Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the guards wince.Good.His heart seized in his chest, and he took another step toward her, fighting the urge to pull her into his arms and hold her close. His eyes drifted across her body, taking in her pale face, searching for a sign of injury.
“I did not really give them much of a choice.” Catherine’s fingers were pressed against her shoulder, and Alaric realized that she was bleeding.
“You are hurt!” He closed the distance between them and snapped at one of the guards. “Get me a physician, now. And fetch the constables and a magistrate while you are at it. That is, if you have the wit to find your way out of the house.”
“Yes, Your Grace.” The guard sprinted from the room.
“You are all trying to rob me. To rob my son! It should be mine. It will be mine,” Marina was babbling in the corner, but Alaric did not care.
“Gag her. I have no wish to hear her ramblings.” He gestured to the remaining guard.
He felt a hand on his chest and looked down. Catherine’s piercing blue eyes gazed up at him. “The constables and themagistrate should all already be on their way. I sent the butler to fetch them.”
Alaric could not tell if he was frustrated or impressed by his wife’s straightforward voice. He shook his head and turned to the guard, his arms still around Catherine.
“Keep that viper here, until the constables?—”
The sound of footsteps cut off his words, as a group of red-faced men appeared in the doorway.
“We came as quickly as we could, Your Grace,” the butler wheezed, clutching his chest. “There is a physician downstairs, as this woman assaulted one of the maids, though mercifully she is not badly hurt.”
“When he is done with her, have him come here. The Duchess has been injured.” Alaric’s eyes went to the blood soaking through Catherine’s dress. “Actually, send him to the study. I will tend to my wife until he gets there. Bring me a clean cloth, boiling water, and some salt.”
“Yes, Your Grace.” One of the maids disappeared out of sight.
“We will need a statement from Her Grace.” One of the magistrate’s voices sounded from behind him as the others led the bound and gagged Marina from the room. “It is best to do things while it is all still fresh.”
“It will have to wait until she has been seen by a physician,” Alaric replied, his eyes never leaving Catherine’s face.
“But Your Grace...” the magistrate began, and Alaric rounded on him, but Catherine spoke before he could.
“I would not test him if I were you, sir.”
The man swallowed and nodded. Alaric put an arm around Catherine. Her face was pale, her lips drained of all their color. He swept her into his arms and walked from the room.
His heart pounded against his ribs, but he did not care. He felt her lean against him, and he tried to move as gently as possible. “Oliver was in the secret room, the one in the library. I told him to wait there until I fetched him with our secret knock. He was supposed to go to Fiona’s if he did not hear from me by the hour. We should send someone to fetch him.”
“Why on Earth did you not join him?” Alaric asked.
“I did not want to lose this chance. I wanted to catch this horrible woman and put this whole thing to bed.” Catherine winced and clutched at her shoulder.
“You could have been killed,” Alaric growled, forcing himself not to tighten his grip on Catherine, lest he accidentally hurt her more. “Swear to me you will not do something so stupid again.”
“It did not seem so foolish at the time, and I have no intention of hiding from a madwoman again.” She frowned at the blood on her fingers. “I still cannot believe she bit me.”
“She bit you?” Alaric looked at the mark on Catherine’s skin.
She nodded, and it was only the fact that he was holding her in his arms that stopped him from racing after the constables and ripping Marina apart. Catherine seemed to sense some of his thoughts, because he felt her put a hand on his chest.
They walked in silence to the study, and he gently put her down on the chaise longue. A maid appeared with clean rags, boiling water, and salt. Alaric set about mixing it and pressed the rag to Catherine’s wound.
She hissed but did not move away from his touch. The pounding of his heart began to slow as he gently wiped the blood from her body.
The bite was deeper than he had expected, and he hoped the physician had brought something to prevent it from going sour.
“You are bleeding.” He felt her fingers brush his cheek.
“It is probably just a splinter from the door.” He shrugged. “When I heard her, all reasonable thought left me. All I could think was that I was too late, that she was… That you were…”
