The voice dripped with sarcasm, chilling Belle to the bone.
They whirled in unison.
A few feet away stood their worst nightmare, and he had a pistol leveled at Belle’s heart.
“I’m afraid I am going to have to cut this little elopement short.”
Simon stepped in front of Belle, shielding her. “Over my dead body.”
“Gladly.”
Belle pushed past Simon, fear gripping her heart. “No! Wait! Do you want to cause a spectacle?”
De Roux paused, then gave a single nod. He motioned with his gun to their carriage. “Get in. Both of you.”
Simon’s strong arm circled her waist and Belle leaned into him, her face pale. How had they forgotten about the danger? Entering the carriage, they were followed by the despicable excuse for a human being, who smiled with cruel joy as he sank down across from them.
Belle regarded him warily, aware of Simon’s stiff form beside her. The gun was still leveled at her heart.
“We can discuss this like men with honor,” Simon said, rather snappily.
De Roux tilted his head to the side. “Honor. Such a hair-splitting little word. Do I possess any honor? It is your hope, I presume, that I do. Yet, you’ve seen the pain I inflict firsthand and still you appeal to something that clearly does not exist.”
“So you are without honor, then?” Simon asked.
Belle heard the disgust in his voice.
De Roux shrugged. “There is honor in truth, I suppose, and you have seen mine.”
“Your truth is death,” Belle snapped.
“Yes,” he growled. “A truth you’ve managed to outrun up until this moment, but no matter, now I shall be the one to do the talking, though it will be over both your dead corpses.”
“What did I ever do to you?” Belle whispered, rather snippily.
There was a slight shifting of the carriage as the driver climbed on his perch. A muffled “Ready milord, milady?” could be heard.
De Roux lifted a hand to rap on the roof of the carriage.
Belle inhaled a breath to scream, but Simon gripped her hand and squeezedhard.
Oh right, there was a pistol pointing at her heart.
Fine, then.
She shot De Roux a look just as the carriage started forward, causing her to rock her back on the seat. “All I did was take back what you stole.”
De Roux’s laugh was a harsh cackle. “With your little act, you branded me a traitor to my country, princess,” he spat at her.
“How is that even possible? I was nothing but a foolish girl you fooled. And quite effectively, too,” Belle muttered bitterly.
“All my contacts knew of your pedigree—”
Pedigree?
“—and they all knew I was successful in obtaining the information. So when I arrived without it, suspicion arose. They believed I took a liking to you. Then, someone clever enough to recognize the sensitivity surrounding my empty-handed return, whispered accusations, rumors into the right ears.”
“I still do not understand why that would matter?”
