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CHAPTER 19

C HAPTER 19

E verything happened at once. Horrified, Cade tried to move Tamsyn aside, away from Bastien’s hungry stare.

“First I’ll block her mind, Tremayne,” Bastien said viciously. “Then you’ll tell me everything you know about the Home Office to spare her from being tortured. A little thing like her won’t be able to endure as much pain as you did.” He was already swinging his palm toward Tamsyn’s forehead for the mind block.

“No!” she spat out as she jerked away from him. “Neither of us will tell you a single damned thing!”

Bastien lunged toward her, and she kicked furiously upward. He twisted away so that her boot struck his thigh rather than smashing into his genitals. Swearing, he staggered a moment, then lunged at her again.

The bastard was attacking Tamsyn! Incandescent with rage, Cade hurled himself at Bastien. His mind might not be clear, but he was no longer chained, he was stronger than Bastien realized, and he was trained to fight. He stepped between Tamsyn and Bastien and slammed a punishing fist into the Frenchman’s jaw, knocking the other man into the door shutting it.

As Tamsyn scrambled out of their way, Bastien swore, then collected himself and struck back. Cade dodged the blow and slammed one fist into the other man’s throat and the other into his belly.

Gasping, Bastien folded down to the floor. Cade followed him down and locked his powerful hands around Bastien’s neck.

Bastien struggled for breath and tried to throw off Cade’s weight but failed. As his furious face slackened and he slid into unconsciousness, Tamsyn said sharply, “Don’t kill him, Cade!”

It took long moments for her words to penetrate his fury. “Why not?” he ground out. “The devil deserves it!”

“There are several reasons.” She rested a hand on Bastien’s forehead and closed her eyes as she concentrated. Looking startled, she continued, “One of which is that I think he might be your half brother.”

Shocked, Cade studied the man he held pinned to the floor. He was tall, dark-haired, powerfully built, with strong, harsh features. There was an undeniable resemblance to the face Cade remembered seeing in his mirror. “How is that possible?”

“I’ll tell you more later,” Tamsyn said, her voice uneven. “Your father was a smuggler and may have visited these shores. When I touch Bastien, I can feel a blood connection.”

Cade was revolted by the thought, but Tamsyn wouldn’t have spoken lightly. He sat back on his heels. Maybe he shouldn’t kill Bastien, but he needed to secure the man so they could escape.

He dragged off Bastien’s cravat and tore it lengthwise into two long strips. One strip he used as a gag and the other to tie Bastien’s wrists behind him. Lastly, he snapped the manacle around the other man’s wrist. He would be trapped here until one of his servants came looking for him.

Cade stood. “Time to go.”

“Wait. I’m trying to make him . . . less dangerous.” Tamsyn’s hand still rested on Bastien’s forehead and her expression was abstracted. Cade could sense the amount of power she was expending. It seemed a waste, but he had to trust that she knew what she was doing since she was in full possession of her wits and Cade wasn’t.

It seemed a long time before she said, “That’s enough, I think.” She staggered as she got to her feet and Cade caught her arm to steady her. Her face was pale and it took visible effort for her to steady herself. He wanted to embrace her again, but they needed to get out of this fortress as soon as possible.

Tamsyn opened her eyes and cracked open the door. Silence. It seemed none of the servants had heard the fight. She opened the door wider and slipped out, beckoning Cade to follow.

Quietly he closed the door behind them and followed her down the dark stairwell. The only sounds of life were on the kitchen floor, but no one noticed them.

Down and down and down. The steps ended at a plain wooden door. Tam tugged it open and waved him through. A dim lantern sat on the floor, illuminating a crowded cellar.

After Tamsyn closed the door behind them, she lifted the lantern and turned it up to increase the light. “Not far to the cave,” she said lightly. “Then we hope that you lost enough weight in captivity to fit through the passage!”

He smiled a little. “If need be, I’ll chip the tunnel wider to get out of here. Lead on, my lady!”

She picked her way through the boxes and old furniture to a heavier door. He winced as it squealed open, but again, no one in the fortress seemed to notice. Thank God Chateau Bastien had thick walls and few servants!

The small landing at the top of the cave passage was barely large enough for both of them. Tamsyn was tantalizingly close but all business as she lifted a second lantern and lit it from the first.

Handing it to him, she said, “Be careful of the footing. I noticed earlier that because of the rain, water has seeped into the cave and made the rocks slippery. I tied lengths of rope in different places to help steady us, but I’m not sure they can support your weight.”

“I’ll take care.” He studied the irregular passage that led downward. Tam hadn’t been joking about the tightness, but he would cheerfully scrape off skin to make his way to freedom.

Grimly he followed Tamsyn down the passage, which was weirdly illuminated by the flaring lanterns. Had he always hated tight spaces? He couldn’t remember if he had, but his breathing was strained and he certainly hated this enclosure. Because Tam was small, she didn’t risk getting stuck, but there were long, irregular steps where he could hear her use the ropes to help descend.

The worst part was when he slipped on a wet rock and grabbed a rope that broke under his weight. With ironic good luck, he slid down and landed bruisingly in a tighter area of the passage, which kept him from falling farther.

Tam called anxiously, “Cade, are you all right?”

He drew a deep breath as he tallied his bruises. “No serious damage done.” It took care, strength, and ripped clothing to work himself free of that tight spot, but he managed and continued to work his way down through the dank, suffocating passage, knowing he’d remember this in his nightmares.

As they descended, the sound of waves grew stronger. When dim outside light began to be visible below, he knew the end was in sight and he had to force himself to keep moving carefully rather than recklessly going as fast as he could and risking broken bones.

The light below brightened and Tam called softly, “I’m down and out of the cave! You’ve only a few feet more to go.”

Carefully, carefully ...

He exhaled with relief when his feet touched sand, but the opening at the bottom that led onto the beach was so tight he wasn’t sure if he could make it through. He ended up lying on his left side and crawling through the narrow opening to reach the wet open sand. When he was finally free, he paused to gulp cool, fresh air into his eager lungs.

He saw that they were under a protective cliff overhang and fog obscured the beach and the sand. All the better for escaping. He levered his tired body up using the wall. “Next time, bring a hammer and chisel I can use on the passage!”

Laughing, Tamsyn threw her arms around him. “But we made it!”

He enfolded her, never wanting to let her go. Her warm, sweet body was promise and memory and sanctuary. When she tilted her face up, he kissed her with desperate yearning. He wanted her so much, so intoxicatingly much.

For a moment she responded with all the warmth of her nature and the passion he remembered that had helped him endure his captivity and torture. Then she shoved herself away from him and stared at him with wide, shocked eyes. “Cade, what are you doing ?”

She was wet and muddy and dressed like a boy, and she looked enchanting. He cupped her cheek with one hand and said tenderly, “I can understand if you’d rather wait for a proper bed, but I’d be happy to make love to you right here on this wet sand.”

She jerked back from his hand. “How can you say such things?”

Confused, he said, “Is it strange that I want to make love to my wife?”

After a long, suffocating silence, she said tightly, “Cade, I’m not your wife. I’m your sister !”

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