The duke shifted his focus to her. It was the moment Cordell had been waiting for. “She was standing in the way of your happiness. I could not let her take you from me. You are mine as surely as your mother was. We were all meant to be together. Forever.”
Cordell didn’t hesitate. He sprang forward when his uncle was fixated on Aislynn. He saw the pistol pivot in his direction, but it was too late. He was too fast for the older man and threw all his weight into the duke’s midsection, and they fell to the ground in a tumble of arms and legs. After a brief struggle, Cordell was easily able to subdue the duke and tie his arms behind his back with the rope he’d concealed in his jacket.
Without looking back at Aislynn, he said, “Gather the others.”
He heard her footsteps depart the room while he faced off with his uncle. Tears stung his eyes but they were not due to grief or loss, although the knowledge that his uncle had murdered his father as surely as he’d pulled the trigger on a pistol and set it against his temple was not going to be easy for him to get over. “Was it worth it, Uncle?” he questioned harshly. “Was it worth all the pain and anguish you have put me and yourself through over the years simply because you could not let her go? You let me believe madness was my destiny when I could have pursued happiness instead.”
The duke truly looked confused. “I did it all for you. For us. For the family we should have been.”
“That is not a family,” Cordell countered. “That is an obsession.”
Aislynn returned with Lord Alton, Reynolds, and the other Runners in tow. The butler followed them all into the room looking highly alarmed but he was ignored as the duke was lifted to his feet and carted away by the authorities.
Lord Alton remained behind, a somber expression on his face. “I guess we did not need a signal after all,” he murmured. “Aislynn told us what the duke confessed and I… honestly do not know what to say.”
“I know. Neither do I,” Cordell said. “All this time I thought my father was mad when it was my maternal uncle.” He pinched the bridge of his nose. “I do not know where to go from here.” It seemed as if the weight of the world were pressing down on his shoulders, threatening to suffocate him.
And then there was a lilting voice reaching out to him. “How about the first thing is to go home?”
He looked at Aislynn. “I suppose that is a start,” he noted. “But I need to see to my uncle first.”
The three of them traveled back to London in silence, this time, each lost to their own contemplation. When they arrived in the city, the carriage stopped at Spade’s and Aislynn exited the vehicle. “I will return as soon as I am able,” Cordell promised.
He was grateful that she did not argue but disappeared inside the establishment where he knew Mary would watch over her and she could give a full accounting of what had happened.
When he was alone with the viscount on their way to the Tower, he said sincerely, “Thank you.”
“Any time, old friend.” Lord Alton returned. “However, might I offer a word of advice? Do not let all this unpleasantness spoil what you have with Miss Sims. She is a good woman.”
Cordell sighed. “But what of the madness? Although I now know the extent of my father’s illness was not due to a natural misalignment in his brain, I now have to worry about the threat that my uncle’s insanity will affect me someday.”
The viscount nodded. “I understand your hesitation, but you cannot live your life in the event that something horrific will take place. If we lived in such fear and hesitation, there would be a short supply of people in this land.”
Cordell gave a snort, because the viscount made a valid point. “I cannot argue with that logic,” he agreed.
He was eager to learn what the royal physician would have to say about Otlingham. That would surely put some of the doubts that continued to plague him at ease.
At least, that is what he prayed would happen.
Chapter
Twenty-One
The hour was growing late, but Aislynn was determined to stay awake until Cordell came for her. She suffered some concern that he might not return at all, but she refused to believe he would be that callous. Granted, he had said some pretty hurtful things before they had spoken to the duke, but surely now that the air had been cleared, everything would work out as it should.
She sat on the edge of the bed, but regardless of her vow to keep her eyes open, they started to grow heavy. She glanced outside the bedchamber window where she had stayed before and saw that the sun was just starting to peek over the horizon when she finally succumbed to the pull of her exhaustion.
She didn’t know how long she had been asleep before she was pulled against a strong, male chest and held close. Aislynn knew it was Cordell, because she knew his body almost as well as her own. He buried his face in the curve of her neck and tears sprung to her eyes because she hadn’t been expecting such vulnerability. She covered her arms with his and for the longest time they just held each other.
She thought maybe he had fallen asleep, but after several long minutes, he whispered into her hair, “I am glad you were with me today. I am not sure I could have withstood… everything without you there.”
She slowly adjusted their positions so she could face him and she prayed the sincerity she was trying to express was shining out through her gaze. “I will always be there for you, even if you try your best to push me away. I am too stubborn to allow you to deal with all of this on your own.”
“I am grateful you are so steadfast,” he said quietly. He leaned forward and gave her a gentle kiss on the lips. “Take off your clothes. I want to hold you, to feel your skin against mine.”
Aislynn would have granted him anything, but first she also had to know, “And later?”
He shook his head. “We live for the moment. If last night has shown me anything, it is that we cannot concern ourselves for the future. We have to be present for each day and tonight I am deciding my fate.”
