The following morning Jonathan ate breakfast in his study with his uncle.
“Is Kat due to read again today?” Bruce asked hopefully.
“She read rather a lot yesterday. It doesn’t seem fair to expect her to do it again today.”
“She doesn’t usually read that much. It was nice to carry on with the story,” he sighed with an air of satisfaction.
“I am sure that if she can make it, she will be here at the usual time.” He certainly hoped so because there were things Jonathan needed to discuss with her. “It is very good of her to come and read as often as she does.”
“It is very good of her to spend any time with an aged old man like me. She would make a perfect relation if she was gentry,” the old man sighed with regret.
Jonathan scowled at that. “You have never allowed social status to influence your association with people before,” he remarked pointedly. He knew his uncle was like any other aristocrat, and expected him to continue the family name, but this was something he had never discussed at any great length with anyone before.
“I know, but we have to consider that there are still social strictures. Kat is very nice but she hasn’t been trained to run the house, nor would she be able to hold her own amongst those other cats within the Ton.”
“I don’t consider the Ton of any importance to my future marital status. I would never consider the prospect of being associated with any one of them in matrimony,” Jonathan announced flatly. He couldn’t bear the thought of being landed with some insipid miss whose scheming machinations and avaricious mother would rule his house. Hell would freeze over first.
“You need to take a wife at some point.”
“If I don’t get to choose my wife, then I have no intention of getting married. It is as simple as that.” He stated flatly. His eyes met Bruce’s over the width of the table.
“I thought I taught you never to dally with the locals,” Bruce replied with no hint of censure in his voice.
“I have not dallied with her,” Jonathan argued. “If I have my way Kat will be far from a dalliance.”
“That sounds serious.”
Jonathan merely stared obliquely back at his uncle. The need to keep his intentions private was so very strong, but this was his uncle, his closest living relative. There should be no secrets between them.
“How do you think she is going to feel about the differences between you, and the expectation she will have placed on her if she takes up the position of your wife? There is a world of difference between her life as a villager and the life of Lady Dentham, you know. Your mother never really took to it and she was born aristocracy.”
“I know, but Kat is strong and will manage. Besides, I am going to be around to help.”
Bruce lifted his brows and looked at Jonathan in shock. “What about your work with the Star Elite?”
Jonathan studied his uncle carefully and read the hidden hope in his weary eyes. “I have grown tired of life in the shadows. While we are at war, I have responsibilities to the Star Elite that I simply cannot walk away from, you know that. The men I work with are my colleagues, but they are also my friends. I cannot simply leave them to fight alone. It is my duty to ensure that the borders are protected from smugglers and the like. But, that doesn’t mean that my private life has to be entirely compromised. I cannot countenance being wed to Kat before I need to disappear on another mission that is likely to take me away for weeks at a time, but I will have to. I can ensure that she is settled before I go. You will be here to help her with anything that arises while I am gone. Besides, she has her mother and Billy, who will be here too. It isn’t as though she is will be entirely alone. If it becomes apparent that I need to spend more time at home then I am afraid the time has come that I will have to leave the Star Elite, and will retire to run my estates without reservation.”
“I cannot believe my ears,” his uncle sighed with a mixture of delight and fear. “Have you thought this through? I mean, you have only been back a few days.”
“I am sure,” Jonathan replied with a secretive smile. “Until matters are on a much firmer footing with Kat though, you are not, under any circumstances, to mention anything to her.” The mock frown he gave his uncle was met with unholy glee that made Jonathan shake his head in consternation. He knew Bruce well enough to know that the mischief maker in him would not hesitate to stir matters up a little and, as long as it helped Jonathan persuade Kat to consider him marriage material, he couldn’t object to his uncle playing match-maker.
At least Bruce seemed to have forgotten the differences in social status for the time being. Jonathan could only hope that it would remain that way.
He could understand why Bruce had pointed out his differing background to Kat’s, but he also knew that he couldn’t tell his uncle that his behaviour during his time with the Star Elite had been far from that of a gentleman. He had killed, maimed and fought with the heart of a warrior in order to stay alive. He had seen things; done things that no landed gentry should ever be witness to, and he had done it all with a will that would horrify the man seated opposite. Not only that, but he had lived in places and experienced the worst of depravity to the point that Jonathan had started to consider whether he was good enough for Kat.
But his decision was made now. If he was honest, it was a decision that had been taken out of his hands many years ago when he had first set eyes on her. Even as a young boy he had dreamed of Kat being his wife one day. Now that he had the opportunity to turn that dream into a reality, nothing and nobody was going to stand in his way.
As he made his way toward his study, he realised that he had not had a word yet with Brian Meldrew or any of his friends. He hesitated in the hallway and flicked a glance at the front door. A discrete cough from within the luxurious confines of his workplace drew his attention to his man of business who waited with a huge stack of papers that needed his urgent attention. With a sigh, he made a mental note to visit Meldrew at the first opportunity and disappeared into his study.
