Counterfeit Lady Read online

  “Isaac!” Abe called again. “You plannin’ to sleep all day?”

  Slowly, Isaac came awake. His arm tightened around Nicole, and he smiled down at her.

  “Come on, get up,” Abe said in disgust. “You got to go to the sloop and get the supplies.”

  Isaac nodded. He didn’t question his brother about why he should make the trip instead of Abe. Isaac had always obeyed his brother. “Are you all right?” he asked Nicole.

  She nodded mutely. “Why have I been brought here? Are you asking Clay for a ransom?”

  “Go get the food,” Abe commanded when Isaac started to speak. “I’ll answer her questions. Go on!” he commanded when Isaac seemed to hesitate.

  Abe stood in the doorway and watched his young brother walk down the path.

  As soon as she was alone with him, Nicole knew she should be afraid of Abe. Yesterday, her mind hadn’t been working clearly, but today she sensed the danger she was in. Isaac was a sweet and innocent boy, but there was nothing sweet or innocent about Abe. She stood up quietly.

  Abe whirled on her. “Now we’re alone,” he said quietly. “You thought you were too good to have anything to do with me, didn’t you? I seen the way you hung on Isaac, the way you let him touch you and hold you.” He took a step toward her. “You one of those women what only likes young meat? You only like little boys?”

  Nicole stood straight, her spine rigid, refusing to let this awful man see her fear. Her grandfather’s voice came to her: “The Courtalains carry the blood of kings.” Her eyes darted toward the door. Maybe she could get past him to the outside.

  Abe chuckled deep in his throat. “There’s no way to get out past me. You might as well just lay back and enjoy it. And don’t expect Isaac to come rescue you either. He’ll be gone for hours.”

  Nicole moved slowly along the wall. Whatever happened, she wouldn’t give in to him easily.

  Before she’d taken one good step, a long arm shot out and grabbed a handful of her hair. Slowly, very slowly, he wound the thick mass around his hand and drew her to him.

  “Clean,” he whispered. “I bet that’s the cleanest hair I ever smelt. Some men don’t like black hair, but I do.” He chuckled. “I guess you’re real lucky that I do.”

  “I don’t think you’ll get as much ransom if you harm me,” she said, his face close to hers. His little eyes were almost black as he stared at her, and he smelled of old sweat and rotten teeth.

  “You’re a cool one,” he said, grinning. “How come you ain’t cryin’ and beggin’?”

  She gave him a cold look, refusing to allow her fear to show. Her grandfather had faced an angry mob. What was one dirty, evil-minded man compared to that?

  He held her by the hair close to him. He ran his other hand over her shoulder, down her arm, his thumb caressing the curve of her breast. “Your value don’t depend on what I do to you. As long as I keep you alive, I can have my fun with you.”

  “What do you mean?” Nicole thought maybe she could keep him talking.

  “Never mind. I ain’t interested in explainin’ myself to you.” His hand moved to the curve of her hip. “That’s a real pretty dress, but it’s gettin’ in my way. Take it off!”

  “No,” she said quietly.

  He pulled her hair until her neck threatened to break.

  Her eyes teared from the pain, but still she would not undress herself. She would not play the whore for any man.

  He released her abruptly, then laughed. “You are the haughtiest bitch I ever did meet.” He went to the doorway and picked up the ropes Isaac had left on the floor. “Since you won’t do it yourself, maybe I’ll just have to help you. You know, I ain’t ever seen a woman without a stitch of clothes on.”

  “No,” Nicole whispered, and backed away, her hands vainly trying to hold on to the stone wall behind her.

  Abe laughed as he lunged at her and grabbed her by one shoulder. She tried to twist away, but she couldn’t as his thick fingers bit into her flesh. He forced her to her knees. Nicole moved forward and sank her teeth into the muscle just above his knee. The next moment, she was sent sprawling across the room.

  “Damn you!” Abe swore. “You’ll pay for that.”

  He grabbed her ankle and tied one end of a rope around it. The rough hemp cut into her already sore flesh. She kicked at him, but he held her easily. He grabbed her arms and tied the wrists together. There was an iron hook embedded in the stone wall where game had once been hung. Abe lifted Nicole by the rope around her wrists and tied her to it. Her feet barely touched the floor.

  She gasped at the pain of her extended arms. He tied her feet together, then lashed the rope to another hook. She was helpless, tied tightly to the wall.

  Abe stood back and admired his handiwork. “You don’t look like such a fine lady now,” he said, rubbing his leg where she’d bitten him. He took a long knife from his pocket.

  Nicole’s eyes widened at the sight.

  “Now you look like you’re gainin’ the proper respect for a man. One thing my pa knows for sure is how to treat a woman. All them women at the Backes’s house make me sick. Their husbands let ’em talk, give ’em money to bet on the horses. You’d think they were men, the way they acted. Some of ’em think they’re better’n men. Last summer I asked one of those girls to marry me, and you know what she did? She laughed at me. I was payin’ her a great honor, and she laughed at me! Just like you! You fit in right well with them. You’re so pretty, married to a rich man, you couldn’t even give me the time of day.”

  The pain in Nicole’s arms was too much to allow her much room to think. Vaguely, she was aware of Abe’s rantings. Maybe she had been guilty of ignoring him, of snubbing him. “Please release me,” she whispered. “Clay will pay you whatever you want.”

  “Clay!” he sneered. “How can he give me what I want? Can he give me a lifetime away from a crazy father? Can he make a real lady agree to marry me? No! But he can give me a few hours’ pleasure with his lady.”

  He moved closer to her, the knife upraised. His eyes sparkled with threat. He slipped the knife under the first button of the bodice of her gown. She drew her breath in sharply as the cold steel touched her skin. The button popped off and flew across the little room.

  One by one, he cut the buttons off, then he slashed the satin sash that held the dress under her breast. He put his hand to her and gently parted the wine-colored velvet. He caressed her right breast through her thin chemise.

  “Nice,” he whispered. “Real nice.” He used the tip of the blade to cut the chemise away neatly.

  Her breasts lay bare before him. Nicole closed her eyes, tears squeezing out at the corners.

  Abe stepped back to admire her. “You don’t look much like a lady now,” he smiled. “You look just like them women in Boston. They liked me. They begged me to come back to them.” Suddenly, his mouth turned hard. “Let’s see the rest of you.”

  He inserted the knife at the top of the long skirt and very slowly slashed the velvet to the hem. It hung open, exposing the nearly transparent chemise beneath.

  “Lace,” Abe whispered as he lifted the hem of the chemise. “My ma always wanted a piece of real lace so she could make a collar for her Sunday dress. And here you’re wearin’ lace on your underclothes.” With a swift, violent motion, he jerked the chemise away.

  He stared at her nude body, the round hips, the small waist, and her breasts lifted high by her uplifted arms. He ran his hand up one thigh. “So this is what ladies look like under all their silks and velvets. No wonder Clay and Travis and them others let ’em backtalk.”

  “Abe!” Isaac called. “You inside? One of the oars broke and—” He stopped as he entered the cabin doorway. What he saw nearly made him ill. Nicole was tied to the wall, her arms stretched far over her head. Abe’s body blocked Isaac’s view, but the boy could see the pieces of Nicole’s dress, the shreds of her chemise hanging to the floor. Isaac’s boyish face turned from confusion to anger to rage.

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