Author: Kimberley Jackson
Title: Enemies – A Love Story
Rating: R 
Category: AU (Out Of Alias)
Summary: England, 1570 - Irina Derevko is a terrorist and a spy who aims at 
killing England’s 
queen. She’s a courageous woman, hiding her dangerous life behind her noble 
name. Nobody 
at court would have gotten the idea that Lady Irina Derevko and her sisters are 
playing leading 
roles in the terrorist ring. Her cover seems perfect until one evening she’s 
fascinated by one of 
the contacts she was to meet. Not knowing that he is the queen’s chief of 
security, she flirts with 
him, even tells him her forename. The queen’s personal counselor in security, 
Jack Bristow, is 
also fascinated by the courageous and beautiful woman. It’s the start of an 
adventure in which 
two enemies have to learn to trust each other and look behind the lies they have 
learned to 
believe their whole life...
England, 1570 - Irina, a lady involved in international terrorism. Jack, highest 
councellor of the royal court. Their 
encounter, a firework of hate, desire and passion...


Prologue

England - 1545

She was alone in the forest... all alone and she was afraid. The large trees 
around her seemed 
to threaten her. They seemed to get closer and closer together to imprison her 
in their midst. 

Little Irina started to run. 

“Mom... Mommy! Daddy!” Tears filled her eyes, and when she looked down she found 
herself 
standing in her nightclothes in the forest. The voices behind her got closer. 
The trees were 
against her, darkness was against her... they would betray her and tell the 
soldiers where to find 
her. She pressed her teddy close to her chest - the only thing she had been able 
to save from 
their house. 

Over and over again she tried to run, but her legs wouldn’t move – her mind 
paralyzed by the 
pictures she had witnessed, frozen by the fear she felt inside. Suddenly, 
somebody pulled her 
into the bushes. 

“Shhht... don’t cry... don’t move. It’s me...” Katya was there, her older sister 
by four years, 
covering her mouth softly with her hand and pulling her shaking little body 
against her own. Irina 
found Elena lying in her arms, sleeping. They heard the soldiers passing by and 
pressed closer 
into the depths of the bushes. 

The men yelled orders to each other and slowly their voices went away. Only when 
they were 
merely whispers in the distance, the sisters dared to move. 

“Where are mommy and daddy?” Irina asked under tears, her voice a hushed 
whisper. 

Katya looked away, evading her eyes, and was about to get up. “We can’t stay 
here. We have 
to leave... remember that house dad told us about? We have to...”

“Kat... where is daddy... and mommy?” Irina’s voice was louder now, filled with 
panic and she 
grabbed her sister’s arm, unwilling to let her go. “We have to go back! We have 
to help them! 
Those men want to hurt them!”

The nine-year-old Katya looked at her younger sister and touched her cheek. 
Then, without the 
slightest hint of emotion the words left her lips – words that formed the 
unbearable truth.

“We can’t help anymore. Mom is dead... and they took dad with them. Come on 
now!”

Irina just stared into her cold face, then she slapped her sister hard while 
tears streamed down 
her cheeks. 

“You’re lying! You mean little b*tch are lying! Mom forbid you to do that just 
to tease me! I HATE 
YOU!” She screamed, not caring for the soldiers who might still hear them, even 
if they were 
already far away. Before Katya could grab her sister, Irina jumped up and just 
fled into the 
darkness, not caring where she ran to. Her perfect little world seemed 
shattered, all her dreams 
of a bright future broken, since she knew deep within that Katya’s words had not 
been a lie.

She kept running, although her lungs seemed about to burst, until she could make 
out the 
shape of their large house in the distance. Reaching it, she stormed through the 
old metal gate 
and through the open front door into the house. Everything was destroyed, the 
most valuable 
things stolen. 

Irina ran up the stairs. “Mommy! Mommy! I’m gonna help you! Where are you? I’m 
not gonna let 
them hurt you...” She searched every room, while the tears streamed silently 
down her cheeks, 
until she found the woman in the kitchen. She was lying on the table, her eyes 
closed, her dress 
soaked with blood and her skin bruised. The little girl started to cry, 
deafening, pulling at her 
mother’s hand. She climbed onto a chair, then onto the table and shook her 
mother’s shoulders 
slightly. When the woman didn’t move, she finally broke down in tears and 
pressed her little 
cheek to her mother’s chest, just as they had so often done when they were lying 
on the 
armchair where her mother had been reading to her. 

She had enjoyed listening to her mother’s voice, feeling safe in her warm arms, 
and finally 
falling asleep with the rhythmic sound of her mother’s heart at her ear. Now all 
this was gone. 
The so familiar sound of her heartbeat was gone and suddenly Irina knew for sure 
that her 
mother would never read to her again. She wrapped her little arms around the 
dead body, 
unwilling to let go. 

“Mom... don’t leave me... Please come back... Mommy! MOMMY...” 

Her nightmare had begun with the awful sound of splitting glass and angry yells 
earlier that 
night. Shortly after that her mother had stormed into her room, pushing her 
outside into the dark 
floor, urging her to move faster. 

“Run...” she had whispered. “Hide in the woods, sweetheart... you gotta go...” 

“Mommy... what about you?”

“I’m gonna be okay sweetheart. Run...” She had pulled her daughter to her chest, 
then removed 
the little medallion from her neck and put it around her daughter’s little neck. 
“See, I will lend you 
this and you will give it back to me when we see one another again later. 
Alright? I promise, I’ll 
be fine! I love you, honey... now go...”

That had been the last time she had seen her mother alive. And now she was lying 
here, dead, 
her body slowly getting colder. 

“Mommy... you’ve promised...” the girl sobbed then her voice broke.

It was about two days later when the woman found the little girl hugging the 
dead body of her 
mother. She was the daughter of one of the peasants in the nearby village and 
had barely 
enough to eat. So she was always looking around for work or something to steal. 
The broken 
windows and the open front door of the house had caught her attention and so she 
had entered 
the house, hoping to find anything valuable. But what she saw when she entered 
the little 
kitchen almost broke her heart. Her mind worked unbelievably rationally when she 
understood 
that the child was not dead, as she had assumed at first. She tried to pull the 
girl away from her 
dead mother, and when she refused, she softly loosened the little fingers from 
the clothing and 
took her into her arms. 

“Shhh.... it’s okay, little one.”

At first Irina was unable to move, she just sobbed, her whole mind caught in a 
state of shock, 
her body weak from hunger and coldness, but when the woman went to leave the 
room, she 
started to struggle and beat the woman. 

“No! NO... Mommy... Don’t take me away from my mom...”

It took the woman quite some time to calm the girl down. “Your mother is dead, 
darling...” she 
explained softly and finally Irina broke down on the ground. The woman went to 
her knees next 
to her, unable to soothe the pain of the girl. When her tears had subsided, 
Irina just stared 
paralyzed at her little teddy which was red from blood. 

The strange woman started to clean her face from blood and tears and finally 
smiled. 

“I am Maggie... what is your name?”

Irina just looked at her, refusing to let her take the teddy to wash it, instead 
she pressed it to her 
heart as if her life depended on it. Maggie’s face got serious again and she 
touched the girl’s 
cheek. 

“It’s okay if you don’t want to tell me... Are you hungry?”

When Irina nodded slowly, Maggie smiled and lifted her up into her arms. 
“Fine... then I will take 
you to my house and arrange for a meal for you... okay?”

Irina just looked at her and Maggie carried her out of the house. She left the 
property through 
the gate and went onto the small stony way into the direction of the village. 

“Irina...” A tiny voice finally whispered. “My name is Irina Derevko.”

“Nice to meet you, Irina Derevko.” Maggie replied, smiling.

She took the girl into her house and started to research about what had 
happened. She learned 
that the dead woman was Lady Tatyana Derevko. 

English soldiers had raided the Derevko’s property that night, had raped and 
killed Irina’s 
mother, then kidnapped her father. She also learned that Irina had two sisters, 
one elder than 
her and the other one still a baby, and did everything to find them. The people 
in the village 
helped her and searched the whole region until they finally found them hidden in 
a house deep 
in the forest.

Two weeks after that, Irina’s father reappeared. He had been able to escape the 
soldiers before 
they reached the tower prison. Not able to express how glad he was that Maggie 
had taken care 
of his children despite the fact that she was so poor that she was barely able 
to buy enough 
food for herself, he took the woman with him to take care of the girls. After 
burying his dead 
wife, he left the region and settled far away in a new home. 

Lord Sergeji Derevko hoped that the new place and the obviously warm-hearted, 
friendly 
woman would make his daughters forget someday about what they had been forced to 
experience that night. 

He didn’t even guess how much the happenings had changed his two eldest 
daughters. 
Katerina and Irina had given each other the promise that they would live their 
lives taking 
revenge for the crime that had been done to their family. They were determined 
to kill the 
person who had ordered the soldiers to raid their house that night – Elizabeth, 
queen of 
England. 


Part 1 – Two hearts

England 1570

The nights were dark and humid, not much of a difference to the temperature of 
the day. The 
sky was black, only the moon spending some light and millions of stars 
shimmering like 
diamonds. 

There was no chance the dark figure that ran through the forest could be seen by 
anyone. The 
person seemed to know exactly where to go. The dark cape prevented her from 
being 
recognized. 

Only when she could make out a small fire somewhere between the trees she 
stopped running. 
Carefully she approached the small clearing, finding a man sitting at the fire – 
her contact? 
Probably, but it could as well be a trap and she wasn’t very fond of the thought 
of spending the 
rest of her life in the Tower Prison. 

She took a deep breath and decided that it was best to check the situation. She 
stepped out of 
the woods, approaching the fire slowly. 

When the man suddenly got aware of not being alone anymore he jumped up and 
pointed his 
weapon on the dark figure. 

“Who are you?” His voice was leveled and totally under control. He was obviously 
not afraid at 
all. 

“I’m sorry, Sir, I got lost in these woods...” she said in the most miserable 
tone she was capable 
of. 

“A woman?” He dropped his gun. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. Where is 
your maid... or 
your servants?”

“I went here alone...”

“Why would you do something stupid like that?” he asked with a certain amount of 
amusement 
in his voice. She decided that they had made enough smalltalk. 

“I had my reasons... what are you doing here?”

“Spending the night...” he answered unwillingly. 

“Alone?” That question of hers had been wrong. His mistrust immediately returned 
and he 
looked around. 

“Why – is a group of outlaws waiting in the dark to rob me?” he asked and looked 
at her. “Show 
me your face.”

“The night is too dark for the elves to light it!” she murmured the keywords and 
saw him stiffen. 

“The day is too light for the devil to darken it.” He replied his part of the 
keywords. “You are my 
contact? A woman?”

“If you have a problem, I will go away and tell our leader that you aren’t 
willing to talk to a 
woman. We’ll see whether he will still be interested in helping you then!” 

“I just didn’t expect a woman to be sent on this dangerous meeting. Where I come 
from a 
woman would be scared of going alone into the forest at day – not even to 
mention at night.” He 
replied amused and sat down. 

“I am not like the other women!” she replied coldly. “Can we talk business now?”

“You’re pretty straight-forward, Miss...”

“There is no need for you to know my name.” She replied and sat down opposite to 
him, careful 
to keep her face in the shadow of her cape. 

“But I’m sure they’ve told you my name. That’s an advantage for you. Another 
advantage would 
be, that you can see my face, I can’t see yours!”

“I’m just here to discuss the plan, which I will deliver to the leader then. 
There is no need to 
know more of me than that.”

“Fine, but I don’t feel comfortable talking to a person I can’t see the face of. 
Or, Milady, are you 
afraid of being too ugly to take that cape off? Well, that wouldn’t amaze me - a 
woman who runs 
through a forest at night can certainly not have the class of a true...” He 
interrupted himself and 
caught his breath when she finally revealed her face to him. Her eyes were 
sparkling with fury - 
so far she had reacted as he had wanted her to, but that was the only thing he 
had been 
prepared for. Full brown hair framed a face as beautiful as he had never seen 
before. She must 
be of his age, maybe a little younger and yet she looked breathtakingly 
beautiful. Her eyes, 
which were gleaming dark in the dim light of the fire, together with her 
appearance gave her the 
most delightful exotic look he had ever seen. 

“You decide.” She hissed at his provocations and her eyes never left his. 

Mental note, he thought, she must be a woman of a higher rank. No other woman he 
had met 
by now had been able to look that intensely into the eyes of a man – except for 
the queen 
herself. He almost felt sorry for her when he thought about the fate she would 
have. As soon as 
she left the clearing she would be caught by his soldiers waiting in the shadows 
of the trees. 

“So, what is your message? When is the queen to be assassinated?”

“Who is your assassin?” 

“That’s none of your business!”

“I need to know!”

“No, Mr. March, you want to know. There’s a difference!” she replied dryly and 
he wondered 
whether she was married. What was her status? It didn’t take him much time to 
make his 
decision. He got up and went around the fire to sit down next to her. She looked 
at him with 
raised eyebrows. 

“I have to warn you. I may seem like a weak woman, but the moment you make any 
inappropriate move, you will never see dawn again.” Her voice was neutral and 
she didn’t seem 
to be afraid at all – amazing, he thought to himself. Just as she had said, she 
was definitely not 
like any woman he had met before now. 

He lowered his face to hers, until they were only inches apart. He felt her 
reaching for 
something and caught her wrist in his. 

“Listen to me!” he demanded before she could stab him – or whatever had been in 
her mind. “I 
am not Mr. March.”

She looked into his eyes, obviously knowing what his revelation meant. “So then 
I take it that 
March is dead, you tortured him for the information where to meet me and now 
you’re here to 
arrest me. Nice... what’s your name?”

Her ability to put the pieces together was unsurpassed, he had to admit that 
silently.

“Bristow. My team of fifty soldiers is waiting in the forest to arrest you as 
soon as you leave this 
clearing.”

She looked at him, her expression not changing. “So then I’m going to die...” 

“You’re a woman, Miss...?” He looked at her, the question standing in his face. 
When she didn’t 
react he couldn’t help but grin amused. “Don’t you think this would be a good 
time to tell me 
your name?”

“There’s never a good time for that when talking to one of the bastards who 
serve the queen. 
So, what do you expect from me? You are certainly not telling me all of this for 
no reason.” His 
eyes – good god - she had never seen beautiful eyes like his. It felt like she 
was drowning in 
them like quicksand – the more she struggled against it, the faster she sank.

“No, you’re right. I’m telling you because I offer you to work for us as a mole. 
You’re a woman 
and I would hate to see you tortured.”

“You’re helping me... interesting. What do you expect me to do? Share your bed?” 
she 
challenged with a hint of disgust in her voice and looked away into the darkness 
of the trees. It 
shocked her how much she liked just thinking about the possibility to go to bed 
with this man – a 
man she didn’t even know!

“Your opinion of me is not the best, is it?” he asked. “I want to help you and 
spare you the 
torture and prison, in return I want you to help me in securing the queen. Help 
me bring the 
rebels down, as my contact.”

“You’re asking me to save my own life by betraying my people and ideals! No man 
with the 
slightest hint of honor in his blood would agree to an offer like that!” she 
hissed into his face and 
he smiled. 

“I appreciate your honesty – not to mention your loyalty towards yourself. 
You’re an amazing 
woman, ...” Again the hidden question for her name. She sighed. 

“Irina...” she murmured. “That’s the only name you get from me.” 

“Irina...” he repeated and before she knew what was happening, his lips touched 
hers in the 
lightest kiss. “I promise, all you have to do is inform me about the plans of 
the rebels. That’s all I 
expect...” The next kiss was deeper, more playful and set their blood to fire. 
When they broke 
apart, he let go of her wrist. 

“What’s your answer?” he asked and she smiled. 

“My answer is...” She looked into his eyes for a moment. “...that I can’t be 
bought, Mr. Bristow. 
It’s a gracious offer, but no thank you!” Her thumb stroked over his lip in a 
soft gesture, then 
suddenly she pushed him away hard, jumped up and fled into the darkness of the 
forest. 

He moaned in a mixture of pain and surprise and got up to go after her, when he 
heard the 
forest coming to life. Obviously his soldiers were already taking care of her. 
He sighed. Never 
ever had there been somebody contradicting him. At court the men never did 
question his 
orders or offers and the women usually wanted to draw his attention. But she was 
different – 
she was honest. The first woman who had pushed him away – not only literally, 
but also 
practically. By doing so she had caught his interest. 

About half an hour later the captain of his soldiers entered the clearing. 

“Sir, she’s gone!”

“What do you mean by gone?”

“Well... she sort of disappeared!”

“Was there an army of rebels defending her?” Being asked that sarcastic 
question, the captain 
shook his head. Jack Bristow was calm, his expression neutral – which was very 
dangerous. 
“Then how can she just disappear? You were fifty soldiers against one single 
woman!”

“I don’t know! We’ve searched everywhere!” 

“Well then search again! I want you to find her and take her to pris... no, take 
her to me! I want 
to talk to her!”

“Yes, Sir.”

The man hurried away and Jack sighed. After all, it was his fault. What had been 
the matter with 
him telling her that this was a trap? He couldn’t blame his men. If he hadn’t 
told her, but arrested 
her first, then offered her to work with him, she wouldn’t have been able to 
flee. But somehow 
her charm had enchanted his reason – which was the most amazing thing since she 
hadn’t 
even tried to be nice. 

Irina, he thought. Well, she should be easy to find. Irina wasn’t a usual name 
and since she had 
been here without a horse or any other kind of transportation, she most likely 
lived somewhere 
near this forest. Next time he would be prepared for her tricks. 


Part 2 – Comedies

Two days later

“Katya, Katya!” 

The woman ran over the grass of the wide field towards the huge house. She 
didn’t bother to 
wait until the housemaid opened up, but climbed over the gate and ran to the 
door. Before she 
could knock it was opened, the strict face of the maid looking at her. 

“Miss Elena, how often did I tell you to wait until I open up. A woman doesn’t 
just climb...”

“Sorry, Maggie... is my sister here?”

“Which one?” the woman asked. 

“Oh my god, Irina is here?” Elena passed her by. “Where is she?”

“She’s in the living room... at least she was when I looked five minutes ago!”

“I thought she went to London yesterday!”

“No, she didn’t. Something went wrong on the operation two days ago. She could 
be recognized 
if near the queen. Katya went to London instead of her.”

“Damn it!”

“Miss Elena!” Maggie cried out, almost breaking down. She had raised the three 
women. While 
she had managed to make Katya and Irina true ladies – at least sort of – she had 
failed 
gloriously in Elena’s case. “For the hundredth time: Women don’t curse!”

“What’s going on?” Irina looked out of the large living room, a book in her 
hand. 

“Oh, Irina, why haven’t you gone to London?”

“Because Katya went! Nice to see you too, by the way. Where have you been? 
Crawling in the 
bushes?” Irina looked in disbelief at the totally ruined dress of her younger 
sister. It really looked 
as if she had just been swimming in a puddle of dirt. 

“Stop being sarcastic! There’s someone down in the village, asking for you.” 
Elena explained, 
trying to catch her breath. “The baker’s wife told him that a woman called Irina 
lived up here. 
When I spoke to the librarian, he told me this man is a high ranking counselor 
at court. And he’s 
on his way...”

“Damn it!” Irina hissed and Maggie had to hold on to the wall when she heard the 
second 
woman start to curse. 

“What the hell did you do to catch the attention of the head of the queen’s 
army?” Elena asked 
her, panicked. 

“Nothing... well... I showed my face to one of the soldiers. I couldn’t know 
that it was a set up!”

“And did you write your name on your forehead or what?” Elena snapped. “How the 
hell does he 
know your name?”

“I told him!” Irina admitted and now it was Elena almost breaking down. 

“She told him!” she said to Maggie and turned to Irina again. “Are you out of 
your mind? Why 
not handing him a list with everybody involved, shackling yourself, and turning 
yourself in to 
prison? Wouldn’t make much of a difference, would it?” Elena asked Maggie with a 
huge 
amount of sarcasm in her voice. The old maid shook her head strictly to cut her 
off.

“However, your sarcasm is not very helpful here,” Maggie said sharply. “Instead 
of discussing 
what you can’t change anyway you should rather hide, Irina!”

“That’s ridiculous. I’m not hiding! You just don’t let him in, Maggie.” Irina 
decided, her voice 
certain and without fear. 

“Well, problem number two. He has a letter that allows him to search every 
house... so he 
doesn’t need our permission to get in. That’s the problem when the security of 
the queen is 
endangered!” Elena reported and Irina turned around. 

“In that case, I’ll really leave the house and go somewhere else...”

“Where?” Elena and Maggie asked at the same time. 

“Somewhere. No need to tell you. The less you know the less information you can 
give away. 
Elena, hang your white blanket out of the window when he’s gone!” Irina said, 
and rushed away. 
Elena and Maggie looked at each other, then Maggie set herself into motion. 

“Okay, Miss Elena, you look like you’ve just run here from the village – which 
you did, so I 
suggest we make you look like a lady. Here’s the plan. You pretend to be Irina. 
Come on... 
you’ve got to change!”

About twenty minutes later Elena was looking like the perfect lady. Maggie had 
done her best to 
turn her boyish outside into a female one, and she was content with her work. 

Only five minutes later they heard noise at the gate. Maggie left the house. 

“May I help you?” she asked the visitor outside the large metal gate and the man 
looked at her 
through the bars. 

“I was told in the village that a woman named Irina lives here. I need to talk 
to her.”

“I’m afraid, Lady Irina is unavailable at the moment.” Maggie replied 
courteously and the man 
frowned his forehead, then pulled out the official letter which allowed him to 
enter the house. 
“Oh... I’m sorry, Sir, I didn’t know you were sent by the queen.” She opened the 
door and let him 
in. 

Elena was sitting in the living room, reading. When Maggie knocked, she sat up 
straight and 
played the lady of the house. 

“Milady, there’s a man who wants to talk to you.” She winked at Elena and the 
woman got up. 

“Maggie, didn’t I tell you to send all visitors away today?” 

Maggie had almost started to laugh at the arrogant tone in Elena’s voice which 
was usual at 
court. She had to admit that, even if Elena was not at all a lady to show 
around, she was 
certainly an excellent actress. “I’m sorry, Miss, but he’s been sent by the 
queen.”

“Fine, send him in.”

Maggie opened the door and let the man enter the room. He looked around and when 
he caught 
glimpse of the woman in the armchair, he raised his eyebrows. 

“This is not Irina!”

“Excuse me?” Elena got up and Maggie didn’t believe her eyes when she behaved 
like a true 
lady in her reaction. “Have you come to my house to offend me, Sir? Isn’t it 
habit at court to 
introduce yourself when entering a house? I can’t remember you having done so!” 
She sounded 
really offended and Maggie had a hard time trying to hide her grin, since she 
knew that usually 
Elena didn’t care a penny for habits and manners. 

“I apologize. My name is Jack Donahue Bristow, Lord of Kent, I’m here to talk to 
Irina – which is 
not you!” His voice was level, but the way he said the words allowed no 
contradiction. 

“Maggie, would you tell this gentleman who I am?”

“Sir, this is Lady Irina Laura Derevko, daughter of Sir Sergeji Vladimir 
Derevko!” Maggie 
presented Elena in the most perfect manner.

“The baker told me, Lady Irina’s hair was long and brown. This lady’s hair is 
short and brown.”

“Um... I had it cut yesterday!” Elena explained.

“Interesting... especially since it was still long when you were in the bakery 
this morning!” Jack 
stated courteously and Elena looked at Maggie, silently pleading for help. 

“Miss Irina suffers from an illness, Sir. She’s unable to measure time... she’s 
a little crazy.” She 
pronounced the last word lower as if Elena mustn’t hear it, and Jack looked at 
her, quite 
amused by the comedy those two women were playing here obviously. 

“I cut her hair two hours ago.” Maggie hurried to add and smiled friendly.

“As much as I enjoy this little play, I’d rather talk to Irina herself now.” He 
finally said. “And I 
suppose you’re Elena – her sister with short brown hair.”

“What are you, a goddamned spy?” Elena snapped insulted and let herself fall to 
her chair, all 
manners suddenly gone. She hated to lose. “You’re right, I’m Elena. Irina is 
currently 
unavailable.”

“Where is she?”

“She’s in London.” Elena lied and again Maggie was surprised how convincing her 
words 
sounded. This time not even Jack Bristow seemed to have doubts. 

“In London?” he asked and shook his head in disbelief. 

“Yes. I assume that you’re the person who almost caught her two nights ago. She 
thought that 
you would be busy with searching for her here, because after you have seen her 
you would 
think that she would never be foolish enough to go to London. So that’s where 
she went.”

“Point for her!” he murmured and looked from one woman to the other. “Would you 
excuse me? 
I have to... go to London!” 

“Bristow!” Elena snapped and Maggie gasped for air at this absolutely insulting 
address, 
expecting to watch her lady be arrested at once. 

“Miss Elena?” Jack replied controlled and turned around once more to look at the 
woman. 

“What do you want from Irina?”

“I want to talk to her... that’s all!” he replied and Maggie looked at him 
surprised, then her eyes 
rested on him thoughtfully. 

“Oh, I believe you!” Elena said sarcastically. “Talk to her in the torturing 
room of the Tower, 
right?”

“No. Just talk to her!” he answered and turned around. 

“Irina told me that it was a soldier she gave her identity to, not a Lord or 
higher ranking officer. I 
think you’re lying to us about being the one who met her.”

“I was in disguise – she probably thinks I’m just a common soldier. We could 
resolve those 
doubts if she was here to talk to me. Since that’s not the case, any kind of 
discussion is useless. 
Have a nice day.”

With these words he left. Maggie was so confused that she didn’t even accompany 
him out the 
door. The two women looked at each other, then they rushed to the window and 
observed him 
leave. 

“I don’t know...” Maggie finally said as he was gone. “It seemed as if he really 
just wanted to talk 
to her.” 


Part 3 – Tricks

They waited another two hours, peeking through the small window of the kitchen 
to be sure 
Jack Bristow didn’t return, until Maggie went upstairs to hang the white sheet 
out of Elena’s 
room. 

When Irina saw it, she left her hiding spot and went carefully out of the small 
forest over the field 
back to the house. She wore a blouse and the pants the tailor had made for her. 
Women in 
pants were scandalous – but she didn’t care. She needed them on her operations. 
Long 
dresses were a curse for every woman who had to run and be able to defend 
herself.

When she reached the large fence behind the house, she climbed over it like she 
and her 
sisters had always done in their childhood. Despite its height of almost three 
meters, the sisters 
were very well trained in climbing over it – a fact which had driven their 
father crazy. Irina sighed 
when she remembered her father. He had died eleven years ago in a revolt, killed 
by a soldier 
of the queen. The whole fight had been a massacre. The revolutionists had never 
had a chance, 
yet the soldiers had slaughtered them in the most cruel fight. When she had 
still been unsure 
whether fighting was the right way – despite her mother’s death – that day had 
changed her 
mind. She was determined to kill the queen with her own hands to take revenge 
for the useless 
deaths of her parents.

She looked to the ground, scanning it carefully for larger stones before she 
jumped into the 
garden. When she lost a shoe during the process she cursed silently. She bent 
down to collect it 
out of Maggie’s roses, when a voice startled her. 

“I don’t know, London has changed a lot, don’t you think?” She spun around, her 
face in shock 
when Jack Bristow was standing right behind her, looking around in the garden. 
“Not at all the 
London I remember!” 

She didn’t know what he was talking about, and actually she wasn’t even 
interested in learning. 
All that mattered was that he was here – in her garden. Fleeing into the house 
was not an 
option, neither was going the same way back since he would have caught her 
before she even 
reached the fence. But running through the front gate was possibly worth 
trying...

“I don’t know what you are talking about,” she finally stated and pulled on her 
lost shoe slowly. 

“So, Lady Irina Laura Derevko.” His voice was almost tender. “Nice to meet you 
again.” 

“I wish I could return that.” She replied coolly. “But, unfortunately, my amount 
of time is limited 
and I don’t waste it on lies!”

“Charming as always.” Jack replied coolly. “I knew that you were somewhere near 
the house 
when I found your sister and your maid playing this little comedy inside.”

“How smart you are... I’d be impressed if you weren’t such a prick.” With these 
words she 
started to run. She had an advantage. She knew this house and its hidings, he 
didn’t. 

He, on the other hand, had expected her to try to run away. Another amazing side 
of her. He 
had never met a woman who could actually run fast. Despite her really amazing 
skills, he had 
caught up with her thirty meters later. When she knew that running had not been 
the successful 
method, she turned around unexpectedly and attacked him, her fist hitting him 
hard in the 
stomach. Although her punch left him breathless for a second, he managed to grab 
her fist 
tightly. She started to struggle against him and tried to free her hand. 

When she stumbled over a stone right behind her, he hadn’t seen it coming. He 
tried to hold her 
– a mistake since he stumbled over her in the process, and finally they were 
lying in the grass 
with his body covering hers. 

“May I talk to you now - please?” he asked breathlessly and looked down at her, 
his eyes 
sparkling with amusement. She returned his look with a murderous expression on 
her face. 

“Get off me, or I’ll make you get off!”

“I don’t doubt that you’re capable of doing so... but I also don’t doubt that 
you’ll run away as 
soon as I let you go.”

“That’s right!” she simply stated and he couldn’t help but laugh. 

“Your honesty is refreshing and charming in a strange sort of way...” He shook 
his head and got 
up, then offered his hand to help her up. She ignored it. 

“So, you’re here to arrest me!” she stated and looked down at her ruined outfit. 
“Then just do 
it...”

“I will...” he replied, smoothing out his own clothing. “But first I wanted 
to...” He had only looked 
down for one second, but this was enough for her to bring him down with a hard 
punch that 
seemed to press all air out of his lungs. He was lying on the grass, fighting 
for air.

In a quick move she jumped up and ran towards the gate. She had almost managed 
to open it 
when he slammed her against the wall, holding her in place harshly. She cried 
out in pain. 

“Let me make this clear: I don’t like to be beaten down. You’ve wasted enough of 
my time and 
I’m tired of your games!”

He turned her around harshly and noticed that she had a scratch on her cheek. 
Immediately he 
loosened his grip. He hadn’t meant to hurt her. 

“Sorry...” he murmured, touching her cheek, but she avoided his touch, her eyes 
sparkling 
murderously. 

“Go to hell!” she hissed and he dragged her towards the house. 

“Come on!”

“Where are you taking me?”

“I’m going to lock you in your room until you’re willing to talk reasonably and 
listen to what I 
have to say!”

“You have no right to lock me up...” she started and struggled against his grip, 
but he tightened 
his hold on her wrists immediately. 

“Do I have to remind you of the letter of the queen? I have almost every right I 
want!”

“I don’t care about your queen! She’s not my queen, therefore her rules don’t 
count in my 
house! You’re hurting me!”

“I’m sorry for doing so, but if I loosen my grip you’ll get free and hurt me, or 
worse try to kill me!” 
he replied and entered the house. With Maggie and Elena following him in 
protest, he dragged 
Irina up the stairs until they were on the second floor, then he opened the 
first door he could 
find. He looked around and found that it had a bed and a fireplace and pushed 
her onto the bed.

Before she could get up again he had closed the door and locked it from the 
outside. He took 
the key and turned to face Maggie and Elena who were standing right in front of 
him, their eyes 
wide in shock. 

“This door won’t be opened, nobody goes in and she won’t get out. The only 
person who opens 
that door is me, are we clear on that?”

“Ye-yes Sir...” Maggie replied in total confusion, but Elena was not so 
frightened. 

“Excuse me, but you can’t just lock her up in there! It’s her house! We have 
rights!”

“Miss Elena, do you want to stay in the room next to hers for the rest of the 
day? If not, don’t 
start a discussion with me!” With these words he went down the stairs ignoring 
the two women, 
and most of all, Irina, who now started to slam her fists against the wood of 
the door, throwing 
the worst curses that existed after him. He hated to lock her up, especially 
since it seemed to 
outrage her even more, but it was the only way to make sure that she didn’t 
start another foolish 
attempt to escape. He was tired of going after her. 

Soon after he had sat down in the living room, Maggie opened the door and walked 
in 
hesitantly. He smiled at her friendly. 

“Do you have a place for me to stay? A guestroom or something?”

“Yes, but... you...” she started and folded her arms. 

“What?” he asked when he saw the amused blink in Maggie’s face. 

“You just locked Irina in the guestroom, so the answer would have to be no, we 
don’t have any 
guestrooms left...”

He sighed and leaned back in the chair. “Is it the only free room?”

“Yes...”

“Then I’ll take it. I can keep a better eye on her anyway.”

“But Sir!” Maggie cried out and Jack opened his eyes. 

“Miss Maggie, your lady has been arrested! She will be charged with treason, a 
murder attempt, 
and god knows what else. So, she has no rights left. I wanted to offer her a 
deal, but the lady 
was obviously not willing to listen to me. I want to give her a little time to 
think.”

“That never worked!” Maggie replied dryly with a hint of amusement in her voice. 
“Not even 
when she was a child!”

“Well, this time it will...” he promised. 

When he entered the room two hours later, after Irina’s furious screams had 
subsided, he found 
her standing at the open window. She was looking down, obviously thinking of an 
option to jump 
out of the window. 

He shut the door with a loud bang and she spun around. Her eyes pierced him as 
he went 
towards her. 

“What are you doing here?” he asked and looked out of the window. “Thinking 
about jumping? 
There are ten meters at the least. You would break your neck!”

“If you say so...” she replied sharply and he closed the window and turned to 
her. 

“Can we talk reasonably now, or will you attack me again at the next 
opportunity?” he asked and 
she laughed sarcastically and went to the door. She found it locked. He held up 
the key. 

“You really thought I was a jerk, didn’t you?”

“No...” she replied ironically friendly. “No, jerk would be an understatement. 
The words in my 
mind were more like prick, son of a b*tch, or ass – just to name the kindest 
ones!”

“Nice...” he stated, raising an eyebrow at those words. “A lady like you 
shouldn’t even know 
those words – not to mention use them.”

“I told you I am not like other ladies.” she replied coldly, leaning against the 
wall. “So, what do 
you want? You haven’t come up here just to annoy me, have you?”

“No!” he admitted. “I want to offer you a deal. I would have done that earlier 
instead of arresting 
you here, but you were in that kind of mood where reasonable talking was 
impossible. I have a 
job for you – I want you to work with me, to be honest!”

“Work with you?” she laughed sarcastically. “No way!”

“Wait before you refuse. It would only be one mission. One evening – and 
afterwards I’d 
promise to forget your name and that you were involved with the rebels.”

“You’re blackmailing me!” she stated dryly, but he shook his head. 

“No, I’m offering you a deal to save yourself.”

“No, you’re offering me to sell myself... and all that I believe in! Working 
with you would be like 
collaborating with the enemy.”

“I’m not your enemy – I never was!”

“Oh, I must have missed that part when you locked me in this room – in my own 
house!” Her 
voice was sarcastic and she didn’t seem to be willing to cooperate at least a 
little. 

“May I tell you what this mission is about?”

“I guess you wouldn’t care if I said no, so just do it – since you’ll do it 
anyway.”

He sat down on the bed, his eyes resting on her figure. She was beautiful, her 
shape very 
female, and yet she was worse to deal with than the angriest man. No wonder she 
had 
managed to deal with gangsters without getting seriously hurt. 

“We’ll have to work undercover in the ‘Blue Star’ for one single evening. There 
are clues that a 
large smuggler-ring has its meetings there. Maybe the boss of the club himself 
is involved. I will 
be there as a guest, but I need a woman who can look behind the scenes and has 
access to the 
private rooms. That’s what I need you for.”

“The ‘Blue Star’ is a...” she swallowed the word she had meant to come up with, 
and closed her 
eyes to calm down. “It’s a place where women sell themselves.”

“I know.” He replied and wanted to add something, but Irina didn’t let him 
finish. 

“Ah, I see...” Her voice was sharp, her expression cold now. “You think only 
because I’m acting 
like I do and doing things my way, I wouldn’t mind to work in a place like that, 
selling my body to 
bastards like you!”

“Actually, I thought of you, because you’re the only woman I could think of that 
would not be 
afraid of doing the job. You’re smart and you’re beautiful. I wouldn’t have to 
watch you all the 
time since you’re capable of defending yourself so you would be an equal 
partner. And by the 
way, for your own sake, I did not hear the last part of your sentence!” He 
replied amused and 
she looked at him, her eyes scanning his. 

“Yeah, well... no, thanks. I don’t think I’ll do it!”

“Why not?” he asked at her refusal. “There would be no danger, I’d be right 
there, if that’s what 
you’re concerned of!”

“No, I’m concerned with working for you, and therefore the queen! I’m an enemy 
of hers and I 
don’t care a penny for whether there are smugglers or not. Maybe your dear queen 
should lower 
the taxes to give poor people a chance to buy the things they need legally. That 
way they 
wouldn’t have to smuggle in order to be able to afford food.” Irina explained 
coldly and turned 
around. “But why do I tell you that? You don’t care anyway!”

“I have to admit the times are not the best for poor people. But blaming the 
queen is just 
ignorant. The whole situation is bad and the death of the queen won’t change 
anything! If you’re 
unwilling to help us, I’ll have to arrest you for rebelling and planning the 
queen’s murder which – 
as I think – will lead to your execution.” He simply answered and for a moment 
he feared that 
she would attack him, when she took a few steps towards him. 

“If you think you can threaten me or impress me in any way by doing so, you’re 
wrong! And now 
leave my room.” Her voice was cold and louder than normal. “I gave you my 
answer, and since 
you’re obviously deaf I’ll repeat it: NO. THANK. YOU.”

For a moment their eyes fought a battle, then he got up and went to the door. 
“Maybe I was 
wrong thinking that two hours time of thinking would be enough. I will give you 
some more time.”

Irina returned his look when he turned around at the door to face her one more 
time. She shook 
her head softly. “What I do, Mr. Bristow, is what I believe is right. I won’t 
and I can’t do anything 
else because I would not only lie to the people around me, but also fool myself. 
If you want to 
arrest and have me executed for that, feel free to do so, but I want you to know 
the following two 
things: First of all, there are many more people who think exactly like me and 
if you kill me, you 
could start a revolution right now. Secondly, if you think that I would just 
surrender, you’re 
mistaken. I will give you a really hard time, every step to prison until you 
wish you would have 
just let me go. Are we clear on that?”

He scanned her, his face reflecting his appreciation. “Totally... you’re a 
challenge, Milady, and I 
like to be challenged. I just have to warn you. I’ve never lost.”

“Well, then it’s about time for you to!” she replied fearlessly. The intensity 
of his gaze suddenly 
made her go weak in the knees and the thought of their meeting two nights ago 
crossed her 
mind – when he had kissed her just out of nowhere. No, it hadn’t been just a 
kiss – it had been 
the most amazing kiss of her life. Why, was a puzzle to her.

“I guess, we’ll talk soon. I’m sure you’ll reverse your decision.”

“I’m sure I won’t. Now leave... and please shut the door!” she added ironically.

“Have a nice afternoon!” he replied bemused and then left the room. Irina sighed 
when the door 
had shut behind him. When she heard the key lock the door, she let herself sink 
into the next 
chair she could find. Why did she suddenly feel unsure? 

She had never been afraid of death or torture, but now she was afraid and she 
didn’t even know 
of what, she just knew that it had to do with him – Jack Bristow. It was 
absolutely necessary to 
get this man out of her house as soon as possible. 

Those men who worked for the queen were all the same. They offered you a deal 
with the 
promise to let you go afterwards - a promise which most of them never kept. 
Irina had read the 
newest lines by the queen. Rebels had to be brought to prison without exception. 
So, if Jack 
Bristow wanted to catch and arrest her friends, he would certainly not achieve 
that by her help. 
On the contrary, she would make it pretty clear to him how much she respected 
the queen’s 
orders. 

Suddenly, her sister Katya, who had always known how to get out of dangerous 
situations, 
came to her mind. Although her radical methods were not at all appreciated by 
Irina, they were 
most of the time very effective. She needed to send a message to Katya somehow, 
but for that 
purpose she had to get out of this room. 

For now, Jack Bristow thought that she was the only person in this household 
involved with 
rebels and smugglers. It had to stay like that. She would have to flee. Maybe 
she could stay at 
the house of one of the peasants near the coast for one or two days... then she 
could probably 
get over the border to Scotland. She still had many friends in Scotland who, she 
knew, would 
support her against the English law. 

In the evening when she heard the sound of the key in the lock, she was prepared 
to defend her 
freedom. 

Before Jack knew what was happening, Irina pounced on him. Her fist hit him hard 
in the face 
and he stumbled back. His obvious surprise giving her the momentary advantage 
she had 
counted on. 

Within a few seconds he found himself on the ground. His initial consternation 
had faded, and 
despite Irina’s strength, it didn’t take him much of an effort to free from her 
grip. She struggled 
against him, unwilling to accept that he was stronger than her. 

“Irina... wait!” 

She ignored his yell and smashed her fist into his stomach. The pain and the 
feeling of not 
being able to breathe made him aggressive, and so he just grabbed her and threw 
her against 
the wall. She cried out in a mixture of pain and rage, but didn’t waste a single 
second. Almost 
immediately, she resumed her beatings until Jack went to the ground all of a 
sudden. Breathing 
heavily, Irina stared at him then looked up and found Elena standing opposite to 
her, a skillet in 
her hand. 

“Are you insane?” Irina yelled angrily and got to her knees to feel the pulse of 
the unconscious 
man. He didn’t move, but his pulse was regular. She sighed totally relieved, and 
for a moment it 
occurred to her that her relief was founded on more than just the fear of having 
murdered a 
man. “This is the queen’s head of security, one of the most important men in the 
kingdom. The 
least we need now is to be charged with murder! And besides I didn’t want you or 
Maggie 
involved. I wanted to escape!”

“We are not involved. He didn’t see me.” Elena simply stated and looked at 
Maggie who now 
entered the room, her face growing pale when she saw the unconscious man on the 
ground.

“Oh my god, is he...” she started under her breath and Irina hurried to calm her 
down.

“No, he is unconscious, but he is alive – which is a miracle given the fact that 
my little sister 
used your skillet.” Irina replied, still angry. Elena pulled a face at her 
sister. Irina shook her head 
and got up without reacting. Sometimes Elena was worse than a child, and being 
the woman of 
almost thirty years that she was, pulling faces was beneath her.

“Fine. I will be gone... don’t search for me and don’t give him any names! It is 
most likely that he 
will have the house and all of you observed. I’ll try to contact Katya and meet 
her halfway to 
London.” Again, she looked down at Jack and couldn’t resist touching his cheek. 
He was 
handsome – in fact he was the most attractive man she had ever seen in her whole 
life. If he 
had just not been one of the queen’s counselors... hastily she forced back those 
thoughts. 
There were more important things to do than thinking of a man. That was what the 
ladies at 
court did, but she was different. She had always been different and she would 
not turn into one 
of those emotional, ridiculous chicks.

“Oh, and something else...” Irina looked up at Elena. “You will let him go when 
he wakes up. 
Don’t hurt him or lock him up. Just let him go, otherwise the two of us will 
have a serious 
problem when I'm back...”

With these words she got up and left the room without paying any more attention 
to the 
unconscious man. She had to be very careful. Jack Bristow was her enemy and she 
shouldn’t 
even feel sorry for him...

Part 4 – Promise

The sound of fists slamming against wood resounded in the whole house. 

“Miss Elena, what are you doing?” Maggie yelled angrily, finding the lady 
sitting on the ground in 
front of the door reading a book as if nothing was wrong. “Did you lock him up?”

“Yep,” Elena nodded without looking up. “I’m teaching that bastard a lesson 
about messing with 
the Derevko sisters.”

“If you do not open the door at once I will teach you a lesson about not 
listening to your sister’s 
orders!” Maggie took the key out of her hand, her eyes not hiding how angry she 
was. She had 
always been like a mother for the three girls, but mostly for Elena, who had 
never known her 
birth mother. Since their father had died, Elena, who had only been fourteen 
years old, had 
been raised only by Maggie and her elder sisters. Despite her status as maid, 
Maggie had 
always been a person Elena knew to have respect for. 

The maid opened the door and found herself opposite to Jack Bristow who was 
raging with fury. 
“Sir, I’m terribly sorry. That wasn’t supposed to happen!” she hurried to 
assure.

“No, it wasn’t...” Jack growled, holding his head. Elena got up, her expression 
not even showing 
a hint of fear or respect. When Jack saw her, the fury returned to his eyes and 
he took a step 
towards her. Panicked, Maggie stepped between him and Elena.

“Sir, she didn’t mean it! Lady Elena is just... she’s a little stubborn 
sometimes and acted against 
her sister’s orders. But she didn’t mean to insult you.” She said sharply with 
an angry glance at 
Elena from the side.

“Oh, that’s where you are wrong, Mag.” Elena stated friendly, her voice not 
hiding the sarcasm 
as she now turned her eyes back to Jack. “Hope that was enough for you to know, 
that we can 
bring you a lot of troubles, Bristow!” she said coldly. “So if you want some 
good advice, return to 
your precious queen and leave us alone!”

“Miss Elena, shut your cheeky mouth and get to your room!” Maggie’s voice was 
shrill with panic 
and Jack’s eyes narrowed when Elena didn’t move. Then he decided that the woman 
was not 
worth any effort. He could, of course, have her arrested, but that would just 
raise unwanted 
questions. For now he was more interested in her beautiful older sister. For a 
moment he 
wondered why he was so fixed on Irina – especially after what he had learned 
about her family. 
She seemed to be the more reasonable one of the two sisters. If he wanted to 
arrest somebody, 
he should probably rather arrest Elena. He forced that thought away.

“Where is Irina?”

“For you, she is Lady Derevko!” Elena replied and sat back down in her chair, 
her eyes turned 
back on the book.

“Shut up and just answer my question!” Jack replied, knowing that it was 
absolutely insulting to 
cut a lady off, but at the moment he didn’t care. 

“She’s gone...” Elena simply replied. “And you should leave too. You are no 
longer accepted as 
guest of this house – actually, you’ve never been. Feel free to get some food 
from the kitchen 
personnel for your journey back.”

Words said, the young woman got up and passed him by, expecting him to follow 
her. Jack 
shook his head and looked at Maggie. The old woman held his eyes thoughtfully. 
She had, of 
course, noticed the tender gesture in which Irina had touched the man’s cheek 
and she had 
seen the gleam in his eyes when he was talking to her. Something inside her told 
her that he 
could be trusted, although she didn’t know where this feeling came from. She 
grabbed his 
hands. 

“You seem to be a righteous man. Please, find Irina. I’m afraid she’s going to 
do something 
stupid, and she’s all alone out there now.”

“I’m pretty sure your lady can take care of herself. You know that I’m going to 
arrest her if I find 
her?”

“If you had wanted to do so, she would already be in prison.” Maggie replied 
with unsurpassed 
astuteness. “And besides, the men Irina is going to contact are more dangerous 
than you. I’m 
so afraid they are going to kill her if they learn that her cover has been 
blown. She trusts them to 
hide her, but I think they will let her down.”

Jack saw that the eyes of the woman started to fill with tears. 

“Sometimes Miss Irina is stubborn, but she’s a very nice and charming woman, 
even if you 
won’t believe me now. She doesn’t deserve to be tortured and killed by these 
men. I don’t have 
time to explain everything to you. Just promise me that you will follow her and 
make sure that 
she will be alright. Please...”

Jack just stared at her, unable to believe what the old woman asked of him. 
“You’re asking me 
to go after your lady, protect her and bring her back safely? You’re going to 
betray her?”

“No, I’m trying to save her life! She and her sisters are so blinded by their 
ideals that they don’t 
see what the men they trust are able to do. You have to promise me that nothing 
is going to 
happen to her... then I will tell you where she went.” Maggie grabbed his hands. 
“Please.”

For a long time neither of them spoke a word, then Jack nodded. “Fine. I will 
follow her and 
make sure that she will be alright. I will return her here safely, but I can’t 
guarantee what 
happens afterwards. I don’t know how deep she’s involved with the 
revolutionists.”

Maggie swallowed hard and looked at the staircase when Elena yelled for them 
from 
downstairs. Then she made her decision. She had seen the look in Irina’s eyes 
when she had 
touched this man’s cheek and she knew that Jack had wanted to give Irina a 
chance to spare 
her from prison. He wouldn’t have done that if he didn’t like her. Finally 
deciding that it was 
worth a try, she started to speak.

“The leader of the group is a man called Gerard Cuvee. I don’t know him, he was 
just here 
once. He’s why I’m worried about Irina. She works for his section, usually she 
just does some 
spying and gets information since a woman doesn’t raise suspicion. But what 
worries me is the 
unlimited obedience he demands. He won’t accept failure and he doesn’t accept 
betrayal. Irina 
once told me that he shot a man in front of her eyes because he hadn’t gotten 
the information 
they needed.” When Jack wanted to ask something, Maggie hushed him with a 
gesture. “We 
don’t have time. The group consists of about twenty people, I think. Their 
headquarters are 
somewhere near the coast... oh, and before you ask, yes, they are also 
smugglers. Irina wants 
to go there, and then, in three days, meet her sister who is staying in London 
at the moment. 
Now, I’ve told you everything I know... hopefully it’s enough for you to save 
her life. And maybe 
it will be enough to keep Irina out of this...”

“I can’t promise you that Irina will be kept out of everything.” Jack replied 
truthfully, then pressed 
Maggie’s hands. “But I do promise that I will give my best to prevent her from 
being officially 
involved.”

“Thank you...” Maggie smiled. “Go to Hampshire... it’s a small village near the 
coast.”

“I will, thank you...”

Jack hurried to leave the house, followed by the dark glances of lady Elena. He 
wondered what 
he was doing here. Lady Irina Derevko was a terrorist. He had offered her a deal 
to save 
herself, she had refused – instead she had admitted that she will do everything 
to kill the queen. 
He should be glad if her own terrorist friends killed her. 

Yet, there was something inside him that didn’t want her dead. The same feeling 
that had 
caused him to warn her two nights ago that she was going into a trap. He just 
wasn’t able to 
resist her charm and beauty. She was unlike any other woman he had ever known, 
courageous 
and elegant and very honest in what she said. She didn’t lie just to prevent 
herself from trouble 
or please somebody. Something about her made him want to get to know her better 
– even 
more, to kiss her like he had done that night. 

Did she still remember his kiss?

If he thought the whole thing over, it had already been a mistake to come here 
on his own. He 
had not told his soldiers the name of the woman they were to search for. 
Instead, he had 
pretended to not know anything about her. From a logical point he had to admit 
that the way he 
had acted was the one of a fool.




Part 5 – Someone to watch over me

The woman went nervously up and down within a range of ten meters on the beach. 
She didn’t 
care about the waves that soaked the bottom of her dress. When the wind grew 
stronger she 
pulled her cape closer around her body to shield herself from the icy wind from 
the east. 

Finally she heard voices grow louder. She turned and ran towards the small group 
of three men 
who were heading towards her.

“Gerard... I’m so glad you came!” Irina smiled at him, but he returned her gaze 
strict and 
reserved. They had shared a bed more than once and he couldn’t deny that Irina 
was a very 
beautiful and sensual woman, yet now she had become worthless to him. Her cover 
was blown 
and she was more of a danger than of good use. 

“Irina...” he simply replied. 

“Please, I need a place to hide because...”

“I know!” he cut her off harshly. “One of my men told me the story. You’ve been 
careless. Irina, 
we’ve talked about this more than once! I don’t need careless people in my 
team.”

“Sure, it was a mistake, but I promise you, something like that will never 
happen again.” She 
noticed the two men who stepped to her sides and started to get a little 
nervous. “Gerard, you 
know I would never willingly betray you, don’t you?”

“Yes...” he replied and turned away. “Yet suddenly the highest counselor at 
court knows your 
name – even more, he knows where you live. It’s only a question of time until he 
knows who 
else has been in contact with you over the past years. Maybe he even followed 
you here!”

“No, nobody followed...” she cut herself off when the men behind her now took 
her arms and 
tried to bend them to her back. 

“Gerard...” Irina said sharply, but couldn’t hide the hint of panic in her voice 
as she started to 
struggle against the men’s grips. “Don’t touch me... what are they doing?”

“Irina, I’m sorry, but you could ruin everything. You’re the connection which 
could lead the 
queen’s army to us. You have to disappear.”

“Yes... I know. I could go north and...”

“That would be an option if there was a chance that we could use you again 
someday. No, I 
prefer to take a nice ride on the boat with you. And, unfortunately, you fall 
into the cold water. Of 
course you are alone on the boat, so nobody will be there to help you. It is an 
accident, nobody 
will ever know.”

“Wait...” Irina started to yell and struggle in panic but the men held her 
mercilessly while they 
tied her hands and feet. “Gerard... I thought we were friends... even more.” 

“We were...” he said. “At least kind of.” He went towards her and touched her 
chin almost 
tenderly. Her dark eyes filled with tears and he formed out the shape of her 
beautiful face with 
his fingers. 

Suddenly loud voices drew his interest away from Irina and he looked at the 
three of his men 
tasked to watch out for strangers. They had a fourth man in their midst who 
struggled against 
being held. Irina gasped for air – Jack Bristow. He had somehow managed to find 
her here! 

“Who is that? What’s he doing here?”

“Gerard, this is Lord Bristow. I know him, he was my superior once!” One of the 
men reported. 
Jack knew him, he had once been a lower ranked officer of his army, but then one 
day 
disappeared. 

“Now, how interesting. See, Irina, your friend is here. That is what you call 
not being followed? 
Or did you lead him here? Well, however, at least you won’t have to die alone 
now.”

“You will regret this...” Jack cursed, temporarily surrendering to the men’s 
grip. 

“Gerard, please...” Irina whispered. “I did not betray you – I never would.”

“Then how come he is here?”

“I have no idea!” Irina replied. “Honestly! I don’t know!”

“I’m here, to save this Lady’s life.” Jack replied neutrally. “Her family was 
scared for her since 
they obviously knew your methods.”

Gerard laughed ironically and even in the pale light of the moon his eyes 
gleamed dangerously. 
Jack really wondered how Irina had survived that long being in contact with a 
man like him. 

“And why would an English soldier be interested in saving the life of a 
terrorist if she’s not 
working for him?” Gerard’s voice was cold and showed that he didn’t believe one 
single word 
Jack had said. Jack’s mind worked rationally and fast. He was used to situations 
like this and so 
he did the only logical thing to do, although, he knew Irina would probably kill 
him for this.

“That’s because Irina and I are engaged.”

“Engaged?” Gerard turned to him and approached him slowly. Irina’s eyes locked 
with Jack’s in 
disbelief. She had been able to prevent herself from asking the same question as 
Gerard in the 
last second. “Really? Then how come you are the one she ran away from?”

“Things went wrong! Irina and I have known each other for quite some time. I am 
on your side. I 
sometimes gave her information. But three nights ago things didn’t go as 
planned. I thought we 
would meet an unimportant contact, instead it was her...”

Gerard looked from Jack to Irina, back at Jack and then back to Irina. He 
couldn’t believe his 
own ears. 

“Is that true?”

“Yes, yes it is!” Irina said, hoping that her voice didn’t tremble as her body 
did. 

Gerard turned back to Jack and shook his head. “This doesn’t make sense. Why 
should you 
search for her if she was your fiancée? My spy told me you asked for her in the 
city.”

“I had to! Otherwise, I would have risen suspicion within my group of soldiers. 
I told Irina to 
leave her house for a few days and hide somewhere here, because I trusted you to 
help her. 
When her maid told me that you had probably already heard the wrong version of 
the story from 
one of your own men, she advised me to go after you.” Bristow’s words made 
sense, Gerard 
admitted silently, still he wasn’t completely convinced. 

