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beneath his level tone. He, of course, understood perfectly.
    It was when my uncle said, “You will do the gentlemanly thing by my niece, Greystone, or I will blast your name all over London,” that I tumbled to what my uncle’s presence meant. My breath sucked in so violently that it had to be audible to the men, but no one looked at me.
    Adrian was silent. I stared from him to my uncle. Charlwood was smiling, but there was a look in his eyes that caused my stomach muscles to tense in a way that had become all too familiar.
    “How did you manage the axle?” Adrian finally asked. His voice held only a detached interest.
    “Manage the axle?” I echoed. “Good God, do you think it wasn’t an accident... ?” My voice petered out. No one was paying the least attention to me.
    “You’ll marry her, Greystone,” my uncle said. “I have a witness who will swear that I found you together in one bedroom. How will the great hero look when that gets out, I wonder?”
    He sounded—vengeful.
    Adrian leaned his shoulders against the wall next to the window and regarded me as if I were an interesting specimen of insect. “You were very good,” he said. “I suspected something when the axle went, but you behaved so naturally that I actually began to think it was an accident.”
    I looked at my uncle. “Was it an accident, Uncle Martin?” I demanded.
    “My poor innocent. Did he tell you the axle broke? It was just an excuse, Kate, to get you to come here with him.” My uncle’s eyes were bright with pleasure, and I knew that he was lying.
    “Nothing happened,” I said. I looked from him to his witness-companion, who by now had come all the way into the room. Their presence seemed to suck up all the air, and it was difficult to breathe. “We are both fully dressed,” I said.
    “Don’t matter,” the man returned. “You’ve been compromised, my girl.”
    My uncle said, “Wayne is right, my dear. You have indeed been most thoroughly compromised.” His words were addressed to me, but his eyes were on Adrian.
    “No one need know,” I protested.
    “But they will. I will see to it that they know.” His eyes flicked over the small, shabby room, the unmade bed, then returned to Adrian. “I have been hearing rumors, Greystone, that you are interested in pursuing a political career. If that is the case, you have not behaved with a great deal of intelligence tonight. In fact, my boy,” he rolled the words out with obvious relish, “you have landed yourself in quite a nasty little dilemma. Marry her, and you have a wife who is nothing more than an Irish gambler’s brat. Refuse to marry her, and I’ll spread the story of this night all over London. That will effectively finish any hopes of a political career, won’t it?”
    Charlwood’s face was full of smiling violence.
    Adrian’s face looked as if it had turned to marble.
    “What if I say I will not marry him?” I said defiantly.
    The sea-green eyes turned to me. “You will do as I say, Kate,” Charlwood said softly.
    I felt suddenly very cold. No one, before or since, has ever made me feel as physically threatened as my uncle could. Even later, when I was standing at bay with a gun trained at my heart, even then I was not afraid as I was in that bedroom. I realize now that the threat I felt from Charlwood was sexual, but at the time all I knew was that I was terrified. I didn’t answer him.
    I’ll have to run away, I thought. I cannot possibly stay in this man’s power.
    “I’ll marry her, of course,” I heard Adrian say wearily.
    Charlwood laughed. The sound made me shudder, and it was then that I knew I would take the coward’s way out.
    * * * *
    The men went down to the taproom, leaving me alone. I got back into the bed, huddled under the covers, and tried not to think about the terrible thing I was going to do.
    The landlady brought me tea and muffins for breakfast. I drank the tea but couldn’t eat. I got back into bed. At noon my uncle came to