Kat shivered and snuggled into her cloak as she made her way down to the harbour. The empty basket she carried was clutched loosely in her fingers and she lengthened her stride to get out of the biting wind. She couldn’t ever remember it being this cold so late in the summer. Autumn seemed to have encroached upon summer even faster this year and a wintry chill had already started to accompany the bitter sea winds that battered the shores. Darkness had already fallen. She knew that it wouldn’t be long before they would have to head out to market in the dark, and would return in the dark.
She wondered where Jonathan was. On the one hand she was glad that he appeared to have gotten the message and decided that his escort duties weren’t required, while on the other, she was avidly curious to know whether he had left Dentham Hall and returned to London as he usually did. She had certainly annoyed him with her rather probing questions the other night. The fact that she hadn’t seen him then bore testament to the fact that he had decided to stay away from her.
She jumped a little at a sudden movement in the shadows, and smothered a relieved laugh when Mrs Arbottle’s cat appeared at her feet.
“Get a grip on yourself, Kat,” she muttered. The sight of the Shipwright Inn’s doorway was a welcome haven and she hurried in that direction. She had no idea why she was so jumpy tonight. Market day had gone well again and all of their stock had been sold but, for some reason, she felt strangely restless. It was as though some inner warning system was aware that trouble was afoot, only she didn’t know what.
Her thoughts turned toward the shipment that was due later and she shivered at the reluctance that dogged her every footstep. She didn’t want to go out to the beach tonight to bring the smuggled cargo ashore. She hated being out in the darkness, let alone down on the beach with the cold sea up to her knees. Boxes and barrels were usually littered everywhere and, on nights like this, the tide was dangerous. It hadn’t been unknown for smugglers to be swept out to sea; dragged out by the ferocious tides that pulled them relentlessly to their deaths.
Still, she knew that they had a responsibility to bring the goods in along with everyone else. Other women would be there. It wasn’t as though she was the only female smuggler. It was just that she was sick and tired of being cold and wet while she had to look over her shoulder throughout her sleepless night.
She was so lost in thought that she didn’t notice the dark shadow appear at her right elbow, but a flurry of movement on her left did draw her attention. She gasped when her elbows were captured from behind in a ruthless grip. She felt the solid length of a man directly behind her, and cursed fluidly at the sight of Brian Meldrew’s spiteful face right beside hers.
“I thought you had been told to stay away from me,” she snapped and started to struggle to get her elbows free. They hurt fiercely but she refused to let the pain show on her face. After several moments of futility she stopped struggling, but also planted her feet firmly on the floor so Brian couldn’t shove her around. She hauled her body weight backward to stop him as he tried to push her toward the alleyway at the side of the tavern. She knew that nobody used the alleyway while the pub was open. It was dark and quiet. Nobody would be able to hear her scream through the thick stone walls of the tavern and the noise of the singing from within.
She eyed the blackness of the alleyway in horror and kicked out at Wally, who immediately let go of her foot to clutch his painful shin. She elbowed Colin in the mouth and winced when pain exploded in her elbow. She took advantage of Brian’s distraction to yank her arm out of his grasp only for him to grab a firm hold on her wrist before she could get away.
“Get off me,” she snapped and twisted her arm in an attempt to break the ruthless fingers that encircled her other wrist. She tried to free their hold with a desperation that threatened to give way to panic, especially when she couldn’t get her nails between their fingers and her bruised flesh.
“You are going to come with me,” Brian smirked. “What’s wrong, Kat, aren’t us local men good enough for you anymore? You are free and easy with your kisses with the rich man. What about giving us locals a go, eh?”
Kat began to struggle with renewed vigour. Panic threatened to overwhelm her as she became aware of the presence of the others as they tried to overwhelm her. She kicked out behind her and was awarded with a curse.
“Let me go!”
She hated any one of them seeing any weakness, but she was horrified at the thought of what they would do with her if they succeeded in getting her into the alleyway. She had heard so many vile rumours about their behaviour toward other females who lived nearby, none of which had been proved but, given their behaviour tonight, was more than likely true.
“Grab her legs,” Brian growled.
Her scream was cut off by one large, grubby palm against her mouth. Fear overwhelmed her as hands grabbed her ankles and she was lifted off her feet. She began to squirm, twist and writhe. She didn’t care if they dropped her onto the hard cobbles as long as they didn’t succeed in their aim.
“Put her down!” Jonathan snarled as he emerged out of the shadows by the side of the tavern. Kat froze and whimpered with a mixture of relief and pain. The hold they had on her was fierce but she was so bloody relieved to see Jonathan, who stood tall and ferocious on the edges of the shadows. Tears pooled in her eyes and she tried to suck in a breath around the foul smell of the fingers that threatened to smother her. She wrenched her head to one side, and twisted her arms to try to get her captors to release her, but to her consternation they held firm.