“So you’ve been Irina’s secret contact?”

When Jack nodded, Gerard turned around and touched Irina’s cheek. “Why didn’t 
you tell me 
that you got engaged? I thought, we were friends.”

“Well... considering the last five minutes and what you were planning to do with 
me I am not 
sure we are.” Irina replied, slowly regaining her old self-confidence and 
coolness. 

Gerard turned and shook his head. “Fine, I will believe your story under one 
condition. You have 
to prove what you said is true.”

“How?” Jack asked.

“Well...” Gerard thought for a minute, then his face lightened up. “You told me 
you two are 
engaged. If that’s true, I’m sure neither of you would mind getting married 
tonight, right?”

Since he was scanning Jack’s reaction he missed the panicked gasp Irina took. 
Jack was 
absolutely cool. “Of course not.” He replied. “We wanted to marry before winter 
anyway.” He 
ignored the absolutely murderous look he caught from Irina.

“Fine... then be my guest for the next hour while I go to wake the preacher to 
wed you. As soon 
as you’re married, I can be sure of your loyalty towards us and you will be free 
to go wherever 
you want to.” He turned to his guards. “You can let go of them now, but still 
keep an eye on 
them.”

Irina felt as if it had been the better option to be drowned in the sea. Her 
stomach started to 
revolt and it took all her mental strength to maintain her composure. 

After she had been freed from the ropes that were tying her, the men let her go 
and Jack pulled 
her into his arms before she knew what was happening. “It’s okay, darling,” he 
said softly and 
his eyes told her to just play the game. 

When they were walking to the small house on the coast, Jack bent to Irina’s ear 
which looked 
like a sweet caress. 

“Just play the game. It will save our lives.” He hissed and she looked at him 
darkly. 

“Go to hell.” She hissed back, her rage hidden behind a tender expression on her 
face. 

Almost one hour later she was standing with Jack in front of a preacher, who had 
quickly thrown 
over his dark cape. She felt as if she was in a nightmare and if their lives 
hadn’t depended on it, 
she'd have just laughed at the ridiculousness of the situation. 

The ceremony didn’t last more than ten minutes. Irina wondered if there had ever 
been words 
which had been harder for her to speak than the words she had to say now. 

“Lady Irina Laura Derevko, do you take this man as your lovely wedded husband in 
good and 
bad times?”

Irina took a deep breath and swore silently, that Jack Bristow would truly 
regret this whole 
situation. “I do.” she replied and it was not the promise to forever love him, 
but a more 
dangerous one. Jack could read it in her eyes.

“Lord Jack Donahue Bristow, do you take this woman as your lovely wedded wife in 
good and 
bad times?”

“I do.” he replied neutrally. This marriage could only provoke a scandal.

“Then feel free to kiss the bride now.” The preacher smiled happily, obviously 
believing that he 
had just unified two loving hearts. 

Jack looked at the woman in front of him and it didn’t take much knowledge to 
read the warning 
in Irina’s eyes. He bent to her and touched her soft lips with his just as he 
had done several 
nights ago. He wanted to deepen the kiss, yet he knew better than to do so since 
he didn’t want 
to risk an infuriated attack of his newly wedded wife in front of the altar.

Gerard smiled satisfied and kissed Irina’s hand, then he looked at Jack. 
“Congratulations to a 
wonderful wife and to be part of our group from now on. You’re a valuable 
contact.”

They were now free to go wherever they wanted. Ten minutes later they were 
sitting on the 
horse Gerard had given to them as their wedding gift, leaving the small village. 
After they had 
brought at least fifteen miles of distance between them and the house of Gerard 
and his rebels, 
Irina finally spoke the first words after the shock of the sudden marriage. 

“Stop! Stop the horse!” she yelled and Jack stopped immediately. Irina slid down 
the horse’s 
back without any further comment and simply started to walk into the fields. The 
dawn was 
already announced by the singing of some birds. 

Jack got off the horse himself and followed the woman. “Irina!” She didn’t show 
any reaction, 
just kept walking. Finally, he grabbed her arm. “Irina, where are you going?”

She freed herself, her eyes sparkling with fury. “I am going somewhere! It’s 
none of your 
business. You saved our lives, I’m thankful. Now that everything is okay and 
none of us is in 
danger anymore, I go my way, you go yours.”

She was about to walk on, but Jack grabbed her shoulders. “Don’t be stupid!” he 
said 
impatiently. “You can’t just go away. We are married!”

“Yes, right! Thank you for that too, by the way!” Irina said and folded her 
arms. “So what? We 
married to save our lives. That doesn't mean anything. You can get an annulment 
in the next 
city. You’re the man, you don’t need me for that.”

“What do you think Gerard will assume if he learns that we separated not even 
one hour after 
we got married? I’m sure he has somebody spying on us.” 

Jack was right... Irina knew that it was only reasonable to keep up their fake-
marriage for at 
least three or four days before they separated. 

“Please...” Jack murmured. “I promise you to never ever bother you again after 
this. I won’t have 
to. I know enough now to arrest the most important people and...” Irina’s hand 
hit him 
unexpectedly as she slapped his face. He grabbed her wrist hard and pulled her 
close to him, 
but she didn’t even show a hint of fear.

“That was for your rudeness. This whole situation was your fault. If you hadn’t 
come after me...”

“You would be lying at the bottom of the ocean, dead, I think.” He hissed 
angrily, his cheek 
burning from her slap. “Do you think this marriage was my first choice? I had 
also hoped for a 
better solution to get you out. But I promised your maid to keep you safe, 
otherwise, I would just 
have let them kill you and you would be swimming with the fishes now.” A lie. 
Deep inside he 
knew that he would have saved her even if he hadn’t promised to do so to Maggie. 

“Well...” she closed the distance between their faces to look into his dark 
eyes. “Maybe I would 
have preferred death to a marriage with you.”

“Fine, I will keep that in mind for the next time you are in danger of being 
killed. But, for your 
information, I was involved too and I didn’t want to be killed.”

“Your fault. How could you be so stupid to go after me and let them catch you? I 
know the 
soldiers of the queen are not the best qualified men, but I didn’t know they 
were totally unable to 
not get caught.” 

“Lady, I don’t beat women, but you’re really close to catching a slap.” He 
warned furiously, his 
voice totally leveled. Irina simply freed herself from him and went back to the 
horse. Jack looked 
after her and closed his eyes for a moment. What was up with him? What was it 
about her that 
she tempted him so much? 

“Do you want to stay there forever? I want to sleep somewhere – a country bar if 
you want.”

Hearing her annoyed question, Jack turned and followed her. He wanted to help 
her get on the 
horse but she ignored his attempts and instead got up herself. Jack took a deep 
breath and got 
up behind her. He laid one hand around her waist and pressed her against his 
body – tighter 
than necessary to keep her from falling, but he wanted to enrage her after all 
she had said. 

After all, their situation hadn’t been his fault. She was the stupid one who had 
insisted on 
escaping and running away on her own, so if she wanted to blame somebody, she 
had to blame 
herself.  


Part 6 – Battles

The sun was already rising at the horizon when they finally reached a smaller 
village. They had 
always stayed near the coast. Jack knew that the region where Irina lived was 
searched by his 
soldiers, so he thought it better to take her to his manor for now. There they 
could talk about 
how to go on. 

Unfortunately, he had not yet told Irina about his plans and he feared that she 
would be 
outraged if he did. 

“There’s a bar in this village, I know the owner of. The woman has rooms for 
rent, so in about 
five minutes we should have a place to rest.” He announced. They hadn’t spoken 
for hours, but 
when he didn’t get an answer, he looked at the woman leaning at his shoulder and 
found her 
sleeping. 

He raised his eyebrows in surprise and pulled her closer to his body to prevent 
her from falling 
off the horse. When they reached the bar a few moments later, Jack got off the 
horse and took 
the sleeping woman into his arms. 

When she felt the movements, Irina awoke from her sleep slowly, not really 
knowing where she 
was. She protested weakly against being carried, but then her head sank back 
against Jack’s 
shoulder. 

“Good morning,” Jack greeted the woman who opened the large wooden door. 

“Jack Bristow!” she cried out happily. “I didn’t expect to see you anytime soon! 
What are you 
doing here so early with... a woman in your arms?” Her voice didn’t hide her 
surprise.

“That’s a long story. We need a room! We haven’t slept all night and I will tell 
you everything 
after I have rested for a few hours.”

“Of course, come in! I hope the lady is here voluntarily! Don’t want to be 
involved in any woman-
robbery crime. I just had a raid for smugglers last month and...”

“Chrissy!” Jack interrupted her. “I’m a high ranking officer, not a bandit.”

The woman laughed while she went up she stairs. The wood creaked under their 
feet and when 
she opened the door to a small room, it gave a loud squeak. 

“This is the only room I’ve left. If you want you can sleep in the barn...”

“Not necessary,” Jack answered. “She’s my wife.”

Irina, who slowly came to her senses, opened her eyes still half asleep. “I’m 
not his wife...” she 
murmured half-hearted.

“And she’s drunk.” Jack added friendly when Chrissy looked at him suspiciously. 
“Does this door 
have a lock?”

“Sure!” Chrissy looked at the beautiful woman and for a moment envied her. Those 
rich ladies 
were sometimes very weird creatures. She herself would have done anything for 
the chance to 
be married to Jack Bristow and that lady obviously denied. “Call me if you need 
anything else. I 
will send Bruce to take care of your horse,” she said, then she left the room 
and pulled the door 
closed behind her. 

Jack sighed and laid the woman down on the bed. Irina held her head and tried to 
fight the urge 
to drift back to sleep. Only when she felt someone pulling off her shoes, she 
succeeded. Within 
a second she was sitting upright. 

“What do you think you’re doing?”

“You don’t want to sleep with your shoes on in this bed, do you?” Jack asked. 

“No! But I can do this myself, thanks!” She pulled off her shoes and let them 
drop to the floor, 
then she fell back onto he bed and pulled the sheets over her body. 

When she was just about to fall asleep again, she felt Jack lying down next to 
her and was wide 
awake again. 

“What do you think you’re doing?” she asked sharper than before and with a 
certain amount of 
aggression in her voice. He stared at her as if she was crazy. 

“I am trying to sleep!” he explained. “And I suggest you're doing the same.”

Now for Irina all thought of sleep was gone from her mind, her rage returning 
and forcing away 
her sleepiness. “I’m not going to sleep in the same bed with you! I don’t trust 
you.” 

He moaned frustrated since obviously he couldn’t avoid having to give her an 
answer. 

“Miss Derevko, I don’t trust you either, but may I remind you – again – that I 
saved your life... 
not to mention my own! We would both be dead now. Can we discuss this after a 
few hours of 
sleep?”

“You saved my life?” Irina laughed sarcastically. “I was totally in control over 
the situation until 
you appeared."

Jack sat up in annoyance and pierced her with his eyes. “How is ‘about to be 
killed’ having 
everything under control?” 

“Gerard would have never killed me! I know him! He was bluffing!”

He stared at her for a full minute, unable to believe what he had just heard 
from her mouth, and 
wondered if she was really convinced by her own words. This woman was 
unbelievable, and for 
a split second he truly regretted having given a promise to her maid. He would 
love to just leave 
her here.

“Bluffing?” Jack asked ironically. “They had already tied you and were about to 
throw you into 
the water. Now, if you don’t want to sleep in this bed, feel free to take the 
floor. There’s enough 
free space as you can see. Good night.”

“Bastard!” she murmured and folded her arms angrily, then she sat down on the 
floor, followed 
by his amused glance. He made her angry... No, she corrected, in fact he was not 
the person 
who had caused her anger, Gerard was. For years she had done him favors, 
supplied him with 
important information from the most trustworthy contacts, even shared his bed a 
few times. And 
now she had made one little mistake and he let her down... even worse, wanted to 
get rid of her. 
And the worst of all was that her enemy had saved her life and now she was stuck 
with him.

She had never needed a man to protect her. She could handle her problems on her 
own and if 
Jack Bristow thought that she was thankful to him, he was wrong. Sure, he had 
saved her life, 
but he was also the reason for her troubles. Why couldn’t he just go away and 
leave her 
problems to her?

After a few more minutes of silence, Irina finally got up and went to the door. 

“Where are you going?” Jack asked and Irina found him looking at her. He had 
obviously not 
slept at all but had been watching her with all his attention. 

“I’m sleeping in the barn in the hay... actually that’s what you should have 
offered, but since 
you’re one of the queen’s cheap employees, I don’t expect you to know anything 
about 
behaving like a gentleman. And since you surely have duties at court, I think I 
will continue from 
here alone, so I won’t bother you anymore. If Gerard has a spy following us, I 
will explain 
everything to him. Good night!”

She turned the key and went to open the door. Before she had even realized that 
he had left the 
bed, his hand was pressed to the wood and he held the door closed. 

“You are not leaving this room!” he stated dryly and completely under control, 
yet there was a 
certain sharpness in his voice that didn’t allow any contradiction. “You will 
get over there to that 
bed and sleep. NOW!”

Irina’s eyes darkened with rage. “How dare you...” She watched open-mouthed as 
he turned the 
key. “Let me make something very clear, Mr. Bristow. You do not give me orders. 
You have no 
right to lock me up or...”

“Wrong. I had orders to arrest you, not only did you flee but also knocked me 
out. So, actually, I 
have every right to kill you at once. Now get to sleep.” There was a dangerous 
tone in his voice 
that warned her not to push him further, yet she was too furious to just accept 
being given 
orders by one of the queen’s employees. 

“I will! In the barn!” She unlocked the door again and pushed him away. Before 
she could even 
open it, he had grabbed her and carried her to the bed. 

“I've had enough of your damned stubbornness!” he hissed. 

Irina started to struggle against him when he threw her onto the bed. She yelled 
some curses 
into his face, trying to prevent him from grabbing her hands. Panic rose in her. 
Maybe she had 
tempted him too much. She cried out in a mixture of fear and rage, wanting to 
catch the 
attention of the landlady. He tried to prevent her from doing so by covering her 
mouth with his 
hand, wanting to tell her that nothing would happen to her if she calmed down 
and stopped her 
insanity. But before he could do so, her free hand hit his face in a punch that 
made him dizzy. 
Their fight continued for two more minutes, and ended when Jack finally managed 
to close an 
iron cuff around Irina’s left wrist. She pushed at his chest and tried to kick 
him away with her 
legs until he finally managed to catch her free hand and pin her to the bed with 
his weight. 

When he felt her body tremble and saw the tears standing in her eyes, he 
suddenly felt sorry for 
his harsh methods. 

“I apologize if I hurt you...” His hand touched her cheek and his eyes scanned 
hers, then 
wandered lower to her moist red lips. His thumb brushed over them and formed 
them out before 
he suddenly realized what he was doing. He sat up to bring distance between him 
and her. For 
a moment he stared at her breathlessly while he felt some scratches at his 
cheek. He hissed in 
pain, his rage returning when he felt his hurting eye where her fist had hit 
him.

Irina looked in disbelief at her left hand that was shackled to the bed. She 
tried to open it with 
her free hand and when she didn’t succeed, she started to pull at the chain in 
despair, letting out 
frustrated cries when she failed. Jack held up the key for the cuff and with an 
infuriated cry, Irina 
tried to grab for it, but Jack was out of her reach.

“Give me that key, you damned son of a b****...” she cursed, while she continued 
pulling at the 
chain. She ignored the pain that originated in her wrist when the hard metal 
rubbed over her 
delicate skin. She hated being locked... and even more she hated being chained. 

“I won’t, otherwise you will run away tonight.” He explained and didn’t look at 
her once more, but 
got up from the bed and took a woolen blanket from a table. 

“Bristow...” Irina’s voice showed anger, but also insecurity. When she saw him 
head to the door, 
she stared at him. “Where are you going?”

“To the barn. I see that I won’t get any sleep here anyway, since I have to 
expect that you'll kill 
me once I close my eyes.” He looked at her and she still saw anger standing in 
his face, but 
also regret... “Good night. You have this room for yourself now, lady... just as 
you wanted.” With 
these words he opened the door and left the room. 

“Hey! Wait!!!” Irina yelled and pulled at her chain. “Bristow!!! You can’t just 
leave me here... 
damn it! Move your butt back in here!” 

But he didn’t even react. He locked the door from the outside, then she heard 
him leave. She 
continued yelling for him, mixed with the worst curses and promises about what 
would happen 
to him when he returned until loud knocks could be heard through the wall mixed 
with the angry 
voice of a man. 

“HEY! Stop the noise! There are people trying to sleep here!”

Irina sank down onto the bed, her eyes filling with tears – tears of rage. Rage 
about being 
unable to get free. With a furious cry she threw one of the cushions against the 
wall at the other 
side of the room from which the strange man’s voice had come. Then she let her 
head sink to 
the bed in defeat. A terrible headache told her that it was time for her to get 
a little sleep and her 
exhaustion finally forced her to give in to the need to close her eyes. 

Only for a few moments, she told herself, and only seconds later she was asleep. 



Part 7 – Dreams

Jack was sitting at the small counter, staring into his glass while Chrissy 
prepared to open the 
bar for the first customers. One of her helpers, a young woman, had already 
arrived and 
rearranged the chairs and tables in the main room. 

“She is a little hot tempered, isn’t she?”

“What?” Jack looked up at his friend and Chrissy grinned. 

“Your wife. Not that easygoing.”

“No, she’s... she had a tough day.” Jack explained and wondered, why he even 
tried to defend 
Irina. He felt bad. Not only had he hurt her, he had also chained her to her 
bed. No lady 
deserved to be treated like that. He swallowed the remains in his glass at once 
and slammed it 
to the table. Why did he feel bad? This woman was not only unthankful, but also 
rude, stubborn, 
traitorous and a liar. She was a criminal and technically she was his prisoner. 
He should already 
have arrested her yesterday. A prisoner was a prisoner and he wouldn’t treat her 
better or 
worse than others. 

“Here, take another one...” Chrissy offered to fill his glass again, but Jack 
refused. 

“No, thanks. I had enough...” he murmured. “I think I will go to sleep now. I’m 
more than tired...”

He got up and was about to leave the room through the front door when he caught 
Chrissy’s 
confused glance. 

“Jack, your room is...” she started and pointed at the stairs at the other side 
of the room, but 
Jack cut her off. 

“I’m sleeping in the barn.” He announced. 

“Oh...” Chrissy said, staring at him for a long time, even forgetting about the 
glass in her hand. 
Then suddenly she seemed to remember where she was. “Fine, that’s none of my 
business.” 
She shrugged her shoulders and continued drying the glasses. 

