A solitary park in London—October 1811
A solitary park in London—October 1811It was the kind of wager Lucien had come to like best.
A dangerous one.
With very long odds against him.
Which was precisely why he had proposed it.
On this misty morning, he stood not a dozen paces away from Eugene Tremblay, Marquess of Lyndenhurst, the man he despised most in all the world. It was just dawn, and the first touch of the red sun could be seen on the horizon. Lyndenhurst lifted his dueling pistol, one of a fine pair brought by Lucien, and took his aim. Lucien let his weapon hang at his side and waited. Lyndenhurst squinted down the barrel. Lucien took a breath, and his opponent fired.
A flock of ducks quacked with indignation at the sound and noisily took flight from the river.
The blow struc
