He grunted in pain as she connected with his eye.
She rolled over, taking him with her. Now he was beneath her, and she reached for the lantern that had dropped from her hand. She lifted the lantern. If she could knock him out and then run to the castle for help…
"Blast it, wait! I give up."
Cassie froze in place. The voice had been furious, disgusted, and undoubtedly feminine. Slowly, she lowered the lantern and looked down at her attacker.
Green eyes glared up at her from a face as angelic as the ones in the pictures in Lani's Bible. Short pale-gold curls rioted around the girl's thin face. She looked a mere child-certainly no more than fifteen or sixteen. "Let me up!"
"Why should I? So you can attack me again?"
"I didn't attack you. I just jumped on you. If I'd attacked you, I wouldn't have let you get the best of me."
"You knocked the breath out of me."
"But I didn't try to hit you with a blasted lantern. Let me up."
"When you tell me what you're doing here. Are you one of the servants' children?"
She said defiantly, "It's none of your business."
"Then we'll stay here all night."
"You'll get bored or Jared will come for you."
Jared. If the girl was one of the servants' children, she would not be so familiar.
"Perhaps he's missing you already," the girl said. "Let me up and go to him."
"He knows where I am." She added, "And what is His Grace to you?"
"More than he'll ever be to a scraggly tart who pleases him only in bed." Her scathing glance traveled over Cassie's worn riding habit. "Where did he get you? London?" She shook her head. "His lady birds from London are much more comely. He must have gone directly from Tahiti to the dock and picked you up. I overheard one of Jared's friends say a man becomes desperate after long weeks at sea."
Unexpectedly Cassie found her anger lessening. The girl was helpless, facing an unknown threat, and still had the courage to spit defiance. In similar circumstances she hoped she would have done the same.
"What are you doing here in the middle of the night?" she asked.
The girl set her jaw and was silent.
"Who are you?"
The girl didn't speak.
"Very well. I'll go ask Jared."
A sly expression crossed the girl's face. "Good idea. Go ahead."
And when she came back, the girl would be gone. Again she had a notion of vague familiarity. "After I find a rope to tie you up."
"No!" The girl hesitated and then said grudgingly, "My name is Josette."
"And your surname?"
"Get off me. You're crushing my stomach. You must weigh as much as Morgana."
"You know Morgana?"
"Of course I do." Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. "What were you doing creeping about in the stable in the middle of the night? Did someone pay you to bed Jared and then try to steal Morgana?"
"I'm not a horse thief. In fact, I thought the same about you. That's why I decided to search the carriage house."
Josette snorted. "You came after a horse thief with only a lantern? What were you going to do? Set him on fire? Not likely."
"Believe what you like. I'm not the intruder here. I have permission to stay with my horse." It wasn't precisely true. She had actually given herself permission. Oh, well, close enough. "And I'll wager no one gave you leave to be here tonight."
Josette frowned. "What's wrong with your horse? Is he sick?"
"He just feels a little strange. It's his first night here."
"And his last," Josette said fiercely. "Jared will toss you out of his bed and your horse out of his stable before you can blink."
"No, he won't. I don't occupy his bed." She grimaced. "And, I assure you, he would never let Kapu leave if he had his way."
"Kapu?"
"My stallion. I brought him from Hawaii."
"Where is that?"
"An island." When the girl still looked confused, she added, "Near Tahiti."
"Jared brought you from Tahiti?"
"No, I brought myself. And from Hawaii."
"And the other woman at the castle, too?"
It appeared the girl knew a good deal about what was going on at the castle. "How did you know about Lani?"
"Is that her name?" Josette shrugged. "Someone told me about the women who came to the castle." She said with deliberate cruelty, "She must be the pretty one."
"No," Cassie corrected. "She's more than pretty, she's beautiful."
"Then she's the one in Jared's bed," Josette said flatly. "He always chooses the best."
"The choice is not always the man's."
"Of course it is. Are you going to get off me?"
"Yes." She swung off the girl and rose to her feet. "You're no threat, and I can't waste any more time on you. I have to get back to Kapu. Do what you have to do in here and be gone. I need to get some sleep."
Josette looked at her in astonishment. "You're going to let me go?"
"I can't sit on top of you all night." She moved toward the arched opening leading to the stalls. "You were truly concerned about Morgana, so you're not a horse thief. I don't care if you steal every coach in this room, as long as you leave the horses alone."
"I'm not a thief!" She jumped to her feet and followed Cassie. "And that's a stupid remark. How could I steal a coach without a horse to pull it?"
Cassie found herself smiling. "True. Then you might not steal the coaches either."
"I don't have to steal. Jared would give me any coach I wished."
"Would he? Then you're very fortunate. Good night." She moved down the corridor.
"I think I'll come with you."
Cassie looked back to see Josette swaggering after her. The girl wasn't as small as she had first thought, but she was undoubtedly a youngster. No wonder she had thought her a boy. Her slim hips were lost in those rough wool trousers, and the blue shirt hid any hint of breasts.
Josette stopped, glaring at her. "Stop staring at me." She lifted her chin. "It's these trousers, isn't it? Well, I like them. I can't help it if you disapprove. I'll wear what I like."
Cassie's eyes widened, and then she started to laugh. She had said almost those same words to Jared. "I don't disapprove. A woman should always wear what she wishes. I assure you, on occasion I wear apparel that's much more shocking."
Josette was a trifle deflated. "Oh."
Cassie turned and resumed walking.
"What kind of apparel?" Josette was beside her.
Cassie shook her head.
Josette was silent a moment, then asked, "Is it interesting being a whore?"
"I'm not a whore."
"But you're not shocked at the question, either," Josette said shrewdly. "Why did Jared bring-Why did you come to Morland?"
"Because I chose to do so."
"That's no answer."
"I've not been getting many answers myself."
Josette scowled. "All right. Jared is my guardian."
Cassie looked at her in astonishment.
"You didn't know he was anybody's guardian." It was a statement. "That's no surprise. Jared doesn't like to let it be known."
"Why not?"
She shrugged. "There are reasons. Anyway, I attend Lady Carradine's School for Young Ladies except when Jared or Bradford is here. Carradine Hall's only a short distance away, and this afternoon when I heard they had returned, I decided to come home."
"Jared sent you a message?"
"No." She added quickly, "But he would have. Probably tomorrow or the next day. He truly cares about me. I just decided to come on my own a little sooner."
Cassie looked back at the carriage room.
Josette rushed on. "Oh, I didn't want to disturb anyone in the middle of the night. I was going to sleep in the coach tonight and see Jared in the morning."
"I see." She felt a surge of pity. She thought she was beginning to understand. The child clearly adored Jared, and he couldn't be bothered about her. "How did you get here from your school?"