She whirled on him furiously. “And you will control your associates, my lord,” she yanked her arms out of his grip. “Teach them not to touch another man’s wife and I will not have to teach them for you.”
Mortimer was so angry that he was white. He grabbed her by both wrists and yanked her up against him. “Enough of this,” he growled. “I told you what would happen if you did not cooperate.”
“I will not allow any man to take liberties with me, including your lascivious friends.”
“You will do whatever I wish. And it seems I must again teach you that lesson.”
By this time, Kenneth was on the move. He was already at the dais by the time Mortimer issued his threat and Toby saw him from the corner of her eye. She knew that any backlash against her would fall on him and she was unwilling for the man to take the punishment for her outburst. She held out a hand to stop Kenneth’s advance and labored to calm herself as she faced Roger.
“No further lessons are necessary, my lord,” she said with more control than she felt. “But I will not permit another man to touch me. I do not consider that being uncooperative.”
Suffolk was off the floor by this time and reached out, grabbing Toby by the hair. She screamed and swung around to strike him but Kenneth was already on the dais, grabbing Suffolk around the neck and driving his fist into his face. The earl went sprawling and Kenneth grabbed Toby from Mortimer’s grasp, whisking her several feet away before Mortimer’s guards were upon him. De Roche was suddenly in his path, blocking his exit, and he could advance no further. With Toby in his protective embrace, Kenneth was trapped. But he was fully prepared to fight to the death.
“Take St. Héver to the vault,” Mortimer hollered at de Roche. “Remove the man from my sight.”
Toby held on to Kenneth, terrified that if she let him go she would never see him again.
“Nay, my lord, please,” she gasped at Mortimer. “He was only protecting me. You cannot punish the man for doing his duty.”
“He struck the earl,” Mortimer pointed out succinctly. “He must pay the price.”
“I will pay the price,” Toby let go of Kenneth and went to Mortimer, her hands clasped in front of her as if praying to the man. “I struck the earl first. Please, my lord; you must not punish Sir Kenneth. I beg that you punish me instead. I was the one who started it; he was only doing his duty.”
Mortimer almost shouted at de Roche again to take St. Héver away, but a better thought occurred to him. When Suffolk staggered to his feet again and tried to take another charge at Kenneth, Roger motioned to a couple of his men to see the earl from the hall. As de Ufford was half-carried, half-escorted away, Mortimer turned back to Toby. His anger was beginning to coolas he saw a way to turn the situation to his advantage. He was, if nothing else, an opportunist.
“Very well, my lady,” he said calmly, after some deliberation. “I will, in fact, take you up on your offer. Your compliance will buy St. Héver’s life.”
Toby wasn’t stupid; she knew that Mortimer would extract a high price from her though she was not sure, exactly, what it would be. She was a little too unworldly to imagine how high the price could soar. In her mind, perhaps it would be supping with him nightly or entertaining him all day, every day. Perhaps it would be something distasteful but not horrific. She could not have been more wrong.
“I will comply,” she agreed. “What are your terms?”
Mortimer took a step closer until he was literally breathing in her face. His dark eyes were deep and intense as he gazed into her almond-shaped eyes.
“One night with you,” he growled seductively. “One night with you and I will release St. Héver. He will be free to go.”
Toby stared at him, her eyes widening as she realized what he meant. She could hardly believe her ears and horror such as she had never known filled her breast. The mere thought made her want to vomit. She took a step back from him, her eyes bulging with disgust.
“Are you mad?” she hissed. “I am a married woman.”
Mortimer cocked an eyebrow before turning to de Roche again. “Take St. Héver to the vault,” he commanded. “He meets his death on the morrow.”
“Death?” Toby shrieked. “You cannot kill him!”
“He struck the Earl of Suffolk.”
“So did I. You must kill me also if that is your justice.”
Mortimer’s jaw flexed, grabbing her by the arm and whipping her against him. “One night and your knight goes free,” he snarled. “Refuse and he dies. Those are the terms.”
Toby was beyond horrified; she couldn’t even imagine what type of man would make such a bargain. Her breathing began to come in heavy pants as she stared at him, finally turning to look at Kenneth. The knight was gazing steadily at her, his ice-blue eyes intense.
“The price is far too high, my lady,” Kenneth told her emotionlessly. “I am not afraid to meet my death.”
De Roche threw out a fist and struck him in the mouth to silence him. Kenneth’s head snapped sideways but he did not lose his balance or his tense expression. Toby watched blood trickle from the corner of his mouth before turning back to Mortimer.
He was looking at her rather confidently, as if he knew he had her cornered. Toby met his stare, realizing that she could only make one choice. She could not let Kenneth die no matter what the terms of the bargain. She would therefore agree to the terms but there was no way she planned to go through with them. She wasn’t sure how she was going to get around it, but she would think of something. She had to; too much was at stake.
“Very well,” she almost choked on her words. “Your terms are accepted. But you will turn Sir Kenneth loose this very instant and I will watch him ride from this place. I would make sure he is well away before complying.”