Page 79 of Her Dark Seduction
“No,” Lily said, “we cannot take him. How do we know he’s Valentine’s child? My brother may be many things but he is too fine a man to cuckold another.”
“A child’s place is with his mother,” Jack insisted. “Are you so unfit that you seek to give him away?”
“Aye!” I cried, desperation straining my voice. “He is Vane’s child. Lily, I seduced him because I needed to give my husband a son. I did it to secure my position.”
My ploy worked. Lily drew back her arm and struck me with full force across the face. I took the blow without flinching.
“I always knew you were nothing but a devious whore,” she said. “You entrapped him to save your own worthless skin—used him for your own ends.”
“Aye, I am as you say,” I said, my cheek burning, “but Geoffrey is Vane’s child. He deserves to be brought up with his family, free from de Tourrard. My son is innocent even if I am not.”
Lily glared at me, her eyes full of loathing.
“Please, Lily!” I implored her. “I do not ask for myself, but for my son—and for Vane. You will never see me again. Tell Geoffrey nothing about his mother. It would be as if I did not exist.”
“Surely de Tourrard will come looking for him—and you?” Jack asked, his gaze penetrating.
I shook my head, “I return to de Tourrard tonight and will tell him Geoffrey is dead.”
“Will he believe you?”
I nodded toward the basket at my feet. “I visited the churchyard before I came here. This child will pass as my son. He was of a similar age.”
“My God—you are an evil witch!” Lily cried. “You would rob a churchyard, desecrate a child’s grave? You’ll burn in hell for what you have done!”
“Mayhap,” I said quietly, “but I would gladly burn for the sake of my son.”
“How can we be sure you don’t have de Tourrard’s men with you now? That you’re not using your son to entrap us?”
Lily truly believed me evil to think I’d use Geoffrey as bait. But I needed her to hate me to ensure she would take him. I reached into the basket and pulled out a packet, handing it to Jack. He took it, unfolding it to reveal two pieces of parchment and a ring set with a large ruby.
“The ring was a gift from Mortlock and will pay for Geoffrey’s keep. I would give you others but cannot risk de Tourrard noticing their absence.”
“And the papers?” Jack raised an eyebrow.
“They once meant a great deal to me. They are love letters; two of them. One was from someone who befriended me before he died. He taught me how to love though we never met. The other is my response which was never delivered. Mortlock discovered it and murdered my maidservant for it. He only spared me because I was with child—but if de Tourrard read it he could use it as evidence of adultery, and I would suffer my mother’s fate. Though not much, ’tis the only offering of faith I can give.”
“What happened to your mother?”
“She was burned at the stake. Papa made me watch as a lesson in how to be a dutiful wife.”
Jack muttered a curse though Lily’s face remained impassive.
“I’ll never know if Tarvin really loved me or if he was a spy to entrap me,” I said, “but I fell in love with the words he wrote. That letter is the only genuine thing I have ever said or written in my life. I have always had to hide my feelings to protect myself and others. It’s all I have to give you—that, and my son.”
Jack’s eyes widened, and he leaned forward.
“Tarvin? Was that his name?”
“Aye. Tarvin de Fowensal.”
His face paled, and I held out Geoffrey again.
“Lily, take the child,” Jack said, “if you are sure—sister?”
I nodded, tears pooling in my eyes, my arms shaking as Lily approached. “Take him quickly before I lose my resolve. I must return before I am missed.”
Lily took Geoffrey who settled into her embrace as if he had always been there.
