Page 50 of To Heal a Broken Earl
“And what makes you say that?”
“Because everyone knows who you are…Viscount Morgrave!”
His eyes flashed with fury. “It doesn’t matter now, because soon, I’ll be long gone. With you by my side.”
Finn growled once more and ran in front of her. “Good boy, Finn,” she sobbed as she grabbed on to a wooden post and pulled herself up.
“Do you think that mongrel can save you?”
Finn replied for her with a low, menacing bark.
“He has more courage than you do!” she said defiantly.
“We’ll see about that!” Morgrave said as he lunged at her, spinning her around and pushing her up against the wooden post.
Finn leaped at Morgrave, his teeth latching on to his leg. Morgrave hissed as he shook off the dog. Finn yelped as he landed hard on the hard-packed earth of the stables.
“Don’t hurt him!” Emma cried out.
“If he behaves, I might let him live,” Morgrave said as he stuffed a foul-tasting rag into her mouth. Jerking her hands behind her back, he tied her wrists together with a rough length of rope. “You’re mine now, firewoman,” he rasped in her ear.
Suddenly, a burlap sack was thrown over her head, tightening as Morgrave secured it. He hoisted her over his shoulder, rendering her somewhat helpless.
Desperate to escape, and with only her feet free, she kicked as hard as she could, but she began to feel a darkness encroach on her, and it wasn’t just the bag over her head… It was something else, something that was making it hard for her to move and think. And then she realized, the foul-tasting gag…it must have been laudanum. She needed to warn Michael…but how?
Somewhere close by, she heard Finn valiantly defending her against the intruder. She could hear a struggle—the sound of her brave companion fighting back. But then she heard a guttural curse followed by a sickening thud and a whimper.
“Flea-bitten beast! That’ll teach you!”
Emma’s heart sank as she realized the depth of her peril.Oh, God, Finn…I have to fight…have to fight…have to…
But the darkness was too much, pulling her under until everything went black.
~*~
Chapter Nineteen
“That sounds like Finn,” Michael said at the sound of distant barking and whining. But he knew the sound of Finn’s barks, and this sounded like the dog had been hurt.
Something was very wrong.
“That bastard is here!”
The three men raced through the kitchen to the back door, the quickest way to the stables. Michael threw open the door to find Finn lying on the bottom step to the entryway, shaking and bleeding.
The dog held up his head as he managed to stand. His fur was stained with blood from what looked to be a large, deep gash on his side.
Michael carefully picked up the trembling dog, who was whimpering in pain. “He’s been severely kicked,” Michael said, as a cold dread shot up his spine. “It’s all right, my brave lad—we’ll get you fixed in no time.” The dog covered his face with licks.
“It’s Morgrave,” he said in a grim tone. “He’s here and he has her.” The words tasted bitter on his tongue. His heart plummeted. This was his fault. He had promised to keep Emma safe, and he’d failed her.
Wright pulled a whistle out of his pocket and sharply blew three times, the agreed-upon emergency signal to the guards manning the estate that the perimeter had been breached. The guards would know to come to the house immediately for directions.
“I can take Finn back in, and then I’ll join you,” Armstrong said, taking the dog in his arms and turning just as the door swung open. Hastings and Stanhope both rushed out and stopped in their tracks.
“My lord?” Hastings asked.
“Lady Emma has been taken,” Michael said. “It appears Finn tried to defend her but was hurt. Hastings, I remember seeing Dr. Bianchi at the party talking to Lady Beadle. Take Finn inside and ask Dr. Bianchi to help him.”
