Page 45 of A Lady Most Wayward (The Queen’s Deadly Damsels #5)
Olivia paced on the marble floor. Her gown of endlessly layered white silk rustled around her legs.
‘This is ridiculous. I should be out there. No doubt Cedric has arrived with Hyacinth. I should be with my daughter. Protecting her from him. Standing with Philippa. Not hidden away in this bloody white room in my white dress like some fragile, helpless virgin awaiting sacrifice!’ Which was laughable on so many levels.
But that wasn’t the plan. And she knew if they had any hope of catching her brother and ending his terrorising reign, she must follow the plan. She could hardly swan about the dance floor in the Queen’s throne room when the entire beau monde would recognise her in an instant and sound the alarm.
She took another turn. Slipping her hand into the pocket sewn into her voluminous skirt, she fingered the dagger there and wondered if she had the courage to use it. Could she actually plunge the lethal metal into her brother’s chest if it came to that?
If it means Hyacinth and Philippa are safe, and I am finally free… yes. I think I could.
The door on the far side of the white room creaked open, and Olivia froze.
She wasn’t sure who she expected to see, but it certainly wasn’t Hyacinth.
And yet, there she was. Standing in the frame of the doorway, with the lights from the corridor creating a nimbus around her head.
Her dress was a shell pink, befitting that of a young woman at her first ball.
Her blonde locks, nearly as pale as Olivia’s, but wavy instead of the wild curls her mother long ago stopped trying to tame, were piled up in a twist that left wisps framing her face.
It had only been a few weeks since Olivia last saw her, but she looked different.
Her girl had transitioned to a young woman.
Olivia’s throat ached as she stepped forward, but before she could reach Hyacinth, another figure appeared behind her.
He wore the mask of a grinning gargoyle.
His hands were ungloved as he grabbed Hyacinth’s bare arm and pushed her further into the room, closing the door behind them.
Olivia didn’t need to see his face to know who he was.
Her brother had arrived at the Queen’s All Hallows’ Eve Ball.
‘Don’t move a step closer, Olivia,’ Cedric warned.
He pulled a gun from his pocket and calmly pushed the muzzle against Hyacinth’s ribs.
The young woman didn’t break eye contact with her mother.
Her wide eyes were frightened, but even more terrifying, they were resigned to whatever fate might befall her this evening.
‘Do not point that at my daughter.’ Olivia’s voice was quiet, calm, and full of venom. She wished she had a pistol in her pocket instead of a dagger, though in truth, she would never trust her aim when Cedric held her daughter in front of him like a shield.
Releasing Hyacinth’s arm, he pushed his mask off and threw it to the floor.
His face was red with anger, his eyes wild.
The madness he kept hidden so carefully from the world had broken free this night, and fear washed through Olivia.
Because one could not reason with a madman, nor could she predict his actions.
‘Do not tell me what to do. You never listen, Olivia. No matter what I do to try and teach you. Your defiance knows no bounds. But that ends tonight.’
‘Your cruel acts were hardly lessons, Cedric. Let her go. You made your deal with the duchess. You have me. Now let Hyacinth leave.’
‘And abandon my dear sweet niece into the arms of strangers?’ As he spoke, he stroked his hand up and down Hyacinth’s arm.
Her face hardened, and she pressed her lips together, refusing to let any emotions break free, brave girl that she was.
Olivia’s fear amalgamized into fierce rage. How dare he frighten her child?
‘Why are you doing this? What can you possibly gain from hurting her besides an eternity in hell?’
‘Your obedience.’
Olivia changed tactics. ‘Fine. I will give you my complete submission if you let her go and promise to dismantle your flesh ring. What good does it do you? You don’t need the money.’
‘Money is nothing when you hold the darkest secrets of the realm’s most powerful men.
How many dukes, viscounts, barons, and marquises do I control?
Imagine what might happen if their involvement in my little operation were to be made public?
And of course, I am not tied to any of this.
I’ve been sure to keep my name from any piece of incriminating evidence. ’
‘Always so clever, Cedric.’
He preened under her false praise. ‘There isn’t a limit to what information one can learn from a desperate little boy trying to keep his dirty deeds from ever seeing the light of day. I own half the beau monde, Olivia. I control their lives. Just as I control Hyacinth’s, and now, yours.’
