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“Let me try.” Trevor pushed his way forward and leaned into the door.

He squeezed his eyes shut and concentrated completely on the sounds coming from the other side.

If he held himself very still, he could hear a male voice speaking rapidly, a female voice answering or perhaps asking a question.

The marquess then heard something else. Moaning? Whimpering?

His hand reached down and slowly turned the latch. “ ’Tis locked,” he whispered.

“I think I can open it.” Wingate removed a long, thin implement from his breast pocket and inserted it in the keyhole. He fiddled with the lock for only a moment, then, with a slightly embarrassed grin, sprang the lock.

There was hardly time to question Wingate on where he had learned this rather unsavory skill, yet Trevor could tell by Jason’s amazed expression that his brother-in-law was equally scandalized.

“Remember,” Trevor admonished. “Be as quiet as you can. An element of surprise might make all the difference.”

Yet all their efforts at entering the room soundlessly were for naught. The moment they swung the door open, Harriet screamed.

“Hawkins!” Julian Wingate cried out in astonishment. “What the devil is going on?”

The man Wingate called Hawkins grabbed a fistful of Harriet’s hair and yanked her head back. “Make a move toward me and I’ll slit her throat.”

“Who is this man?” Trevor cried out in anger.

“My valet,” Wingate replied.

“What?” Both Jason and the marquess turned in astonishment to Wingate.

The other man shrugged his shoulders helplessly. “Believe me, I am just as shocked as you. Perhaps more. He has never before exhibited such rash behavior.

“Hawkins, step away from Miss Harriet this instant,” Wingate commanded.

“My God, he has tied Elizabeth to that chair,” Jason declared in shocked tones.

Trevor’s eyes frantically searched the room for Meredith.

She stood behind Hawkins, directly in front of Elizabeth, who was indeed tied to the chair.

Meredith’s face was pale in the dim candlelight, her eyes alight with stark fear.

She seemed unharmed, but there was a hopeless expression on her lovely face that cut him to the quick.

“ ’Tis three against one, Hawkins,” Trevor called out in anger. “End it now while you can.”

Hawkins’s mouth curled in a sneer. “I am the one holding the knife, my lord. And the women.”

“Bloody hell, he’s your servant, Wingate,” Jason said. “Do something.”

Wingate drew in a tight breath. “What do you suggest? He has a knife pressed to Harriet’s throat. If we rush him, she will be harmed before we reach her side.”

Trevor fought the urge to step forward. He knew Wingate was right. And if Harriet were cut, it seemed likely Meredith would be his next target.

“What do you want, Hawkins?” Trevor asked. “Money?”

Hawkins broke into a slow, cruel, taunting smile. “How very foolish you are, my lord. I want only to complete my mission, and nothing any of you do will stop me.”

“What is your mission?” Jason asked.

“I punish those who are undeserving.”

“You are a coward, full of bluff and pretense,” Trevor said with contempt. “I demand you put down that knife immediately and step away from the women.”

“Pretense!” Hawkins lifted his head higher and straightened his spine. His eyes blazed as he pressed the tip of the knife into Harriet’s throat. “You are a lackwit, my lord, who does not understand the importance of my calling.”

Meredith flung the marquess a despairing look. “Be careful, Trevor. He has killed before. Someone we knew. Someone we loved.”

“Yes,” Hawkins proclaimed with pride. “Even though it was a small mistake, I took great delight in ending the life of your first wife, Lord Dardington—though I know I shall enjoy it far more when I kill your current wife.”

Hawkins’s words rang in Trevor’s head, and a myriad of questions followed. The man was clearly deranged. Was his outrageous claim the workings of a sick mind?

“It is true,” Meredith said in a broken whisper. “He meant to kill me all those years ago, but poor Lavinia died in my place. ’Tis almost too horrible to imagine. Oh, please forgive me, Trevor.” Meredith bit back a sob, a mournful sound that tore at the marquess’s heart.

He glanced at his brother-in-law Jason’s features were set like granite, but his eyes never strayed from Elizabeth’s still form. If only they could distract Hawkins, they might be able to disarm him without the women being injured.

“We need to take control of this situation, Wingate,” Trevor whispered. “When I take a step closer, I want you to shove me, but not too hard. If we break Hawkins’s concentration, we might be able to overpower him.”

