Page 44 of Midnight Shadow

Chapter twenty

Her mask!

Bria couldn’t move. Sheer terror engulfed her as Terran lifted the mask before him. Their struggles must have knocked the bag to the floor and the mask had somehow tumbled out.

He knew she was the Midnight Shadow. He’d throw her in the dungeon, or worse. Have her hanged. Or burned.

What was she to do? She had to come up with some reason the mask would be in her bag. She could feign innocence. What is that doing in my bag? It was ridiculous, but it was the only thing she could think of. Terror closed her throat. She opened her mouth to offer an explanation, but nothing came out.

And then he turned black, condemning eyes to her. Bria recoiled as if he’d thrown a noose around her neck.

“What is this?” he demanded in a voice that brooked no argument.

Bria couldn’t move. She could feel the imaginary noose tighten around her throat. None of her muscles responded to the silent command to run. He would kill her now unless she could think of some reason why she’d have the Midnight Shadow’s mask in her bag. Oh Lord, she begged silently, let something come to me. But no flash of insight came to her, no way out.

“Answer me,” he snarled.

Bria licked her lips to moisten them, but her mouth was dry. “I... I don’t know what that is,” she whispered.

“Liar,” he snapped, closing his fist around the mask. He stepped closer to her and Bria retreated.

Suddenly the door flew open behind Terran. Her father and grandfather entered the dark room, two guards behind them. Bria raced around Terran, all but leaping over the bed to escape his wrath, and fell into the safety of her father’s arms.

“What is going on here?” Lord Delaney demanded, his good arm tightening protectively around Bria’s shoulders.

“I might ask the same of you,” Terran retorted.

Her father’s gaze shifted to Bria and alighted on her torn dress. His gaze snapped back to Knowles, and his jaw clenched furiously. His burning eyes pinned Knowles to the spot.

“You vile filth,” Harry said through clenched teeth. He stepped forward as if he meant to beat Knowles, his hand clenched tightly in a fist.

Terran stepped closer. “Lady Bria will marry me.”

“Enough of this,” Lord Delaney declared.

“Yes, quite,” Terran’s eyes narrowed and he glared at Bria.

His anger sliced through her body like a sword. She wanted to cocoon herself in the safety of her father’s arms, but they weren’t enough to shield her from Terran’s fury.

“Enough of this.” Terran lifted the mask before him, holding it out for all to see.

Bria turned her head from Terran’s gaze to lock eyes with her grandfather. He alone knew she’d seen the fabric. He alone knew how dear she held the story of the Midnight Shadow.

But would he know now she’d chosen to take up her hero’s cause?

Horror and anxiety glittered in Harry’s eyes. His fingers clenched and unclenched.

“What is that?” her father demanded.

“If I’m not mistaken, it’s the mask of a certain man who’s been robbing my lands. He calls himself the Midnight Shadow,” Terran explained.

“And what does that have to do with my daughter?”

“I found the mask here, in her room,” Terran explained.

Bria shifted her gaze to Terran to find his eyes on her once again. She wanted to bury her face in the safety of her father’s chest as she had when she was young, but this was something she had to face. Bria lifted her chin in the face of Terran’s accusations.

“Tell your father, Bria,” Terran said. “Tell your father of your rendezvous.”