Prince of Dreams (Stokehurst #2)(104)

Nikolas licked his dry lips. “You'd sacrifice your own life for revenge? What about your wife?”

“My wife,” Adam repeated, then laughed bitterly. “Fat little hen, always pecking away at everyone around her. Every time I look at Charlotte, I remember that it's your fault I'm with her. And you have Emma…you, who deserve her less than any other man on earth.”

“That I don't deny,” Nikolas said quietly.

“Emma will thank me for the rest of her life for what I'm about to do.”

“No, Adam.” A new voice broke in on the scene, startling them both. They had been so intent on the exchange, neither of them had noticed the slim figure that had slipped through the partially open door. Emma stood there, the hem of her skirts damp from the ground, her face angular in the shadows. Nikolas had never seen her eyes so fixed and brilliant, as if she were in a hypnotic trance. She moved forward, holding a revolver in a grip that was far steadier than Adam's. “This is insane. Stop pointing that thing at Nikolas. If you harm a hair on his head, I'll put a bullet in you.”

“Emma, get out of here!” Nikolas snapped, his entire body cold with sudden terror. His wife, his child…they must not be harmed, no matter what became of him.

Adam barely spared Emma a glance. “I don't want to kill him in front of you. But I will if I have to.”

“For God's sake, why are you doing this?” Emma asked tautly. “Are you trying to frighten Nikolas? Well, you've succeeded in scaring the hell out of both of us. Now put the gun away.”

Adam looked grim and increasingly anxious, the pistol wavering in his hand. “You should be grateful that I'm getting rid of him. Isn't that what you want, Emma? You couldn't love such a monster—you want to be free of him.”

“I don't want this.” Her jaw trembled visibly. “You must stop this nonsense, Adam!”

“Damn you, Emma, please go,” Nikolas said in desperation. Dear God, it couldn't be his fate to be ripped apart from her once again. After all he'd gone through, everything he had learned, would he lose her one final time? The past echoed in his ears, Emelia's grieving whisper…“I'll never see you again, will I?”

“Not in this lifetime.”

“Emma, get out of here,” he said harshly.

“Not another word from you!” Adam shouted, his eyes gleaming with hatred. His tormented gaze returned to Emma. “I never understood how I really felt until I lost you. I must do this. I can't let him win. I'll never feel like a man again, as long as I let him go unpunished. No one has ever believed that I loved you, Emma—not even you. This is the only way I can prove it. Then you'll know.”

“You don't need to prove anything,” Emma said. “I do believe you.” She felt tears prickling at the corners of her eyes, while a voice inside cried with terror, Please don't hurt him, please…She blinked the tears back and kept the gun steady on Adam. “But I didn't love you, Adam. I was lonely, unsure of myself, and you flattered me and made me feel wanted. Through my own immaturity I mistook that for love—”

“He's tricked you into believing his lies,” Adam said hotly.

“You and I were friends who cared about each other. That's not the same as love. Now we've each made a good life for ourselves with other people. You don't have to destroy all of that. You'll accomplish nothing by doing this. Just put the gun away and we'll leave. I-I'll go with you somewhere and we'll talk—”

“No,” Nikolas said swiftly.

“You have no say in this,” Adam sneered. “I'm in control, not you!”

“Put it down now,” Emma said. “I mean it, Adam.”

“I can't,” came his stubborn reply.

“Now.”

Adam didn't appear to hear her, his gaze locked on Nikolas. “It's too late.”

For the rest of her life Emma would remember the events taking place outside of time, seconds turning into hours, each move slow and visible and understandable. Whatever Nikolas saw in Adam's eyes, it convinced him that he was about to die. He turned his face toward Emma for one last look, his eyes pale and piercing.

She squeezed the trigger of her revolver. The shot seemed unnaturally loud, echoing repeatedly through her mind. “Nikolai!” came a high-pitched scream, and much later she realized it had been hers. Adam was twisted around by the blow, the upper part of his shoulder opening with a red burst. His pistol went off, the shot flying wide. Instantly the bullet buried itself in the wall behind Nikolas.

Nikolas didn't move as Adam fell in front of him. He was frozen, his mind still numb with the expectation of death. He was curiously blind and deaf, lost in a dark void. Gradually his senses were restored, and he found himself still kneeling on the floor, with Emma crouched before him. Her hands were on either side of his face, and her breath was warm on his skin.

“Nikki,” she whispered, her blue eyes glittering with tears. “God, I love you!” She kissed his eyelids, his cheeks, his lips. “Look at me,” she said, weeping openly. “I can't ever lose you, do you understand? I love you.”

Nikolas wrapped his arms around her as the roaring of blood in his ears subsided. He glanced at Milbank's prone body. The wound seemed to be located in the upper arm or shoulder; the bastard would probably live. Returning his attention to Emma, he tried to wipe at the tears that streamed down her cheeks. She seemed so vulnerable, a tigress suddenly cowed and seeking comfort. There were no more defenses between them. They clung together, whole at last, while the past fell away in vanquished tatters.