Page 35 of Lord of the Darkness

She felt like her own heart was about to shatter in her breast, to stop beating from the pain of loss. Surely he wasn’t going to die, rescuing her after another one of her idiotic escapades. He deserved better than that.

A sob escaped her. Slowly, Benedict opened his eyes.

“I’m not hurt,” he said quietly. She half opened her mouth to protest that statement, when he gave a wry grin and went on. “Well, yes, perhaps I am hurt. But I’ll live.”

“We need to get you inside,” said Ariana. It had started to rain harder again, and the darkness closed in around them, the chill of the night deepening. “I don’t want the wound to get infected.”

“James will carry me, I hope.” Beside her, Fitzherbert nodded. Benedict raised his free hand to her cheek, and stroked it gently. Even with all that was going on, Ariana thrilled to his touch. “You don’t have to worry about me. As long as I know that you’re safe, I don’t care if I lose one arm or two.”

“I would like my husband to have both arms, please.”

For the first time since she had fled the house that afternoon, she smiled. He returned that smile, his eyes widening, and stroked her cheek again.

“Have you decided that you want a husband after all?”

Benedict’s tone was surprised, and Ariana felt a flush of embarrassment – for it appeared that he had saved her, even whilst believing that she did not want him in her life.

“Of course. The worst part, just now, of knowing I was most likely going to die was that I would never see you again. You’ve been so good to me.”

“I’ve tried to be. Even if I haven’t always succeeded.”

“You’ve been more than enough.”

Raising himself gingerly to a sitting position, with Fitzherbert’s assistance, Benedict leaned in for a kiss. It was the first kiss they had shared since their wedding and the sensation of it warmed Ariana’s whole body.

She wanted to get him home and healed. She could feel her heart hammering at the prospect of all of the things they had yet to do together.

***

Fortunately, Benedict and James had left the carriage near the ford, at the bottom of the hill, so James did not have to carry him far.

Now, as he slipped in and out of awareness, each time that James carrying him jolted his wound, he was grateful that the carriage was close. He was even more grateful to be settled inside it, cradled against Ariana’s side.

“You just settle there for a moment – wrap him well in the carriage blankets – I’ll see if I can find Lord Jasper – either we’ll have him to the magistrate to be tried for murder, or we’ll have his body to return to his family. Whichever it is, I’ll feel better knowing exactly where he is, and what state he’s in.”

James turned away into the darkness, and Benedict shivered as Ariana dug into the under-seat storage and pulled out two blankets. It was not long before James returned. Through a haze of pain, Benedict heard Ariana speak to him as she looked out the door.

“Did you find…? Oh…”

“I did, as you can see. God has seen fit to deal out justice – his neck is broken from where he landed on the rocks below, and the river had tumbled him down to catch in the shallows by the ford. I’ll get him into the luggage compartment at the back of the carriage, and we’ll tell the whole of it to the magistrate when we get back to Darkmire Abbey.”

Benedict, certain with those words that all danger to Ariana was past, allowed unconsciousness to claim him as they rolled slowly back along the roads to Darkmire Abbey through the moonless night.