.
Leah’s heart was pounding in her ears, and she found it hard to focus her vision, much less hear what was being said in the room. One of the men moved toward her and she turned toward them. It was Morris, but his wife Sophia pulled him back, watching her with a guarded expression.
Someone kept calling her by the name she’d not heard on anyone’s lips but her brother’s for a very long time. She looked around the room and searched for the closest door, but she was trapped.
She should have been quicker. She should have known she would need to escape and planned better.
Damn her! Why had she thought the pudding hilarious? Why had William only shared it with her? It was supposed to be a joke! He would wonder who’d planned it and the men would be none the wiser.
Now everything was ruined.
She swung the knife around her to make sure no one came near, but no one was moving. Some of the men had pushed their wives behind them, but that was all.
“Tally?”
She turned but didn’t know who’d spoken. They were going to kill her. They’d protect their own. She’d been there. She knew too much. She was forever a living liability to their happiness. She—
“Natalia.” She turned to look at William and then something else caught her eyes.
Julius. He hadn’t moved, but there were tears in his eyes as he stared at her. His unequivocal beauty crumbled under a look of pure grief.
She momentarily forgot about defending herself as she stared at him. “Don’t cry, Julie. I took care of her.”
“Who?” he asked.
“The blackmailer.” She dropped the knife to her side. “I stopped Sarah from telling anyone about that night.”
He stared at the hand that held her only weapon. “Did you…”
Kill her?
“No.” She dropped the knife. She wasn’t a killer. She simply wanted to live. “William was there. I didn’t hurt anyone.”
“She blackmailed her before I got there,” William said, inching toward her as her back hit the wall. “I don’t know what Natalia knows about Mrs. Douglas, but whatever it is had Mrs. Douglas defeated before I even arrived.”
Julius’ gaze moved from William to Natalia. “Why?”
At that moment, Natalia didn’t know what came over her, but she lost her ability to speak. Her mouth opened and closed as she fought to say words, but nothing came out. Her body was trembling, and she felt a new and steady flow of tears slide down her cheeks. Her body felt like it was breaking.
And then it did.
Her weeping was loud and when arms came around her, she knew they belonged to William.
She clung to him, soaking his jacket with her tears. Eventually, she found the words, but when she lifted her head, she couldn’t see Julius.
She couldn’t see anyone. Everyone was gone.
A hand rested on her shoulder, and she turned to find Julius behind her. He gathered her into his arms and, once again, Natalia couldn’t speak. Her breathing was erratic, and her mind couldn’t seem to grasp onto reality long enough for it to make sense.
Would Julius kill her now?
She remembered the blood on her brother. “Don’t hurt me.”
His arms pulled her in tighter and he whispered, “I won’t. I would never hurt you, Natalia.”
She wanted to believe that. She truly did, but Zed had always told her that wasn’t so and now she knew why. Julius had threatened them.
“Please,” she begged. “Don’t hurt me. I didn’t know.”
He pulled her away so he could meet her eyes. He was weeping as well. His eyes were bluer with the red rigging them. “Natalia, I…” He seemed to struggle with what to say as well. Then he shook his head. “I didn’t mean it. What I said to Lorenzo. I never meant it.”
Her mind tried again to put the fragments together. “You… I.”
He touched her cheeks. “I know why you left. I threatened Lorenzo, but it was only so he’d leave. He didn’t need to see what had taken place. I didn’t want him to see his father that way. I said the only thing I thought would get him to leave. And then I pushed him.” Julius took a step back and stared at his hand. “My hands were covered in your father’s blood.” He cringed. “I covered your brother in his own father’s blood.”
Natalia understood then. “He tried to kill you, Julius. You had to stop him.”
He looked at her. “I would never hurt you, Tally. Never.”
She blinked and took a deep breath. His words brought to an end the thing that had haunted her for most of her life, death at the hands of someone she loved. “And not Lorenzo?”
Julius’ eyes widened. “Of course not. He’d have fought with me if I’d have let him, but I didn’t want him to.”
Natalia nodded. She understood so much more than she ever had. She covered her mouth as she thought of what this all meant. Then she looked at Julius. “What does this mean?”
He tried for a smile. “I hope it means I have my Tally Cat back.”
She hugged him and recalled all the times she’d done so as a little girl. “Of course, Julie.”
He kissed her hair and then stroked it. “I still don’t like that name,” he murmured.
“That’s too bad,” she sighed. “I’ve so many years of utter annoyance to make up for.”
And she’d start now.