“Damned right...” Jack murmured and left the room. He crossed the small yard to 
the barn and 
entered it. He climbed the stairs to the upper level where the hay was stored. 
When he had 
found a good place to sleep, he sank down and stared at the ceiling. Why was 
this woman 
always in his mind? He growled and forced his thoughts away from her. Listening 
to the sound 
of the horses and birds outside, he soon fell asleep. 

~~~~~~~~~

The earth under her naked feet was cold and thorns hurt her sensitive feet when 
she stepped 
onto them in her desperate run. The forest was so dark that she couldn’t see her 
own hand and 
she screamed in fear. 

When she looked down at herself, she found herself in her night clothing. 

“Irina... go! Run...” She spun around and saw her mother surrounded by soldiers. 
She was 
unable to scream, unable to run back. Her legs didn’t seem to be her own. So she 
had to watch 
them kill her. Over and over again... it didn’t stop. She could feel her 
mother's pain as if it was 
her own.

“NO! NO, STOP!” She screamed and fell to the ground. “Stop it, please...” She 
knew this was a 
dream... she always knew – still, she wasn’t able to wake up. She had to see it 
again and again. 
She could never forget the pictures, the hate and the pain in her heart. She 
closed her eyes and 
suddenly she felt that she was no longer alone in the darkness. She felt arms 
pulling her into a 
protective embrace and when she opened her eyes, she was on a clearing, sitting 
at a fire. It 
warmed her body as well as her heart and soul. 

She smiled and enjoyed the warmth, a wonderful warmth that gave her security and 
made her 
feel comfortable. Then she turned and looked at the man who was sitting behind 
her. As if she 
had never done anything else, she kissed Jack Bristow, her eyes drowning in his. 
His hands 
pulled her against his hot body and she moaned sensually at the wonderful 
sensations his 
touches sent through her body. All her fears and memories were erased... every 
little kiss made 
her forget until she didn’t know who she was anymore. 

She pressed herself closer to him, enjoying the sweet oblivion his closeness 
gave her. She felt 
his mouth explore her body, softly caressing her breasts, then her belly. 
Closing her eyes, she 
pulled him closer. 

“Jack...” Her voice was a longing whisper. His lips went down her abdomen and 
she laid her 
head back in anticipation. 

When she opened her eyes again, the fire was too bright for her eyes to bear and 
she moaned 
painfully and wanted to say to him that they should move somewhere else, when 
she became 
aware of the wooden ceiling. 

She turned her head away from the almost blinding light of the sun that shone 
into her face and 
found that it was a bed she was lying on, not near a fire on a clearing, and the 
room was empty. 

It took Irina a few moments to realize what she had dreamed. Then she sat up so 
abruptly that 
she cried out in pain, since she forgot about her still cuffed wrist. 

“Oh god...” she murmured, firstly because of her hurting wrist, secondly because 
of the dream 
that now got into her conscious mind. And thirdly – which was probably worst of 
all – due to the 
realization how much that dream had aroused her – even more, how much she wished 
that it 
had not been just a dream. 

She turned a little to be able to reach the cuff, then she pulled at the iron 
with all her strength 
until tears started to fill her eyes, and she thought she would rip off her own 
hand. She slammed 
her fists against the wall behind her and didn’t care about the hurt in her arm. 
She wanted to 
punish herself for her dream. She hated herself for dreaming about Jack. He was 
an enemy, a 
soldier of the queen. He was a bastard, such as the men who had killed her 
mother had been. 
They were worse than any rebel would ever be. The queen’s soldiers didn’t know 
anything 
about honor and dignity. 

Her rage returned, filling the deep void inside her that her thoughts had left. 
Rage she had felt 
all her life. 

When she heard the key turn in the lock, she was fully under control of herself 
again. Jack 
entered the room and found her leaning against the wall. He closed the door 
behind him and 
approached the bed slowly. Their eyes were locked in a silent challenge although 
neither of 
them had said a word yet. 

“How long did I sleep?” Irina finally asked emotionless and Jack looked out of 
the window. 

“It’s afternoon, so I assume about six or seven hours.” He sat down on the bed 
and opened the 
chain around her wrist. She didn’t move her arm when it was free, just looked at 
the man in front 
of her. Jack took her hand and looked shocked at her wounded skin. 

“For heaven’s sake, what did you do?”

“Nothing...” Irina murmured and pulled her hand out of his to look at her skin 
which was grazed 
by the iron chain. Only now she noticed that she was bleeding. “This is 
nothing... I was angry...” 
she finally explained and looked at Jack again. “...at you. I swear, I want to 
kill you.” 

“Yes, I expected that.” He said and got up. He searched in his bag and finally 
found what he 
was looking for. He went back to the bed and opened a small box. “Give me your 
hand,” he 
ordered and when she didn’t react, he took her hand. 

“I don’t need your help!” Irina hissed and wanted to pull away from his touch 
but he held her 
arm. 

“Shut up,” he said sharply, but also with a certain softness. “You’re the most 
stubborn woman I 
have ever met. How could you hurt yourself that much?”

He pulled a bottle out of his box and opened it. “This might hurt a little, but 
I have to treat this.” 
Before she could contradict, he soaked a clean towel with the liquid and laid it 
to her wound. 
Irina almost screamed, and pulled away her hand. 

“Are you insane?” she burst out and Jack grabbed her hand back. 

“I wouldn’t have to do this if you hadn’t been acting stubborn!”

“And I wouldn’t have had to do that if you hadn’t chained me and then left.” She 
countered 
furiously and bit her teeth when he continued cleaning her wound with the 
alcohol. 

“I wouldn’t need to chain you if you just started to act reasonable and stopped 
attacking me or 
trying to run away!” he murmured and finished his work by laying some leaves to 
the wound and 
binding a thin white strap of cloth around her wrist. “It should be okay again 
in a few days.” He 
then murmured and got up. “Now get dressed. I want to leave this village before 
the sun goes 
down.”

“Where are we going?” Irina asked and held her hurting wrist, feeling too proud 
to show her 
pain. 

“I decided that it would be best to take you to my manor. We’ll be safe there 
and can decide 
about how to go on.”

“No...” Irina got up. “No, I have to go to London and I will.”

“London?” Jack asked and looked at her. “I don’t think...”

“I have to go to London! I swear to you, Mr. Bristow, no matter how many chains 
you use, I will 
always try to run away until I am in London.”

He stood up slowly, his eyes scanning her thoughtfully but also suspiciously. 
“Why do you want 
to go there so badly? Are you planning an attack?”

“No!” Irina replied truthfully. “I can’t tell you... it’s personal! But I swear 
it has nothing to do with 
killing or attacking anybody.” She held his eyes for a long time and finally he 
nodded. 

“Fine, here’s the deal. We will go to London. After everything is done there, 
you’ll accompany 
me to my house where we will talk and decide about how to go on and then get an 
annulment 
for the marriage. This is under one condition. You have to promise me to not try 
to run away.”

“I won’t run away.” Irina assured, but Jack didn’t let it go. 

“Swear.” He demanded and Irina looked at him for a long time. She had never 
broken a 
promise. If she swore, she meant it. But she couldn’t tell him that she planned 
to meet her sister 
and then return to her house. Promises had always been somewhat sacred to her, 
so how could 
she make a promise if she knew she couldn’t keep it? 

“I promise.” She finally murmured and for a moment she felt guilty. Then she 
wondered why she 
even bothered. A promise given to an English soldier – worse, one of the highest 
ranking 
officers of the queen was worthless and merely a means to an end. 

Jack was silent for a long time, obviously measuring how trustworthy her promise 
was. Then he 
finally nodded. “Okay. I will take you to London. If you get ready, we can leave 
as soon as 
possible. It should take us about three days to get there.”


Part 8 – Whispers of the heart

Heavens seemed to have opened. Cold rain poured down at the muddy ground, 
accompanied 
by an uncomfortably icy breeze. 

Irina, who was sitting behind Jack on the horse, pressed her trembling body to 
his and tried to 
pull her already soaked cape into her face to shield her skin. It didn’t work. 
The cape was too 
wet to keep her warm in any way. 

She pressed her cheek to Jack’s shoulder and felt that he took her hand into his 
and rubbed it to 
warm her up. 

“We can’t go on in this storm!” he said loudly. Despite the fact that she was so 
close to him, she 
had problems understanding his words. The loud rumbling of thunder could be 
heard in the 
distance, soon followed by the crashing sound of lightning. 

“What do you suggest? Camping under a tree?”

“No, that’s too dangerous. We have to find a barn. The next village is still 
miles away and I can’t 
make the horse go fast when we can’t see anything through the rain.” He replied. 
“Do you think 
you can go on for another five minutes?”

“Would it make a difference if I said no?” Irina asked back and he laughed.

“No, since there is no barn here...”

“Then don’t ask...” Irina replied. They kept silent and now both looked out for 
a barn. Being so 
close to the open sea, the thunderstorm had soon reached them. 

Irina had never been afraid of lightning or thunder, but now she felt more than 
uncomfortable. 
Especially when a lightning bolt hit a tree only thirty meters away from them. 
It gave a loud 
crashing, wood-splitting sound when the tree slowly bent and sank to the muddy 
earth. 

The horse whinnied, panicked, and she gasped in shock when it was about to go up 
in the air 
and start to run in blinded fear. Jack managed to calm it down at the last 
second. 

Irina closed her eyes and laid her head to Jack’s back. She couldn’t explain 
why, but somehow 
she felt safe when being close to him. Ridiculous considering the fact that Jack 
was a soldier, 
but for now she would just accept that feeling.

Another ten minutes later, she noticed that Jack had stopped the horse. She 
opened her eyes. 
They were standing in front of a large barn. 

He got off the horse and then helped Irina down. She didn’t contradict but was 
thankful for his 
supporting arms. Due to the coldness she didn’t even know anymore whether she 
still had legs 
– not to mention how to use them. Jack steadied her and scanned her with concern 
until he was 
sure she was standing safely. Then he went to the large door of the barn. 

Irina touched the horse's nose, trying softly to calm down the frightened 
animal. It nuzzled 
closer to her. Finally, Jack had managed to open the heavy wooden door. He 
looked inside and 
came out again ten seconds later. 

“It looks dry and should be okay to work as cover for the night.”

Irina set herself in motion and led the horse inside. While she moved the horse 
into a stall with 
hay, Jack closed the door behind them. After Irina had tied the horse securely 
to one of the 
wooden piles, she collected some hay to dry the horse’s fur. 

Before she could start, Jack softly took the hay out of her hand. “Go to sleep. 
I will take care of 
the horse. You’re all soaked and will catch a cold.”

“Fine...” Irina nodded, her hands rubbing her own arms to warm her up. “Thank 
you...” she 
added before she turned and went to look around for a good place. She found some 
woolen 
blankets in one of the empty stalls and took them into her arms. Then she 
climbed up a small 
ladder and found herself in a hayloft. It was almost warm and she turned to look 
down. 

“It’s warmer up here!” she announced and laid one of the blankets to the hay. 
Then she pulled 
off her soaked cape. The dress followed until she was standing in her 
undergarment – a white, 
thin dress. She stretched to hang the soaked pieces of clothing onto one of the 
wooden beams. 

Then she let herself sink to the blanket and snuggled herself into a second one. 
Her body was 
trembling and she was actually afraid of catching a cold. In weather like this 
it was easy to get 
sick and she remembered one winter when she and Katya had both been ill. They 
had laid in 
their bed with a cold for almost three weeks, both suffering from fever. She 
knew, in these days 
one could easily die from an illness.

When Jack had climbed up the ladder, he found her shivering in the hay. He went 
to his knees 
next to her and handed her a small bottle. 

“Here, this is going to warm you up.” 

She looked at the liquid inside, then she took a huge sip – one second later 
Jack was seriously 
afraid that she would choke at the coughing attack that followed. He helped her 
to sit up and 
shook his head.

“I didn’t say you should drink the whole content at once!” His voice showed a 
hint of 
amusement. “This is high percent alcohol, so be careful.”

Irina looked at him. “Shut up...” she managed to say under her breath. “This 
stuff is awful... and I 
don’t even feel a little warmer!” She took another sip, this time more careful, 
then handed the 
bottle back at Jack to pull the blanket up to her neck. “How long do you think 
this storm is going 
to last?”

The sound of rolling thunder seemed frighteningly close and through the small 
space between 
the wooden beams she could see the lightning outside. 

“I don’t know.” He replied and Irina turned away when he started to pull all of 
his soaked clothes 
off. She sank back to the hay and looked through the small spaces into the dark 
night outside, 
hoping that her body would stop trembling anytime soon. It didn’t. Instead she 
felt colder every 
minute. Finally, she looked up and found Jack lying ten meters away on his 
blanket. 

“Could I get some more of that drink?” she asked and he lifted a little to look 
at her, then threw 
the bottle at her. She caught it and took a huge sip. Jack saw the bottle 
trembling in her hand 
and raised his eyebrows. 

“You should pull your soaked undergarment off. It’s gonna keep you cold and all 
soaked.” He 
advised and Irina laughed sarcastically. 

“No way!” She knew he was right, but she would not fully undress when she was 
lying in a barn 
with a man she hated. Men were all the same when they were lying ten meters away 
from a 
naked woman.

“Don’t be a fool. You know I’m right!” Jack stated dryly, then laid back. “Fine, 
it’s your choice.”

Irina laid back and hugged herself with her arms, trying to keep herself warm. 
She took a sip of 
the drink, then another until her stomach seemed to revolt. She was hungry and 
too much of 
that alcohol was probably not the best idea, but at the moment she wished for 
nothing but that 
her body would stop trembling. She threw the bottle back at Jack, who took a 
mouthful himself 
then laid back. Thoughtfully, he stared at the ceiling for a long time wondering 
why he felt so 
comfortable. 

Usually he didn’t feel comfortable when he was with a woman. They were annoying 
and b*tchy, 
and most of the things they told weren’t true. They talked without brains just 
to please a man. 
He had always hated that. He didn’t want a robot who just repeated his opinion. 
If he talked to 
somebody, he needed the other person to have their own opinion.

Irina was not like those women... she was more - he searched for an appropriate 
word - manly - 
in her behavior, yet so female on the other hand that she attracted him more 
than any other 
woman had ever done.

He remembered the day. Before it had started to rain he had only spoken a few 
sentences with 
Irina, but one thing he certainly knew, was that she would never lie to him just 
to please him. 

Well, she would lie just to annoy me, betray me, and keep secrets from me, he 
thought bitterly, 
but anyway it was refreshing compared to the women at court. 

His eyes went again to the woman who was lying ten meters away, and he found her 
still 
shivering. With a deep sigh he finally got up and crossed the distance between 
them. 

“Okay, sit up?”

“What?” Irina asked and sat up when she heard his movement. He was always 
surprised by her 
fast reactions. Obviously she was used to defending herself. He wondered what 
had happened 
to her that she was so used to having to defend herself.

“Pull off that damned dress now! I don’t want to get to London with a dead 
person.”

“I’m not pulling my dress off.” Irina contradicted loudly and with a certain 
sharpness in her voice. 
She pulled her blanket higher and her eyes held him challengingly. 

“Fine,” Jack nodded and folded his arms. His voice was absolutely neutral when 
he added, “You 
have two options. Either you do it yourself, or I’m doing it. I would prefer the 
last option, but I’m 
sure you disagree here. You have ten seconds to choose.”

She stared at him open-mouthed and didn’t doubt a second that he would do what 
he had 
promised. 

“Two...” he counted. Irina pulled the blanket higher. “One...”

“Fine!” Irina burst out. “But I want you to know that I’m not doing this because 
I’m afraid of your 
threat. I’m just not in the mood of killing somebody.”

“Of course,” Jack nodded amused and turned around to grant her some privacy. 
Irina pulled the 
dress over her head and then wrapped her naked body deep into the woolen blanket 
until only 
her face and feet could still be seen. 

“Ready,” she said and Jack looked at her dress, then he went to his knees and 
took her naked 
feet into his hand. They were icy. 

“What are you doing?” Irina hissed and crawled back, hiding her sudden feeling 
of vulnerability 
behind a mask of aggression. Jack held her. 

“I’m trying to warm you up and prevent your circulation from breaking down.”

“I don’t want...” she started but Jack cut her off before she was even able to 
finish.

“And I don’t want you to become ill.”

Irina surrendered to his touch since he wouldn’t discuss the subject any 
further. Slowly, she 
relaxed and laid back a little. Her head was spinning slightly and she felt 
light-headed – a state 
of mind in which she didn’t want to fight or discuss. His hands were warm at her 
feet and soon 
her skin felt better and didn’t hurt so much anymore. She wished he would extend 
those 
touches to her whole body. 

Not aware that her wish was reflected in her eyes, she just stared at him and he 
held her gaze 
for a long time before he slowly moved his hands higher to her leg. She shivered 
– he couldn’t 
define whether it was caused by his touches or her coldness – and smiled softly. 

He felt a little light-headed himself, otherwise he would have listened to the 
voice inside that told 
him that the alcohol had those effects on her – and him – and that it was best 
to not move this 
any further. He didn’t listen, but he pulled his hands away from her leg and 
moved up her body, 
slowly reducing the distance between their faces. 

“You know how I could warm you the best?” His voice was hoarse from desire and 
she smiled 
warmly. Had he always looked so damned cute?

“I have an idea...” she replied and framed his face with her hands. Her fingers 
stroked his 
cheek, then her thumb brushed over his lips. Unconsciously she let her tongue 
moisten her own 
lip when the vivid image of kissing him occurred to her mind. Jack stared at 
her, unable to turn 
his head away from this erotic gesture. He moved closer. 

The blanket around her body slid down a little and revealed the silky skin of 
her shoulder and 
parts of her cleavage. She didn’t care, she just stared at him. 

“Let me keep you warm...” he whispered, touching her bare shoulder. Irina closed 
her eyes for a 
moment. There was a voice inside her that screamed that this was wrong, that she 
hated him 
and would truly regret this in the morning. Yet, his closeness and the promise 
of feeling him 
even closer was so seducing that she couldn’t think rationally. In an 
incomprehensive way she 
felt attracted to him... which made her want to run away at the same time.

“I hate you...” she stated lowly and the way she said it would have been more 
fitting of a 
declaration of love. Jack chuckled slightly, never losing her eyes. 

“I’m not so fond of you, either.” He replied playfully, using the same hint of 
tenderness she had 
used. He wanted to give her the possibility to retire and give him a sign to not 
move any further. 
She didn’t - instead she reduced the distance between their faces even more.

“This doesn’t mean anything...” she continued.

“Of course not. It’s just to keep you warm...” he assured tenderly and stared 
into her eyes – the 
most beautiful eyes he had ever seen. Then suddenly his lips crashed on hers, 
devouring them 
in an almost harsh exploration. Irina met his mouth with the same passion and 
for a moment 
they fought a silent battle for control, until she finally surrendered to him 
and fell back into the 
hay, pulling him over her but never losing his lips. 

Although never been married, she had slept with men and was used to passion, but 
nothing had 
prepared her for the inferno of flames that built up in her stomach now. The 
mixture of alcohol in 
her blood and Jack’s kiss clouded all her reason. A deep moan escaped her throat 
and she 
buried her hands in Jack’s hair. 

His tongue licked at the corner of her mouth, then he sucked in her lower lip 
before he 
continued to explore her skin down her jaw and throat in short, passionate 
kisses. She laid her 
head back and closed her eyes at the feelings that he awoke inside her. Her 
blood seemed to 
turn into a flood of hot lava that set her whole body into an almost unbearable 
fire. 

When Jack pulled her blanket open, he admired her nakedness for a moment before 
he started 
to claim the newly exposed skin with his lips. Her hands roamed over his back 
and shoulders, 
desperate to feel more of his body against her. 

Finally, he broke free to discard the rest of his clothes and wrapped them both 
in the warm 
blankets on the hay. For a split second Irina asked herself what they were doing 
here, but she 
was way too lost in the anticipation of what was about to come.

Her body shuddered slightly when she felt his heat against her and she relaxed 
into the 
comfortable warmth. Her hands framed his face softly while she looked deeply 
into his eyes. 
She lifted her head a little to touch his lips with hers in what could barely be 
called a kiss – a 
silent invitation which he took without thinking. 

His hands ran down her body while he seduced her with a deep open-mouth kiss 
until she was 
writhing under his touch and gasping for oxygen. 

“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered, and for a moment he felt as if his heart 
broke. She was his 
enemy, a woman he was supposed to arrest and give away for execution. At this 
thought he 
started to kiss her more thoroughly, wanting to erase the unpleasant thoughts 
from his mind. He 
buried his head at her neck and stilled for a moment, just feeling her soft 
touches. 

She is my wife, he suddenly thought and kissed the delicate skin under her ear. 
He felt her 
shiver and was rewarded with a soft moan of hers. Irina was his wife... yet the 
marriage wasn’t 
worth anything since she wanted an annulment – and so did he, didn’t he? He 
couldn’t marry a 
terrorist, since the queen would charge him with treason and surely have him 
executed as well – 
so marriage was out of the question. But at least for tonight, they were 
married...

Jack took her hand and pinned it softly to the hay, their fingers entangling 
tenderly. She covered 
his cheek with short kisses. “Jack...” Her voice was merely a whisper, yet full 
of longing and 
tenderness. She wasn’t even aware that she had said it out loud. 

She locked her eyes with Jack’s deeply, unable to stop drowning in them. Over 
and over again 
she covered his skin with kisses, intoxicated by his scent and the taste of 
alcohol on his lips until 
he moved his head lower and sucked in one of her breasts. 

She bit her lip when he teased her ever so slowly, her hand grabbing his 
tighter. When his lips 
touched her stomach and finally laid down on her belly button she closed her 
eyes. He was 
burning a path straight to her heart with his kisses. His touches didn’t only 
warm her body, but 
also her soul – a warmth she had longed for all her life. For a moment she 
forgot about 
everything – who they were and what had been. And she felt deep inside that she 
was falling for 
him and there was nothing she could do against it. 

Jack took his time kissing every inch of her belly before he moved back up and 
touched her 
cheeks to claim her mouth again. He couldn’t get enough of her sweet lips. 
Carefully he shifted 
his body a little so he was lying in between her legs. She moaned when she felt 
his erection 
pressing into her thigh and wanted to pull him closer but he took his time 
teasing her with his 
hands and mouth until she thought she couldn’t bear it anymore. 

He made sure that she was lying comfortably before he finally entered her ever 
so softly, 
silencing her and his own moans with his lips. She moved a little to adjust to 
him and held him 
close to her body. For a long time neither of them moved, they just continued to 
caress each 
other tenderly and without hurry. 

“How can you be so gorgeous?” Irina breathed and her thumbs stroked his lips. He 
moved 
inside her slightly and she sighed, her hands wandering to his shoulders and 
clasping them. 
“God, you feel so good...” 

“So do you...” he uttered and kissed her cheek, then her earlobe, before he 
forced himself to still 
again. He didn’t want this to end so soon – he wanted it to last forever. Irina 
sighed in frustration 
when he stopped her movements with his body and hugged him closer. 

“Please... take me now.” She bit his earlobe in a playful and seductive gesture 
and he moaned 
in desire, thrusting deeper into her against his will. Her head fell back in 
need. “Don’t stop. Oh 
god...” 

He complied, fascinated by the look of her, and took possession of her exposed 
skin. When she 
wrapped her legs around his body, the walls of reason finally shattered and his 
control broke. 
He thrust into her faster and their moans mingled to the age-old song of 
passion, joined only by 
the sound of raindrops and thunder from outside the barn.

Her hands held on to his back as if he was her only hold. He touched her face 
with his hands, 
his lips only inches away from hers. He wanted her to be his, he wanted her 
heart to belong to 
him – forever, not just tonight. But he knew that this wish could never be 
fulfilled – even more, 
that wish must never be fulfilled. They were on different sides...

“Irina...” he breathed into her ear like a sweet caress and she pressed her 
cheek to his. 

“Jack... Jack!” Her voice was trembling and he felt that she was close. He 
stroked a drop of 
sweat from her slick skin and kissed her deeply, his hand running down her body 
and stroking 
her center. Her sharp cry was silenced by his lips and only heard by him. When 
she shattered in 
his arms only seconds later, crying out his name in ecstasy, he followed her 
almost immediately, 
filling her body with his life-giving essence. 

Slowly he stopped his movements, his head buried at her neck. She ran her hands 
through his 
hair, still unable to open her eyes or form any coherent thought. 

When the sound of rolling thunder finally reached her conscious mind again, she 
moved slightly 
and turned her head to look outside through one of the spaces. She felt Jack 
shift and then his 
lips on her neck and ear. 

His lips met hers immediately when she turned her head. They kissed for a long 
time, neither of 
them willing to break contact. Then, finally, they separated. 

Irina watched Jack fetching the other blankets and turned onto her belly to look 
out into the dark 
night and see the raindrops pouring down the dark wood into the barn. Her world 
was turned 
upside down. She had shared many nights with men, but no one had ever made her 
feel like he 
did. Jack Bristow touched her soul and that scared her. It was already bad 
seeing an enemy as 
your friend, but allowing him to touch your soul was your undoing.

She turned a little when she felt his body snuggling back against hers, then the 
warm covers 
around them. Jack wrapped them up in the comfortable warmth, then he laid his 
head to her 
back, her body tightly hugged to his. 

“I feel dizzy...” Irina murmured after a long time and closed her eyes as the 
room started to spin 
more and more. 

“So do I...” Jack placed a tender kiss on the back of her neck, his body still 
weary from the 
incredible experience they had just shared. 

“The whole room is spinning...” Irina murmured and now he looked up worried. He 
touched her 
forehead, then wrapped the covers closer around her body. Maybe the effects of 
the alcohol on 
her were stronger than he had thought. “You probably had a little too much 
alcohol. You should 
sleep a little.”

“No, what if robbers find us... or lightning hits the barn and...”

“Shhh...” he kissed her tenderly. “Sleep. I’m here and I won’t let anything 
happen to you.”

“Promise?” she asked sleepily and Jack chuckled. 

“Promise...” he replied and sighed deeply. For tonight he would do anything to 
protect her. But 
how could he promise to not let anything happen to her when he was supposed to 
arrest her?

Part 9 – Shadows of the Night

The first thing Irina saw when she opened her eyes was light shining through 
small spaces 
between the plates of a wooden wall. She yawned slightly and wondered where she 
was, when 
she realized that she was naked. 

“Oh my god...” she murmured, still too sleepy to really care about the absence 
of her clothes. 

“Good morning.” Jack went over to the hay-bed. 

Irina was sitting upright within a split second when she heard his voice, a 
sharp knife in her 
hand which was pointed at Jack. He jumped back, her aggressive gesture catching 
him totally 
by surprise.

“For goddamns' sake, are you insane?” he snapped and she stared at him, her 
memory of last 
night coming back in flashes. 

“Oh my god...” she said louder than before, her head starting to hurt in small 
stitches, then 
suddenly she realized that she was sitting totally naked in front of him. “OH 
GOD!” She grabbed 
for a blanket and wrapped it around her body hastily. Jack took the knife out of 
her hand. 

“Where did you get this knife from?” he asked and she pointed at her underwear, 
the shock still 
in her face.

“You’re keeping a knife in your underwear? I guess I can consider myself lucky 
to still be alive.” 
He murmured half-amused. 

“We... we had... we made... we did...” she murmured, totally put off. Her head 
started to hurt 
really bad and her world seemed to shatter. All her properly built up walls of 
reason and control 
seemed gone. She shared her bed with Jack last night. No, she corrected herself, 
she hadn’t 
just shared his bed, she had slept with him and she had enjoyed doing so. When 
she 
recollected his sweet caresses, she even wished that they could do it again. 
What was wrong 
with her? She felt vulnerable... and she hated him for that. Why, of all people, 
did she have to 
fall for an English soldier? “How could you do that?”

“Two people are needed to dance and as far as I remember, we both enjoyed it 
very much.” He 
commented, only half-listening and not really taking her serious since he was 
collecting their 
clothes from the hay.

“Bastard!” Irina suddenly hissed and at the rage in her voice he turned around 
perplexed. 

“What?”

“You damned son of a b****. Was that your plan? Giving me that damned bottle to 
make me 
drunk and then sleep with me? Using me to fulfill your needs?” she asked 
furiously and got up 
to grab her dress out of his hand. He just stared at her open-mouthed before he 
understood the 
meaning of her words.

“Irina, I did not...”

“Then you’re telling me, we did not...?” She interrupted him and her ironic 
question hung in the 
air unanswered. 

“No! We slept together, but I did not try to get you drunk! I was a little 
lightheaded myself. I told 
you not to drink too much of the alcohol, remember? And besides, I gave you more 
than one 
chance to end it! I did not use you!”

She just stared at him and remembered how he had tried to warm her up. For a 
moment she 
had really had the feeling that he cared for her. Instead, all he had searched 
for was fun. That 
was just too typical for English soldiers. A small voice inside her screamed 
that it hadn’t been 
like that. That he had even given her a chance to retreat or push him away – 
that he had not 
planned to use her situation. Yet, she needed to believe that he had wanted to 
use her, 
otherwise she wouldn’t be able to hate him. She had to hate him. He was her 
enemy...

They just stood opposite to each other, neither of them able to think about 
anything appropriate 
to say, until Jack finally turned around.

“Get dressed, I want to go on.”

“Jack... Mr. Bristow!!” she hurried to correct her use of his forename and he 
stopped. 

“Yes.”

“You’re still planning to get the annulment, aren’t you?” He could clearly hear 
the hint of panic 
from her voice when she asked him that question. A knife hitting him in the 
chest couldn’t have 
been worse. She behaved as if he was a monster and being married to him the 
worst penalty in 
the world. His face became an inscrutable mask. 

“Of course.” He stated. “It was obvious that I was not the first man you were 
with, so any claims 
of yours are not only inappropriate, but will also not be taken into 
consideration.”

Irina gasped for air. “What are you implying? That I seduced you to make this 
annulment 
impossible and force you to stay married to me?” She laughed sarcastically. 
“Certainly not. My 
only claim is to get this annulment and never see you again. And whether I 
stayed with other 
men or not is definitely none of your business.”

“Fine, then we’re at the same point.” He commented dryly and left. Irina looked 
after him, then at 
the dress in her hand, her fists clenching the material tightly. How could he be 
so arrogant to 
think that she would want to stay married to him – for any reasons whatsoever?

‘Who are you trying to fool here,’ the tiny voice inside her asked, but she 
decided to ignore it.

Jack sighed when he was standing next to the horse. He led it outside and looked 
over the 
muddy field. How could he have said those rude words? The night had meant a lot 
to him – 
more than he wanted to admit to himself. Irina was an extraordinary woman and he 
had hoped 
that this night had changed something in her attitude towards him. The contrary 
was the case: 
she treated him as if being married to him was comparable to hell. He wondered 
what kind of 
men she had been with before. Had she been married? Or had she just been the 
mistress of 
some men? When he reflected about how she behaved, he could hardly imagine her 
to be a 
mistress for anybody. She did what she wanted to do. Irina was the most 
unconventional 
woman he had ever met, and he couldn’t exclude the possibility that she had done 
with other 
men what she had done with him last night. 

Well, technically we are married, so she didn’t actually endanger her reputation 
by sleeping with 
me, he added silently. But at the same time he had to admit that neither of them 
had wanted the 
marriage. It was illegitimate since they wanted to get an annulment. 

Suddenly, Jack realized that he was jealous to not be the first man she had 
slept with – even 
more, that he probably hadn’t counted more than her other lovers. Maybe he had 
been nothing 
more than a nice pastime for her.

Still, the fact remained that she was the woman he was supposed to fight. They 
hated each 
other – that was how it had to be. For a moment he considered the possibility 
that the night they 
had shared might have consequences – that she might already be pregnant with his 
child. 

When she left the barn fully dressed, busy with bringing her hair back to order, 
he observed her 
thoughtfully for a moment and caught himself wishing that she was carrying his 
child. If she was, 
he would have a reason to stay in contact with her... maybe even stay married to 
her. Becoming 
aware of this thought, he turned away and continued preparing the horse to 
leave. 

“Do you want to stay here all day or do you plan to leave anytime soon?” Irina’s 
ironic comment 
brought him back to reality. He simply shot her a dark glance before he lifted 
himself up to the 
horse. When he made not a single effort to help her, Irina got up herself, 
cursing silently. She 
was barely sitting, when he made the horse move. 

Gasping for air in shock, she held on to him. 

“Hey!” she yelled angrily. “Could you wait until I’m ready next time?”

“Oh, I’m sorry... did you almost fall?” he asked sarcastically and Irina shook 
her head furiously, 
deciding that it was better not to tempt him any further. 

They spent the time in silence, both busy looking into the distance and not 
taking note of each 
other. Irina hated how much she liked his closeness. And even more she hated the 
warmth that 
filled her chest when she thought of last night. She focused her attention onto 
more important 
things. Had Katya gotten her note? Would she be waiting at the stone near a 
special crossing 
Irina had named? And how could she run away without Jack following her 
immediately?

She had an advantage. Jack trusted her – at the least he trusted her to not run 
away again. So 
if she left him very early the next morning, she would actually have a chance to 
get away. Then, 
when she had found Katya, they would need to come up with a plan about where she 
could 
hide. Jack would certainly search her house and the region around it, probably 
also where 
Gerard lived. The whole situation was just so complicated. 

She would have to go to Russia. Irina knew that her family still had relatives 
there. A sister of 
her father lived there with her husband. Irina had never met her, still it was 
an option to go to. 
She would discuss the idea with Katya. 

The day seemed to last forever. Due to the muddy ground and two sudden 
rainstorms, they 
couldn’t ride as fast as Jack wanted to. They even had to take a break two times 
when the rain 
became too strong. 

It had already been dark for three hours, when they finally stopped in a small 
village in front of a 
pension. 

The landlord was very friendly and gave them his biggest room for the night. 
When they were 
alone in their room, Irina stretched and sighed, peeking at the bathtub in the 
corner. 

“I’d give everything for a hot bath now.” She murmured, pulling out of her 
soaked coat. 

Jack went to the door. “I have to take care of some things anyway. You have half 
an hour.” 

Irina looked at him in surprise, then she smiled softly. “Thank you.”

His eyes met hers in a tender gaze and finally the hint of a smile played around 
the corner of his 
mouth. They had barely spoken a word the whole day, yet both of them seemed to 
have 
problems keeping up the hostility. 

“You’re welcome.” With these words he left the room. 

Irina rang for the landlady and asked for hot water to take a bath. Soon, five 
maids were taking 
buckets of water into her room, filling the tub. The landlady added boiling 
water until it had the 
right temperature. 

Some time later Irina sank into the hot tub, totally lost in the relaxing 
warmth. Her muscles hurt 
from the long ride and the rain made her feel dirty. She dove underwater to wash 
her hair. 

Jack had waited almost fifty minutes to grant Irina enough time to bathe and get 
dressed again. 
He hadn't thought of the time the maids had taken to prepare the bath, and so he 
could only 
stare at the beautiful woman in the tub when he entered the room just now. The 
view of her in 
the tub caught him totally by surprise and so he was unable to turn away. 
Keeping his eyes on 
her beautiful shape, he approached the tub. 

Irina resurfaced, her eyes still closed. She ran her fingers over her face, then 
through her hair to 
press the water out of it. Her eyes were still closed, as if she was in some 
kind of ecstasy with 
the water as her sanctuary. 

When she opened her eyes slowly, Jack lifted his hands. “Don’t panic.” He said 
lowly to prevent 
her from acting shocked when she saw him. The consequence of his words was the 
opposite. 
Irina stared at him, then shrieked and pulled her knees to her body to cover her 
nakedness. A 
huge wave of water landed on the wooden floor. 

“Damned!” she cursed and he didn’t doubt that, if her eyes were able to kill, he 
would have been 
dead now. “For goddamns' sake, Bristow. What are you doing here?” She spilled 
some water at 
him angrily, trying desperately to find something to cover her nakedness with. 

Jack laughed amused and laid the huge towel, which was prepared for her, to the 
ground to 
clean up the puddle of water. 

“No!” Irina tried to hold him back, then stared at him angrily. “That was my 
towel!”

“Sorry,” he murmured, looking at the totally ruined towel. “I didn’t mean to 
shock you, I was 
just... just...” He couldn’t help staring at her. She was sitting in the water 
like a mermaid, looking 
around for something she could use as a towel and still, she was so unbelievably 
sexy that he 
felt he was getting into serious trouble. 

“What?” Irina asked impatiently when he had stopped talking. 

“Um... it had already been fifty minutes and I thought you were ready.” He 
finished his sentence, 
forcing himself to look into her eyes, not lower. 

“Great... and when you entered the room and saw that I was not finished, you 
were unable to 
turn around and leave? Even more, you had to come closer because...?” she asked, 
her voice 
dripping with sarcasm. Jack folded his arms, her aggressive tone causing him to 
stay where he 
was. 

“Jack...” Irina finally cried out in a mixture of desperation and anger. She 
didn’t care that she 
addressed him so personally, right now all she wanted him to do was leave. 

“You know...” Jack announced playfully, determined to pay her back the arrogant 
and unfriendly 
tone she used.  He started to pull off his shoes and shirt. “I think I will just 
join you in there.”

Irina followed him with her eyes. “If you think that scares me, you are wrong. I 
know that’s what 
you want. Just give me another five minutes... please.” She added with forced 
friendliness and 
Jack looked at her. 

“So, you think I’m bluffing?” He pulled off his shirt and pants. Irina stared at 
him in shock, 
thinking about saying something that would make him turn around and leave. 

No, she forced herself back, that’s what he wants. He wants you to believe that 
he is really 
going to do this. He wants you to beg him to leave but he is not going to win 
this game. 

“Fine.” She announced totally neutral with a welcoming gesture. “There’s enough 
space in here 
for both of us, so feel free to join me.” 

Jack stared at her and their eyes locked in a silent challenge. Irina leaned her 
chin to her knees, 
pretending to watch him interested. Jack shook his head in disbelief, then 
nodded. He had to 
admit, Irina was brave – in fact the bravest woman he had ever met. She counted 
on the 
gentleman inside him who could under no circumstances fulfill his threat. But 
she was wrong, 
the circumstances were special. First of all, she was married to him, so legally 
he had every 
right he wanted. Secondly, she couldn’t seriously expect him to act gentlemanly 
when she used 
an arrogant tone like she did. 

“Don’t ever challenge me! I thought, you had already learned that lesson.” With 
these words he 
pulled off his remaining clothes and stepped into the tub, where he sat down 
opposite to her. 

Irina stared at him, then shook her head in a mixture of disbelief and shock. 
Fury started to build 
up inside her. Fury that he had won this challenge and that he had the rudeness 
to step into her 
tub. Damn it, this man had no scruples. 

“You are insufferable!” she stated coldly and almost emotionless as if she was 
talking about the 
weather, then gathered all her remaining strength and got up to step out of the 
tub. 

„Bad loser?“ Jack teased and laughed, grabbing her hand to pull her back. She 
gasped for air in 
shock when she slipped, landing on him in the warm water. 

“Insufferable!” she repeated coughing, trying to get up from his body. Jack’s 
eyes scanned her 
worried. He hadn’t meant for her to fall, but obviously she hadn’t hurt herself 
in any way. When 
Irina started to struggle against the water and slipped out again, Jack held her 
wrist with his 
hand, staring in fascination at her face. For a moment he wondered what he was 
doing here, 
knowing that it could end only one way if he didn’t let her go now. 

“Am I?” he asked and Irina tried to get free from him and sit up. He was too 
close – way too 
close for her body to resist the fantasies that were building up in her mind. 

“Yes, you’re insufferable and rude! I hate you... let me go!” 

He turned her around in a swift move. Irina started to beat him with angry 
cries. “Bastard, I told 
you to...” she started before his lips silenced every additional word. His mouth 
devoured hers in 
a deep open-mouth kiss, his tongue seducing and teasing until her beating turned 
into soft 
caresses, her fingers roaming over his back and pulling him closer to her body 
with a deep sigh 
that was swallowed by his lips. 

After a long time, Jack broke the kiss and leaned his forehead to hers. They 
were both 
breathing heavily. 

“God, what am I doing?” he murmured, his hands framing Irina’s face. She laid 
her fingers to his 
and shook her head softly. 

“I have no idea.” She replied softly and closed her eyes for a moment to gather 
her control. 
What had she been thinking by provoking Jack so far?

“Sorry...” he admitted. “I didn’t plan it this way. Maybe you'd better... get 
dressed...” 


Part 10 - Beautiful mistakes

"Sorry..." he admitted. "I didn't plan it this way. Maybe you should better... 
get dressed..."

"Yeah... maybe I should..." she murmured, her hands stroking his chest. Jack 
turned over onto 
his back to allow Irina to leave, but instead of leaving, she pressed herself 
closer to him. Her lips 
grazed over his in a slight, playful touch, while her hands wandered down his 
chest, caressing 
his already sensitive skin and eliciting a moan from his throat.  

"What are you doing?" he asked at her lips and shivered when her tongue started 
to play at the 
corner of his mouth. 

"I don't know... I seriously don't know." She whispered, before she melted their 
lips together in a 
deeper kiss. She felt him shudder against her, then his hands were at her waist 
and on her 
back, pulling her roughly against his body so they were skin on skin. Desperate, 
Irina tried to get 
a hold with her hand, but the tub was too slippery and she couldn't prevent 
herself from lying 
fully on Jack's body. 

He nibbled at her lower lip, seducing her with his caresses and touches. She 
moved her legs so 
she was straddling his body. Her hands ran over the skin of his well-muscled 
chest. There was 
something about him that attracted her - like a moth to a flame, she thought 
bitterly, and knew 
her ending could only be like the one of a moth.

Her teeth bit his lower lip in a soft, but also challenging gesture. When his 
hands ran up her legs 
and over her butt and back, she moaned against his skin. Suddenly, he sat up and 
she gasped 
for air in shock, her surprised outcry swallowed by his mouth. 

Irina clasped his shoulders when he moved her against the edge of the tub for 
support. Their 
tongues fought a wild battle and both were beyond tenderness. This was not 
tender lovemaking. 
She didn't want to be seduced by foreplay. 

"I need you... now. No teasing..." Her voice was trembling with desire, so was 
her body, as he 
fondled her breasts, teasing her hard nipples with his fingers and lips. 

Moments later, Jack stared at her, stroked a strand of wet hair out of her face, 
and wondered 
what it was between them that caused situations like this - that caused them to 
share the most 
intimate and passionate moments when they actually hated each other. He lifted 
her body, 
never losing her eyes. She clasped the cool metal edge of the tub with her hands 
when he 
entered her in a swift move. 

His lips fell back to her skin when he felt her warmth around him, licking and 
tasting the mixture 
of water and sweat from her cheek. She whimpered in pleasure when he thrust into 
her almost 
roughly and took possession of her body. Her head fell back onto the edge of the 
tub. His hands 
fondled her breasts, then ran along the length of her arms. Gently, he loosened 
her fingers from 
around the tub and intertwined them with his. It took all of his control to hold 
back and not lose 
himself in her warmth. He didn't want to just take his pleasure. 

Her tongue played over his neck and then at his earlobe. Concentrating on his 
movements, he 
started thrusting into her more thoroughly, causing her to tighten her clasp on 
his hands. Her 
breath grew shallow, her tongue tickling his oversensitive skin in sweet 
seductions. 

"Tell me how you want it..." he panted, licking and nibbling her earlobe 
passionately.

"Oh god..." When he marked the skin on her neck with his teeth, her eyes closed, 
and she bit 
her lip to keep from crying out loud. "Faster..." she whispered and he silenced 
her with his lips, 
swallowing moans and whimpers, as he complied with her wish. 

Only when she came hard on him did he allow himself to let go and follow her 
into the heights of 
ecstasy. They held onto each other, and for a moment both felt, nothing 
separated them. They 
were one, one body, one soul, their hearts beating in the same rhythm.  Jack's 
face was still 
buried in the crook of her neck when their breathing slowly evened out minutes 
later. 

Their hands still clasped, Jack lifted his head to look into Irina's face. Her 
eyes met his for a split 
second, before she turned her head away. Quicksand - and she had almost drowned 
in it...

"I'm sorry..." she murmured, and he saw that she blushed slightly. He kissed her 
cheek tenderly, 
then nibbled at her earlobe in a sweet gesture. 

"Don't be..." he murmured and noticed her catching her breath slightly in 
surprise. "Please. Don't 
ever be sorry for making love with me..." His voice was merely a whisper, and 
she sobbed 
against her will. 

"Jack..." She loosened one hand from his and wrapped her arm around his body. 
Her fingers 
wandered over his skin in a most tender gesture. Why did her life suddenly have 
to be so 
complicated? One week ago, she had only done what she believed in - now she had 
to make a 
decision. She didn't even understand what her choices were anymore. She didn't 
love Jack - or 
did she? She couldn't love him. They were on different sides. He could never 
understand her 
point of view, and she would never understand his. So what kind of decision was 
there to be 
made? She could just stay with Jack and not leave early the next morning - but 
that would mean 
sacrificing everything she had worked for her whole life. It would mean 
betraying her sisters - 
and her parents... even more, all those poor people for whom she had fought.

They kept their hands entwined while Jack continued kissing her, each of his 
caresses a tender 
promise of heaven. Irina closed her eyes and relaxed into his touches, her free 
hand buried in 
his hair. 

"Let's move this to the bed..." he finally whispered into her ear, his tone 
promising, as he 
loosened from her body and got out of the tub, only to lift her up into his 
arms. She gave a 
mixture of a laugh and a shriek when the shock of the sudden coldness hit her. 
They didn't even 
bother to dry their bodies. Jack carried her to the bed and laid her down. He 
kissed her deeply, 
then went to dry the ruined, wet floor at least a little. Irina turned onto her 
belly and closed her 
eyes, covering her wet body with the bed sheets. 

She rested her head on her arms, a single tear making it's way down her wet 
cheek, mixing with 
the remains of the water. She hated herself for that warmth she felt inside - 
affection for a 
counselor of the queen, an enemy. It didn't take much to understand that she had 
seriously 
fallen in love. She should have retired from the missions when she first felt 
attracted to Jack in 
the clearing where they had met. Already knowing deep inside that he was 
dangerous to her 
heart, she had continued in the wrong assumption that she could stop herself 
from loving him. 
She had literally played with fire...

Irina momentarily tensed, as she felt Jack crawling under the sheets and 
snuggling close to her 
warm body. He stroked her hair away from her neck and placed a deep kiss on her 
skin that 
made her shiver. 

"Jack..." she wanted to tell him that she couldn't bear this…that she couldn't 
make love to him 
tonight when she planned to betray him by leaving only a few hours later. 

But when he bent to her ear, whispering "Shh...tender this time" and other sweet 
promises, she 
couldn't. He rekindled the fire inside her anew - a fire nobody could satiate 
but him. 

His lips resumed their caresses, making their way down her spine, then up again. 
Irina giggled 
slightly when his lips tickled her sensitive sides. She turned a little to catch 
his lips with hers in a 
soft kiss. 

Unhurriedly, their hands and lips explored and caressed each other.

"You look so handsome..." Fascinated, Irina let her hands play over Jack's 
muscled arms in 
appreciation. Her mouth followed the path over his shoulders and his chest. He 
grabbed her 
around her waist softly and pulled her closer, his eyes locked deeply with hers. 

"How many other men have shared your bed?" he asked suddenly, and Irina stared 
at him for a 
moment, taking her time to understand his question. 

"What... why is this important now?" she asked seductively, and he responded to 
her kiss before 
he pulled back a little, not willing to let go of the subject. 

"Were there many?"

"Are you jealous?" she suddenly countered amused and touched his cheek with her 
hands. "No, 
not that many. Some maybe... Have you had many women?"

"That's different." He replied, and she cocked her head slightly. 

"No, it's not... you can be jealous about my ex-lovers, but I can't be jealous 
about yours?"

"So you are jealous?" he teased, and she blushed when she realized that she had 
given away 
more information than she had wanted to.

"I'm not." She denied. "I'm just interested in how it is that you can have a lot 
of women, but I 
can't have a lot of men."

"What makes you think I had a lot of women?"

"Why do I have the feeling that I don't want to have this conversation?" she 
replied, shaking her 
head. 

"That, my beautiful, is not the answer to my question." he replied and kissed 
her thoroughly on 
the neck. Irina laughed when his tongue tickled her sensitive spot and closed 
her eyes when the 
familiar warmth started to build up again in her belly. 

"Well, to start with you're handsome, and although you tend to act like a 
bastard from time to 
time, you have that kind of charm women can hardly resist." She answered his 
question 
playfully and for a split second wondered what she was doing here. Sleeping with 
Jack was one 
thing, flirting with him, as if they were in love, a totally different thing and 
one she should 
probably not pursue.

"Are you trying to manipulate me in order to distract me from the question about 
the number of 
your lovers?" His lips moved down her body and closed over one of her nipples. 
Irina laid her 
head back with a soft sigh, relaxing beneath his caress. 

"Five..." she finally murmured under her breath. "Only five... including you." 

"Okay, here's another question..." Jack moved up again to look into her face. 
Irina moaned and 
stroked his lips with her thumb, trying to make him stop thinking by running her 
lips over his chin 
and throat. It didn't work as she had planned.

"How did you get into this life for the first time? I mean, how did you become a 
terrorist? Was it a 
friend of yours who talked you into spying or maybe your parents or..." His 
question was asked 
innocently and without the hint of an accusation, yet, it immediately awoke 
Irina's suspicion. Her 
eyes grew cold at once, and she pushed him away from her, bringing distance 
between their 
bodies. 

"What do you know about my parents?" she asked sharply. Jack shook his head in 
confusion. 

"Nothing! It was just a guess since many women enter this life, because their 
parents are 
already terrorists," he tried to calm her down, but made a mental note to do 
some research on 
Irina's parents. It was obvious that she was hiding a secret from him that had 
to do with her 
family.

She sat up and pulled the blanket around her body to shield herself from his 
gaze.

"I'm not one of the women who will tell you her secrets in bed. I know the women 
at court that 
you're used to act that way. I am not one of them. So either you finish what we 
started in the tub 
or you leave me alone. I myself would prefer the last option, since somehow I'm 
no longer in the 
mood." She snapped. Jack softly pulled her back to the mattress, turning her 
onto her belly. 

"I'm sorry..." he whispered into her ear. "I was not trying to spy on you. I was 
just... trying to get 
to know you better." He licked at her earlobe. "I won't talk anymore. I 
promise." 

She didn't need to say more, since her reaction had given away enough for him to 
know that 
she was hiding something, and that it had to do with her family. When he was 
back at court, he 
would ask some of his confidants about information on Irina's parents and the 
roots of her 
family. 

Now he concentrated on seducing her and calming her rage down with light kisses. 
He took his 
time in exploring her skin and discovering all the spots that made her writhe 
and moan in desire. 

Soon, she relaxed to him and his soft caresses, the dark thoughts and suspicion 
being erased 
from her mind by his warm lips and hands. It was a puzzle to her why he, of all 
people, caused 
those emotions in her - why it was him who seemed to heal the deep wounds and 
the void in 
her heart that the years of hate and rage had left. How could he, of all people, 
cause love and 
happiness inside her - he, whom she should hate the most?
She had always been a fighter and had learned early that nobody was going to 
help her, so she 
had to be able to help herself. But Jack seemed to be different. He had risked 
his life to save 
her and - despite their discussions - protected her. Irina couldn't deny that 
she wished nothing 
more than to just lean back. Deep in her heart she had always wanted to meet 
somebody in 
whose arms she could be safe - where she didn't need to fight anymore. 

Yet, the fact remained that Jack was the enemy. She could never fully trust him 
- she shouldn't 
even have trusted Gerard.

"Jack..." Her voice was barely a whisper, and she wanted to turn around to be 
able to take him 
deep into her, but Jack held her in place. 

"Don't move," he whispered, while he nibbled at her earlobe. He moved his body 
closer to hers 
and entered her from behind in a smooth stroke. When he felt her catch her 
breath, he kissed 
her cheek in short touches. 

Their position allowed him to stroke a spot inside her that brought her even 
more pleasure. She 
laid her head back against his shoulder, needing to feel his lips on hers. 

"Irina..." Jack whispered into her ear and wanted to tell her that he liked 
her... more, that he 
didn't want to let her go again. That he wished it could be always liked this. 
He wrapped his 
arms around her body and pressed her lower body closer to his, entering her even 
deeper. A 
deep moan escaped her throat, and her hand reached back to bury itself in his 
hair. 

They let themselves get carried away by the tender waves of passion that washed 
over their 
bodies, moving them closer and closer towards sweet oblivion. 
Unable to express their feelings with words, the language of their tender 
coupling seemed to be 
the only way for them to betray how they felt deep inside their hearts. 

They made love over and over again that night, unable to keep their hands off 
each other. Jack 
was surprised by the total devotion with which Irina met his passion, not 
knowing that her only 
reason was the assumption that she would never see him again after tonight, 
therefore allowing 
her body to take pleasure in forbidden desires. Sleeping with Jack was probably 
wrong, but the 
fact remained that they would never meet again, so their beautiful mistakes 
would have no 
consequences - except for maybe a broken heart...


Part 11 - Busted

The fresh air struck her like needles of ice water when she stepped out of the 
pension and 
looked into the early morning sunlight. She yawned a little - the exhaustion of 
the night catching 
up with her. The two hours of sleep she had gotten, had simply been too few. But 
she had no 
choice. She had a rendez-vous with Katya, and her sister would certainly not 
wait for long. 

"Milady! Milady..." The landlady ran out of the house, and Irina turned. 

"Shht..." she hushed the woman and pulled her away from the open street where 
Jack could 
see her. "Be quiet. I told you, the man I shared a room with must not know I'm 
leaving."

"I'm sorry... here, I brought you the things you asked for. Bread, some water 
and a new dress. 
It's one of my daughter's, but it should fit you perfectly."

"Thank you." Irina smiled and paid the woman graciously. Her old eyes filled 
with tears of joy 
when she held the two golden coins in her hand. 

"Milady, that's way too much... I can't..."

"Keep it." Irina said kindly. "Just promise me to keep your mouth shut and not 
tell him anything 
about my whereabouts. Pretend to not know anything."

"I will, Madam. You can count on old Madeleine." The woman bowed to Irina and 
kissed her 
hand. "God bless you and your family..."

Irina felt embarrassed by the gesture. She knew that the people in this village 
were one of the 
poorest in the country, but two golden coins weren't that much money - still the 
old women 
made a big deal out of it, as if Irina had just given her a whole manor. 

She touched the woman's hair. "Get up, good woman. You don't need to bow in 
front of me."

Then she turned and went to the horse. If Jack wanted to follow her, he would 
have to take care 
of a horse first - which would be hard in a village where only two peasants had 
a horse. There 
was no way he would be able to catch up with her, and when he learned where she 
had gone, 
she would long be with her family in Russia. 

She touched the horse's nostrils and spoke soft words into its ear to calm it 
down and keep it 
from making any noise, then she got up. 

"Thank you for everything." Irina whispered to the woman, who smiled.

"God bless you." She repeated once again, and then turned when Irina had broken 
into a gallop.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jack was still asleep when he felt for the body of the woman next to him, 
longing for her warmth. 
All his hand found was the empty space next to him. He opened his eyes and 
blinked at the 
bright light of the sun that filled the room. Her space was empty. He yawned and 
turned onto his 
back. 

"Irina... Come back to bed, it's still early..." he murmured, assuming that she 
was preparing to 
leave. Not for one second did it occur to him that she might be gone. After all 
she had promised 
to not try to escape again. As a man of honor, a promise counted to him like the 
life of a human 
did. But when she didn't answer, he sat up slowly, finding the room empty and 
her clothes gone. 

Within a second he was wide awake, off the bed and standing before the window. 
When he 
didn't see her outside, a bad feeling started to build up in his stomach. He had 
trusted her - 
maybe that had been wrong. After all she had never hidden the fact that she 
would always 
consider him as her enemy. 

It didn't take him long to get dressed and leave the room. In the small kitchen 
downstairs, he 
found the old landlady sitting with one of her daughters at the table sewing. 

"Where is she?" He was aware that his tone was not at all appropriate, but 
didn't care at the 
moment. The rage inside him was too immense to be held under control.

"Who?" The old woman asked a little scared.

"Lady Derevko... the woman I arrived with?"

The younger girl opened her mouth to say something, but was quickly hushed by 
her mother. 
Jack raised his eyebrows, suspecting that the women knew exactly what had 
happened. 

"We have no idea! Isn't she in your room?" The old landlady asked innocently. 
Jack slammed 
his hands to he table and bent over. 

"Ladies, I don't want to play these games in here. Let me make something very 
clear. Lady 
Derevko was a royal prisoner, helping her to escape makes you criminals too. But 
I will ignore 
that fact if you tell me when she left. I assume she took the horse, so I'd be 
also very thankful if 
you could take care of an additional horse for me."

"Lord Bristow," the old woman started. "I'm living alone and have to take care 
of four children. 
Most of the year I don't even have enough food for myself, not to mention for my 
children. Last 
winter my eldest daughter had to sell her body in Brighton, otherwise we 
couldn't even have 
afforded wood to keep our house warm. The lady you are searching for is a 
generous woman. 
She paid me enough money to make it through the coming winter, and I will not 
reward her 
generosity by betraying her to the queen - or one of her stooges." The woman's 
voice was 
fearless and she got up. Her daughter looked from her mother to the man, then 
back at her 
mother. 

"I will supply you with a horse if you wish to have one, but that will cost you, 
since horses are 
valuable in this village. We have only two as you should have noticed. But over 
and above that, 
you won't get any information about the Lady." 

Jack took a deep breath to calm down from his rage. "Listen," he then continued, 
his tone softer, 
"Lady Derevko is sometimes a very stubborn woman. I am her husband, and I want 
to prevent 
her from making things worse by doing something foolish.”

"I don't believe you."

"Of course you don't." Jack sighed. "Fine, if you could get me a horse, I will 
leave as soon as 
possible."

*****************

It was already afternoon when Irina saw the crossing in the distance. She longed 
for a break - 
so did the horse. She’d driven the horse at full gallop the whole way.  She felt 
more tired by hour 
and had to force herself to keep awake. 
When she got closer to the meeting point, she could make out the carriage that 
was standing at 
the side of the street. 

A tall, woman with short, brown hair stood outside and went around in the grass. 
Irina sighed in 
total relief. Her message had reached Katya on time. 

"Katya!" she yelled, and urged the horse to cross the remaining hundred meters 
quickly. Then 
she stopped in front of the carriage, almost falling of the horse when she tried 
to slide down. 
Katya jumped to support her. 

"My god, Irina... you look awful. What happened?"

"A lot... The short version is, I was found by the queen's soldiers and fled to 
Gerard, who tried to 
kill me."

"What?!?" Katya cried out in disbelief.

"Yes, he thought I had betrayed him and said that I had become worthless and a 
too high risk. 
So he wanted to drown me but I was..." She cut herself off, thinking that it was 
not wise to 
inform Katya about how far Jack was involved in the story. That would only raise 
questions - 
questions she didn't want to answer. "I was able to escape. Now I'm an outlaw. I 
can't go back 
to our house, because the soldiers are searching the region, and I can't go to 
Gerard."

"Damn it," Katya murmured. She was the most mannered of the three girls and 
allowed herself 
only to curse when they were alone. 

"I have a plan, but I need your help." Irina then stated. "I will go and visit 
our father's sister in 
Russia. I will be safe there and out of the reach of the queen. But you and 
Elena should not get 
involved with any illegal interactions during the next months. The queen will 
most likely have 
you observed."

"Irina, you have never been to Russia. You can't go there alone."

"I can and I have to! We still need you and Elena here. If you go with me, you 
will confirm their 
suspicion that you are also involved with terrorists. Please, Katya... I'm going 
to be okay." Irina 
shook her head. "And I don't see any other way at the moment."

"Yes, maybe you are right. Fine, get into the carriage. We will stop at the next 
town and rent a 
guestroom to talk about how to move on from here. We have to get you a safe 
passage to 
Russia on a trustworthy ship. I'd be more relieved if you had a male to 
accompany you, like 
Gerard, who will take care that the ship's crew doesn't bother you. But since 
that's impossible at 
the moment, we have to see what we can do." 

They entered the carriage and Katya told the man in the front where to go. When 
they started to 
move, Katya shook her head in confusion.

"I still don't understand how this could happen. I mean, there are dozens of 
villages around the 
forest where you met the soldier, and it should have taken them months to find 
you. How could 
he find you so quickly?"

Irina thought it useless to pretend not to know the reason, given the fact that 
Elena knew about 
her mistake in giving away her name. Katya would learn it anyway. 

"That was my fault. I told him my name that night." She confessed. Katya gasped 
for air. 

"Irina..." she started accusingly, but the look in her sisters eyes shut her up.

"I know!" She snapped and sighed deeply. "I know... it was a mistake I can't 
unmake - 
unfortunately. But I didn't know it was a setup, and besides it was only my 
forename. I didn't 
expect him to be able to do anything with my forename."

"Because half of the kingdom is called Irina." Katya murmured sarcastically and 
lifted her hands 
apologetically when Irina seemed prepared to pounce on her. "Sorry. Go on..." 

"That's it... he must have asked for me everywhere and someone told him where I 
lived. So I ran 
away."

"He did not see you?" Katya asked.

"Yes, he saw me. We had a discussion. He offered to let me to work with him to 
bring down the 
rebels, in return, he would forget that I was involved. I refused - of course."

"Why?" Katya shook her head.

"What do you mean, why?" Irina asked in total consternation. "Do you want me to 
bring you all 
to prison?"

"No, but working with him you would have had the power over him. You could have 
just made 
him believe that you were on his side. That way we would have gained important 
information 
about their next strategies against us."

Irina stared at her sister, then slowly shook her head. "I can't do that! I 
couldn't do that. He was 
so... kind."

Katya held her eyes for some minutes, then sighed and leaned against the back of 
her seat. "I 
told you to never fall in love with a contact!"

"I am not in love with him!" Irina contradicted, her face showing more security 
than she felt in 
her heart. "I liked him... there's a difference."

"Do you still 'like' him?" Katya asked. She knew her sister. Irina had always 
been her confidante, 
and there had been no person in this world Katya had trusted more, since she 
knew Irina acted 
absolutely professionally and would never endanger them by any thoughtless 
actions. And 
therefore, she knew very well that her sister must have felt more than just 
sympathy for that 
man. Irina gave a short, ironic laugh.

"He's the enemy." She replied and both knew that this was not exactly the answer 
to the 
question Katya had asked, but when Irina didn't make any effort to be a little 
more specific, 
Katya decided to not pursue the topic any further. 

"Okay, so you ran away... does he have any idea where you are now?"

"No, I don't think so." Irina replied, deciding to skip the sequence in between 
that included her 
marriage and the last three days. No need for her sister to know that. She was 
sure that Jack 
had annulled the marriage anyway by now.

"Good." Katya nodded satisfied. "Then you are safe for now. He can't search all 
of England 
within a week. So we have enough time to take care of everything."

Ten minutes later they came into a small town. There was only one small bar that 
rented rooms 
to strangers. The women were lucky, the landlord had one room left. He took care 
of their 
horses while the women rested in their room. Irina felt exhaustion gaining 
control over her, and 
after Katya had assured her that she would take care of everything, she sank 
down on the bed 
to sleep a little. 

When she had pulled the sheets over her body, she wrapped her arms around her 
waist and 
closed her eyes. 

For the first time in years she slept deep and dreamless, only waking up when 
Katya sat down 
on the bed and the tinkling of porcelain could be heard next morning. Yawning, 
Irina opened her 
eyes. Katya smiled down at here. 

"I have a hot cup of strong coffee for you, just the way you like it." 

For a moment, Irina had to gather her memories to know where she was. Then she 
sat up 
quickly. 

"How long did I sleep?" she asked shocked, and Katya laughed. 

"Almost thirteen hours. I didn't want to disturb you, since you need all the 
sleep you can get." 
She watched as her sister took a mouthful of the strong coffee and leaned back 
against the wall. 
Katya searched her bag and pulled out some papers. 

"Here, I secured your passage to Russia. It's a small harbor, and you will have 
to buy a horse 
there to go on, so I made sure to get enough money." 

Irina took the small leather bag with the money and stared open-mouthed at her 
sister. "Wow... 
where did you get that much money so fast?"

"Ah, you know... I've had some affairs... one of the men lives close to hear, so 
I... well I seduced 
him... then blackmailed him into giving me money, otherwise I'd tell his wife."

"Katya!" Irina cried out in disbelief. "You sold yourself??? You know that was 
what..."

"Irushka, there was not enough time to get the money from home. I've shared the 
bed of that 
man so many times that it can barely be called prostitution. Besides, the most 
important thing 
now is that you get out of England safely." 

The sisters looked at each other, then Irina hugged Katya closely. "Thank you 
for everything."

"We will soon meet again. If you don't hear anything from Elena or me, return to 
England in 
three years. If things become too complicated here, we will follow you to 
Russia." Katya 
promised and touched her sisters cheek. "I won't let the queen and her law break 
our family 
apart." The woman got up and smiled. "So, you should probably get dressed. I 
thought, we 
could visit seamstress to get you a few additional dresses and accessories."

With these words she left the room. Irina stared at the door where Katya had 
disappeared, then 
at the cup with the warm coffee in her hands. It would have been a lie to 
pretend that she was 
fearless about leaving her family. She would go to a country she had never seen 
before - to 
people she didn't know. She only knew a few common Russian phrases their father 
had taught 
them.  It would hardly be enough to communicate appropriately.

With a deep sigh she got up and went to the window. The sun was shining over the 
small 
village, and Irina stood and watched the people going on with their normal life 
for some minutes. 
Then she started to get dressed. 

She was just doing her hair in front of the mirror, when she heard noise in 
front of the pension. A 
new guest she assumed, since she could clearly hear the voice of their landlord. 
Only two 
minutes later she could hear steps on the stairs, then a knock at her door. 

"Yes, come in," she said loudly, and her heart seemed to skip a beat when the 
door was pushed 
open loudly and crashed against the wall. "Excuse me," she started angrily. 
"Could you just be a 
little more..." 

She cut herself off when she turned around and looked into the face of the 
obviously infuriated 
man. Within a second she jumped up from the small chair in front of the mirror. 

"What... what are you... how did you..."

"How did I find you?" Jack Bristow asked friendly – menacingly friendly. "I have 
to admit it took 
me a great deal of effort - especially since you had paid our landlady not to 
talk to me." His eyes 
sparkled dangerously and he seemed ready to kill her...

To be continued... 


Part 12 – Dark promises

Every step Jack advanced towards her, Irina took backwards, until she felt the 
wall at her back.

“Fortunately, your maid gave away that you were planning to meet your sister 
halfway to 
London. I happened to remember that little detail. So, I just went the way I 
would have gone, if I 
had wanted to meet someone halfway to London, as measured from your house. As I 
passed by 
this village, I saw the horse on the field by chance.” 

Jack slammed his hands left and right of her shoulders against the wall, 
imprisoning her in 
between his arms. Irina laid her head against the wall, and he could see the 
uncertainty in her 
eyes. He had caught her totally by surprise, and she was struggling to regain 
control over 
herself now. She seemed close to panicking.

“I understand you are a little outraged...” she started, obviously an attempt to 
calm him down. 
He played with some of her hair, his face completely neutral without showing any 
emotion – only 
his eyes gave away the immense fury that was raging inside him. 

“A little outraged...” He repeated her words. “...is what I was after you had 
beaten me down. 
Now I’m so furious, I could just kill you right here. You tricked me!”

“What is going on here?” A sharp voice asked from the door[,] and Jack turned 
around. Irina 
took advantage of his attention being pulled away to flee over the bed to the 
other side of the 
room until she was standing next to her sister. 

“I assume you’re the third one of the Derevko sisters.” Jack said amicably, but 
coldly. “I’m 
pleased to meet you. I just wish it were under friendlier conditions. I’m afraid 
I have to tell you 
that your sister has been arrested.” 

“Irina, who is that man?” Katya asked, not letting Jack out of her eyes and 
looking him up and 
down. 

“That’s.. um...” Irina cleared her throat. “That’s Jack... Bristow. I mean Lord 
Bristow.” She 
hurried to add, when she became aware of the personal address she had used. 

“Oh...” Katya simply said, her behavior not changing. If she was shocked by the 
unexpected 
presence of their enemy, she could hide her emotions excellently. “Well... in 
that case... I think 
any show of manners by an appropriate introduction is superfluous, since you 
know you’re not 
welcome here.”

Irina stared at her sister, then at Jack. The man didn’t even pay attention to 
the woman with the 
dark brown hair, but instead, took a step towards Irina. 

“I am sorry, Lady Derevko, but your sister is under arrest and will be charged 
with treason and 
spying in connection with several attempts to flee the law.” He wanted to grab 
Irina, but Katya 
stepped in front of her, pushing Jack away. 

“Don’t you dare touch her, you son of a bitch.”

“Katya!” Irina shoved her sister aside softly. “Could you leave us alone for 
just two minutes? 
Please...” 

“Irushka, I will not leave you here with that bastard.” Katya said, talking as 
if Jack was not in the 
room. “Who knows what he will do to you?”

Jack didn’t pay attention to Katya anymore, and neither did Irina. She looked at 
Jack. “Let’s 
talk... reasonably.” 

He laughed at her suggestion. “Well, the last time I talked reasonably to you, 
you promised me 
to not run away if I took you to London. I did.. well, I was trying to. I didn’t 
even lock you up or 
shackle you, because I trusted you to be an honorable woman whose word could be 
relied on. 
Obviously I was wrong...”

“You are my enemy! Nobody trusts the word of his enemy.”

“Well, I did...” he replied. “Because I never considered you to be my enemy! 
Until now.” 

For a moment she couldn’t think of anything appropriate to reply. Something 
inside her seemed 
to be torn apart, and she struggled against the bad conscience that slowly awoke 
inside her.

“Jack, I...” she started, wanting to apologize, but he didn’t let her finish. 

“Get your things. We will leave in two hours. I will take you to prison... where 
I should have 
already brought you four days ago, you traitorous bitch.” He grabbed Irina’s 
wrists. The woman 
started to struggle against him, at first pleading with him to listen, then 
cursing him and trying to 
kick him. When Katya understood what was about to happen, she tried to help 
Irina, supporting 
her attempts to get free by her own blows and curses against Jack. 

“Jack wait... let’s work out a solution... I swear to you, I’m not going to run 
away again...” Irina 
tried to calm him down in an almost panicked voice, but the two just locked 
their eyes furiously. 

“And there is absolutely no reason for me to mistrust your words...” His voice 
was dripping with 
sarcasm. 

“Lord Bristow, I swear to you, she’s going to keep her word...” Katya explained 
sharply, still 
trying to loosen Jack’s grip around her sister’s arms. 

“Jack...” Irina suddenly surrendered to him and allowed him to cuff her hands. 
“Please...”

The man looked at her for a long time. “Irina, I did everything to find a 
solution to keep you out 
of this. I risked my own position... I saved your life. Have you ever thought 
about what is going 
to happen to me if the queen finds out that I kept your name in the dark? That I 
shielded you 
from law? That I’m even married to you?”

“Married?!?” Katya cried out, and both Jack and Irina turned their eyes on her. 

“Seems somebody has not told her sister the entire story,” Jack murmured 
ironically. Irina pulled 
at the metal chains angrily, but he held her firmly. 

“Irina, did you marry this man?” Katya’s voice was sharp, as she pierced her 
sister with her 
eyes.

“It’s not what it sounds like,” Irina started, “Yes, we married.. we had to, or 
Gerard would have 
had us both killed. But we... Jack wants to get an annulment as soon as he 
reaches a larger 
city. The marriage doesn’t mean anything.”

“You know what?” Jack suddenly said, “I don’t agree here...”

“What?!?” Irina and Katya asked in unison and stared at him. 
“Jack, you... you promised me to...” Irina started, immediately being 
interrupted by the man. 

“Yes, I promised you to get the annulment. You promised me to not run away. You 
didn’t keep 
your promise, so why should I keep mine? Why should I lie again to shield you 
from anything? 
The marriage was consummated and is therefore valid under every existing law.” 

“Consummated?!?” Katya asked, her voice getting louder and almost hysterical. 
Irina lifted her 
hands. 

“Katya, could you just stay out of this for a few moments?”

“Irina, you married the counselor of the queen, and you even consummated the 
marriage?!? I 
think there’s no reason for me to stay out of this, since I’m as involved as you 
are. How could 
you do that? You know that a marriage can only be annulled under certain 
circumstances – the 
most important being that you did not consummate it!”

“Obviously, your sister thought it easier to manipulate me if she slept with 
me.” Jack threw in 
bitterly, and Irina turned to him to contradict. 

“I did not...” she started almost softly, trying to touch his hand, but the 
cuffs didn’t allow her to 
move her hands. “I didn’t try to manipulate you. That was not why I...”

“Why else did you do it?” Jack asked coldly. “Explain it to me?”

She just stared at him. The answer seemed to be so easy in her heart – but it 
was so hard to 
form into words. How should she tell him that he awoke feelings inside her that 
no other men 
before had ever been able to make her even think of? That, in a weird sort of 
way, she felt safe 
when she was close to him, but that, on the other hand, she hated him?
It was too complicated to explain – too illogical. 

“Okay...” Katya stated, realizing the awkwardness of the situation, lifted her 
hands and sat down 
on the bed. “Maybe we should all sit down for a moment and talk about the issue 
like mature 
adults.”

Irina’s eyes were still locked on Jack’s. She did not even comprehend the words 
her sister said. 
“Jack... you can’t reproach me for that... or take it as a reason to keep the 
marriage up!”

Jack pulled her closer, ignoring her attempts to free herself. “I’m a rude 
bastard without 
manners. Isn’t that what you believe? An English soldier, who would take 
advantage of 
everything.”

“I...” Irina started, shocked by his icy voice, which showed her that he was 
raging with fury. “I... 
did never... I...” 

“Well...” Jack stated. “I will fulfill all your expectations, lady. And since I 
don’t know any manners 
or honor, why should I get an annulment when I’m married to such a sexy, 
breathtakingly 
beautiful woman. I’d be a fool to do so.” His face was close to hers now. “No, 
being the ‘rude 
English bastard’ I am, I will keep you as my wife, and when I have enough of 
you, take a 
mistress... or two.”

“Jack!” Irina felt as if she was in a nightmare. Panic started to rise in her. 
“Let go of me... you’re 
hurting me!” He became aware that his grip around her was indeed a little too 
harsh and let go 
of her. Shackled as she was, she couldn’t go anywhere anyway. 

Katya had still not recovered from her shock. She ran her hands over her 
forehead nervously 
and finally got up. 

“Okay, Lord Bristow, I am making you an offer... which you will hopefully take.” 
She started. 
When she had his full attention, she took a deep breath. “I know that all you 
want is to bring 
down the terrorist ring. I have no idea what happened that you and my sister... 
well... have this 
kind of relationship and obviously loathe each other now. However, I promise 
you, I am going to 
spy for you. I’m going to get you every name of every weapons trader, smuggler 
and assassin 
who is  or was ever involved with our group. I have to admit that this might 
take time. I have to 
get the trust of some higher ranking men first, but that shouldn’t be a problem. 
Still, you have to 
give me at least three months. In return you will leave our family out of this 
and get the 
annulment for the marriage with my sister.”

Jack gave a short, ironic laugh. “Give me one reason why I should trust you more 
than your 
traitorous sister here?”

Irina shot him an angry look at this comment, but kept silent. 

“Because...” Katya took a deep breath. “As it is tradition in groups of 
criminals: ware first, then 
payment. I will hand you a detailed list including names, places and actions in 
about three 
months. Only then will I get my sister back in return – with her marriage 
annulled.”

“Katya!” Irina cried outraged. “I’m not some kind of ware you can deal with!”

But neither of them paid attention to her. Jack nodded, his eyes locked deeply 
with Katya’s. 

“I like that deal.” He admitted. “So, I will keep your sister as my prisoner 
until you hand me the 
intel. How will I know that you won’t gather all your terrorist friends and 
attack my manor to free 
Irina?”

“Because I know that you would kill her then.” Katya replied without turning a 
hair. “I will be in 
contact with you all the time. In return, I trust you to not hurt Irina in any 
way...” Both fell into a 
long silence, obviously considering the offer. “Do we have a deal?” The woman 
finally asked 
and held out her hand to Jack. 

Jack looked at Irina, whose eyes clearly showed disbelief, anger and panic. She 
had challenged 
him, and now she seemed to lose. With unfair means, she had tried to trick him, 
so to him it 
seemed only fair to pay her back. Although he knew, three months with an 
outraged and furious 
Irina would not be an easy path to travel. But that would make it even more 
interesting. He 
intended to show her that he was not simply a man whom she could manipulate and 
play her 
games with.

He turned back to Katya.

“We have a deal.” He finally stated and took the woman’s hand. 

“I can’t believe you just did that.” Irina stared at her sister. “I can’t 
believe you just... gave me to 
him.”

“Irina, the situation is not my fault!” Katya snapped. “I was not the one who 
told her name to an 
enemy, I was not the one who married him and then ran away. And it was 
especially not me 
who slept with him! That was you. So don’t blame me if you have to take the 
consequences 
now.”

“I’m going to kill you if I get out of here...” Irina hissed back, and Katya 
folded her arms. 

“Fine... this is certainly going to be interesting. If you would excuse me now, 
I have to go... to 
save your butt.” She said with a side-glance at Irina. 

“Katya! Don’t you dare leave!” Irina watched as Katya collected her things. “I’m 
warning you...” 
she repeated her threat, but it was useless. Katya left the room and shut the 
door behind her. 
Irina stared at the closed door, then pulled again at her shackles. 

“So...” Jack gave her one of his cold smiles. “Finally, I got one sister working 
for me.” 

“You know what I really wish for right now?” Irina asked, not even trying to 
hide her anger. 

“That you had a knife to stab me.” Jack assumed, but the woman shook her head. 

“No, to get rid of these chains. I don’t need a knife to kill you, my fury is 
enough.”

“Considering that information, I think I will keep you chained until we’re in my 
manor where I can 
lock you up.”

Irina watched him packing her stuff. She was raging with fury. Only half an hour 
ago she had 
wished that she would see him only once again in her life to apologize for 
leaving and to thank 
him for what he had done. Now all she wanted to do was to kill him – right after 
she had killed 
Katya.

“I swear to you... when I get free again, no place will be safe enough to 
protect you from me.” 
She swore. 

“IF you get free again.” He commented dryly, leaving her stunned for a moment 
before she 
understood what his words implied. She stared at him in total disbelief when he 
continued. 
“Technically I have enough information to destroy the terrorist ring... if I do 
so before she hands 
me the list, her list is worthless, and the whole deal is invalid.”

“Why then did you make a deal with her...” she started and Jack turned to her 
and lowered his 
face to hers. 

“This is not about your sister or your family – I’m not even interested in them 
and their 
involvement with the terrorists. This is just about me and you. You challenged 
me Irina, and you 
tried to win by unfair means, like betraying me when I trusted you. If you think 
I am that easy, 
you are mistaken. I’m going to give you a really hard time in the prison at my 
manor – time for 
you to think about dignity.”

“You cannot do that. You can’t seriously plan to keep me in a prison cell all 
the time.” she 
whispered almost soundlessly and got up.

Slowly, Jack walked around her, then, standing behind her back, he bent to her 
ear. 

“Irina, I have never treated you disrespectfully. I’ve tried to be gentle and 
kind from the start, yet 
all you have done from the day we met was judge me although you didn’t even know 
me. You 
called me rude, unmannered and worse after all I have done for you. I tried to 
protect you from 
the law – which put my own position in danger – I followed you and almost lost 
my life. All 
because I didn’t want to listen to that prejudice inside me that said you were 
nothing but a cheap 
criminal. I believed that you were a lady – a loveable, charming, beautiful 
lady, but all you have 
done so far was insult me.” He touched her cheek in a tender gesture. “I’m tired 
of being 
insulted by an unthankful witch, so I am taking my reward. I arrested you and I 
saved your life, 
so after every law I know, your life is in my hands now. I wanted to be friends 
with you, but all 
you did was try to betray me. You want to hate me... I’m giving you a reason to. 
Now you have 
the enemy you have searched for the whole time.”

With these words he left her standing in the room while he went to pack the 
horse. Irina watched 
him leave, then sank against the wall. Her mind felt paralyzed from shock. She 
didn’t doubt for 
one split second that he meant what he had said. And she didn’t doubt either, 
that it was all her 
fault...


Part 13 – Devils and Angels

Eleven days later

When the heavy door at the beginning of the small, humid corridor opened, bright 
daylight made 
a small mouse flee with a shriek. A young man looked up at the blurred shape of 
a person 
silhouetted against the light and jumped up when he recognized the visitor. 

“Sire...” he said and saluted.

Jack Bristow nodded at him. “How is she?” he asked quietly, and the man 
obviously felt 
uncomfortable about this question. 

“When I brought her the food, she wouldn’t take it, and when I opened the door 
to bring it inside, 
she jumped up, took it and threw it at me. I thought she would kill me!”

Jack chuckled and took the key from the guard. It had been almost two weeks 
since Irina and 
he had entered into a state of war against each other.  When they had departed 
from the small 
village, he had still been angry and – yes, he had to admit – hurt in his pride 
that Irina had been 
able to fool him. He had sworn to himself that he wouldn’t make the mistake of 
trusting her 
again. 
But seeing her, sitting shackled on the horse, had cooled down his anger a 
little and when they 
had reached his manor, he was determined to make the three months as comfortable 
as he 
could for her – provided that she behaved at least a little cooperatively. 

He had given Irina her own room and granted her permission to move freely within 
the property 
– including the garden. He knew, three months in a prison cell were like hell 
and even if he 
mistrusted Irina, he didn’t want her to rot in the prison cell of his cellar. 

Yet, obviously Irina had mistaken his patience for kindness and so she hadn’t 
been able to 
resist tempting him once more. Now she was unwilling to give in, and he was too 
stubborn to do 
so. 
I guess in a way, he mused, we are a perfect match.

He went down the corridor and finally looked through the bars of her cell. She 
was sitting on a 
cushion in a corner, her knees pulled to her chest. When she became aware of 
him, she jumped 
up and almost ran to the bars. Her eyes sparkled with rage. 

“You...” she hissed, and Jack knew better than to get too close to the bars. He 
was sure that 
she would be able to kill him with a barred door between them. 

“Nice to see you too, Irina. So, I take it you still don’t want to eat.”

“I will not eat until you let me out of here!”

“I will not let you out until you apologize!” he countered and leaned against 
the wall opposite to 
her cell, observing her. Irina folded her arms. 

“Your damned guards should apologize! I won’t, since it wasn’t my fault!” she 
announced, and 
he tilted his head slightly. 

“Then... welcome to your new home. I hope it’s comfortable enough for the next 
three months.”

“Bastard!”

“Witch!”

Both took a deep breath, knowing that they would get nowhere with a conversation 
like this. 
Irina closed her hands around the bars and laid her forehead to the cool metal. 

“I told you, I did not try to flee. I simply needed a little fresh air.” She 
started in a calm and 
rational voice.

“You stole a horse. The whole staff of the stable was after you. Don’t tell me 
you were just trying 
to have a nice afternoon and then were going to return in the evening.” He 
countered in the 
same calm tone. Irina slammed her fists so loudly against the metal that the 
young guard 
jumped up and ran to protect Jack, a weapon in his hand. Jack lifted his arm to 
calm him down 
and signaled him to leave them alone. 
“You are scaring my soldiers.” He mused and glanced at Irina. 

“I wanted to take a ride. I had been sitting in this damned house for over a 
week. I wanted to 
see a little bit of the countryside. Your men totally overreacted, the horse got 
scared and I lost 
control... It was not an attempt to flee from them! I was too busy to hold on to 
that horse to even 
think about any kind of escape.”

“I see...” Jack nodded. “And do you remember what I told you when we arrived? 
You are free to 
move in the house and the garden, but never ever leave the property AND never 
ever take a 
horse – especially not my best one. So you can’t blame them for assuming that 
you were 
attempting to flee.”

Irina scoffed and pierced the man with her eyes. “I did not know it was your 
best horse. I liked 
her.  She looks beautiful, so I chose her. Of course I didn’t know your men 
would scare her to 
death! Besides, I told you that I do not take any orders from you. Do you really 
think that I would 
try to escape with one of your horses? I’m smarter than that. I know, horses 
return to their 
owner. I couldn’t have left the animal alone!”

“I see  you have given that thought some consideration.” His eyes blinked with 
amusement 
when he went closer and touched her hands in a tender gesture. Irina pulled them 
away from 
him and sat down on her small bed. 
She was in fact the toughest woman he had ever met, of that there was no 
question. A slight 
smiled played around the corner of his mouth when he remembered how tempered she 
was. 
Any other woman he knew would have long sat on her knees, begging for pardon, 
but instead of 
asking him to let her out, she insulted and cursed him.

“Is there anything else?” Irina asked coldly. “If not, I advise you to leave. 
You won’t hear an 
apology from me.”

“Fine, then... enjoy the rest of the day.” Jack said. He turned to leave when he 
remembered 
something else. “Oh, and I take it that you won’t start to eat again during the 
next days. Do you 
mind if I reduce your meals to bread and water then? Because it’s such a pity to 
have the cook 
prepare a rich meal for you if you just throw it against the wall. Water and 
bread are easier to 
throw and cost less.”

She pounced on the metal door and cursed loudly, mixed with frustrated cries 
while she shook 
the door violently. “I hate you, Jack Bristow! I HATE YOU!”

Jack couldn’t help but chuckle, when he passed by the young soldier who looked 
at him with 
eyes huge in shock. The young man just could not understand how Jack could be so 
cool and 
controlled when in presence of that woman. He himself was always happy when his 
shift was 
over and she hadn’t caused more than the usual trouble – like throwing food and 
cursing. But 
Jack Bristow seemed to enjoy fighting with her. 

“Sire,” he said and saluted when Jack looked at him. 

“Call me if anything happens... oh, and make sure Miss Derevko receives the two 
books I asked 
Harold to take from the library.”

“I shall give them to her?” the young man asked, his voice not hiding the hint 
of panic that hit 
him. Jack tilted his head, his eyes sparkling amused. 

“Of course! Is there a problem with that?”

“No, Sire... not at all... Sire... it’s just that...” The man hesitated and 
obviously considered 
whether he should say his words or not. 

“What?” Jack asked.

“Well... it’s just that books hurt more than food when they are thrown.” 

Jack stared at him, not knowing whether to yell at the man or to laugh, then he 
shook his head 
and went to the door. “I can’t believe my soldiers are more afraid of a woman 
than of war.” He 
murmured before he closed the door. The young man looked after him and gulped, 
then he 
looked at Irina’s cell. In a way, Bristow was right... yet, he still hoped that 
the books would be 
brought when the next soldier had shift.  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Somewhere in Northern England – Evening of the same day

The young woman moved aside to leave the bed and collect her clothes from the 
ground. It was 
time for her to go, she had a meeting with a contact in two hours. 

An arm grabbed her around the waist and held her softly. 

“Don’t leave just yet...”

“I have to...” she replied and freed herself. “I told you I have a meeting.”

“Katya, please, could you just forget about the meeting?” He sat up and touched 
her shoulders 
to kiss her velvet skin. Katya moved out of his grip and grabbed her underwear 
from the ground. 

“Julian, if I just forget about the meeting, the information you gave me is 
worthless. Besides, my 
maid is waiting for me... I’m sure she’s scared already.” Katya pulled on her 
underwear, then her 
dress. 

“When will I see you again?” Julian Sark admired the perfectly shaped body of 
his newest 
conquest. She was already a little older than him, but that didn’t disturb him. 
It had never 
disturbed him – on the contrary. 

Katya turned at this question, placing a soft kiss on his lips. “Soon, I 
promise... And then we’ll do 
everything you ever dreamed about.” 

With this sweet promise she got up and went to the door. “I’ll be in contact.” 

Julian watched as she left and wondered why he had the feeling that this time he 
was not the 
one in control over the affair. 

Katya went along the dark corridor and left the house through the back door. She 
knew Julian 
Sark... she had met him several times in London and his interest in her had been 
pretty clear. 
And knowing that he was in contact with some higher ranking men of their 
terrorist ring, she 
would use him until she didn’t need him anymore. 
Interesting, she mused, that those men who think they are the best lovers are 
usually the worst 
ones ever. Well, she would have a little time to teach Julian a few things.

His information was really valuable, and he had managed to arrange a meeting 
with a higher 
ranking officer for her. All she had to do now was gain the trust of that man – 
the rest would be 
as easy as a game of chess.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Another two days later

“WHAT?!?” 

The young soldier made a step towards the wall, when Irina stared at him, the 
look on her face 
proving that she was prepared to kill. 

“How dare he?”

“I’m... I’m...I’m sorry... Milady.” He stammered. “It’s just what I was told to 
give to you...”

Irina looked at the young man on the other side of the barred door, then at the 
sheet of paper in 
her hand. 

Dinner is at 9pm. I expect you
to be there in an appropriate dress
and mood.

- Jack

After having read the words once again, she crumpled the sheet in her hand and 
threw it 
against the wall. No please, no kind word. Just an order. 

“Tell Mr. Bristow that I won’t have dinner with him.” She snapped and folded her 
arms. “And 
advise him that he should work on his tone. Giving an order for dinner is 
certainly not an 
appropriate way to make a woman peaceful – not even at court!”

“But Milady... I told you that he said explicitly, he wouldn’t accept a no!” The 
man had gotten 
more courageous during the last two days after she had talked to him in his 
night shift. She had 
asked him about Jack, then later they had talked about common things. He had 
learned that she 
was a very nice woman who treated him with respect. Still, he didn’t want to be 
the one who 
outraged her in any way.

“Well, then greet him from me and tell him, that I still don’t accept orders.”

Young Andrew knew, that Irina wouldn’t change her mind. It amazed him how much 
she 
resembled Lord Bristow in her reaction and stubbornness. He shrugged his 
shoulders, knowing 
that any attempt to convince her to attend dinner would only strengthen her in 
her unwillingness 
to go, and then turned to bring the message to Jack. 

Irina was prepared to see Jack any minute, furiously yelling at her and asking 
her what she was 
thinking to turn down an order of his, but to her surprise he didn’t come. She 
sighed. The last 
days she had spend mostly sitting on her bed. The books that had been brought to 
her had 
been lying on the small table for a whole day before Irina had finally overcome 
her stubbornness 
and admitted that she was indeed bored. Then she had started reading. It hadn’t 
taken her more 
than the last night to finish the literature and now she felt bored again. Yet, 
she would rather die 
than ask for more.

Her stomach hurt from hunger, but she was too proud to take any of the food that 
had been 
brought to her. That would be like surrendering to Jack, and she was not willing 
to do so. She 
was afraid of him – actually she was afraid of the power he had over her heart 
and her body. 
She had never reacted uncontrolled when provoked by an enemy. She had never lost 
her self-
control and yelled at somebody. But for some reason Jack managed to make her 
rage with fury, 
and she didn’t understand why.

She paced up and down in her cell – although it could barely be called a cell 
anymore. She had 
a small table, a commode, a mirror, a bathtub – still, the fact remained that 
she was a prisoner. 
She longed for being out and free to move wherever she wanted.

At 9pm Irina had already forgotten about the dinner ‘invitation’, when suddenly 
the corridor was 
filled with rumbling and voices. A soldier opened the barred door, and maids 
started to bring in 
plates and glasses. They ignored Irina’s protests and questions about what they 
were doing, but 
chit-chatted about the newest happenings and affairs. 

When they were finished, they left the room without taking any note of Irina. 
The woman looked 
at the rich dinner and felt her stomach hurt. 

“Don’t even think about it.” Jack warned when he entered the room, fearing that 
he would be 
greeted by a flying plate. The soldier locked the cell behind them and then 
left. Irina stared at 
Jack, then at the door and folded her arms. 

“You’re courageous. Letting yourself be locked in here with me when you’re in 
danger of being 
killed.” She stated, and he chuckled, but didn’t comment on her provocation. 
Instead, he sat 
down at the small table. Irina didn’t move.

“Sit down,” Jack said frankly after a few minutes. The woman didn’t make any 
effort to comply. 
“Irina, I want to talk about some kind of truce, and I don’t want to do so with 
you standing.”

“Truce?” Irina asked, but sat down now. She didn’t look down at the food but 
kept her eyes 
locked with his. 

“Yes,” Jack replied. “It can’t go on like this. You’ve been in this cell for 
four days now and all the 
time you haven’t eaten anything. This is ridiculous. I won’t let you starve to 
death, so we should 
work out a compromise.” 

“Like what?” Irina asked neutrally, unable to resist the smell of the food. She 
took a strawberry 
from a plate.

“I will let you out of here. In return you promise to not leave the property 
without company.” He 
offered her some wine, and she gave him her glass. 

“Company?” she asked, savoring the taste of the strawberry. Never in her life 
had she 
worshipped the fact that she had food more.

“Me.” He explained. “If you want to go for a ride or take a walk, you can just 
come to me and I 
will accompany you. You’re free to move everywhere inside the manor and the 
garden, but the 
moment you try to leave it on your own, without me, you’ll be returned to this 
cell.”

Irina scoffed and took a sip of wine, then she got up and walked around. “I 
don’t like the sound 
of this...” she finally explained. “I told you I don’t take orders and I...”

“It is not an order,” Jack corrected her friendly. “It’s an offer which you can 
take or turn down.”

“You can’t lock me down here forever.” Irina explained neutrally, and Jack 
chuckled while he got 
up slowly. 

“We are married, so practically I can do everything I want.” What he said was 
true, still his eyes 
betrayed that locking Irina down here was the last thing he wanted. 

Irina’s eyes sparkled in a silent challenge, seeing how he looked her up and 
down. She 
remembered the nights she had shared with him and shivered slightly. 
No, she finally stopped herself, he is not going to win this game. 
She would not give in just because he said something charming or tried to be 
nice. She would 
teach him a lesson about using the means he would use with one of the cheap 
ladies at court. 

“Jack, I would do almost everything to leave this goddamned cell...” she started 
and leaned 
against the cold stone wall behind her, her hands on her back, while she held 
Jack’s eyes 
seductively. 

“All you have to do is to agree. You can either choose this place to be your 
prison, or you can 
choose it to be a comfortable home.” His voice was low while he slowly 
approached her, his 
eyes gleaming in rising desire. Everything in her behavior reminded him of how 
passionate she 
could be and how sweetly they could take each other into the heights of ecstasy. 
It could have 
been be so easy – if just one of them had been willing to give in to the other.
Finally he reached her, his hand finding her waist and his lips grazing the skin 
of her cheek. 
Irina closed her eyes, for a moment giving in to the overwhelming warmth his 
closeness caused 
inside her. It had been too long since she had felt him close to her – too many 
nights where all 
she had was her imagination. 

Her tongue started to play at his earlobe while her hands ran down his chest 
over his stomach 
and then rested on his abdomen. He pushed her against the wall and claimed the 
skin of her 
neck in a passionate exploration. Irina bit her lip to focus and not lose 
herself in his touch. 

“Tell me what you want...” she demanded softly and bit his earlobe. When she 
heard him moan, 
she smiled triumphantly. 

“I want to make love to you... I have missed that over the last two weeks.” He 
confessed 
honestly and looked into her eyes. Then he lowered his head to claim her lips, 
but she turned 
her head away, knowing that she would be lost if she allowed him to kiss her.

“Tell me more... how do you want to make love to me?” she demanded, her voice 
thick with 
desire and unable to hide her arousal. Still, she was careful not to lose her 
last remains of 
control.

“I want to kiss you... everywhere. Here...” He kissed her chin. “And here...” 
His lips wandered to 
the sensitive spot under her earlobe, where he teased her now thoroughly with 
his tongue and 
lips until he was contented by her moan and felt her body shiver against his. 
His hands ran over 
her shoulder and then down her body. His fingers teased her breasts through the 
material 
before they continued their journey down. 

Irina laid her hands back against Jack’s chest. She had actually planned to go 
further, but she 
wasn’t able to do so since she felt that she would surrender any second. There 
was no way she 
would allow herself to give in to her feelings. She had planned this to show 
Jack how much 
power she had over him, therefore she couldn’t let him end this – although, she 
had to admit 
silently, she wanted nothing more.

In a sudden movement she pushed him away and fled from his touch to the other 
side of the 
room. Her eyes were dark with need and it took all her strength to gather her 
control. Jack 
turned in confusion, taking a step towards her. 

“Stay away from me.” She hissed and folded her arms. “You want to sleep with me? 
Then let 
me out of here... no orders, no restrictions. Otherwise, all you will get from 
me are little turn-
ons.”

Jack laughed ironically, unable to believe that he had fallen for her trick. “I 
should have known it 
when you suddenly seemed so cooperative. But I have to disappoint you. You will 
not blackmail 
me with your body into letting you go.” 

“We’ll see... “ Irina murmured, her eyes still gleaming. “You can’t lock me down 
here forever and 
we both know what I can do to you when I want... it doesn’t even take much of an 
effort.”

“You are a witch, do you know that?” Jack said almost amused, then he went to 
the door and 
yelled for the soldier to open up. “You should be a little more careful about 
the wars you start, 
Irina, because I think both of us also remember what I can do to you without 
much of an effort.” 
There was a silent threat in his voice and the dangerous promise that he would 
take revenge for 
her little game. 

The soldier arrived and unlocked the door. Irina watched Jack leave and didn’t 
even take the 
slightest notice of the soldier who closed her prison again. 
Finally she was alone – as she had been the last days. She looked at the table 
with the food 
and eventually sat down. She had won this day, he had left frustrated, so why 
not celebrate her 
success with a nice dinner? 
She was sure he would think his decision over soon – after one or two more 
nights alone. 
Ignoring the voice inside her that said she might as well think her resistance 
over given the 
frustration of the lonely nights, she enjoyed the rich meal.

To be continued...


Part 14 – Commitments

A normal room had never looked so beautiful to her. Irina let herself fall onto 
the soft mattress of 
