Immortal Love by Victoria Craven Page A

poison . She vanished.
    His reaction was swift. As Eleanor was about
to bring the wine to her lips, he slapped the goblet out of her
hands.
    She jumped out of her seat, eyes flashing
with hatred and fear. “You bastard!” Her hand came back and slapped
him hard across the face.
    Dominick grabbed her arm, halting her escape.
Her other hand came around in another assault, but he quickly had
her pinned.
    “Eleanor, it’s not what you think.”
    Gritting her teeth, she struggled against
him. “It’s exactly what I think. You’re no better than—”
    “God’s blood!” someone shouted.
    A murmur moved about the hall as all eyes
fixed on the table.
    Dominick looked down to see where the goblet
spilled over. The linen tablecloth had been eaten through and the
wood burned away by the caustic substance.
    His fury bubbled from his chest. “Close the
portcullis and drawbridge!” He turned to Randolf. “Make sure every
gate is locked. No one leaves.”
    Randolf left immediately.
    One of the guards came running forward.
Dominick grabbed his shoulder. “Take men with you to the kitchen,
and bring the people to me.” The guard ran off to do his
bidding.
    He turned back toward Eleanor. Her
disbelieving gaze was fixed on the table. Moving on instinct, he
picked her up and swiftly carried her to their chamber. Once
inside, he lowered her to the floor. Eyes wide with fear, she said
nothing.
    “Lock this chamber door and don’t open it
until I return.”
    Once in the hallway, he
paused long enough to hear the bolt fall into place. Fiery hot fury
flowed through his veins, and darkness fell on his heart.
    E leanor stood in the
middle of her chamber, staring at the door. Her heart pounded
furiously. The vision of the acid eating away at the table played
over and over in her mind.
    Poison. She couldn’t believe someone had
tried to poison her. Then realization dawned. The poison hadn’t
been intended for her. Her legs began to buckle, but she managed to
stagger to a chair. Icy rivers of fear ran through her, making her
teeth chatter. Suddenly the room felt very cold. Taking her sable
cloak from the back of the chair, she wrapped herself tightly, but
couldn’t warm the chill of terror that settled in her bones.
    As she rocked back and forth, the realization
of how close she had come to death overwhelmed her. She ran every
moment in her mind that led up to that moment when Dominick had
slapped the wine out of her hand. Instantly she stopped, and her
mind froze. Clearly he knew someone had tried to kill him. But who?
As soon as she asked the question she knew the answer. McPhearson . The man would stop at nothing to take
Godwin.
    A knock on the door made Eleanor jump.
    “Sweetheart, it’s me.” It was Martha.
    Quickly, Eleanor unbolted the door, and flew
into her arms. “Oh Martha, what’s happening?”
    Softly, her maid patted her back, quietly
reassuring her. “There, there, my dear, everything will be all
right.”
    “How can anything be all right? Someone tried
to kill us. It’s not safe here.” Like a buoy in a storm, she held
Martha tighter as she had so many times before in her chaotic life.
“I’m not sure I will ever feel safe.”
    Martha led Eleanor back to her chair. She
wrapped the mantle tighter around her then went to the hearth and
began building a fire. “His lordship is turning the castle upside
down looking for the person responsible for this. His brother and
Lord Erik have dogs sniffing around in the village.”
    Eleanor’s eyes burned. Pressure in her throat
made it difficult to swallow. As hard as she tried she couldn’t
hold back the floodgates of her emotions. Her eyes blurred with
tears. The salty droplets fell on to her hands.
    Seeing her distress, Martha knelt in front of
her, scooping up Eleanor’s hands, holding them tight.
    Her loving friend’s reassuring presence felt
comforting as it had so many times in the past. “Oh Martha, why did
this have to happen? It was such a wonderful