Page 56 of Captured By the Cold Duke
“Are you really so worried that the earl will try to off you?” Thomas asked, with some interest.
Mr. Norton reddened. “I owe him a great deal of money…”
Thomas frowned at him. “I settled those debts for you.”
“And that was so very generous of you, Your Grace. But you see, since then, the temptations of the card tables have lured me back, and I am but a weak man…”
Thomas turned away in disgust, no longer afraid that he’d made a mistake in misjudging the man. Mr. Norton’s weakness for gambling had almost condemned Cherie to a life as the Countess of Rochford, and for that, he could never forgive him.
“Are you here to ask for another loan?” Thomas asked.
“N-no! Of course not!” Mr. Norton spluttered, his cheeks burning even more brightly. “I came here to warn you of what I heard about Lord Rochford! It isn’t only me that he has designs to ruin, after all. He is also your sworn enemy, as well as the enemy of the duchess.”
“He is not the duchess’s enemy,” Thomas said. “In fact, if anything, he is quite taken with her. He’d love nothing better than to get me out of the picture so that—” Thomas stopped talking, a terrifying thought suddenly overtaking him. Constantinewouldlike him out of the picture, especially before he produced an heir. That would leave him free to ascend to the dukedom and to marry Cherie, which seemed as much about revenge against Thomas as it was desire for her.
Is there any way that the earl could have tried to poison me? But no, it isn’t possible. He hasn’t had me drink anything, except…
He looked at Mr. Norton, and they both seemed to have the same thought at the same time.
“The bottle of cognac he gave you for your wedding!” Mr. Norton exclaimed.
“But that is too risky! We could have opened it and drank it at the wedding!”
“Perhaps he knew you would snub him. Perhaps he hoped you would drink it later, once you were alone.”
“But everyone at the wedding saw him give it to us.”
“People can take ill from so many causes,” Mr. Norton pointed out. “And it would be rude to drink a single bottle among guests who could not sample it. Perhaps he felt it was worth the risk.”
“We need to get it out of the house—now!” Thomas said, and he leapt down the last few stairs on the staircase.
“I can test it!” Norton shouted after him. “That’s the other thing I was going to tell you! The apothecary gave me a solution to put in liquids to see if they have been poisoned with cyanide.”
“Well then hurry!” Thomas shouted. “Before?—”
But at that very moment, there was a thud from the study, and Thomas felt his whole body go cold. Because that thud had sounded eerily similar to a body hitting the ground.
“Hurry!” he shouted. He sprinted across the hallway and wrenched open the door of his study. A terrifying sight met his eyes: Cherie was motionless on the ground, right below his desk, her skin very red and her face lifeless and swollen. Next to her lay the bottle of cognac, while an empty glass sat on the top of the desk.
“No!” The shout was wrenched from Thomas’s throat like a tooth from the mouth of a sick patient. It filled the room, reverberating throughout, shaking the windows. “Cherie, no!”
He bounded across the room, flung himself around the side of the desk, and bent down to grab his wife. Her body was cold already and stiff, and for one wild, unimaginable moment, Thomas thought she was already dead.
“Cherie!” he shouted, lifting her up. “Stay with me!”
He wanted to shake her, as if that would wake her up, or bring her back to him, but he knew it was pointless. Tears were on his cheeks, he realized. “Please, Cherie, don’t leave me!”
“What’s going on in here?” Thomas turned to see Aidan standing in the doorway, a puzzled and concerned look on his face. The moment he took in his lifeless sister in Thomas’s arms, he went as pale as snow. “What happened to her?”
“W-we think she drank cyanide,” Norton stammered.
“WELL THEN FETCH A DOCTOR!”Aidan roared, and Norton nearly jumped out of his skin in fright.
“Of course! Right away!”
“And then come back!” Thomas shouted after him. “We have to test the bottle.” He motioned at Aidan. “Quick, pick it up before any more of it leaks out over the rug!”
Aidan moved forward with lightning speed. He didn’t wait for an explanation, just jumped into action, and Thomas appreciated that. His old friend grabbed the bottle of cognac and righted it.There was still a finger of liquid at the bottom of it, and for that at least, Thomas was grateful.
