Author's Note: I know I said not till Wed...I lied... SW is Wed...tomorrow is tests/class... so... I will leave you in suspense no longer... feedback...and thanks to Heather and Nicole. Meg

D'Artagnan had not slept at all. His had ruminated over the letter and its implications carefully. At first light, he had gotten up and paced the floor until the servant had appeared with the promised letter. He had taken it and was so engrossed in reading it that he did not even notice the servant leave the room. The contents of that letter made his blood boil. He quickly dressed and got the box, the one with the treaty and papers and headed for the bottom of the ship, the cargo hold as requested. His angry grew with each step he took.

She was wide-awake now. The evil man, whom she could now identify, had fed her once again and now he stood in the shadows as if waiting for someone, who she did not know. The sound of someone coming down caused her to look up. Relief flooded into her as she saw a musketeer uniform coming down the stairs. Her mind began to process this and she wondered what she could do to help.

D'Artagnan clutched his rapier and the box tightly. He knew what this man would want. D'Artagnan also knew he would immolate himself for her. He could feel the dampness of the air and a shiver ran down his spine as the coolness. His eyes adjusted to the darkness and he could see a figure at the far end of the room. Her hair was down, damp and stuck to her face. Even with this, he could see the fear in her eyes, followed by relief as she recognized him. Her hands were tied and she had a gag over her mouth. His angry grew again, followed by his heart tearing into pieces at the sight of her wretched state. "Come out, I am alone!" He shouted into the darkness.

The man emerged and he could make out the form of Lord Rochester. "D'Artagnan, I see you have met our good lady." He gestured to Jacqueline who watched them intently. He walked over to her dragging her roughly to her feet by her hair. D'Artagnan had to restrain himself or she could be hurt worse. Lord Rochester spoke, "She is unharmed and will remain so if you hand over that box."

D'Artagnan sat the box down walked a few feet away never taking his eyes off them. Jacqueline could see his rapier and saw her opening. She kicked Lord Rochester with all the strength she had left and he fell to the ground pushing her back a few feet. D'Artagnan wasted no time, rapier in hand he ran at him. He struck at him and Lord Rochester rolled to the side throwing a box at him. D'Artagnan barely managed to duck it and Jacqueline gasped. D'Artagnan struck again, this time hitting him in the stomach and he went unconscious. D'Artagnan then ran over to Jacqueline and removing her gag, he leaned down and kissed her. He then removed her bonds and her hands flew around him. "Jacqueline my love, you are safe now."

She tried to respond, but the room had started to spin and then everything went black. D'Artagnan carried her limp body up the stairs and shouted for help as he saw a servant. The servant ran to him. "Quick! Get a doctor!" D'Artagnan watched as his orders were carried out promptly.

The doctor came and looked at her briefly. He ordered her taken to bed immediately, but declared her in no immediate danger. He checked Lord Rochester and declared him safe enough to take to secure quarters until the ship docked and the proper authorities could be alerted. The servants were questioned, and the one that had betrayed them was confined to quarters as well.

The doctor came by to check on Jacqueline. He checked her pulse and then pulled the covers up around her. Jacqueline had not yet regained consciousness and it had been over an hour. D'Artagnan paced the room as the doctor looked over her. "My lord," the doctor said walking over to him. "She has a fever and a chill. I am concerned that she has not wakened; it is unusual."

The doctor frowned and d'Artagnan began to panic. "Will she," he paused, choking on the words. "Will she die?"

The doctored sighed, "No, her injuries are minor." A soft groan caused them to turn back to her. The doctor raced over and felt her head and smiled. "See to it she is given proper food and water." The doctor continued, "She is to stay in bed for a few days at least, until the fever breaks." D'Artagnan nodded slowly and rushed over to the servants to have food ordered.

Jacqueline opened her eyes slowly. Everything was out of focus and fuzzy. She could see light and she knew she had been moved. Suddenly, d'Artagnan was over her. She blinked away the fuzziness until she could see only one d'Artagnan. He began to smile and she heard a tray being moved toward them. D'Artagnan began to spoon soup in her mouth gingerly and he handed her a cup of water to drink. She started to sit up and he stopped her. "Jacqueline, the doctor said stay put." She felt weak and also sick again. He took her hand. "Sweetheart, I thought I had lost you." He looked down at her face and brushed her hair out of the way. "I love you and I want you to marry me."

She looked at him shock in her eyes. She swallowed, "Edmund, when you left I…"

He stopped her. "Forget that, just say, yes."

Jacqueline sighed, "Edmund, I choose you." He looked down at her, confusion in his eyes. She lifted her hand weakly to his face and brushed against it. "When I said Charles was not the one I love, I meant that I love you. I just did not get the chance to say it." She could see the tears in his eyes, as he understood her words.

"You could have been Queen, had anything…" He trailed off as she frowned.

"Everything but you and what I want is you."

He leaned over and kissed her lightly. "We can get married within a month and move into the cottage of course, and then have children…"

Jacqueline raised an eyebrow. "You want children?"

He smiled. "Maybe not right away, but a half a dozen or so would be nice."

Jacqueline's face paled. "Half a dozen?"

He shrugged. "Or so; it does not matter much to me."

Jacqueline felt weaker. "I need to rest now." He nodded and walked away to let her rest alone.