The Countess by Catherine Coulter

many opportunities to communicate with me. I have gone in and out of that room

many times now.”

“Are you really certain you want to hear what she has to say?”

“Oh, yes. It must be something important, at least to her. Possibly, she wants

me to assure her that I will take care of Judith, that I am not a mean and petty

stepmother. I have even said that out loud whenever I go into her music room,

but there is nothing there. Perhaps she has come to the belief that I won’t hurt

her daughter. Perhaps she even trusts me now.”

“Judith has always been a happy child. My uncle pays her little attention, but

she doesn’t seem to suffer from it. She has Miss Gillbank, and that lady seems

to love her very much. I predict she will be a beauty in about five years. What

do you think?”

“She will break hearts at a fine clip,” I said.

He leaned forward to pat Tempest’s neck. Small Bess nickered and took a step

sideways. I shifted my weight, and she calmed. “What Lord Waverleigh said about

the Black Chamber. What do you think that means?”

“I don’t want to think about it. It scares me to my toes.”

He said, musing aloud, “That the evil in the room lives now, lives right here at

Devbridge Manor, lives right here under our noses.” He shook his head. “I think

his lordship is being fanciful.”

“If he isn’t, then it would mean that the evil that lives here with us committed

a horrible crime in that room. What crime could it be?”

He looked away from me, toward a distant copse of maple trees. “I’ve thought

about it. There are no recorded foul deeds in the recent past. Ah, there are

some excellent jumps over this field.” He arched a black brow at me.

I laughed, and dug my heels into Small Bess’s sides. She snorted, pulling

violently on my reins. I patted her again, but now I was frowning. “What’s wrong,

my girl?”

John was riding ahead of me. I saw Tempest sail through the air, clearing the

wooden fence with a good three feet to spare. The ground was muddy, covered with

debris, but Tempest had had no problem clearing all of it. He looked magnificent.

“Let’s outdo him, Bess.”

I leaned forward, pressing myself against her neck. She trembled beneath me,

then ran faster than I could imagine. Closer and closer we came to the fence. I

sat up, readying Bess and myself, and locked my legs around her belly.

She screamed and jumped, both at the same time.

I flattened myself against Bess’s neck and grabbed the reins close to her mouth,

but she was maddened, out of control, and I was nothing but something she wanted

off her back.

In midair, I could feel Bess twist under me, trying her best to throw me. I knew,

too, in that second that she would never be able to keep her balance. She

cleared the fence, barely, but just before her hooves touched the slippery mud

on the other side of the fence, she gave a great cry of anger and pain, and tore

the reins from my hands. As she fell toward the fallen trees just beyond the mud,

I kicked free and jumped, landing on my back on a slight incline. I rolled over

and over, grabbing at grass, trying to stop. I hit my head on something, felt a

searing pain lash all the way to my skull.

Before everything went black, I heard Small Bess’s cry of pain as she fell. Then

I didn’t hear anything at all.

Chapter Twenty

I didn’t want to open my eyes. I didn’t want to come back because I knew I

wouldn’t like it. I felt arms around me, John’s arms. I knew the feel of him. I

felt his heartbeat against my cheek, fast, pounding, and I opened my eyes

because I knew he must be afraid for me. He was blurred, and I blinked several

times.

I tried to raise my hand, but I couldn’t. “You’re there, aren’t you?”

He took my hand and gently pressed it back to my side. “Yes, I’m here, and I’m

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