“Marry my sister!” she said. “You’re a stupid, thickheaded, blind fool and a disgrace, and I cannot think why she loves you, but she does, and you don’t deserve her. I wanted to take her to London with me and introduce her to society—”
Ramón’s face darkened. “You won’t take my Perla—”
“Only because she wouldn’t go.” Bella thumped him angrily on his chest. “She could have made her come-out in society. She’s so beautiful she would have had all the men—rich men, lords, handsome men—”
Ramón grinned. “But she chose me.”
“Oh, wipe that disgusting grin off your face, you stupid, smug, self-satisfied oaf!” Bella snapped. “She’s only nineteen and her life is already over—because you’ve ruined her. She has no friends, no relatives—only me, and I will be in England.”
Ramón scowled. “She has me.”
“And you think you’re such a bargain, don’t you? You who make no secret of wanting to marry a rich woman!” Bella poked him in the chest. “Perlita is a treasure, but you’re too stupid to see it. She should be yourwife, Ramón, building Valle Verde with you, not sitting in an empty house, seeing no one, and dressing dolls instead of having your babies. You, Ramón, are a big, fat fool. And you disgust me! I pray for the day Perlita grows up and sees you for the selfish pig you are. And when she realizes what she really wants in life, Ramón, then I will be waiting to help her get it, and she’ll be out of here so fast you won’t know what hit you. And then you’ll only have a big house and your own stupidity for company.”
Ramón glowered, his brow thickly knotted. “Little viper. Thank God I never married you.”
“I thank Him for the very same thing.” She wanted to hit him with frustration. Couldn’t he see what he’d done to her sister? She’d come here to help her and nothing had changed, nothing.
Luke slid his hand under Bella’s elbow. “Come on. You’ve done what you could.”
Ramón waved his hand. “Yes, take her away, Englishman. You have my sympathy.”
“Oh, I’m well content with my choice, Spaniard. It’s as my wife said; you don’t recognize gold when it’s under your nose.”
Bella hugged her sister one last time, saying, “Write. And come to us anytime you like,” and then she marched down the steps of El Nueva Castillo and climbed into the carriage.
“Well, you got that off your chest, at least,” Luke commented as the carriage pulled away.
“I should have let you kill him,” she muttered. “Then Perlita would have had no choice but to come with us.”
“I thought you wanted to give her the choice.”
She said nothing, just stroked the little doll Perlita had given her.
“You can’t rescue someone who doesn’t want to be rescued.”
She sighed. “I know.”
“Your sister is a strong-minded young lady. Family resemblance there.”
They traveled in silence for a while. “You know, I wish Perlita had stolen my pearls. It would have made it easier to leave her there.”
“How so?”
“If she had them, then if and when Ramón finds his heiress, she could sell them and leave, make a new life somewhere else. That’s all I really want—for her to have the choice. But since the pearls are in his possession…”
“She’ll never leave him.”
“I know.” She sighed.
“No, I meant, even if she had the pearls and the choice and he found his heiress, she’d still never leave him.”
“I know. She loves him.” She glanced at him. “Mama always said that love was a curse.”
“Your mother was right.” He had the bleak, faraway look in his eyes she’d come to recognize.
The landscape slipped past. They would be back in Huesca by early afternoon.
Traveling in a carriage was nearly as boring as sewing sheets, Bella decided. Luke was about to doze off, she could tell, and she would not sit here, bored witless, bouncing around in a carriage while he slept. She poked him awake. “You can tell me now.”
