An Agent for Brutus Read online

“Yes, you can. You must, Brutus. He is close to lying at death’s door. I have done everything he has asked me to since I came back, and he tells me that he will not pay for the surgery.”

  She almost sobbed but remember not to. What a nuisance it was to not be able to cry when shedding tears would be the perfect release for all the agony inside. “What did you do to him? What did he mean when he said Roseline was his wife?”

  Brutus went over to the fire and stood in front of it. The flames leapt and crackled. Tension lined his back. He glanced at her over his shoulder. “It’s quite simple really. I stole Roseline from your father.”

  Tam’s brow scrunched. “Stole?”

  “Oui.” He faced the fire again. Without note or inflection, he told her the story how Roseline pursued him for three years and the ways he rebuffed her. “After that, I didn’t see her again for a year. No matter where I turned, I couldn’t find her. During this time, Caesar and I had gone our separate ways for the simple fact we had different goals in mind. It was not a rift then.”

  Furiously he rubbed at his forehead. “One day, Roseline appeared at my home. When I saw her, I realized how much I loved her. I pulled her into my arms and declared my love for her and I asked her to marry me. Tears gathered in her eyes and she stated that she had already promised to marry Caesar. She had come to tell me goodbye. I begged her to reconsider but she had given her word to Caesar.”

  “Did you talk to my father after she came to you?”

  “I did. As soon as she left, I found out his whereabouts and went to see him. He asked me if Roseline had changed her mind. I could have lied, I guess. Looking back, I sense had I just told him that she had, he would have released her. I can recall the way he stood there as he waited for my answer. As if he stood on the edge of a cliff.

  “Instead, I told the truth. That she had given her word to be his wife and she would abide by it. When he had said this, Caesar refused to budge. He knew I cared for her a great deal but since she had decided to marry him, there was nothing more for me to say.”

  “What happened after that?”

  Brutus grunted. “I went to the church and watched them get married. The agony of that moment is a state of human sorrow that I can never describe. My mind was eaten with jealousy, consumed by it. I knew I would have to try once more to see if Roseline would change her mind.

  “Familiar with Caesar’s home in the West Indies like the back of my hand, I crept into the master bedroom where I knew their night would take place. There are vines that hang from the walls and a few blocks that jut out. I used them both to climb up to their room.”

  “Weren’t you afraid of what my father would have done if he’d seen you?”

  “I didn’t care. I was determined to see Roseline. As it happens, Caesar was gone and only Roseline was there. When she saw me on the balcony, I knew I had made the right decision. Her face lit up like the sun. She would do her duty to Caesar, but she loved me.

  “We talked for a few moments until Caesar came back into the room. I never heard him until he grabbed my shoulder. Roseline told him that she could not be his wife as she loved me. An argument ensued. Then, she declared that she would leave this moment.

  “Caesar said no. He grabbed and I saw his hand lift up as if to strike her.”

  “That’s when you interfered?”

  “You can imagine the ruckus and the pain behind each blow we delivered to each other. At one point, Caesar almost choked me. I could feel my breath leaving my body. Yet, my love for Roseline would not allow me to die. I overpowered him and that night, I took Roseline and stole her away.”

  It was an incredible story. A man who steals another man’s wife away from him. On his wedding night, no less.

  “No wonder he hates you. And not just you, Roseline.”

  Tam saw the pieces of the puzzle come together now. Why her father’s hatred had eaten up his mind. “Roseline could have prevented this had she simply told my father that she didn’t want to marry him.”

  “I can see that in hindsight, Tam. Yet, you can only do the best you can in the moment of urgency. After that, you can spend the rest of your life wishing to do different. Although, even knowing what happened, I would do it all over again.”

  Brutus came over to her. “Does that make me a horrible man to you? Your tender feelings that you were so gracious to share with me, have they been crushed by the reality of a flawed man?”

  How could she answer that? “I don’t know.”

  Brutus’s blue eyes turned sad. “I know. I was reluctant to tell anyone about it. In the wake of these things, you have a right to know.”

  The wake of things. Her father’s refusal to pay for the surgery that could prolong her life, his fury at their marriage, and his hatred of Brutus for what he’d done.

  “It’s been a long journey, and nothing has gone the way it should. I need to rest.”

  “Of course, Tam. I will leave to give you some privacy.”

  He kissed her forehead very gently and then she heard the door close behind her as he left the room. Tam fell onto the bed, physically exhausted from the emotional upheaval of the day.

  Dear God…

  She wanted to say a prayer for help, but the words wouldn’t come out.

  Celine had the cases placed in the bedroom and she rifled through hers and retrieve her heavy nightgown. Dressing for bed, she bent down and searched for the miniature that she kept by her side. Habit.

  She gazed down at the miniature, once again seeing Brutus in his youth. How long after this picture would he go to steal a man’s wife? Well, maybe he hadn’t stolen her if she left on her own accord, but the sentiment was still the same.

  Tam placed the miniature back in the case and shut it. She slid into the bed. For the first time in years, she didn’t trace the edges of the bronze frame of the man who she’d foolishly given her heart to.

  ***

  “I would advise you to leave tomorrow.”

