He stared down at Wren as they waited for the physician. Dash stood at the foot of the bed while the physician examined the bruising and the blood. When Wren groaned and tried to move, Dash pressed a firm hand to his shoulder. Bandages were brought in along with warm water. Brandy was set on a nearby table—not for pleasure, but for pain Wren must be feeling. Though Dash could use a drink, he did not give into the urge.
“Easy,” Dash said quietly. “I can’t have you dying on me now.”
Wren’s eyelids fluttered open. “My lord,” he rasped.
“Who did it?” Dash drew in a breath and waited
Wren’s gaze drifted and went unfocused. His lips moved, but the words were swallowed by pain and exhaustion. He fell back as his breath caught in his throat.
The physician straightened. “He will live, my lord. But he needs rest and he should not speak. The bruising around his throat is extensive.”
Dash gave a curt nod. Relief was a luxury and he did not allow any. Still…he was alive and that wasn’t nothing. He left the room once the physician was settled and the servants had been instructed to remain nearby if he needed anything.
Then he went to find Lavinia. She was in the hall, standing very straight but he wasn’t fooled. She lifted her chin the moment he approached. She was preparing for battle. Well, that suited him just fine because he wanted one as well.
“Well?” she demanded. “How is he?”
“Resting,” Dash replied. “He should be all right.”
Her shoulders eased by the smallest fraction, as if relief had been hovering over her and waited for her to accept it. Dash did not miss it. He missed nothing where she was concerned even when he didn’t want to see it all. He gestured toward a closed door. “Come with me.”
“I am not…”
“You are,” he said, and there was no gentleness left in him now. Terror was not something he was accustomed to breathing through. Not really. He set all his fears aside while he worked, but he had never had to survive with worry for Lavinia filling his every sense. “We are speaking privately.”
Lavinia’s nostrils flared, but she followed him into the study. The room was plain, masculine, and lined with books and maps. The hearth remained unlit, but he could see to that himself. Dash shut the door and crossed to the sideboard. He poured brandy into a glass. He swallowed a fraction of it and let it burn his throat. Then he turned to face her.
For a long moment he simply stared. He let the silence stretch, because silence made most people fill it with truth. It did not work with her, because she wasn’t like most people.
Lavinia sighed, the sound sharp with impatience. “I don’t suppose you would pour me a drink as well.”
He stared at her, stunned for several heart beats. “You wish to have some brandy?”
“Normally, no,” she began. “It is a dreadful drink I do not know how you can stand it. But I believe I need it right now. It has been a trying day.”
He shook his head and sighed. She was constantly surprising him… Instead of replying to her he just poured her two fingers of brandy and handed her the glass. Then he watched as she took several sips before sitting on a chair by the desk.
He was done with this. It was time for her to answer a few questions. “How do you know him?” Dash asked flatly.
She drew her brows together. “I do not know him.”
“Don’t lie to me.” He narrowed his gaze and said, “You recognized his name.”
“I…” She stopped, then tried again with more dignity. “You murmured something. It might have been any name.”
“It was not as you well know,” Dash said. “Stop denying the truth.”
Lavinia lifted her chin in defiance. “He is a stranger to me.”
“A stranger,” Dash repeated, and his tone made the word a challenge. “Perhaps he is. That doesn’t mean you did not recognize his name. Go ahead and say it.”
Color rose in her cheeks. “I do not know it.”
“You are a terrible liar, Lady Lavinia.” Dash set the brandy down with deliberate care.
“That may be true,” she began. “But it proves nothing.” She set her own glass down and moved closer to him until there was barely any space between them. “You dare much, my lord.”
“I dare because you are standing in my house while one of my men bleeds in the next room.” Dash kept his voice low and controlled but he was all the more dangerous for it. He was close to snapping. “You will not charm your way out of this.”
