Diamonds and Dreams (6 page)

Saber spun from the window. “I have no
problems, and this discussion has reached its conclusion. Take
yourself from this room, or I shall—”

“You have many problems, and lucky for you,
I not only know what they are, I’m willing to divulge them.”
Addison straightened his lapel before continuing. “As the eleventh
Duke of Ravenhurst, a man devoid of all feeling, it is your duty to
marry, produce an heir, and instill in your little son an abiding
love for the Tremayne lands. To do that, you will have to raise the
boy at Ravenhurst.”

“Addison—”

“But as Saber Tremayne, the man filled with
very human emotions, you have vowed never to return to Ravenhurst.
Moreover, you refuse to enter into a loveless marriage. After
having loved Angelica, you—”

“Get out.”

“And so we come to the problems,” Addison
continued smoothly. “The Duke of Ravenhurst is duty-bound to marry
a woman who will provide him with a son. But Saber Tremayne, who
will not marry without love, has sworn never to search for it
either. Instead, he has buried all emotion and has sought refuge
behind his lofty title. The duke. That man is your facade. The
indifferent air, the authority...those are your shields against the
possibility of ever loving again. But in truth, you are Lord
Tremayne in name only. Down deep, lies Saber Tremayne. A man who
cares very much. You’re afraid of love. You’ve loved and lost so
many times, that you—”

“Addison—”

“That’s why you spend time with the Frost
Queen. She warms your body but does nothing at all to melt the ice
around your heart. She doesn’t even try. Jillian’s
cold
, and
that’s the way you want to be too. Ice can be with ice, and they’ll
both stay frozen. But put ice in contact with heat, and it melts.
You don’t attend any of the social activities because it’s possible
you might meet a warm woman at one of them, and her warmth might
reach your heart. And then you’ll be vulnerable, won’t you, Saber?
Opening your heart means taking another chance on life, and you
might lose again.”

Saber ran his fingers through his hair.
Words he didn’t want to speak came to his lips. “Those women you
speak of, Addison...they—Not a one of them—How can you say there is
any warmth in them?”

Addison took a moment to dwell on Saber’s
question. “Ah, I begin to see.”

“You see nothing. If you did, you would
realize the depth of your misconceptions.”

“So you are denying everything I have said
to you? Lie to others if you must, Saber, but do not lie to me. Or
to yourself. I understand you. If I didn’t, I would never dare to
presume that I could waltz in here and throw a cat in with the
pigeons as I have done.”

Saber raised his chin. “But you’re wrong
about the women. They want only to be the Duchess of Ravenhurst.
They see nothing in me but my title and fortune. What warmth is
there in that?” he snapped.

Addison realized he was receiving a rare
glimpse of what Saber carried inside him. The realization made him
want to embrace his friend. “You’ve given them no other choice but
to see you that way, Saber,” he said softly. “You hide your true
nature behind the Duke of Ravenhurst facade.”

Addison walked back to the door and opened
it. “You’re going to Leighwood with us today. There, you cannot be
the Duke of Ravenhurst. You will be our slave. I really have no
earthly idea if our fortnight will do you any good, but I’m praying
for some kind of miracle. You will be forced to shed the role of
duke...so who knows what might happen? It could be that you’ll have
a little fun. Maybe you’ll laugh. Maybe you’ll look up and be
astonished at how very blue the sky is.”

How blue the sky is
, Saber thought.
Couldn’t Addison see that the sky was gray? He straightened, looked
his friend in the eye, and felt his irritation return. “The only
miracle that might occur at Leighwood, Addison, is that the end of
the fortnight will find me with my wits still about me. If I have
to spend two weeks listening to your incessant lectures, I fear
I’ll go insane. Out of courtesy, I have allowed you to rant and
rave to your heart’s content today, but be forewarned that I will
not tolerate such behavior again. Have I made myself clear?”

“Indubitably.”

Saber didn’t miss the twinkle in his
friend’s bright blue eyes. As usual, it tempered his aggravation.
“Addison, you are as incorrigible now as you were when we met.”

“It was at some opera, was it not? We were
twelve.”

Saber smiled. “We were eleven, and it was at
your mother’s birthday party.”

“Ah, yes. You had filched Lord Warton’s
snuffbox and put pepper in it. You swore me to secrecy.”

