The Heiress - Lynsay Sands [124]
“I have no intention of marrying a sharp-tongued little guttersnipe like you,” the man he suspected was Danvers growled.
“Then what do you want?” Suzette asked sharply. “Why force us in here?”
“Because I need money, of course,” he said dryly. “Thanks to you, I am going to have to go on the run now, and—”
“Oh, do not try to lay the blame for the mess you have made of your life at my door, my lord,” Suzette interrupted, scowling at him. “You are the lackwit who knocked Father out rather than just let us out of the carriage, and you are the one who chose to shoot your own driver, and then tied us up. You probably shot Daniel too, didn’t you?”
Daniel was looking at Suzette and didn’t hear Danvers say anything, but he must have done something in deed or expression to suggest that was the case, because Suzette snorted with derision. “Fortunately, you made a mess of that as well and he still lives. And that fact is the only reason I will make this offer: if you leave now, Father and I won’t say a word about this business today. Just go. We won’t send the men after you.”
“I am not going without what I came for,” Danvers snapped. “I need money to buy passage to the Continent and to live off of and I know your father has the proceeds from the sale of his townhouse here somewhere.” His gaze shifted to Lord Madison. “You said as much that first day when you found us by the waterfall. You said you had it at the inn and would fetch it at once. Instead, we left for Gretna Green. I thought you surely had it in the bag you packed and brought with you.”
“I didn’t trust you so I didn’t take it with me,” Madison said, and Daniel noticed he seemed pleased to be able to say so.
“I figured that out on my own,” Danvers said bitterly. “I walked all the way to the inn only to see Woodrow and a woman riding out. I realized the entire party was probably there, so turned back. But, of course, he got to the two of you first,” he ground out. “After he and the old woman headed back to the inn with the two of you, I decided my best bet was to find the proceeds from the sale of the townhouse and flee for the Continent, so I walked all the way back to the overturned carriage, but it wasn’t in your bag.”
“I left it in the chest in Robert’s care,” Madison said calmly.
“Then you can just get it now and give it to me if you and your daughter want to walk out of this room alive.”
Daniel narrowed his eyes. He was unarmed and had been waiting to see what the plan was before deciding what to do. If the man was going to try to escape with Suzette, he would have slid to the next room along the landing, hid inside and leapt out to jump the man as they passed. However, that didn’t appear to be the plan, and whether Danvers got the money or not, Daniel didn’t believe he planned to let Lord Madison and Suzette leave this room, alive or otherwise. There was too much venom and fury in the man’s voice. He hated Suzette and her father and blamed them for the failure of his plan and the situation he found himself in. He had also killed once already, that they knew of, and had tried to kill both him and Suzette on top of that, shooting him and choking her. Daniel suspected the man would shoot Lord Madison the moment he produced the money and then finish what he’d started last night and choke Suzette to death.
Judging by the expressions on Cedrick Madison’s and Suzette’s faces, they believed the same thing. Still, Madison nodded once and then turned away.
“What are you doing?” Danvers snapped, taking a step after him.
Daniel took that opportunity to slip into the room and ease the door closed. He then started to slide to the left, trying to get behind Danvers and out of his peripheral vision as Lord Madison calmly said, “I am getting the money