her bed and stared at the ceiling for a long time. 

It had been this morning when Jack had visited her and simply told her that she 
was allowed to 
return to her room. She had just stared after him until he had disappeared, not 
really 
understanding his behavior. She had neither apologized, nor indicated her 
cooperation in any 
way - on the contrary. Her behavior from yesterday evening at dinner had been 
another 
declaration of war. Had Jack surrendered?

She had expected him to let her out, but not just twelve hours later. Somehow, 
Irina couldn’t 
believe that he would give up that easily, and so she decided to be very 
careful. 

She sat up when somebody knocked at the door. “Come in.” 

A young girl looked into the room, her eyes turned shyly to the ground. “The 
Lord thought Milady 
might be hungry, so he sent me to tell you that there’s cake and tea in the 
dining room.”

Irina stared at the girl and cocked her head slightly. “Why is he being so 
nice?” It was more 
spoken to herself than a real question, and the girl looked up in confusion. 

“What do you mean?”

“Nothing.” She got up. “I’d be happy to have tea and cake in the dining room.” 

The girl’s face brightened, as if Irina had just told her that she was actually 
the hidden daughter 
of the queen. Irina had gotten to know her before the incident with the horse 
had happened. Her 
name was Sarah, and she was a sweet girl who loved to chitchat about the 
happenings. Jack 
had chosen her to be Irina’s maid for the time being, until he had found a more 
experienced 
replacement, but Irina enjoyed the company of the eighteen year old.

She followed the girl out the room. “So, Sarah, did anything interesting happen 
while I was 
gone?” 

The girl sighed. “Well... the cook had a fight with one of his assistants... I 
think it was about a 
goose, however, the kitchen was totally ruined afterwards. It started out as a 
discussion, but 
then they started to throw with potatoes and beans... it was quite nasty.” The 
girl mused. 
“Fortunately I was off from work that day, because afterwards I heard that Mrs. 
Tribbiani’s mood 
was the worst in centuries. The men had to clean up the whole kitchen that day. 
It took them the 
whole evening and almost the whole night.”

Irina laughed. She had only met Mrs. Tribbiani, the mistress of the household, 
once. She knew 
that Jack had hired the woman to take care of his servants when he was away. In 
manors as big 
as this was, a strong hand was always needed. Mrs. Tribbiani seemed to be a 
dragon. When 
Irina had met her, she had not been very nice – even more, she hadn’t even 
considered Irina 
worth acknowledging. 

Irina hadn’t cared. After all, she was just a temporary resident of this house 
and hopefully would 
soon be gone. 

Sarah opened the door to the dining room for her[,] and Irina entered. She found 
Jack sitting at 
the table, obviously absorbed in some letters he was reading. 

“Milord, the lady is here...” Sarah announced, and only now did Jack look up. He 
smiled at Irina, 
then nodded to Sarah. 

“Thank you Sarah. That’s all for now.”

The girl bowed and left the room. Irina approached the table slowly and sat down 
opposite to 
Jack – on the chair that offered the largest distance to his place. Jack noted 
it with amusement,] 
but didn’t say anything. 

“I hope the experience of the last few days will keep you from leaving this 
property again,” he 
stated, while he offered a plate that was filled with cake and cookies to Irina. 
The woman took a 
cookie and shrugged her shoulders. 

“We’ll see...” she simply said, and Jack didn’t like the hidden tone in her 
voice.

“Irina, I’m warning you...”

“I know, you will throw me into that cell again...” she replied, almost bored 
and took the hot 
water to make a tea. 

“No,” Jack replied. “I will lock you in my room, chained to my bed.” 

“And what tells you I would see that as a bad thing?” she asked and met his 
eyes. Her face 
reflected amusement, and her eyes gleamed seductively. Jack lowered his eyes 
back to his 
letters. He knew what game she was trying to play, but he was better at this. 
She would wish 
she had never started this.

“What tells you it is meant as a bad thing?” he countered, and for a moment they 
looked at each 
other and smiled softly. “By the way, I’m giving a party in two days. 
Unfortunately, one of my 
soldiers told some of his friends at court that we are married, now almost 
everybody knows. 
There are some very good friends of mine at court who want to meet you.” He held 
back that he 
had been the one tasking the young soldier to tell the story in the first place.

“What?” Irina put her cup back to the table. “What about keeping the affair 
secret?”

“It’s not a big deal. They’ll soon forget about the whole thing.”

“Great... do they know who I am?”

“Yes... but they don’t know that you’re a terrorist, if that’s what you’re 
talking about.” Jack said 
and took a sip of his tea. Irina sighed. This was not how she had planned it. 
She had thought 
that nobody would ever know that she and Jack had been married. 
Jack scanned her reaction. He had lied to her not only concerning the soldier. 
Actually he didn’t 
even plan to divorce her anymore. She was smart and beautiful and her hot temper 
was what 
he needed in his life. She was equal to him and didn’t just try to please him. 

He knew it would be difficult to convince her of this marriage, since she still 
considered them 
enemies – which they surely were. Jack didn’t make the mistake of trusting Irina 
an inch. Still, 
he also felt deep respect for her, and it was obvious that they desired each 
other. Maybe her 
feelings could someday develop into love as well – even though the path would 
certainly not be 
an easy one.

“I have ordered a dress for you for the party from my tailor.” 

“Thank you...” Irina murmured and made a mental note to pay him the money he had 
spent for 
the dress. “Have you heard anything from my sister yet?”

Jack looked at her seriously. “No... not yet.” He could read in her eyes that 
Irina was worried 
about her sister, and for a moment he wanted to calm her down and tell her that 
her sister was 
going to be alright. He had a soldier observing her movements. The young man 
would report 
every step Katya Derevko took to him. But Jack kept that little fact to himself 
– as well as all the 
other minor details in his plan. He wanted to have some advantages Irina did not 
know of since 
– he was sure – she would never surrender to him, and therefore he felt safer if 
he knew he was 
prepared. 

They passed the rest of the time in silence until Jack apologized and left. He 
still had some work 
to do, and he had to write a few letters. Over the past few weeks, he had 
contacted some 
friends and men he knew and felt respect for to gain information about Irina’s 
past. So far their 
efforts seemed unsuccessful, but there was one more contact Jack wanted to ask. 
He was 
curious about the secrets she was hiding from him. 
Every time he had asked her about her past she had cut him off. That had made 
him even more 
curious, and he was determined to solve that mystery. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The alley behind the large city house was dirty, and a visitor who saw the dirty 
ground would 
have never thought that the house leading into it belonged to one of the richest 
men in the 
kingdom. 
The water running through a small drain on the ground was dirty and muddy, 
carrying garbage 
with it. Somewhere a cat meowed, and the rumbling sound of falling metal could 
be heard. 

Lady Katya Derevko hugged herself with her arms, and stepped carefully over the 
small drain at 
on the ground, taking care to not ruin her expensive clothes. The churchbells in 
the distance 
announced that it was almost midnight and Katya scoffed, slightly irritated. 

“He might be a successful man, but punctuality is certainly not one of his 
qualities,” she 
murmured to herself and jumped, when a mouse ran by her feet, followed by the 
dirty cat she 
had heard earlier. Katya felt fury rising inside her and could not stop herself 
from letting it out by 
kicking the poor animal. 

“Good evening, Milady.” A voice suddenly said close behind her, and Katya spun 
around, her 
eyes wide in shock. She scanned the appearance of the man who was standing right 
in front of 
her. He was older than she was, his hair and beard were already gray. 

“Good evening. I assume, you’re the man I’m supposed to meet?”

“Yes... Lady Derevko. I’ve heard of you and everything you’ve done... but I 
would have never 
pictured you to be so beautiful.” He took her hand and kissed it in the most 
courteous manner. 
Katya smiled coldly and pulled her hand out if his. 

“Skip the formalities.” She said.

“Impatient, are we? So, I’m curious... one of my men told me you wanted to talk 
to me. Why 
me?”

“Oh, I did not specifically ask for you. I told him I wanted to talk to one of 
the highest ranking 
leaders of the rebel movement. Of course, I didn’t expect to meet a counselor of 
the queen.” 

“The world is full of surprises. Now...” He offered her his arm. “Do you want to 
stay out here or 
join me in a more comfortable place?”

Katya looked around in the dark alley and decided that it was probably more 
dangerous in the 
house than out here. Still, she agreed. She couldn’t do differently. Her 
priority was to gain this 
man’s trust – if she had to share his bed to do so, so be it. He was not the 
most attractive man 
she had ever met, but in a way there was something about him that appealed to 
her – money 
and success. Men were easy to manipulate when they trusted a woman. 

“Do you plan to tell me your name anytime soon?” Katya finally asked, and the 
man chuckled 
amused. “What are you laughing about? You know my name, so it would only be fair 
to put us 
into an even situation.”

“I’ve heard the tragedy about your sister...” The man countered, instead of 
answering her 
question. Katya was not surprised by this revelation. This man was a counselor 
at court and he 
surely knew Jack Bristow. “Betraying our whole organization by marrying the man 
she loves. 
Doesn’t that make you angry?”

“My sister is no longer part of my life, so she can do whatever she wants. It 
doesn’t concern me 
anymore.” Katya replied, using the coldest tone she was capable of. 

“So, why did you want to talk to me?”

“I need help. My sister is gone, and my youngest sister is too inexperienced to 
work fully as a 
terrorist. I want to be a leading officer.” She faced him furiously when he 
started to laugh loudly. 
Her face became a cold facade of stone, and she folded her arms. “I do not see 
the reason for 
your amusement.”

“Milady, with all due respect, but you are a woman. You would have no chance 
against a man. 
You don’t seriously expect me to put you into a leading pos...” He hadn’t 
finished his sentence 
yet when he found himself lying on the ground, Katya’s foot pressed into his 
back, her hands 
around his throat. 

“So, talking about that ‘no-chance-against-a-man’ thing again. You were saying?” 
she hissed 
furiously.

The man gasped for air when she had let go of his throat and sat up. “Under 
normal 
circumstances, I would have to kill you now for the affront of attacking me!”

“You know why I did it.” She said and stood up. Not losing is eyes when he rose 
from the 
ground, she stepped closer to him. “What do you say?”

“I will think about it!” he growled, his hand touching her shoulder and stroking 
away the material 
of her coat to reveal the silky skin of her cleavage. “But there may be a way to 
bribe me.” 

His voice was low, and Katya leaned in closer to him. “And what way could that 
be?” she asked 
seductively close to his lips. Her hot breath tickled his skin, and he pulled 
her waist against his 
in a rough gesture. Scanning her eyes for approval, he held her close to him, 
breathing in the 
scent of her. When she didn’t do anything to push him away, he claimed her lips 
in a deep, 
demanding kiss that made her feel dizzy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day was bright and sunny. Although a soft breeze from the sea required 
a coat, Irina 
enjoyed sitting in the huge garden on the wooden bench in front of the 
flowerbed, a thick book 
on her lap.
She had not seen Jack since yesterday when he had told her about the party. 
Although she was 
still not willing to surrender to what he said, she had decided that starting a 
superfluous fight 
was useless and would only supply the maids in the house with new gossip. So she 
avoided 
Jack’s presence as far as she could. 

As much as she wanted to go out or take a ride to get rid of her energies and 
think about 
anything else than her situation, she was too proud to ask Jack to accompany 
her. The least 
she wanted was to spend time with her ‘husband’ now.

Irina gave a deep sigh and dropped the book. She lifted her face to the warming 
beams of the 
sun and closed her eyes. Actually, if she thought about it, the surroundings 
were as she had 
always wished them to be as a child and young girl. She had wanted to marry a 
rich and well-
situated husband with a huge and beautiful house. 
Great, she thought bitterly. She had gotten everything she had wished for, 
except or one little 
detail. Her husband was her enemy, and they hated each other – at least kind of. 

Irina’s suspicion woke immediately when all the maids, who had been hanging up 
laundry 
twenty meters away from her, stopped their laughter and chitchatting. She opened 
her eyes, 
feeling that something was wrong and saw Jack strolling towards her bench. 

With a loud sound, Irina closed her book and got up. Jack noticed that she was 
about to leave 
and hurried to cross the remaining few meters between them. He reached Irina 
just when she 
was about to go away and grabbed her wrist. 

“I was looking for you all over the house.” He said lowly into her ear, and 
Irina felt a warm shiver 
run through her body at his body being so close behind her. “I was already 
thinking you might 
have made another attempt to escape.” 

“’Another’ attempt? There was no first attempt.” Irina replied, trying to put 
coldness into her 
voice. She wriggled out of his grip and turned around. Jack smiled at her and 
sat down on the 
bench, gesturing to her to sit down next to him. For a moment Irina seemed to be 
determined to 
just go away, but she knew that it wouldn’t get her anywhere, except for maybe a 
prison cell.

This was Jack’s house, and she had to admit to herself that he definitely had an 
advantage 
here. So she sat down next to him, taking care that there was at least a half 
meter distance 
between them. Jack couldn’t help but grin amused – yet, he kept silent. 

“I just wanted to talk to you about tomorrow evening,” Jack started and looked 
at the beautiful 
woman next to him. For a moment, he was stunned by the colorful reflection of 
the sun in her 
hair. He had never seen a woman with beautiful hair like she had. The color in 
the sunlight was 
something between blonde, brown and red. He forced himself to focus on what he 
had wanted 
to say. “I expect you to behave absolutely perfectly. You will neither flirt 
with any of the 
gentlemen who’ll be there, nor will you try to get help from one of them. They 
have to believe 
that you are my wife, so you have to behave as if you are.”

Irina’s eyes sparkled in a challenge. “So do you expect me to tell them how much 
I love and 
adore you?”

“If you want to do so,” Jack countered. “But I would simply be happy if you just 
did not cause 
any kind of trouble. Are we clear on that?” 

“I don’t see any reason why I should not flirt with a gentleman if I come to 
like one of them. After 
all, we won’t be married for a long time, so there is no reason why I shouldn’t 
continue watching 
out for an appropriate groom.”

Jack grabbed her wrist and looked into her eyes with a dangerously threatening 
expression. 
“Who knows.”

With an abrupt movement, she pulled her hand out of his grip, her chocolate 
brown eyes holding 
his in a silent fight, before she got up and went away in the most arrogant way 
a woman was 
capable of. Jack chuckled and jumped up to follow her. It didn’t take him more 
than a few steps 
to catch up with her. Before she could protest, he grabbed her arm and dragged 
her behind 
some rosebushes where they were out of sight of the maids and servants. 

Irina gasped in surprise when she felt the stonewall at her back and wanted to 
leave 
immediately, but Jack’s arms imprisoned her and forced her to stay where she 
was. 

“I hate you,” Irina hissed angrily. “Let me go or...”

“Or?” Jack asked amused. “I’m sure you would rather not draw the attention of 
the maids 
towards us now in this compromising position.”

“It’s not compromising if I scream for help. Then your servants will finally see 
what a bastard you 
are.”

“Aren’t you missing an important fact?” Jack asked, and couldn’t help tempting 
her further. He 
loved to tease her. Somehow, she woke devils inside him that he didn’t even know 
were there. 
“I am your husband. The servants believe so, even if they know that you’re a 
little stubborn and 
certainly not the most cooperative wife. They won’t interfere no matter what 
happens. I could 
make love to you right here, and they would not care.” His face lowered to hers 
slowly. “What do 
you think? Shall we consummate our marriage out here right now?” His hands 
brushed the skin 
of her arms, and she shivered, hating herself for her weakness – that she wasn’t 
able to resist 
Jack’s touch.  

“No,” she replied, her voice steady and strong, yet her body betrayed that she 
wished for the 
opposite. “I think we consummated enough. Why don’t you visit your mistresses 
for a change?”

“Because I don’t want any of my mistresses right now. I want you... I want to 
feel your skin on 
mine, your hands on my shoulders – not the ones of some other random woman.” His 
words 
were sweet seductions, tender caresses to every woman’s heart, and as much as 
Irina hated it, 
she felt bewitched. Still imprisoned in between him and the wall, she relaxed a 
little and leaned 
against the cool stone behind her, her eyes darkening and speaking the truth 
about how much 
she needed him.

“I’m sorry, but that is not going to happen. I made a mistake when I slept with 
you and won’t 
repeat it.”

“That’s a breech of our agreement,” Jack simply stated, still absolutely self-
secure. 

“Excuse me?” 

“Well,” Jack’s fingers started to play with a strand of her silky hair. “Two 
days ago you told me, if 
I wanted to sleep with you, I had to let you out of the cell. I did...”

“Yes, but I also said no restrictions!” Irina countered, both of them obviously 
enjoying their 
discussion. 

“There are no restrictions, just some conditions...” Jack’s lips brushed the 
skin of her jawline in 
what could barely be called a touch, yet his hot breath tickled her skin, and 
she felt dizziness 
overwhelm her. Against her will, she had to grab his shoulders for support. Jack 
smiled inwardly 
and pushed himself into her body, pressing his leg between hers, into her 
center. For a moment, 
he cursed that she was wearing a long dress. That was the disadvantage about 
seducing a 
woman in the garden. There was almost no way to get rid of the dress. 
Still, after all, he didn’t want to seduce her, just teach her a lesson, so 
probably her dress was a 
blessing to remind him of what his plan was. If he didn’t have the chance to go 
further, he would 
stick to his revenge. 

His mouth brushed her full, erotic lips in the slightest breath of a touch, 
evading her every time 
she tried to deepen the kiss. He continued this sweet torture, determined to 
break her control 
and her will not to surrender to him. 

His hands wandered over her body, caressing every spot he could reach. Even 
though she was 
wearing a dress, she felt as if his touches burned her alive. 

“Do you know what I want to do to you?” Jack finally murmured into her ear, his 
tongue teasing 
the sensitive lobe. An aroused moan was the only answer he got. “I want to kiss 
you all over, 
everywhere. Do you know how much pleasure I could bring you by just kissing 
you?”

“Jack-“ Her voice was weak and her tone something between begging – whether it 
was begging 
to continue or to stop he couldn’t quite define - and whimpering. 

“My lips will touch you here...” his hand ran down her chest and cupped her 
breast, his fingers 
teasing them through the fabric until he felt her nipples harden, then he ran 
his hands further 
down to her stomach. “... and here...”

Although it was only his hand touching her, she could feel his kisses in her 
fantasy. Her whole 
body seemed to be set on fire. She felt his lips at her cheek and leaned her 
head into him. 

“Then I would slowly move my lips down...” He imitated the words he spoke with 
his hand, 
moving his fingers down her stomach and placing them between her legs at her 
center. Irina 
gasped for air in shock at the heat that struck her, almost made her fall, and 
grabbed his arm, 
determined to pull his hand away. Again her body betrayed her reason when she 
held him in 
place. 

Jack started to rub her erotically, and she panted against his mouth, her whole 
body shivering in 
delight. She clutched his arm with her hand and instead of pulling it away, 
pressing it closer 
against her. Jack moaned, the sight of her being almost his undoing. 

He had underestimated what only the sight of her could do to him. Lost to his 
touches, she tried 
to capture his lips with hers, but again, he evaded her mouth playfully. He 
wanted to show her 
that he was the one in control – even more, he wanted her to surrender. 
Her breathing grew shallower, and she touched his cheek with her hand.

“Jack...” she whispered against his lips, finally willing to give in. 
“Please...”

“Please what?” he asked, his voice thick with desire. 

“Stop torturing me...” 

He looked into her eyes - those beautiful eyes that reflected nothing but desire 
in this moment - 
and finally his lips crashed on hers, claiming and exploring, almost ravishing 
them. Irina clasped 
his shoulder almost painfully, feeling a wonderful release building up deep 
inside her. She 
pressed her body closer against Jack’s, concentrating on the movements of his 
hand and the 
fantasies he had created in her mind. When she was just about to feel as if a 
fire of passion 
would burn her in his arms, he stopped his erotic caresses and broke contact 
with her body 
suddenly.

He struggled to regain control over his breathing and his thoughts – his whole 
body actually. 

“What...?” Irina panted and wanted to pull him back against her, but Jack 
stepped away from 
her and turned around.

“The things you do to me, Irina, will all come back to you sooner or later.” He 
simply stated, then 
hurried to go away before she could notice that he wasn’t as much under control 
of himself as 
he pretended to be. 

The woman just stared after him, her conscious mind unable to believe what was 
happening. 
She almost screamed out in frustration, the sudden loss of Jack’s warm embrace 
and his 
touches leaving her cold, shivering and somehow empty. She felt as if she were 
burning, and 
there was no one to put out the fire.

A sob escaped her throat when she tried to gather her strength and collected the 
fallen book 
from the ground with her trembling hands. 

Oh wait, Jack, she cursed silently, you will wish you had never done this to me.

Tears of fury and unfulfilled passion were pooling in her eyes when she hurried 
back into the 
house. She was no longer in the mood to go out or be somewhere in the daylight. 
Her day had 
been ruined gloriously.

Part 15 – Sleepless

Around 10pm – Irina

She felt like a tiger, imprisoned in its cage in one of the zoos she had once 
seen when she was 
smaller. There was a place she wanted to go, things she wanted – she needed – to 
do, yet she 
couldn’t. Forced to remain imprisoned, she had to endure the torture. 

Irina paced up and down in her room, trying to force away the unpleasant 
thoughts of what 
might be happening to her sister right now, only to find them replaced by erotic 
thoughts that 
tortured her even more. 

“I hate him,” she murmured again and again, and it was true. There had never 
been a human 
being she had despised more – and loved more at the same time. That fact 
bothered her the 
most. How could it be possible to dislike a man and at the same time wish for 
his company? 
There was obviously something wrong with her. Had she unconsciously hit her head 
in her 
sleep?

Irina sat down on her bed, unable to think about sleep – or to just lay down for 
that matter. She 
was in turmoil. Every nerve of her body pushed her to just go to Jack and seduce 
him, but her 
reason on the contrary forbid that action. He would not be the one who won the 
battle. If he 
thought that she couldn’t control herself, he was wrong. She was quite capable 
of banning him 
from her mind. 

For about ten seconds, she stared into the dancing flames of the fireplace in 
her room, trying to 
think of something unimportant - their house, Maggie – Jack – Gerard who had 
betrayed her. 
She needed to take revenge for that – Jack’s sweet kisses.

“Oh come on...” she murmured to herself. She had never been one of the women who 
needed a 
man to feel complete, so why was she acting now as if all her reason had gone 
from her mind?

Since the incident in the garden, she had spent the rest of the day in her room 
and not allowed 
anybody to disturb her. She felt unbalanced, frustrated and angry, and there was 
nothing she 
could do about it. 

She had even tried to imitate his touches to ease her discomfort – to no avail. 
She longed to lie 
in Jack’s arms, to feel his skin against hers and his lips seducing her, just 
the way he had 
described. 

When she realized that she was again thinking about Jack and their encounter in 
the afternoon, 
she got up with a sound that was a mixture of fury and frustration. She grabbed 
her candle and 
went to the door without making any sound. The sun had long gone down and the 
house had 
settled into silence, although some of the late servants were still working 
busily. 

Carefully, Irina peeked out into the dark corridor. When she didn’t see anybody, 
she left her 
room. The least thing she needed now was to run into Jack by accident. Maybe the 
cook could 
make a cup of tea for her. And she needed to eat something. That would surely 
ease her feeling 
of restlessness. 

10.30pm – Jack

Perfect. The whole situation was just perfect. He was unable to do any kind of 
work, just 
thinking that she was sleeping in the same house he was in – not even hundred 
meters away 
from his study. All he had to do was go to her room and then do all the things 
with her he had 
fantasized about. 

He had surely underestimated the effects she had on him. He dropped the book he 
was reading 
and leaned back. He needed a woman – no, he corrected silently, I need her. 
Damn, he was 
adult. Even more, he was a well-situated man in his mid-thirties, not a young, 
untamed boy 
anymore. He had learned to deal with women, and even more to control himself. 

“Damn you, Irina,” he murmured to himself and got up from his armchair. His 
pride forbade him 
to do what he wanted to do the most. Go to her room and make love to her until 
she had 
forgotten about fighting him or running away. Until all she could still think of 
was him and how he 
brought the sweetest pleasure to her body. 

Abruptly he got up from his chair and put the book back in its place on the 
shelf. Those thoughts 
had to stop. He couldn’t allow Irina to have such power over him. She was no 
better or worse 
than any other woman. 

He left his study and went the small way from the room to the door where his 
coats were 
hanging. Irina was not the only woman who could fulfill his needs. There were 
plenty of others 
who would not start a fight with him, but be grateful for his company and 
fulfill his wishes before 
he even knew he had them. 

“Milord, you want to go out so late?” James, his old butler hurried to help him 
with the coat and 
get the gloves. He was already wearing his nightgown, a candle in his hand. 
“Shall I wake 
August to prepare the horses?”

“No thank you. I will take my horse and take care of it myself. I’d appreciate 
if you kept my late 
leave discreetly to yourself.” Jack said friendly and the old man nodded, then 
thought for a 
moment. 

“And your wife? Shall I also keep it from her?” 

“Yes...” Jack started, then suddenly stopped. He cocked his head slightly and 
the hint of a grin 
played around the corner of his mouth. “No,” he corrected his earlier order. 
“No, tell her that I 
am gone to visit a friend. And tell her that I will most likely stay there 
overnight.”

The butler’s eyes grew wide and the cleared his throat. “With all due respect, 
milord, but I don’t 
think that’s information you should give to your lady. She will think that...”

“That I’m going to visit one of my mistresses – which is the case. I want her to 
think exactly that. 
As a payback for what she does to me...” Jack chuckled slightly. James shook his 
head and 
opened the door. He was not afraid of Irina, but he knew that she would 
definitely be more than 
outraged if she learned where Jack had gone. He was well aware that their 
marriage had not 
been perfect from the start – but what marriage was? Although he didn’t know the 
circumstances under which the marriage had taken place, he assumed that it was 
comparable 
to one of those forced marriages. Only very few people today married from love, 
and Irina was 
obviously one of the women who did not accept to being married to a man she did 
not want.

“Sir, why don’t you give your lady another chance? She’s probably very lonely, 
now that she is 
gone from her family. Maybe she needs a friend in you, not an enemy.”

Jack looked at the old man. He had already served his father as a stable hand 
and when Jack 
had been a boy, James had taught him riding and everything about horses. There 
were not 
many people in his household that Jack trusted, but James was definitely the one 
he trusted 
most. He could be sure that the old man did not gossip if Jack asked him not to 
do so. It was 
due to that deep respect that Jack accepted the fact that James told him his 
opinion so openly. 

“James, I was her friend. The circumstances of our marriage were a little – 
well, unusual. But I 
never treated her disrespectfully, and she had more than one chance to behave a 
little more 
appropriately.”

The old man growled to show Jack how much he disliked his behavior. “One thing 
is for sure. 
You are fortunately totally different from your father, but the one thing you’ve 
clearly inherited is 
his stubbornness.” 

Jack laughed and turned around. James opened the door for him and watched him 
leave. 
Silently he shook his head. A blind person could see that those two loved each 
other – although 
neither of them was willing to admit it. 

When Jack had disappeared in the darkness, he closed the door and turned around 
to go back 
to bed. 


Around 10.40pm – Irina

The air on the corridor was almost icy and Irina shivered, wishing she had taken 
a blanket from 
her room. At night, only the personal rooms and the kitchen were warmed by 
fires, the rest of 
the house stood in coldness to save wood for the winter. 

When she turned left towards the stairs, she ran against a person and almost 
screamed in 
shock. At first she feared it might be Jack, but soon she was relieved to find 
only the old butler 
James, standing in his nightgown in front of her and looking at her confused. 

“Milady?”

“I’m sorry James,” she murmured. “I was just heading for the kitchen.”

James looked at her and thought of the orders Jack had given him – tell Irina 
about where he 
was going. But when she was standing in front of him, smiling nicely, he 
couldn’t do it. Damn it, 
he thought to himself. So, he would have to take the consequences if Jack found 
out, but he 
couldn’t be so cruel to consciously hurt the woman. 

“A lady shouldn’t walk alone in a house on a dark night. Why didn’t you ask for 
your maid... or 
me?”

“Thanks, I’m fine,” Irina smiled. “I just needed to... I wanted to get out of my 
room anyway.”

“Then I’ll accompany you...”

“That’s not necessary,” Irina replied courteously. “Seriously, I’m...”

“You never know what ideas a drunken soldier or kitchen assistant might get.” 
James replied 
and Irina shrugged her shoulders. She was actually glad to have found somebody 
to talk to. 
Hopefully, he would distract her from further thoughts of Jack.

“Do you want the cook to prepare some snacks for you?” James finally asked after 
a long 
pause. 

“Oh, that would be nice, if it doesn’t cause any problems, since it’s late 
and...,” Irina replied, 
trying to keep the candle burning, as they stepped down the stairs and entered a 
corridor where 
a soft breeze—most likely caused by the open windows—threatened to blow out the 
flame.

“No, the lord is often up at night to eat or drink a cup of tea. You two have 
much in common.” 
The sentence was spoken as if in passing, but James watched Irina carefully from 
the corner of 
his eye. 

“Maybe,” she replied almost coldly. 

“You are very lucky to be married to such a charming man. I’ve seen girls trying 
to draw his 
attention to them, but he never even looked at them.”

“James, I don’t mean this to sound disrespectful or insulting in any way, but 
could we change 
the topic?” Irina finally asked, not able to bear talking about Jack now. It was 
enough that she 
couldn’t stop thinking about him…about how they had made love – how he had known 
everything she needed and fulfilled her deepest needs. 

There had been other men she had slept with, but none of them had made her feel 
as Jack did. 
She remembered the first time she had given herself to a man. He had been a 
young noble from 
London. She had been nineteen, and it was shortly after her father had died. 
Katya had thought 
it about time for Irina to be introduced to society. 
She could still remember his name – Marc. She had never known his last name – 
all she had 
known was that he was the son of a Duke. He had seduced her by sweet promises to 
marry her 
afterwards, but the next morning he had been gone. 

Totally down on her nerves, she had confessed to her sister what had happened. 
Katya had 
sworn to take revenge for what he had done to Irina. Then she had left. Irina 
hadn’t heard from 
her for three days, then Katya had returned and said, that the Duke had paid for 
his lies. Irina 
hadn’t asked what had happened. She knew that sometimes it was better to not 
know what 
exactly her sister had done. 

After that experience, men had merely been a nice pastime for her. Whenever she 
felt like she 
longed for a man, she went to the man with whom she was currently having an 
affair and left the 
next morning – without any questions or demands. But with Jack the whole 
situation suddenly 
seemed different. 

He was totally unlike all her affairs – and sleeping with him was in a strange 
way more 
satisfying. 
Determined, she banned those thoughts from her mind. Jack wasn’t better or worse 
than other 
men. She could live without him, as she had done her whole life. There were 
other men who 
could fulfill her needs as good as he did. 

When they came closer to the kitchen, Irina noticed that James hadn’t spoken a 
word since her 
request to change subjects, and she was just thinking whether she might have 
insulted him, 
when she heard the voices from a maid and the staff in the kitchen. 

“It’s a shame. They just married. I swear, if my husband did something like 
that, he would curse 
the day he was born at...”

“Malory, you can’t blame him! She’s a witch. No man would want her company when 
there’s a 
nice, willing girl waiting for him somewhere.” A male voice replied. 

“Oh please. No marriage is easy at the beginning. And he was not treating her 
very fair either, 
or would you be most cooperative when your husband locked you in the prison? He 
can’t expect 
her to be cooperative when he behaves like a bastard.” Irina recognized the 
voice of her maid 
Sarah. 

“You just watch out to not drop the cup.” Another, the first voice – that one of 
an elder woman - 
rasped. “It’s not the task of a man to make the woman behave lovable. It’s her 
task to make him 
respect her and enjoy her company. If you ask me, it’s no wonder that he’s gone 
to see his 
mistress tonight. I would have done the same if I was him."

Irina felt as if a knife had been stabbed into her heart. They’re not talking 
about you, she tried to 
fool herself, but it failed. She knew exactly that the servants were talking 
about her and Jack, 
and she also understood that Jack had obviously gone to visit one of his cheap 
whores. 

A slap into her face couldn’t have been worse. It’s your own fault, the tiny 
voice inside her 
whispered, but she forced it away. The servants continued giggling and gossiping 
about where 
Jack went until James pushed open the kitchen door. 

“Do you not have enough work to do that you can pass the time chitchatting about 
things that 
are not your business?” he ranted angrily, and the servants jumped. “Get back to 
work!” His 
face was dark and although Mrs. Tribbiani was the superior of the household, 
every servant felt 
respect for old James since they knew he was something like Jack’s confidant. 

Concerned, James looked at Irina. “I’m sorry... sometimes they just can’t shut 
their mouths.”

“He’s gone.” Irina stated coolly, and James nodded slightly without saying 
anything. Irina 
laughed bitterly and felt the need to throw the candle she was still carrying 
against the wall. But 
she knew very well that showing such an outburst of feelings in front of 
servants was never a 
good idea, and so she just smiled. 

“So, what kind of snacks do you have to offer?” she asked, pretending to not 
really be interested 
anymore. All her features represented dignity, and for a moment James truly 
admired the 
beautiful lady for her discipline and self-control. He had either expected her 
to suffer an 
infuriated attack or a breakdown in tears. Neither happened. He wondered for a 
moment 
whether Jack Bristow knew what an extraordinarily strong woman he had by his 
side.

The other servants didn’t dare to look at Irina anymore who, by her appearance, 
showed such a 
dignity that for the first time they respected her even more than Mrs. 
Tribbiani. Within seconds, 
the kitchen came to life. The cook lit the fire in the oven anew to make some 
snacks and tea, 
the servants cleaned the table and Sarah hurried to get a blanket for Irina. 

“Are you okay?” James asked worried, when Irina sat down at the wooden table 
which was 
actually meant for the servants. Irina had never known those differences. At 
home the family 
had always sat with Maggie and the one or two other servants they had in the 
kitchen for dinner. 

“Why should I not be okay?” Irina asked. “He’s a grown up. He can do whatever he 
wants. If he 
thinks that a cheap whore is a better company than I am, then he has to visit 
her.” 

Sarah looked worried at the old man, but didn’t say anything. She had learned 
early to not 
comment on the behavior of her master or mistress. 

“Thanks, Sarah...” Irina said and looked at the young girl. She noticed that her 
maid looked tired 
and smiled friendly. “Why don’t you join me? Sit down and eat some snacks.”

“Milady, I can’t...” The girl started and obviously thought of words. “I mean... 
you can’t sit with 
servants...”

“Let that be my problem. Now sit down and have some tea. James, could you get 
Sarah a cup 
of hot tea please? And one for yourself.”

The old butler nodded and went to take some cups. This lady never failed to 
surprise him in her 
behavior... He just wondered what old Mrs. Tribbiani would say if she learned 
about tonight’s 
kitchen-party with the lady of the household. He smiled to himself. Certainly, 
Mrs. Tribbiani 
would be more than infuriated – and that was what made him like Irina even more.


0.30am – Jack

He hurried to take the horse back into the stable. Since the staff was already 
sleeping, he had to 
take care of the animal himself. Jack didn’t care. He loved to do so and was 
used to it. 
Whenever he came back late, his first task was to dry the horses fur and feed 
it, before he could 
go inside.

And tonight he needed some time alone. He had gone to the nearby city to visit 
Annabel, his 
mistress. She was a beautiful young woman, the most exclusive girl in the city. 
And she never 
failed to satisfy his needs. But tonight had been different. He had not really 
been in the mood. 
Correct that. He was very much in the mood, but it was Irina that invaded his 
thoughts…her 
face…her eyes…her scent.

He had paid his mistress, but when she had kissed him, he had felt totally 
turned off. It had not 
been the girl’s fault. Jack sighed. Irina had bewitched him with her stubborn 
behavior and her 
rebellious spirit. He longed for her temper and fire in bed... not for some easy 
girl who spent the 
time only fulfilling his wishes. 

What was wrong with him? When had there been this change in his behavior? All he 
longed for 
right now was to go to Irina’s bedroom and make love to her until she forgot her 
name. He 
shook his head in silent disapproval of his own thoughts. No, he would not allow 
Irina to control 
him in that way. 

When he had finished taking care of the horse, he left the stable through the 
servants’ entry, 
which led him directly into the house. He was used to taking this way. At night 
he was just not 
willing to go out into the cool air again just to take the more appropriate 
front entry. The way 
through the servants’ tract was faster. 

When he approached the kitchen he could hear loud laughter and cheering. He 
raised his 
eyebrows and turned left to the kitchen. He didn’t make any sound when he opened 
the door 
and watched, in disbelief, the scene that presented itself to him. One of his 
stable boys was 
standing in a free corner, juggling with five eggs. The rest of his servants, 
including James, were 
standing and sitting around the table, cheering and clapping, while they 
encouraged him with 
joyful and admiring comments. 
Jack didn’t believe his eyes when he found Irina amongst them, just getting 
herself a new cup of 
tea and handing her maid Sarah a second one. 

“What is going on here?” he finally asked loudly, not hiding a certain sharpness 
from his voice. 
Within an instant, the happy people silenced and stared at him in shock. The 
poor juggling boy 
was so frightened, that he dropped all of the eggs and stared at Jack with wide 
eyes. Jack 
looked in disapproval at the broken eggs on the ground[,] and his face darkened. 

“Jack!” Irina stepped forward, when he approached the stable boy. 

“Irina, what do you think you’re doing here?” he hissed, his eyes now turned on 
her, and Irina 
held his gaze. 

“I was amusing myself.”

“With the servants???” 

Irina turned and smiled at the staff. “It’s okay, you can go to bed.” She looked 
at the unhappy 
boy who had dropped the eggs. He was fifteen at the most and obviously expected 
to be fired 
now. “You too. Go to sleep. I will clean up here.” Irina said softly, and the 
boy turned and 
stormed out of the room in relief. When the servants had gone, Jack grabbed 
Irina’s shoulders. 

“Who do you think you are?” he asked infuriated. “You’re questioning my 
authority by acting 
against my orders in front of the servants! I am sure they told you that they 
are not allowed to 
use the kitchen at night.”

“I was using the kitchen!” Irina countered sharply. “And since my husband was 
obviously 
occupied elsewhere, I thought I could as well have some fun by myself.” 

“Define fun!” Jack’s voice was loud, and he didn’t even try to calm down 
anymore. 

“Well, having a little party, drinking tea... after all more innocent than what 
you had.” She looked 
him down. “Was it good at least? Did she satisfy you? I seriously hope so, 
because then you will 
luckily leave me alone for the next days.” 

“Irina...” he grabbed her sharply and locked their eyes. “Don’t push it too far. 
You’re just inches 
away from a prison cell!”

“I thought I already made clear that that was not a threat to me!” she yelled 
back, not caring 
about her tone anymore.

“Would you just act reasonably for a moment?”

“Would YOU just act reasonably? All we had was a little party.”

“My wife has a party with her servants when her husband is out of the house. 
What do you think 
will that look like?”

“Jack, don’t make it look dirty, it wasn’t! My maid was there, so there’s 
nothing wrong about...” 
she couldn’t even finish her sentence.

“That is simply not the point here.” Jack said dangerously calm. Irina’s eyes 
blinked with fury, 
and Jack could literally see the flames in them. 

“Bristow, don’t you dare ever interrupt me again!” she hissed angrily. “The 
point here is that you 
were obviously left frustrated by your well-paid whore, and now you are angry 
that I was having 
a good time when you had obviously hoped that I’d be infuriated about your 
little escapade. 
Well, you were wrong. I don’t care one little penny with whom you share your 
bed, since I want 
to remind you, our marriage is fake! I am not your wife, and so don’t you dare 
talk to me in that 
tone again.”

She had hit the point gloriously, he admitted angrily. Yes, he was angry that 
she obviously cared 
that little about him sharing another woman’s bed. He was not only angry, it 
also hurt something 
inside him that he seemed to mean nothing to her. 

“Wrong, Milady. You are my wife as long as I decide.” He countered, and when he 
saw the 
sparks in Irina’s eyes, he was seriously afraid that she would grab one of the 
knives in the 
kitchen and stab him. 

“Well...” she finally said simply. “This is where YOU are wrong.”

“Really?” He couldn’t help but provoke her. “Today in the garden it looked 
totally different.” 
Satisfied when he noticed, that she knew nothing to contradict, he folded his 
arms.

“Fine...” Irina finally started, trying to remember her fury instead of the 
arousing incident in the 
garden, then she saw the amused gleam in Jack’s eyes and threw one of the eggs 
towards him. 
“You damned son of a...” 
At the last second she remembered that some of the servants might still be 
listening, so she 
lowered her voice and approached Jack slowly, until their faces were only inches 
apart. 
“I am tired of talking to you... and I will go to my bed now... alone... You 
know, being alone can 
be satisfying too. Even more, sometimes...” 

With these words she turned around, satisfied by the gasp Jack took at the vivid 
mental image, 
and went out of the room in the most seductive way she was capable of. Jack 
stared after her, 
and for a moment he actually thought about just grabbing her and carrying her 
into his room. 

With any other woman, he thought bitterly, that would have worked, but Irina 
would start an ado 
he’d never forget. Besides, he would not be the first one to give in. If she 
wanted him, she had 
to show him. After another deep breath, he followed her hastily. 

“Irina!”

“What?” the woman asked at the stairs and turned around slightly annoyed. Jack 
couldn’t help 
but grin at her tone. Luckily the dimness of the corridor hid his face from 
hers. It was just 
amazing how much she resembled him in her reactions. 

“Oh, I just wanted to wish you a good night.” He said friendly. “And 
apologize... Although my 
point was justified, my behavior inside there was not quite appropriate 
…especially not in front 
of servants.”

“Um...” she started, totally stunned by his sudden friendliness. He actually 
seemed to mean 
what he said. “Well... accepted.” For a moment, it seemed as if she was going to 
take a step 
towards him, but then she changed her mind. Staying where she was, she was 
unsure about 
what to do next. Jack’s change of behavior, his almost charming friendliness, 
had totally put her 
off. 

He took a few steps towards her, until their bodies were only inches apart. For 
a moment they 
just looked into each other’s eyes, unable to turn their faces away. The longing 
to kiss the other 
was standing in the eyes of both of them, but the corridor was too dark for them 
to read each 
other’s eyes. 

When their hands brushed accidentally, they shivered at the sensation and longed 
for more than 
just an innocent touch like this. 

“Good night...” Irina suddenly whispered, unable to keep her voice steady and 
sure. Feeling 
dizzy, she turned and almost fled up the stairs. Jack looked after her, 
considering the possibility 
of just forgetting about their stupid challenge. Then he decided against it. One 
of them would 
start all this again tomorrow at the latest, and Jack was sure Irina would use 
his surrender 
against him then. 
No, this time he would not be the one to give in. And damned, he had lived a 
good amount of 
time without a woman. It was not like he needed one in his bed to be happy. 

Determined to not let Irina haunt his dreams this night, he followed Irina up 
the stairs to go to his 
own bedroom.


Part 16 – Amusements

Next evening – The Party

Irina let herself sink onto the couch in one of the smaller rooms connected to 
the ballroom which 
were meant to give the dancers some privacy and a room to rest and escape the 
mass of 
people. 
Although only very few guests had arrived by now, she already felt annoyed by 
this play they 
were performing. She had to play the loving wife. Even worse, she had to hold 
all those 
annoying, boring conversations she had always spent her time to avoid. 

Her mood was bad to say the least. Jack had paraded her from one guest to 
another, obviously 
enjoying her resistance. 

Irina leaned her head back and stared at the beautifully decorated ceiling, then 
out of the 
window into the dark night. In every single rest room there was a door into the 
garden. She was 
just playing with the thought of escaping into the garden, when the curtain to 
her parlor was 
pulled back carefully. 

“Irina?” Jack peeked inside and, when he saw her, came in. 

“What?” Irina snapped annoyed and jumped up. Jack raised his eyebrows in 
amusement. 

“Why the aggressive tone?” he teased, and Irina cocked her head, her eyes 
signifying that she 
was ready to kill him. 

“Why the tone? Because I hate this!”

“What?”

“The party, those people out there who think we’re married... you!” She turned 
and went to the 
window, leaning her forehead against the cool glass. “It’s only been half an 
hour, and I could 
already kill them all. So what do you want? Skip the part where you annoy or 
tease me, and just 
get straight to the point!”

Jack chuckled and shook his head. “Well, actually I was simply worried, because 
you had 
disappeared. You would not be the first woman who loses consciousness in one of 
those tight 
corsets due to being unable to breathe.” He was serious, and Irina turned in 
surprise. 

“Oh... well, I’m not wearing one... otherwise, I probably would have already 
killed someone.” 
She murmured. Jack just stared at her, then at her slender waist. 

“You’re not...” he started, unable to believe her words. 

“No, as Katya always says…If you keep your body in shape and don’t eat too much 
you do not 
have to wear supports to shape your body.” Of course, she had noticed his stare 
and turned 
again to hide her amused smile. “So, was there something else?”

“No. No... except that you should come out again soon.” He looked again at her 
perfectly 
shaped body, then shook his head and left before the sight of her got him into 
trouble again. 

Irina watched him leave through the curtains and sighed. After she had 
straightened out her 
dress, she followed her husband outside into the ballroom. Immediately, she was 
surrounded by 
two ladies he hadn’t met before.

“Lady Bristow, what a delightful pleasure to finally meet you! You husband told 
us you were a 
beauty, but he was clearly understating your appearance,” a younger woman with a 
high voice 
said. Irina gave her a forced smile when she continued chattering about the 
present people and 
whom she liked – or disliked. “Tell me, Milady, I have never before heard of 
your family. Are you 
one of the fallen nobles?”

“Not quite.” Irina replied, not even bothering to hide the annoyed tone from her 
voice. “We were 
just staying out of public.”

“Excuse me,” the other, taller woman now asked. She seemed to be more reasonable 
and – as 
well as Irina – annoyed by the younger woman. “Are you related to Lady Katya 
Derevko?”

“Yes,” Irina smiled at her surprised. “She is my sister.”

“Oh my god... then it’s true! Don’t you remember? We met in London some years 
ago. Your 
sister told me it was your first season! We used to guess which men would go for 
which 
women!”

Irina’s face lightened up at this information. “Yes, I remember... wait... Lady 
Lynne, right?” 

“Yes! I was so disappointed when you and your sister left so suddenly... how 
long has it been 
now?”

“Ten years.” Irina said. She remembered that year – the experiences in London 
had changed 
her attitude towards men. 

“I remember, you had a crush for the Duke.” Lynne laughed. “I was so sorry when 
I heard about 
his riding accident. Poor man... unable to walk for the rest of his life. But I 
guess for you it was 
luck. Tell me, how did you and Lord Bristow get to know each other?”

“Oh... um...” Irina smiled friendly from one woman to the other. “It was a 
coincidence... in the 
woods.”

“How romantic...” Lynne swooned, but the younger woman shook her head. 

“In the woods? I would have pictured it was at a glorious party – some event of 
the queen.”

Before Irina could answer, Jack stepped to them. “Excuse me, ladies, may I just 
steal my wife 
for a moment?”

He pulled Irina away from the women into a corner, ignoring her slight 
resistance. 

“What is it?” she finally hissed when the other guests couldn’t hear them 
anymore. 

“I just wanted to remind you of our deal.”

“What, are you afraid that I might ask one of them for help, since my husband is 
holding me 
prisoner in this house? Don’t worry, as you have said, nobody would believe me 
anyway,” she 
replied sarcastically, and Jack pulled her closer to bring his lips to her ear, 
which looked like a 
tender gesture for outsiders.

“Irina, you don’t know the meaning of being held prisoner yet. We can easily 
change that.”

“Another one of those threats. Seriously, this is getting boring.” With these 
words, she broke 
free, turned and went away. Jack looked after her, shaking his head slightly, 
before his attention 
was pulled back to some of his friends from court. 

As time went by, more and more visitors came to attend the party. Irina was 
surprised by the 
number of court members who were present, but she played her role as best as she 
could. 
Despite the fact that she wasn’t afraid of Jack’s threats, she was not in the 
mood to fight with 
him again tonight. 

When the dancing started, she absolved the first dance with Jack – but only 
because that she 
knew she was expected to do so. 

“Why are you keeping such a formal distance?” he eventually teased her when the 
other 
couples had also started dancing and turned their attention away from them. He 
pulled Irina 
closer.

“Because I might step on your foot otherwise – ‘accidentally’ of course,” she 
replied, bringing 
back the distance. Jack chuckled, then his face became serious. 

“Have I already told you how breathtakingly beautiful you’re looking tonight?” 
He meant what he 
said, and Irina had not been prepared for that compliment. She just stared at 
him, forgetting 
about all manners. “I like your dress... it suits you...” he continued. 

“Excuse me,” Irina finally managed to say. “Why are you being so nice?”

“Because I’m trying to make this evening at least a little nice for both of us,” 
he replied with an 
amused smile, his voice low, so that only she could hear. “Besides, I have never 
hidden how 
absolutely beautiful and attractive I think you are. Of course, the last times I 
showed it to you in 
a more passionate way.”

The music stopped – just in the right moment, as Irina found. She broke free 
from Jack and 
turned. If he didn’t know better, he would have said Irina was almost fleeing 
from him. 

That was indeed the case. Irina felt dizzy and unable to stand on her legs. She 
disappeared in a 
free room and let herself sink to the couch. Her heart was racing, and she had 
the feeling of 
losing consciousness every moment. Why did Jack’s words mean so much to her? Why 
did they 
seem to her as if they were the most beautiful words she had ever heard?

Her thoughts were soon torn away from Jack when James came to her, his face 
pale. 

“Madam we have... um... kind of a situation, I think,” he stopped, obviously 
thinking about how 
to form the words best.

“What is it?” Irina finally asked impatiently when the old man stuttered 
incoherently, unable to 
find words. 

“Well... um...” They could hear yells from the service tract, and Irina didn’t 
ask more questions. 
She hurried to follow James before any of the guests noticed the ado. She knew 
misbehavior 
from the servant’s part was always a subject to gossip about and would put a bad 
light to the 
owner of the household.

“What is going on here?” Irina yelled angrily when she went through the service 
entry into the 
corridor to the kitchen and food storage room. Mrs. Tribbiani was standing in 
the middle of the 
corridor, holding a crying Sarah and a frightened boy. Irina witnessed her 
slapping the boy and 
hurried to interfere. “Hey!”

Her yell was too loud not to be overheard and even Mrs. Tribbiani froze for a 
moment. When 
she saw Irina she raised her eyebrows unwillingly. 
“Aren’t you supposed to play a role in there?” she asked sharply[,] and Irina 
raised her chin, her 
eyes narrowing in upcoming aggression at the tone of the housekeeper. “Did you 
bring her 
here?” Mrs. Tribbiani snapped at James. 

“What happened?” Irina repeated her question more sharply now and looked at her 
young maid, 
whose eyes were filled with tears.

“I’m sorry Milady!” she stammered over and over again, obviously scared to 
death. Her cheek 
was red, and it didn’t take Irina much of an effort to guess that the 
housekeeper had beaten her 
as well. 

“Let go of them,” she ordered the elder women, who scoffed ironically. 

“Go back to the ball where you belong, otherwise I’ll talk a word with Mr. 
Bristow. I’m sure he 
won’t be amused if he finds that his ‘wife’,” the way she pronounced the word 
“wife” made it 
clear that she knew the whole story, “interferes with the business of his 
servants. You have 
nothing to do with it, so if you do not want any trouble, leave!”

Irina folded her arms. James took a few steps back, preparing to go for Jack if 
the situation got 
out of control. 

“Mrs. Tribbiani,” Irina started dangerously quiet. “I do not think that you 
fully understand...”

“Missy, I don’t think you understand. As long as you’re in this house, I’m the 
head of this 
household, and as far as I know, your marriage is nothing more than a means to 
an end. That 
makes you an employee of Jack Bristow, just as all the other servants are. Now 
move your ass 
back into that ballroom and do what you’re here to do.” 

Irina raged inside. She grabbed the sleeves of the woman and pulled her closer 
towards her. 
“As long as I am the wife of Lord Bristow – whether that’s fake or not shouldn’t 
be your concern 
– you are working for me, not the other way around. So if I tell you to let go 
of my personal 
maid, this is what you will do – no discussion and no objections. If you have a 
problem with that, 
feel free to talk to my husband and complain.” For a moment their eyes fought a 
silent battle, 
then Mrs. Tribbiani pushed Sarah away from her and went passed Irina. 

“Be sure, Missy, I will do exactly that.”

Irina looked after her. James shot her an admiring look, but Irina didn’t even 
notice. She bent 
down to help Sarah up to her knees. The girl was still sobbing and shielding her 
face, obviously 
expecting more beats. But Irina pulled her hand away from her face and looked 
into her eyes. 

“What happened?” she asked softly. When the girl didn’t answer, she smoothed 
some hair out 
of her face. “Did you steal? You can tell me, I promise, I won’t hurt you.”

“No...” the girl burst out panicked. “I did not steal! I never stole.”

Irina looked helplessly at James, and the butler came closer. 

“A cook found them in the stable in a very compromising position...” he 
explained softly[,] and 
Sarah sobbed again. Irina’s eyes widened. 

“That’s what this whole scene was all about?” she asked with disbelief and 
looked at Sarah, 
then at the boy, who stood frightened at the other wall. “Come here... what’s 
your name?”

“August, Milady.” He bowed, and Sarah burst out into tears again.

“I love him! We want to marry... please don’t send him away... please!”

Irina calmed her down softly. “Shh, nobody is being sent away... go to your 
rooms to calm down 
and wash your faces.”

“Um, Madam...” James started, but Irina looked up. 

“You don’t seriously want to tell me that Jack is going to punish them for doing 
what all lovers 
do!” she said. 

“Mrs. Tribbiani has some rules established in the household, and Lord Bristow 
never interferes. 
He wants her to do her job, and I think it might cause trouble if you...”

“Sarah is my personal maid. It is custom that a maid’s mistress is the lady she 
is serving. That 
lady stands above all the other higher servants in the household. If Mr. Bristow 
has a problem 
with that, he can talk to me about it... or yell at me for that matter.” She 
replied harshly. “And you 
two...” she added to Sarah and August. “...wash your faces, but be careful to 
not run into Mrs. 
Tribbiani. We will talk about the incident tomorrow.” She touched Sarah’s cheek 
in a reassuring 
gesture and nodded at August, then turned to go back into the ballroom.

After she had went through the curtains that separated the corridor from the 
room, she scanned 
the room. Most of the couples were dancing on the floor – obviously enjoying the 
evening. 
Irina had never been the hostess for a ball like this herself, still her father 
had taught her and her 
sisters how to behave perfectly on an occasion like this. 

Suddenly, her eyes fell on Jack who was dancing with a young, blonde woman on 
the floor, 
obviously enjoying her company. Irina’s eyes narrowed, and she folded her arms 
when she 
observed the younger lady. It was obvious that she was throwing herself at Jack 
– who was not 
at all looking as if he felt bothered. 

Irina growled to herself, her mood immediately ruined – although she didn’t 
quite understand 
why. 
Well, she thought, if he can flirt and have fun, so can I. So she went to a man 
who was looking a 
little younger than she was. 

“Are you enjoying the party?” she asked, looking him intently into the eyes. 

“Yes, very much, thank you...” he smiled, turning slightly towards her. They 
continued to chatter 
about this and that – unimportant things that mainly intended on learning 
whether the other 
person was willing to have a conversation. Finally, the man held his hand out to 
Irina. “Would 
you like to dance with me?”

She smiled brightly and took his hand. “I’d love to do so...”

They went onto the floor, then turned towards each other. Formally, they started 
to dance to the 
music, but soon their distance faded, and the conversation became lighter. 

“Your husband can be proud to have such a delightfully beautiful and charming 
woman by his 
side.” The man, who had presented himself to Irina as Lord Dunsworth, murmured, 
staring into 
her eyes intently. Irina smiled slightly. 

“Thank you very much...”

She caught glimpse of Jack watching her. Obviously, he had enough of the younger 
blonde girl 
and was standing at the side now. His glance towards her showed that he was 
close to making 
a scene right here. Irina returned his look challengingly and brought her body a 
few inches 
closer to that of her dance partner. 

Jack smiled at her coldly, then at the woman who came towards him. They seemed 
to know 
each other – Irina could tell that from the intimate way they greeted each 
other. She observed 
Jack whispering something into the woman’s ear – which was followed by a 
giggling of her. 

Cheap whore, Irina thought furiously.

“...why you should definitely attend the ball next month in London. Wouldn’t you 
like that?”

Pause... only then Irina realized that her dance partner had asked her a 
question – and 
obviously been talking to her the whole time. 

“Um...” she said, looking back at the man. “I... um... sure.” Hopefully she 
hadn’t agreed to an 
important thing.

“Great, then I will have your name put on the list. I know some of the servants 
pretty well...”

Irina’s attention was again pulled away to the still chattering couple in the 
corner of the room. 
She felt sick when she observed their little conversation. She refused to admit 
to herself that 
she was jealous – no, that was just not the case! The point was, that Jack was 
flirting with a 
woman and didn’t even look at his ‘wife’. 
Finally she loosened from Lord Dunsworth and gave him a weak smile.

“Milord, would you excuse me please?” She bowed slightly, then went – probably a 
little too 
quickly to appear relaxed – to the corner where Jack stood. 

“Honey,” she greeted him, smiling at the younger woman – yet the smile didn’t 
quite reach her 
eyes. Possessively, she laid her arm around Jack’s waist. The girl gave Irina a 
forced smile, and 
then looked at Jack. 

“I guess... I will still see you later then?”

“Definitely,” he promised with a smile. Irina stared at him in disbelief and 
when the girl was out 
of reach, she loosened from him, her eyes sparkling with rage.

“Arranging for a little date tonight?” she hissed, and Jack looked at her 
challengingly. 

“What about Lord Dunsworth? Looking for a little adventure?” he countered, and 
Irina scoffed 
ironically, but didn’t say anything.

“You knew the rule.” Jack said. “No flirting. It’s absolutely inappropriate for 
you to go for another 
man – especially so soon after our marriage.”

“Ah, now I see. You get to have fun, but I am not allowed to?” Irina snapped and 
laughed 
bitterly. “But, you know, there are dozens of men here who would carry me on 
their hands just 
for one night.”

“Yeah, I bet there are! But here are also dozens of women who would give their 
whole 
possession away for just one night,” he hissed, “and since my wife isn’t very 
cooperative 
concerning sleeping arrangements, you can’t blame me for searching elsewhere.”

“Yeah, and since my husband is a stupid bastard, you can’t blame me for flirting 
with others.” 
She countered and turned to leave, but Jack grabbed her wrist and bent to her 
ear.

“I’m warning you. Don’t take it too far. I am accepting your little flirtations 
only because I have to 
admit I didn’t show my best manners during these last days. But there is a 
borderline you should 
rather not cross.” His tone was dangerous, but Irina broke free and went away 
without even 
looking one more time at him. 

If he thought she felt threatened now, he was wrong. On the contrary – she was 
furious that he 
was still thinking he could give her orders of any kind. She would show him how 
far she would 
go...

Jack followed Irina with his eyes and sighed. He was sure their little war for 
tonight had only 
begun. Just when he was about to follow her and ease the situation a little, a 
man went towards 
him. 

“Jack!”

The addressed turned his head and his face lightened up. “Arvin! When was the 
last time that 
we met?”

“It was last season in London I think. How have you been? I mean, besides 
getting married to 
an attractive woman?” The gray-haired gentleman was a little older than Jack, 
but that had 
never bothered him. Jack knew him as his confidant at court. The two men had 
known each 
other since Jack had been a boy. Arvin had already served in the army.

“Great, thank you! I heard you were hurt in the last battle against rebels?”

“Yes, but it was nothing bad – after all we managed to beat them. The southern 
coastline is 
clean now... I heard you had a failure a few weeks ago with your setup. The 
contact you were 
supposed to meet tricked you?” Arvin Sloane took a sip of wine from his glass, 
and Jack tilted 
his head slightly. 

“Well, kind of, yes. But we already have a new trace. Every good soldier has to 
live with failures 
from time to time...”

“How true...” Sloane replied and smiled. If Jack had looked at him, he had seen 
that the man’s 
smile didn’t reach his eyes, but his attention was drawn back to the other 
corner of the room, 
where Irina was chitchatting with a woman he knew as Lady Lynne. Jack knew her 
husband 
from court - Lord Victor Greenville, a very honorable man. “Your wife seems to 
be a very 
tempered woman – how did you meet her?”

“Coincidence.” Jack replied evasively, and Sloane smiled.

“I’ve heard she is the daughter of Sergeji Derevko?”

Now he had Jack’s full attention. “Really? Do you know her father?”

“I did... once. Her father is dead. He was killed some years ago in a revolt. As 
far as I know, he 
was involved with rebels somehow.” 

Jack looked at his friend thoughtfully, “Sergeji Derevko... that name sounds 
familiar to me 
somehow...”

“Maybe you heard of it back then. It must have been ten or eleven years ago. If 
you want, I can 
do a little research for you,” Arvin took another sip of his wine and smiled 
friendly. 

“I already have some people working for me, but if you find out something, I’d 
be really grateful. 
Nobody has been able able to find something so far... I am actually starting to 
wonder what the 
secret is that the name of this family is kept so close.” Jack murmured, and 
watched his wife 
again. “Arvin, would you excuse me now? We’ll surely talk later, but I have to 
speak with some 
other people first.”

“Of course,” the man replied courteously. Jack went away, and so he missed how 
the smile 
faded away from Sloane’s face and he looked after Jack coldly. He hadn’t 
expected him to do 
research about Irina’s family. Well, maybe they could use that little detail to 
their advantage. He 
would have to take care of this. For now he wanted to meet Irina Derevko himself 
– after all he 
had heard so much about her...


Part 17 – Winners or Losers?

“Milady, allow me to compliment your appearance tonight? If you weren’t already 
married I 
would surely beg the permission to court you...” 

Irina couldn’t help but blush slightly, when the man in front of her took her 
hand and placed a 
kiss on it – probably a little longer than what would have been appropriate. His 
statement alone 
was scandalous and he surely knew that such a revelation was an absolute taboo 
to be made to 
a married woman. 
But considering the fact that her marriage was fake and in less than two months 
she would be a 
single woman again, she decided that it was not so bad. 

“Thank you Milord,” she replied and smiled warmly. “And such a charming man 
would surely 
have my permission.”

Arvin Sloane smiled and when he looked up into her warm chocolate-brown eyes, he 
had to 
admit to himself silently, that her beauty was even more outstanding than he had 
heard. He 
didn’t doubt that a woman like her could seduce every man. No wonder that Jack 
Bristow had 
fallen for her. 

“But I have heard that you are happily married, so I guess there is no chance 
for me to get the 
possibility to court you any time soon...”

“Well...” Irina started, wanting to tell him that her husband would surely 
despise if he did, when 
she caught glimpse of Jack flirting with the brunette woman from earlier. They 
were leisurely 
strolling towards one of the rooms. Rage started to build up inside her – rage 
that finally 
unloaded itself in defiance. “...my husband and I are not that close. So I am 
still interested in 
acquaintances...” 

She knew that her behavior was scandalous, but trusted on the gentleman’s 
discretion. 

“You are surely a surprise for a man, Milady,” he replied, his eyes gleaming. 

“Lord Sloane, I am sure there are many ladies at court who give their attention 
to other persons 
than her husband.”

“There are...” he replied, “but there’s surely none of them as beautiful as you 
are. Would you like 
to accompany me to a .. um... less occupied place?”

“I would love to do so,” Irina replied courageously, determined to pay Jack a 
lesson. Besides, 
she was getting really frustrated and after days of being so close to an 
attractive man who woke 
the wildest fantasies inside her, she needed a little distraction. Surely this 
lord was not one of 
the most attractive men – but still, she could close her eyes and imagine it was 
Jack. That had 
two advantages: First of all, she would be a little less aggressive and secondly 
she could enrage 
Jack and show him that he had no power over her.
Well, he actually had power over her, but there was no need for him to know 
that.

Irina turned and went towards the door which led out into the corridor and to 
their private 
chambers. Sloane looked around, then turned to follow her. No matter what the 
plan was – 
every reasonable man would be a fool to say no if a beautiful woman like Irina 
Derevko offered 
herself to him.

They were just leaving the room when Jack came out through the curtains into the 
hall, 
watching them leave in disbelief. With a dangerous gleam in his eyes, he started 
to follow them. 
He was raging with fury. Irina had gone a step too far...

Neither Lord Sloane nor Irina noticed that they were being followed by Jack. 
Leisurely, they 
strolled through the corridor and up the stairs, while Arvin admired the 
beautiful and expensive 
paintings on the wall. Irina went next to him, her courage finally fading a 
little. This man was so 
totally different from Jack, and she was no longer sure that her imagination 
would be enough to 
fool her body. 

“We can go in here,” she finally said. “It’s my personal restroom, and nobody 
will disturb us.” 

She entered the room and lit a candle at the wall. Although there was no fire in 
the fireplace, the 
remains of the glow heated the room a little. 
When she was finished lighting the candles, Irina turned around a little 
nervous. 

“Well...” she started, and Arvin smiled at her. 

“You are the most astounding woman I have ever met,” he murmured and walked 
around her. 
Irina suddenly had the feeling of being the prey, who didn’t know yet that she 
was hunted. A 
feeling she didn’t like at all. 
She started slightly when she suddenly felt his hands on her naked shoulders. 
Abruptly she 
turned and brought a little distance between them. 

“I... um... do you want to drink something?”

“I did not come here to drink... and neither did you I think,” he uttered 
seductively, urging her 
against the wall. 

“Sorry,” she murmured. “I am just a little nervous... usually I don’t do things 
like this...”

“You’ll see, you are going to like it.” Then his lips fell onto her neck and the 
soft skin of her 
shoulders. Irina sighed and closed her eyes, trying to concentrate on the 
touches which once 
used to arouse her. Her mind was distracted – all she could think of was Jack in 
the arms of that 
brunette woman. Maybe he was kissing her right now...
And even if so – who cares, she tried to convince herself. You can have fun... 
you had fun 
before you met him. 

Determined to enjoy the adventure she was going to have, she buried her hands in 
Arvin’s hair 
and laid her head back. His hands ran up her body and finally laid over her 
breast while his 
teeth bit her earlobe. A deep moan escaped his throat. 

Irina opened her eyes. This was weird... she wanted to think about Jack – to 
fantasize about 
him, but this man was so different. His touches were the opposite of tender. All 
his actions 
aimed on getting satisfied as soon as possible and could almost be called 
ruthless. She tried to 
enjoy the erotic caresses, but failed to do so. 

When Arvin finally wanted to claim her mouth, Irina turned her head aside and 
brought a little 
distance between them with her hands. 

“Wait,” she managed to murmur. Her body was tensed and the uneasiness she felt, 
slowly 
started to turn into awkwardness. She wanted to run away – which was 
inappropriate. She had 
to interrupt this at least elegantly. “Maybe we didn’t think the whole thing 
through.”

“Thinking? I do not think about things like this,” Arvin murmured throatily and 
wanted to push 
back into her, but Irina evaded his touch. 

“I mean, we probably shouldn’t...”

“Is it about your husband? That’s not a problem. He will not learn anything 
about the things we 
will do in here – or in the future elsewhere.” His thumb stroked her lip. 
“Believe me, my beautiful, 
I can bring you the sweetest pleasures...”

“I’m sorry...” she murmured and wanted to add something, when a cold voice from 
the door 
could be heard.

“I guess I am not supposed to interrupt here, am I?” 

Arvin spun around, and Irina looked in shock at the appearance of her husband in 
the dim light 
of the candle. Arvin cleared his throat. 

“Jack, I was... it’s not what it looks like...”

“Get out of here,” Jack said menacingly and watched Arvin leave hurriedly. Then 
he turned his 
attention back on Irina, missing that Arvin stopped in the doorframe and looked 
back – a hint of 
triumph on his face. 

Irina felt the urge to just flee out of the window, but she knew that Jack would 
have caught her 
before she had even reached it. 

You tempted him too far, the voice inside her screamed in panic, and she pressed 
against the 
wall behind her as Jack came closer with every step. 

“I think I remember that we had a conversation earlier,” he started, “and I also 
remember talking 
to you about behaving appropriately.” His voice was totally calm – a fact that 
scared Irina even 
more. For the first time, she did not feel the need to contradict him – or 
enrage him. 

“Jack, I’m sorry,” she started and for the first time she meant it. What had she 
been thinking to 
do something that stupid?

“Yes, sure you are,” he nodded. “I’m just curious – what if I had come some 
minutes later? What 
would I have seen then?”

“Jack, I swear...”

“Irina, I know we are only fake-married... at least so far. But I can not tell 
you how much it 
bothers me that you aim on ruining my reputation.” He had reached her now. Irina 
started to 
escape his grip, but he held her harshly and slammed her back against the wall. 

“I was going to end it... I swear to you, I didn’t want to go through with it,” 
she vowed and laid 
her hands to his chest, mainly to calm him down, but also to be prepared to 
defend herself.

Yes, he had indeed noticed the change in her behavior. He had stood in the dark 
doorframe 
almost since the beginning. But he wondered why she had so suddenly changed her 
mind – 
obviously she had some kind of conscience, which had told her she was going too 
far. 
Still, he was infuriated that she had been kissed by that man – his so-called 
friend. He looked at 
the skin of her neck and shoulders and touched her with his hand. Only the 
thought of Arvin 
touching Irina made him want to go after him and kill him.
But for now he would clarify the situation with Irina. He took her hands away 
from his chest and 
pinned them against the wall. 

“Don’t try to manipulate me again, that won’t work anymore. I warned you not to 
break the rules 
tonight, didn’t I?” He said. “What do you think a husband should do if he finds 
his wife 
committing adultery?”

He could see that uncertainty and a hint of panic rose in her. For a moment, all 
her walls were 
down and all she could do was to stare at him. Jack’s eyes reflected raging 
fury, and she wasn’t 
sure what he would do next. Desperately, she tried to wriggle her wrists out of 
his grip, which 
caused him to tighten his hold on her almost painfully. 

“Why did you do it?” he asked and suddenly disappointment and something she 
couldn’t quite 
define took place of his anger. 

“I... I wanted to...” she started, but cut herself off. She wanted to apologize, 
but how could she 
possibly form the words so he would believe her?

All of a sudden, he let go of her and turned around. “From now on you will not 
be allowed to 
leave your room. You will remain in your chambers – the servants and your maid 
will take care 
of the necessary things you need, but they will not be allowed to talk to you. 
Take it as a solitary 
confinement. As soon as your sister returns, you will be free to go wherever you 
want to, as long 
as you stay away from me or my property.”

His words were not worse than a hit in the face would have been. Silent shock 
and terror 
paralyzed her mind. He couldn’t actually mean to lock her up without any access 
to the world for 
the next three months – and forbid her to ever see him again. She didn’t 
understand why all of a 
sudden this seemed to be the worst punishment, and was sure that his words were 
only an 
empty threat – they had to be! When Jack went to the door, pulling out the key 
from inside, Irina 
ran to hold him back. 

“Jack, please... don’t do that!” She didn’t even pretend anymore that she was 
under control. She 
felt really scared. She had been able to stand some days of prison because of 
her stubbornness 
– and because it had been some kind of a challenge between her and Jack. But now 
he was 
really angry with her, and his attitude made it clear that he would show no 
mercy. When he 
didn’t even react to her plea, she started to beat his back in desperation.

“You can’t just lock me in here for the next three months. What I did was not 
worse than what 
you did with your whore in the city! Do you know how embarrassing it is for a 
woman to be the 
topic of gossip for all the servants?” 

“I warned you not to cross a certain line,” Jack simply stated and turned around 
again, grabbing 
her wrists to stop her from beating him. Irina failed to stop her body from 
trembling. 

“My sister will never forgive you if you hurt me. She’s going to kill you. It’s 
a breech of 
agreements,” she warned, when she noticed the threatening expression on his 
face. 

He didn’t miss that she attempted desperately to sound self-secure and strong. 

“Irina, wouldn’t you call fooling around with my best friend a breech of 
agreements as well?” 
Jack countered calmly.

Irina opened her mouth to justify her action and reproach Jack for his little 
flirts with the other 
women, but he didn’t even give her a chance to do so. “Your sister and I have an 
agreement, 
and I never demanded anything else of you than that you play your part. But you 
are obviously 
unable to stick to the easiest rules or promises.”

Irina scoffed and folded her arms. “I see. But that whore you paid two nights 
ago to sleep with 
you is totally within the rules? Of course, because every loving husband has a 
whore in the city!”

“Irina, I did not sleep with that woman the other night!” Jack snapped back at 
her, tired of 
listening to her accusations, and when he advanced a few inches towards her, 
Irina almost 
stumbled over the folds of her dress when stepping back. His revelation totally 
put her off. 

“You did not...”

“No,” he repeated impatiently. “Although considering what happened here tonight, 
I probably 
should have.”

For a moment, Irina was so confused that she didn’t react fast enough when Jack 
pulled her 
abruptly against him, his lips merging with hers. Nothing about this kiss was 
tender – it was a 
rough way of making clear that she belonged to him. 

Irina was shocked by his almost brutal exploration and tried to push him away 
half-heartedly. 
Only when her resistance subsided, did his kiss become more sensual and 
seductive. Finally, 
she managed to free herself from him and brought a few meters distance and a 
desk between 
them. 

“How dare you?” she snapped breathlessly. Jack raised his eyebrows, while he 
stepped 
towards her. 

“I am your husband…”

“No, you are not,” Irina countered and held on to the table. His kiss had 
aroused her and her 
head was spinning. 

Jack walked slowly around the table, until he was standing behind her. 

“What are you doing?” Irina’s voice was trembling when she felt Jack opening her 
dress. 

“Claiming what’s mine,” he replied, and she closed her eyes when his lips 
started to caress her 
neck, immediately finding the sensitive spot that made her moan. Then suddenly, 
she freed 
herself again and folded her arms. 

“Although we may be married in the eyes of the law, you have no right to claim 
anything,” she 
said sharply, and Jack smiled inwardly. 

“Irina, you keep saying that our marriage is illegitimate, but thinking about 
it, I don’t see why. 
The ceremony has been held by a priest, and the marriage was consummated – more 
than 
once! So after every law, this marriage is valid.”

When Jack advanced towards her, Irina didn’t move but stared at him dangerously. 
“You’re the 
most rude and unmannered man I’ve ever met. You treat me like a prisoner. You 
visit your 
mistress, flirt with numerous young women down there, and then you expect me to 
fall thankfully 
into your arms?” She snorted and turned her back to him – a sign that she didn’t 
want to talk to 
him anymore. “I really don’t wonder about you still being a bachelor when that 
is the usual way 
you treat women.”

Jack smiled and continued to open her dress. “First of all, I treated you like a 
prisoner for some 
good reasons. Secondly, I did not sleep with my mistress. If my wife refuses to 
fulfill her duties 
though, she must not wonder if I go elsewhere. And thirdly, I didn’t flirt more 
than you did – 
actually you were the one who went too far.” He watched her dress slide down to 
the ground, 
then looked at her underwear. His hands ran over her naked arms and shoulders. 
“The thought 
of him touching you - doing the things to you that I did – makes me so angry.” 
Jack murmured 
and then turned her around harshly to force her to look at him. 

She pushed him away. “Do you think the thought of you being with those women you 
were so 
intimate with tonight is different? Did you think I wouldn’t notice? Who was 
she? Another one of 
your escapades?” She tried to pushed at him in fury, but Jack managed to catch 
her wrist.

“If you are talking about that blonde girl, Lady Therese, she is a distant 
cousin of mine whose 
husband died two moths ago. I took care of the formalities to secure the 
property for her! 
Although I noticed that she was trying to involve me in flirtations, I was never 
seriously 
interested.” Jack explained and then pulled her into another, more tender kiss.

“Let me go.“ Irina demanded weakly and wanted to collect her dress from the 
ground. Before 
she even knew what was happening, Jack suddenly lifted her up and carried her 
through the 
smaller door into her bedroom, where he dropped her on her bed. 
When they were both lying on the soft mattress, he started to explore her skin, 
his body half-
covering hers. 

“Jack… stop it.” Irina closed her eyes weakly, determined to make clear that she 
was not that 
easy. She had never been easy – until now. Jack had changed her in a way she 
didn’t 
understand. She was just unable to resist his touch.
When he marked her skin, she sighed. His lips ran over her cleavage, along the 
lines of her 
under dress. Her hands were busy opening the buttons of his shirt and pushing 
the material 
down to reveal his skin. Then suddenly she pushed at him, trying to get away. 
“We can’t do this. 
There are guests waiting.”

He looked up and played with a strand of her hair. “They will not miss us for 
the next few hours. 
And if they do, they will think that we retired to be alone...” 

His tongue teased her, playing at the corner of her mouth, until her lips parted 
in a silent 
invitation. Immediately he claimed her mouth with his, swallowing her deep moan. 
Her hand ran 
through his hair while she pushed the material of his clothes away from his 
shoulders, then 
pushed him away with all her force and rolled to her side to leave the bed. 

Before she could do so, Jack had grabbed her and pinned her to the bed. 

“What are you doing?”  His voice was a mixture of desire and anger.

“You are not going to win this game, Bristow. I know what you are planning. You 
think you can 
just frustrate me and I will fall happily into your arms. But you are wrong! I 
am not that easy!”

Jack chuckled. “No, you’re definitely the contrary of easy.”

“Let go of me!”

“I won’t. You wanted to cheat on me… you were willing to make love with my best 
friend.” He 
murmured close to her lips. “I really want to just lock you in that cell again.”

“Why don’t you?” Irina snapped back. 

“Because we are married and that allows me to do way more pleasurable things to 
you.” His lips 
brushed the corner of her mouth, his tongue flicking out and teasing her. “Or 
would you rather I 
take you back into that other room and make love to you against the wall – like 
you were about 
to do with him?” 

From his tone, Irina could hear that he wasn’t angry anymore, but in a playful 
mood now. She 
turned her head slightly and bit his lower lip challengingly. He groaned and 
claimed her lips in 
an almost bruising kiss. Determined to make her fall, he took her challenge. 
He let go of her hands, careful at first to be prepared if she started an attack 
again. But instead 
she wrapped her arms around his body, pulling him closer against her. 

Their lips dueled a battle for control and silenced moans filled the room. 
Neither of them was 
willing to give in, and finally Irina broke the kiss and trailed her lips along 
his cheek to his ear, 
where she started to suck at his earlobe until she was contented by his aroused 
moan against 
her neck. 

Before he knew what was happening, she had flipped them over and straddled his 
hips. Slowly 
her hands ran over his well-muscled chest while she held his intense gaze. A 
seductive gleam 
in her eyes, she bent forward, her chestnut locks falling down and stroking his 
skin. She 
touched his lips in a short kiss, immediately evading when he tried to deepen 
it. 

“Feeling a little in the mood for torture tonight?” Jack murmured throatily, 
while his hands ran up 
the silky skin of her legs. Irina chuckled against his lips while she nibbled at 
his lower lip. 

“Maybe...” she replied, a promising tone in her voice. “You seem to wake demons 
inside me...” 

“Good...” he replied and his hands ran up her back and then pulled her abruptly 
down into a 
deep open-mouth kiss. She didn’t allow him to entice her and soon moved her lips 
down his 
chin and covered his throat with hot caresses. He laid his head back and moaned. 
Irina smiled 
against his skin when she moved her lips further down. Then finally she sat back 
up and ran her 
hands over his thorax. Fascinated, she explored every inch of his skin with her 
fingers, moving 
them over his nipples, playing with the hair on his chest and then trailing them 
down his arms. 

When she reached his wrists, she smiled at him and pinned them to the bed. 

“Well, now you are my prisoner for a change...” she whispered and he freed 
himself without 
effort. She grabbed his hands again. “And I happen to treat my prisoners very 
well – not one of 
them ever left unsatisfied...” 

“How many were there?” he asked with a smile, and she bent down.

“For a prisoner, you are still a little too imprudent.” She let go of his hands 
and moved her hips a 
little down his body to be able to open his pants. “So if you intend on getting 
satisfied anytime 
soon, you should work on your tone.”

“As you wish, Milady.” Jack replied, joining in her game, while his hands played 
at the back of 
her knees. She sighed and finally managed to pull down his pants. He helped her 
and some 
moments later the cloth landed on the ground next to the bed. 

Irina sat back up and smiled at him. “So... my prisoner, what do you want me to 
do...”

Jack’s hands played at her legs again, then suddenly his eyes started to gleam. 

“Undress for me...”

“What?” Irina asked, staring at him. “That’s all?”

“For now,” he nodded and Irina smiled. 

“Then your wish is my command.” She wanted to climb off him to pull of her 
underwear, but 
Jack held her back. 

“No, slowly! And stay exactly there.” He demanded. Irina pulled his hands away 
from her hips 
and pressed them next to his head to the mattress. Her lips were only a hair-
breadth away from 
his when she whispered “Fine, but only under one condition! You keep your hands 
to yourself, 
Lord Bristow. No touching until I allow you to.”

Without waiting for his approval, she sat up again and carefully removed the 
pins from her hair. 
Her full, wavy stands fell down and framed her face. When she had all needles 
removed from 
her hair, she dropped them to the ground, and the sound they made when they made 
contact 
with the wooden floor broke the silence of the room. Irina laid her head back 
and moved her 
hand through her hair to loosen it. When it was lying wild and untamed around 
her face, she 
looked down at Jack, her eyes glowing with desire. 

He was unable to do anything but stare at her appearance. Never ever had he seen 
a woman 
who was more beautiful than she was. 

Irina moved her fingers in a butterfly touch over his stomach, then she lifted 
her hands and 
started to slowly open the thin ribbon that closed the underwear in the front. 
Taking her time, 
she carefully removed the ribbon from it’s eyelets, revealing her silky skin 
slowly when the fabric 
opened. One of the straps slid down her shoulder and hung loosely on her arm. 
Jack felt the 
need to sit up right away to claim that soft skin that presented itself to him 
so openly. It took all 
of his control to hold back. No doubt, she knew exactly how to drive a man 
crazy. 

Ever so slowly, she removed the other strap from her shoulder, moving it down 
her arm as if it 
was the softest touch she had ever felt. 

Sitting there, her dress so daringly open, and the straps hanging carelessly 
down, she reminded 
him of a gypsy. Her tousled hair and the seductive look supported this fantasy 
in his head. 

A perfect description for her, he thought silently. Irina definitely had the 
rebelling mind and the 
exotic beauty of a gypsy – not to mention the ability to fight for herself and 
her freedom. 
There is only one way to make a gypsy stay in one place – to make her heart 
stay, he thought to 
himself.

Irina’s hands moved over Jack’s belly and his abdomen, making him tremble. She 
noticed it with 
satisfaction and lifted her dress then, to pull it over her head. Without caring 
she discarded it to 
the floor, sitting completely naked on top of him. Jack let out a soft moan, and 
his hand moved 
over her hips and up her body to cover her breasts. 

“Stick to the rule,” Irina said, putting a scandalized tone into her voice and 
laid her hands to his 
wrists. His touch on her skin felt as if he was burning her – too pleasurable to 
pull his hands 
away. 

His thumbs started to tease her nipples until they hardened under his touch. 
Contented, he 
noticed that Irina’s breath grew shallower. He continued caressing her, forming 
out her body 
with his hands and discovering her ticklish spots. Soon he had found all her 
sensitive points and 
paid special attention to them until her eyes were clouded with uncontrolled 
passion and her 
skin flushed. 

When his hand moved between their bodies and explored her core, she gave a loud 
moan. His 
fingers started to tease her softly at first, until she urged him on 
impatiently. His thumb flicked 
her clit, causing another moan to escape her lips. 

“Oh god, Jack...” Irina leaned softly forward onto his chest when he entered her 
with one finger, 
finding her ready for him. His free hand supported her, while he tenderly 
started to massage a 
spot deep inside her. She started to move on his hand and the world seemed to 
start spinning in 
front of her eyes. Suddenly, she tore at his underpants. “These have to go – 
now!” she 
murmured, her voice thick with need. 

Jack smiled and all of a sudden flipped them over, remaining in between her 
legs. “Not just yet, 
darling...”

Irina had no time to contradict this intimate address, when Jack’s lips moved 
slowly over her 
slightly parted mouth. He took his time and took possession of her lips, then 
explored her neck 
and shoulders, before he turned his full attention on her breast. 

“I would say this is a change in power...,” he teased her slowly and pinned her 
arms to the 
mattress, “...my beautiful prisoner.” He lowered his lips to her ear. “What do 
you think I should 
do to you as revenge for your torture?”

She smiled against his cheek, biting his skin softly. “You could just make love 
to me – fast and 
hard – and now!”

Jack chuckled and caressed her earlobe with his tongue before he gave her an 
answer. “You 
know what? I will do that... just as I have told you in the garden...”

He trailed his lips down her belly, rediscovering with his mouth all the spots 
he had just visited 
with his hands. His hands held her hips when he trailed a hot path down her 
abdomen with his 
tongue. He moved his lips over her leg and inner thigh, then between her legs, 
finally touching 
her core with his lips. Softly, his tongue flicked out, teasing her in a 
butterfly touch and causing 
her to gasp in surprise and arch against him, before he pulled back, giving her 
time to get used 
to his touch. 

The next stroke of his tongue was deeper, more insistent, and a loud moan 
escaped her throat. 
She spread her legs farther to allow him better access. The heat that struck her 
at his third 
touch seemed to burn her alive, floating through her whole body and turning her 
blood into 
streams of lava. She closed her eyes to stop the white stars from clouding her 
vision. 

Jack moaned against her center at the sight of her ecstasy. His touches became 
more 
relentless, his hands holding her in place. Looking at her was almost enough to 
make him lose 
control right then. Yet, this time he wanted to push her until she would shatter 
in his arms and 
belong to him completely. 
He parted her folds with his tongue and felt a shiver run though her whole body. 
Almost desperate, she cried out his name in a hidden plea to stop torturing her. 

She laid her head back and bit her lips. Her left hand buried in his hair, her 
other one clenched 
to a fist. 

When he entered her with his tongue, she bent her body and violent shivers shook 
her. Jack 
moved away from her center, kissing her belly button softly, and waited until 
she had calmed 
down a little. 

“Jack...” Irina whimpered. “Don’t stop now...”

At her husky voice, he had almost lost himself and just fulfilled her wish. Yet, 
he wanted to hold 
the moment a little longer. His kisses were almost innocent now, yet Irina 
reacted to him with 
every single one of her oversensitive nerves. Every touch of his lips felt as if 
he was igniting a 
fire just at that spot. 

He brought them face to face to look into her eyes. Her skin was flushed and 
damp and he 
stroked one of the strands of hair away from her face. His lips hovered only an 
inch above hers. 

Irina’s hands framed his face and she gasped in surprise when she felt his 
erection at her thigh. 
When had he managed to pull his pants off? She didn’t care actually. Trying to 
break his control, 
she moved her body erotically against his. Jack moaned and stilled her hips with 
his. 

“Stop fighting me...” he demanded against her lips, and Irina gave a short 
laugh, her hands 
grabbing his shoulders. 

“Never...” she replied playfully, her tongue flicking out and teasing the corner 
of his mouth. At 
the next second she moaned, clasping his shoulders tighter when he entered her 
in a deep 
thrust. He stilled for a moment, just kissing her chin and throat, until he felt 
her moving against 
him, trying to seduce him into her rhythm. 

He gave in, starting to move slowly inside her, holding her eyes in an intense 
gaze. His hands 
touched her cheek, ran through her hair and over her shoulders as if he needed 
to feel that she 
was real. And for a single instant, he realized that she possessed his heart – 
that he didn’t know 
how he would ever be able to live without her when the three months had passed. 

Her moans increased, and she closed her eyes when his lips started to shower her 
cheek with 
short kisses. He increased the pace of his movements. Her moans turned into 
whimpers and 
she dug her fingers into his back, increasing his passion in just the right 
mixture of pleasure and 
pain. He marked her neck with his teeth, immediately soothing it with his 
tongue.

Irina pulled her knees closer to her body, taking him deeper and bringing him 
into a position that 
allowed him to stroke the spot inside her that brought her even more pleasure.

“Oh... Irina...” Jack groaned into her hair, feeling his release building up. 

“Come for me...” she whispered into his hair, and her throaty words were enough 
to break his 
control. Unable to hold back any longer, he thrust into her faster and 
eventually came, groaning 
her name. When Irina felt the shudders running through his body, her own climax 
hit her like a 
thunderstorm, and for a few seconds, her mind faded into black. 

Breathing heavily, neither of them was able to move. Irina’s hand was still 
buried in Jack’s hair, 
their eyes closed. When she felt him lift his head, her eyes fluttered open and 
she smiled at him 
weakly. Unable to say a single word, he looked at her flushed skin. She saw a 
single drop of 
sweat running down his cheek and wiped it away from his damp skin with her 
thumb.

He touched her lips with still trembling hands and then melded them with his in 
a deep and ever 
so tender kiss. Unable to break free from each other, they sank into a series of 
sweet kisses. 
Finally, Jack moved a little so he was lying next to Irina. His hand was lying 
loosely on her 
chest, and he could still feel her heart beating rapidly.

“You are unbelievable...” she finally whispered when she was able to speak 
again. “I never felt 
so...” she started, then cut herself off. Jack drew slow, tender circles on her 
back and smiled 
into her hair. 

“The same is for me...” he simply said and looked at the wall for a short time. 
“Let’s make a 
deal. When you feel the need to do something like this again – come to me next 
time instead of 
another random man.”

“I will,” she promised. “I will definitely.” For a short time neither of them 
said a word, then 
suddenly Irina looked up. “Under one condition: You do not leave for another 
girl again.”

He held her eyes for an endless moment, then kissed her passionately. “I won’t,” 
he promised.

Irina smiled and closed her eyes sated. She fell into a light slumber, her face 
buried at Jack’s 
neck. When Jack felt her sleeping, he stroked softly through her hair and 
loosened from her 
body. Irina immediately opened her eyes and sat up in confusion. 

“Don’t go... where are you going?”

He laughed and collected his clothes from the ground. “Honey, there are guests 
waiting 
downstairs.” Quickly, he started to get dressed. 

“For heaven’s sake...” Irina, who had totally forgotten about the party that was 
going on 
downstairs, reached for her nightrobe and got up. She wrapped herself in the 
silk material and 
looked at Jack. “I need my maid to do my hair and...” Nervously, she ran her 
hand through her 
totally tousled strands. Jack went to her and took her hands, kissing them 
softly. 

“You stay here...” he whispered and kissed her on the lips then. “I will tell 
the guests that you 
retired because of a headache. There is nothing unusual about that. Get some 
rest...”

“Well...” she smiled at him. “Thank you.” She ran his hands through his hair, 
bringing them back 
into order. Then she laid her finger to his lips in a tender gesture and smiled. 
Jack placed a soft 
kiss on her finger. “Good night.” He said softly and then turned. 

Irina followed him slowly and on the way, collected her clothes from the ground. 
Carefully, she 
lifted her expensive dress from the carpet and laid it over her armchair. She 
was smoothing it 
with her hands when suddenly she noted something that made her frown. 

Jack pulled the key to her door out of his pocket and inserted it from the 
outside into the lock. 
Immediately, Irina stood upright. 

“Jack, what are you doing?”

He closed the door, and Irina heard the key being turned. She hurried to the 
door, trying the 
handle and finding it locked. Furiously, she beat against the wooden door. 

“Jack Bristow, open this door at once. Are you crazy?” 

“Irina, despite everything that happened, don’t think that I trust you an inch, 
or that you could 
manipulate me with your body. Now enjoy your rest. We’ll discuss it in the 
morning!”

Her answer was a series of infuriated cries and beats, before she sank to the 
ground in front of 
the door, staring into the fire. 

“I hate you, Bristow, I hope you are aware of that! Damned bastard!” she swore.

“Sweet dreams to you too...” was his answer through he wood, then she heard him 
go away. 
Irina let her head sink back against the door and closed her eyes. What was 
happening to her? 
She knew she hated Jack -–yet, in moments like the ones they had just shared, 
she gave 
everything to him and lost herself completely. Even more, she forgot that he was 
her enemy and 
their marriage was only fake. 

Slowly, Irina got up and went to her armchair. Grabbing a blanket from the 
table, she snuggled 
up in the soft cushions of the chair and looked into the fire for a long time. 

Well, I guess, she thought, it is my fault that he doesn’t trust me and maybe it 
is better this way. 
She closed her eyes and gave in to the comfortable warmth and her need of sleep. 


Part 18 – Changes 
Somewhere in England – Same Evening

The night was chilly. It was already fall and the temperature announced that it 
would soon be 
winter. The leaves were falling from the trees, being pulled into all directions 
by the wind, and 
then gathered at the side of the road.
Lady Katya Derevko pulled her cape higher into her face to shield herself from 
the sharp breeze 
that stung her skin. She wondered what could be so urgent that the messenger had 
insisted she 
visit Arvin Sloane right away. Hopefully it was something important, otherwise 
she would be 
really angry.

It was totally unlike Arvin to call her out of bed in the middle of the night. 
Well, not totally unlike, 
she thought and remembered two nights ago when he had visited her in the middle 
of the night 
just to make love to her. 

Lady Katya Derevko was not, nor had she ever been one of those women who longed 
for the 
love of a man, but somehow Lord Sloane had warmed her heart. Not only was he 
passionate 
when it came to the bedroom, he was equal to her and able to fulfill her deepest 
needs. Even if 
he was one of the powerful rebel leaders, she didn’t consider him as a threat to 
her. 

She started to run, wanting nothing more that to get out of this weather as soon 
as possible. 
When she had reached the house, she knocked at the door impatiently, stepping 
from one foot 
to the other while waiting for the maid to open up. 

Two minutes later the door opened just a crack and the grumpy face of an old 
woman peered 
outside through the opening. When she recognized Katya, she opened the door 
wider.

“Milady, the lord is already waiting for you. Come in please.” 

Katya thanked her and gave her cape to the servant. “Is he in his study?” she 
then asked, and 
the nod of the old woman was enough for her. 

Rubbing her arms to warm herself up, she went along the small corridor and 
knocked at the 
door of the study. Without waiting for an answer, she entered the room.
Arvin Sloane looked up from his desk and leaned back in his chair when he saw 
her. 

“Katya!” he said smiling and got up. He went to the woman and placed a deep kiss 
on her lips. 

“Arvin,” she replied, her hands lying on his chest. “Why did you want to talk to 
me?”

He sighed and smiled, playing with the scarf she was wearing. “Let us take a 
slow walk.” He 
suggested. Katya cocked her head slightly. 

“Now? It’s cold outside and...” she started to contradict, but Arvin laid his 
arm around her waist. 

“I will warm you up.” He whispered flirtatiously into her ear, knowing that she 
enjoyed if he came 
up with new ideas to love her, and Katya smiled. 

“Well, in that case.”

They left the room and ordered the servants to bring them their coats. Katya 
wrapped herself 
deeply in her cape and silently admired Arvin for still wearing his thin summer 
coat. 

Then they left the house. For some time, they just walked side by side, both 
silent, until Katya 
finally asked why he had called her so urgently to his house. They had almost 
passed through 
the whole city by now and were going over the bridge that crossed the river.

Arvin kept looking somewhere in the distance. “I met your sister tonight,” he 
announced. Katya 
froze for a split second, but was immediately under control again. 

“Did you?”

“Yes,” he said, now piercing her with his eyes. “She married Jack Bristow, 
because they love 
each other, didn’t she?”

“Yes,” Katya said, as if it wasn’t important at all. She had not expected Sloane 
to meet with 
Irina. Silently, Katya wished that her younger sister hadn’t blown her cover by 
any thoughtless 
outburst of her temper. Of the three girls, Irina had always been most like 
their mother. Katya, 
who was the only sister who still had a vivid memory of Tatyana Derevko, 
remembered her 
mother always to be reasonable and reliable. But once her fury was ignited, even 
their father 
had not dared to go near her. To tease his wife, he had always attributed her 
outbursts the 
heritage of her Russian ancestors. 
Katya closed her eyes for a moment. Irina hated Jack Bristow. Though she wasn’t 
sure how 
Jack felt towards her sister, Katya knew that no man would accept constant 
outbursts of temper 
without at some point starting to get furious himself. 
The more she thought about it, the less she doubted that Irina and Jack had not 
at all acted like 
a happily married couple. The next words from Arvin Sloane confirmed her fear.

“Well, that is interesting, because when I met her tonight, she seemed 
desperately in search of 
certain amusements.” His voice was dripping with sarcasm now, making it clear 
that he didn’t 
believe one single word of what Katya said. 

“What did you do?” the woman gasped, trying to hide her shock behind a facade of 
indifference. 
“Did you hurt her?”

“No... no, I was just having a little fun with her – until Bristow found us. I 
guess he is the one 
who might have killed her.”

“What?” Katya whispered almost soundlessly, and then realized that she had lost 
her 
countenance. “I... I don’t understand why you are telling me all this...”

“Because, my dear, after seeing your sister tonight, I believe that you were 
lying to me about 
her. Couldn’t it be that your sister is more the prisoner of Bristow? I observed 
them the whole 
evening. He was clearly giving her orders and threatened her – although they 
tried to make it 
look like they were a couple totally in love. I have known Bristow since he was 
a boy – he can’t 
fool me.”

“Arvin I have no idea what you’re...” she shrieked when he grabbed her harshly. 

“Don’t lie to me, you little whore. What kind of game are you playing here? Are 
you working for 
Bristow? To buy your sister’s freedom? Don’t look at me so shocked. I am not 
stupid, and I have 
sources! They told me how Irina and Bristow met... and shortly afterwards you 
want to get 
contact to higher ranking officers of our group. You were trying to sell us...”

“No!” she yelled, panicked, into his face. “I swear I had no idea. I am not 
trying to sell you...”

“Did you tell your sister that you were having contact with me?”

“NO! Arvin, I did not try to betray you!”

He looked at her lips and shook his head. “I know you are lying... but that 
doesn’t even matter 
anymore. Do you know why? Because you actually did a great favor to us. Your 
sister is in a 
perfect position. You will never be able to tell anybody who you met, so 
everything is just fine...”

“Wha....” Katya started, then her eyes grew wide when she felt the cold steel of 
a knife being 
bored into her stomach. She gasped for breath in shock, panicked when she felt 
the stitching 
pain rush through her body. Every breath suddenly was as if she breathed in 
needles instead of 
air.
Desperately, she tried to hold on to Arvin Sloane, but he pushed her against the 
edge of the 
bridge, causing her to cry out in pain. 

“Goodbye, Lady Katya. You were a very amusing pastime. It’s a pity. I doubt I 
will ever get a 
whore again who fulfills her duties as well as you do.” With these words, he 
threw her over the 
edge without much of an effort. Katya’s body fell onto the water’s surface like 
a stone, and she 
sank almost immediately into the icy water. Arvin Sloane smiled contentedly. The 
current would 
take her body to the sea, and she would never be found again. 

Now it was time to start with phase two...


