Page 12 of Her Dark Seduction
Chapter 5
The next day my husband sent for me.
As Harwyn helped me dress, my hands shook so badly I struggled with my garments. I tried to appear calm, but she knew me too well. Her soft touch and natural kindness overwhelmed me. I choked back a cry as she took me in her arms.
Unable to look her in the eyes, I told her everything that had happened the previous night, my voice thickening with shame as I uttered Sawford’s name. Holding me close, she stroked my forehead until my sobs subsided. Then she combed my hair in silence. The rhythmic motion of the comb pulling through my scalp was comforting. Counting in rhythm with each stroke, I began to control my breathing. By the time she started braiding my hair, I was calm again.
When Harwyn finished I stood, my body no longer shaking. She took my hand and drew me to her.
“Courage.”
“Aye, Harwyn. I’ll not give him the satisfaction of seeing me distressed, and will face my fate as bravely as Maman would have done.”
She gave me a light kiss on the cheek before opening my door. I knew not whether I would see her again or whether I was walking to my death.
Lord Mortlock waited for me in the main hall, Sawford by his side. Focusing my attention on my husband, I ignored the tall man in black, repressing a shudder of revulsion as Mortlock’s claw-like fingers curled round my own.
“Welcome home, husband.” I spoke blandly. He nodded and looked greedily at me with his milky eyes. This close, I could see they were bloodshot. The smell of sour wine on his breath mingled with another smell, the stench of decay.
“A kiss for your husband.” His voice rattled in his chest before erupting into a hacking cough, which sent out droplets of spittle. I flinched, and he grinned, drawing me toward him and crushing his lips against mine. I stiffened at his touch.
“What say you, Sawford? Is my wife pleased to see her husband return?”
Sawford’s silence formed a void, and I waited for the words that would condemn me. Eventually he answered, his voice quiet and cold.
“Who can tell, my Lord?”
My husband chuckled. “That’s right, Sawford, your tastes run to different livestock do they not? I hear you have no fondness for thoroughbreds. Come, wife, we shall take the air together.”
He smiled nastily at Sawford. “A noblewoman cares not for one who is bastard born.”
My husband’s words and demeanor exuded his hatred for others and his hunger for power. But Sawford was impossible to read, remaining hidden behind an impassive expression. Only a slight tic in his jaw gave any sign he had heard. My husband held out his other arm.
“Sawford.”
Sawford took Mortlock’s arm, supporting his weight. I was once again unnerved by how silently Sawford moved. The three of us shuffled out into the main garden.
The sun cast its heat into the spring air. I inhaled deeply, wanting to erase the stench of my husband’s breath.
“Sawford has been telling me of your behavior during my absence.”
My stomach lurched, and I almost stopped walking. Were we, even now, on our way to the dungeons, or worse, the courtyard? I strained my senses, trying to detect the smell of oil and wood in the air.
“Husband?” I croaked, my throat constricting.
“Aye,” he replied. “I am pleased with you, but I expect you to continue to behave.”
We took a silent turn about the garden. The only sounds were the rushing of the wind through the trees, the voices of the men training in the courtyard, and the occasional bellow of an animal carried over the air from the farms surrounding the estate.
At length, my husband spoke. “Wulfric tells me that devil spawn of Matilda who would call himself king…”
“My Lord,” Sawford interrupted, his voice strained. I looked up quickly to see him staring directly at me.
“How foolish of me, Sawford.” My husband let go of my hand and waved me away.
“Leave us, my dear. I will send for you tonight after I have retired.”
I was so thankful to be released, I almost ran back to the building. Reaching the door, I glanced over my shoulder. My husband and Sawford were talking in earnest. For a brief moment, Sawford turned his head in my direction.
