The Highwayman of Tanglewood Read Online Free Page B

besting Kade Tremeshton. Now it seemed she was to enjoy another tale of Lord Kade Tremeshton’s humiliation at the Highwayman’s hand.
    “Tell me, Miss Lillias!” Faris whispered. “Tell me the tale—in its entirety! Do not leave one word of it to be missing!”
    Giggling with excitement, Lillias turned and closed the door to her brother’s chambers. Taking Faris’s hand, she led her to the massive bed before them, promptly sitting down on the sapphire velvet coverlet and pulling Faris to sit beside her.
    “The tale was told to me thus,” Lillias began. “Lord Tremeshton—Kade the Heinous, as I prefer to refer to him—”
    Faris could not help but giggle at Lillias’s favorite title for Lord Kade Tremeshton.
    Lillias smiled and continued. “Kade the Heinous was out with two of his stablemen. It seems he has acquired a new mount and wished to try it—poor, miserable animal. Kade the Heinous, being the coward that he is, demanded two stablemen accompany him—in case the new mount was not to his satisfaction, so he said.”
    Faris breathed a sigh of exasperation, rolling her eyes as well.
    “Just what I feel,” Lillias continued. “To continue, they were there, the three of them, riding through the Tanglewood Forest. It is true, for Graybeau saw them, having been riding at the same time in exercising Jovan.”
    Jovan was Lord Rockrimmon’s favorite mount. The magnificent bay was aging, however, and Lord Rockrimmon had lessened the frequency of riding the animal. Therefore, it was often Bainbridge Graybeau, Lord Rockrimmon’s favored stablemaster, who was asked to provide mild exercise for the beloved horse when Lord Rockrimmon himself did not have the time to do so. Bainbridge Graybeau was a strikingly handsome man, perhaps ten years Faris’s senior. A man to be admired—a man of honor. If Bainbridge Graybeau had seen the Highwayman of Tanglewood take Lord Kade Tremeshton to task, then it was the truth.
    “There they were—Kade the Heinous, his two stablemen, and Graybeau just a ways beyond them, when from the direction of the meadow he rode, the Highwayman of Tanglewood—his black cape rippling in the breeze, the heated breath of his black steed bearing down upon them all.”
    Faris smiled, delighted with the light of exhilaration in Lillias’s eyes. Lillias loved the tales of the Highwayman almost as much as Faris did. It was one of their secrets together—Lillias and Faris’s—their love for the tales of the Highwayman of Tanglewood.
    “Oh, do go on, Miss Lillias!” Faris pleaded. “I am desperate to hear the whole of it!”
     
    Lillias Rockrimmon smiled. How she adored Faris Shayhan! How thankful she was her mother had stolen her away from Tremeshton Manor to become her daughter’s friend. Lillias giggled, delighted by the luminous light of excitement flashing in Faris’s dark eyes. How plain Lillias felt in Faris’s presence. Faris’s dark hair, dark eyes, and long, dark lashes gave her the look of some magic being—as if she could gaze into the very depths of a soul, read each person’s thoughts and feelings. How glad she was Faris had come to Loch Loland Castle.
    Faris seemed to love the tales of the Highwayman of Tanglewood even more than Lillias herself did. To Lillias this was nearly inconceivable—that someone could be more intrigued by the local rogue than she was—for the Highwayman was Lillias’s greatest intrigue. It was often Lillias dreamt of meeting the Highwayman, of pulling the infamous black mask from his face in revealing his true identity.
    “Oh, isn’t this delicious, Faris?” Lillias squealed.
    “Delicious!” Faris agreed.
     
    “His steed reared up before Kade the Heinous’s new mount, frightening the poor beast into throwing his new master,” Lillias continued.
    “Wonderful!” Faris exclaimed, clasping her hands with delight.
    “Kade the Heinous fell flat on his backside, shouting at his stablemen to defend him from the Highwayman,” Lillias said.