~~~~~~~~~

Next morning – Manor of Lord Bristow

On first waking, Irina had no idea where she was. The bright daylight shone into 
her face, and 
she blinked against it. It didn’t take her long to fully wake up. She was still 
sitting in the armchair 
in which she had fallen asleep yesterday evening after...

Within a few seconds, she stood upright and ran to the door. When she found it 
still locked, she 
cursed silently and started to beat against the thick wood. 

“I am hungry! And I want a bath!” she yelled when nobody reacted to her 
pounding. For another 
three minutes nothing at all happened. Then the door was opened carefully. Irina 
was just about 
to yell at Jack when she found James entering the room, followed by Sarah and 
three female 
servants who carried a tub and buckets with hot water. 
Sarah started her daily duties by cleaning the room and putting out a dress for 
Irina. In the 
meantime, James remained standing in the doorframe like a guard. 

“What is going on here?” Irina snapped angrily. “Why did nobody wake me and 
where is Jack?”

James lowered his head apologetically. “Lord Bristow asked me to bring you his 
apologies. He 
had to leave early this morning, but didn’t want to wake you up. He asked me to 
give you this...” 
The butler handed her some books with a red rose lying on them. Irina looked at 
the tablet with 
the books and then at James. 

“Is he trying to make fun of me? He is giving me a rose?” she ranted, and James 
shifted 
uncomfortably. 

“Yes, Milady.”

“But I am not allowed to leave this room, otherwise you wouldn’t stand in the 
doorframe like a 
statue!” she stated correctly. James nodded simply with his usually impassive 
face.

“The lord said, that he was sorry for not being able to this discuss with you 
and he asked you to 
wait until tomorrow.” 

“That’s what he said?” Irina snapped and James shrugged his shoulders. 

“No, actually he said: I am not going to let her move freely when I am out of 
the house for a 
whole day. I am not very fond of having to search my whole land for that woman 
to catch her 
again.” The butler put the tablet onto a small table and gave Irina the hint of 
a smile. “I am sorry, 
but you shouldn’t take it so seriously. After all you can relax one day in your 
room.”

“I don’t want to relax!” Irina replied and took a deep breath. The servants were 
not responsible 
for her situation – they were just carrying out orders. So, Irina sat down 
patiently, while Sarah 
started to work on her hair. In the meanwhile, the other servants continued to 
bring buckets of 
water and fill the tub. When the tub was full, they left the room. James looked 
at Sarah and 
smiled slightly. 

“Just knock at the door when you are finished here. I will have the cook prepare 
a breakfast for 
milady.”
With these words, he closed the door to Irina’s room and locked it. Irina 
inhaled deeply, her 
eyes sparkling with fury. Sarah looked at her insecurely and then at the tub. 

“Milady, do you want to take a bath?” she asked shyly, and Irina nodded. 

“Yes...” she said simply. Sarah helped her to pull off her night robe and then 
step into the hot 
water. Irina leaned back and closed her eyes, just listening to the sound of 
Sarah collecting 
soap and lotions and her other bathing supplies. She dove under water for a 
moment to free her 
mind. How could Jack be so rude and lock her in this room after everything they 
had shared last 
night? She didn’t want to run away – but if he treated her like this, she felt 
really tempted to do 
so, just to show him that he didn’t have power over her.
When she surfaced, she looked into the worried eyes of Sarah. 

“I thought you were drowning.” The young maid sighed relieved, and Irina had to 
chuckle with 
amusement.

“I don’t drown that easily, Sarah...” she said kindly while the girl started to 
wash her hair. 

For a moment they fell into silence, until Sarah cleared her throat nervously. 
“I didn’t even thank 
you for what you did last night for August and me.”

Irina didn’t say anything, and Sarah continued. 

“I was really afraid that Mrs. Tribbiani would kill me. I know it wasn’t right 
what we did, but I 
promise it won’t ever happen again, Milady.”

“Sarah,” Irina started. “I don’t know how Mrs. Tribbiani leads this household, 
but in the 
household of my family, we don’t see things so strictly. I never learned to have 
a strict 
separation from the servants. We used to even have dinner with them.”

“Wow..” Sarah exclaimed fascinated. “The lords and ladies with the servants?”

“Well, we weren’t that many. Just my sisters and me, our maid, a cook and one 
servant. 
However, what I meant was, that you don’t need to apologize for what you’ve 
done. After all, it 
was your privacy. I noticed that Lord Bristow handles things differently here.”

“No, the lord is fine actually. Mrs. Tribbiani is the dragon. Lord Bristow never 
interferes with her 
rules. He trusts her, but she is really strict.”

“Why don’t you go to him then, if you have problems?”

“Because Mrs. Tribbiani forbid us to ever bother the lord with our problems. She 
says she is 
responsible for us, and if she learns that somebody went to the lord, she would 
dismiss that 
person at once. Well, except for James. James is the only one whom she respects. 
They hate 
each other.” Sarah giggled and started to wash the foam carefully out of Irina’s 
hair. 

“Do they?” the woman asked amused. “Why do they hate each other?”

“Because James doesn’t acknowledge her as the mistress, and he doesn’t obey her 
orders. He 
just does what he thinks is right. And she is so angry at him, because she knows 
that he may do 
what he wants. Lord Bristow was always confident with how he fulfilled his 
tasks. They have 
known each other since the lord was a boy. 
James sees Mrs. Tribbiani only as a dragon who wants to show her power to 
others. He doesn’t 
take her seriously – and I think that outrages her the most.” Again the girl 
gave a giggle, and 
Irina had to smile. 

Some time passed in silenced while Irina washed herself, and Sarah prepared the 
towels.

When the maid fetched the buckets with the clear water to wash the rest of the 
foam out of 
Irina’s hair, she started to chitchat again. Irina closed her eyes just 
listening to her, and asking 
questions from time to time. 

Sarah lifted the heavy bucket and carefully emptied it over Irina’s head. When 
she put it down 
on the ground and started to squeeze the water out of her mistress’ long hair, 
her eyes were 
suddenly caught by the red mark on her neck. 

“You love him, don’t you?” she asked out of the blue, covering her mouth with 
her hands at the 
same time. “I’m sorry, Milady, that’s not a question a maid should ask.” 

