Page 76 of The Saxon Lord's Unwanted Bride
With a swift movement, he drew out a knife, then sliced it across Roswyn’s throat. With a sigh, she collapsed forward, blood pumping out of her in thick, hot spurts.
“Help me!” Eloise shrieked. “Oh, my God, help me!”
Before she could move, the blade pressed against her belly. She flinched at the sharp sting and a small red stain appeared on her gown.
“Don’t move or you’ll die.” Ralph’s soft voice repeated those long ago words. Once again she was the terrified child, but this time she knew the futility of fighting for her honor against a man who understood nothing but power and control.
“Please, let me go,” she whispered, “You cannot want me. I belong to Harald, whether he wants me or no.”
“Au contraire chérie,” he said, his voice silken, “Harald will fall, and Wildstorm will come to me. Already William suspects he’s behind the uprisings. A few whispered words of counsel will seal his fate. Then nobody will doubt that you’re mine.”
“Leave me alone,” she pleaded. “You took everything from me. I have nothing left.”
He chuckled softly. “Ah—this time, my love, I’ll have you come tomybed—a willing concubine to satisfy me while I look for a proper wife, one who is not tainted.”
“You’ll never take me willing, Ralph,” she said. “I’d rather die!”
“You might wish to hazard your own life, but what of your child?”
Mon Dieu! Did he know about Violette?
“My child?”
He sliced the ropes binding her hands.
“You must come with me now, and if we encounter anyone you’ll play the part of a loving mistress.” He chuckled. “Harald will be most aggrieved on discovering his wife has departed with her lover.”
He ran the tip of the knife across her belly, the blade tearing the fabric of her gown. She tried to pull free but he held her close and bent down to kiss her full on the mouth.
“You’re mine now and will do everything I ask more besides, or…”
He pressed the knife again, sending a sharp knot of pain through her stomach.
“…or I’ll cut out that little bastard in your belly.”
Chapter 19
“Harald, have you lost your senses?”
The cold October air filtered through Edwin’s study at Stonefort Abbey, shifting the tapestries on the walls.
Harald shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Edwin had refused to support Harald’s petition for an annulment. The younger brother he’d loved and nurtured over the years now scolded him, as a father might chastise a wayward child. Never had Harald seen him so angry.
“She lied to me, Edwin!” he said. “I can forgive a sinful past, but she knowingly uttered a falsehood, after we pledged honesty to each other. How can I ever trust her?”
“But you say that her lie was merely that a child is alive, rather than dead,” Edwin said.
“Aye,” Harald replied. “What of it?”
“Do you not think it a greater sin to wish the child dead?”
“God’s bones, brother!” Harald cried. “Would you preach to me also? You repeat the same words as that old hag at the convent. Didyouknow about the child? Have you been party to their deception?”
“Don’t be a fool!” Edwin exclaimed. “Have you never stopped to consider why your wife might have told you the child was dead?”
No—she’d never explained, and he’d never asked. She had backed away from him, trembling with fear. What had she said, barely hours after he’d plucked her from the pool?
If a child of mine were in danger, I’d want someone to keep her safe from harm.
