To Love and Protect Read Free Page A

quickly hid his reaction to the cuts and bruising on her face.
    “Kidnapped?”
    “He left on business, but never reached his destination,” she answered.  
    “Perhaps you should start from the beginning.”
    “There are so many beginnings, I hardly know where to start,” Clarissa gave a sardonic chuckle.   Gertrude gave her a squeeze before she continued, “Yes, father did leave the city on business.”
    He waited, but she only stared at her hands, not making eye contact and not answering him.   “Lady Blackerby, if Gertie trusted me enough to bring me here, you can trust me enough to tell me your story.”
    “Fine.   Something happened on the way to Liverpool.   A courier arrived at the house on Friday from the man he was supposed to have met.   The note indicated that Papa never appeared for the scheduled meeting.”
    “Perhaps the carriage broke a wheel or something and he was merely delayed,” Justin suggested as he stood and straightened out his stiff legs.   He walked over and pulled a chair closer to the divan.
    “He traveled by horseback,” Clarissa countered.   “I kept waiting for a note to arrive from Papa saying not to worry, and all was well.”
    “But it never arrived?”
    “No.   I even wrote to our housekeeper at the estate he would most likely hie off to if something did happen, and they have not seen him either.   I prayed all during the vicar’s sermon that if Papa was all right I would make nice with Lorraine, but I have yet to hear a word from him.   In a way that is a mixed blessing,” she chuckled.
    “Lorraine?”
    “My father’s new wife, or my evil step-mother.   Whichever you prefer to call her.”
    “I see.   Yes, I believe we have met.”
    “You’re a handsome man, of course you have met her,” she scoffed.
    “Lady Clarissa,” he continued on, ignoring her mutterings, “it’s been a month, why have you waited so long?”
    “I knew everyone would think he had only been delayed for some reason if I didn’t.   I also kept hoping that we would receive a note from him, relieving me of my worries.”
    “Does Her Grace know?”
    “No, and I don’t want her to.”
    “Why not?”
    “I don’t trust her or her brother.   She moved him in to our home shortly after she and father married, and they have been trouble ever since.”
    “What is her brother’s name?”
    “Franklin Montmorency.”
    Justin leaned back in the chair and stared at the far wall, attempting to avoid looking at anything pink.   He looked back at Clarissa and asked, “Why are you so determined that he’s been kidnapped?”
    “Before today I wasn’t certain.”
    “What made today different?”
    “Someone attacked me in Hyde Park and very nearly kidnapped me,” she said gesturing to her current appearance.
    “What?” Justin asked incredulously.
    “Are you hard of hearing, or do I truly need to repeat myself?”   When he made a motion with his hand to the negative, she continued.   “To make a long story short a man accosted me.   I did not recognize anything about the man.   From things he said it makes me believe someone hired him to do the job.”
    “How did you get away?”
    “It doesn’t really matter.   No one is dead, more’s the pity, and I will heal.”
    “What is it you want me to do?”
    “Assist me in finding my father.”
    “I’ll see what I can do.”
    “I don’t believe you heard her correctly, Justin.”
    “What?”
    “She wants you ,” Gertie paused and pointed at Justin before continuing, “to assist her.   She doesn’t want to wait while you go it alone and send back reports.”
    “You can’t be serious.”   He had never thought of Lady Clarissa Blackerby, daughter of the Duke of Hamilton as being one who took an active involvement in anything except charities and parties.   In fact, she looked as if she might fall apart at any moment.
    “Why not?” Clarissa asked.   She stared him in the eye, a look of sheer determination on her