Irina looked at her and noticed that Sarah’s eyes were lying on her neck. By 
looking in the 
mirror, Irina understood why, and slightly embarrassed, she covered the red mark 
on her skin 
with her hand. For a moment, she stared at her reflection, totally lost in 
thoughts. What was 
happening with her? Why did her heart seem to jump if somebody spoke about Jack?

“We are married...” she finally replied, as if it was the answer to the question 
Sarah had asked.

“Well, it is really not fair that he locks you up inside here, but maybe, 
Milady, you should see it 
this way: he is just afraid that you will run away, because you mean so much to 
him.” Sarah 
helped her to get out of the tub and wrapped her in a large towel then. “I mean, 
the lord has 
never acted like that before.”

Irina sighed and smiled at Sarah. “It’s not that easy,” she said. “He doesn’t 
love me. He just 
doesn’t trust me, that’s all.”

Sarah smiled, while she carefully started to dry Irina’s hair. “Who knows... you 
know, men 
behave strangely sometimes when they are in love.”

Irina looked at her maid in the mirror, eyeing her thoughtfully. Could it be 
that Jack was just so 
rude and mean because he loved her? No, that was ridiculous. On the other 
hand... No! Irina 
discarded the thought quickly. She shouldn’t even start to hope that Jack loved 
her. Whether he 
had feelings for her or not, she would have to leave him in three months and 
then she would 
never ever see him again. So actually, feelings were irrelevant. 

The rest of the time passed in silence between the two women. When Sarah was 
finished 
dressing Irina and doing her hair, she knocked at the door. Immediately, James 
opened it, and 
two servants started to empty the tub and carry the water away, while others 
came in with a rich 
breakfast. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jack was sitting in the empty pub in the country and looked out of the window 
impatiently. For 
the fourth time he negated the servant’s question of whether he wished to drink 
something. He 
handed her a silver coin, with the request to not disturb him anymore. 

Worried, he looked at the large clock that was standing at the wall on the other 
side of the room. 
His contact was already ten minutes late, and the message he had received this 
morning 
sounded rather serious. He was already thinking about searching for the man, 
when the heavy 
wooden door opened with a squeak, and a man with a dark coat entered. He shook 
the 
raindrops off his coat without caring that he was ruining the floor, then he 
scanned the room and 
moved towards Jack in the corner. 

He saluted, and Jack signaled him to sit down, smiling apologetically at the 
young servant who 
shot them confused looks. 

“I hope it is important,” Jack hissed in a leveled voice. “Otherwise, there is 
no reason for you to 
leave Lady Katya out of your sight.”

“Sir, I kind of already did. I don’t know how to say this, but... um... I lost 
her two days ago.”

“What???” Jack asked louder now, his hands slamming to the table. “What do you 
mean by ‘you 
lost her’? How can you lose her?”

“It was in London. I think, she suspected that she was being followed. However, 
she seemed to 
be a professional at losing somebody.”

“Of course she is a professional. I told you to watch her and never take your 
eyes off her! I can’t 
believe that task was too hard for one of my best soldiers.” Jack ranted and 
took a deep breath, 
then he realized that the other guests in the pub were eyeing him suspiciously. 
For a moment, 
he looked out of the window thinking about what to do next. He was really 
worried now – 
worried for Lady Katya’s life. He knew Irina would never forgive him if 
something happened to 
her. 

“Go back to London,” he finally ordered, “Search for her. She has to be 
somewhere. I want you 
to turn every stone until you have found her – but discreetly, understood? As 
soon as you have 
found her, extract her. Bring her to me. I don’t care for that damned list 
anymore.”

“But Sir...”

“Just do as I told you to! I sent her out, because I thought that I had skilled 
men to protect her – 
which is obviously not the case. I am not giving a woman such a dangerous 
mission if there is 
nobody to protect her. She is my sister-in-law, so bring her back to me as soon 
as you found 
her!” Jack repeated his order menacingly. “And I am warning you: another mistake 
and you will 
spend the rest of your life taking care of the potatoes in the kitchen.”

“Yes, Sir!” The man said and saluted again. Then he turned and wanted to leave, 
but stopped, 
remembering something. “Milord, before I forget, didn’t you say you wanted to 
know something 
about the Derevko family?”

Now he had Jack’s full attention. “Yes!”

“Well, I was talking to some elder officers in London about your – um – ‘wife’ 
and her family. 
Apparently her mother died around twenty-five years ago. When I asked how, they 
were all 
awfully silent, so I started to do further research. A friend of mine told me 
that his father might 
know something, so he will ask him about the circumstances – only if you’re 
interested of 
course.”

“Yes!” Jack emphasized, “Thank you. Now please, find Lady Katya!”

The soldier hurried to leave the pub. Jack sighed and watched him leave through 
the window. 
The thought of Lady Katya having to deal with higher ranking gangsters was 
nothing that 
calmed him down. Although she seemed to be quite independent and able to defend 
herself – 
just as Irina was – there were men out there who were more dangerous. He just 
prayed that she 
was alright, and that his soldier would soon bring her back to his manor. 

Maybe she could already give him some names, then he could do the rest of the 
work. He just 
didn’t know what to do with Irina. It was his decision to pull Katya back, so 
technically she had 
fulfilled her part of the contract – which meant that he would be forced to 
allow Irina to leave. 
And if she left, he knew, he would lose her. There was nothing he could do...

Jack gave a deep sigh. What an irony, he thought. At court, there were dozens of 
women who 
threw themselves onto him whenever he entered a room. Just one clapping of his 
hands, and 
he could marry any one of those women he wanted. Yet, he wanted Irina – probably 
the only 
woman who did not want him. 

Well, why should she want him? Up to now, he had not treated her with his best 
manners – she 
on the contrary hadn’t behaved ladylike either. Jack reflected for a moment, 
then an idea came 
to his mind. She had learned to have to defend herself, she had always had to do 
so, otherwise 
she would not have survived in the world of criminals in which she had lived. 
But behavior such 
as she had shown yesterday evening at the party – James had told him about the 
servant’s 
incident – proved, that she had a noble education and knew how to behave, at 
least if she 
wanted to. Maybe if he started to treat her differently, she would stop being so 
hostile. Yes, 
maybe if he started to court her, as it was tradition, she would start reacting 
like a young lady. In 
her opinion, the only enemy in his manor was him. And there was absolutely no 
need for them 
to fight each other...


Part 19 – Treat her like a lady

Although she would have never admitted it, Irina fairly enjoyed the day in her 
room. Whenever 
she needed something, James or Sarah were there to arrange it for her. She 
didn’t even have to 
move. So she spent the day in her armchair, mostly reading. When she was free to 
move, she 
always enjoyed spending her time in Jack’s large library and so, this day wasn’t 
so much of a 
difference – except that she spent her time in her own room reading. 

The time passed her by, and when the servants lit the candles in her room, Irina 
was surprised 
at how quickly the day had turned into evening.

It was almost eight when the door opened. Irina expected the servants to bring 
the supper, but 
when nothing happened she looked up and found Jack leaning at the door, watching 
her 
amused. 

Irina, who had been laying quite leisurely in her armchair, with her legs over 
the armrest, 
straightened herself out and got up. Her eyes locked with Jack’s, and he could 
not tell whether 
she was angry or happy to see him. 

“I know you are angry,” he started to calm her down, “and you have every right 
to be.”

Irina cocked her head. Actually she wasn’t even angry anymore, and Jack’s 
behavior now 
amused her. “How is that?” 

“It was not right to lock you in here the whole day.” Jack simply stated. 

“No, it wasn’t.” She would not tell him that it had not been so bad. If he 
wanted to apologize, he 
should do so. It would give her an inner triumph. 

“I hadn’t planned it this way – however...” Jack continued and went towards her. 
Irina remained 
where she was without moving. When he touched her cheek, she evaded his touch 
and turned 
her back on him. 

“Just to clarify this before,” she started, “Are you going to share my bed again 
and then lock me 
up afterwards? Because if so, I’d rather not...”

“You’re furious...” Jack stated with a sigh. Irina went to the window, pulling 
back the curtains 
slightly to be able to look outside. 

“No. No, I’m not furious. I just want to know, so I’m not confused again.” She 
stared out into the 
dark night. Down on the lawn in front of the house some servants were still busy 
with taking 
care of the horses. 

Jack went to join her, and when he was standing behind her, laid his hands to 
her waist. “I do 
not plan to make love to you,” he said softly. “Actually I planned to invite you 
for a ride into the 
countryside tomorrow. I have to visit one of my farms and I thought you might 
want to come with 
me to get to know the landscape a little bit.”

Irina turned around and stared at him open-mouthed – for a moment too surprised 
to say 
anything. 

When Jack saw her puzzled face, he took one of her hands and placed a soft kiss 
on it. “Please. 
I would really enjoy your company.” 

“I... I...” Irina said, unable to think or understand what he was planning. Why 
was he suddenly 
behaving so differently? He had apologized for locking her in her room, and now 
he invited her 
to leave the property tomorrow? What was he hoping to achieve by his kindness? 

“It would be my pleasure.” She finally answered with a faint smile, hating the 
weakness that she 
suddenly felt inside. 

Since she had been determined to ignore Jack and play cool for some time, she 
was even more 
surprised that his sudden friendliness put her off. He behaved like a gentleman 
and had given 
her the possibility to choose whether she wanted to come or not. Being a woman, 
she was not 
at all immune to almost courting behavior from a charming man – but that Jack 
was the man 
who was able to break all her properly built walls of control wouldn’t have come 
to her mind.

Jack returned her smile and turned her hand then to place a soft kiss on her 
palm. He didn’t 
miss the slight shiver that ran through her body in reaction to his tender 
gesture. 

“Great. We will start as soon as the sun rises. I am looking forward to it.” He 
turned and went to 
the door, leaving a totally stunned Irina at the window. Before he left the 
room, he placed the 
key on the drawer next to the door and smiled at her. “Good Night.” 

“You too...” she replied in total disbelief and watched him close the door. Then 
she heard him go 
away. As soon as she was able to move without trembling again, she went to the 
door, trying 
the handle and finding that it was open. Irina took the key from the drawer and 
shook her head 
looking at it. What had happened to Jack? Why didn’t he lock her up anymore? And 
most 
important of all, why did he behave so differently all of a sudden? He had been 
courteous and 
treated her like – Irina froze for a moment – yes, he had treated her like one 
of the ladies at 
court.

Before she could go further into that thought, the door opened and Sarah entered 
the room, her 
face bright and smiling. 

“The lord told me to help you prepare for bed, because he said you have to be up 
early?”

“Yes,” Irina nodded and looked at the tablet Sarah was bringing with her. Bread, 
warm milk and 
fruit were lying on it. Sarah put it on the table and while Irina started to 
eat, the young maid 
prepared everything for the night. While she was doing so she started to tell 
Irina about the 
beautiful countryside she was about to see and that the farm they were going to 
visit had been 
hit by lightening during the last thunderstorm. Therefore, it had to be rebuilt 
again. 