“
You
stole his snuffbox and put
pepper in it. You swore
me
to secrecy.”

“Yes, I do believe you’re right. It was but
the beginning of many pranks to come. It was then, too, that I gave
you your nickname. I thought it rather clever, lifting ‘Saber’ from
‘Saberfield.’ “

“I think it is rather unseemly.”

“Now why doesn’t that surprise me,
Your
Grace
? But you must admit, ‘Saber’ does suit you. You can be as
cold and hard as steel. You’ve a sharp wit, you’re to the point,
and your slashing anger can draw blood as well as any weapon I can
think of.”

“Are you trying to antagonize me again?”

“I am merely indulging in what no one else
in England would feel safe doing—pushing you beyond your limit. I
confess to feeling a tremendous amount of pleasure at being cheeky
in your presence and living to tell about it.”

“You are implying that I am a beast?”

“Say you nay to the charge, sir?”

Saber grinned. “I’m supposed be angry at you
right now, Addison. Get out before I decide I like you again.”

“As you wish.” Addison made a low,
exaggerated bow, and then looked Saber in the eye. “But do ponder
the things I told you, Saber. They came from a friend, not an
enemy.” With that, he quit the room.

When he was gone, Saber removed his robe and
sank into the tub of steaming water he realized Addison must have
ordered for him. Lying back, he closed his eyes and dwelled on
Addison’s accusations.

Your life is boring and uneventful.

The indifferent air, the authority...your
shields against caring.

Opening your heart means taking another
chance on life, and you might lose again.

You’ve loved and lost so many times...

Saber remembered each charge. They were
true. All of them.

But there was nothing Addison or anyone
could do to change them, he knew. Addison was daft for hoping a
fortnight in the country was the answer to such unsolvable
problems. “For hoping for a miracle,” Saber whispered, bathwater
lapping at his lips.

A miracle. Saber shook his head at the
absurdity. No help from heaven had ever come to him, and nothing
miraculous whatsoever was going to occur at Leighwood either. The
fortnight would end and then he could come back to London and get
on with...

Get on with what? he asked himself. With his
life?

He didn’t have one.

Big wiped his forehead with the back of his
hand and surveyed the surroundings. “I have no idea where we are,”
he said in answer to Goldie’s question concerning their location.
“For all I know we’ve journeyed in a perfect circle, and Hallensham
is right over on the other side of this water.”

Goldie watched the ripples dance on the
clear, clean pond they’d found hidden in a dense thicket, and
breathed deeply of the crisp woods-scented air. “Big, we’ve been
travelin’ for days. Hallensham is a long way away from here.”

He threw her a sour look. “I’m going to go
see if I can snare some kind of supper for us. Don’t you dare
wander off while I’m gone.”

As soon as Big left, Goldie pulled a sliver
of soap from her dress pocket, shed her clothes, and waded into the
fresh water. “Maybe when Big gets back, he won’t be such an
ill-box,” she commented to the big gray mongrel, who sat watching
her from the sandy bank. “It really set him off when I gave you all
our food the day I found you. But what was I supposed to do, Itchie
Bon? You were lost and starvin’. ‘Course, now Big and I are lost
and starvin’ too,” she added.

Itchie Bon barked loudly, his wagging tail
sending sand flying in all directions.

“Well,” Goldie continued, “I thought for
sure we’d come across some town where we could get more food. It’s
not my fault these English people didn’t build villages along the
route we’re takin’.” Rolling the soap in her hands, she examined
the pretty and peaceful place they’d come to. “I wonder which route
we
are
takin’?”

She shrugged and lathered up her body and
hair. Tossing the soap bar to shore, she watched as it landed
beside her claymore, then waved to Itchie Bon before submerging to
rinse. While beneath the shimmering surface, she remembered
“Mermaids,” a game she and her friend used to play. Keeping her
legs tightly together, she moved them as a mermaid would her tail
and propelled herself through the water. After coming up for a
breath, she splashed and squealed loudly before diving again, her
“tail” beating the water with powerful flapping motions.

