Deceive Not My Heart (53 page)

Together they walked into the cathedral, its Spanish influence obvious from the round towers set on either side of the building and the Moorish arched windows and doorways. It was cool and quiet inside.

Leonie was aware of an odd feeling as she walked down the aisle with Morgan at her side. She had married this man here almost six years ago, and it was here that her infant son had been baptized.
Grand-pere
had been standing there, near the altar, as she and Morgan had repeated their vows and she remembered with surprise all the resentment and anger she had felt against both her grandfather and the man at her side.
How long ago it all seems,
she thought,
as if it happened to someone else in another lifetime.

Justin's baptism was a bittersweet memory. She could remember the comforting warmth of his little body and the great squall of outrage he had given when Pere Antoine had poured the holy water on his little head. How lonely and frightened she had been that day!
Grand-pere
was dead, she had no money, the servants and Yvette were dependent upon her, and the small, squirming baby in her arms was her sole responsibility. At seventeen how bleak and terrifying the world had seemed, and she shivered.

Morgan felt her shiver and thinking it was nervousness, his hand tightened around her elbow. Bending his head a little, he whispered, "I'm not going to strangle you, cat-eyes... no matter what we find out."

Leonie sent him a scornful look. "Monsieur, I have nothing to hide! I have been telling the truth and you will discover nothing here that will come as a surprise to me!"

Morgan's brow rose. A mocking smile lifting the corner of his mouth, he murmured, "Somehow that's exactly what I suspected you would say. Under the circumstances you are to be commended for your brave stance."

"Ah, bah! You do not make sense, monsieur! None of this makes any sense! What do you hope to prove by your poking and prying? That I am lying?" Leonie gave a low, angry laugh. "You are much mistaken, monsieur, if you think you can discredit me. The truth
will
prevail!"

"Which is
precisely
what I want," Morgan said sharply, the blue eyes hard as they rested on her flushed features.

An unladylike snort came from Leonie, but whatever else she would have said was stilled by the sight of the gaunt figure walking out the vestibule near the altar. Throwing Morgan an entreating glance, she shook off his hand and muttered, "Monsieur, please do not be rude to me in front of Pere Antoine. He would not understand how it is with us."

Feeling like the villain in the piece and not liking it, Morgan barely had time to murmur, "I have no intention of making our differences public," before the priest walked up to them.

Pere Antoine's brown eyes widened with pleasure as they rested on Leonie's face and with obvious warmth he said, "Leonie, my dear! What a most pleasant surprise to see you here." Taking her hand in his he smiled down at her and continued, "But how is this? I had heard that you had left Saint-Andre and meant to live in Natchez with your husband? What has brought you back to New Orleans?"

Shyly Leonie indicated Morgan and stammered, "M-my h-husband, Pere Antoine, he wished to visit the cathedral to view our marriage records."

One thin black brow rising quizzically, Pere Antoine turned to look at Morgan. "How curious! A Jason Savage was here recently and he, too, wanted exactly the same thing. Have you some doubts about the validity of your marriage? It was most proper I assure you—if you remember, I performed the ceremony myself."

Staring intently into the lined, serene face Morgan asked bluntly, "And was I the man you married her to?"

Pere Antoine was clearly taken aback. "But of course, monsieur! I have known Leonie all her life and while I had never met you before the wedding, I remember what a lovely couple you made. I also remember how happy I was that Leonie's future was finally assured, and how fortunate she was to have such a handsome young husband."

Conscious of a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach, Morgan forced himself to press further. "Are you quite certain that I am that man? You have no doubts?"

Affronted and yet puzzled, Pere Antoine's eyes traveled slowly over Morgan's features. "I believe so," he finally said. "As I told Monsieur Savage, and as I told you just a moment ago, I only met you the one time, and while I might not have remembered you exactly if we had passed on the street, seeing you here in the cathedral with Leonie at your side brings it all back to me." His brown eyes boring into Morgan's blue eyes, he said softly, "Monsieur, I do not know what the problem is, but be assured that I recognize you as the man I married to Leonie... unless, of course, you have a twin whose name is also Morgan Slade."

Morgan's face went white and in that second, like a bullet striking him between the eyes, the answer to the entire mystery exploded in his brain. The disquieting feeling that there was something vital about that trip to New Orleans in 1799 that he should have remembered, the missing piece of the puzzle that had eluded him, and the certainty that there was another man involved, all those baffling fragments added up just one thing.

"Ashley!"
Morgan snarled with such suppressed venom that Pere Antoine took a step backwards and Leonie stared at Morgan with openmouthed astonishment.

Hardly aware of the two of them, Morgan's hands unconsciously clenched into fists. With silent virulence he cursed himself as he remembered times in the past that Ashley had taken advantage of their extraordinary resemblance, and had impersonated him and forged his signature as well.
I should have remembered as soon as I saw those damned documents!
he thought with helpless rage.

The episode of the forged gaming vowels, and the seduction of the tavern wench came flooding back to Morgan. "How could I have been so blind? So damned bloody
blind!"
His words exploded and echoed in the silent cathedral.

"Young man! I think you forget that this is God's house!" Pere Antoine said sharply.

Blankly Morgan stared at him, and then with an effort he shook himself free of the ugly thoughts that were raging in his brain. Guiltily aware that he had offended the priest, he said, "Forgive me, Father! Your words gave me a shock." And feeling some further explanation was necessary for his peculiar behavior he added, "You made me remember something that I should never have forgotten... but that was no excuse for my profanity. I am sorry if I gave offense and can only beg your forgiveness."

Mollified, Pere Antoine replied, "Of course, my son. And I am happy I could help you. I trust that I have answered all of your questions?"