“I will give you one last warning.” Jonathan’s voice was as deadly as the merciless eyes that moved slowly over the youths. He stared at Wally, the smallest of the group, until the younger boy dropped the leg he held.
Kat immediately yanked on her other leg and slammed her foot on the ground at the same time that she dug her teeth into the fingers that covered her lips. She was rewarded by Colin’s painful yowl.
“Or you are going to do what, rich man?” Brian snarled. “You are nothing more than a dandy boy.”
“You know nothing about me, boy,” Jonathan replied as calmly as if he was reading aloud from a broadsheet. “I strongly recommend that you consider Kat strictly off limits to your kind of bully-boy antics.”
“Or what? What can you do about it?” e He He shared an amused glance with his cohorts who all stared belligerently at Jonathan.
Jonathan merely lifted his brow and studied Kat for a moment. Even in the gloom he could see the dark marks around her wrists and felt his stomach churn with anger. His fingers clenched with the need to lash out. He knew that his years of fighting experience were no match for the young boys before him. They needed to learn that appearances, and gossip, could be deceptive.
“I will warn you once more, Brian. Put her down or you will go to go for a swim to cool down that arrogant, hot head of yours.” He watched with disinterest as Robert sidled carefully around him, clearly with the intention of attacking from behind. But Jonathan was far too experienced to fall for such tactics. The boy had only reached his shoulder when one long arm shot out and cruel fingers clamped tightly around Robert’s throat.
“Go away, this is village business.” Despite his bravado, he frowned at the choking noises that came from Robert as he clawed desperately at Jonathan’s unrelenting hold.
“I am the village,” Jonathan snarled. He was dangerously close to losing his temper: something that he had learned many years ago never to do while in the midst of battle. But the strain of carrying out his decision to stay away from Kat over the past few days had taken its toll on his patience. Now, he relished the prospect of being able to vent his frustration.
“Jonathan,” Kat gasped as she stared at Robert’s mottled face. Did Jonathan plan to kill him? She watched in a mixture of awe and horror as Jonathan immediately let go and Robert slumped to the floor while he coughed and gagged, and desperately tried to suck in huge gulps of air. One swift kick to the young man’s jaw and he was out cold on the floor without a murmur.
“I warned you to stay away from her.” Jonathan’s voice dropped to a deadly snarl that matched the ruthless intent on his face.
Kat had never seen this side to him before and wasn’t sure what to make of it. All trace of the gentleness she had seen on his handsome features when he had been dealing with his uncle had gone, and was replaced with a deadly intent that made her immediately want to step back. She would have done too, if Brian hadn’t grasped her elbow and drawn her to his side.
“Brian, don’t be a fool,” Kat snapped and watched as Brian drew out a filleting knife from his boot and began to finger the wicked-looking blade.
“Shut up,” Brian snarled. “You are nothing but this nabob’s whore. You consider yourself too good for the local men in this village, do you? Well, let’s see how you feel about him when he has been cut up a bit.”
Jonathan shook his head in mock sadness. He glanced at Kat and took note of the hold Colin and Brian still had on her wrists. Wally stood to one side and stared avidly at him. Indecision was evident on his face and he rocked on the balls of his feet while he decided whether to stay and fight or run for his life. When Wally began to ball his fists in preparation for a fight, Jonathan sighed and knew that he was going to get considerably colder, and wetter, before the night was through. He studied the distance between them and the harbour wall, and judged that he could just about make it, as long as the boys let go of Kat first.
He had to keep his gaze carefully averted from Kat’s terrified face. The sight of the fear on her beautiful features hampered his concentration and, right now, he needed to be able to think about the battle that was ahead. All of his years of Star Elite training and experience came to the fore, and with a ruthless twist of his lips, his eyes locked on his first opponent: Colin.
“Let her go,” Jonathan drawled in a voice that was softly authoritative.
“Go to hell. You are nothing more than a rich boy, here for a dalliance with the local whore. You will be off as soon as you have got what you wanted. Who will be around to protect her then?” Brian snorted and began to turn the knife in his hand over and over. His implied threat did little to intimidate Jonathan, who merely flicked a disinterested glance at the blade.
“What happens to Kat is my concern, not yours.” He cursed when three young men walked up to them seemingly out of nowhere. At first glance they appeared to be fishermen and not part of Brian’s gang, thank God. They stared at the affray and sidled around everyone, clearly undecided as to whether they should get involved or not.
“Kat? You alright?” One of them asked as he eyed the boys’ hold on the barmaid.
