Hello Stranger (The Ravenels #4)(96)

“Ethan,” she cried, running forward. Every movement he made strained arterial ligations and threatened to tear newly healed tissue. Every blow he delivered could start a fatal hemorrhage. “Stop! That’s enough.” Ethan didn’t respond, lost in blind, brutal rage. “Please stop—” Her voice broke with an anguished sob.

Someone rushed into the room. It was West, followed closely by two male servants in nightshirts and breeches. One of them carried a lamp that threw a steady yellow glow into the room.

Taking in the situation with one glance, West dove for Ethan and hauled him off Gamble. “Ransom,” he said, restraining him with considerable difficulty. Ethan resisted, snorting like a maddened bull. “Ransom, he’s down. It’s done. Easy, now. Calm yourself. We have enough homicidal madmen in the house as it is.” He felt Ethan begin to relax. “There, that’s it. Good fellow.” He glanced at the servants accumulating in the hallway. “It’s dark as Hades in here. Someone light the damned hall sconces and bring more lamps. And find something to tie up that bastard on the floor.”

The servants hastened to obey.

“Garrett,” Ethan muttered, shoving free of West’s grasp. “Garrett—”

“Over there,” West said. “She’s in shock, and she’s holding a cocked pistol, which is making me nervous.”

“I’m not in shock,” Garrett said tartly, although she was shaking with full-body tremors. “Furthermore, my finger’s not on the trigger.”

Ethan came to her swiftly. After easing the gun from her hand and pushing the hammer spur back to a resting position, he set it on the nearby hearth mantel. He reached for a pair of wick trimming scissors and cut the cord around her wrists. He made a low animal sound as he saw the pressure marks left on her skin.

“I’m all right,” she said hastily. “They’ll fade in a few minutes.”

Hunting over her as if the past few minutes had been transcribed on her body, Ethan found the sore, throbbing abrasion on her temple and upper cheek. He grew very, very calm, his eyes darkening in a way that chilled her blood. Gently he angled her face for a better view. “Which one of them did this?” he asked in a mild tone that didn’t deceive her in the least.

She gave him a wobbly smile. “You don’t really expect me to tell you.”

Scowling, Ethan looked over her head at West. “We need to search the house.”

“The footmen are going through it room by room as we speak.” West stood over the prone form of William Gamble. “Ransom, I’m afraid your friends won’t be allowed to visit if they can’t learn to play nicely. We caught a third intruder, by the way.”

“Where is he?”

“In my room, trussed like a pigeon for roasting.”

Ethan blinked in surprise. “You fought him?”

“I did.”

“Single-handedly?”

West gave him a sardonic glance. “Yes, Ransom. He may be a trained assassin, but he made the mistake of waking a Ravenel from a sound sleep.” He gestured to the doorway. “Why don’t you take Dr. Gibson to her room while I see to this mess? I’ll have our guests lodged in the icehouse until you decide what’s to be done with them.”



Although Garrett had always prided herself on her steady nerves during an emergency, she couldn’t control the tremors that ran through her. If she weren’t so worried about Ethan’s condition, she might have been amused by the way they walked to her room like a crotchety old couple, both of them stiff and wincing.

She went directly to her doctor’s bag on the table and rummaged for her stethoscope. “I need to examine you,” she said through chattering teeth, fumbling with her supplies. Her fingers weren’t working properly. “Secondary hemorrhage occurs most commonly between the second and fourth weeks after a gunshot injury, although that’s usually in cases when the wound hasn’t closed properly, and yours is—”

“Garrett.” Ethan took hold of her from behind, and compelled her to face him. “I’m fine.”

“I’ll be the judge of that. Heaven knows what damage you may have done to yourself.”

“You can examine the altogether of me, head to toe, later on. But right now I’m going to hold you.”

“I don’t need that,” she said, twisting to reach her doctor’s bag.

“I need it.” Ignoring her protests, Ethan pulled her to the bed and sat with her on his lap, drawing her in securely.

She was held against the broad, hairy surface of his chest, his heartbeat steady beneath her ear. The scent of him, raw sweat and maleness, was comforting and familiar. He smoothed her hair and murmured endearments, his arms enfolding her in a warm, safe haven. She felt herself relaxing deeply. Her teeth stopped chattering.

How could he be so gentle with her, right after he’d dispatched two assailants with unnerving skill and ease? On some level, violence came just as naturally to him as it did to the brutal men who’d come here in search of him. She didn’t think she would ever be comfortable with that side of him. But he had proven that he was capable of empathy and selflessness. He was true to his own code of honor. And he loved her. That was more than enough to work with.

“When I heard a sound from downstairs,” Ethan murmured, “the first thing I did was go to your room. I saw you were missing.”