Page 110 of How To Tempt A Bodyguard

"I won't stand for this!" Carrick started towards the exit.

Tam was there. Arms crossed. Immovable.

"Sit down," he said pleasantly. "Show's just getting started."

One by one, the women spoke.

Short statements. Simple words. Devastating in their plainness.

"I was sold to Lord Carrick when I was fourteen."

"I was told I would work as a maid. Instead, I was locked in a cellar."

"My sister died in his care."

The hall was utterly silent. Some guests wept openly. Others looked ill. A few rose and left.

Carrick stood frozen, his face a mask of fury.

"Lies," he hissed. "These women are prostitutes. Criminals. Their testimony means nothing."

"Perhaps theirs will carry more weight," Rochford said.

All eyes turned to the side entrance.

Two young women stepped forward. Unveiled. Florence recognised them immediately, the girls from the warehouse. The ones Matthew had freed three days ago.

They were thin. Pale. But they were standing.

"Lord Carrick held us prisoner," the first girl said. Her voice trembled. "He told us we would be sold into slavery if certain demands weren't met."

"We were rescued," the second girl added. "By his own brother."

A murmur ran through the crowd.

Carrick whirled on Matthew.

"You." The word was poison. "You did this. You betrayed me."

Matthew stepped out of the shadows. His face was calm. Cold.

"The next shipment is scheduled for three weeks from now." His voice carried across the hall. "Forty-seven women and girls. Ages twelve to twenty-three. Expected profit: eight thousand pounds. Delivery location: the Leith warehouse. Buyers arriving from the Continent."

"You bastard!"

"Yes. I am. Your father's bastard." Matthew's eyes were ice.

Tam handed him a worn leather bound book.

"Your personal ledger. Every transaction. Every bribe. Every name. In your own hand."

Carrick lunged for it.

Matthew sidestepped easily, and Carrick stumbled, nearly falling. The crowd gasped.

"I destroyed the evidence," Carrick snarled, righting himself. "I burned it myself. Watched it turn to ash."

"You burned what I gave you," Matthew sneered. "I kept the pages that mattered."