Chapter 21

CHAPTER 21

C hauncy put this hands to his ringing ears as he doubled over.

Had he been shot? He ran an experimental hand over himself as he became aware that the terrible screams were not his.

Then they must be?—

He recalled the portly silhouette, and horror swept over him.

Not the Prince Regent! thought Chauncy as he ran towards the figure writhing on the flagstones of the small balcony just beyond the open doors.

And not Lord Kenilworth, either, he soon realized as he found Sir Simeon, who had emerged from the darkness of the corridor to the right, now bending over the screaming unidentified man.

"Sir Simeon—" He truncated his words with a cry of pained surprise, jerking back his hand, which had been burned by the muzzle of the pistol Sir Simeon held.

"It was you ? You shot this man? Who is he?"

"I intend to find out," replied Sir Simeon grimly, tucking away his pistol so he could grip the man's lapels and haul him into a sitting position.

Suddenly, the corridor was very quiet. The man had stopped writhing. He'd also stopped screaming.

And now, by the flickering light of the candle sconce by the doorway, his eyes stared blankly ahead.

"He's dead!" Sir Simeon's tone dripped with disgust. "Now he can't talk, but this is what he had trained on you, Your Grace." He extricated the pistol from the dead man'sfingers and thrust it at Chauncy. "You were lured here, weren't you? This man, whoever he is, had you in his sights when I saw him raise his pistol and take aim."

"Me? He wanted to shoot me ?" Chauncy shook his head in confusion. "I've never seen this man in my life. I thought the Prince Regent was his quarry."

The sound had obviously caused some alarm and been heard as far afield as the ballroom, for when Chauncy glanced up, he found a small gathering exclaiming as they stared in horror at the dead man.

Ignoring them, Sir Simeon continued his investigation of the would-be assassin's clothing.

"No pocket book. Nothing to identify him," he muttered, before holding up a sheet of paper, which he brandished with an air of triumph. "See here!"

"Good God!" cried Chauncy as he took in what was now being displayed to the world for all to see. "My likeness."

"Indeed," replied Sir Simeon. He held the drawing up to the light above his head. "And apparently drawn by the artist himself."

"Sir Edward?" Chauncy took the picture, frowning as he observed slight differences in the likeness from the one he had commissioned. Sir Edward had clearly done two copies.

He put his hand to his throat and his hand shook as he continued to study the drawing. While Chauncy had received one, the other had obviously been given one to this man who'd been assigned to kill him. To kill Chauncy.

He stared over the heads of the cluster of guests. "Bring Sir Edward to me, now!" he demanded. Identifying one of the servants amongst the crowd, he barked, "You there! You'll find Sir Edward in the ballroom. Bring him here immediately! And make sure no one leaves the castle. All doors and windows must be closed this instant."

There were gasps but also the sound of footsteps as the servant ran to do Chauncy's bidding.

And chasing itself round Chauncy's head was the question of why?

Why would Sir Edward want Chauncy dead?

Had Chauncy jumped to conclusions about Anna? Had Sir Simeon been wrong and Anna really was his wife? Was this a crime of passion whereby Sir Edward would wreak vengeance on the man who had cuckolded him?

No, surely too extreme.

But not if Sir Edward was as insane as his wife was rumored to be.

Or perhaps sir Edward was not about to let a mistress as lovely as Anna be lured away?

A rise in the chatter from the encircling crowd that had gathered indicated that Chauncy's wishes had been expedited, for soon he heard the querulous tones of the artist.

"Your Grace wishes to see me," began Sir Edward before breaking off in terror when he beheld the dead man in a pool of blood at Chauncy's feet.

Chauncy waved the likeness that had been sketched of him in front of Sir Edward's face. "What can you tell me about this?" he demanded.