  Brutus dragged his gaze away from the dying fire and turned at the sound of Celine’s voice. “Why?”

  “You’ve taken away White Caesar’s power over you by marrying his daughter. He’s not going to like it. He spent years trying to bring you back so he could make you suffer for what you did.”

  Celine came and sat down at the other end of the settee that was close to the fire. The red light played on her face. “What would he have done?”

  “He never told me. All he said was that he wanted you on your knees before him.”

  A grimace took over his mouth. “Sacre bleu.”

  “I’m not sure it makes any difference now, Brutus, but for what it’s worth, you were right to take Roseline away from Caesar.”

  Surprised to hear this, he angled his body toward her. “Caesar was never this way twenty years ago.”

  “You hadn’t stolen his wife yet.”

  A wave of heat flushed his face. He’d spent the last twenty years in bliss with Roseline. Perhaps they had an unconventional beginning, but she wanted to be with him. Had she ever given any hint at all that she would have preferred to stay with Caesar, he would have let her go.

  And probably joined a monastery.

  “Has he ever hurt you?”

  Celine’s eyes darted away. “What is hurt? Is it always something physical that you can see? Or is it the wounds that are seared deep in your heart where no bandage or ointment can go?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Roseline chose to marry Caesar because she thought there wouldn’t be a chance to have a life with you.” A tight note entered her voice. “It didn’t matter that I had given birth to Tamera five years before she even thought to allow Caesar to court her. I think she believed that if she courted Caesar, then she’d have the opportunity to see you more. I told her it wasn’t a good idea. I wanted Caesar for myself. I’d bore him a daughter, but it wasn’t enough to make him want to give me his name.”

  “Why not?”

  “I’ve had some time to think of
it over the years as I’ve watched his holdings grow from the few coins he had when fought in the prize fights to the shipping wealth he brought back with him when you and he were privateers. If Roseline hadn’t come into our lives, he would have married me. He had a strong sense of duty then. He’d spoken of making me an honest woman once his fortune came in. I was willing to wait. I loved him.”

  “Loved? Do you no longer care for Caesar?”

  An exasperated sound escaped her mouth. “Can any woman love a man who constantly obsesses over another woman? When you and Roseline left and the marriage was annulled, I stayed. I let him know that no matter what happened, I would be there for him.”

  Brutus saw a single tear trail down her cheek. “After more than twenty years, it means nothing. I have traveled all over the world with White Caesar. Now, I’m stuck in this forsaken place and all he can focus on is himself. What about me, Brutus? What about the sacrifices I made? Doesn’t that count for anything?”

  Wiping her tears, she accepted the lone handkerchief he kept on his person when he handed it to her. It took everything within to keep silent. She never said anything about Tam.

  He wanted to go back to the bedroom and check on her. Did she know that he wanted her for herself?

  “I can’t leave just yet, Celine. I must somehow convince Caesar that he must help her. I’ll do whatever he wants me to do as long as he gives her what she needs. Don’t you care about her?”

  “Of course, I do. She’s my daughter but it is White Caesar’s decision what he will do. Nothing I say will change that.”

  He opened his mouth to say something more, anything to see if Celine would even fight to make sure Tam would get the money for the surgery when Celine rose from her seat. “I am going to bed.”

  “Bonne nuit.”

  When Celine left, he let out a breath. Tam had not exaggerated when she said her parents never cared for her. The lack of their care astounded him. He knew both Caesar and Celine years ago. How could he have known that they would turn out to be the distant parents that would raise his hummingbird?

  He leaned forward, his eyes locked on the dying fire. When he told Tam about his and Roseline’s beginning, something had flickered in her gaze. For the first time in his life, he recognized the pain that his and Roseline’s decision had wrought. Because of that, Tam had grown up alone.

  No wonder the hummingbird in the dream poked out her eye.

  Did it all fall on them? Couldn’t Caesar and Celine have made a life with each other if they both had tried? Yet, they decided to stay in the past.

  What about him? Had he decided to stay in the past? Roseline was gone. He’d loved her and always would. Tam was here and was his wife now. It may have started out as a ploy, but he realized that he didn’t want their relationship to end. He wanted to explore it for as long as he lived.

  Did he love Tam? Unquestionably. It wasn’t the same sweeping, all-encompassing headiness that had existed between himself and Roseline. This was quieter, but just as deep.

  After years of believing no one else could ever make his heart sing again, he met Tam.

  He suspected that her tender feelings she’d harbored were damaged by all she’d learned today. But he would do everything he could to let her know that he wanted to spend his life with her. Just as Celine had suggested, they would leave tomorrow. There was no point in staying. He would pay for the surgery. He’d tried to offer to do it, but Tam had declined. He found it odd at the time, but now he understood. Like any young child, she wanted her father to show that he cared. If Caesar would try to—

  “Brutus?”

  He jumped to his feet to see Caesar leaning weakly against the doorjamb.

  “Help.”

  Rushing over to the door, he grabbed Caesar by the arms and helped him further into the room. Collapsing onto the couch, he wheezed harshly. “You need to get to a doctor. You’re not well.”