There were many questions rioting through Morgan's brain, but Pere Antoine could answer none of them. It was apparent that Leonie had not lied about the marriage and obvious too that the priest knew her well—at least
she
was no impostor! Had she known what Ashley was up to? And been a willing party to the farce? He thought not, but it was an avenue that needed exploring. Conscious of the priest waiting politely for his answer, Morgan nodded. "Yes, you have, Father.... I cannot tell you how important this conversation has been to me."

Turning to the confused Leonie, Morgan grasped her upper arm and said, "We won't take up any more of your time, Father. I think we had best be off now, don't you agree, my dear?"

Leonie nodded, totally at sea by his sudden transformation.
Mon Dieu,
would she ever understand him?

Pere Antoine regarded them for a long moment and then asked, "Monsieur Slade, is it possible that you suffer from a loss of memory? Is that why you have asked these most peculiar questions? Why you had Monsieur Savage examine the marriage registry?"

"That's it exactly!" Morgan replied, as he seized upon the excuse offered for his odd behavior. Embellishing the theme, he prevaricated, "It is an old dueling wound, you understand? And sometimes certain events are hazy to me."

"Somewhat unnerving for your family and friends, I would suspect," Pere Antoine said dryly.

"I fear it is!" Morgan answered quite cheerfully. Glancing at Leonie's perplexed features, he added, "My wife has found it a great trial these past weeks, but I think now, after this enlightening conversation, that things will be much easier between us."

Wanting time to think, Morgan dragged Leonie out of the cathedral. Furious with himself for not realizing sooner what had happened, his brain was wildly sorting out the implications of what he had learned.
If only,
he thought viciously,
I had remembered receiving the news of Ashley's presence in New Orleans, that would have explained a great deal'

Morgan hadn't completely organized his racing thoughts, but he knew for damn certain now that Ashley had been impersonating him to his own advantage. And as the minutes passed, and he reviewed all he knew about the situation, he was inclined to believe that Leonie had also been Ashley's victim. The cold cynic in him objected on principle to such weak proof of Leonie's innocence, but his heart would have none of it—she
had
to be innocent!

As he drove the horses through the narrow streets, Leonie was quiet for several moments. Finally she asked, "Is it true, monsieur? Is that wound the reason you have acted so strangely?"

For a second Morgan's mind went blank. Unwilling to try to explain what he thought had happened—and still uncertain of her possible involvement in the scheme—he replied, "Yes. But I have never let my family know the full extent of my injury. It would trouble my parents too much, I fear, so it has been not discussed in the family. I should have told you about it earlier."

Suspicious, Leonie stared at him, trying hard to ignore the attraction between them. "You are telling me the truth? You are not lying? This is not just another way to avoid repaying my dowry?"

Morgan took a deep breath, torn between the desire to curse and laugh at the same time. Cynicism aside, he wanted nothing more than to kiss her soundly and tell her the truth, but this was not a propitious time. She was far more likely to box his ears than to respond passionately to his embrace. He was certain that given the situation between them, if she
were
innocent and he attempted to explain about Ashley, she would be convinced that it was only another delaying tactic. But wanting to reassure her, he said, "This is not a trick, Leonie." Ruthlessly throttling the lingering doubt, his face hard, he continued, "As for your dowry, I'll start making arrangements for it to be paid to you, just as soon as I can see my business agent here. By the end of the week you should have your damned money!"

Instead of the triumph she had expected to feel at these words, Leonie found herself strangely bereft, as if her protective armor had been stripped from her. She tried to tell herself that she
was
overjoyed at his unexpected capitulation, but her apparent victory filled her with an aching hollowness. Once Morgan had repaid the money, there would be no reason for them to continue their marriage.
No reason at all,
Leonie thought painfully, squeezing back sudden, hot tears. The agreement they had signed before their marriage had made that
quite
clear.

The news of his old dueling wound did much to explain his erratic behavior and she felt her heart fill with sympathy for him. It must have been galling for him, she decided miserably, to have accepted her accusations of treachery and her assertion that she was his wife, when he couldn't even remember marrying her! No wonder he had been cruel at times! He must have thought she was an unprincipled jade!

Curiously, she asked, "Does the wound trouble you overmuch, monsieur? I mean, does your memory come and go?"

Morgan muttered, "Er, no, it doesn't. Our marriage seems to be the only major event I have ever forgotten."

Leonie frowned. "But you
do
remember it now?" she asked.

Morgan debated again the wisdom of more lies and decided against it. Sooner or later he was going to have some unpleasant explaining to do and the more truth he told now, the better off he was going to be then. He didn't relish the prospect of telling Leonie about Ashley, especially since she was so understandably mistrustful of him, but he disliked even more the idea of pretending knowledge he didn't have. Unable to look at her, he said only, "No... not exactly."

Leonie threw him a speculative glance, the lingering distrust obvious in the green eyes. "But when you spoke to Pere Antoine, you implied you remembered everything!"

Morgan swore softly under his breath and replied, "I know that the marriage took place... but I don't know the events that led up to it." Looking across at her, he asked, "Would you mind telling me how the marriage came about? I'm afraid the times you have spoken of it in the past, I didn't pay much attention." Giving her a lopsided grin, he added honestly, "I was too busy telling myself what a convincing little liar you were."

Uncertain whether to take umbrage at his words or not, Leonie regarded him for a moment. Coming to the conclusion that if he
hadn't
remembered the marriage that he deserved some explanation, she told him how her grandfather had decided it was time for her to marry.

"It was only after he died," she said, "that I learned from our physician that
grand-pere
had known he didn't have long to live.
That
was why he was in such a hurry to marry me off." Smiling tentatively at Morgan, she went on, "I was furious when he first told me about the marriage! And I wasn't happy when he mentioned
you
either! He told me that he had met you at the governor's house and that it was all decided... everything, that is, but the dowry."