get shot, repeatedly, and he was a big target. It was all well and good that he’d threatened to kill their captors, but ifhedied...
Chapter Thirty-Five
BROOKE LOOKED AROUND THEclearing in the woods where the criminals apparently lived. With only four decent-size huts it certainly wasn’t a village. A fifth appeared to be under construction; a wagon filled with lumber was parked next to it. She didn’t see any gardens or shops, not even a road leading here. A large campfire burned in front of one of the huts. A big pot hung over the fire and benches surrounded it.
A dozen or so people were there, though half of them were women holding young children. Most of them eyed Brooke and Dominic warily, but one young woman smiled shyly at Brooke, as did a few of the children.
They were led to the campfire. Rory picked up a flask on the ground and took a swig from it, then offered it to Dominic, who shook his head. Dominic removed his arm from around Brooke’s shoulders when Rory gave her a long look. She realized Dominic was preparing to fight.
Rory took a step back before asking, “D’you need some time to cool off, then? Before we talk? We usually do our robbing on the highways, but we don’t turn away donations that come our way.”
“You can take what little I have on me, or you can loan me two of your horses and I will return them with a purse containing a hundred pounds.”
“Or I can hold you for ransom, gov’nor. A hundred, eh? I’m thinking you’re worth a lot more’n that.”
“The Prince Regent is already holding me for ransom,” Dominic snarled.
The men laughed, obviously not believing him.
“And what’s his holiness asking of you?” Rory asked.
“A ring on her finger.”
The uproarious laughter when Dominic pointed his thumb at her got Brooke quite indignant.
But Rory stepped closer to her and grinned. “I’d pay that ransom.”
It might have been the remark, or because the man was about to touch her cheek, but Dominic suddenly lunged at him. They fell to the ground, and despite there being a half dozen weapons trained on him, Dominic still landed a fist to Rory’s cheek before three men dragged him off their leader.
“You might be a lord, but you’re not too smart,” Rory said angrily as he got back to his feet. “A cooling-off time it is, then. Tie his lordship up and make bleedin’ sure the ropes are tight. As for her—”
“I’ll be seeing to her,” a female voice interrupted.
Brooke turned to see an older woman approaching. Gray haired and gray eyed, she was a little beyond middle years with a weathered face. Her eyes swept over Brooke in a calculating manner before she gave Rory a stern look.
Dominic was struggling so fiercely with the three men holding him that two of them were already on the ground. But four others jumped in to help restrain him. He might still have won that battle, but he stopped trying when he heard the woman add, “D’you not recognize a gently reared lady? She’s coming with me, boy.”
Brooke held her breath, waiting to hear Rory laugh and tell the old woman to go away. He didn’t. Instead he turned to help his men tie up Dominic, and the woman led Brooke to the hut at the far end of the clearing. It was much nicer inside than she had expected. She even found the strong smell of fresh wood pleasant. A double bed had a brightly colored quilt on it. There was a table with four chairs, even a rug on the wooden floorboards. The furniture all looked old and heavily used.
“Make yourself comfy, dearie. I’m Matty.”
Brooke swung around when the old woman followed her into the room. “Please, what are they going to do to my fiancé?”
She shook her head. “My boy is mercurial, especially when he sees an opportunity to make us rich. He’s sunk his teeth into that idea, now that he knows your man is a lord. So there’s no telling what he’ll do if it don’t happen.”