Wingate nodded in understanding. Trevor balanced on the balls of his feet, waiting for the other man to act. Everything seemed to move with infinite slowness as Wingate knocked into him. Hawkins blinked in surprise and relaxed his hold on Harriet.

She bravely took advantage of her captor’s momentary distraction and wrenched herself free. Enraged, Hawkins went straight for Elizabeth, who was tied helplessly to the chair. The blade flashed in the candlelight as he menacingly raised his arm. Trevor moved, but Jason was much quicker.

With a cry of anguish, Jason hurled himself forward, thrusting his body between Elizabeth and the knife. Trevor braced himself for the spurt of blood that was sure to follow, but Jason reached up and grasped the villain’s wrist with both hands.

The room soon filled with the grunts and groans of the combatants as they struggled for possession of the deadly blade. In a wild tangle of arms and legs, they landed on the floor, twisting and turning as each man struggled for dominance.

It was impossible to tell who was winning. Then, suddenly, Jason yanked his arm free and let fly a hard jab to Hawkins’s jaw. It stunned the servant momentarily, allowing Jason, who lay flat on his back, to gain sole possession of the knife.

Before Trevor or Wingate could lend assistance, Hawkins recovered his wits. He gave a roar of pure animal fury and lunged forward to attack. In defense, Jason raised the angle of the knife the last second before impact.

Hawkins screamed in agony, his face registering pain and shock as the blade pierced him through the heart. With a final curse, he crumpled to the ground beside Jason, clutching his chest. It was stained crimson.

The room was still with silence.

“My God, I think I’ve killed him,” Jason finally croaked.

“Good,” Harriet declared vehemently as she backed away from the inert form. A darker pool of blood was forming on the wooden floor, encircling Hawkins’s lifeless body.

Reacting with primitive need, Trevor raced to Meredith’s side, pulling her into his arms. More than anything, he needed to feel the warmth of her flesh against his, to assure himself she was truly unharmed.

She was breathless and shaking. “I knew you would come,” she said. “Somehow I knew you would find us. Would save us. I never doubted it, even when I was most fearful.”

A shudder ran through her body. Trevor hugged her closer. Meredith lifted her palms to her eyes and pressed hard to keep back the tears. “Oh, poor Harriet,” she said when she lowered her hands. “I think she has gone into shock.”

The marquess turned and saw Harriet slump down on the floor, wrap her arms around her stomach and rock slowly back and forth. Her hair had fallen forward, hiding her face, but her shaking shoulders were clear evidence of her silent weeping.

“Please, Trevor go to her,” Meredith whispered.

He tightened his hold on his wife, not wanting to leave her side for an instant. “Where is Wingate?”

“He has gone to get help. Jason is caring for Elizabeth. Please, there is no one else.”

“And what of you?”

She smiled bravely. “I am much better, but Harriet is suffering so much.”

Letting Meredith slip out of his embrace took a tremendous amount of courage. Before leaving he bent his head and pressed a kiss to her temple. “If you have need of me, just call.”

She nodded. Trevor walked to the opposite side of the room to see about Harriet. She stopped rocking and lifted a tear-streaked face to him. “Julian?” she asked, her voice choked with tears.

“He has gone for assistance,” Trevor said softly. “Please allow me to sit with you while we await his return.”

The hesitant way she reached for his hand made Trevor realize Meredith was right. Poor Harriet was on the verge of total hysteria.

Fortunately, help arrived very shortly. A bevy of males entered the room noisily. Several burly servants accompanied Wingate, along with a somberly dressed gray-haired gentleman whom he identified as the local magistrate.

Hawkins’s body was removed. Once it was gone, Elizabeth lifted herself off Jason’s lap and practically fell into Harriet’s arms. The two sisters hugged each other fiercely, crying like young girls. Jason remained at Elizabeth’s side, patting her shoulder awkwardly and hovering protectively.

Trevor turned to retrieve Meredith, wanting nothing more than to gather his wife in his arms and get her safely home. Yet as his gaze settled on the far wall, he received a most unpleasant shock. The marquess’s heart jolted as bands of panic tightened around his chest until he could barely breathe.

Meredith was no longer in the room. She was gone.