Olivia shook her head. ‘This scheme is madness. You can’t possibly expect to get away with this. Too many people know. You will be caught, Cedric. You will be punished.’
His laugh was too high, too shrill. It made Olivia’s skin crawl as she remembered the brother of her youth.
The same lad who would giggle when a dog got caught beneath the wheel of their carriage, or a maid was beaten for an indiscretion.
Something had been twisting within him for far too long, and now it had warped the very fabric of his soul.
‘Who is going to punish me? You? Please. You wouldn’t dare. ’
‘Oh, I think she would.’ Philippa’s voice rang out from behind Olivia. Relief and fear filled her with equal potency. Now, both of the women she loved beyond measure were in the same room, at her brother’s mercy.
Cedric tore his gaze away from Olivia to focus on Philippa as she came to stand next to her. His eyes darted back and forth between the women. ‘What are you doing here? Your part of the bargain has been fulfilled. Leave us.’
Philippa’s lips curled in a smile holding no warmth. ‘I don’t think so. Let Hyacinth go, and maybe we will spare your life.’
‘You forget, Duchess, I am the one holding all of the cards.’ Cedric’s grip tightened on Hyacinth. ‘Take another step and I’ll shoot her.’
Olivia’s heart fractured. Because he would do it without hesitation. She knew this just as well as he did. A single tear tracked down her daughter’s cheek. It shattered Olivia’s resolve.
‘Oh, I don’t know. We might have an ace or two up our sleeves.’ Killian emerged from the shadows, Hannah by his side. She held a pistol in her hand pointed steadily at Cedric’s head. ‘Have you met my wife, Lord High Chancellor? She’s a crack shot. I wouldn’t test her skills.’
Hannah smiled. ‘You say the loveliest things, darling.’ She spoke to Killian, but her gaze was focused on Hardgrave.
‘I bet I could beat you if we used knives.’ Millie came out from behind a heavy set of curtains hanging on the far wall, Drake just behind her, his scar catching the candlelight.
She held a throwing knife in her hand and flipped it in the air, catching it by the hilt as she approached their growing circle.
Penny and Liam stood up from behind an emerald velvet settee, both holding pistols. Ivy and Edward rose from their hiding place next to a mahogany desk.
‘I’ve never liked bullies. You remind me of some men I knew in prison.
It didn’t end well for them either.’ Penny thrust out her chin as she stopped on Millie’s right side, and Ivy took her left.
Liam and Edward stayed behind the women, but there was no doubt in Olivia’s mind either of them would tear her brother apart before he took a step closer to their ladies.
The Deadly Damsels and their dashing men surrounded Cedric in a crescent with the door to the room at his back.
‘Fools. All of you.’ His lip twitched into a small smile that froze Olivia’s blood. ‘Guards!’ he called out and, in a seamless move, twisted so Hyacinth was behind him and his pistol was now pointed at Olivia.
With a thundering of feet on the marble floor, the white parlour was flooded with scarlet as the Queen’s royal guard swept in from every door. They must have been standing by, waiting for this very moment.
Of course he would stack the deck in his favour.
Cedric never played fair, and he never engaged in a game unless he knew he would win.
Small skirmishes broke out as one guard attempted to grab Millie.
Drake punched him in the face before three others wrestled the major general to the floor.
Hannah put a choke hold on a young man valiantly trying to restrain Killian before a large guard ripped her off him and pinned her to the floor.
Liam took down two crimson-clad men before a third got a lucky shot, bloodying Liam’s lip with a sucker punch.
Penny launched herself at the man but was intercepted by a fourth who somehow kept his hold on her as she fought like a wild demon to get free.
Ivy’s face was pale as she struggled against a guard holding both hands behind her back. Edward stormed toward him, throwing any crimson coat in his path to the side, death in his eyes until she urged him to stand down.
Several more of the guards surrounded Hyacinth, protecting her from the scuffle.
Olivia lurched forward, only to meet the blinding smack of her brother’s hand across her cheek. She stumbled back, his weapon unerringly pointed at her chest.
‘You bastard!’ Philippa moved toward Olivia, not pausing when Cedric swung his gun in her direction. She took Olivia in her arms, her hand running over her wounded cheek before she turned back to face the Crow. ‘I am going to enjoy taking you apart one piece at a time.’