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"May I speak to him?"
"Yes, my lord He’s in the first room I’ll take you there"
"You needn’t trouble yourself," Leo said pleasantly "I know the way"
The constable grinned at that "I suppose you do, ed stool, an e on the pallet, leaning his back against a timbered wall One knee was propped up, his arm half-curled around it The black head was lowered in a posture of utter defeat
Merripen looked up as Leo approached the row of iron bars that separated them His face was drawn and saturnine He looked as if he hated the world and all its inhabitants
Leo was certainly fae," he remarked cheerfully "Usually you’re on this side and I’rowled
"And that’s what I usually say," Leo marveled
"I’uttural sincerity
"That doesn’t provide et you out, does it?" Leo folded his ararded the other er drunk Only ht of his own past misdeeds, he should have more patience with the man "Nevertheless," Leo said, "I will have you set free, since you’ve done the same for me on so many occasions"
"Then do it"
"Soon But I have a few things to say And it’s obvious that if I let you out first, you’ll bolt like a hare at a coursing, and then I won’t have the chance"
"Say what you like I’"
"Look at you You’re a filthy mess and you’re locked up in the pinfold And you’re about to receive a lecture on behavior from me, which is obviously as low as a man can sink"
From all appearances, the words fell on deaf ears Leo continued undaunted "You’re not suited for this, Merripen You can’t hold your drink worth a damn And unlike people such as me, who become quite amicable when they drink, you turn into a vile-te how best to provoke his out one’s true inner nature, they say"
That got hilance that contained both fury and anguish Surprised by the strength of the reaction, he hesitated before continuing
He understood the situation more than the bastard would have believed or wanted to believe Perhaps Leo didn’t know the whole le of Merripen’s past, or the complex twists and turns of character that made him unable to have the woman he loved But Leo knew one simple truth that superseded all others
Life was too bloody short
"Da back and forth He would have preferred to take a knife and lay open a portion of his own flesh rather than say what needed to be said But he had the sense that he was so between Merripen and annihilation, that soument, had to be set forth
"If you weren’t such a stubborn ass," Leo said, "I wouldn’t have to do this"
No response frolance
Leo turned to the side and rubbed the back of his neck, and dug his fingers into his own rigid muscles "You know I never speak of Laura Dillard In fact, that may be the first ti to say so about her, because not only do I owe you for what you’ve done for the Ramsay estate, but-"
"Don’t, Leo" The words were hard and cold "You’re eood at that And you’ve left me no bloody choice Do you understand what you are in, Merripen? A prison of yourAnd even after you’re out of here, you’ll still be trapped Your entire life will be a prison" Leo thought of Laura, the physical details of her no longer precise in his ht, in a world that had been bitterly cold since her death
Hell was not a pit of fire and bri up alone, the sheets ith your tears and your seed, knowing the woman you had dreamed of would never co I do is ive a da But at least I can live with the knowledge that I fought for her At least I took every bloodyI loved her" He stopped pacing and stared at Merripen conte away-and breaking my sister’s heart-because you’re a damned coward Either that or a fool How can you-" He broke off as Merripen hurled hi them like a lunatic
"Shut up, daone with Harrow?" Leo persisted "You’ll stay in your self-made prison, that’s obvious But Win will be worse off She’ll be alone Away fro more than a decorative object to keep on a bloody shelf And what happens when her beauty fades and she loses her value to him? Hoill he treat her then?"
Merripen went motionless, his expression contorted, irl," Leo said "I spent two years with Win, watching as she les she’s faced, she’s bloody well entitled toa child-if she feels strong enough-that’s her right And if you’re theher away" Leo rubbed his forehead wearily "Neither you nor I are worth a damn," he muttered "Oh, you can work the estate and show e the tenants and inventory the stinking larder I suppose we’ll keep it running well enough But neither of us will ever be more than half-alive, like most men, and the only difference is, we know it"
Leo paused, vaguely surprised by the tightening sensation all around his neck, as if a noose had been cinched around it "Amelia told me once about a suspicion she’d had for a while It bothered her quite a bit She said that when Win and I had fallen ill with scarlet fever, and you htshade syrup, you’d concocted far more than was necessary And you kept a cup of it on Win’s nightstand, like sohtcap Aht you would have taken the rest of that poison And I’ve always hated you for that Because you forced me to stay alive without the wo the saistered Leo’s words
"Christ, man," Leo said huskily "If you had the bollocks to die with her, don’t you think you could work up the courage to live with her?"
There was nothing but silence as Leo walked away from the cell He wondered what the hell he had done, what effect it would have