Disclaimer: I don't own anything belonging to either Alexandre Dumas or his descendents.


Chapter Eight: What You Want to Hear

"Well, are you the man calling himself the Comte?" Athos sounded amused by the man's presumption, and faintly bored as well, "You're going to have a nice scar." Athos gestured towards the man's face.

"A present from a friend of yours, and by the by, why is everyone doubting my title?" The Comte asked from behind his desk.

"Perhaps because you're true name is Henri and you're a crook who used to con older matriarchs out of their fortunes." When the Comte winced Athos smiled, "You've come up in the world I see, Henri."

"Don't call me that." Henri the Comte snapped.

Athos just gave him a sideways smile.

"So, Athos isn't it? You've done your research. I've been hearing a lot about you lately. You are becoming a threat to years' worth of planning."

"I do what I can." Athos replied modestly.

Henri could see that this man could be dangerous. He desperately needed to regain the upper hand, but thanks to Gustav, he knew just what card needed to be played. "Have you ever tasted her? Elizabeth I mean." When Athos refused to be baited Henri continued, "I can see you haven't. She's sweet my friend, and with just the right seasoning of blood she's absolutely delicious."

Athos lunged forward, but Gustav had attached his chains to a bracket in the wall, he'd learned his lesson with Elizabeth. "You bastard, don't you dare presume to-"

"Presume? My good man, I presume nothing, I know."

Athos growled low in his throat and Henri laughed. He was interrupted by the entrance of another man. Devastatingly handsome, the new entry had not the girlish good looks of a courtier, nor the husky masculinity of a Musketeer. Rather, he was a blend of the two. Even Athos, despite his experiences and partiality to the fairer sex, could appreciate a man built so well.

"Ah!" Henri gestured the man forward, "I was just speaking to my good friend Athos here about his... companions." He put enough of a pause before the word to insinuate he thought there was more to their relationship.

"I thought we had agreed to put off all other interrogations until tomorrow." The man said in a level voice.

Henri winced and motioned Gustav forward. "Take him back."

"No." The man held up a hand and Gustav stopped. Athos noticed that the guard followed the man's orders over those of the imposter Comte. "Leave him. And you, go." Gustav bowed out and the man turned to Athos, "You know who I am?"

"You call yourself the Count de Fère." Athos replied.

The Count cocked his head to the side, "And you think not?"

"I know you are not."

The man smiled, it reminded Athos oddly of a snake. It wasn't a pleasant sensation, "I would be curious to know what makes you say that but it is of little import. What I really want to know is what plans you set in motion before you headed south to here." At Athos' stubborn silence the Count raised a hand and motioned Henri forward, "Fetch the girl, I think our friend needs to reassess his loyalties."

"No, don't!"

The Count crouched in front of him, "You have feelings for the girl." When Athos refused to answer, the Count laughed and motioned for Henri to fetch Elizabeth. "I will speak with her. Your friend and I have a, shall we say, history between us. We will speak, and then we shall see where her loyalties lie."

The Count rang for Gustav and had Athos taken to a room not far away. Then he waited.

"Get your hands off me you primordial baboon!" Elizabeth was drug into the room kicking. The Count waved Henri from the room and watched Elizabeth watch him leave.

"Elizabeth, how pleasant to see you again." Elizabeth whipped around, the voice oddly familiar.

"Philippe?" She whispered.

"Glad to see you remember an old lover. How long has it been, three years?"

"Five."

The Count grinned, "Who's counting?" He walked to her and tsked under his breath, "Now dearest Lizzy, what have you gotten yourself into?"

Elizabeth's eyes went wide with comprehension, "You are the Count de Fère."

The Count smiled, "Quick aren't you? I've come up in the world since we last met."

"I can see you have"

"Any regrets?"

"You mean other than not killing you? Not really."

"But my dear," the Count gestured expansively, "you could have been a Countess and mistress of all you see before you." He leaned closer to where she could feel his warm breath on her lips, "You could have been mine." He kissed her then, and despite Elizabeth's desire to be repulsed, she wasn't. Even after all they had been through, she still craved his touch. Her blood was pounding in her ears and she felt herself responding to his ministrations. He smiled against her mouth and made the kiss deeper.

She could think of only way to save herself the humiliation when he finally pulled his lips from hers. "Athos." She moaned.

He jerked his head back. For a moment he looked amazed, then angry, "So that's how it is, is it? You've found someone else to be your lapdog. Does he know your history, your family? I do. And yet I want you still." His hands were gripping her arms hard enough to bruise, but she ignored it.

"You're a fraud Philippe. You always were, and you always will be. I have no interest in you. You may want me, but I don't will never settle for you."

