The Bridegroom's Bargain

‘Not so freely! I had to marry you to get it!’

‘Are you saying you wouldn’t have married me otherwise? I find that hard to believe. You seemed willing enough when I asked you.’

‘That was before—’ She stopped and swallowed. ‘Before I found out what you’d done. After that, nothing but the thought of saving Rawdon could have reconciled me to it.’

If possible, Richard grew even paler. ‘I…see…’ Then, after a pause, he went on, ‘But, as you have said, Rawdon is saved. Whatever I did or didn’t do, surely it’s been put right again?’

‘Put right again? You drove my father to his death! And there’s still my brother to be paid for!’

‘I’ve told you,’ Richard said steadily, ‘Johnny’s death was an accident.’

‘Oh, I could believe that! But accidentally or not, you shot him, Deverell, though you told everyone he had shot himself. Why else would you have tried to cover it up afterwards? You are a liar and a coward, Richard Deverell. I know that, even if the world doesn’t.’

Richard grew white about the lips, and Lexi held the gun up more threateningly as he took an involuntary step forward.

Lady Honoria shrieked, ‘No! No! Please God, no!’

After a momentary pause her nephew was once again cool as he said, ‘If that was true, I would deserve everything you say of me. But it isn’t. I wasn’t even there when Johnny died. If I had been, it—’ He stopped for a moment, showing for the first time a hint of strong emotion. His jaw tightened, then he went on, ‘If I had been there it wouldn’t have happened. I’d have saved him. But he was alone when he died.’

His voice carried conviction, and for the first time Lexi hesitated. But after a moment her confidence returned and she said flatly, ‘I have proof. Very good proof.’

‘Then show me! Come, Alexandra, where’s your sense of justice? Tried, convicted and condemned, all in one breath? Is that to be my fate?’

The pistol did not waver, though Lexi’s voice rose in despair. ‘I loved you, Richard! My father loved you. Johnny was your friend. And you betrayed us all! You lied and cheated people who had trusted you all their lives! You don’t deserve to live.’

Richard’s voice was still measured, still calm. He said drily, ‘My dear girl, try for once to think of the consequences before you act! At the moment you are convinced of my guilt. But what if you’re wrong? Suppose, just suppose, you shot me now, and discovered later that I was innocent after all. How would you feel?’

Lady Honoria broke her silence. ‘Of course you are innocent, Richard! How can you treat this so calmly? Look at her! She does mean what she says! The girl has gone mad!’ Her elderly voice trembled as she pleaded, ‘Alexandra, you can’t do this! You mustn’t shoot Richard, he’s a good man. He’s certainly been more than good to you! He wouldn’t lie to you, nor anyone else. Your brother’s death was an accident—we all know that. The army said so. And Richard says he wasn’t even there when it happened, so how could he have had anything to do with it? As for your father—’

Lexi wasn’t listening. She stood, her burning eyes fixed on Richard, holding the pistol in an unwavering hand. Richard intervened. Still not taking his eyes off his wife he said, ‘Thank you, Aunt Honoria! I don’t think you’ll manage to convince my bride I’m not a villain. She’s so certain of it that she won’t even hear any arguments in my defence. But perhaps she’ll listen to this.’ Holding Lexi’s eyes, he went on, ‘Alexandra, I agree that there has been some villainy at work against the Rawdon family. When your father died I thought there would be an end to it. It seems I was wrong. Shooting me won’t solve the problem, I assure you. I am not the man responsible. But, if you give me time, I’ll find out who was.’

‘There wasn’t anyone else, Deverell!’

‘I swear there was!’ Richard’s quiet insistence had some effect, and as Lexi still hesitated he went on, ‘Look, I’ll make you an offer. Show me what you have by way of proof. Tell me why you are so convinced that I betrayed my best friend and all his family—people—’ He stopped, then went on, ‘People who had meant so much to me. Then give me six months. Six months to prove you wrong about Johnny’s accident. Six months to find out who or what ruined your father.’

‘That at least was you! You’ve already confessed.’

‘No, I did not. You weren’t listening properly. I did my best to stop the damage and failed. Let me prove to you that I’m telling the truth. I’ll make a bargain with you. Put your gun away. If, at the end of six months, I can’t prove everything to your satisfaction—whatever it is—I’ll save you the bother of shooting me. I’ll do it for you, I swear.’

