Abducted by a Prince by Olivia Drake Page B

into tears by now.
    He also knew that she might very well turn him in to the law. If she’d been Lady Beatrice, he’d have been safe, for the family would never have sought his arrest for fear of ruining her. But they might not be so willing to protect a poor relation.
    “And why would I trust you to help me?” he asked.
    “Because it’s your only hope of getting what you want,” she said tartly. “If I may be blunt, Walt isn’t likely to remove himself from the pleasures of London simply to deliver a key. He’d have done so for his sister, but not for me. You’d be wise to recognize that now and avoid being stuck here for weeks, waiting for a ransom that will never arrive.”
    Damien saw her point, but he was too frustrated by the failure of his plan to acknowledge it aloud. Instead, he wanted to throw back his head and howl like the rising wind outside the keep.
    He grabbed the oil lamp from the table and thrust it into her hand. “Go on back to the tower before this gale worsens. I’ll let you know my answer in the morning.”

 
    Chapter 9
    Ellie awakened to a dim-lit bedchamber and the rattling of raindrops on the windows. The air felt chilly, but the blankets swathed her in a cocoon of warmth. For a moment she was perplexed by the canopy overhead and the green velvet draperies on the tall bedposts. Why was she not in her narrow cot in the nursery?
    Yawning, she pushed up onto an elbow and blinked at the curved stone walls. Her bleary gaze came to rest on the stout, mobcapped woman bending over the hearth to stir the fire. The events of the previous day and night came rushing back. How could she have forgotten that she was imprisoned in the castle of the Demon Prince?
    “Mrs. MacNab! Good morning.”
    Glancing over her shoulder, the middle-aged maidservant gave a rusty chuckle. “’Tis nigh on noon, hinny. Ye must’ve had happy dreams to slumber so long.”
    “Noon!” The news swept the cobwebs from Ellie’s mind. At home, she was accustomed to rising at dawn in order to get an early start on her daily duties. Although she had little to occupy herself here, there was one important task that must be accomplished.
    She had to convince Damien Burke to release her.
    Ellie threw off the heavy coverlet and scrambled out of bed, scarcely noticing as her bare feet met the icy floor. She hurried to the armoire, opened the double doors, and grabbed a gown at random.
    Mrs. MacNab scurried to her side to take the watered blue silk from her. “Nay, milady. Ye’ll need wool t’ keep ye snug on such a cold day. Wot’s yer hurry, anyhow?”
    “I need to have a word with your master. We may be departing for London today.”
    The Demon Prince had made no such promise, though Ellie remained optimistic. When she had proposed the previous night that he release her, he had glared like an ogre without giving her a definitive answer. But he simply had to come around to her way of thinking. Now that he’d acknowledged his mistake in abducting her, there was no point in tarrying here at the castle.
    The maidservant’s broad face wore a skeptical look. “Depart fer London? Why, ’tis a proper gale a-blowin’ out there. Only a daft fool would set sail in such foul weather.”
    As if to underscore her statement, the wind whistled down the chimney, making the flames dance on the hearth. Shivering, Ellie rubbed her arms over the fine lawn nightdress. Her teeth were beginning to chatter from the cold. She glanced up at the narrow window slit to see solid, charcoal-gray clouds through the drenched glass. “Surely it can’t be all that bad.”
    “’Tis indeed, an’ ye’ll catch yer death, dearie. I brung ye a pitcher o’ warm water, so run along whilst I find yer warmest petticoat.”
    Mrs. MacNab draped a soft fawn shawl over Ellie’s shoulders and gave her a gentle push in the direction of the washstand. Ellie gave in to the motherly advice. By the time she’d finished her ablutions, Mrs. MacNab had the garments