Opening her eyes as she swam deeper, she
watched the water plants flow. They looked like long, green fingers
conducting an underwater orchestra. The pond pebbles, smooth,
colorful, and illuminated by the strong sunlight that touched them
from above, twinkled up at her from the sandy bottom. A silver fish
swam past her. She chased it, thinking to catch it with her bare
hands, but just as she reached for it she heard a loud splash.
Before she could investigate it, something very strong and
unyielding grabbed her from behind.

For a moment she froze, unable to understand
what was happening to her. But as whatever had her tightened its
hold about her waist and began pulling at her, she struggled to
escape. Reaching for the pond creature, she closed her fingers
around it and sucked in a mouthful of water.

It was a man, she realized, terror spinning
through her. And it wasn’t Big. It was very large, extremely strong
man, and he was trying to drown her! She squirmed violently,
managing to get her mouth near his upper arm.

“Blast it!” Saber shouted underwater, his
voice a loud, gurgling sound. “Don’t bite me!” Bubbles made by his
yelling rose around his face and irritated his eyes. He grabbed a
handful of her long hair and yanked her head away from his arm. Her
watery scream made him let go immediately. He hadn’t meant to hurt
her, but she was going to drown him too if she didn’t cooperate
with her own rescue! They were about a foot from the surface, and
it would only take a few seconds to reach it if she would only stop
fighting him! “Stop!” he tried to tell her.

Goldie understood nothing of the man’s
gargled shouts, but took full advantage of his loosened hold. She
twisted suddenly, and brought her right foot up behind her as
forcefully as she could. The water slowed her kick, but she did
manage to find her mark successfully.

Again, Saber groaned. His arm was still
smarting where she’d bitten him, and now his groin was on fire from
her well-aimed kick. The pain radiated up to his belly, and he
clenched his teeth against it. Very well, he thought angrily. He’d
tried to be gentle with her, but she wouldn’t let him. So now he
would just have to save her life with brute force.

Goldie felt what little breath she had left
rush out of her when the man crushed her to him. Her lungs felt as
though they were going to burst. She panicked, knowing with
absolute certainty that if she didn’t get away from her would-be
killer, she was going to die. She struggled against the hard, thick
arms wrapped around her, but lightheadedness set in, weakening
her.

The girl in his arms went limp just as Saber
broke through the surface. With strong, sure strokes, he swam to
the shore, pulling her with him. He carried her to the warm
leaf-strewn bank and knelt down beside her. His eyes grew round in
astonishment as they took in her full length. He’d already realized
she was nude, but had been under the impression she was no more
than ten or eleven years old. She’d felt so slight, so very tiny
while fighting him in the pond. The sight he had now, however,
proved she was by no means a child, but a fully grown woman.

He stood, raking his fingers through his
dripping hair. “Miss?” he inquired loudly, unable to decide if he
should look at her or not. After all, she
was
naked. Still,
she was half-drowned too. She wasn’t dead; he could see her chest
rising. But it worried him that she wouldn’t wake up. “Miss, are
you all right?” he asked again, carefully keeping his gaze centered
on her face. “Can you open your eyes? Speak? Miss?”

A low growl made him spin around in the
sand. For a moment he saw nothing, but in the next instant, his
eyes widened. “Good God!” he yelled when a great, gray beast came
charging toward him.

The huge, ugly mongrel took a flying leap,
hurling himself directly at Saber. Saber lost his balance
immediately and landed flat on his back, the dog’s body lying
full-length upon him. He tried pushing the beast away, but its
weight and violent contortions prevented success. While Saber
rolled in the sand, the dog clinging to him, tufts of stiff gray
hair poked him in his eyes, and long sharp claws dug into his
midriff. But by far the worst thing about the attack was the dog’s
hot, sour breath. Accompanied by furious growling, it blew onto
Saber’s face in great, moist puffs.

“Get him, Itchie Bon! Great day Miss Agnes,
get him!”

Saber, still battling his canine assailant
and trying his best to keep from being bitten, twisted and saw the
girl. She was standing only a few feet away, the hilt of a huge
claymore in her hands, its point stabbing the ground.
“Get
him?”
he yelled at her. He’d saved her wretched life, and she
wanted him dead! he raged, groaning when the dog nipped his
shoulder. As hard as he tried, he couldn’t seem to get the mongrel
off long enough to stand. God, he fumed, if he didn’t get away from
here, he’d either be torn to bits by the dog or slashed to pieces
by the girl’s huge, silver blade.