“No, I am not. Get these bastards off me, will you? Or fetch someone from inside.” She snapped. One of them disappeared inside, and Jonathan cursed fate for being so bloody minded. The last thing he wanted, or needed, was the entire tavern outside to watch. He had enough control of the situation to be assured that Kat would escape from this skirmish unharmed but, with the villagers crowding the harbour side, God only knew what would happen.
“Right, time is up,” Jonathan snapped. His boot landed with startling accuracy on Colin’s wrist and the boy screamed in pain as the bones in his wrist crunched under the force of the kick. Kat’s arm was released and she began to prise at Brian’s fingers with her nails. When his hold didn’t loosen, she scratched at his face with her free hand at the same time that the tavern door opened and the customers spilled out onto the street to the side of them.
“Let her go, Brian,” Harry snarled. “I’ll not have the likes of you threatening my staff.”
“Brian, your mother would be ashamed. You have stepped over the line this time and that’s a fact,” one woman chided from just inside the doorway.
Jonathan sighed and shook his head. His gaze was caught by Wally’s furtive movement as the boy tried to use the darkness of cover to creep around Jonathan’s other side. With two swift thumps to his face and a kick in the ribs, Wally went down with a dull thud.
Jonathan turned to Colin who stood to one side, his arm held protectively against his chest.
“You bastard, you have broken it,” Colin snarled in disgust. “How am I supposed to work now?”
“You should have thought of that before you laid hands on Kat,” Jonathan replied dismissively. “Now, unless you want the other one breaking too, I suggest you get the hell out of here.”
He turned back to Brian who continued to twirl his fishing knife. Jonathan knew from the gleam in his eye that the boy was going to throw it.
Despite the number of people that were gathered on the dockside, silence settled over them as everyone watched and waited to see what would happen.
“Let her go, Brian, or it won’t only be your wrists I will break,” Jonathan warned. He threw a warning glance toward the three young sailors who had moved to stand closer to Brian. Everyone waited.
Brian glanced around at everyone, clearly unprepared to lose face in front of so many villagers. The belligerent look that settled over his spiteful face was enough to warn Jonathan that a fight was on. With a shake of his head, he wondered how much worse this night could get. His lip curled in an arrogant smile of contempt before he held out his arms in wide invitation. He almost relished this battle; if only to teach the boy a lesson.
Brian lunged forward. The flash of the blade in the moonlight was all Kat saw as it whizzed past. She staggered at the speed she was released. She gasped for breath as hands immediately dragged her out of danger and she was pushed behind the protective line of Harry and some of the male regulars from the tavern. They all turned and watched as Jonathan kicked and punched Brian while holding the boy’s knife. A collective gasp swept through them as they watched the rapid succession of the bone crunching thumps Brian received as he was pounded relentlessly backward toward the harbour wall.
Nobody made any move to stop the fight and watched when, at the last moment, Brian teetered on the brink of the dockside, bent over and charged forward in an attempt to tackle Jonathan, who merely sidestepped and kicked the boy up the backside on his way past. The forward momentum propelled Brian into the wall of the tavern and he went down with a thump.
Jonathan was about to turn away when a snarl from Brian warned him that the fight wasn’t over yet. He was heartily reassured that Kat was safe now and mentally rolled up his sleeves. He sidestepped the second charge but was caught by the punch Brian aimed at his midriff. The boy was no match for Jonathan’s size and dexterity though, and was unable to dodge the foot that landed on his thigh that knocked him off balance, or the heavy fist that was planted in his stomach. Once; twice; the boy gasped and staggered backward. A final kick to the chest was enough to topple him backward, into the darkness of the harbour. The dull splash was met with the shocked silence of the villagers that was broken by hearty cheers and whistles.
Jonathan shook his head and watched the three sailors peer over the wall. However, nobody made any attempt to help the boy who was now forced to swim to safety. Jonathan turned toward Kat and found her in the middle of the melee of exuberant villagers. The crowd parted as he moved to stand before her. He held her hands in his and studied the bruises on her wrists and arms.
“Are you alright?” The gentleness on his face was in stark contrast to the last few minutes. The change in his demeanour was so swift that Kat struggled to take in what she had just witnessed with her own eyes.
She pointed vaguely at the harbour wall and stared blankly at him. She wasn’t at all sorry for Brian, the young oaf deserved every moment of the last few minutes, but she was stunned that Jonathan was capable of such ruthless calculation.
“Did they hurt you?” A dark frown gathered on his brow.
“No, I am fine,” Kat replied after a moment. “Just a few bruises. How?”
“I will tell you another time. Right now, let’s get you inside.” She didn’t bother to argue, or glance back to check on Jonathan’s victims as he led her inside the tap room.
A couple of the locals were scolding Colin and Wally, while someone else threw a bucket of sea water over the still unconscious Robert. Nobody bothered to check on Brian, who still splashed about in the harbour as he tried to find a way out.