"They argue too much about the exchange," Nicholas uttered with contempt as he laid the letter on the table.

"One can only assume that business is a very complicated matter," said Sophia, "legal or otherwise."

"I need names, Sophie," he said. "I want to know who these men are. Baldwin is too bloody evasive. We need to catch at least one of these men on the act."

She merely held her silence. What was she to say?

"One name, one act and the Guards can have proper ground to detain and interrogate."

"I am afraid I do not know these men, Nick. They are too careful. There is no way I can know and not face consequences."

"I know," he said with a sigh, joining her in the chaise. "A fortnight. The exchange shall happen within a fortnight and yet they have not yet decided on a place."

"I believe another letter shall be delivered before the fortnight is over. Fret not. These men will eventually come upon an agreement. Money is at stake, after all."

He scoffed. "No one would lift a finger if the exchange involves goods, but the thought of living humans being traded in such a manner makes my stomach churn in the worst possible ways."

"You care for these slaves." She was surprised by her own statement and regretted it the very moment they slipped out her tongue. She merely opened an entirely dangerous topic.

"Of course. No one wishes to be forced to do labor without pay and freedom."

"Slavery is not often forced, my lord. For some, it is a willing choice. They are made to depend on naught but their masters."

She waited for his response. Or his question. It was the perfect time for him to do so after all. Was she too dependent on Marcus then? Was that why she was willingly doing what he wanted?

But the question never came although Sophia was quite certain Nicholas was dying to ask it.

If only I can tell you, Nick, she spoke in the silence of her mind.

"What do you wish to do?"

His question, mixed with his usual charming demeanor did not surprise her. In the weeks they had been together, she had grown to learn that it was his way to avoid a dire subject. He was not one who could handle too much pressure, too much stress. And this case was doing just that.

His visits to her chamber served two purposes in Sophia's understanding. One was to spy on Marcus, the other to relieve himself of the consternations brought about by the first. And it was through her.

"I would love for you to read for me," she said with a smile.

"Again?"

Sophia nodded. "You left off at the most exciting part," she eagerly stated as she picked up the book from the table and handed it to his ready hands.

"Very well," he said, planting a kiss on her cheek. "But you will have to pay for my services later."

Sophia stifled a laugh. "Gladly."

Very much later, after Nicholas snapped the book close just as when the prince and his horse were facing a dozen evil and sneering bandits, he reached for her and started to make love, making Sophia forget the anticipation she felt about the prince rescuing his maiden, replacing it with a different sort of anticipation, one she felt only in his arms.

What Sophia did not realize though was that she fell asleep after an exhausting and deliciously torturous time in bed.

She was no longer in the same bed she shared with Nicholas. She was not in the confines of her elegant chamber in Rock'oles.

She was transported back to that night when she first opened her eyes through the intense pain.

"I see yer awake," her uncle's voice said.

"Mama..." Sophia mumbled, calling someone without a face—someone she knew she ought to know but didn't. "Mama!"

"Sophie. Sophie," someone was saying. "Sophia, open your eyes, darling."

She shook her head. The pain was too much.

"Mama..."

"Sophie!"

Sophia opened her eyes and found a shadow hovering over her.

She screamed and pushed with her hands. "Bloody hell!"

Sophia scrambled out of bed as Aabha jumped on the man, intent to attack, and started to bark.

"Bloody hell!" Nicholas screamed again.

It was only then that Sophia realized what was happening.

"Aabha! Stop!" she cried out. Sophia kneeled beside the bed and held out her hand. Aabha's white form was atop Nicholas, growling at him. "Shhh... it is okay, Aabha. It is okay," she gently said, reaching for the dog. "Keep still, my lord," she ordered to Nicholas. "Aabha, come here, darling."

Aabha hesitated but eventually turned away from Nicholas and joined her on the floor. "Good girl," she whispered, petting the dog's head. "Stay away, Brigid, the show is over," she ordered the black cat which was slowly making its way toward them. It slipped under the bed and disappeared. Aabha joined it a moment later.

"Bloody hell, Sophie," Nicholas gasped from the center of the bed. "What the bloody hell happened?"

"A nightmare," she simply said, standing to her feet. "I will ring for tea," she nonchalantly uttered. "Then perhaps you can read to me what happens to the bandits and the prince."

*****

"And you say that she had never allowed herself to fall asleep before?" Ralph asked.

"Yes."

"And you believe that having fallen asleep now and experiencing a nightmare is an improvement?" his brother droned, lacing his words with sarcasm.

"Well, of course. I assume that the nightmares must be the reason why she never wanted for us to share a nap together."

Ralph groaned. "You have been spending too much time with our sisters, brother. You are romanticizing nightmares!"

Nicholas tightened his jaw. Perhaps Ralph was correct. What he just said mirrored what Ysabella or Emma would have said.

"And you are utterly certain the exchange shall happen within a fortnight?"

