Bobbi Smith - Captive Pride

Thoughts of the excitement the night before returned, and CC drew a deep sigh of relief. The raid on the Sea Pride had come off successfully, and all involved had agreed that Noah’s plan had been a stroke of genius.

A small smile curved her lips as she thought of Matthew’s firm declaration that Noah did indeed love her. The smile soon faded, though, as she realized the possible danger Noah could be facing this very instant. Matthew had promised that he would relay any word of the duel to her, and the fact that she’d heard nothing from him left her slightly unnerved. Had they fought yet, or had they managed to avoid such a deadly confrontation? Determined to find out exactly what had happened, she vowed to seek out Noah as soon as she could and to tell him that she still loved him. She hoped that all Matthew had revealed about Noah’s feelings for her was true. A faint doubt threatened, but she pushed it firmly aside. According to Matthew, Noah loved her, and she loved Noah-that was all that mattered.

The seeming resolution of her situation left her feeling oddly pleased, and she took another drink of her tea. It was then that CC realized she’d been so caught up in her thoughts that she hadn’t sweetened the steaming brew. The bitterness of it caused her to grimace, and she was reaching for the sugar bowl just as the sound of her father’s voice boomed through the house.

“Lord Kincade?”

CC went immediately tense at his tone. Though she could make out no more of the conversation, she assumed that he had just been told of the rebels’ actions the night before. Forcing herself to relax and assume an innocent demeanor, she waited for him to return. At the sound of the front door closing and footsteps coming back her way, she glanced up.

“Is there a problem with Lord Kincade? I heard you mention his name…” CC asked coolly as she casually spooned a small amount of sugar into her tea. Expecting him to tell her of the outrageous rebel raid, CC was totally unprepared for his reply.

“Yes…I don’t know how to tell you this delicately, but Noah Kincade has been arrested and charged with murder.”

CC’s spoon dropped from her benumbed fingers and clattered noisily against the china saucer. “What did you say?”

“The message I just received was from Winthrop. Noah Kincade was arrested late last night for the murder of Geoffrey Radcliffe.”

“Oh my God!” she gasped, blanching at the news. How could this have happened? Noah would never have murdered Geoffrey in cold blood. It had to have been a fair fight!

Thinking her upset was due to the indelicacy of the news he’d just given her, Edward came to put a supportive arm about her shoulders. “Now, now, dear.”

“I can’t believe it, Father. What happened?” CC finally managed, struggling to bring her desperate fear for Noah under control.

“All I know from Harley’s note is that Kincade broke into Geoffrey’s home and shot him. The constable found him with the murder weapon in his hand. There could be no mistake.”

“But it’s ridiculous! Noah Kincade is hardly the type to kill anyone so barbarically.” CC wanted to protest his incarceration more vehemently, but she knew she had to temper her reaction lest she accidentally reveal too much.

“I don’t know,” Edward said thoughtfully as he moved to rejoin her at the table. “Considering all that happened at Winthrop’s the other night…perhaps there was some truth to Geoffrey’s charges after all, especially taking into account the one other piece of information Harley supplied that I think is particularly relevant.”

“Oh? What?” CC struggled to keep her expression reflecting only mild interest.

“It seems that we’ve all been laboring under the wrong impression of the Kincades.”

“How so?” She lifted her cup to her lips as casually as possible, hoping that her father wouldn’t notice how badly she was trembling.

“Well, according to some new information Harley just received, the Kincade family has lost its fortune. It appears they’re in dire financial straits.”

CC pretended to be shocked by the news. “But, Father, how can that be?”

“It seems the family’s fortune was lost to gambling debts incurred by the father,” he supplied.

“That doesnt necessarily mean Noah and Matthew are doing anything illegal,” CC pointed out.

“The fact that they’ve lost their money doesn’t, it’s true; however, it would make a connection with the dissidents much more plausible. The rebels, I’m sure, would pay a fine price for war materials, and that is what Kincade’s shipping, you know. Maybe he is involved with them after all. Maybe Geoffrey was right in his accusations the other night, and maybe, just maybe, Kincade went there to silence him.”

“What’s going to happen to him?”

“I’m sure he’ll be taken before the magistrate, probably sometime today.”

“Will he be released then?”

“It’s hard to say. It will depend on what kind of evidence there is against him.”

“I see.” CC sounded blasé in her interest, but in reality, she was in a panic at the thought of Noah in jail, accused of murder.

As calmly as she could, CC changed the subject to less important matters until, at meal’s end, she excused herself from the table. Stifling the urge to race to Noah’s side, she retired to the quiet of her room to think things through. CC wondered whether she could go to the jail and visit Noah without causing even more trouble. Certainly her heart insisted that she go to him right away, but logic dictated that trouble might ensue if her presence was reported to her father. How would she ever explain to her father her need to visit Noah, a man she’d professed to dislike, while he was in jail?

CC paced the room like a caged tigress for a long time, weighing the situation, until finally she knew she could delay no longer. Though her father might grow suspect of her activities if he found out about her visit, CC knew she had to take the risk. She loved Noah, and she had to let him know of her devotion, especially now when he was embroiled in such a dangerous situation

Hoping to draw as little attention to herself as possible, CC pinned her hair up into a sedate style and changed into her most nondescript day gown. After telling her father as coolly as possible that she was off on a shopping spree, she donned a dark cloak and concealing bonnet and hurried from the house.

The Honorable Millard Prescott, magistrate and an ardent king’s man, sat on the high bench glaring down at Noah, his heavy-jowled face florid beneath his white, curled wig. “You presume too much, Lord Kincade!”

“I am an innocent man!” Noah protested furiously, feeling suddenly desperate. He had come into his arraignment believing that he would be vindicated, but he knew now that had been a foolish hope. The case against him was clear, and all the evidence indicated his guilt. “I was trying to wrestle the gun from Lord Radcliffe when it accidentally went off. The pistol belonged to Radcliffe! He was threatening me! Had I not fought him, Your Honor, I would be the dead man right now, not Lord Radcliffe!”

“We have a witness-Mr. Bartley-who, as you know, has testified to the fact that you forced your way into Lord Radcliffe’s home and threatened His Lordship’s life. This witness has declared in a sworn statement that Lord Radcliffe sent him to bring the authorities because he was afraid of you. We also have a sworn statement from the officer who returned to the house with Bartley. He states that they found Lord Radcliffe dead and you standing over him wtih the murder weapon in your hand.”

“It was self-defense!”

“Lord Radcliffe is dead, while you are most alive, sir.”

“Radcliffe was the one who introduced the gun to our argument! He-”