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Chapter 97
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The League of Rogues Chapter 98
Anne had developed a painful habit of handwringing by the time she and Cedric arrived at the Sheridan estate on the outskirts of Brighton. Rushton Steading, the vast ancestral home of the Sheridan family, was intimidating. The estate was mainly wooded areas where dark copses of trees hunkered down at the road's edge like silent sentinels. Anne drew in a shocked breath as their traveling coach rounded the nearest outcropping of forest and her new world opened up before her. The house itself was a grand mansion made of white stone, a bright beacon amidst the heavy emerald backdrop."Do you like it?" Cedric's voice was soft against her neck as he breathed in her scent.Anne couldn't help but admire the multi-windowed edifice. "I've never seen anything so beautiful. I can see why you've favored hunting and riding, Cedricthis land is built for such activities.""My father and I spent many hours in those woods with rifles and hounds." Cedric's voice was rough as emotion rippled through hi
The League of Rogues Chapter 99
Sean Hartley, the footman, heard the crash from one floor below in the dining hall where he was polishing silver. The echo of shouting rumbled through the manor. It was not the kind of shouting he'd expected to hear on a honeymoon. This was all fury and rage. Sean got to his feet and headed for the dining hall doors. Viscount or not, no man would be hurting Lady Sheridan, not if Sean could help it. Raised by a single mother, he respected women and their defenselessness against the all too often violent temperaments of men. He would protect Lady Sheridan, even against his own master, consequences be damned."Hartley!" Lord Sheridan bellowed. "Get up here!"Sean dropped the spoon in his hand and ran for the stairs. He passed Lady Sheridan on his way up. She appeared distraught. He paused to follow her, but his master shouted again. With a growl he turned back and continued on his way.Lord Sheridan was in a fine fury. Pacing his room like a caged beast, he kept kicking the scattered a
The League of Rogues Chapter 100
Sean and Mr. Bodwin watched the elderly doctor assess Lady Sheridan's condition. She had a nasty head wound and a dislocated shoulder, likely from falling down the steep hill to the lake where Sean had found her. The doctor's eyes narrowed as he motioned for Sean to step forward. He handed the lad a thick piece of leather."Put this between her teeth. If she's conscious when I set the arm right, she's liable to bite clear through her tongue."Sean opened Lady Sheridan's mouth and slipped the leather in. She was still unconscious, still that ghastly pale shade. Sean watched Mr. Bodwin as the doctor took hold of Anne's arm, lifted it slowly, rotated and then popped it back into place. Lady Sheridan's eyes flew open, and she let out a scream that nearly made Sean's ears bleed. The leather strap dropped onto her chest. She started panting, gasping for breath as her eyes fixed on her arm and then flashed up to the doctor."A thousand pardons, madam. I had hoped you would remain unconscio
The League of Rogues Chapter 101
Cedric struggled to breathe. "You mean the night I met her she was raped?""The way Andrews told it, he pounced on her in an empty room. He didn't give Anne a chance to fight or flee." Despite the calm way in which he spoke, anger laced Ashton's words.Cedric's fists were clenched so tight his hands were going numb. "How did you learn of this, Ash?""He saw me having a drink, and he was already foxed. He demanded that I congratulate him, of all things. He either did not realize who I was to you or mistook me for someone else. Andrews claimed that soon he would have a hold over your fortune once he said that your firstborn was actually his. He planned to blackmail you both. Said he knew Anne would do anything to keep her secret from you, or, failing that, you would pay for his silence about your wife's past.""The bloody fool addressed the letter to me," Cedric said. His plan must have been made half out of a bottle to begin with."Dearest Anne, we have plans to make"Her reaction
The League of Rogues Chapter 102
Warmth. Soothing softness in a dark cocoon of safety. Rivers of gentle heat poured over her skin. Pinpricks of sudden coolness disturbed the embrace of that dark heat. Points of pressure smoothed away the sting of those cold spots. A continuous rumble of noise in the distance tickled her senses. She wanted to slide back into the darkness, but something in those sounds disturbed her, upset her. Blinding white light seared her face, her eyes, bringing with it a sense of body again.What happened? The voice in her mind spoke; it was familiar, but no name emerged from the gloom of her terrible lethargy. The deep sounds that had been teasing her ears paused. She fought to speak with the maker of the wordsyes. Someone had been speaking to her. She now fought to create words of her own."Help"She hoped the other person could understand her plea. Something warm and firm drifted over her mouth, then her eyelids, enticing her to respond. Icy coolness trickled between her lips, a liquid filli
The League of Rogues Chapter 103
Cedric slumped heavily in his chair at breakfast the following morning. He'd barely slept last night. Regret and remorse had beat about him incessantly, resulting in a rather nasty headache, causing pinpricks of light in his otherwise sightless vision, as if to mock him as well as inflict pain. The soft click of the dining room door alerted him that he was no longer alone."How was last night?" Ashton's asked in a soft voice.Cedric almost smiled. When he'd first become blind, people often raised their voices at him, as though his hearing had been destroyed and not his sight. Yet the sense most improved after the accident had been his hearing, by a fair margin. He heard even the smallest, lightest sounds now.There was the low whir of a bumblebee as it butted against the dining room window behind him. There were the creaks in the old manor house, each groan of wood and protest of stone like an elderly man's weary sighs. Without any visual vibrancy, Cedric saw the world in a way he n
The League of Rogues Chapter 104
Anne put a hand to her lips. The taste and feel of Cedric's mouth still lingered pleasantly. She was torn between running after him and running far away. Although she could not remember him, or anything about herself, she was positive that she desired him. Her body responded with liquid fire to his touch, his kiss, even his voice. Cedric's every action toward her screamed of the primal mating of bodies and souls. Would it be so bad to give in to her desires? They were husband and wife, after all.She could give in, but she decided that she would not let him be aware of such an intention. Not yet. Anne had her pride like anyone else, and Cedric's story had raised some questions she needed answered first. She was, however, fascinated with the idea of Cedric fully dominating her with that tender but exciting passion."My lady?" A voice broke through her thoughts. It was the young footman, Sean Hartley. He waited patiently at the edge of the doorway."Come in, Hartley. I am told that I
The League of Rogues Chapter 105
Clad only in her chemise, Anne headed toward the water. She felt rather wicked, being so scantily clad, but this was her property now, by virtue of marriage, and she wanted to do this. Only her husband had the power to stop her from doing as she wished, and he was far off on the other side of the lake. The thought almost made her laugh. He would be furious no doubt, but rather than scare her, the idea instead amused her.It had been awhile since she'd indulged in such improper behavior of swimming in her underclothes. Even though she remembered little of her past, she couldn't deny how freeing the water felt lapping at her bare legs. As she pushed deeper into the cold lake, a memory surfaced.Frolicking in the shallows of a similar lake, an older man watching her, an indulgent smile on his kind face. She laughed, a child's laugh, happy to play while her father remained close.The pain of seeing that man's face for only a moment cut deep.Papa. He had been dead only a week before sh
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