Chapter Seven
Sax moved erratically along the curving edge of the cliff. He kept his steps quick and changed direction randomly. He both hoped to look deeply disturbed and to force Pickett—whose true name was Deegan—to give away a clue to his approach.
And there it was. Sax turned abruptly in another direction and caught the sound of a stumbling footfall close behind him.
He spun around to confront his would-be assassin.
“It was you, then,” he said calmly. “I’m surprised you had the stones to come after me yourself.
” He raised a brow. “What? No funds to hire someone to do your dirty work?”
“Go to hell, you smug bastard,” his former butler snarled. From his belt he drew a long-bladed knife. “You’ve blocked my way long enough.”
“Do not act as if you are the wronged party here.” Sax nearly laughed. “What utter swill.”
“It’s not. Not when you’ve been handed everything. A ducal title. My woman. My fortune.” On the last word Deegan lunged, aiming a slashing blow.
Sax held his ground. Not until Deegan was unable to change his trajectory did he duck under the swing and jab his elbow backward into the man’s side.
Deegan grunted, but spun about.
“Would you even care for Eva if it weren’t for her father’s money?
” Sax sneered. “I think not.” He backed off as Deegan advanced, watching the center of the man’s chest. He hadn’t spent his childhood fighting Julia and his school years training at fencing to forget that it was the chest that indicated the next move.
There. Deegan moved quickly. Sax threw himself out of the way of the blow aimed at his midsection. The knife’s edge missed him by a hair. He threw up an arm to block the next swing and stepped back, his limb gone half numb.
Where was Belmont? Perhaps the duke had not made it in time. That meant Sax had to end this quickly, before Deegan got lucky and sliced him open.
“I will have that money,” Deegan spat. “And I will have the last laugh as I place some street brat in your nursery, in a position to inherit everything that is yours.”
“Not even going to try for your own son?” Sax taunted him. “Don’t have the stones for that either?”
“Don’t have the time,” Deegan corrected him. “Her pregnancy should pre-date my arrival at Riverstone, if only to quell the rumors. It will be done easily enough, once you are feeding the fish at the bottom of the sea.” He flung himself forward again.
This time Sax held, ducked low, and came up beneath the man. With a lift of his back, and a fling of his shoulders, he flipped Deegan over to slam him into the ground.
It should have left the bastard wheezing and fighting for breath, but the man landed on his side instead of his back. He grunted, then rolled and swung his knife, slicing open Sax’s shin.
He barely felt the pain at first. But then his leg was on fire, and nausea was swamping him. He needed to finish this.
“I’ll have the raising of the next Duke of Riverton,” Deegan said, lurching to his feet. “I’ll have the running of the properties and the management of the money.”
Sax lunged and grabbed both the man’s arms. “No mention of Eva in there,” he ground out, grappling to try to snatch the knife.
“Here now! What’s all this?”
Both their heads swirled in the direction of the gardens. Sax blinked in surprise at the approach of Orwen Chesil. Where was Belmont?
“Surely we can settle this like gentlemen?” Chesil still approached, his hands outstretched, moving slowly. Deegan backed away, still entwined with Sax, still trying to press his blade savagely toward Sax’s neck and shoulder.
But suddenly Julia was there. Coming up from behind Deegan, she took a running leap and jumped onto the man’s back. She surprised him utterly and was able to wrest the knife from him without too much effort. Springing away, she ran to the cliff’s edge and tossed it over.
“Interfering bitch!” Deegan gasped. He pushed Sax away, then glanced wildly between the three of them before lunging toward Julia.
She turned to run, but he cut her off and grabbed her tight, wrapping an arm around her neck.
“Back off,” he shouted. “Back off or she goes over!”
Huge mistake.
Julia didn’t panic. She met Sax’s eye. They had trained for this. She knew what to do. His gaze never leaving hers, he nodded. She blinked back.
Good girl.
“What are you going to do?” he asked Deegan. “It’s over. You cannot kill all of us.”
“Can’t I? What choice have you left me?” Deegan snarled. “The pair of you have a known history. You argued and he got mixed up in it,” he said, pointing his chin at Chesil. “So very tragic.” He tightened his arm around Julia’s neck. “She’s first.” He backed up, dragging her closer to the edge.
Bigger mistake.
Deegan had opened up a space between them.
Julia, Sax’s brave, smart, intrepid Julia, did not hesitate.
She bent down, twisting so that her left leg went behind her captor’s.
That left her straddling his side. He still held her head tight against his chest, but her hands were free—and Sax had taught her where a man was most vulnerable.
She struck. Hard.
Deegan bent, groaning, but still holding her neck.
Undaunted, Julia reached up with her left hand and dug her fingers into his eye. He screamed, and at last he twisted away, letting go and backing away from her.
Sax started toward him, but no further intervention was needed. Deegan had moved too close to the edge. One foot went over. Still clutching his eye, the villain looked up, panicked. He tried to catch his balance, but with a gasp, he went over.
Frozen, Sax met Julia’s gaze.
Chesil rushed forward.
“I’ve got him! But I could use a little help!”
Had that call come from below?
Chesil dove forward, stretching out at the edge of the cliff. “I’m here. Hold on!” He reached over the cliff’s edge.
Sax and Julia rushed over. The Duke of Belmont stood on a ledge below, one hand clutching an outcropping of rock, the other clamped around Deegan’s arm. The villain hung there, looking shocked and then frantic. “Pull me up! Damn you! Pull me up!”
“You are going to want him for his testimony,” Belmont said over the man’s ranting.
Sax suddenly recalled the man had been a barrister before he was a duke.
“He’s right, though. I cannot hang on forever. Haul us up!” Belmont called.
It took a few minutes, but Deegan was retrieved and subdued, his hands tied with his own cravat, his feet with Belmont’s.
“How?” Julia asked, staring at her brother-in-law.
“We used to climb these cliffs as boys,” Belmont reminded her.
“It seemed likely someone could go over. Best to be prepared. Luckily, Chesil was able to herd him near enough to the right spot.” The duke spared Deegan a glance.
“He’s finished. I heard it all. The threats against your lives.
The attempted murder. The plans for a fake pregnancy and an imposter child.
” He shook his head. “He’ll be lucky to be transported instead of hanged.
” He raised a brow at Sax. “My witness testimony at your annulment request should speed things along, too.”
“Thank you. Both of you,” Sax said simply. Limping, he turned to Julia and opened his arms.
Her eyes blazing, she walked into them.