Strike at Midnight(84)
I kind of had to agree with him there, and I really shouldn’t have been surprised that Lord Peacock and Lord Dumpty were lovers. The signs were there if you looked for them, I supposed. It pissed me off that Lord Dumpty wasn’t even a real lord after all of the “proper behavior” crap he had thrown my way, but he hadn’t been the one who had been trying to keep information from me. Lord Peacock had, and that was why he had spilled the wine onto Dumpty’s breeches to get him to keep his mouth shut. What a son of a bitch to sell the duke out that way—his so-called friend—just so he could buy his spoiled lover some fancy clothes. I really, really couldn’t wait to have a personal meeting with Peacock. Just me and him, in a room, and preferably when I had a sword in my hand. The stupid, selfish man.
“It’s been a very profitable business,” Piper chattered on, completely ignoring the evil look that was forming on my face. “Then you had to come along and ruin it.”
“Oh,” I said, with a look of feigned shock. “Aren’t I a bitch for stopping your plans to ruin people’s lives? I should be thrown in the dungeons and locked up for the rest of my pitiful life.”
“Funny,” he said, but he wasn’t laughing. “Their lives aren’t ruined, they’re just different. They know nothing of their past, so there is nothing for them to miss or to regret. They have a new beginning. Free of charge.”
“You’ve taken their lives away from them for coin, and without their permission. There is nothing honorable about that. And now you plan to infiltrate the castle? You’re just a sad, self-righteous little prick who will get what’s coming to him.”
So much for keeping him talking, but his stupid ignorance was really starting to piss me off. His eyes flashed with anger before his smug look returned.
“And who’s going to bring it to me?” he asked with a chuckle. “You? You’re not even going to remember your own name soon. And I will make sure we give you a very special memory. Just for being such a pain in the—”
A sudden crashing noise stopped him from finishing that sentence, and even I pushed back against the chair in surprise as the door to the cottage flew open.
Piper jumped up out of his seat.
“What the hell?” he shouted, and the unconscious bodies of his two goons came crashing down on the floor between us. He was quicker at getting a grip on what was happening than I was, as he jumped over the bodies to come and stand behind me. I didn’t even have the time to flinch as he yanked my head back and put the dagger to my throat.
“What the hell?” I whispered, mimicking Piper’s words. And then I saw Marcel come flying through the door with Sir Raymond and two men I didn’t recognize on his tail. The men were dressed as knights with their swords drawn, and I realized that they must be friends of Sir Raymond.
“Don’t come any closer,” Piper shouted as Marcel aimed the crossbow he was holding in Piper’s direction. “Or I’ll slit her damn throat.”
“You took your time,” I said to Marcel, and he looked at me with relief in his eyes and a grin on his face.
“I couldn’t let you have all the fun, could I?”
It would have been a victorious moment if I’d succeeded in the next step of the plan. All I had to do was smash my head back into Piper’s face to throw him off balance. But before I could act, Rem came running through the cottage door.
Havoc followed as Piper decided Rem would make a better hostage. He moved fast as he released me and yanked Rem in front of him to create a human shield. He did it before anyone could even counteract the move, and before Marcel could get a clear shot to embed an arrow into Piper’s chest.
“Stay back, or I’ll kill him,” Piper said as he dragged Rem with him around the table and back towards the fireplace at the center of the cottage. Marcel and the others all turned to follow him with their weapons still drawn, but Piper ignored the threat and pressed the dagger against Rem’s throat. Shit.
“Will someone untie me?” I asked, struggling against the rope as Rem’s life was hanging in the balance. Sir Raymond came running forward to do the honors, and thankfully Piper was still distracted in keeping Marcel and the other two men at bay to worry about me being let loose.
“Thanks, Sir Raymond,” I said, feeling the sting in my arms as the blood rushed back to its proper place when the sliced tethers dropped.
“You’re very welcome,” he said, stepping back so I could stand up and rub life back into my arms.
“Amana!” Piper yelled at the top of his lungs, and his hand started to shake against Rem’s throat. “Danger!”
“That’s the witch,” I said in a panic as I took a few steps towards Piper and Rem.
“Don’t,” Piper warned, and I could see a trickle of blood flow down Rem’s throat as the edge of the dagger nicked him.
“Shit, guys. The witch?” I asked, needing a plan and quick. What the hell were we going to do against the power of a witch? Think, think, think…
“It’s a good job Rem told us that the witch was here with them,” Marcel said, looking at me while still keeping his crossbow arm up. “Wasn’t it?”
“What?” I asked, wondering why none of them were panicking along with me. If there was ever a time to panic, then this was one. They all needed to damn well panic.