  Caesar grabbed him by his collar. “Listen to me. I don’t need a doctor. I need you. I think Celine has been poisoning me.”

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Three days later

  “When are you going to leave?” Celine asked when she walked into the kitchen where Tam and Brutus sat, eating a quiet breakfast.

  “I’m not sure,” Tam answered.

  Brutus met her eyes. He tilted his head to the side. What are you going to do?

  Celine folded her arms across her chest. “Your father hasn’t changed his mind about the surgery. There’s no need to continue to stay here.”

  “I have to try, Mother.”

  A disgusted sound came out of her mouth and in a huff, she went out of the room.

  Brutus finished off the last of the eggs and set his fork down. “The clues are starting to speak more and more, aren’t they?”

  “I think you’re right.”

  She hoped he was wrong.

  Playing with the last crumbs of her toast, Tam thought over the past few days. When Brutus had burst into their bedroom a few nights ago, and shaken her awake, the last thing she expected to hear was that her father believed her mother was trying to kill him.

  “That’s preposterous,” she’d exclaimed. “My mother wouldn’t hurt anyone.”

  “Caesar said that he didn’t start to feel sick until a few days before we arrived. It steadily got worse until we came here.”

  “What possible reason could my mother have to want to kill White Caesar? Why?”

  “Do you really need a reason to kill someone?”

  She’d blown out a breath. “No, but you can’t come here and say that and not expect me to be skeptical.”

  “Why do you doubt your father’s words?”

  “My mother, if she wanted to kill my father, could have done so many times over the years. Why would she wait until now to do it? It’s not that. My father is being stubborn. He’d rather think that he’s being murdered instead of going to the doctor.”

  Yet, Brutus had convinced her to at least take the accusation as a case being assigned from the Pinkerton agency. Taken in that light, she decided the next day to investigate. And since she had a recruit, she might as well assist in his training.

  Three days later, she began to believe otherwise.

  “All right, recruit. Let’s look at the evidence we have.”

  Brutus gave a wry smile. “I like your calling me recruit, colibri rouge.”

  Tam tried to still the beating of her heart. Since the things she’d learned earlier in the week, she kept her distance from Brutus. They shared the room and the bed, but there was an invisible chasm between them. How different they had been in Silverpines. Her childish rapture had overtaken her and made her reveal things she should never have. Made her do things such as kiss him.

  Though, for the life of her, she couldn’t regret her decision. In the deepest of nights, she’d recall how their bodies had fit perfectly together. His tickling beard on her skin. His darkened eyes. The rigid control he’d exerted over himself.

  The miniature still stayed in her case, having not been removed since that night. For some reason, she couldn’t bring herself to take out. Not wanting to dig too close into why she couldn’t, she pushed the empty plate away and then pulled out the notebook she’d kept with her.

  “What do we know so far, recruit?”

  Brutus lay back in the chair. “We know for certain that the ranch hands would not be suspects for this case.”

  “Why is that?”

  “The ranch hands have their own house and cook. They do not have access to the main ranch house. The only people who have access to this house are Caesar, Celine and the foreman.”

  “How often does the foreman gain access to the main house?”

  “Whenever he wants but he has not seen Caesar in days due to the sickness.”

  “What are some things we’ve noticed?”

  Brutus sighed. “Let’s just go to the end of the story, Tam. Since we’ve been here, your father has started to show signs he’s getting better. And
she’s lied to us.”

  Tam put her elbows on the table and rested her head on her hands. “I thought maybe you didn’t notice that.”

  “I may be a novice but I’m no fool.”

  Neither was she. Today, Caesar didn’t look nearly so bad today. The coughing spells had decreased.

  Most alarming was the conversation she had with her earlier today, when she visited him in the study. He’d coughed but no blood splattered on the handkerchief. Something of her thoughts must have shown on her face. White Caesar motioned for her to come forward.

  “Do you believe me now, Tam? Your mother is trying to kill me.”

  “Father, why would she when she has been your mistress all this time?”

  Caesar gave a startled look. “Mistress? What are you saying?”

  “Oh, Father. I’m not so ignorant of the world as all that. I know mother has been your mistress.”

  “You truly believe that, don’t you?”

  “Why wouldn’t I?”

  His dark eyes bore into her own. “Your mother and I were married a year after Roseline and Brutus married.”

  “Why would she lie about being a mistress when she’s your wife?”

  The answer eluded her. She’d never been close to either of her parents, so she had no idea how their minds worked. This defect in her relationship aided in her ability to look at the clues being left objectively.

  Her mother’s insistence on their leaving also mounted up the clues against her.

  “Tam, the reason why your mother lies about being my mistress as opposed to my wife is because you were born before our marriage. She has always blamed Roseline for my not marrying her sooner.” Caesar glanced away, a look on his face that she couldn’t quite define. He seemed to be considering his own statement, turning it around in his mind. “Maybe if Roseline had gone through with our marriage, I may not have. You never knew, Roseline. Never knew how exceptional she was.”

  White Caesar’s response only added to the confusion. Why would her mother wait until this moment in time to kill her father?

  “If I can figure that out, it would be helpful,” she murmured.

  “What would be helpful?”