When Irina had finished her dinner, she had almost learned everything about the 
farm and its 
owners. Sarah helped her to undress and waited until Irina was lying in her bed, 
before she 
started to put out the candles. 

~~~~~~~~~

The morning air was cool and sent a freezing chill through their bodies. The 
light of the early 
sun slowly brought everything to life and gradually melted the dew that 
glistened in the trees 
and on the grass.

A fresh, salty breeze from the ocean made Irina shiver slightly, and she pulled 
her cape tighter 
around her body while she watched Jack giving orders to the stable aids. 

She admired him for the authority he ordered his servants around with – even so 
early in the 
morning. Irina herself was not at all a morning person. Usually it took her two 
hours until she 
was fully aware to understand the words spoken to her. She fought against the 
urge to yawn, 
knowing that it was totally unacceptable to yawn openly for a lady. 

She looked around on the yard, watching the hustle and bustle of the servants 
who had to be up 
early. Two younger girls were trying to drive the geese and chickens out of 
their small stable. 
Irina smiled, when again and again one or two smart animals managed to escape 
and run back 
into the stable. The girls started to yell at the chickens, but they didn’t seem 
to care at all. Soon 
the girls came up with a strategy to make the animals leave and ended up hunting 
them through 
the whole stable in laughter.

The scene ended when Mrs. Tribbiani suddenly came out of the house with a strict 
expression 
on her face and headed straight towards the stable. She started to throw curses 
and yell at the 
girls who sank deeper with every word. Even the animals suddenly complied and 
left the barn 
without further ado. 

Mrs. Tribbiani grabbed the girls at their ears and pulled them out of the barn 
towards the main 
house. Irina looked at her in disbelief, and when the eyes of the housekeeper 
met hers, Irina 
swore that she would have been dead if looks could kill. 

She turned away and smiled at Jack who brought a horse towards her – the same 
horse she 
had wanted to take the first time, when her ride had ended in the cellar prison. 

“You told me that you liked her, so if you get along with her you can take her 
today.” He said 
handing the reins to Irina. Her face brightened, and she touched the horse’s 
nostrils, her gaze 
never leaving Jack’s eyes. 

“Thank you,” she said lowly. Jack smiled, and took the reins of his own horse 
out of James’ 
hand. He turned to the old butler and nodded courteously. 

“Okay,” he then announced to some of his soldiers. “Are you ready? Then let’s 
get moving.” 

With these words he turned to Irina and laid his hands to her waist. “Hold on,” 
he said softly, and 
she did as he said in confusion. A surprised sound escaped her when Jack lifted 
her up onto the 
horse. 

“Tha-thank you.” She managed to say, touching Jack’s hand softly. “But I could 
have gotten up 
by myself.”

“I know.” He replied and mounted his own horse. “Shall we?” 

Irina nodded smiling. “Yes.” She held the reins tight, and Jack didn’t doubt for 
one single minute 
that she was a perfect rider. At a slow trot, they left the property through the 
large front gate, 
Jack riding at the top of the group and Irina next to him. The soldiers followed 
them, loudly 
joking and talking about happenings in the last war or fights. 

“How large is your property?” Irina asked after some time of silence, and Jack 
looked at her.

“From here to the shore, a few kilometers along the coastline and a some 
kilometers into the 
countryside. The farm is at the edge of the land that belongs to me. The 
property was larger 
once, but in the times where the different counties fought each other, my 
ancestors lost some of 
it to their neighbors.” He explained. 

“It’s beautiful,” Irina swooned. “Our property has never been that large…only a 
few kilometers. It 
consists of only one village and two farms. We’ve lost a lot to the queen in the 
fights when...” 
she stopped all of a sudden and smiled. ”Never mind. I love your property a 
great deal more 
than ours.”

Jack smiled. “Wait until you have seen all of it.” 

They continued their way through the green fields and a smaller forest. The 
whole countryside 
reflected Jack’s wealth. Whereas her own property was poorer and even destroyed 
at some 
parts, the fields and villages here showed a certain amount of prosperity. 

When they had ridden for almost two hours, they could see a large farm in the 
distance. It was 
destroyed, obviously from a fire. Dark clouds were still rising from the houses 
and gave away 
that the fire had only been out for a few hours maybe. 

When they entered the farm through the destroyed front gate, they saw two women 
already 
cleaning up some dirt and collecting things that were still intact from the 
ruins. Three young 
boys and one older man were trying to clear away some wood and stones from the 
burned 
house.”

Jack got off his horse and so did the soldiers he had taken. The two women, who 
had already 
seen him, came running towards them and bowed deeply. 

“Milord, thank you for your help.” They praised him. Jack nodded simply, and 
while he helped 
Irina to slide down her horse, he gave orders to the soldiers. When the men were 
hurrying away 
to help with cleaning up and putting out the rest of the fires, he looked at 
Irina and offered his 
arm to her. 

“If you want, I will show you around a little bit.”

“I would love that.” she smiled and took his arm gallantly. “How long will it 
take until the farm is 
re-built?”

“Approximately a month.” Jack replied. “Fortunately the weather is still mild, 
and that eases the 
work a lot. If something like this happens in winter, there is no chance to 
build up anything. The 
families have to live elsewhere then.”

“This is astounding. Nobody on your land seems to be poor.” She said, more to 
herself than to 
him. Jack looked at her. 

“Nobody is. The poverty is mostly caused by bad property-owners or rebels who 
destroy the 
reputation of the land.”

“The rebels are caused by poverty.” Irina replied. “It is too easy to say that 
it is them who are 
guilty of the poverty. There has to be lack first, before people start stealing 
and robbing.” 

Jack thought that it was probably better to not continue the discussion, but he 
didn’t listen to his 
own advice. “That might be the case for one single land, Irina. But I know some 
other cases, 
which have been ruined by robbery and crimes. I myself was able to protect my 
land, but that is 
only due to the fact that I have enough money to afford a large number of 
soldiers. Other lords 
do not have that privilege, and so they have no means to oppose the groups of 
criminals.”

“That is a lie,” Irina hissed angrily. “The lords pull the last penny out of the 
pockets of the poor 
people by increasing the taxes and...”

“Because they have to rebuild their lands, as I have to do. They have to repair 
the damage the 
robbers and outlaws leave behind. It is not the lords who rob their people – 
it’s the terrorists.” 
Jack countered and touched her hand. “I don’t want to fight with you Irina, but 
I have seen 
dozens of cases who prove that it is not the poor people who gain profit of 
terrorism, smuggling 
and robbery. It is some criminals who do - those men you call your bosses! And 
unfortunately, 
those men often already possess a good amount of money and want to increase 
their fortune by 
using people for their own goals.” 

“I don’t believe you,” Irina murmured and couldn’t hide uncertainty from her 
voice. 

“I don’t expect you to,” Jack replied softly. “I just hope that someday you will 
see that you gave 
your loyalty to really dangerous men who are not worth it.” 

“But the queen is worth it? Is that what you want to say?” Irina snapped and 
loosened from his 
grip. “The woman who kills innocent people is worth giving loyalty to, huh? The 
woman who 
sends out her soldiers to rape innocent women and kill children?”

“Irina, what are you talking about?” Jack asked, shocked when he saw the tears 
of rage 
standing in her eyes. “I am sorry, I didn’t want to upset you.” 

Irina scoffed and turned her back to him. “Then don’t ever tell me again that 
your queen is such 
a just and friendly woman. I know that she is not. Maybe the terrorists are not 
exactly what 
somebody of your rank would consider good company, but at least they are honest 
and don’t 
betray their people.”

“Such as Gerard Cuvee, who stood behind you when you needed help?” he asked, and 
Irina 
spun around. 

“That was different! That was my own fault. He had all the right to treat my 
like a traitor. I 
betrayed them by telling you my name. And now you even want me to fight against 
my friends 
and convince me that it is really them who are my enemies when you are the only 
one I have to 
be afraid of,” she yelled at him furiously, and although they were standing a 
good distance away 
from the soldiers, they shot them half-amused, but also concerned glances. Irina 
turned around 
and hurried away towards her horse. 

Jack cursed himself. What had he been thinking to start a conversation like this 
with her? 
Sometimes he behaved like an idiot who had never heard anything about women...
He hurried to follow Irina and caught up with her when she had reached her mare. 
Softly he held 
her hand when she wanted to lift herself onto the back of the animal. 

“Where are you going?” 

“I want to go back to the house.” Irina murmured. “It was a mistake to go on 
this ride with you.”

Jack loosened her hand softly from the saddle and pulled her back into his body. 
“Don’t do 
this...” he whispered into her hair. “Please... I am sorry for behaving like an 
idiot.”

“Jack, leave me alone...” she whispered and turned her head slightly to brush 
his cheek with 
hers. 

He touched her lips with his softly and wrapped his arms around her. “Let’s not 
talk about the 
rebels anymore. I don’t care, Irina... I want you. I want to spend this day with 
you. Let’s forget 
about everything else...” 

“Jack...” Her voice was almost a whimper. “I can’t... if you weren’t my enemy, 
if you weren’t one 
of the queen’s counselors... but we can’t change things. You will always fight 
the rebels and I 
will always fight the queen. And that means that we will always fight each 
other. How could I 
forget that for just one second?”

She closed her eyes when his lips nuzzled at her neck and caressed her sensitive 
spots. After a 
short moment, he let her go and lifted her up onto her mare.

“I will show you something – a place you will surely like.” Jack announced. 
“Just give me a short 
moment to pass the last orders to the soldiers.”

Irina watched him walk away and closed her eyes. All she wished for was, that 
she could take 
Jack’s offer and just be with him and never leave him. But the reasonable part 
inside her knew 
that this was just impossible. Jack Bristow was charming and nice, not at all 
like she would have 
imagined a counselor of the queen to be, yet, the fact remained that he was 
standing on the 
wrong side – no matter how much she wished that it was different or how much she 
started to 
like him, she was still his prisoner. Although they shared wonderful nights full 
of passion and 
desire, that was the only thing that connected them. Beyond that, they were 
enemies. Their little 
affair was fun, but she must never forget that it was just that: an affair. In 
the back of her mind, a 
small voice asked whom she was trying to fool here, but she pushed it away 
quickly. An affair – 
nothing more!

Jack was concerned about Irina’s outburst and the opinion she had of the queen. 
What had she 
experienced that made her fear the men of the queen more than the rebels?

When Jack returned, Irina was completely under control again. He lifted himself 
onto his horse 
and made sure that she was ready to go. 

“We will go westwards until we reach the seashore.” He announced, and they set 
into motion. 

For a long time neither of them spoke, Irina just observed Jack from the corner 
of her eyes. 
Although she didn’t want him to notice her interest, she had to admit that he 
was the most 
attractive man she had ever seen. Not only was he looking good, he could be 
charming if he 
wanted to, and in a strange sort of way, she had a feeling that he was also just  
- at least she 
got the impression that he was. 

Finally, after they had almost been quiet ten minutes, Jack started to tell 
Irina about the country 
they were riding through. It was a beautiful landscape, full of smaller forests 
and lots of fields. 
Most of the land was not cultivated and consisted only of grass and flowers. 
When they reached the seashore, the land became rockier and the ground was, 
although still 
covered with grass, more uneven. 

“Five generations ago, this whole land was split into smaller counties,” Jack 
explained, “they all 
belonged to my great-great-great-grandfather though. He had gained them by 
robbing the 
landlords, and then bought their land for a split of what it was worth.”

“So your ancestor was an outlaw.” Irina stated amused, and Jack shrugged his 
shoulders.

“Not exactly. Robbing landlords was only a minor one of his crimes. He earned 
his living as a 
pirate. On the sea, he robbed the ships of the government, murdered the sailors 
and kept the 
treasures. If there were women on board, he kidnapped them and blackmailed their 
families for 
ransom.”

“How charming...” Irina murmured with an ironic side glance at the man. 
“Impressive how 
nothing changes over the centuries.”

Jack only raised his eyebrows at her provocation but didn’t go into it, instead 
he pointed at a cliff 
formation in the distance. “Do you see those cliffs over there? It is said that 
deep inside there is 
a cave – the cave my ancestor used as a hiding place.” 

“It is said?” Irina asked, her interest rising now. “So you don’t know it for 
sure?”

“No. There is an entrance, but it is too dangerous to follow the way inside. 
Over the years, the 
sea has corrupted the stone and in some parts it is loose like sand. One could 
easily be buried 
in there... or fall down into holes or gorges, therefore...”

He wasn’t able to finish the sentence, since all of a sudden Irina spurred her 
mount and 
galloped towards the cliffs. 

It took Jack some time to react, then he started to scowl and followed her under 
curses. He had 
the faster horse, but Irina had the advantage of ten seconds. 

She moved the mare along the edge of the cliff, and when she then reached the 
point where all 
of a sudden the cliffs got higher and formed a rocky mountain at the sea, she 
stopped the horse 
and jumped off its back. Fascinated she stared at the huge formation, while she 
bound the 
horse to a large tree. 

Jack reached her only a few seconds later, jumped of his horse and grabbed her 
harshly. “What 
the hell was that?” he snapped and turned her towards him. She returned his look 
and freed 
herself. 

“I wanted to see this place.”

“You could have told me that you wanted to come here.”

“Why, did you think I was trying to escape?” she asked amused and then turned 
around. Jack 
silently shook his head. While he tied his horse to the tree next to the mare, 
Irina went to the 
edge of the cliffs and looked down into the foamy breakers. She estimated that 
they were 
around 90 feet above the sea – the rocks Jack had told her off were even another 
50 feet 
higher. 

“Careful.” Jack whispered next to her ear and wrapped his arms around Irina’s 
waist when she 
bent further over the edge. “If you fall down there, you will never be found 
again. Nobody can 
help you. This coastline isn’t called the cliffs of damnation for no reason.” 

Irina froze for a moment and pressed herself back against Jack’s body. “That 
sounds as if 
people have already died here.”

“Hundreds.” Jack confirmed. “The ground around these cliffs is very dangerous 
because it has 
perniciously sharp rocks under the water. Many ships sank because they grounded 
on one of 
those rocks. None of the sailors who were on those ships was ever seen again and 
until fifty 
years ago, nobody dared to come here at night.”

“Why, because of ghosts?” Irina asked amused, and Jack nodded.

“Exactly. It was said that at night, the souls of the dead sailors returned from 
the under the sea 
to moan and make the world know of their misery. And if they met a human being, 
they pushed 
him over the edge of the cliff in order to have company in their lonely, wet 
grave down there.”

Irina shivered. “Are you trying to scare me?”

Jack chuckled and pulled her closer. “No, why? Are you scared?”

“No!” Irina proclaimed and tried to sound self-secure, but the shivering of her 
body betrayed her 
true emotions. Although she did not actually believe in ghosts, she also didn’t 
strictly exclude 
the possibility of their existence. And the thought of dead, pale sailors who 
pulled poor people 
into the deadly waves was not one she wished to have on her mind for the rest of 
the day. “Tell 
me more about your ancestor.” She inquired. “Something beautiful – not scary.”

Jack smiled and brushed her cheek with his lips in a soft gesture. “One day, 
Jonathan Bristow II. 
robbed one of the bigger ships of a rich salesman and took a female prisoner. 
She was an 
elegant lady, the daughter of the salesman, and was on the way to her marriage. 
He brought 
her into his hiding place and held her there for many months.”

“That is not beautiful!” Irina exclaimed. “Why did he hold her there? Did her 
family not pay?”

“No, they didn’t. Because being abducted on the way to her marriage was too much 
shame for 
them. She had been alone with a man without a lady to accompany her, even more, 
she was in 
the hands of an outlaw. Her family assumed, that she had been raped anyway, so 
to them, she 
had become worthless, because if she returned, no man would take her as his wife 
anymore. 
She was dishonored.”

“Poor woman, cruel man...” Irina said, and Jack smiled slightly. 

“Not exactly. She was my great-great-great-grandmother.”

“She married the man who had destroyed her luck and brought the shame upon her?”

“No, she married the man she loved.” Jack corrected her softly. “During the 
months of being 
held prisoner, Alicia and Jonathan had a lot of time to talk and get to know one 
another. 
Although he was a pirate, he had a higher education and manners. He did not 
touch her once 
and protected her against the robbers who served under him. So instead of 
killing her after her 
family refused to pay for her, he asked her if she wanted to become his wife, 
and she agreed. 
They married, because they had fallen in love.”

Irina gave a short laughter. “Jack, please. I’m sure she didn’t love him. She 
was forced to marry 
him. Her family wouldn’t pay, so she had no way to get free. You ancestor 
probably gave her 
the option to choose between death and marrying him. God knows how any times she 
tried to 
flee...”

“In the beginning after her capture, yes...” Jack replied, looking at her 
intensely. “Then she fell 
truly in love with him.”

“How do you know that she wasn’t unhappy and plotted ways to kill her husband 
every day? 
Maybe she thought about pushing him down these cliffs at night – nobody would 
have asked 
questions, because everybody would have blamed it on the ghosts.”

Jack cocked his head amused. “I have my grandmother’s diary, which she started 
to write the 
day she was captured.” He said with a soft smile. “And no, she never considered 
that possibility. 
I am considering being more careful around you from now on, though.”

Irina gave a soft laugh and touched his hands in a tender gesture. Suddenly she 
became aware 
of how intimate that gesture was. Their whole situation was way too close. They 
talked to each 
other like lovers would. 

Clearing her throat, Irina loosened herself from Jack and went a few steps along 
the edge. 
Impressed, she touched the rocks and looked up to the higher cliffs. Some 
seagulls flew in the 
sky, landed and started from the rocks with typical shrieks. 

Irina pulled her coat tight around her body when the wind grew stronger. She 
went along the 
rocks, away from the edge. Jack followed her in some distance. 

“How far do those rocks go?” Irina asked.

“Some kilometers along the coastline. Most of it doesn’t belong to my property 
anymore.”

They followed the way along the rocks for some time, bringing more and more 
distance between 
them and the dangerous edge of the cliffs. Soon the only thing that let them 
know that they were 
still close to the sea was the sound of the breakers against the stones. 

Irina enjoyed the beauty of the landscape. They were now shielded against the 
cold wind from 
the see by the high rocky reef and so the sun warmed them. When she reflected, 
Irina couldn’t 
remember ever having been in a more beautiful place. She breathed in the fresh, 
salty air 
deeply while they walked. 

Jack was just about to propose that they turn and go back, when Irina pointed at 
a small entry 
into the stone in the distance. 

“Is that the entry to the cave system?” she asked, and Jack knew he didn’t like 
the fascination in 
her voice. For a moment he considered saying no, but then he realized that he 
had never seen 
her so interested and happy before. 

“Yes, it is,” he said. “If you want, we can go closer, but then we should soon 
turn around. We 
have to be back for tea.”

Irina grabbed the lower folds of her dress to be able to go faster. Jack 
chuckled at her 
enthusiasm and followed her. When they reached the entry, Irina looked almost 
disappointed. 

“That’s it?” The entry wasn’t even big enough for her to go through when fully 
standing. She 
bent a little to peek inside. “Wow, there are dozens of smaller holes in the 
ceiling through which 
light comes in.”

Before Jack had a chance to hold her back, she had disappeared in the darkness. 

“Irina!” Jack said and bent down. “It’s dangerous to go in there. You 
shouldn’t...”

There was a short spark and then the darkness was filled with the light of a 
wooden stick, Irina 
had lighted at the stone wall. She smiled when she saw his stunned face. 

“My father taught me.” She explained. “The advantages of being involved in the 
life of a 
smuggler.” She turned and looked into the dark tunnel.

“Irina, I would really feel better if you came out of there.”

“Just a moment...” she replied fascinated and went further into the darkness. 

Jack cursed when she didn’t react to his demand to come back, but continued to 
go deeper into 
the rocky tunnel. Determined, he followed her, careful not to slip on the uneven 
ground. When 
he had reached her, she had already made ten meters. Jack grabbed her wrist. 

“Irina, this is too dangerous. The stone is unstable in many parts of the caves, 
and we may get 
buried in here.”

“It doesn’t look unstable.” She touched the rocky wall to her left. “In fact, I 
think it is quite 
massive.” She loosened from his grip and continued her way. 

“Irina, you will turn around at once.” Jack yelled, irritated now. “Don’t make 
me carry you out of 
here, because then you will have a problem.”

“Jack, don’t you want to know what secret it carries?”

“Not for the risk of getting buried, no.” He replied dryly, following her 
unwillingly. He knew that 
she was determined to follow the tunnel, and if he refused to go with her, she 
would do it alone. 
“You know, women are usually afraid of dark caves.” 

“Yes... but I am not!” Irina said, not really listening, but watching her step. 

“Unfortunately,” Jack murmured and held his hands out to catch her when she 
slipped on a 
loose stone and had almost fallen. “You are the most stubborn person I have ever 
met.” 

“I am alright,” Irina calmed him and pushed his arms away softly. “Was Jonathan 
Bristow 
happy?”

“Yes,” Jack said, his hand still at Irina’s waist to be able to hold her in case 
of danger. “He and 
Alicia were the happiest couple ever. They had two children. Sadly, their 
relationship wasn’t 
meant to last long.”

“But you said...”

“Alicia died when giving birth to a third child. So did the baby. Only a few 
months later, Jonathan 
Bristow was captured by soldiers of the queen. He was executed only two days 
later.”

Irina looked at Jack in honest sympathy for the tragic lovers. “And the 
children?”

“They were adopted by two rich families and given a noble education. When the 
eldest son, 
Roland, was old enough and had married, the queen gave some of the land that his 
father had 
owned, back to him. Over the decades, my family regained more and more of the 
old property 
by serving the queen.”

“How noble,” Irina murmured sarcastically, “selling ones ideals to a woman just 
to get one’s 
property back. I would have just taken it back. Where is the spirit to fight for 
something?”

Jack laughed. “You sound like a warrior. I’m sure some centuries earlier you 
would have made 
a great knight.” Softly he took her hand and kissed her knuckles. “I think I 
prefer the lady 
though.”

Her eyes met his in the flickering light of the flare, and he noticed that she 
blushed slightly. “You 
don’t know the lady...” she said softly. 

“I have to disagree... you’ve shown her to me in many ways.” His hand touched 
her cheek, while 
his lips lowered to hers. Irina stared into his eyes, desperate to feel his 
mouth on hers, but at the 
same time unwilling to admit how much she longed for his caress. Still torn 
inside, she didn’t 
even realize that her grip around the flare loosened. When Jack’s lips touched 
hers, she 
accidentally dropped it. With an echoing sound it hit the stony ground and 
rolled over the 
uneven stones into a small mule filled with water. The next moment they were 
surrounded by 
darkness. 

“I’m sorry,” Irina murmured, and Jack sighed, laying his forehead against hers. 
Both of them 
started laughing in amusement about their situation. Blindly they felt for the 
wall in order to feel 
their way out. 

“You know, you would make a great warrior.” Jack mused. Irina’s grip around his 
arm tightened, 
while he led her carefully along the way back. 

“That was actually your fault.” Irina replied. “If you hadn’t – um – distracted 
me, there would 
have been no reason for me to drop the flare.”

“So I distracted you? Good.”

“Don’t make it sound as if it was anything of importance.” She replied 
flirtatiously. 

“Well, if I distract you, to me that is something of importance, because there’s 
nothing I like 
more than distracting you. Of course, I have other kinds of distraction in 
mind...”

“Did you hear that?” Irina suddenly interrupted him, stopping and turning back. 
For a moment, 
both stopped breathing and just listened into the silence, but except for the 
sound of the waves 
against the cliffs from somewhere deeper in the caves, they couldn’t hear 
anything. 

“Hear what?” Jack finally asked softly, and Irina hushed him. 

“I heard footsteps behind us... maybe twenty meters.”

Again they listened concentrating, then finally Jack gave a short laugh. “You 
are fantasizing.” 

“Stop making fun of me, I am sure there is somebody behind us.”

“Stop being ridiculous. Who should be here? Do you see any light back there? 
Nobody could 
walk in these caves without a flare.”

“How can you know, if you have never been in here?”

“Irina...” Jack warned, but she interrupted him. 

“Jack, I have been in situations like this. I have learned to recognize the 
signals of being 
followed or observed. And I am aware if somebody is in a cave with me. I swear 
to you, there is 
somebody there.”

She didn’t sound frightened, just a little worried. Jack was just about to tell 
her, that nobody had 
been in this cave for years when there was the sound of rumbling stones about 
thirty meters 
behind them. For a moment it sounded as if somebody was going away from them, 
but then 
there was silence again. 

“I told you,” Irina whispered. For another moment they stood there, 
concentrating on the silence. 
Then Jack remembered that he had a woman with him. If he were alone, he would 
have tried to 
find out who was using this cave as a hiding place, but with Irina as his 
company, that was of 
course not an option. 

“Come on, let’s get out of here,” he finally decided.

“Jack, do you not want to know, who’s...” she started, but Jack cut her off. 

“We are not searching this cave. We will return to the manor now. And we are not 
going to 
discuss this,” he said. Irina’s face darkened, but she followed him until they 
stepped out into the 
light again. Then she pulled her arms away from him. 

“Do never ever give me an order again,” she warned menacingly, then turned and 
went back in 
the direction of the horses. Jack sighed and looked after her. It was probably 
wise to apologize. 
Of course, he didn’t really feel sorry. He was just glad that Irina was no 
longer pursuing the idea 
of exploring the tunnels. Later, he would send out a team of his soldiers to 
make sure nobody 
would enter the cave again. 

He ran the last meters until he had reached Irina and took her hand into his. 
“You were right.” 
His voice sounded absolutely serious, and his eyes met hers apologizing. “I had 
no right to 
order you around.” He lifted her hand and pressed a deep kiss into her palm. 
Irina couldn’t help 
but slow down at this tender gesture. Again he confused her, not only his 
reactions, but also his 
closeness – it was the kind of confusion she didn’t understand. 

Carefully she pulled her hand away from him. “Don’t do that...” she murmured. He 
smiled at her 
reaction and allowed her some space when they moved on. Irina paid attention to 
have a certain 
distance between them and wrapped her arms around her body. “Why aren’t you 
married?” 

Her question, that came suddenly and out of he blue, put him off for a moment. 
“Um... you know 
I am married actually.” He joked, then became serious. “I didn’t find the right 
woman for me – up 
to now.” 

She didn’t react, but kept looking straight forward. “And how does that woman 
have to be? The 
right one, I mean?”

“Difficult question.” Jack murmured and looked at her. “Beautiful, hot-tempered, 
unconventional 
and passionate.” 

“Are you making fun of me?” Irina asked slightly aggressive, and Jack chuckled. 

“Not at all, I assure you.” He replied and folded his hands behind his back. “So 
how does the 
man of your dreams have to be?”

“Independent, self-reliant, unconventional and strong – but also handsome and 
passionate, and 
dangerous to a certain point.” She sighed. “But actually there’s no space for a 
husband in my 
life – maybe someday when the work of our group is done.”

“By the work, you mean murdering the queen, I assume,” he noted dryly, as if 
talking about the 
weather. Irina shot him a side glance, surprised by his coolness. 

“Mostly, yes,” she admitted. Jack decided that this was probably a good moment 
to ask her 
directly for the truth. Maybe he should try to learn it from her before his 
spies brought him the 
information.

“Tell me what happened that you hate the queen so much,” he said softly, and 
Irina looked at 
him for a long moment. 

“You probably think that my family is just helping the rebels, because we are 
bloodthirsty,” she 
murmured, but Jack shook his head. 

“No, not at all. On the contrary – which is why I am wondering how charming 
ladies like you and 
your sisters could get involved so deeply with revolutionists.” 

“We weren’t always on that side. When my father was young, he supported the 
kingdom as 
much as you do. He was a patriot. But...” she looked in the distance, then 
suddenly forced a 
smile. “Why don’t we go to the beach? Is there a place where you can sit 
directly at the waves 
here?”

Jack frowned at the change of topic, but didn’t allow her to notice it. Every 
time he tried to talk to 
her about the past of her family, she blocked and didn’t let him in. His spies 
should have soon 
brought him some information that would hopefully lead him to the truth. He 
needed to know 
why she was involved with the terrorists. 

“Yes...” he finally answered her question. “It’s small, but you’re going to like 
it. Let’s go there!”


Part 20 – The Truth of a Heart

Irina was surprised when Jack lifted her gallantly off her horse and only let 
her go after he had 
made sure that she was standing securely. Then he turned and looked over the 
small part of the 
beach. It was only a bay that they had reached through a large tunnel the sea 
had made over 
the centuries when it had still been higher. The ground was covered with grass, 
but closer to the 
water it slowly turned into sand and smaller pebbles. 

Irina’s eyes glowed when she looked around. She strolled toward a larger tree 
and leaned 
against it in the shadow. Jack observed her for a long time until their eyes 
met. The expression 
in his eyes was tender and promising. Irina caught her breath for a moment, 
trying not to fall for 
the hidden wishes in her heart.

She dropped her eyes to the ground and away from him, hoping that he didn’t 
notice the 
feelings that were battling in her chest. 

“Beautiful, isn’t it?”

She started when she suddenly heard Jack’s voice right next to her ear, and her 
heart seemed 
to skip a beat when his hands found their old place on her waist. “It’s 
breathtaking,” Irina 
agreed. She fought the need to turn around and do what she wanted to do most – 
kiss him. 

If Jack weren’t her enemy, she had to admit, she would be really tempted to 
seduce him. Not 
only was he wealthy, his property was also the most beautiful in England. The 
woman he would 
marry would be a really happy person, she admitted silently and with a certain 
wistfulness in her 
heart. 

“You know that you have an advantage?” Jack mentioned all of a sudden, and Irina 
turned her 
head slightly in confusion. 

“How is that?”

“I’ve told you everything about my ancestors – you’ve told me nothing about 
yours.” He felt her 
stiffen in his arms.

“Why do you want to know about my family so desperately?” She tried to evade him 
– again – 
but this time Jack was unwilling to give in.

“I am interested in you. We’ve been together for almost four weeks, yet I don’t 
know any more 
about you than I did the day we met. I like mysterious women Irina, but at some 
point I need to 
know more.” Although spoken urgently, his voice was full of tenderness, and 
Irina felt her heart 
grow heavier. “I respect you, Irina. You should know that by now – and then you 
should also 
know that I would never use any information against you. I am shielding you from 
the royal law. I 
am your friend. Do you still not trust me?”

“I... I do trust you.” Her voice could barely be heard. “I trust you more than I 
probably should.” 
She fell into a long silence while she weighed the advantages and disadvantages 
of telling him 
the story. If he didn’t learn the truth from her, she was sure he would sooner 
or later find another 
way. “My mother was from Russia,” she eventually started, “she was from a small 
noble family 
there. My father met her when he was out of the country, and they fell in love. 
Three weeks 
afterwards, they were married against the will of her parents. My mother went 
with my father 
back to England and nine months later, Katya was born.”

“That sounds as if your mother was very lonely here.”

“No, she had my father. He taught her the English language. Obviously my 
mother’s father had 
thought that her love for my father was only a passion and would merely end up 
being an affair. 
He hadn’t expected the marriage to last that long. My mother wrote a letter to 
her parents every 
year, and finally they were convinced that she had not harmed the family’s 
honor. After I was 
born, she received letters from her family that included invitations – yet 
somehow, she never 
had the time to meet her family again, before she was killed.” Irina paused and 
took a deep 
breath. 

“What happened?” Jack asked softly. 

“I don’t remember much of that day. I know that it was very sunny, and I can 
still remember that 
Katya and I drove mother crazy the whole time. The kitchen servants had baked 
strawberry 
cake all day, and Katya and I were always trying to steal some. In the end, my 
father smuggled 
a whole cake out for us, and the three of us ate it in the garden. Mother was 
furious when she 
found out.” Irina smiled at the faint memory that came up in her mind, but then 
her expression 
darkened when she went on. “Then, in the night I was suddenly awakened by the 
sound of 
horses and men yelling outside the house. My mother came running into our room, 
and dragged 
Katya and me out of our beds. I didn’t understand what was happening back then, 
but I saw the 
tears in her eyes, and they frightened me. She ordered me and Katya to run away 
as fast as we 
could and hide somewhere in the woods before they could find us. Katya 
immediately 
understood what was going on. I don’t know, maybe I was too young or too 
stubborn to 
understand the urgency and danger that was lying in her order. However, I begged 
her to come 
with us or at least send father with us. When she refused, I held onto her legs 
and yelled at her 
that I wouldn’t go either. It was the first time in my life that she slapped me. 
I was so shocked, I 
couldn’t even cry. It wasn’t so much that she had been violent with me, but the 
fear that was 
present in her eyes…not fear for her own life, but fear for mine.

She bent down and gave me her necklace. She promised me that she would come 
after us but 
that I had to go now, and when we met in the woods, I should return the necklace 
to her. 

Katya dragged me across the floor and out of the backdoor. We just ran as fast 
as we could – 
still I could hear the screams... my mother was screaming for help and I think 
deep inside I knew 
that I would never see her again. 

I don’t know how long we hid in the woods, it seemed like days to me. Sometime 
in the night I 
ran away from Katya, back to the house. The doors were standing open, most of 
the wood was 
shattered and the windows were broken. I found my mother in the kitchen, dead. 
Those bastards of the queen had raped her before they killed her. My father was 
gone. I stayed 
there with my mother until Maggie found me – Maggie, who later became our maid. 
My father 
had been arrested, but managed to escape and returned to us. He swore to take 
revenge for my 
mother’s death and collaborated with the rebels he had been fighting up to then. 
That’s why he raised my sisters and me into that world. He wanted us to be able 
to defend 
ourselves, not be helpless victims like my mother was. And most of all he wanted 
us to never 
depend on people, so we would never be betrayed.”

Jack didn’t know what to say, so immense was his shock. Therefore he took 
Irina’s hand in his 
and kissed her palm deeply, pressing her closer against him. 

“The queen ordered the raid on your house?” he asked carefully after some time, 
and Irina 
nodded.

“Yes, the men were soldiers of the queen. Some time afterwards, I heard my 
father talk about 
the evening to one of his rebel friends. He never ever talked about it to us 
again, but that night, 
one of my father’s friends came to us, and they talked. I couldn’t resist 
staying behind the door 
and listening. Obviously the soldiers had a letter of the queen that allowed 
them to use every 
possible means to reveal that my father was involved with the terrorists. The 
queen had given 
them carte blanche to torture my mother in order to make my father confess – 
which he 
eventually did in order to stop them from hurting my mother. But instead they 
raped and killed 
her in front of his eyes. That is how kind and just your queen is.”

“It is not,” Jack corrected softly. “The queen would never tolerate methods like 
that. And neither 
would the men who lead the soldiers.”

Irina spun around, her eyes filled with tears and now sparkling with fury. “I 
have been there, 
Jack! And I have seen the man who led the soldiers, and I will never forget his 
face again. 
Everything that happened that night is blurred and has become like a shadow in 
my head – but 
his face is still so vivid and clear, as if it had been yesterday! He was 
wearing the uniform, and 
he had the letter! How should that be possible if he was not in the counsel of 
the queen? Do you 
know what your soldiers are doing at the moment?”

Jack pulled her against him softly. “I apologize. I did not mean to question 
what you told me. I 
just tried to make clear that there was possibly a soldier acting against the 
queen’s orders. Rape 
or murder of women is never included as means in those letters. Whoever led that 
group of 
soldiers acted against the law, even if your father was suspected.”

“My father was not involved with the terrorists then! He was in the counsel of 
the queen, just like 
you are now. He was fighting the smugglers!” Irina’s voice was trembling, and 
Jack looked at 
her, slowly understanding what her words meant. 

“He was a counselor?” That didn’t make sense, but at least it was a reason why 
he hadn’t been 
able to find information about Irina’s family. Affairs that concerned the 
members of the royal 
counsel were always treated highly confidentially. In most cases, only the queen 
knew the real 
circumstances. “Irina, what happened that night was against the law, your father 
knew that. He 
should have gone to the queen, instead of collaborating with terrorists.”

“Would you seek help from the woman who just had your wife killed and had you 
arrested?”

Jack had to admit that he wouldn’t. Still, the happenings didn’t make sense to 
him. “When your 
father was an active participant in the combat against the terrorists, why would 
he be raided at 
night? Even more, why would his family be brought into the affair? There has 
never been a case 
where something like that happened.” His eyes met Irina’s, and he took her hands 
into his. “Will 
you allow me to do some research about the background of the raid?”

“Why?” Irina asked, loosening from him. Her voice was filled with anger. “Why do 
you want to 
revive the past?”

“Irina, I am just thinking that maybe we are both wrong in our conclusions. 
Maybe I am wrong, 
and they were men of the queen – and you are wrong, because the queen didn’t 
sanction it. If 
that is the case, then the murder of your mother and the robbery of your family 
was a crime that 
must not be tolerated. The people who are responsible have to pay for that.”

“Jack...” Irina started desperately, not sure whether to thank him for his 
sympathy or yell at him 
for his stubbornness.

“Irina, I don’t want to wake ghosts. I just want to find out the truth for you – 
and for your mother. 
Didn’t your father want the responsible persons to pay? I promise you, it will 
be a discreet 
investigation. I will counsel the queen personally – nobody is ever going to 
know.”

“No, Jack! NO! You are not going to talk to that... woman about this!”

“Irina...”

“Jack, what makes you so sure that she wasn’t behind this! You just assume that 
she isn’t 
responsible due to your loyalty to your kingdom, but what if you are wrong. Then 
you blow my 
cover, and I will be executed as a traitor. If you plan to go to the queen, tell 
me now, because 
then I am going to run away. You promised to be my friend! I trusted you, you 
damned bastard... 
I will never...”

“Shhh...” Jack stopped her raging outburst by closing her mouth with his in a 
deep, tender kiss. 
“Please calm down. If you don’t want me to, I won’t talk to the queen.” He then 
whispered 
against her lips. 

“Swear to god.” Irina replied, laying her hands on his cheeks. 

“I swear.” He sealed his promise with a series of passionate kisses. For another 
moment, they 
were lost in the closeness of each other, and for a split second Jack wondered 
how their future 
should look. Given the present circumstances, they could under no circumstances 
be together. 
He was committing a crime by hiding the circumstances under which they had met – 
not to 
mention his being married to her. Their only chance might be if she went to the 
queen and 
begged for a pardon agreement. Given her past and the background of her 
experiences, the 
sentence would be a mild one. The queen would take away their property and 
title, but most 
likely not even send them to prison. Jack was sure though, that he would never 
be able to 
convince Irina or one of her sisters to go to the queen – and the worst was, 
that he could 
understand her reasons. Now he could understand why she had gone to the rebels, 
and he 
knew that he would have probably acted the same. 

When Irina loosened from his body after some time, she looked flushed, and Jack 
himself felt 
out of breath. She took some steps backward, not losing Jack with her eyes, 
before she turned 
around and hurried towards the water. 

“Irina, what are you doing?” Jack was confused when he saw that she opened her 
dress and 
dropped it to the sand. 

“I need a swim to free my head.” Words said, she climbed onto a rock and dove 
into the water 
headfirst. For a moment, he was seriously scared that she had hurt herself or 
planned to drown 
herself, but when she resurfaced, he had to admit that she was an excellent 
swimmer. Actually, 
this was a fact that shouldn’t have surprised him. A woman that could light a 
wooden stick on a 
stone wall could most likely swim like a fish, he mused. 

Shaking his head, he started to pull off his own clothes, until he was only 
wearing his 
underpants. He liked the thought of swimming and besides, if anything happened 
to Irina, he 
was closer to her if in the water. Just as Irina had done before, he headed into 
the water. He 
dove the way towards Irina and surfaced right in front of her. 

She gave a short laugh in shock. “Jack!”

“Be careful, the ground is very uneven and the rocks under water are vicious and 
sharp.”

“For a soldier, you have a very low tolerance of excitement and adventure.” 
Irina teased him and 
splashed a little wave of water towards him. Jack smiled. 

“Oh, I am not worried for myself. I am an excellent swimmer. But you are wearing 
a dress! How 
you are able to swim in that at all is a puzzle to me.” He replied amused and 
splashed water 
back at her. 

“What do you suggest? Swimming without it?” Irina asked laughing. The waves they 
used 
against each other getting gradually higher. 

Jack laughed under his breath, trying to evade the water she was hitting into 
his face. “I wouldn’t 
mind...” he clarified and another wave of water hit him. Finally, he succeeded 
in grabbing Irina’s 
wrists and pulled her against his chest. “Careful, milady. Usually I don’t fight 
with women, but if I 
am tempted I might get a little rough...”

Irina lifted her head until their lips almost brushed. Only a hair-breadth of 
distance was left 
between them. “I like you getting rough...” she breathed seductively, noticing 
his gasp at her 
teasing. But before he could react, she freed herself in a clever move, swimming 
like a fish 
towards the beach.

When she had brought ten meters distance between them, she turned and cocked her 
head, 
trying to find balance on the uneven ground. 

“What, are you giving up against a woman?” she asked in disbelief, and Jack’s 
eyes sparkled 
when he took her challenge. 

“I was just giving you an advantage. I didn’t want to win by unfair rules.”

“I assure you, your consideration is totally inappropriate. I should probably be 
the one who gives 
you an advantage.”

“The words of a true lady,” Jack teased her. 

“You don’t believe me?” Irina asked amused, enjoying their little challenge.

“Prove yourself.” Jack said, slowly reducing the distance between them. “We’ll 
swim out until we 
are fifty meters from the beach. I will give you five meters advantage, and if I 
manage to catch 
you before you reach the sand, I win. Are you on?”

Irina nodded. “Of course. But don’t think I would make it easy for you.”

“I never expected that, but you better not expect that I will make it easy for 
you, either.”

“I would feel insulted if you did.” She followed Jack slowly out, until they 
were in deeper water. 
When Jack stopped, Irina started to tremble from the coolness of the water. 
Closer to the beach, 
where the water was two meters deep at the most, she hadn’t felt the icy 
coolness as she did 
now. 

“Are you sure you want to do that?” Jack asked once again. He didn’t seem 
affected at all by the 
low temperature – and if he was, he didn’t let her know. 

“I am okay.” After she had positioned herself five meters ahead of Jack, her 
eyes met his in the 
silent question to give a signal, but Jack left that honor to her.

“I will be ready whenever you are.” He said. “Just start swimming.”

XXXXXXX

He didn’t have to tell her twice. Irina turned around and started to swim as 
fast as she could 
towards the beach. Jack was surprised at how fast she was actually moving and 
allowed her to 
gain some distance. He knew there was no need to worry for him. Irina was an 
excellent 
swimmer.  He didn’t doubt that, yet her temper would be her undoing. 

Irina wondered why Jack was lagging behind and was already triumphing silently, 
when she felt 
her arms getting heavier. No matter how desperately she tried, her muscles 
didn’t obey her will, 
and instead of swimming faster she lost more and more power. Yet she was too 
proud to give 
up. Twenty meters left – ten meters left – when she felt the sand under her 
feet, she ran more 
than she was swimming. Her legs gave way, and she crawled the last meters in the 
water. 

When she felt Jack’s hand at her ankle, she was too exhausted to let out a 
frustrated cry. She 
just gasped for air, and let herself sink into the shallow water. Slowly, she 
turned onto her back, 
finding Jack almost immediately leaning over her. 

“I am deeply impressed,” he whispered at her lips. “You are an amazing swimmer.”

“You don’t have to be gracious,” Irina said, still out of breath. 

“I am not. You gave me a hard time...”

“Yet, you won.”

“Only because of your strategy. You gave everything at the beginning. In cold 
water like this you 
have to save your power – keep a steady pace without giving everything at the 
beginning. That 
way you are able to swim longer.” His lips were close to hers. “So tell me, what 
is my prize 
now?”

“We never talked about...” she started, but wasn’t able to finish when Jack lips 
merged with 
hers, catching her hands and pinning them to the soft sand. Seductively he 
teased her, slowly 
inducing her tongue into a sensual game. After a series of wet, open-mouth 
kisses, he pulled 
back, trying to regain control over his actions, but failed. They shouldn’t take 
it too far…after all, 
they were out in the open. But he didn’t listen to his rational mind – he 
couldn’t do so, not with 
her lips only an inch away from his.

“Tell me to stop.” He murmured, his hot breath tickling her skin, and she closed 
her eyes. 

“Don’t stop.” She replied against her reason. Another passionate love-making was 
not at all a 
good idea. Although she was married to Jack in front of the law, their marriage 
was illegitimate – 
both of them knew that. And if they didn’t keep their hands off each other, she 
would soon have 
to worry about more than just getting an annulment. She knew if she became 
pregnant with 
Jack’s child, no court in the world would annul the marriage – and a divorce was 
totally out of 
the question since it would ruin not only her own reputation, but also the one 
of her family. 

All those reasons seemed to fade away from her mind when only one thing stood 
against them 
– Jack’s body against her, his sweet kisses on her lips, his hands holding hers. 

Irina’s approval was enough to break the last remains of self-control that were 
left inside of him. 
His lips collided with hers, and his tongue started to explore her mouth, 
causing both of them to 
shudder. Their tongues fought a short battle for control, then she surrendered, 
her passionate 
moan lost in his mouth. 

He let go of her wrists, and his hands started to roam over her body 
impatiently. Her fingers 
entangled in his hair and pulled him closer against her body. When his hand 
cupped her breast 
through her dress, she felt like she was on fire. She arched her back against 
him. 

Her eyes were closed when she laid her head back, biting her lips at the 
sensational intensity of 
his hot body and touches, and the cool waves of the ocean were a direct contrast 
to that heat. 
His lips nibbled at her chin passionately, his shallow breath tickling her skin 
until she felt as if he 
was burning her alive. 

“Oh God...” she managed to whisper when a tiny voice inside her made her realize 
where they 
were – a voice too weak to be truly acknowledged. She bent her leg and pressed 
it against his 
waist, allowing him to roll over even more, so his leg was resting between hers. 
Totally lost, she 
gasped for air when his lips closed around her nipple through the thin material 
of her under 
dress. He was driving her crazy and made her lose total control over her own 
actions. He 
couldn’t get enough of her, wanted to feel all of her body against him and taste 
every single spot 
of her salty skin. Her soaked dress clung to her body and formed out every 
shape. His hands 
wandered over her waist and hips and touched the bare skin of her leg.

Suddenly a large wave of salty water breaking over them caused them to start 
coughing, forcing 
them to break contact. The coolness of the water and the shock caused by it 
startled them both, 
and they crawled fully onto the sand, both still trembling from the sensation of 
the other’s body. 

They had brought some meters distance between them when the realization dawned 
on them 
what they had just been doing.

All soaked, they just looked at each other, as if trying to understand what had 
just happened. 
Then, without paying attention to the objections in her mind, Irina crawled to 
Jack until she was 
kneeling in the sand in front of him. A few stronger waves still reached them 
and played around 
their legs when she reunited their lips, running her hands over his well-
muscled, bare chest. 

Slowly, she urged him backwards until he almost lost balance and had to steady 
himself with his 
hands. An almost carefree laugh escaped her lips when in the next moment he was 
lying 
completely in the sand with her crawling over him. Her hands ran along his 
cheeks while she 
held his eyes almost lovingly. 

“I would consider you officially defeated,” she teased. He smiled and flipped 
them over so he 
could lean over her. 

“Only temporarily,” he replied in the same tone, lowering his lips to hers. They 
almost touched, 
when another wave reached them and almost covered Irina’s face completely. 
Shocked, she 
shrieked and sat up coughing. When their eyes met, they couldn’t help but 
breaking out in 
amused laughter. 

“I think the ocean is against us,” Irina noted dryly. 

“I agree, and that is why I suggest we move this to a safer place.” And before 
Irina even realized 
what was happening, he had lifted her up into his arms and carried her back to 
the tree where 
they had dropped their clothes. On the way, he kissed her over and over again, 
not getting 
enough of her mouth. At the tree, he set her down carefully and draped his cape 
over the 
ground. Then he went to his knees in front of Irina, who was trying to bring her 
hair back to 
order. She wasn’t even aware of how beautiful she looked to Jack at that moment. 
Softly he pulled her hands into his and kissed them. Irina smiled, but after a 
while, she broke 
contact and moved onto the cape, never losing his eyes. Slowly, she pulled 
herself backwards 
until she was lying fully on the soft ground, then she laid back. 

Jack followed her until he was covering her body with his, settling in between 
her legs. When 
she gave a soft giggling sound, Jack looked at her questioning. 

“What?”

“It’s just the clothes... we’re all soaked and cold.”

“Not for long.” He promised and kissed her deeply. She sighed into his mouth and 
buried her 
hands in his hair. They lost themselves in a deep and tender kiss, for a moment 
forgetting 
everything around them. 

“You know, we shouldn’t do this,” Irina finally murmured against Jack’s lips, 
but didn’t sound 
convinced of her own words at all. 

“I know. But the chances that anybody will come by are very low...”

“That’s not what I meant.” Irina smiled when he tried to catch her lips again 
with his, and joined 
in his game by evading him – which offered him several other spots to caress 
her. “Our affair. 
Our circumstances, not to mention our state of being married, are not the best 
preconditions to 
share each other’s bed as lovers.” A deep moan escaped her lips, when he started 
to suck and 
lick the sensitive spot right behind her ear. Bending her knees, she allowed his 
body even more 
contact with hers. 

“Don’t see me as your lover then.” Jack whispered and turned his attention to 
her earlobe now. 
“Make love to me as your husband. Be my wife for now.”

Irina sighed and laid her head back. “That’s even more dangerous...” she 
murmured and for a 
short moment their eyes met before she started to smile. “But I have always been 
attracted to 
the more dangerous ways of life.”

Asking herself what she was doing right here, she turned him onto his back, 
straddling his lap. 
She knew this could end only badly. Having played with fire, she would burn now, 
because the 
day when she would have to leave Jack would soon come. And that day would be the 
day her 
heart broke. Although she already predicted the happenings, she was unable to 
resist Jack. She 
was well aware that he would be her undoing, yet she longed for his touches and 
wanted to be 
with him. Her fate was obviously inevitable. 

Without hurry, she moved her lips over his chest, exploring every inch of skin 
she could reach. 
When she reached his soaked pants, she pulled them down and discarded them to 
the side, 
admiring his naked body. He allowed her to continue her exploration for a short 
time, then he 
held her. 

“I am definitely at a disadvantage.”

“How is that?” Irina asked amused.

“You get to see the full show, but I...” Before he had ended the sentence, she 
had pulled the 
dress over her head and discarded it just as she had his pants before. For a 
short moment she 
looked around at the beach, scanning the surroundings for observers, but when 
she found 
none, she returned her full attention to Jack. 

“Better?” she asked seductively, and he could only nod in appreciation. 
Satisfied, she resumed 
her exploration of his body. While her lips moved over his neck and chin to 
finally meet with his 
mouth again, her skilled hands wandered over his abdomen and finally ran along 
the length of 
his shaft. His deep moan was silenced by her lips. She nibbled his lower lip and 
then moved her 
head down his body to where her hands where busy. 

He moaned her name when he felt her hot breath on his erection. The next moment 
her lips 
were on him, the silky warmth of her mouth around him. His reason faded to black 
and the world 
started to spin in front of his eyes. Her tongue started to play around him, 
pushing him higher 
and higher towards a sweet oblivion. When he felt that he couldn’t take it any 
longer, he pulled 
her away from him, his breath shallow and skin flushed. 

“Stop now.”

Irina moved up to his lips, in her eyes a playfully disappointed expression. 
“That was something 
I will only do for a husband and you are telling me you didn’t like it?” she 
teased flirtatiously.

“That was not the reason, and you know that,” he gasped and turned her onto her 
back. “You 
have to be more careful in what you do, if you don’t want certain things to end 
very quickly.”

“So little control? Milord, I am shocked...” She laughed, when he reacted to her 
teasing by 
starting to kiss her roughly. 

“Somebody has definitely too much control over his actions...” he breathed 
against her mouth 
and moved his hands up and down her sides. “I have to change that at once.” His 
lips closed 
around her nipples, starting a soft and unhurried exploration of her body. 
Slowly his lips found 
their path along her belly while he tried to calm down. 

Surely Irina was a woman who knew exactly what action had what kind of effect on 
a man and 
even more, she knew how to use those actions. Jack smiled inwardly when he 
imagined how 
Lady Courtney, a woman he had once had an affair with, would have reacted in a 
situation like 
this. With the most insulted look she was capable of, she would have told him 
that a lady was 
never supposed to take action during intercourse and that a lady would never 
ever show her 
body out in the open. They had had conversations about those topics, and the 
lady had been 
determined to remain controlled and cold – even when they where in bed. 
Since it had only been a love affair – which basically consisted of sexual 
intercourse – he had 
soon ended it and silently understood the husband of the lady, who had run away 
to Spain to 
marry the daughter of a renowned salesman. 

Irina was so unlike the women he knew as day was unlike from night. But it was 
not only her 
passion, her willingness to explore, that he adored about her. It was her 
spirit, her liveliness that 
suddenly made him feel alive. Being thirty-five years old, he was certainly not 
the youngest 
anymore, but she seemed to change him. 

“Jack...” Her breathless whimper made him smile. 

“So little control, Milady?” he teased her, tickling her ear with his tongue. 

She wanted to tell him that it was her nature to be impatient, but his next move 
stole away her 
breath and replaced the world in front of her eyes with a sparkling universe of 
stars that never 
seemed to end. 

Slowly, he explored her core with his fingers, at first teasing her clit 
relentlessly. Then he moved 
two fingers inside her, searching for that spot that he knew brought her close 
to the edge. 
The deep moan that escaped her lips, showed him that he had found it. 
Relentlessly, he 
continued to push her higher and higher towards heaven with his fingers while 
his lips licked at 
her neck and whispered sweet caresses against her hot and sweaty skin. It was a 
silent 
challenge between them, an ever so tender battle for control, and Jack felt that 
she was 
reluctant to let herself go completely - unwilling to admit that she couldn’t 
control her feelings as 
she wanted to. Yet that was what he needed. If only for one time, he wanted to 
feel that the ever 
present barrier between them was gone, that there was not only a physical 
connection, but a 
spiritual one – that she was completely his. 

“Irina...” His voice was throaty with desire, and he felt that he wouldn’t be 
able to hold back 
much longer. “Come for me,” he whispered into her ear, and her fingers closed 
almost painfully 
around his arm.

“Jack... wait... don’t...” The rest of her sentence was lost in a desperate 
whimper when she laid 
her head back. 

“Please, let go... will you do that for me?” he continued to seduce her with 
words and felt her 
grip on his hand tighten even more, uncontrolled moans escaping her lips. And 
then she felt the 
world explode – the oxygen she breathed didn’t seem nearly enough to save her 
from the 
unconsciousness when the orgasm waved over her so intensely that every wall she 
had so 
properly built around her seemed to fall down in pieces. 
Jack felt her shiver in his arms when she shattered, giving every ounce of her 
soul to him. 

“I love you...” he whispered into her ear, over and over again. The three words 
– although their 
meaning seemed the most impossible and forbidden one – made her feel weak and 
set her free 
at the same time. Never ever had she heard more beautiful words. 

“I love you...” she breathed against his neck, even before she was able to keep 
herself from 
saying them. “Oh god... Jack, I love you so much.” 

A silent tear ran down her cheek when she realized that she had never spoken 
truer words – 
that this was probably the only truth that mattered and that to understand she 
had lived. For the 
first time in her life she felt complete – a completion in which every shadow 
and problem that 
was lying between them, became a shining light of hope that guided their way. 

Slowly, Irina opened her eyes, her breath still shallow. She lifted her head a 
little and met Jack’s 
lips in a soft, almost insecure kiss. Making sure that she was lying 
comfortably, he moved his 
body between her legs. Their eyes were locked when he entered her deeply. 
She felt desire return immediately and pulled his body closer until his skin was 
burning on hers, 
their heartbeats becoming one. 

“Jack...” she breathed against his cheek, encouraging him to move faster. He 
reunited his lips 
with hers as his pace increased. Then his lips moved over her chin and then over 
her cheeks, 
tasting the salt of her tears. He kissed them away, tenderly soothing her fears 
with his caresses 
and pulling her into the whirl of desire once again.  When he came, she followed 
him only a 
second later, and although her second climax was not nearly as earth-shattering 
as the first had 
been, his closeness robbed her breath. 

Five minutes later, they where still trembling, although their heartbeat had 
slowly returned to 
normal. Like cold water, the cruel truth of reality returned to their conscious 
mind. Irina closed 
her eyes, unable to stand the weakness and vulnerability she felt inside. 
Desperately, she 
turned to her side and buried her face in her hands. 

“Oh God,” she whispered, unable to believe what had just happened. 

Jack pulled her closer and snuggled against her back, his arms wrapping around 
her. She tried 
to loosen herself from him, but he held her softly in place. 

“Jack, we can’t... I can’t... please, let me go...”

“I won’t,” he murmured softly, but determined. “I will not allow you to leave me 
again... not after 
what we shared – after what you said.” His hands ran carefully through her hair. 
“I love you, 
Irina.”

She didn’t answer, but her fingers moved tenderly over his hand, holding it 
close to her heart. 

“And I promise you, I will never hurt you... let me be your husband.” Jack 
whispered, kissing her 
softly. 

For a long time she didn’t move at all, millions of thoughts rushing through her 
mind. All her 
fears were reflected in a short moment. Finally, Irina closed her eyes and 
nodded with tears in 
her eyes. “Yes.” She replied simply, realizing that she was willing to give up 
everything for Jack 
– her ideals, her hate, even the love of her family.

They remained under the tree for a long time, neither of them willing to 
disconnect from the 
other in the fear that the young bond between them could tear apart. Then 
finally, Irina smiled 
sleepily. 

“I guess Mrs. Tribbiani is going to be very angry. We missed tea.”

Jack couldn’t help but start to laugh and kiss the woman, who was now even 
unofficially his 
wife. “She will have to live with it. I might skip tea more often from now on.”

Irina smiled and leaned her head back against him intimately. “You might also 
want to not tell 
her so. She can be a dragon!”

“I am paying her.” Jack replied. “If she has a problem with my wishes, she is 
free to look for 
another job.”

He enjoyed the soft laughter that followed from Irina and decided that he would 
do everything to 
make her laugh more often. 

“Jack...” Irina murmured thoughtfully and turned her head to look at him. “I - 
We have to work 
out a solution for us. You can not hide me for the rest of our lives and...I 
don’t want to be a 
prisoner for the rest of my life.”

“Don’t worry... we will find a way.” He said with a hint of certainty in his 
voice. What he didn’t tell 
her was that there was only one way for them to have a life together, and that 
way was a pardon 
agreement from the queen. But that meant either that Irina’s sisters agreed – or 
Irina accused 
them as traitors who weren’t willing to cooperate. The first way was not likely 
to happen. And the 
second way... he was sure that it would break Irina’s heart to have to choose 
between her 
sisters or him. And he knew that it would break his as well, because she would 
never be happy 
again if her family became her enemy.


Part 21 – Doubts

***Whenever you doubt my love, just look at the sky. 
You will find it there, written in the stars.***
(‘A Love Letter’ by Kimberley Jackson)


The bright sunlight coming through the closed curtains made her blink. With a 
soft moan she 
turned onto her side and buried herself deeply in the covers. Every part of her 
body seemed to 
ache – a good pain when she remembered the passionate moments that had caused 
it.  She 
curled up and was just about to drift back to sleep, when the door was opened 
soundly. 

“Did I not tell you, that the lord’s room was to be cleaned by ten?” Mrs. 
Tribbiani’s shrill voice 
startled her. “Stupid thing! Is this what you call clean?”

“Madam, the lord told me...”

“Shut up! I don’t want to hear your cheap excuses! I wonder how someone can hire 
a brat like 
you...”

The servant started to sob, trying again to explain, but Mrs. Tribbiani didn’t 
even listen to her. 
Irina’s mood sank and when she was sure that she wouldn’t get any more sleep 
anyway, she 
sat up and cleared her throat soundly. Both the servant and the mistress of the 
household 
started and turned to look at her. The young servant sank to her knees, sobbing 
even louder 
now. 

“Milady, I am so sorry...” 

“Shut up,” Mrs. Tribbiani cut her off and pulled her onto her feet. “Do your 
work! You are not 
paid for whining like a baby!” She pushed the servant towards the curtains and 
the girl started to 
cry even more now. Totally lost, she looked from Irina to the menacingly looking 
mistress, then 
back at Irina. Irina smiled. 

“It’s okay, you can open the curtains.” 

Relieved, the girl exhaled and started to clean the room. Mrs. Tibbiani folded 
her arms over her 
big chest and looked at Irina with a hint of sarcasm on her face. 

“And you!” she went towards the bed and tried to pull the blanket away from 
Irina. “You are 
certainly not paid for lying around lazily in bed. Even if you grant the lord 
certain ‘favors’,” the 
way she pronounced every syllable of ‘favor’ with emphasis made clear how much 
she despised 
the situation, “you can make yourself helpful during the day. One of the kitchen 
workers is sick, 
and we need help. You can take care of onions, can’t you?” The woman didn’t even 
try to hide 
how lowly she thought of Irina. 

Irina didn’t know what to say. She held on to the sheets of the bed desperately 
to cover her 
nakedness. “I don’t think I...” she started, but was immediately interrupted.

“The lady thinks she is too good for our work? Let me tell you something then. 
As long as you 
are living in this household, you will not just spend your time by lying lazily 
around. Only 
because you get to work closer to the lord doesn’t mean that you are better than 
the maids – on 
the contrary. If I were you, I would be ashamed of myself, and not carry my chin 
so high.”

“What is going on here?”

Irina was almost relieved when James entered the room with his typically stoic 
expression. 
When he understood the situation, a hint of anger changed his face. Those who 
had been 
around him for some time knew that it took quite an amount of anger to make 
James lose his 
countenance. 

“Milady, did they wake you?”

“No... no, it’s alright.” Irina hurried to say, but James was not convinced at 
all – especially since 
Mrs. Tribbiani was still holding the sheets that were covering Irina. 

“The lord explicitly ordered that she was not to be awakened!” he started to 
rage, and Irina 
gasped for air, afraid that the two servants would jump at each other and start 
a massacre. 

“He never gave me that order,” the mistress yelled back and what now started was 
a loud 
dispute that soon turned into a wave of insults they threw at each other. Irina 
moaned loudly and 
held her head, falling back into the cushions. It was still too early for her to 
be able to stand 
chaos like this. 

“HEY!” Suddenly Jack’s voice yelled angrily from the door and immediately the 
room became as 
silent as a grave. The man looked in disbelief from Mrs. Tribbiani to James and 
then to Irina, 
who looked at him as if he was her guardian angel. Jack understood the situation 
at once and 
turned towards the two servants. Mrs. Tribbiani was still looking as if she 
would like to kill 
James, but the old butler had regained his control and stern face. “How dare you 
start an ado 
like this in front of the lady?” Jack asked, his voice dangerously low.  The 
maid who was 
cleaning up the room tried to make herself invisible, but was still following 
the happenings with 
great interest. 

“I think, my orders have been quite clear.”

“Yes Sir.” James said. “I apologize, Sir, but I couldn’t stop this... woman... 
from acting against 
your will. And I also apologize to you, Milady. I don’t know what came over me.” 
He looked at 
her with regret in his eyes, and Irina nodded slightly, not exactly knowing what 
to respond. This 
was a tricky situation, because if she assured that everything was alright and 
she didn’t feel 
bothered, she could very easily lose the servant’s respect. If she accepted the 
apology, she 
would put herself over the servants, and although Jack had made sure yesterday 
that he fully 
accepted her as his wife now, she wasn’t sure what rights she had. Therefore she 
kept silent.

“Get out! Both of you!” Jack finally ordered dangerously quiet. “Resume your 
tasks for the day... 
and this afternoon I want to see both of you in my study, are we clear?”

“Of course, Milord.” Mrs Tribbiani said, her voice suddenly weak and not at all 
as forceful as it 
had been three minutes ago. 

When the two servants were gone, Jack shook his head and went to Irina. He sat 
down at the 
edge of the bed and took her hand to place a soft kiss on it. 

“Good morning, my love.” When she started to smile, he touched her cheek in a 
soft gesture. “I 
will talk to them this afternoon and make clear that I will take every insult 
against you as an 
insult against myself. A situation like this will never happen again. So, how 
did you sleep?”

Irina lifted her hand and touched his face softly. “Wonderfully,” she whispered 
and the love she 
felt for him inside was reflected in her eyes by the unmistakable softness 
there. “How long have 
you been awake?”

“Two hours,” Jack replied. “I have to visit the farm house again. The peasant 
and I have to work 
out a plan to rebuild the houses as effectively as possible. So, I won’t be back 
before this 
afternoon.” The regret could clearly be heard from his voice. His index finger 
slowly stroked 
along the silk skin of her naked shoulder. 

“Do you want me to come with you?” Irina was about to sit up, but Jack held her 
back. 

“No. Stay here and rest a little. You must be even more exhausted than I am.” 

Irina became aware of her aching muscles again and relaxed into the cushions. 
“But hurry up... 
will you?”

“I promise... do you want me to post a soldier in front of your door as your 
personal escort?”

Irina laughed, a sound that he had already missed. “No, I don’t think that will 
be necessary. I am 
quite capable of defending myself.”

“Good... I will see you later then.” He got up and wanted to leave the room, 
when Irina grabbed 
his hand to hold him back for another second. 

“Jack!” 

When he turned, he saw her kneeling on the bed, only the most important parts of 
her body 
covered by the blanket she was still holding to her body. “Be safe,” she 
whispered, before she 
laid her lips to his in a tender kiss. He closed his arms around her, feeling 
her naked, female 
body under his fingers. When his hands ran over her bare legs, he considered for 
a moment to 
just stay here and spend the rest of the day in bed with her. Before he could 
seriously pursue 
that idea, he loosened from her and pushed her back softly. First of all the old 
peasant Gransom 
was waiting for him and secondly, she needed a little rest – which she would 
surely not get if he 
stayed home.   Smiling softly, he ran his hand over her cheek once again before 
he turned and 
eventually left the room. 

Irina leaned back into her cushions, her eyes still fixed on the closed door. 
She couldn’t believe 
that she had actually agreed to be Jack’s wife – that she was really married 
now. What had 
driven her to do so? She smiled to herself. Actually it didn’t even matter so 
much to her. For the 
first time in her life, she felt safe. Even the problems that opened up with 
their decisions seemed 
to vanish. What should she tell her sisters? And what could she do to not end up 
in prison? For 
the time being, she just relaxed in the peaceful feeling of being loved and 
safe. 

After she had slept for another hour, she took a long bath and got dressed. She 
chose an 
especially beautiful dress she had never worn before that underlined her 
perfectly shaped body. 
After she had spent another half an hour in front of the mirror, where Sarah was 
doing her hair, 
Irina had breakfast. She couldn’t help but looking at the clock over and over 
again. 

This is ridiculous, she thought to herself, he has only been gone for a few 
hours and you miss 
him already. Something had changed inside her. She was unable to deny how deeply 
she was 
in love with Jack, how much he attracted her – not only physically, but also 
mentally. She 
enjoyed talking to him or just being close to him – just as they had been last 
night.

When they had returned from the beach yesterday, it had almost been dark. Irina 
smiled to 
herself when she remembered how furious Mrs. Tribbiani had been – especially 
after she had 
seen that Irina’s hair was ruined, she could well imagine what had caused their 
late return. If 
she hadn’t already thought of Irina as a whore by then, she surely did now, as 
the scene earlier 
that morning had shown. 

Jack had ordered a rich dinner to be brought to his personal rooms, then he had 
lifted her up 
and carried her all the way into his bedroom. 

They had had dinner only wearing thin bathrobes. Unable to keep their hands off 
each other, 
they had fed each other and sunk into kisses over and over again, until they had 
ended up 
making love in front of the fireplace on the carpet. 

Later they had moved it to the bed and loved each other as if there was no 
tomorrow – 
forgetting everything around them, especially the time. Between their passionate 
games they 
had spent endless moments just lying in each other’s arms, talking or not saying 
anything at all, 
until they had eventually fallen into an exhausted sleep just as the sun 
announced the 
approaching dawn to the east.

Irina sighed at the pleasurable memory of the previous night and stretched 
herself a little. 
Fortunately, Jack hadn’t accepted her invitation to accompany him to the farm, 
because she 
doubted that her muscles would have allowed her to ride today. 

She strolled into the library where she had a small breakfast – she didn’t have 
that much hunger 
at all – and then dedicated herself to the book she was currently reading. 
Hopefully, it would 
make the time pass more quickly. 

When somebody knocked at he door, Irina jumped up, hoping it would be Jack, but 
it was only 
James. Irina smiled friendly when he bowed.

“Milady, we have a visitor.” James announced. “Lord Arvin Sloane is here, and he 
wants to talk 
to your husband.”

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX


“Oh... I...” Irina murmured, unpleasant memories of the ball night coming back 
to her mind. 
“When will Jack return?”

“It could be any minute, therefore I thought it better to ask you what to tell 
Mr. Sloane.”

Irina looked at him, then at a point somewhere in the room. She knew, her duty 
as mistress of 
the house was to welcome the guest until her husband returned. Sending Lord 
Sloane away 
would not only be rude, but also put Jack’s reputation in danger. On the other 
hand, she wasn’t 
sure whether Jack wanted to see Arvin Sloane at all after what had happened at 
the party a few 
days ago. He had certainly forgiven her, but what if she welcomed Sloane in his 
house?

Eventually, Irina decided that she had to go downstairs to greet the visitor. 
Until now the 
happenings at the party were an incident only Jack, Sloane and herself knew 
about. Denying 
Sloane entry would possibly make it a public affair, and that was the last thing 
she needed. 

“Tell Lord Sloane that I will be downstairs in a few moments,” she finally 
ordered James friendly. 
The butler smiled faintly and bowed again, then left the room. Irina looked at 
the book on her lap 
and then turned her head to stare out of the window. It took her some time to 
gather her 
strength, then she remembered the grace and elegance she had always admired in 
her mother. 
Naturally, her mother could get really furious and even throw plates at her 
father, but those 
outbursts only happened when they were alone. When welcoming guests, her mother 
had 
always been a symbol of beauty and grace.

Taking a deep breath, Irina lifted her chin and left the library. When she 
entered the large living 
room downstairs, courage left her again for a moment as she caught a glimpse of 
the man who 
was standing at the window. Only for an instant, she allowed her uneasiness to 
take over, then 
she cleared her throat. 

“Lord Sloane, what a pleasure to see you again.”

The man turned around, and his eyes widened when he saw Irina. Very 
ungentlemanly, he 
looked her up and down, as if she were the very first woman he had ever seen in 
his life. 
Immediately, Irina’s uneasiness returned. Intuitively, she took a small step 
back when he came 
towards her. How she had been able to even think about sleeping with that man 
was a puzzle to 
her. 

“Lady Irina,” He took her hand and placed a kiss on the back of it. “If possible 
you are even 
more beautiful than you were at the party.”

“You are flattering me, Milord. I am sorry to tell you, that my husband is 
currently not at home. 
We expect him back any minute though.” She smiled, putting a certain distance 
into her curtsy, 
and hoped that he wouldn’t try to pursue her offer from the party. “May I offer 
you a cup of tea?”

Irina didn’t even need to say anything, James was immediately there, arranging 
the cups on the 
small table that was standing in front of the sofa. She offered Sloane a seat, 
then sat down 
herself, choosing the place that allowed the most distance to the man. 

James filled their cups with tea, while Irina started a courteous chat about the 
weather. When 
she noticed though, that Arvin Sloane’s eyes were lying more at her slender neck 
and the line of 
her décolleté that formed out her breasts in the most perfect manner, she soon 
felt 
embarrassed. For a moment, she hated herself for having chosen this dress only 
for the vain 
reason to be beautiful when Jack returned. 

James noticed the uneasiness of his mistress and tried to ease the situation by 
offering cake 
and cookies. 

Irina didn’t dare to look at the man opposite to her, the expression in his eyes 
scaring her. It was 
not only the way he looked at her, but also the strange feeling that he knew 
more about her 
situation than she wanted him too. Well, that was very likely.  She tried to 
calm herself down. 
After all he was Jack’s friend – at least he had been – and therefore, Jack 
might have told him 
the truth about the whole situation. 

The conversation – if the words they exchanged could be called that – finally 
reached the point 
where both kept silent, neither of them saying anything. Irina knew that it was 
her duty to keep a 
guest entertained, but every additional second she spent in the presence of this 
man made her 
feel more insecure and uneasy. 

And so she almost jumped up when suddenly the door opened, and Jack entered the 
room. He 
didn’t seem surprised by Sloane’s visit – most likely James had announced the 
visitor to him 
outside already – and went directly to the sofa. Irina took the last steps 
towards him and smiled, 
her eyes thanking him a thousand times for returning. 

He didn’t even need to see her glance to feel the uneasiness of the situation. 
Actually, he wasn’t 
very much in the mood to meet Arvin Sloane either. Softly he smiled at the woman 
in front of 
him, for a split second stunned at how beautiful she was, before he turned to 
the visitor. 

“Arvin.” His voice, although courteous, showed a certain coldness and distance, 
making clear 
that the man was not at all appreciated in this house. 

“Jack,” Arvin gave him his slippery smile and got up. “I know you do not want to 
see me at the 
moment, and I can totally understand that.”

“Really?” Jack asked ironically, and Irina felt a tension coming up. She pressed 
Jack’s hand, 
silently begging him not to behave inappropriately. Knowing that the situation 
was partly her 
fault, she didn’t want a fight to take place. 

“Yes. I don’t know what came into my mind at the party. I knew you were newly 
wedded, and 
when I beheld the beauty of your wife, I was stunned. She does something to a 
man, do you 
know that?” His eyes met Irina’s again, and he smiled friendly. “However, I am 
terribly sorry. A 
man of my age should know better than to make a move on his best friend’s wife.” 

Jack relaxed a little, obviously willing to listen to Arvin. Surely their 
friendship would not be as it 
had been before, and he would certainly not leave him alone with Irina again, 
but Arvin was 
right. They had been friends for the last twenty years, and therefore manners 
required him to 
give Arvin a second chance. 

“You were drinking tea?” he noted and smiled at his wife. Irina nodded, but 
before she could say 
anything, Arvin jumped in. 

“Yes, we were just talking about the mild climate this time of year. It is still 
way too sunny for a 
November day. So, the farm of Gransom burned down?”

“Yes...”

Irina followed Jack to the sofa. The men started to talk about properties now, 
and soon the 
conversation turned over to the latest political affairs and dangers from the 
North. After having 
patiently listened for a few minutes, Irina excused herself with a smile, 
reasoning that she would 
look for James in order to set a third place.

As soon as she had left the room, the men sat back down, and Arvin’s face became 
serious. 

“To be honest, Jack, that was not the reason why I am here. I didn’t want your 
wife to hear this, 
because, I am afraid, it is going to upset her.” He took a deep breath and had 
Jack’s full 
attention now. 

“What is it?”

“It came to my ear, that one of your men is doing an investigation in the city. 
When I heard that 
he had been tasked by you, I decided to step in and do what I could to help him 
with my 
contacts and clearances. You are searching for a young woman, Katya Derevko, the 
sister of 
your wife, aren’t you?”

“Yes,” Jack simply said. “What do you know about her whereabouts?”

“Nothing so far... but unfortunately the messages I recently received from my 
own men, whom I 
tasked with an investigation, indicate the worst.” He hesitated for a moment, 
and then pulled a 
piece of cloth out of his pocket. “This is the scarf of Lady Katya Derevko, 
isn’t it?”

Jack took the beige material out of the man’s hands and examined it. The words 
‘Property of 
Katya D.’ were embroidered at the edge, but what concerned him the most were the 
deep red 
marks all over the scarf – blood. “Where did you get this?” Jack asked seriously 
and his eyes 
met the ones of Arvin.

“It was pure chance, an investigation that wasn’t actually involved with yours. 
Two days ago, an 
old man came to me and reported that he believed to having witnessed a murder 
the previous 
night. From his window, he had seen a man pushing a woman down the bridge into 
the river, 
but nobody wanted to believe him. I sent out my soldiers to search for proof 
that confirmed what 
the old man said. They found this at the riverside in the shallow water. When 
they brought it to 
me, I didn’t pay much attention to the cloth – then I heard of the investigation 
you were leading. 
The forename and the initial of the last name on the cloth matched. Jack, I am 
afraid that the old 
man was right. The woman who was murdered that night was Katya Derevko.”

Before Jack could express his shock at the revelation, the ear-splitting sound 
of shattering 
porcelain was heard from the door. Both men spun around, finding Irina standing 
in the 
doorframe, paralyzed in shock. Every hope from Jack’s part that she had probably 
not heard the 
last sentence of Sloane’s report were futile. The expression on her face 
betrayed the pain and 
horror she felt inside. 

For a moment, it seemed as if Irina lost balance, before she could steady 
herself at the wood of 
the doorframe. James hurried with two female servants into the room, wanting to 
clean up the 
broken pieces from the ground. Irina went to her knees, her mind still not 
really understanding 
the words she had just heard. 

“I am sorry... it was my fault.” She murmured and started to clean up the mess. 
James tried to 
pull her away. 

“Milady, it’s alright, we will do that.”

“No, I was being careless.” 

She hissed, when one of the pieces cut into her trembling hand deeply and set 
free a small 