"It was what was written on the paper. I know how to read, brother."

Ralph nodded. "Then the Guards shall be there. And they will be there?"

"It was stipulated that the receiver will be there to inspect the slaves with his own eyes and the other to inspect the money."

A glint of excitement flashed before Ralph's eyes. "Then we will be there to catch them."

A long silence followed before Ralph looked at Nicholas and asked, "What do you intend to do with the woman if this exchange turns into our favor?"

Nicholas shrugged. "I shall forget her, of course. It will be fairly easy. Rock'oles is not the only place there is."

Ralph chuckled. "I am quite certain you have already done your best to ensure she will never forget you."

He sneered. "No woman forgets Nicholas Everard, brother."

Ralph cocked a brow. "Have you made her fall in love with you then? Besotted at the very least?"

He shrugged. "How the bloody hell would I know?"

"Then are you in love with her?"

Nicholas stiffened and a sudden rush of anger surged inside him upon his brother's mocking tone. "I never fall in love with my lovers, Ralph. I am not a fool as you believe me to be. The moment this case of yours is over, I can willingly end my visits to that bloody chamber. I will never look back. Just wait and witness it for yourself."

Ralph stared at him for a very long time. His brother's intense emerald eyes inched into his, dissecting his very thoughts like a bloody Town Guard that he truly was. "Bloody hell, Nick. You are in love with the woman!"

Nicholas gritted his teeth and reached for his wine. Where the bloody hell was the brandy? He ignored Ralph's gaping face from across his study table, intent on providing the painting on the opposite wall its well-deserved attention.

Ralph was still gawking a long time later.

Nicholas swallowed the rest of his drink and stood up to pour himself his strongest brandy. He returned to his chair behind the table and Ralph was still gawking.

He emptied his glass and his brother was still gawking.

Ralph's voice kept ringing in his voice. Bloody hell, Nick. You are in love with the woman!

Bloody hell indeed.

Finally, he turned to his brother's still gawking face. "I believe I almost am," he groaned. "And if you do not wish me to make a fool of myself, you will solve this bloody case at once."

*****

"And he took her to Tiny Town and she allowed it?" Sophia asked with awe.

"Well, she did try to put some sense into him but Max would not have it."

Sophia started to chuckle and then her shoulders shook with laughter.

"What is funny about it?" Nicholas asked with a frown.

"Well, you did not even notice your valet was a woman. I can only imagine how you must have reacted."

His jaw tightened and he scoffed. Then he sighed and laid his head back on her lap. "I am afraid I can be very gullible."

"You? Gullible?"

"I could have used the word innocent but that is quite farfetched, yes?"

Sophia's fingers absently played with his hair. "Yes. Of course." He took one hand and placed it against his cheek, enjoying its warmth. Clasping it with his, he turned his head to give her inner wrist a kiss. "Was everything said in the Herald about Ysabella true?"

He gasped in mock surprise. "Am I to think that the Herald is too great that even you have managed to read it?" he asked in jest.

She chuckled. "No, but my visitors were merely glad to read me anything to pass the time. Some of them, at the very least."

Nicholas sighed as he played with her fingers. "Yes, she did almost everything mentioned on the Herald."

"You must have all felt scandalized."

"Everything Ysa and Emma did have always been a scandal—Herald or without."

"Truly?"

"Of course!"

"In what way were they a scandal?"

"For one, they managed to do many things out of norm. They are friends with bandits but you cannot speak of it to anyone. They have played matchmakers to Ben and his wife, Levi and Victoria and countless servants—even one of the Haverstons!"

She gasped in surprise. "Truly?"

"Yes, truly."

"And they never thought of making you one of their subjects?"

Nicholas growled. "Once."

"And they failed?"

"Seeing how I am here, that entails they did—miserably."

"Many who come here are married or are betrothed, my lord."

"Well, I am not. And I do not intend to wench myself should I be married or betrothed."

"Truly?" she asked, her tone filled with doubt.

"I am witness to how a good marriage is, Sophie. I would dare not insult my mother and sisters by betraying my wife—or future one." As he said it, he saw the warm smile form on her lips.

"You are a sweet man, Nicholas Everard." She pulled her hand free from his grasp and cupped his face. She looked down and narrowed her eyes at him. Nicholas knew she was trying to see more of him. "I wonder what truly happened? Why did the twins fail? Surely a woman would want to have you?"

Nicholas battled for a moment whether or not he ought to tell her about Aurora. But perhaps he needed someone else to tell. "I was not fond of her in a romantic way and there would have been no chance for me to ever consider her as a wife, but she was beautiful."

"And?" she coaxed.

He let the silence linger for a few seconds. "She was leading a double life."

Sophia frowned. "A double life?"

"She was hiding from someone else, someone who wanted her badly for bad reasons." She did not ask who but Nicholas told her anyway. "Osegod. She was Osegod's mistress."

