Once Upon a Temptingly Ruinous Kiss - Bree Wolf Page 0,120

ache crawling up her arm, but Leonora hardly felt it. Never would she have thought herself capable of what she had just done.

Fortunately, the evidence was still writhing in front of her on the floor, clutching his throat and gasping for breath.

Leonora felt countless eyes upon her. She knew her family to be close, standing around her in what felt like a protective circle. Yet, they had not interfered. They had allowed her to handle this on her own, their restraint telling her that they trusted her, her abilities.

And then there was Drake.

Leonora could all but sense him behind her. Strangely enough, she did not need to see him to know that he was proud of what she had just done. Always had he encouraged her. He had been the one to teach her the tools she had used tonight to defend herself. Yes, when Gillingham had surged toward her, there had been a moment when Leonora had wanted to crawl into a hole in the ground and hide.

But she had not.

Was it not the essence of bravery to face one’s fear? Those who never encountered fear would never learn how to be brave.

What a pity! For it felt wonderful. Never before had Leonora felt the way she did in this very moment. Her gaze rose to look upon the faces around her, faces she had known all her life and faces she had only ever seen here and there. Rarely had they paid close attention to her for Leonora had never been one to draw it to her person. Yet, tonight she was, and in a way she would never have expected.

This was her chance, and she would make the most of it.

Drawing in a deep breath, Leonora tried her best to remain calm in order to be heard by those around her. “You call me a harlot?” She glared down at Gillingham, taking a step closer, showing him that she would never again allow herself to be intimidated. “Well, I call you a demon. A devil.” She laughed, shaking her head. “But certainly not a gentleman. Noble birth or not, you are a vile sort of man and everyone should know that, should know your true face for you can no longer hide.”

As his coughing began to ease, Gillingham stared up at her in utter disbelief. She could still see fury and outrage swirling in his eyes, but Leonora no longer cared. He was no longer a threat.

Lifting her head, Leonora looked around at the guests assembled in the drawing room and crowding the doorway. Her eyes sought those of other young ladies attending tonight’s ball. “Women are always deemed unfit to make their own decisions, are we not?” She looked from one face to another, speaking to those she wanted to reach with her words. “All our lives, we are ruled by our fathers, brothers, and husbands, and the law deems it right that it should be so. We are ever dependent upon their judgment and goodwill, never free to choose for ourselves.”

Leonora could not help but think that understanding sparked in the eyes of many young women looking back at her. Indeed, they knew her words to be true, and that knowledge encouraged Leonora to continue on, to say her piece. “Yet, when a man, by all deemed the stronger sex, lays a hand on us against our will,” she glared down at Gillingham, feeling no small measure of satisfaction when he all but flinched upon finding her eyes returned to him, “it is we who are considered at fault. Is that not so?”

Straightening, Leonora took a step back and looked around the room, this time looking at the many men among the guests. Some glared back at her, furious that she would dare upset their world. A world that granted them power over others. Nevertheless, there were also those whose eyes radiated approval and understanding and compassion. “Is it not strange?” Leonora continued, looking around the room, once more seeking the eyes of women like her. “When it suits men, they deem us weak, incapable of making our own decisions. However, whenever there is blame to be assigned, it always falls upon us as though we are the ones who rule the world and can be found at the core of every decision.”

A dark chuckle rumbled in her throat, and she let it escape. She wanted it to be heard. “I made a mistake leaving the house that night,” Leonora admitted openly, knowing that it