Elizabeth Elliott by Betrothed Page A

Perhaps it was the memory of the man behind this cold exterior that made her sound braver than she felt. She shook her head and handed him the knife hilt first. “I came here to rescue you, Baron.”
    “Did you really?” He tucked the dagger into his belt then looked beyond her into the hallway, still on his guard, his tone sarcastic. “I suppose your uncle and his soldiers lay in wait to catch the lovers as they flee?”
    “ ’Tis not a trick.” She wished there was some way to convince him that she did not lie. She had only the truth to persuade him. “I know you have little reason to believe anything I say, but I did not play a willing part in your betrayal. My life is in as much danger as your own. We must be away from here before we are discovered.”
    “ ‘We’?” He shook his head. “You are a clever little cat, always ready to land on her feet. If you were not a part of this plot you would be made a prisoner. You would not be allowed to traipse around the gatehouse in the middle of the night to pay me a visit. Tell me where the soldiers wait for us.”
    “No one waits for us,” she said. “I came here alone. After they took you away this morning, my uncle did lock me in mychamber. He thinks he is the only one who knows where the secret passages lie, the passageways that allowed them to bring you to my room last night even though I bolted my door from the inside. Did you not wonder how you left your chamber without your squire’s notice?”
    He lifted one shoulder in a dismissing shrug. “He was probably drugged as well.”
    “Nay, they took you through the passageways. I was drugged as you were.” She felt a blush warm her cheeks at the memory of finding herself naked and in bed with him, yet she could not afford to dwell on those thoughts. “This afternoon I made my way into those same passages to a spy hole behind the solar and heard the whole of their plot. My uncle thought you changed your mind about Halford, that you did not intend to go through with the contract. He concocted this scheme to get even more of your gold. Bishop Germaine thinks to gain your confidence by offering to hold the marriage portions in safekeeping at his monastery, but he will insist that the marriage itself must take place. The day after the wedding your men will find you dead with evidence that I murdered you. My uncle and the bishop will then split the gold between them.”
    Guy didn’t show the shock or horror that she expected. He smiled, but the expression lacked any trace of warmth. “You weave a worthy tale, lady. Do you think I am some gullible squire to be taken in by such nonsense?”
    “ ’Tis truth,” she insisted. His hardened expression did not change. To tell him any more of the plot against them would be a waste of breath. He would never believe her, never trust in her again. She could not blame him. There was only one truth he could not ignore. “The bishop himself drew up a betrothal contract and with his signature it became valid. The Church will not allow you to marry another while a prior contract exists. Even if you escape tonight, you may be sure that my uncle will petition the Church and delay any hopes you have for an heir until you pay him off. ’Tis common enough to blackmail wealthy men by claiming a prior contract,and this one will have the seal of a bishop upon it. If you take me with you, I will swear before any priest or even the king himself that you were betrayed by my uncle. With both of us as witnesses to the facts, the contract will be made invalid.”
    His gaze flickered toward the doorway then returned to her face. “Somehow I find it hard to believe that you would betray your own family. Surely your uncle will give you a portion of the gold if you remain silent on the matter.”
    “He will give me to your men to hang!” She pressed her lips together. Anger would gain her nothing when reason alone had so little effect. She took a deep breath. “As of today, the only