Page 9 of Once Upon a Reckless Rogue

“So, you wince for no reason?”

“I did not say I had no pain, only that I can bear it.”

She smiled at him in a condescending way that itched at the edge of his ego. Thomas was a man who had never experienced dependence before. He was the one in charge. He was the one who made decisions about his own life, and her constant scolding when he did something wrong was grating on his nerves.

Thomas was grateful to her. He was. It was just that he was at the mercy of her decisions, whether she realized it or not. At least for now.

“How did you come to be your father’s assistant? Was he not concerned you may see too much of a man’s body?”

“My father was a man of science. When we were tending to a patient you were not thinking of the nakedness of the body. He once said each body was a puzzle to solve. Some bodies gave simple clues and were easy to treat. Some clues were harder to find, hiding in the breast or kidneys or some other body part. Those were the patients he truly felt compelled to treat. The challenge was to find the right course of action.”

“I suppose my injuries were quite obvious.” He lifted his hand.

Her eyes gave him a quick once-over. “I could almost see the fist marks on your belly, on your cheek. They were careful with you.”

“Careful? That is not how I would describe it.”

“They could have done worse. Pulled your finger nails out, punched out your teeth, or cut out your tongue. As I said, they were careful with you.”

Thomas raised an eyebrow. “Well, I’ll be sure to thank them before I kill them.”

She rolled her eyes before saying, “They were going to throw you off the cliff, alive or dead. I would not be thanking them.”

Obviously, she had not got his sarcasm. “How do you know that?”

“Because the guard told me. He said they might throw me over too. That is when I knew.”

“Knew what?”

“That I had to leave that room. Leaving was the easy part. I had been leaving every night for about a week.”

“But then there was the problem of what to do with a useless, broken Englishman?”

“The French didn’t think you were useless. In fact, they thought you could be most useful.”

He could have been useful, but there was no way in hell he would have given them anything. He’d been willing to die with his mouth closed if it meant stalling their plans. “Well, they were disappointed in the end in no small way thanks to you.”

“Disappointing my enemies is my favorite thing to do.”

Thomas laughed; he had to. He was still trying to figure her out. Sometimes she did not want anything to do with him. At other times, she could be soft and kind. And then there was this playful side of her. Thomas was under no illusions that she meant every word.

The small smile at the corner of her lips stayed in place.

“I fear for your enemies, Miss Diaz. I will be on my best behavior from now on.”

She turned back to her table. “Keep walking, Captain.”

He went around and around the room and then up and down the stairs. It became his reason for being. Slowly, the days passed, and the bruises faded. The cuts across his neck, where they had threatened to cut his throat, healed into red lines. Barely visible now, but he knew they were there, could feel the small ridges on his flesh. They would forever be a reminder of his time here, of the pain inflicted. Pushing down his anger and need for revenge was difficult and a waste of his time. He had to concentrate on getting back to England. There were things unfinished that he had to attend to. Each day gave him more motivation to keep up his routine.

*

Elena smelled the smoke, heard the crash above. They were burning down the fort! She went down the steps and looked up but could see no flames. Tomas joined her. Together, they watched the smoke as it drifted over the ocean before them.

“Could they be finally leaving?” she asked, putting her hands together in a prayer.

“I certainly hope so,” he said, looking up at the sky, his features concerned. “Perhaps they are trying to flush us out. Will the roof fall in on us?”

Elena shrugged. “I do not know, but we would be better to stay here in the stairwell. I will move our belongings into the hall.”