"How long can you possibly hope to remain in this house?" Charlotte wondered aloud.
"Indefinitely, if you keep my secret."
"But Sir Edward is family, well-educated military man. Why don't you enlist his help? Or is he one of those rigid types who insists on doing everything by the book? He must have connections, or at least—"
He could see the horror in her eyes as she met his scornful gaze and understood why what she suggested was impossible. She took an involuntary step backward. "Him?" she asked in disbelief. "Your own uncle? You cannot suspect he was involved in the attack on you."
"I do not suspect. I know."
"But why? Are you sure?"
He didn't want to spoil the few moments he had alone with her. "I'm trusting you, Charlotte. Now you have to trust me. I heard his voice that night as he stabbed me. His face was masked, but I've known him all my life."
"And with Sebastian dead," she said softly, "your inheritance goes to him."
His eyes darkened with sadness. "Yes."
"And Bernard— Oh, my God, Benedic. Did he have anything to do with my brother's death?"
"Come, Charlotte. This is not the time to talk. Yes, I believed he had Sebastian and Bernard murdered because they had witnessed him selling secrets to the French. Let me show you my private chamber."
"Your uncle," she said in an almost inaudible voice. "I can't believe it."
He brushed a lacy cobweb from her hair, then took her hand, closing his large fingers protectively around hers. She was so quiet that she worried him. He would have spared her the truth had it been possible. He remembered his own shock and bewilderment too well, the feeling of betrayal that had left him reeling.
"Dear Lord," she murmured after a long silence.
"What is it?"
"I was sent to Chistlebury as a lesson for my misconduct. I hardly think this is what my brothers had in mind for self-improvement."
He gave a deep laugh. "So you think this would not qualify as a social call?"
"A young lady must never pay a man a visit, especially at night," Charlotte said. "If my sister, Lizzie, could see—" She broke off with a gasp as a large dark furry object brushed against her legs. "Tell me . . . that is not a rat—"
Benedic laughed deeply again. He was impressed that she had not screamed, that she had not asked him more questions about her brother. "That is my dog, whose manners, as his master's, leave much to be desired."
"A dog? Down here with you?"
"Not my choice, Charlotte. Ares did not care for the company above, which is understandable, considering the fact Sir Edward deems him a dangerous beast and has threatened to shoot him dead."
Charlotte stared down in apprehension at the heavily muscled dog. "Is he a dangerous beast?"
He grinned at her. "If he needs to be. For now, I suppose we could call him a chaperone."
"Chaperone? Chef is more like it. He looks as if he's eyeing me for his next meal."
"Well, I cannot say I blame him. You are the most appealing thing either of us have seen in a very long time."
"That is . . . rubbish, Strathmere."
"What are you doing in this house?" he asked, his voice all of a sudden deadly serious. "I thought I had frightened you off forever. I thought you were clever enough to heed my warning."
"You warned me not to walk in the woods."
"And now you know better. Edward is a coldhearted killer, Charlotte."
She shook her head. "I have to confess it's more than I can understand. How did you manage to survive? How could you have arranged your own funeral without anyone helping you?"
"I have one true friend. By the grace of God, he had arrived unannounced the day before I died. I hope I can introduce you to him soon."
A bell began to tinkle above them. Benedic looked up in alarm. "What in God's name does that mean?"
"It's Aunt Penelope," Charlotte said after a long pause. "She's trying to exorcise a certain troublesome spirit."
He grinned from ear to ear. "What have I ever done to her?"
"She's convinced you are going to seduce my cousin Paulina in her sleep."
"Cousin who?"
"Stop grinning like that, you demon. After what you did to me in my sleep last night, I should put you back in your grave myself."
He chuckled, leading her back up the steps to the original passage in the wall. "If you were asleep, you could not have known what I did. Assuming that I did anything. Perhaps you were dreaming about me, Charlotte."
"Having a nightmare, you mean."
He cleared his throat. How far would she have let him go? He decided it was a good thing that the shadows his the hungry look on his face. His desire for her was a frightening thing. "Were we intimate?"
"You were, you—incubus."
"And you, poor sleeping maiden, you lay helpless as I took advantage of you?"
"Something like that, Strathmere. Don't you dare ask me to give you any of the details."
He sobered, glancing up at the renewed tinkling of the bell. "Does Edward have any idea what your aunt is doing?"
"I should hope not."
"Then by all means, stop her. I have never known him to hurt a woman, but let us not take the chance of finding out how far he is willing to go."
*A/N: Please be my patron in Patre*n and read chapters in advance. My other works are also available there. Or if you just want to support me. Please look for creator Zetar086.
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