He growled under his breath, but recovered quickly. He rang and Gustav entered. "Watch her." He ordered, then stalked from the room.

"He's not whoever he's told you he his you know."

Gustav's head turned at the sound of her voice.

"When I knew him he was the son of a parson, and he was as likely to become a Count as I am to be Queen." When he still didn't answer Elizabeth continued. She babbled nonsense at him mostly: things about her family, the Count's family, how they knew one another.

"He is keeping me here against my will for no crime." She pleaded, "That's tantamount to kidnapping."

"Quit talking." Gustav snapped.

"Well, at least you can speak. You don't want to hear the truth though."

"I have my orders."

"From someone with no authority to give you any, haven't you been listening?" But Gustav had retreated back into his shell. "Damn you." She whispered.

Meanwhile, in a room down the hall, Philippe was having a discussion with Athos.

"You have a noble heart to help a lady you barely know."

"It's called honor, but a man like you would know little of that I think."

"I know more than you think. I was counting on you're misguided sense of honor to make you help dearest Lizzy. We both were counting on it."

"The Comte," Athos gave the word an insolent air, "is a buffoon."

"I wasn't talking about Henri."

"You lie!" Athos bit out, but his mind was already racing to conclusions. Aramis and d'Artagnan's suspicions, his own reticence. Damn him his foolish heart, he should have heeded his instincts and left her be.

"You really think so?" The Count replied. "It never occurred to you that my mistress was incredibly convenient? A beautiful woman who just happens to be interested in the same case you were working on? Whose idea was it to come south? Straight into my lair I might add."

"If she was working with you, why would you tell me?" Athos growled.

"Because the little whore didn't do her job. She was supposed to bring you and your servants, where are they by the by?" When Athos just gave him a blank look, the Count snarled at him, "I was offering you revenge, and you give me lies."

He turned to leave the room, but Athos stopped him. "What revenge?"

"Ah, so you do have fire in you somewhere. I was beginning to wonder."

"What revenge?" Athos repeated.

"Elizabeth thinks I still care for her, and that I hold her no grudge for her incompetence, she certainly doesn't know I've told you. I'll give her to you for an hour. Take what revenge you'd like."

"Why?"

"Haven't you ever heard the saying about the gift horse?" At Athos' stony silence, he relented. "The darling chit betrayed you, not me. Nothing I devised could come close to what you're dreaming up right now."

Athos thought a moment. "And what do you want in return?"

"Why does life always have to come in exchanges, couldn't I be doing this out of the sheer goodness of my heart?" Athos raised an eyebrow. "Alright, alright. In exchange, I want you to go back to you king and your Monsieur Trèville and act as though you've never been here. You found nothing, nothing happened."

"I can't put my king in danger."

"If I kill you now, won't he be in even more?"

Athos wanted to deny him, he desperately wanted to. But the flames of hatred were already burning bright in his heart. Once, he had believed in a woman and been betrayed. This time, he would strike first, before she could get a handle on his heart and hurt him the way Ann had. Somewhere, in the back of his mind, he could hear a voice telling him to stop, but he ignored it.

"You sent her to bring us here, but you let us leave the same day, where's the sense in that?"

"I already told you, she was supposed to make sure no one was left to look for you. Namely, your servants. Without them where I can find them, you're too much of a risk to me."

Athos had already decided, but he had wanted confirmation of facts. "Fine, I accept your offer, and in return, I will leave Auvergne, on my word of honor, as a gentleman."

"And not return?" The Count clarified.

"I will not return in search of you, and if my business takes me here again, I will not seek you out."

The Count rubbed his hands together. "Very well then, shall I have your chains removed?" Athos held up his hands in silent assent and the Count called a guard in to take care of it. "Anything else I can do for you? A whip perhaps?"

"Privacy." Athos bit out through clenched teeth.

"Of course." The Count bowed his head a bit. "I will have Elizabeth fetched." Before he left the Count turned and studied Athos for moment. Apparently, he like what he saw. "Have a pleasant evening, I will have a guard sent in one hour after she is admitted."

"Fine."

Athos waited in the silence of the chamber, his head reeling, but his soul on fire. The bitch had betrayed him. She had used him the same way Ann had, and this time he would be ready. First, he'd make her confess, and then, once she'd thrown herself on his mercy, he'd show her none. Where once in his heart had been the hope of love, now the spot lay empty. There was no room in him for love.

The door opened and Elizabeth entered, her wrists still encased in shackles. "Athos!" She ran across the room and threw herself into his arms, "I was so worried!" She looked around the chamber, "But what are you doing in here?"

"Waiting on you, my dear."