She smiled, her hands going to his face, stroking his brow gently. “Then mayhap we had better marry as soon as possible so that we do not feel guilty should we become overwhelmed with each other again.”
He snorted. “So your father does not turn Fraser loose on me if he realizes I cannot keep my hands from you.”
“I think you can defeat Fraser.”
“I can, but if I hurt him, Isabella would never forgive me.”
Isalyn chuckled, throwing her arms around his neck again and pulling him close. Tor wrapped her up in his big arms, savoring her flesh against his, closing his eyes as he inhaled her delicious female musk.
“Isalyn?”
“Aye?”
“What would you say if I told you that I adore you?”
“I would say that I adore you, too.”
“I may even love you.”
“I may even love you, too.”
That was all Tor wanted to hear. He’d been waiting his whole life for this moment and he didn’t even know it.
He would have liked to have taken more time with her, but there would be all the time in the world after they married. They were in a rather risky position at the moment, so with a final kiss, Tor pushed himself off her and pulled her into a sitting position. He went around gathering clothes that had been thrown off in the heat of passion and they quickly dressed. He’d barely finished pulling his boots on when Isabella was knocking at the door, demanding to come in.
With a final wink to Isalyn, Tor opened the door for Isabella and ducked out as she ran in.
And Isabella was none the wiser as to what had just occurred.
Magic.
CHAPTER TWENTY
“Did you mean what you said?”
Lying on the uncomfortable mattress in the borrowed chamber, Joah looked at Barbara curiously.
“I do not know,” he said. “What did I say?”
Barbara was upset. Her face was pale and there were tears in her eyes, and she stood over Joah twisting her fingers nervously. A few feet behind her, Lenore watched her sister with concern.
“You said that you could be hired for a… task,” Barbara said.
Joah nodded. “I can, my lady,” he said. “Do you know of someone who needs my skills?”
Barbara nodded shortly. “I do,” she said. “Me.”
Joah’s eyebrows lifted. “You?” he repeated. “What can I possibly do for you, my lady?”
Barbara was trying very hard to control her emotions, but she wasn’t doing a good job. She was so cold most of that time that when she did feel something, it shot out of her like sparks out of a snapping log.
Pop… pop…
“I want you to remove someone from Blackpool.”
Behind her, Lenore gasped, but Joah was fixed on Barbara. “As you wish,” he said steadily. “Who am I removing?”
Barbara’s jaw ticked. “A lady,” she said. “I will pay you well but ask no questions. I want you to take her somewhere and sell her to men who will take her far away. Sailors, mayhap, or a merchant caravan. I do not care who. But I want her taken away so that she will never return.”
Joah could see she meant it and he had a suspicion as to who it was. He couldn’t have planned this better if he had tried and as he lay there, he tried not to look too pleased about it.
Finally… the seeds he had planted were taking root.
“I will need a name of the lady, at least,” he said evenly. “But I will not ask for your reasons, as they are your own. Who am I to remove?”
Barbara took a deep breath, mulling over her answer, before replying. “A woman named Isalyn de Featherstone,” she said. “She must be removed from here, quietly and efficiently. Can you do this?”
“I can.”
“Now?”
Since he really wasn’t sick or injured, he gave up the ruse altogether. He propped himself up on his elbows. “I suppose so,” he said. “Do you have a plan in mind?”
Barbara nodded stiffly. “I will pay you twenty pounds,” she said. “It is almost all of the money I have, but it will be worth it to be rid of her. My sister will take a horse around the inner wall and back to the postern gate. You will be waiting there and I will lure Isalyn to the kitchen yard where you will take her through the postern gates and escape.”
Joah frowned. “Will there not be soldiers about to see this?”
Barbara shook her head. “They mostly congregate near the main gatehouses and most especially at the outer gatehouse,” she said. “They will probably not think much of Lenore going out for a ride around the inner wall and their attention will be on her while you slip out through the postern gates.”
He still looked doubtful. “Gates,” he repeated, emphasizing the plural. “There are two postern gates?”
Barbara nodded. “There are, but they are not heavily guarded,” she said. “They are manned by the servants and the inner gate is usually kept unlocked, but I know where the keys are kept. I can open both gates. The servants will not question me, as I usually oversee the kitchens as part of my duties. They will not think twice about what I am doing.”
It seemed foolproof enough and Joah reluctantly nodded. “Very well,” he said. “How do I get to the gate without being seen?”
“You are very close to the kitchen yard now,” Barbara said. “You can stay to the shadows from the wall and make your way to the gate. It will not be that difficult.”
“As you say,” he said. “But I want my own horse.”
Barbara shook her head. “It will look strange if Lenore takes your horse out for a ride, so she must take another.” She was starting to look desperate. “Please… will you do this?”
Of course he would. This was the best of all worlds for Joah, having fallen right into his lap. He’d primed the women based on the conversations he had overheard from them and now his plan was coming to fruition. He’d take Steffan’s sister far away and then he could probably make more money ransoming her back to de Wolfe. Or, he’d sell her to the highest bidder, as Barbara had suggested.
Either way, his vengeance would prove lucrative.
He would make sure of it.
“I told you that I will,” he said after a moment. “When do you wish for this to take place?”
“Today,” Barbara said. “Now, if you are able. I saw Isalyn come through the gatehouse with Tor and men bearing trunks, so she is here, somewhere. Probably in the chamber downstairs that she shares with Isabella.”
“She will not go with you, Barbara,” Lenore said, her voice trembling. “If you try to lure her away, she will not trust you.”
That was very true and Barbara knew that, but she was desperate. “But someone must lure her to the postern gate,” she said to her sister. “Will you do it? She is not as mistrustful of you.”
Lenore nodded unsteadily. “Aye,” she said. “But what should I say?”
“Tell her that you wish to show her something,” she said, sounding annoyed. “Tell her that you are very sorry for everything we have done and we wish to show her something… nay… give her something. Tell her you wish to give her something and it is in the kitchen yard near the postern gate. If she demands to know what it is, tell her that it is a surprise. Beg her forgiveness if you must, but get her out to that postern gate.”