Sophia stiffened.

"Aurora had been hiding from him to protect her child. She bore him a child but it was..." he could not truly utter the words for he could still feel the bitter taste of it. He could not surmise why the child's condition had to matter, really. "It was not a perfect child. That is all I can say."

When she did not say anything, he took her hand again. "None of us knew. She was Ysa and Emma's friend. But she did things she ought not to. Perhaps because she thought it was the only way to preserve herself and her child but we could truly never know for she disappeared."

"How so?"

He shrugged. He was in no authority to tell her about what the League of Founders had done or his sister's role in it. "All I can tell you is that she is in safe hands but I fear it shall not be for long."

"Oh, Nick..."

"I believe Aurora is one of the reasons why Osegod is after my family. Perhaps he knew we were associated with her and he must suspect we had something to do with why she disappeared again."

"Why is he so intent on looking for this woman? Surely he could find a way to settle matters the way most lords with bastards do."

"As I have said, Sophie, the child is not like many others. Should anyone know about it, Osegod's reputation will be ruined. No one would want to have someone with bad blood lead them. That is how society works. At this point, Osegod cannot allow it to happen for he has many other plans far bigger than we can all imagine. If he will be thrown out of power, everything will fall apart for him." His grip around her hand tightened. "He has been after us ever since. The only way we can stop him is cracking this slavery case. It ought to be enough to stop him and his plans."

Sophia did not say a word for a long time.

"What are you thinking?" he asked.

"That your family is fortunate to have you, a rake willing to sacrifice his innocence to help them." She smiled at her own quip. "And you are very lucky to have a great family."

"You will not have the same awe when you meet them, Sophie. They will smother you with their ecstatic blabbers and incessant coddling for that is truly how I foresee they shall treat you—like a babe."

"Because I am different? They will coddle me to protect me like they did your sister-in-law, Agatha?"

"No, my dear," he said, shaking his head. "We do not coddle anyone simply to protect them. We coddle because we cherish."

Her nose flared and he could see many different emotions play in her eyes. "It would be a pleasure to serve them."

Nicholas stiffened, staring at her incredulously. "Why would you bloody want to serve us?"

Sophia shrugged. "That is the only way I know I can—"

Nicholas jumped off to a sitting position and glared at her. "I will make a lady out of you, Sophie—no, do not wear that horrified look." But she still looked horrified—mortified by his statement. "Do not tell me you have no idea, woman. Why do you think I keep coming here?"

"For the case, of course—the letters."

"The case! The letters! Of course, how very stupid of me," he spat out. "There is none today so why the bloody hell am I here?"

He saw her jaw tighten. "I—you—we—well, you also want to copulate."

Something very intense enveloped Nicholas. Anger, frustration, desperation—all of them wove around him. He grasped her shoulders and forced her to face him—see him. "I come here to see you and be with you. I come here because I want Durley and the others in prison so you can be free and I can make you mine."

Sophia snapped her head at him. "You want me to believe a fantasy, my lord. It is not helping. You promised merely to free me from here and deposit me where I can be safe. There was no talk about keeping me and I never assumed such. And why would you keep me? No lord keeps a colored woman for their mistress. I may not be worldly, my lord, but I know such facts."

"Deposit you? What other atrocious terms do you keep in that pretty head of yours?" He gave her a shake. "I don't intend to make you my mistress, Sophia. I intend to make you mine. As in my wife."

His past lovers would have swooned at his feet, went limp with intense happiness. But Sophia did not. She laughed at him. "Do speak not of foolish things, Nick. Now, stop it. I do not wish to discuss marriage or other arrangements closely related to it."

Nicholas frowned. Had he made her think this way? No, men like you made her think this way, a voice whispered in his head.

He jumped out of the chaise and cursed under his breath. "This talk is not over. I shall return by the morrow. And I shall because I want to and I need to."

Sophia remained mute with a patient smile on her lips. He wanted to shake her again, make her believe he was telling the truth, make her lose that calm demeanor and simply...simply believe him.

Bloody hell. How did the tables turn on him? He was the one who was starting to believe in the fantasy he created.

*****

"Why was Whiston here today? I was not aware that you had arranged for a meeting."

"He came here. What was I supposed to do? Push him away? You would not want that, would you?" Sophia snapped. She was feeling irritated by Marcus' mere presence and she knew she ought not to. It was because of Nicholas and his earlier words.

She must not to believe him—could not believe him. He was weaving lies to control her and she believed it. But that did not discount the fact that her heart swelled with longing at his words. A woman could dream after all.

But she was not like many women.

"Did he say the Guards will be at the exchange?"

She nodded. "That is the plan."

Marcus sighed with relief. "Very good," he stated with satisfaction. "They will find nothing."

Sophia froze. "What do you mean."

"No slaves, my dear."

Her heart began to hammer in her chest. "What then?"

"An ambush."