Bal Masque by Fleeta Cunningham Read Free Book Online

had to tell him of her marvelous plan to foil those tiresome designs created by men trying to run her life.
    The gentlemen lingered longer than usual, probably discussing the race and its spoiled finish, the ladies said. Lucienne sat demurely in the corner, holding her lemonade and cake, and inwardly screaming with frustration. When talk turned to babies, and who was in the family way, and other boring topics that captured the interest of the ladies, she took the opportunity to slip out the open side door and creep into the shadows. Philippe was bound to come back soon to wish his guests a goodnight. The full moon provided enough light to make anyone crossing the grounds obvious. She’d wait for him.
    Actually Lucienne had a very short wait. She’d just settled into a corner when movement caught her eye. She was certain she saw Philippe walking swiftly from the sugar house. He seemed to be heading for the barn. Even better—she’d have less chance of being overheard if she spoke to him away from the house. Lucienne gathered up her skirts and ran, feet barely skimming the ground, across the open terrain. She reached the door of the barn and paused. Tomblike darkness stopped her. She stepped in and waited for the interior to develop shadows and lights.
    Someone, a silhouette just beyond the door, moved. Lucienne started to call out when she realized the form was much too small to be either of the tall Pardue men. She froze in place.
    “Bowie, I know you’re in here.”
    “I told you I would be, you river rat. You cheated, clipped my horse deliberately. Man who’d stoop that low is beneath a yellow-bellied snake.”
    “And if I did cheat, I only matched your fiddle with the horse, Bowie. It wasn’t yours to ride. You planned to ride in his place and then split the winnings. You gentlemen and your vaunted honor.” A nasty laugh punctuated the sarcasm.
    A sound of steps, muffled as the men cut across the mat of hay, echoed in the barn; then Lucienne saw the outline of the antagonists picked out by the moonlight. Their voices dropped so she heard only the word “challenge.” She didn’t need to hear the next exchange. The big man, Bowie, drew back a hard fist and rammed it into the midsection of the smaller man. He went down like a wet sack of grain. “At your convenience, sir,” Bowie said as he walked away.
    “ Chèrie , I think it’s time we made a rapid retreat to the house.” The voice in her ear was too low to carry far. Lucienne whirled to find not Philippe but Armand standing at her elbow. “It’s very well to be interested in the horses, but I suggest a visit at another time.”

Chapter Four:
    Confidences and Conspiracies
    Lucienne found herself thinking with nostalgia of the ten days Armand had stayed away. After the horse race he seemed to appear far too often for her peace of mind. Frustration at his constant presence and Philippe’s continued absence gnawed at her. She still hadn’t had so much as a moment to enlighten Philippe of the bounty awaiting him. Her vexation had reached a fever point when Armand appeared again one afternoon and stayed in closed conversation with her papa until evening.
    The gentlemen smoked cigars and had made themselves easy in Papa’s office when Lucienne went to call them to dinner. Speaking in lowered tones, they sat with their backs to the door, so the smoke drifted out the slightly open windows. She had a clear view of them, though they could not see her.
    “ Eh bien , they will do it, those hotheaded young men,” René was saying.
    “At least there was no fatality this time, but I know the family was concerned. A wound like that is quite serious.” Armand stubbed out his cigar. “Since you have some dealings with the family, I was sure you would want to know.”
    “I’m always concerned for residents of my parish, especially when one of them becomes involved in such a foolhardy enterprise as a duel.” A duel! Bowie and the man in the barn after the