Canon Harmond and Lady Honoria spoke together. ‘Lord Deverell, you must not make such a rash promise!’

‘Richard!’ Lady Honoria was scandalised. ‘Have you gone mad, too?’

Neither interruption was heard as Lexi stared at Richard.

‘I give you my word,’ he repeated.

‘The word of a liar and a coward?’ she said scornfully. ‘How could I possibly accept that?’

‘More confidently than I can accept yours, apparently,’ he replied. ‘Haven’t you just sworn to love, cherish and to obey me? Or was that somebody else standing beside me at the altar?’

‘I swore to love you till death parted us, Richard.’

‘Ah! Quite. I see. And that made it all right?’ He pulled a face, then straightened up and gave her a coolly challenging look. ‘So, what is it to be, Alexandra? A bullet now, or in six months’ time?’

Canon Harmond cleared his throat. ‘Lord Deverell, I refuse to stand by while such a dreadful bargain is made.’

‘Harmond, can’t you see she won’t accept anything less?’ Richard said impatiently. ‘Don’t make it impossible for her to compromise!’

Canon Harmond stopped short. After a moment he sighed, shook his head and turned to Lexi. ‘Lady Deverell, I cannot approve of what your husband has promised, but if it prevents what would be an act of cold-blooded murder then I must ask you to accept it. My child, you are putting not only the lives of your husband and yourself in danger, but you run the risk of damaging your immortal soul. Give me the pistol, Lady Deverell!’

Lexi looked at them all, her eyes huge with anguish. ‘I don’t know what to do,’ she said. ‘I don’t know! I don’t want to kill anyone. I never thought I would have to… I never wanted this… But when I found out how he had lied to me…what he had done…I only knew I had to avenge my family somehow….’ She gave Richard an agonised stare. ‘You’ll swear? Before everyone here? On your honour?’

‘I swear on my honour.’

‘Very well. I accept.’ The pistol was lowered and an audible sigh of relief went through the room as she put it down on the table. As Canon Harmond picked it up she stared at it and gave a shuddering sigh. Her hair stood out like a flame against a face that was as white as her dress. She put her hands to her throat and started to sway… Richard caught her as she fell.

No one else moved for a moment, then Lady Honoria demanded, ‘What are you going to do, Richard? What in God’s name are you going to do with the girl? If you ask me, she’d be better off in the nearest madhouse. You’ll have to send her back to Rawdon!’

Holding the unconscious Lexi in his arms, Richard raised his eyebrows at his aunt. ‘Why should you even think of such a thing, Aunt Honoria? My wife will naturally come with me to Channings. Rawdon, would you be kind enough to find my groom? I want the carriage brought round to the side door immediately. Lady Deverell has been taken ill.’ He cast a glance at the others. ‘And that is all anyone outside this room needs to know.’

He held their eyes until they all signalled their agreement. Then he nodded to Sir Mark, who went out to find Lord Deverell’s groom.

Chapter Two

T wo days later Lexi opened her eyes and slowly turned her head. She was in bed, in a room that was quite strange to her, large, luxuriously furnished, with two windows on one side. A collection of bottles and powders was on the table beside the bed, together with a glass and a carafe of water. Beside them was a vase of roses. A bowl of autumn flowers and leaves stood on a handsome chest of drawers between the windows. Lady Honoria was sitting to one side of the window nearer the bed, but when she saw signs of movement she came over.

‘So!’ she said. ‘You’re awake at last.’

‘Where am I?’ Lexi’s voice was a mere thread of sound.

‘Have some water.’ Lady Honoria held a glass to Lexi’s lips. ‘You’re at Channings, of course.’

‘Channings?’ Lexi frowned. Then memory returned, and with a cry of dismay she turned the glass away and struggled to sit up. ‘That’s Richard’s house! I shouldn’t be here.’

Lady Honoria pushed her back. ‘I couldn’t agree with you more!’ she said. ‘But Richard insisted.’

‘He shouldn’t have brought me here. I can’t live with him! It isn’t possible!’

‘You must keep calm. The surgeon says you need complete rest.’

‘But I can’t—’ Lexi turned her head restlessly on the pillow. ‘How long have I been here?’

‘Nearly two days. Richard brought you here straight after the wedding. You collapsed in the vestry after that extraordinary scene, and you’ve been more or less unconscious ever since. Doctor Loudon has called several times.’

Lexi gazed round her again. ‘Whose room is this?’

‘It’s yours.’