stream of blood. She shivered, when the blood of her own hand made her realize 
the truth of 
what she had just witnessed the men saying. Katya was dead. Her elder sister, 
who had always 
protected her, had died trying to free her – and in the end it had all been for 
nothing, because 
she wasn’t even a prisoner anymore. 

Her hurt hand became blurred in front of her eyes and when she looked up, the 
world started to 
spin. Vaguely, she saw Jack running towards her and felt him grab her shoulders. 
Unable to 
stand him or any other person at the moment, she pushed him away and turned 
around. 
Stumbling, she fled the room. Jack wanted to follow her, but the silent plea in 
James’ eyes held 
him back. 

“I will send her maid to take care of her,” he said, before he left the room. 
Jack knew that the old 
man was right. Maybe it was best for her to be alone for now and besides, he was 
having a 
visitor. Slowly he went back to the sofa, staring at the red scarf in his hands.  
The almost 
unbearable feeling that the situation was his fault came up in his mind. Would 
Irina ever be able 
to forgive him that he had sent her sister out as his undercover agent? An 
untrained woman, 
who most likely had no experience in covering her traces or making sure that 
nobody learned 
the truth about her real loyalty. 

The more he thought about it, the more he came to the conclusion that his 
judgement had been 
impaired by the desire he had felt for Irina. To make her stay with him, he had 
been willing to 
sacrifice her sister. 

“Jack, I am sorry... I didn’t see her coming into the room.” Arvin murmured 
causing Jack to look 
up. 

“It’s okay... it was my fault.” Jack murmured. “I knew Irina would return.”

“Jack, why did you search for Lady Katya?” Arvin’s voice showed sympathy, and 
his eyes 
followed Jack who now went to the window, staring out to an uncertain point in 
the distance. 
“Was there a reason for your investigation?”

“There was,” Jack opened up after a deep sigh. Slowly, he turned to Sloane. 
“Arvin, I trust you 
to handle what I am going to tell you absolutely confidentially.”

“Of course.”

“That I met Irina Derevko in the woods for the first time is only partly true. 
In fact, it was on the 
failed mission a month ago that I met her. She was the contact I was supposed to 
meet and 
arrest.”

Arvin’s face showed surprise, but he kept silent and let Jack go on.

“But she was able to escape. I am not going to lie to you, we were attracted to 
each other and 
from one of our flirtations, I knew her forename. For the first time in my life, 
I acted against the 
sake of the kingdom and kept her name to myself. I started to search for her, 
not giving more 
information than necessary to my soldiers, and finally, I was able to find her 
alone. Nobody 
knew up to now that she is the contact from that night. Only my closest servants 
and some 
chosen soldiers know that she is involved with the rebel group. She came here as 
my prisoner, 
and since I had no idea of how much she was involved yet, I thought it better to 
fabricate a 
marriage with her in order to keep her and my own reputation in tact.”

When Jack stopped for a moment, Arvin took a deep breath and got up. “So you 
betrayed the 
queen for that woman?”

Jack look at him. “Not necessarily!” Now he told Arvin about the agreement he 
had with Katya 
Derevko, and that Irina would be a free woman again, as soon as he held a list 
in his hand 
which allowed him to identify the higher bosses of the terrorist ring. He told 
him about how they 
had accidentally gotten married and that the price for the list would be the 
annulment Irina had 
wanted so badly. Arvin listened patiently, shook his head from time to time and 
when Jack was 
finished, he took a deep breath. 

“One thing is still unclear to me... why did you start an investigation on Lady 
Katya’s 
whereabouts all of a sudden when she was working for you.”

“Because I wanted to pull her out.”

“Why?”

Jack turned to the window again and it took some time before he answered. 
“Because I love 
Irina.”

“Jack...” Arvin started and folded his arms. “I am not going to lie to you. I am 
in a difficult 
situation now. I feel true respect for your decision, but the fact remains that 
the woman is a 
criminal – and that you collaborated with her. Have you ever considered the 
possibility that she 
might just be using you in order to get closer to the queen and gather 
information?”

“No.” Jack said and eyed Arvin with a hint of coldness on his face. “Irina loves 
me. She would 
never do anything like that.”

“What makes you so sure that the whole thing wasn’t planned?” Sloane asked with 
concern in 
his voice. “After all, it was the leader of her rebel group through whom you got 
married. And it 
was her who ran away to him in the first place. I know it is hard for you to 
take this into 
consideration now, but you have to at least keep in mind that she might be 
playing you. She 
seduced you in the first place, after she felt that you wanted her. It is not 
hard for a woman to 
manipulate a man, when she is as beautiful as Irina. Remember that she tried to 
seduce me as 
well.”

Jack looked at him, his eyes filled with rage and hate against the man opposite 
him, but also 
with the hint of doubt.

“Impossible.” Jack simply stated after a while. “Irina can not be using me. Her 
sister was killed 
while spying for me. If this was all a plan of the rebels to get near the queen, 
she wouldn’t have 
been killed by them.”

“Jack, we don’t actually know who killed her. It might have just been an angry 
lover – another 
furious man she betrayed and played with.” Arvin remarked and after another 
moment of 
silence, he laid his hand to Jack’s shoulder. “Think about it. I don’t want to 
accuse your loved 
one out of jealousy or envy – although that is most likely what it looks like 
now. I am just 
concerned for you. You are my oldest friend Jack, and all I am asking you is to 
be careful.”
Having said those words, he turned around and went to leave the room. At the 
door he turned 
around once more. “I will let you know when I find out something new."

And then he was gone, leaving Jack alone with the newly-born phantom that was 
slowly 
growing in his mind. Could Arvin be right? Could it be that the whole thing had 
been a game all 
along? That Irina had planned everything just as it happened? No, he refused to 
believe that. 
Irina loved him, and he loved her. All their fights, their furious outbursts 
when they had yelled at 
each other, their passionate lovemaking, all that couldn’t have been faked, 
foreseen in the 
brilliant head of a woman who was used to playing with men…could it?


Part 22 – Before I Fall In Love...

It was so dark that the small group of men could barely see their own hands in 
front of their 
eyes. The night air was cold and the winter announced itself by almost freezing 
breezes from 
the sea. Nobody doubted that soon the first snow would fall. The thin crescent 
of the moon was 
hidden under a thick blanket of dark clouds, and a distant rumbling announced 
that a storm was 
coming up.

Jack urged his men to go faster. “We need to find her. As soon as the storm 
starts, our chances 
are gone. Hurry!” He was driven by fear and hate for himself. 

After Arvin had left in the afternoon, he had spent hours in his study, trying 
to bring order into his 
thoughts. He had spent eternities to find proof for what Arvin had suspected – 
that Irina was 
using him. He had tried to refute Irina’s words of love by the truth of facts – 
facts that didn’t even 
exist. And when finally the young maid Sarah had stormed into his room, it had 
been too late for 
regrets. Totally beside herself, she had confessed to Jack in tears that Irina 
was gone, that her 
cape was missing and nowhere was a sign of her. 
That was the moment he had remembered Irina’s state, the shock she had been in, 
and all his 
doubts and analyzing thoughts had turned into worry. She had run away again, but 
she hadn’t 
done it because she was deceiving him. 
He should have seen it coming, but instead he had preferred to bury himself in 
his study – 
leaving her alone when she most needed him. 

“Milord, we have to turn around,” a higher-ranking officer admonished when the 
first thick 
raindrops hit their faces. “The storm will soon become stronger, and we have to 
be home by 
then.”

“We will not turn around until we find her,” Jack snapped back, knowing that his 
officer was 
right. It was madness to go on if the thunderstorm was raging with all force. 
But he knew that 
Irina was alone out there, that she didn’t have money and that she hadn’t taken 
a horse. 
Therefore she would have no place to hide from the storm, since the next 
farmhouse was miles 
away. 

“Sir,” the officer tried again ten minutes later, when the fire of the torches 
threatened to go out 
due to the rain. “When we lose the torches, we won’t even be able to find the 
way back.”

Jack turned his head at him, knowing that he was right. It would be suicide to 
go on in this 
weather. Yet, he couldn’t turn around. “You are right!” he yelled back at the 
man to drown out 
the rain. “You turn around!”

“Milord...” the man started to disagree, but Jack became furious. 

“You heard my orders! You will turn around! I am going to go on searching! If I 
haven’t returned 
in the morning, send somebody after me.”

“Yes, Sir,” the officer replied, knowing better than to contradict. He himself 
had a wife he 
absolutely adored and if he imagined she was out in the rain, he would have 
acted exactly the 
same. He turned around to the soldiers. “We turn around, men! Back to the 
manor!”

Jack didn’t pay attention to him. He went on, driving his horse as fast as he 
could on the muddy 
ground and in the darkness. Soon his clothes were soaked, and the wind felt like 
needles on his 
skin. 

It was more a chance than knowledge when all of a sudden he had reached the 
coastline. In the 
storm, he had lost his orientation completely, but when he saw the rocks of the 
cliff, he knew 
where he was. It was not far until he reached the larger cave that led to the 
small part of the 
beach he and Irina had been yesterday. It wouldn’t shield him from wind, but at 
least it was dry 
and he would probably be able to make a small fire to warm himself up until the 
rain got weaker. 

He drove the horse another mile and it was more luck that the animal didn’t trip 
or slip out on the 
ground. When he reached the cave, Jack almost jumped off the horse and ran into 
the cave. 
The horse followed him. He calmed the animal down, softly tapping it’s nostrils, 
while he looked 
around in search of wood. Leaving the horse, he crossed the cave until he 
reached the other 
end, collecting some of the smaller branches that had fallen from the trees. 
After examining 
them, he discarded them all. They were already soaked and were useless to start 
a fire. He was 
just about to turn around, when his eyes spotted a dark shadow. Slowly he left 
the cave to go 
closer, ignoring the rain that was striking into his face again.

She sat under the tree – their tree – with her knees hugged to her body tightly. 
She was just 
sitting there, motionless, her eyes fixed at the large horizon and the waves 
that played violently 
against the rocks and on the sand of the beach. The rain didn’t seem to affect 
her, although she 
was all soaked. 

“Irina...” he said when he was next to her, careful not to startle her. At the 
sound of his voice she 
turned her face and stared at him, her eyes showing her disbelief.

“What are you doing here?” she snapped, and Jack laughed bitterly. 

“Shouldn’t I be the one asking that question?” He was tired of yelling against 
the sounds of the 
storm, so he grabbed her arm. “Come inside the cave! You will catch a cold out 
here.”

“Don’t touch me!” she yelled and hit his hand away. “Go away, leave me alone!”

“I won’t.”

“I don’t want to see you ever again!” She jumped up, turned and just left him 
where he was 
standing, approaching the wild waves of the sea.

“Irina!” Jack hurried to follow her and held her. “This is dangerous! The waves 
are 
unpredictable, and if you slip out and are pulled out into the open sea, I won’t 
be able to help 
you!”

“So what?” she snapped back and hugged her body with her arms. She was trembling 
from the 
cold, but didn’t seem to realize it. 

“Irina...”

“You killed my sister!” she interrupted him. “You damned bastard, you sent her 
out! If you hadn’t 
used her, she would still be alive! YOU KILLED MY SISTER!”

Desperately, she started to beat his chest with her fists until he pulled her 
abruptly against his 
broad shoulders, hugging her shivering body with his arms. She was cold, and her 
skin was 
almost icy. 

“I am sorry,” he whispered into her ear. “Irina, I am so sorry. That was not 
supposed to happen. 
I sent a soldier after her to protect her, but your sister wasn’t so fond of the 
idea of being 
followed. She did everything to lose him – and finally succeeded. I am sorry.” 

She clenched the material of his jacket with her hands, not holding back her 
tears anymore. 
Silently they streamed over her cheeks and mixed with the water of the rain. 
Jack held her, ran 
his hand through her hair and tried to soothe her pain. 

“Let’s get out of the rain,” he whispered after a while and this time, Irina 
didn’t refuse. She 
followed Jack, her body and feet stiff from cold that caused her to stumble in 
the sand. Finally 
Jack lifted her into his arms and carried her into the cave. He put her down at 
a wall that was 
shielded from the wind and took a thick blanket out of the saddlebag of his 
horse. Then he sat 
down next to Irina, rubbing her arms to warm her up. Softly he pulled out her 
cape and wrapped 
them both in the blanket then. 

“I am cold,” Irina finally whispered weakly. “I want to go home...”

“We can’t go home in the rain,” Jack replied softly, leaning back so her head 
could rest at his 
shoulder. He pulled her close until he felt her warmth. She snuggled in closer 
to him and when 
he kissed her cheek, he could taste the salt of her tears. 

“Jack...” she whispered and looked up. “I am so cold.”

He kissed her deeply, his hand stroking through her hair. She closed her eyes, 
her exhaustion 
finally taking over. Jack let her fall asleep, softly rubbing her back and arms 
until he felt her stop 
trembling. Tenderly he kissed her forehead, wrapping the blanket close around 
their bodies. 

One hour later the storm turned into soft drizzling. Jack decided that they 
should move before 
the rain became stronger again, so he lifted Irina up. She moaned in a slight 
disapproval of the 
loss of the comfortable warmth. Jack sat her down on the horse and got up behind 
her, making 
sure that he could hold her safely between his arms. He wrapped the blanket 
around her body 
and then set the horse to motion. 

“Wait... my cape...” Irina whispered weakly, but Jack didn’t stop. 

“I will buy you a new one, honey.” He calmed her down and her head dropped 
against his 
shoulder. She fell into silence again, and Jack didn’t doubt that she had fallen 
back to sleep. 
With one arm wrapped safely around her waist, he drove the horse faster. It was 
easier for him 
to see through the drizzling now, and so they beheld the lights of the manor in 
the distance an 
half hour later. 

He didn’t even have to yell for his soldiers to open the gate – the men had 
already been 
watching out for him. In the court, Jack jumped off his horse, catching Irina up 
in his arms and 
carrying her up the stairwell to the door. Inside, he started to give orders to 
the servants. 

“James, wake the kitchen helpers and the female servants, Sarah, take care of a 
hot bath! I 
want a bathtub filled with hot water in twenty minutes!”

“Sir, the tub is not in the lady’s room. It’s...” Sarah started, but Jack cut 
her off.

“Then fill the wooden tub in the kitchen!” he bellowed harshly and the girl ran 
away. Jack 
brought Irina directly into the kitchen, ordering the servants around. Five 
minutes later he had 
two cups of hot tea, one of which he gently forced Irina to drink. 
She was more sleeping than she was awake when Jack started to pull off her 
soaked clothes. 
Sarah sent all male servants out of the kitchen and took over the task of 
organizing the filling of 
the tub. Nineteen minutes later, the big, old wooden tub was filled with hot 
water. 

Softly, Jack slapped Irina’s cheeks, then lifted her up into his arms and 
finally let her down in the 
hot water. Within a split second she was wide-awake, screaming out at the 
temperature, which 
seemed like boiling water on her icy skin. She would have jumped out of the tub 
if Jack hadn’t 
held her back. 

“Hot...” she yelled so aggressively that the present maids held their breath, 
but Jack didn’t care 
for her outburst. 

“You will stay in the water,” he simply countered in a tone that didn’t allow 
any contradiction, and 
even Irina was too tired to fight him. And after the first shock at the hot 
water had passed, it 
became more pleasant every second. After ten minutes, Jack helped her to get out 
of the tub. 
Only then Irina realized that she was still wearing her underwear – a courtesy 
Jack had shown 
her to prevent her from feeling embarrassed or ashamed in front of the servants. 
“I am going to wait outside.” Having said the words, Jack left the room, knowing 
that it was 
inappropriate to stay in the room while the maids undressed Irina – even for him 
as her 
husband. 

Irina let Sarah and the other servants undress her, and then rub her skin until 
she felt all warm 
again. Subconsciously, Irina noted that Sarah was chatting with her, but she 
didn’t understand 
the words the girl said. Her mind felt blurred, and she was unable to understand 
details. 

She pulled on the nightgown Sarah handed her and then went slowly to the door 
murmuring, “I 
am going to bed”. Outside the room, Jack was already waiting for her. In the 
meanwhile, he had 
changed as well and now looked at his wife worried. 

“Are you feeling better?”

“Yes...” Irina murmured. “I am just... tired and a little dizzy...” Jack felt 
her forehead, ignoring 
Irina’s assurances that it was nothing and that she would feel better when she 
was in her bed. 
Then he lifted her up, ignoring her resistance – although her attempts to fight 
him could barely 
be called resistance. He carried her through the dark corridor and up the stairs 
that led to their 
private rooms. But instead of her room, he carried her into his own room, laying 
her down on his 
big, soft bed. She was too tired to care – actually he doubted that she realized 
the difference at 
all. He pulled the sheets over her body and let his finger run over her cheek. 

“Stubborn woman,” he whispered tenderly. And replaced his finger with his lips. 

“Jack,” Irina opened her eyes and looked at him. “I’m sorry I broke my promise.”

“What promise?” Jack asked softly.

“I ran away again...” she murmured sleepily, and Jack smiled. 

“I have to apologize for not taking better care of you.” He lay down next to her 
and pulled her 
body against his under the blankets. “You could have died out there... let’s 
just hope you don’t 
catch a cold – or an illness in your chest.”

“For a moment, I wished I would become sick and die.” She whispered and turned 
her face to 
him. “I thought I hated you... but...” She touched his cheeks and placed a soft 
kiss on his lips. 
“Now I am sorry. I know that Katya’s death is not your fault, and what I said on 
the beach...”

“Shhh... it’s okay, you don’t have to explain.” Jack murmured.

“Jack, I love you.” Irina said and closed her eyes. “And I need you... please 
hold me.”

He fulfilled her wish, holding her body close to his until they were both 
sleeping soundly. 


<O> <O> <O> <O> <O>


Irina slept the next day through. She was suffering from a strong headache and 
after Jack had 
sent for a doctor, who assured him that she would be alright again if she 
rested, he didn’t allow 
her to get up. The day in bed gave her enough time to come to terms with Katya’s 
death and 
how she should go on. She remained in Jack’s bed – mainly because he had 
insisted on it, but 
also because the thought of having to cross the cold corridor was not 
pleasurable at all. 

At the second day, Irina felt much better. When she awoke, the sun was already 
standing 
higher, which told her that it was at least ten o’clock. She stretched and 
yawned, noticing that 
her headache was gone and the bright light didn’t hurt her eyes anymore. 

Without ringing for her maid, she got up and pulled on Jack’s robe. She had only 
been wearing 
a thin, short nightgown that barely covered her upper thighs and the air still 
felt chilly to her skin. 
Her memory of the last two days was only blurred, but she remembered the most 
important 
parts. In retrospect, she didn’t know why she had run away. She had just wanted 
to leave, since 
all of a sudden she had felt unable to stand the situation. 

Carefully she pressed the door handle to Jack’s study and opened the door a 
little. She saw 
Jack sitting at his desk, and when she was sure he was alone, she entered the 
room. 

“Good morning,” she said friendly and smiled. Jack’s face lightened up. 

“Good morning. Are you feeling better?”

“Wonderful, thank you.” She approached the desk slowly while looking around at 
the pictures 
that were hanging on the wall.

“It’s good that you are here.” Jack said. “I have to talk to you about something 
anyway.” His 
voice was serious, and Irina met his eyes. He was looking at her with an 
unreadable expression 
on his face. Immediately her bad conscience returned. 

“Jack, I know what you want to say, but I was confused... I assure you, I didn’t 
mean to break 
my promise by running away.”

“Actually that was not what I was going to bring up.”

“Oh...” Irina murmured and noted mentally that her hysteric excuse had been 
absolutely 
unnecessary.

“No, I have written a letter for your sister, Elena, and your maid Maggie, and I 
want you to read 
it. It is five pages long and explains everything that happened so far – 
including the tragic death 
of your sister, Katya.” Jack said softly. “I’m sure you would not want me to 
inform your family 
without consulting you beforehand.”

“Thank you...” Irina murmured and gave him a weak smile. “I appreciate that. I 
will read it later, 
when I am alone.”

Jack nodded in agreement and smiled when Irina strolled around his desk. When 
she was 
standing in front of him, he laid his hands to her waist. Irina buried her hands 
in his hair and 
played with his gray waves. 

“I missed you...” she murmured, and he looked up. 

“I was always in my study, close to you...” was his slightly confused reply. 
Irina laughed softly. 

“That was not what I was referring to,” she pointed out and without giving him 
time to fully 
understand her words, she sat down on the desk surface in front of him. Jack 
looked at her in 
appreciation and then lifted from his chair, his eyes not leaving her elegant 
form as he took her 
invitation. Hungrily he devoured her mouth in a kiss, before he pulled back. 

“We shouldn’t,” he murmured, “you’re still too weak.”

“I assure you, I am absolutely fit.” She replied and pulled him back against 
her, legs at either 
side of his body. 

“Irina...” Jack moaned, feeling that he wouldn’t be able to resist her if she 
went on with her 
clever seduction. Her lips touched his chin, and she started nibbling on his 
skin…her hands 
running over his cheek to be able to take in all of the sensual atmosphere. All 
of a sudden, he 
loosened from her and went to the door. 

“Jack!” Irina exclaimed, almost insulted and started a tirade of threats against 
him. “Two days 
ago, I ran away for reasons even I don’t understand, but if you don’t come back 
here at once, I 
swear to you, today it will be for a good reason!”

Jack grinned amused and turned the key in the lock. “Will it?” he asked 
playfully menacingly. 

“Yes... and this time you won’t find me.”

“I will always find you.” He warned, his eyes gleaming in a challenge. “And be 
sure that you 
would regret running away after I found you.”

“Really?” Irina murmured close to his lips when he urged her back to fully sit 
on his desk. 
“Empty threats, Lord Bristow? I am not really fond of those.”

“No, not empty...” He smiled. “But I am sure you would be really fond of the 
consequences.”

“Are you trying to talk me into running away?” she mused, while her fingers 
slowly opened the 
buttons of his jacket one by one. “So, why don’t you just imagine that I tried 
to run away, and 
show me your consequences now?"

“Here?” Jack asked, scanning her eyes for approval.

“Yes, here and now...” she mumbled, wrapping her legs around his body to pull 
him closer with 
her ankles. “You already locked the door, so why the question?”

“I was more thinking of the couch... for the sake of your comfort.”

“I am quite comfortable here – and besides it’s exciting. I like it exciting.” 
She continued her 
flirtations, and Jack chuckled. 

“Then your wish is my command.” With a quick movement of his arm, he had pushed 
the books 
and papers that were covering the surface of the desk, aside. With a loud bang, 
some of the 
books dropped to the floor, but Jack didn’t even waste a look. He pulled Irina 
abruptly against 
him so she lost balance and fell back with a stifled laugh. When she was lying 
flatly on the 
surface, Jack untied the knot of the ribbon that held her bathrobe. Then he 
pushed the material 
open, gasping at the sight of what she was wearing underneath. 

It didn’t take him much of an effort to push the nightgown up and reveal the 
silky skin of her 
belly and breasts. She lifted her arms and tugged him towards her at his sleeve. 
Their lips 
connected in a short, open-mouth kiss, before Jack evaded her touch. He bent 
over her body 
and buried his head at her neck, where he started to suck her skin until he was 
satisfied by her 
soft moan. His hands fondled at her breasts, and when he felt her nipples 
harden, he replaced 
one hand with his mouth. Enjoying her passionate reactions to his touch, he 
continued his 
caresses, feeling his erection grow. 

It amazed him what kind of effect she had on him. Never had he been as 
uncontrolled and easy 
as he was when he was with her. Even the way she moved was enough to ignite 
fantasies 
inside him, that were not at all appropriate for a gentleman to have about a 
lady. The perfect 
preconditions to manipulate him. Involuntarily, that thought had occurred to his 
mind. He froze 
for a moment and lifted his head, looking at the exotic beauty under him. 
It was impossible for him to believe that Irina might have planned to seduce 
him, but maybe 
Arvin Sloane was right. He had to consider it as a possibility. He had seen 
women working for 
unscrupulous men, manipulating the men around them so brilliantly that 
revelation of them 
being enemies was like a shock.

“Jack...” Irina whispered and looked up at him, her eyes clouded and her skin 
flushed, “what is 
wrong?” She sounded truly worried, and he forced a smile. 

“It’s nothing. You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.”

“And you are the most handsome man I know.” She murmured back.

“Am I?” he murmured thoughtfully. “Have you said that to your affairs as well?” 
The question was asked thoughtlessly and almost indifferently, but Irina lifted 
onto her elbows. 

“What?” she asked insecure, confused by the sudden change in Jack’s behavior. 
“Jack what are 
you talking about? I told you, that my affairs were not even close to what we 
share. What I am 
feeling for you is... different. You drive me crazy.” Her hands were lying 
softly on his cheeks and 
her eyes reflected a deep fear. He felt a stitch in his heart and placed his 
hands on hers. 

“But...” Irina continued weakly, “if you want to think our situation over again, 
I won’t be angry. 
Even if you decide that we...that our relationship is only to be considered as 
an affair… won’t 
reproach you, Jack.” Her voice sounded like breaking, and Jack pressed his lips 
to hers 
hungrily. 

“What are you thinking about?” he whispered breathlessly between two kisses. “I 
want you Irina. 
Only you... I love you. I just want to know if... there is anything left from 
your past that might be 
standing between us?”

Their eyes locked for a moment, and Irina returned his stare, not knowing what 
he was referring 
to. 

“No Jack! Except for the problems you already know, there is nothing. I am all 
yours...” And 
although her seductive pose was not what she was actually referring to, she laid 
back and 
smiled at him, trying to put his thoughts to another track. Jack chuckled and 
moved down her 
body. Over her abdomen, he stopped and kissed her deeply, burying his face in 
her skin. Irina 
closed her eyes at the sensual gesture and ran her hands through his hair. 
When his lips moved further down and his tongue finally flicked over her clit, 
she arched her 
hips against him. 

“Jack, don’t! Just... take me.” She pleaded. “No teasing today...”

Chuckling, he moved back up until his lips were hovering above hers. 
“Impatient, are we?” His lips brushed hers in a butterfly kiss while he opened 
his pants. 

Her soft laughter tickled against his mouth, and she bit his lower lip 
combatively. “I am not the 
only one...” she teased, when his erection grazed her thigh. She ran her legs up 
and down his 
body and finally pulled him closer. The desperation to feel him inside her was 
standing in her 
eyes and Jack complied, entering her in one deep thrust. The soft cry that 
escaped her lips 
made him freeze. Her fingers dug into the fabric on his shoulders in the perfect 
mixture of pain 
and pleasure that rushed through her veins. Jack moaned, forcing himself to 
still until she had 
adjusted to his size. An endless moment passed which he spent by licking and 
nibbling at her 
earlobe to soothe her momentary discomfort. 

She licked his chin seductively and pulled him closer. He smiled when she 
reached his lips with 
her kisses, and started to move inside her slowly. She adapted to his pace and 
soon they 
rocked in a perfect rhythm. 

“You feel so good,” Irina uttered.

“And you are so perfect,” Jack whispered against her hair, increasing his pace. 
Irina whimpered, 
grabbing the edge of the desk with her hand while she bent her body to intensify 
their joining. 
She felt Jack’s lips at her throat and clenched her hand into the material of 
his shirt. Unable to 
control her passion any longer, she accidentally knocked a vase off the desk. It 
shattered with a 
loud burst on the ground, but neither of them cared. The effect of their 
uncontrolled lovemaking 
increased their desire, and both got carried away by the feeling of each other, 
the closeness 
and heat.

Five minutes later, Jack was leaning on his elbows above the woman he loved, 
looking around 
in disbelief. They had literally turned the room into a space of chaos in less 
than twenty minutes. 
When Irina followed his eyes, she smiled amused. Quickly, she tried to prevent 
another book 
from falling, but only grazed it with her hand and it dropped, causing her to 
giggle softly. She 
turned her head to look up at Jack, stroking a strand of hair away from his 
forehead.

“Thank you...” she whispered and kissed him.

“I have to thank you.” He stated seriously. “I never enjoyed sitting at this 
desk. From now on I 
definitely will.”

She joined in his amused laughter and hugged him closely. Eventually he stood up 
and helped 
her to get off his desk. When she was standing on the ground, she rearranged her 
clothes and 
closed the robe in the front, while Jack put his own clothes back to order. Then 
they started to 
pick up the books and papers from the floor, continuing to tease each other with 
flirtatious 
comments. When the room was looking normal again – except for the broken vase on 
the 
ground – Jack rang for James. 

“I get the feeling that we can not be in the same room together,” Irina murmured 
playfully, 
causing Jack to chuckle in amusement. 

“Me too.” He smiled at Irina and sat back in his chair. “But I will certainly 
like this room a lot 
more than before from now on.”

“Mmm... you can give me a list with all rooms you don’t like in this house and 
then we can...”

“Don’t you dare finish that sentence,” Jack warned amused, and Irina hurried to 
leave the room 
in cheerful laughter. Jack followed her with his eyes, smiling. When she was 
gone, his face 
became serious again, and he opened one of the drawers of his desk. His forehead 
was 
furrowed while he looked at the words that were written with dark ink on the 
paper – his 
handwriting. It was a letter to the queen in which he explained Irina’s identity 
and their marriage. 
He knew that he had promised Irina not to inform the queen, but things had 
changed since then, 
and before he went on working on a future with her, he needed to be sure that 
Irina was being 
honest with him. He needed somebody to confirm that what she had told him was 
the truth, and 
the only person who could do so, was the queen. 
His letter included numerous questions about what had happened twenty-five years 
ago, but 
also a detailed description of the background Irina was coming from, combined 
with the 
assurance that she had given him valuable information about the terrorists. At 
the end he asked 
for an audience in order to solve the misunderstandings and work out a solution 
for Irina and her 
sister Elena.

After a long time, he folded the letter and sealed it with wax and his signet. 
When James 
knocked at the door, he ordered him to give the letter to a soldier and send a 
maid to clean up 
the broken pieces of the vase. 

It was the hardest decision he had ever had to make, and he just hoped that 
Irina would forgive 
him and understand his reasons if she found out.


Part 23 – Family Crisis

Days passed by…days, which Jack and Irina spent together, living the illusion of 
a happily 
married couple. Although both were aware of the problems they soon had to face 
and talk 
about, they decided to ignore it for the time being. Every additional day they 
spent together, 
both of them fell more for the other. The romance between them was too powerful 
to allow them 
to give in to the shadows that reality threw upon them. 

Days soon turned into weeks, during which neither Jack nor Irina mentioned 
anything 
concerning the royal court or how their future should look. Although Jack had 
sent his most 
trusted soldier to the queen to deliver his letter, he had not received an 
answer, and therefore 
did not know the queen’s opinion. If she was outraged or planned to pursue his 
behavior in front 
of a court, she had not yet given any sign of her disapproval. 

Neither had Irina’s family. Her sister Elena and Maggie had not replied to the 
letter, which had 
been signed by both of them, Jack as well as Irina.  They had given no sign that 
they accepted 
the invitation to visit Bristow manor. Jack knew the knowledge that her sister 
might never forgive 
her for giving her hand to an enemy was lying heavily on Irina’s heart, but she 
didn’t show it to 
anybody. She had proven to be a perfect mistress of his household, organizing 
the daily tasks 
with unsurpassed logic. Although she treated the servants always kindly, never 
raising her 
voice, the employees respected her as their mistress, and if she ordered them to 
do something, 
it was done as quickly and as well as possible. 

Mrs. Tribbiani was, of course, not so fond of accepting a woman which she didn’t 
feel the 
slightest respect for as her new mistress. But she also knew that if she tried 
to harm Irina or 
disregarded her wishes, Lord Bristow would fire her. He had made his position 
rather clear, and 
she knew better than to tempt his rage. It was wiser to make him think that she 
had accepted 
his so-called wife. So she followed the schedule Irina gave her every day, 
waiting patiently, for 
she was sure that the woman would not be in the manor for a long time. She would 
take care of 
that...

Almost three weeks had passed, until one morning they were awakened early. The 
dawn had 
only just begun, and the room was bathed in the dim light of the rising morning. 
It was barely 
enough to see all the details in the room. Irina only woke up by the coldness 
that suddenly hit 
her. 

Her eyelids fluttered open while she reached for Jack’s body next to her, 
longing for his warmth. 
When she didn’t find him, she lifted up, shivering at a cold breeze that brushed 
over her skin. 
The air was cold, announcing the coming winter. December was only a week away. 
She found 
Jack standing half-naked at the open window, leaning outside looking down into 
the court where 
James was busy. Irina recognized his voice. 

“Jack?” she murmured sleepily. “What is going on?”

“A carriage. It just arrived.” He replied, and Irina fell back into the 
cushions. 

“Come back here...” she murmured, when suddenly, down in the court, James’ calm 
voice was 
outdone by another, female voice. Within an instant, Irina was sitting upright 
in bed. “ELENA!” 

Her exclamation made Jack turn and close the window. He hurried to pull on a 
shirt. Irina 
crawled out of the bed, not caring for dressing properly. So she just tied her 
bathrobe in the front 
and put her hair to order in front of the mirror. After she had pulled on her 
house shoes, she 
hurried out of the room, closely followed by Jack. 

In the meantime, James had permitted the unexpected visitors entrance. When 
Irina reached 
the entrance hall, Elena was already looking around, a large hat case in her 
hand. 

“Elena...” Irina exclaimed and almost ran to her sister to hug her closely. “I 
missed you so 
much...” 

“I missed you too,” Elena whispered, her voice almost breaking.

She looked from her sister to the old maid. “Maggie...” When she hugged her 
maid, Elena finally 
discovered Jack, who had stayed at the staircase for another minute to give his 
wife the chance 
to exchange a few private words with her family. 

“Look, there he is!” she said bitterly, with a certain sharpness in her voice. 
Maggie loosened 
from Irina, giving the youngest sister a warning look.

“Miss Elena, we talked about that.”

“Surprise, isn’t it? I’m sure you would have rather wanted us to not follow your 
invitation.” The 
sister went on, ignoring Maggie’s remark, and handed her cape to James while she 
approached 
Jack slowly. 

“Elly!” Irina tried to calm her down. “I know you are angry, but...”

“Oh yes, I am! I am outraged that this English bastard thinks he can blackmail 
my sister into a 
marriage right after he killed my other sister.”

“Elena Derevko, you will shut your mouth at once!” Maggie exclaimed, and for the 
first time Irina 
could hear real fury in the voice of her maid. “Milord, I have to apologize for 
her behavior. She 
is...”

“... obviously exhausted from the long journey.” Jack finished her sentence 
diplomatically with a 
smile. “It must have been a torture to come all the way during the night, 
especially since it’s 
already quite cold. James, would you have the servants prepare a small breakfast 
and hot tea 
for the ladies, please?” 

Maggie exhaled in relief, and Irina pressed her hand, smiling at Jack 
thankfully. They had talked 
about this situation so many times, both aware that her sister Elena would most 
likely not just 
accept their marriage. Jack had assured her that he understood and that he would 
treat Elena 
Derevko with the greatest respect and consideration for their difficult 
situation. 

“Come, I will show you to our living room, where you can rest a moment, while I 
have the maids 
prepare your rooms,” Irina offered, going to the door to the living room.

Elena looked at Maggie who followed Irina, not without passing her another 
warning glance. 

“This is not over yet,” Elena hissed at Jack, then turned and followed the 
women. 

“I didn’t expect it to be over.” Jack replied and turned to order James to carry 
the luggage out of 
the carriage as soon as the rooms were prepared.

In the large living room, Irina rang for a servant while Elena and Maggie took a 
seat on the large 
sofa, scanning the room in honest admiration. When a young servant appeared, 
obviously still a 
little sleepy due to the early hour, Irina ordered her to prepare two rooms for 
their guests as 
quickly as possible. She gave detailed orders, then when the maid had left, she 
turned to her 
family. 

Maggie smiled at her, clapping her hands in happiness when Irina approached the 
table. 

“My dear, you look so wonderful, Irina.” Elena scoffed ironically at this 
comment of Maggie’s, but 
the maid ignored it. “I knew that you two were meant for each other. I could see 
it in your eyes, 
and I saw it in his.”

“Oh please...” Elena interrupted her. “Maggie, Irina was forced into this 
marriage. Didn’t you 
listen to what Katya reported to us after she had met Irina with that bastard? 
He blackmailed 
them... he forced Irina to stay with him, and Katya clearly told us how much 
Irina hated Jack 
Bristow.”

Irina sighed and sat down on the sofa. “It’s true... back then I hated him – or 
at least I thought I 
did. But that has changed. I love him, Elena. I truly love him, and I have never 
been as happy as 
I am right now.” 

“Irina, don’t be a fool. That man is no different from the other English 
bastards. He doesn’t have 
honor, and he doesn’t have morals…a man like the ones who raided our house. Do 
you think he 
would act differently if in the same situation? How could you of all people fall 
for someone like 
him?”

Irina jumped up, anger standing in her eyes. Maggie rose as well and held Irina 
back. “Don’t 
listen to her. She is tired and aggressive. We had a horrible trip.” 

Irina sat back on the sofa, only half listening to the detailed report Maggie 
now started, telling 
their adventures on every little station of the journey. Her sister looked at 
her, and she returned 
her look, understanding the reasons her sister had. The questions Elena had 
brought up were 
questions she had already asked herself, never knowing an answer for sure. 

Of course, Jack had done everything to help her, but that was only because he 
had fallen for 
her. How would he have reacted if she had just been a random woman. Wouldn’t she 
be sitting 
in prison then by now? She always answered to her own questions that Jack was 
different, that 
he would never act inhumanely against an innocent person. Yet, a little doubt 
always remained 
in her heart.

When James served the tea and a small breakfast a few moments later, he reported 
that the 
rooms of the ladies were now prepared. 

Irina smiled again at her guests. “I am so glad to see you two. How long are you 
going to stay 
here with me?”

“As long as...” Maggie started, but Elena didn’t let her finish.

“In order to prevent misunderstandings, this is not a leisure visit. We are here 
for a purpose. We 
are going to take you back home.”

“Well, actually we are here to make sure that you are happy, and if that’s not 
the case, we plan 
take you home.” Maggie corrected, and Elena looked at her enraged.  

“Maggie, the fact that Irina isn’t happy is out of the question.”

“Well, to me she looks really happy...”

“Who knows what that English scoundrel has threatened her with. Maybe he drugged 
her. I’ve 
heard of drugs from the orient which can make a woman weak-willed.”

“Elena, I can hear you, I’m sitting opposite you,” Irina pointed out 
aggressively, as Elena spoke 
as if she weren’t present in the room. The woman didn’t react. 

“Whatever he has done, I am sure he plans something, and I am not going to let 
him use our 
family. It is his fault that I lost one sister, I am not going lose my other 
sister to him.”

The door shut with a loud sound and all turned their heads to Jack, who had 
entered the room 
and was obviously following the conversation with great interest.

“And what, my dear Lady Derevko, am I planning?” he asked without hiding his 
amusement. 

“I don’t know... maybe you want to infiltrate our group, maybe you just want a 
cheap whore...”

“LADY ELENA...” Maggie gasped for air, but the youngest sister didn’t stop her 
tirade. 

“... or maybe you just want to gain Irina’s trust for some reason to finally 
play her out. Why don’t 
YOU answer that question? Why would a British member of the royal court marry a 
rebel 
woman, a criminal?” 

Jack approached the sofa, and his hand ran slightly and unnoticed through 
Irina’s hair when he 
passed her by. Then he sat down next to her, taking her hand into his. Irina 
smiled faintly at him. 

“That question is quite simple to answer.” Jack replied and smiled back warmly 
at his wife. 
“Because I love her. That might be hard to believe for you, Milady, but I fell 
in love with your 
sister.” He kissed Irina’s hand, then turned to Elena. “I understand that this 
is a difficult situation, 
given our background and the circumstances in which we met, but it is the 
truth.”

“Tell that to somebody who believes you...” Elena murmured and looked at Irina. 
“I am going to 
watch you, and if I have just the slightest doubt about your honesty concerning 
your feelings for 
my sister, I will take a very painful revenge, is that clear?”

“Of course,” Jack nodded, taking all his control to sound serious and calm. 
Maggie saved the 
moment by starting to chat leisurely, asking Irina about the land and the 
household, giving 
compliments to Jack about the furnishing and the beauty of his country. When 
they had finished 
breakfast, Maggie and Elena retired to rest and sleep for a few hours. 

Irina watched them leave the room and follow James who showed them around. Then 
she 
turned to her husband and leaned against Jacks shoulder. 

“I am sorry for what she said... she’s just worried...” 

“I know.” Jack replied, stroking her cheek. “I have to admit though, that I 
don’t really feel 
comfortable making one of your family my enemy. I don’t doubt that she’s capable 
of doing just 
what she said.” 

Irina laughed and kissed him softly. “We are not as bad as we may seem at the 
first impression. 
Neither of us. Elena may seem rather rude and unmannered, but she’s really a 
kind and warm-
hearted woman, just as Katya was.” A shadow clouded her eyes. “Elena just 
doesn’t show her 
pain. She has lost two sisters at once...”

“She didn’t lose you...” Jack argued, but Irina laid her finger to his lips.

“Of course she didn’t, but she feels that way. Now that Katya is dead, I am the 
only one that is 
still left. Between the three of us, Katya, her and me, there has never been a 
secret. We’ve told 
each other everything. I think she is a little jealous – which will soon fade 
away if she gets to 
know you better and sees what a charming and gracious husband you are. Give her 
a few days. 
She has to get used to the situation... Please.” 

“I will,” Jack assured, kissing Irina’s fingers while he looked deeply into her 
eyes. “Now... do you 
want to join me? I will retire to bed for another one or two hours.”

“I will be glad to do so,” Irina laughed, and Jack held his hand out to her 
gallantly, then they left 
the room, their fingers tenderly entwined.  

<O> <O> <O> <O> 

Two days went by, and soon Maggie felt completely home. She had taken the maid 
Sarah 
under her protection, teaching her all the things a maid had to know. She showed 
her tricks in 
making beds and cleaning rooms that saved time. Impressed by how clever the girl 
was, Maggie 
soon had the highest opinion of her and defeated her against the harsh attacks 
of Mrs. Tribbiani 
or the older maids. 

Sarah liked the elderly woman. She never yelled at her, but showed her patiently 
how to do 
things, and if she didn’t make it right the first time, she showed her a second 
and a third time, 
until she understood. 

Elena, on the other hand, was not so satisfied with the situation. She examined 
the house as if it 
were a crime scene, investigating every room. Whenever she met Jack, she turned 
around and 
went away, even when he talked to her – or tried to do so – she preferred to 
just leave him 
standing and go. Despite her rude and absolutely insulting behavior, Jack 
behaved friendly and 
gracious towards her, since he had promised it to Irina. 

One afternoon, Irina witnessed by chance one of those scenes in the garden, 
where Elena was 
sitting on a blanket in the grass, reading a book. When Jack passed by, he 
greeted her friendly, 
but Elena simply ignored him as if he were not there.

Enraged, Irina left the room she had been in and hurried out into the garden. 
Jack had gone 
away, and Irina put her hands to her hips, staring down at her little sister – a 
very unladylike 
gesture.

“Elena Marina Derevko, why are you doing this?” she burst out, and Elena looked 
up in 
confusion.

“What?” she asked innocently, as if she weren’t aware of any kind of guilt.

“You are insulting my husband on purpose, you don’t even give him a chance! Why 
are you 
doing that?”

“Because...” she started emphatically and slammed her book shut. “...he is our 
enemy, Irina. 
Even if you forgot that! I don’t recognize you! What is the matter with you?”

“With me??? The question would rather be, what is the matter with you! You don’t 
even know 
him!” Irina yelled back infuriated, not caring that their discussion could be 
heard in the whole 
garden.

“And I am glad not to! Unlike other people, I don’t collaborate with my enemy.” 
Elena said coldly 
and turned her eyes back down on her book. Irina fell to her knees and took it 
out of her hand 
forcefully. Elena turned to look at her, fury sparkling in her eyes. “If you had 
acted more 
reasonable and done what our father has taught us, Katya would still be alive!”

It felt like a knife being pushed into her heart. Irina stared at her sister, 
whose eyes were filled 
with rage, hatred and pain. “Elena, you can’t really mean that!” she whispered, 
feeling her eyes 
burning with tears for deep inside she knew, that there was an awful truth in 
Elena’s words.

“Ask yourself, Irina, what would father do if he saw you here, giving yourself 
to one of the 
bastards who raped and killed our mother. What would mother say? I can’t 
understand you.”

A tear fell silently down Irina’s cheek, and Elena’s eyes also started to burn. 
“We couldn’t go on 
like that forever, Elly. We can’t spend our life hating people and seeking 
revenge -  a goal for 
which we collaborate with even more dangerous criminals. Jack offered to start 
an investigation 
about the raid on our house twenty-five years ago, since he is convinced that it 
was not 
sanctioned by the queen. I didn’t want him to do so in the first place, but the 
more I think about 
it, I have to admit that it is a possibility. Don’t you see what the years of 
hatred have made out of 
us? Katya is dead, and the two of us start to turn against each other. That is 
not just my fault, 
Elly. And now for the first time, I feel really happy and safe, and you want to 
take that away from 
me.” Her voice broke and when she looked up, she found tears running down 
Elena’s cheeks as 
well.  Almost shyly, Elena touched her sister’s hand, then suddenly hugged her 
tightly. 

“Oh, Rina, I’m so sorry. I’m sorry... I don’t know what came over me to say 
those mean things.” 
She cried. “Please forgive me. You’re all I have left now, and I don’t want to 
lose you as well.”

“You won’t lose me.” Irina whispered. “How could you think that you would lose 
me? No matter 
how much I love Jack, you are my little sister and it will always stay that way. 
We just... we have 
to find a way for this to work. I don’t want the two people I love the most to 
constantly fight each 
other.”

“Do you really love him?” Elena asked, wiping away her tears with the back of 
her hand while 
she scanned Irina’s face. Irina simply nodded.

“Yes, I love him. And if you give yourself the chance to get to know him, you 
will find that he is 
honest and an honorable man. He does everything for me, and he wants to help our 
family, if 
you just let him.” Irina smiled and touched her sister’s hair softly. 

“Fine.” Elena murmured, pouting slightly. “But don’t expect me to become one of 
those weak-
willed, always friendly creatures from court. I will argue with him if I don’t 
like what he says.”

Irina laughed and hugged Elena. “He wouldn’t expect differently from a member of 
our family.” 
Then she handed the book back to her sister and got up. “Why don’t you join us 
for tea inside?”

“I have to wash my face first....” Elena smiled, and Irina returned her warm 
expression. 

“Fine... we’ll be waiting for you.” With those words, she left to go back 
inside. Elena looked after 
her, then stared at the book in her hands. She hated the thought of having to be 
nice to Jack 
Bristow, but what wouldn’t she do for her sister?

Although she herself couldn’t understand why Irina had fallen in love with that 
man – except for 
his looks, she expected him to be rude and unmannered – but if he was the man 
Irina had 
chosen, she would give him a chance. 

“But only one chance,” she murmured to herself and finally lifted from the grass 
with a deep 
sigh. 

And she fulfilled her promise. She attended tea, just as she had told Irina. 
Maggie was 
astounded when Elena entered the room with a smile, wearing a lovely dress, and 
appearing 
like a young lady. Jack stared at her as if she were a ghost, then at his wife, 
who simply smiled. 

“Miss Elena,” he then said courteously and got up, as it was custom if a lady 
came to the table. 
He waited until the woman sat down, then he sat back himself. The first few 
minutes passed in a 
silence that was only interrupted by James serving tea and cake. 
After a moment, Elena cleared her throat. 

“You have a really lovely garden, Lord Bristow.” She complimented, and Jack 
smiled, fighting to 
hide his surprise. He wondered whether Lady Elena might be drugged – another 
reason for her 
sudden friendliness didn’t come to his mind. “I especially appreciate the beauty 
of your roses. 
How many gardeners do you need to take care of them?”

“Only two...” Jack replied. “My chief gardener Steward and his son. If you want, 
you can talk to 
them if you’re interested in gardening.”

“Oh, that would be great.” Elena replied. 

Again silence.

“Has Irina already shown you around in the library? I have a lot of books about 
flowers and 
gardening there as well.” Jack mentioned and took a sip of his tea. “Feel free 
to borrow them if 
they interest you.”

“Thank you...”

Soon the conversation became more leisurely and the initial surprise and 
uneasiness 
disappeared. 

Two hours later, Elena had to admit to herself that Jack Bristow was not that 
bad, but of course 
she would have never admitted that out loud. Although her suspicion was not 
fully conquered, 
she decided to at least respect Jack as Irina’s husband ...if he proved 
trustworthy.


<O> <O> <O> <O>

It was in the same week that Jack received the letter from the queen he had so 
long been 
waiting for. A soldier of the royal infantry delivered it personally and to 
Jack, who knew about 
the customs, that was not a good sign. 

He waited until Irina and Elena had left the house for their picnic at the 
coast, accompanied by 
James and Maggie who seemed to get along perfectly. In Maggie, the old butler 
had found a 
companion in his fight against Mrs. Tribbiani and her authority. 

The way Maggie simply ignored the mistresses’ orders had deeply impressed James 
and during 
the five days that Maggie and Elena resided in his manor, his butler had built 
up a deep 
friendship with Maggie. 

Therefore, Jack had agreed to grant him a free day, so he could join the women 
on their picnic. 
Jack himself had to work over his finance books and work, otherwise he would 
have joined them 
as well. On the other hand, he had also wanted to give them a little privacy. 

As soon as he was alone in his study, he opened the letter and read over its 
first words. Slowly 
and thoroughly he read the whole letter, the meaning of the words he was reading 
seeming so 
abstract and impossible to him that he felt as if he were in a dream when he had 
finished. 

After having read the letter a second and a third time, he jumped up from his 
chair. 

“That’s impossible!” he raged and slammed his hands to the table. “That just 
cannot be true. Not 
now...”

Then he hurried out of the room, slamming the door soundly, which caused a young 
maid, who 
was dust-cleaning the pictures on the wall, to give a startled shriek. Jack 
ignored her, but went 
straight to his library. Frantically, he searched the bookshelves for the book 
he hadn’t looked 
into since his father had died fifteen years ago. When he had found it, he 
pulled it out and blew 
the dust off its cover. Then he went through the pages as fast as he could. 
Soon, he had found 
the chapter he was looking for, reading it while his eyes widened in disbelief. 
Suddenly it made 
sense, the words written in the book confirming the awful truth he would have 
never expected.

If there had been only a little bit of hope left that he and Irina could have a 
future together, this 
hope was now gone. 

He leaned onto the heavy oak desk, staring at the words written in front of his 
eyes, knowing 
that this was the end - that Irina was going to hate him forever. 


Part 24 – The Invitation

“Jack?” Irina went through the large corridor, opening the door to her husband’s 
study only to 
find it empty. She frowned, wondering where her husband might be. The whole 
morning she 
hadn’t seen him. After she had returned from the picnic yesterday, he had been 
somewhat 
distant and silent. Even when she had played cards with her sister in the 
evening, Jack had just 
sat on the sofa, lost in thoughts while he was pretending to read a book. 
Irina had noticed that he wasn’t reading, since he had only turned the pages 
every five minutes. 
She didn’t even worry so much about the reason for his bad mood, but the fact 
that he didn’t talk 
to her about what concerned him frightened her. 

She had slept alone in his bed last night, waiting past midnight for his company 
until she had 
fallen into a fitful sleep, certain that he would not come that night. 

When she hadn’t seen a single sign of Jack until after breakfast this morning, 
she had decided 
to ask him what was going on, but now she was running out of possibilities. Jack 
was neither in 
his study, nor in the library and she had already searched his other private 
rooms. No horse was 
missing, so he hadn’t left the manor, and obviously none of the servants knew 
more than she 
herself knew about Jack’s whereabouts. 

Her last desperate idea was to search the attic. She had only been there once 
very briefly, and 
it was not a place she wanted to stay for a long time. Carefully, she went up 
the old wooden 
steps to the heavy door. Every step she took made the wood under her feet creak, 
and she was 
seriously afraid that the rotten staircase would break every moment. With all 
her efforts, she 
pushed open the old heavy door. It gave a loud squeak, and Irina went inside, 
wiping away a 
spider net that was hanging in her hair. 

“Jack?” she asked, her voice resounding hollowly through the old attic. Old 
boxes were standing 
everywhere, and one wall was completely covered with an old bookshelf that held 
lots of antique 
books and some statues. It looked as if nobody had been up here for years. She 
was just about 
to leave again, when her eyes fell onto a door, which was hidden partly in the 
shadow of a 
bookshelf. Slowly, she went to the other side of the room, trying the handle. It 
opened easily, 
and as Irina pushed it open, she found herself standing in a neatly furnished 
room with an 
expensive desk in the center. Nothing in this room betrayed that it was located 
in an old attic, 
since it was clean and warm. 
Slowly, she approached the picture of a man at the wall over an old fireplace, 
staring at it in 
fascination. 

“Irina, what are you doing here?” Jack’s voice startled her, and she spun around 
with a loud 
gasp. 

“For heaven’s sake, you scared me...” she murmured, only now noticing her 
husband, who was 
sitting in the armchair in a darker corner of the room. “I was looking for you 
throughout the 
whole house. I was getting worried.”

Jack looked at her and closed the book that was lying on his knees. “I needed a 
little break – 
time to think.”

“You didn’t sleep in our bed last night,” Irina remarked softly and approached 
him slowly. Not 
knowing what was bothering him made her nervous. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Jack looked at her intensely, suddenly thinking that he should send her away as 
long as there 
was still time. It was only a matter of days until he had to tell her what he 
had learned, and he 
knew it would break her heart, as well as it had broken his. It seemed as if all 
he could offer her 
was pain and a broken heart. She deserved better than him...

“Jack...” Irina went to her knees in front of him, her hands lying softly on his 
legs. “You are 
scaring me.”

Jack bent forward to touch her cheek and brush his thumb tenderly over her lips. 
“I love you,” he 
declared. “More than I could ever say.”

She smiled faintly and placed her hand over his. “I love you too.” Knowing that 
pushing him to 
talk to her would not help the situation, she just remained where she was and 
waited. 
Interested, she looked around in the room, wondering if this was some kind of 
secret library, as 
many manors had. 

“There is something I didn’t tell you,” Jack finally started, having Irina’s 
attention immediately. 
She just looked at him, not interrupting him with questions, and waited until he 
went on. “We 
talked about it only once, and back then you said that you did not want me to 
inform the queen 
about anything concerning you.”

Irina slowly straightened her back, intuitively bringing a little distance 
between them. She knew 
what he was going to say, opening her mouth slightly in shock – yet a part of 
her didn’t want to 
believe it.

“I did nonetheless. I wrote a letter to the queen, informing her about the 
circumstances and 
asking for her assistance.” Jack closed calmly.

Irina inhaled deeply, looking around in the room. “You... you did... despite my 
asking you not 
to?”

“Irina, we had to do something. We can’t go on like this forever. I don’t want 
to live with the 
constant fear that somebody might discover your secret.”

“You told her everything about me? The truth?” she asked, her voice betraying 
hurt inside her, 
but also anger. 

“Yes... the whole story, without exceptions.”

Irina lifted from the ground and turned, going to the small, dusty skylight. 
Wrapping her arms 
around her body, she didn’t say a word for a long time. 

“I considered all possibilities, and I came to the conclusion that this is the 
best way. It would 
have been only a matter of time until she had learned the truth; therefore, I 
thought it better if 
she learned it from me instead of some other source.” Jack said carefully. For a 
long time Irina 
gave no sign whether she approved his reasons or not. Then suddenly she spun 
around. 

“You knew my opinion,” she snapped, her eyes sparkling with anger. “I told you 
my reasons, 
and you said you understood them. You lied to me!”

“No.” Jack replied. “I did not lie to you, I still understand your reasons, 
Irina. It was a difficult 
decision for me, and I was afraid of the answer.”

“How gentle of you to not make the decision easy! This is not fair. I trusted 
you. You promised 
me not to inform her...” Irina’s outburst died in a small sob, and Jack got up 
and went to her, 
softly wrapping his arms around her to pull her against his shoulder. 

“I know. And that’s what I am sorry for, darling. I hated to break my promise.”

“Then why did you do it? It was my decision,” Irina murmured against the 
material of his jacket. 

“Not exclusively. We are both involved in this, and if the queen learns that I 
am hiding a rebel – 
even more, protecting her from the consequences of law, she will think that I am 
sympathizing 
with the rebel group – which will only compromise my situation at court at the 
best. Worst case 
scenario is that she will throw me into the prison and execute me for betraying 
my country... and 
you as well.” He buried his face in her chestnut locks and placed a soft kiss on 
her head. “If that 
happens, it was all for nothing. I don’t have to tell you the consequences your 
family would have 
to suffer. I did not talk to the queen, because I wanted to betray you, Irina. I 
wanted to protect 
you since... I couldn’t stand losing you.”

Irina leaned her forehead against his shoulder, knowing deep inside that he was 
right – that the 
way he had dealt with the problem was the only reasonable one that existed. And 
knowing him, 
she was also sure that, of all possible ways, he had chosen the most diplomatic 
one. He was a 
great strategist and hadn’t become the queen’s counselor for nothing. Still, she 
felt betrayed and 
hurt that he had acted behind her back without consulting her beforehand. 

“Why didn’t you tell me?” she whispered, her eyes burning against her will. “Why 
did you just 
write the letter behind my back? I know you are my husband, but still, I want to 
be consulted 
when my own future is concerned.”

Jack lifted her head to be able look into her eyes. “The last time we talked 
about this subject, 
you announced absolutely determined and serious that you would run away at once 
if the queen 
learned about your identity.” He explained and wiped away the single tear that 
made its way 
down her cheek with his thumb. “I knew you meant what you said. And I was afraid 
that, if I let 
you know that I informed the queen, you would run away again. That would have 
surely not 
remained hidden from the queen – which would have questioned everything I wrote 
in the letter 
about you being sorry and asking for pardon. You can’t blame me for taking the 
precaution of 
acting behind your back with this. I wasn’t so fond of alarming my whole group 
of soldiers to find 
you.”

Irina chuckled lightly, knowing that Jack was right. Damn him for knowing her so 
well. “You are 
a mean bastard, do you know that?”

“You happen to make sure I do,” he mused, and Irina couldn’t help but give a 
short laugh. Her 
anger at him faded away when she met his deep, passionate eyes, almost drowing 
in the 
tenderness she read in them.

“So...” she finally asked. “What did she write? Is there a reason for me to 
worry?”

“Not quite. Although, she sharply rebuked me for hiding you in the first place, 
she is willing to 
talk to us face to face. For that purpose, she invited us to visit the holiday 
festivities at court in 
two weeks. She wants to meet you in person and talk to you before she decides 
about your 
future,” Jack explained and saw the hint of panic in Irina’s face. Softly, he 
touched her cheeks. 
“That is a good sign. She is willing to listen to your story. Tell her what 
happened and how you 
got involved – just as you told it to me. In her letter, she indicated that she 
is willing to pardon 
you and your family if you prove as respectable as I’ve described you to be.”

“She is just going to pardon, us without any consequences for our crimes? Jack, 
nobody would 
act that way.” Irina murmured and hid her face at his shoulder. “What if she 
doesn’t pardon 
me?”

“She will.” Jack promised. “Of course there will be consequences. Most likely 
you will be 
relieved of your title and your property taken away. You will no longer belong 
to the nobility – 
which doesn’t actually matter, since you are married to me, so you will still be 
called a lady.”

Irina took a deep breath and looked at Jack. “I know that this is the only way, 
but still... I am not 
sure I can stand it. Everything I have been fighting for my whole life will be 
lost. What about the 
future of my sister? She will be poor, a member of the lower class. All her 
chances for a good 
marriage will be gone. Jack, I can’t do that to her.”

“We will find a way. Please trust me. I will do everything I can. There are 
possibilities to secure 
certain things for her. Maybe I can work out some kind of a deal, through which 
you can earn 
your title and property back.”

“It is not fair. Elena is just my sister. She never had anything to do with the 
terrorists. All she did 
was cover for Katya or me– but what was she supposed to do? Betray her own 
sisters?” Irina 
silently pleaded with Jack with her eyes. “Please, she can’t be the one who 
suffers most now.”

“The queen is a very gracious woman. Tell your story to her, and then we’ll see 
how the 
situation works out. And if nothing helps, there is still the possibility of 
running off with you.” He 
joked and kissed Irina’s forehead. The woman laughed and placed her hands on his 
cheeks. 

“Why didn’t you come up with that idea earlier? We could be living in Spain or 
France by now.”

“Crazy woman.” Jack chuckled and kissed her deeply. For a long time they forgot 
everything 
around them, just sinking into a series of tender kisses. Although she felt fear 
inside, Irina was 
also sure that she could trust Jack – that he was going to protect her whatever 
happened. And 
she was sure that he was quite capable of just running off with her if 
absolutely necessary. 
Although, she also knew that this was the last possibility and almost totally 
out of the question, 
since by running off he would lose everything. 

Jack ran his hands through Irina’s silky hair, wanting to hold her forever. What 
he had told her 
was the truth... although it was only a part of the truth. The main part of the 
letter had included 
another awful truth he did not know yet how to explain to her. 

When they had broke contact, Irina’s look was warm and she smiled. “Now, will 
you please join 
us downstairs again? I’ve been missing you terribly...”

Returning her tender smile, he nodded. “Yes... I will be downstairs in a 
minute.”

“Good,” Irina whispered, turning to go to the door. Then suddenly she stopped 
again, turning her 
head at Jack. “By the why, why did you never tell me about this room? It’s 
lovely.”

“Because I did my best to forget that it existed. This was the office my father 
used to work in. 
These are all his personal books...”

“Oh...” Irina said and looked at the portrait over the fireplace. “Is that him?” 
she asked, thinking 
that the face of the man seemed somehow familiar to her, but not knowing why.

“Yes.” Jack replied evasively, and Irina noticed his reluctance to talk about 
his father. 

“Fine, I will be waiting downstairs for you then,” she announced softly and left 
the room. Still, 
Jack’s reaction remained in her head. What had happened that he refused to talk 
about his 
father – that he had even tried to forget the personal property of his father. 
She decided to ask 
him as soon as their problems were solved, and their life had settled to normal. 

<O> <O> <O> <O>

“He did WHAT?!?” Elena stared at her sister, her hands on her hips, ready to 
storm out of the 
room just to beat the hell out of Jack Bristow. “He sold us out?”

“Would you calm down for a moment?” Irina demanded and pressed her back on the 
sofa. She 
had used a silent moment in the afternoon to talk to Elena about their future 
and what they had 
to expect. 

“Calm down? Irina, am I the only one who thinks this whole situation is 
absolutely and 
unquestionably unacceptable?” Elena stared at her sister enraged. 

“Just think for a moment,” Irina said sharply and grabbed her shoulders. “Katya 
is dead. Our 
cover is blown anyway. The most reasonable thing to do is to try to end this in 
a peaceful way. I 
am not so fond of the idea to talk to the queen and beg for pardon either... but 
would you rather 
run and hide for the rest of your life? I don’t.”

“Well...” Elena murmured. “We could still pursue Katya’s idea. The family of our 
mother in 
Russia will welcome us for sure. We would be safe there.”

“In a country where we don’t even speak the language, among people we have never 
met 
before.” Irina remarked ironically. “I don’t think that is worth longing for.”

Elena sighed, silently admitting that her sister had a point, at least as far as 
she was concerned. 
Elena knew that Irina loved Jack Bristow, and even if she herself could not 
understand why, she 
was sure that Irina would rather go to prison for a certain amount of time if 
she could be with 
Jack afterwards, than to leave him forever.

As far as she herself was concerned, if their property was taken away, she had 
nothing left in 
England that she considered as home. Therefore, going to a strange country 
seemed more like 
a new start to her than an abandonment of home. 

With a deep sigh she leaned back into the sofa and looked at Irina with a hint 
of sadness in her 
voice. “I would have never thought that it would end that way,” she murmured.

“What would end?” Irina asked softly.

“This... our life... our team. We were always so good, you, Katya and me. I 
always thought we 
were invincible. There were so many moments when I thought it was over yet, we 
made it. Do 
you remember back then, when that group of soldiers stopped our carriage, which 
was full of 
smuggled goods?”

Irina laughed at the memory and smiled. “Yes...”

“I thought that was it. I thought we were made. Yet we got through it somehow... 
we didn’t give 
up. And now everything is so... different.” She smiled sadly at Irina. “Nothing 
will ever be the 
same again.”

Irina looked at her for a long time, then suddenly hugged her tightly. “No it 
won’t be the same 
again – but maybe it will be better someday. Maybe we have been given a chance 
to leave this 
whole vicious circle of crimes. We should take it. That doesn’t mean we can’t 
still have 
excitement in our lives. After all, we have to deal with the women at court 
somehow – and I am 
telling you, they can be worse than rebels.” 

Elena laughed and inhaled deeply. “I am not sure that is enough for me. I am not 
sure... I want it 
that way.”

“What are you implying?”

“I was thinking about... going to Russia alone.” Elena finally confessed, and 
Irina sat up, feeling 
as if she had been hit in the stomach. “I know what you’re thinking now... I 
know that you love 
your Jack and that you don’t want to leave him, but I... I have no such reason 
that would 
motivate me to even consider the kind of life that you are proposing. If our 
home is being taken 
away... our property... then I have no reason to stay here.”

“But... what about me?” Irina whispered weakly, the pain hurting deep inside her 
heart. Never 
had she considered the possibility that their ways might separate one day.

“You have the man you love. I have seen how happy you are with him. You don’t 
need me 
here...”

“How can you say that?” Irina asked, grabbing her younger sister’s hand. “You 
are my sister.”

“I am. But Jack is your husband. You love him... you should stay with him, 
Irina. And if you start 
to feel bored, you could still follow me to Russia. I just... I feel that this 
is the way I should go. I 
am sorry.” Elena looked at her, pleading with her eyes for Irina to forgive her. 
The words she 
had spoken were the hardest ones she had ever spoken in her whole life. 

“Don’t be sorry.” Irina finally whispered. “I have to accept your choice, if 
that is what makes you 
happy. When... I mean... are you planning to leave?” The thought of her sister 
being away 
seemed to break her heart.

“Don’t worry. I am going to wait until you and Jack are back from your audience 
with the queen. 
After all, there is a tiny chance that you will have to go with me afterwards,” 
she joked, and Irina 
laughed sadly, punching her playfully. At the moment it seemed impossible for 
her to live 
without her sister – but then it seemed equally impossible to leave Jack. The 
moment she had 
feared the whole time had finally come. She would have to choose between her 
sister and her 
love – and the decision she made would be a definitive one. 


Part 25 – A Dark Turn

Two weeks later

With a loud sound, the curtains and windows were opened. Some mumbled sounds of 
protest 
could be heard from the bed Irina was lying in. 

“Good Morning, Milady,” Sarah cheered happily, leaning out of the window and 
breathing in the 
fresh air of the city – which actually smelt a little rotten. But the young maid 
was too excited to 
care for the bad smell. Irina, on the contrary, pulled the sheets over her head 
and turned to her 
side. A few seconds later, Sarah pulled the blanket away from her. 

“Sarah!” Irina exclaimed slightly outraged, sitting upright in her bed, her hair 
all tangled. 

“I’m sorry, Milady, but the lord gave me permission to get you out of bed with 
all means 
necessary – even if that meant that I have to steal your sheets.”

“He didn’t say that!” Irina contradicted angrily, trying to grab the girl. 

“Yes he did! He wants to go to the city with you in order to fetch the dress you 
ordered a few 
days ago. You have to try it on and alterations have to be made, so you look 
absolutely perfect 
for your audience tomorrow.” Sarah chattered, putting the sheets down on the 
armchair that was 
the farthest distance from the bed. Irina growled, and covered her eyes with her 
hands.

She was not an early riser, in fact, getting up early ruined her mood for the 
whole day. And if 
she was awakened by having her blanket stolen, her level of aggression was at 
its highest. With 
a deep sigh she fell back onto the mattress and curled up, hugging her legs. She 
had just 
closed her eyes and dozed off again, when Sarah slammed the door loudly, 
starting a loud 
cheerful singing. It was too much for Irina, and she sat up after a while and 
started yelling at the 
girl. 

“SARAH! Would you just shut your mouth and leave this room? Give me another hour 
or I 
swear, I am going to...” she burst out.

Sarah smiled. “Oh, the lord predicted that you would react that way, and he said 
that you should 
fight with him if you have any complaints.”

Irina breathed in deeply. That was typical for Jack. Surely, he would have no 
problems at all if 
she came to him and yelled at him for waking her up that early after he had kept 
her awake 
during half of the night. He would simply tell her that she needed her dress, 
and therefore, it was 
necessary for her to get up. And damned, she knew he was right and that all 
yelling was futile. 

With the darkest expression she was capable of, she got up and sat down in front 
of the mirror, 
taking her hairbrush. Still singing, Sarah came to her and took the brush out of 
her hand, 
starting to comb Irina’s hair. The procedure was regularly interrupted by 
Irina’s angry outcries 
when Sarah pulled too harshly. The maid ignored her. She knew that she wasn’t 
doing anything 
wrong, but that Irina was angry and outraged and most likely tired. So she tried 
to cheer the 
woman up by telling her how wonderful London was and what she had the fortune to 
see – a 
fortune Irina didn’t appreciate as much as Sarah. 

While the maid was still young and excited, Irina already felt bored by the 
behavior at court. 
Nothing happened, the meeting in the tearoom in the afternoon was the climax of 
the day. 
During the last few days, she had only seen Jack when they were out visiting 
London. Here in 
the royal palace, he barely had time for her, since he had to talk to other 
counselors and people 
he knew. It was impossible to go anywhere without Jack meeting somebody he knew. 

Yet she tried to see the things positively and not show her feelings, although 
she had asked 
herself more than once whether she was totally out of her mind. 

Thirty minutes later, Irina knocked at the door to the room Jack was sleeping 
in. It was custom 
that a couple didn’t share a room – a fact which Irina found rather disturbing 
since she missed 
Jack’s warmth when she woke up. At night he returned to his own room in order to 
prevent 
rumors or disgracing Irina’s honor. He knew that the people were already talking 
about her and 
her origin.

When Irina entered Jack’s room, he was already smiling at her. Obviously he was 
in a very 
cheerful mood today. He saw her dark expression and opened his mouth to tease 
her, but she 
lifted her hand. 

“Don’t!” she warned sharply and sat down at the small table, where breakfast had 
been 
prepared for them. Jack raised his eyebrows, but didn’t comment. He sat down 
opposite to her, 
while a young maid served them tea. After she was done, Jack told her to leave 
them alone, 
and the maid hurried out of the room. 

“Are you feeling alright?”

“Am I feeling alright? I don’t know... should I feel alright when I am forced to 
get up after only 
five hours of sleep? Just so we are clear, I will not allow you entrance to my 
room tonight.” Irina 
ranted and took an apple from the plate with fruits. “And stop grinning.”

“I’m sorry...” Jack said honestly. “But you’re just so sweet when you are 
angry.” 

Just having opened her mouth to continue her ranting, she did not know what to 
respond to 
such a charming compliment. Her cheeks blushed slightly, and Jack noted it, but 
didn’t say 
anything. He knew better than to tempt her further. Although he himself enjoyed 
the small 
quarrels and fights they had from time to time, he didn’t want the whole court 
witness it. And 
even less did he want Irina to be the subject of more rumors than she needed to 
be. So he left 
her alone for the time she needed to calm down. He knew that her mood would soon 
improve if 
she had eaten something and drunk some tea. 

“Jack...” Irina indeed addressed him around fifteen minutes later. He lifted his 
eyes from the 
newspaper he was reading and lowered his cup of tea. 

“Mmm?”

“If we are in the city today, can we go to the park that we discovered three 
days ago? I mean, 
after we have the dress, of course.” 

He smiled softly, feeling warmth running through his body. God, how much he 
loved this 
woman.

“Yes, of course. We can eat dinner in a small pension and spend the afternoon in 
the park.”

Irina’s face lightened up, and she smiled at him. Jack knew how much she liked 
the city, and he 
himself was glad for every second that he didn’t have to spend in the palace. He 
wanted to 
spend time with her and that was impossible when being here, since wherever they 
went, he 
met a person he had to talk to out of courtesy. And although Irina had not said 
a word in 
complaint, he knew that it bothered her to just stand there and smile while he 
was talking to a 
person she didn’t even know.
The more he had observed her at court, how she tried to adapt to the manners 
that were 
requested, the more he was convinced that she didn’t belong here. Not that she 
behaved 
inappropriately, on the contrary. She behaved like a perfect lady – but that 
also meant that she 
didn’t show her fiery temperament anymore. And that was exactly what he loved so 
much about 
her. He missed her snappy comments and the way she yelled at him when he had 
said 
something wrong. She was just not herself when being at court. He knew how much 
she 
despised the behavior, and yet she was showing it herself now - so as not to 
dishonor him. 

The day before she had even taken an insult against the Russian part of her 
family with merely 
a courteous smile. Jack appreciated the gesture, but enough was enough. Of 
course he knew 
that there was no other way for Irina to behave, but he was determined to put an 
end to this as 
soon as Irina was officially his wife. He would retire from active duty. 
Considering everything 
that he had done for this country, he had every right to, and he felt that this 
was just the right 
moment. He wanted to start a family with Irina, and his child should have its 
mother’s spirit, not 
the false attitude that was manner at court. 

Thoughtfully, he observed Irina finishing her breakfast. Instead of worrying 
about her behavior, 
he should worry about other things first. He still hadn’t talked to her. Yet, he 
had to tell her about 
the information he had received in the queen’s letter before she had the 
audience the next day. 
Otherwise, Irina would learn the truth about the raid on their house twenty-five 
years ago from 
her...

When they left the palace forty minutes later, both felt as if a weight was 
lifted from them, 
improving their mood. Irina even made some teasing comments when they were in 
the tailor’s 
store, and she was standing on a chair while a few younger women hurried around 
her, 
correcting the cut here and there. 

When they returned to the palace in the late afternoon, they had spent a 
pleasurable, refreshing 
day out, both being rather cheerful. Retiring to their rooms, they dressed for 
the evening soiree 
that was going to take place – as it did every evening. Irina sighed when she 
looked at her face 
in the mirror while Sarah did her hair. 

Another evening filled with boring conversations and information that didn’t 
interest her in the 
least was lying before her. She would have to listen to rumors and gossip about 
absent ladies 
for hours. Sighing deeply, she leaned back. 

“Sarah, why am I doing this?” she murmured, and the young maid laughed. 

“Because you love him. You look so beautiful, Milady... you can compete with all 
those ladies 
down there combined.”

“Yes... but I don’t even want to compete with them actually...” she murmured. 
“And the thought 
that the rest of my life is going to be like this scares me.”

“But it won’t.” Sarah continued to chatter happily. “You won’t live here all the 
time. You will be at 
Bristow manor, and soon you will get pregnant, and then you will not feel bored 
anymore. You 
will start a family.”

Irina sat up so abruptly that Sarah accidentally poked her with the hairpin. 
“I’m sorry!” she cried 
out in shock, but Irina just stared at her in the mirror. Pregnant... family... 
the words resounded 
in her head and caused a certain nausea to build up inside her. Surely she 
should have thought 
of that before. She could be already pregnant – but what if she was? Her future 
was still 
uncertain... she was still uncertain. She loved Jack, that was unquestionable, 
but suddenly the 
possibility that she was pregnant was so close. Was she ready to settle down and 
start a family 
yet?

“Milady, are you alright?”

“What? Yes... sure... go on please, Jack is certainly already waiting for me.” 
She murmured 
absently. She would love to have Jack’s children of course, but she didn’t want 
her children to 
grow into the life she was leading right now – having to listen to gossip nobody 
was really 
interested in, and bowing in front of the government. 

When she went downstairs twenty minutes later, she looked so stunningly 
beautiful, that Jack 
stared at her for ten seconds, until he remembered that he was expected to offer 
his arm to her. 
Irina didn’t even realize his fascination. She had only smiled at him very 
shortly. 
After the audience tomorrow she would speak with Jack about her concerns. She 
trusted him, 
and if what he said were true, that he loved her, he would understand her fears 
and give her 
time.

“Are you alright?” Jack asked quietly into her ear when they entered the huge 
ballroom. 

“Yes, of course.” Irina nodded and forced herself to smile at some ladies she 
had met two nights 
before. “I just... feel homesick I think.”

He looked at her concerned and then bent to her to place a tender kiss on her 
ear. “I promise, 
we will leave as soon as possible.” 

She smiled at him faintly and pressed his hand. “Thank you.” Then she loosened 
from him to 
greet the women. Jack looked after her tenderly and went on to a group of men 
who were 
members of the council. 

Time seemed to pass by even slower that night. Every time Irina’s eyes wandered 
to the large 
clock at the wall, she wondered how it could be that only a few minutes had 
passed. When the 
dance floor was opened, she danced courteously with the lords who asked her to. 
She had 
looked out for Jack, but he seemed to have vanished – most likely he was engaged 
in a political 
discussion with a group of men in one of the parlors. 
That was not unusual. Most of the ladies didn’t see their own husband once at 
parties like this – 
a possibility which most of them took to pursue flirtations or even more, start 
an affair. Maybe 
she would have to do that in order to gain Jack’s attention. She smiled at that 
thought, a smile 
that her dance partner mistook for a flirtatious gesture, reducing the distance 
between them. 
Irina was happy when the orchestra stopped playing for a moment, so she had an 
excuse to 
leave the floor in order to get rid of the man. 

A little lost, she strolled through the people who were having conversations at 
the edge of the 
floor. Desperately she scanned the room for Jack, but even if he were present, 
there were so 
many people in the room that it was almost impossible for her to spot him.

Instead of Jack, she suddenly spotted Arvin Sloane five meters away from her. He 
was 
overlooking the dancing couples, standing there as if he were not involved in 
the party in any 
way. Irina turned around slowly, trying to retire unnoticed, but it was too 
late. By chance, Arvin 
saw her, and when she heard him call her name, she knew it would be insulting 
not to stop and 
greet him. Therefore she turned and smiled courteously. 

“Lord Sl