If he is defied, my father will only become more ruthless. He
will scour the countryside; he will never stop. You must let me take
her to him. There is no other way."
The woman moved wearily to her chair, and sat down. Violence she had
been prepared to withstand, and treachery. But a seemingly genuine
offer of help, from the one man with any influence over their most
deadly enemy. . .confused her utterly.
Where did her responsibility lie now? For though she tried to suppress
it, another thought had occurred to her. If Lord Purceville dropped
the charges against her niece, and sent to Edinburgh (or merely
buried) the body of Mary's assailant as prisoner number 406, would
that not end the search for her son, and make him, in time, a free
man? Try as she might, she could not help but wonder at this chance,
and weigh it against the possible danger to her niece.
"Will you do something for me?" she asked him. "Will you return to me
in an hour's time? My niece, as you guessed, is close by. But I must
have time to think, and speak to her at length, before I can come to
any decision.
Pages:
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185