She ignored the mockery in his question and said brusquely, "I was studying the survey. You said it was accurate?"
"As accurate as Medford could make it, but there are always surprises."
"Those penalties could leave me with almost nothing if anything goes wrong."
He nodded. "Aye, that's true, but there are always penalty clauses in any contract."
"Even the maharajah didn't insist on this heavy a penalty. Lower the first penalty to twenty percent and the second to ten."
He shook his head. "You knew I wouldn't agree to that, or you wouldn't have already signed the contract. Lowering the penalties would lessen the incentive. I want you to work very hard to complete my railroad on time, Jane."
"You want to see me slave at your command and then lose everything."
"That would be one way to punish you, wouldn't it?" He smiled. "Do you wish to tear up the contract?"
She had had little hope of getting him to give her better terms, but she'd had to make the attempt. "It will be done on time."
"Then I believe we have nothing more to discuss." He nodded politely. "I'll see you on Cinnidar."
She watched him walk away, bold, tough, and dauntingly confident.
But she would not be daunted by him, blast it.
She would give him his railroad and grab this chance for an independent life for herself and Li Sung. She would work harder than she ever had in her life and not give herself a chance to think of anything else.
The mandarin would not win this time.
Chapter 12
It is truly a palace," Li Sung murmured, his gaze on the massive structure on the hill. "But it is not what I'd expect of Ruel."
Jane's grasp involuntarily tightened on Bedelia's reins as she looked at the magnificent palace. Two rows of cypress trees bordered the sides of the road leading up to a courtyard whose center point was a large marble fountain. The central section of the palace was domed, with wings sprawling with faultless symmetry on either side. The long veranda, extending the entire length of the palace, was interspersed with eight arched columns and sported white marble fretted balustrades that shimmered like diamond lace in the late afternoon sunlight. Everything about the structure spoke of exotic beauty . . . and power. Ruel's power. At that moment she did not need such a potent reminder that this was Ruel's kingdom. "Why not? He always said he wanted a palace."
"Words are not actions. Men like him are not truly comfortable surrounded by luxury any more than we are."
"Well, at least Ian will be comfortable." Jane glanced over her shoulder at the large carriage containing Margaret, Kartauk, and Ian lumbering up the hill a few hundred yards behind them. "He stood the trip very well, didn't he? Much better than the trip to Scotland."
"He's stronger now." Li Sung's tone was abstracted as he narrowed his eyes against the glare of the sun setting beyond the palace. "I think I see Ruel on the veranda. Let us hurry."
The man on the veranda was only a blur of white from this distance but she, too, knew it was Ruel. Jane tensed and then forced herself to relax. She had been dreading this moment since they left Scotland and must not reveal any hint of nervousness when she again confronted him. "You go on. I'll stay with the carriage."
Li Sung gave her a shrewd glance. "You cannot avoid him for the next seven months."
"But I don't need to rush to meet him. I'm surprised you're so eager. You certainly didn't display any vast amount of enthusiasm when I told you I'd signed the contract."
"Because you were afraid. I've never seen you afraid before."
"I'm not afraid. It's a splendid opportunity that could mean a great deal to us. Naturally, I wish everything to go well."
"And why should you fear it will not?"
"I don't fear—you read the contract and Medford's report. We can do this, Li Sung."
"And the compensation is extraordinarily generous," he said thoughtfully. "Too generous."
"That penalty clause isn't all that generous, but Ruel will comply with the terms of the contract."
"Yes, he will keep his promise. I admit I feel better about the arrangement since we've arrived. Perhaps this Cinnidar is the paradise Ruel believes it."
"He never said it was paradise." She made a face. "And the problems Medford stressed in his report certainly don't indicate any celestial Eden. Jungle, steep mountain grades, marshlands, tigers, elephants."
"We can do this, Jane." Li Sung smiled faintly as he repeated her own words.
"Hoist with my own petard." She felt a sudden lightness of spirit. "Of course we can. Why do you feel better about it now?"
"I do not know. It is a feeling without a reason. I saw the island and it—" He hesitated.
"Called to you?"
"Do not put such nonsensical words in my mouth. Islands do not have voices with which to call."
"Ruel says this one called him."
"He spent years searching for gold. No doubt he saw the mountain and his miner's instinct prompted him to believe this foolishness."
"No doubt." She smothered a smile. Li Sung was, as usual, scoffing at the mystical even while obviously feeling its magnetism. "And to what instinct did you respond?"
"It was most probably the instinct to abandon that ship and get my feet on firm ground again. A man who cannot swim is always uneasy on water." He kicked his horse into a trot. "I will see you at the palace."
Her smile vanished as she watched him disappear around the curve of the road. Strange that both Ruel and Li Sung had felt the same magnetism for this place. Beauty? From that mist-shrouded mountain to the quaint village encircling the harbor, Cinnidar was undoubtedly lovely, but neither Li Sung nor Ruel was susceptible to mere scenery. Perhaps it was because the island possessed an almost magical ambiance. The air seemed lighter, easier to breathe, and yet the fragrances. . . vanilla, sandalwood, jasmine, the cedarlike odor of deodar and a hundred other scents too subtle to distinguish assaulted the senses with every breath.
Dear God, she was reacting as besottedly as Li Sung, she thought impatiently. Cinnidar was just a place like any other, a place she would mold to her needs as Ruel had molded it to his.
"Jane."
She turned to see Margaret's head poking out of the window of the carriage.
"How far? Do you see it yet?"
Jane silently pointed to the palace on the hill.
Margaret's eyes widened as her gaze followed the gesture. "Merciful heavens." She started to laugh. "I believe I'm impressed. The rascal always said he'd do it."
Two white-coated servants rushed to open the door of the carriage the instant it stopped before the entrance of the palace. Four muscular native men appeared a moment later, bearing a huge thronelike chair mounted on four carved poles and shaded with a scarlet-silk tasseled awning. Another boy grabbed Bedelia's reins and led Jane toward the hitching rail, where Ruel stood with Li Sung. Ruel was dressed all in pristine white, his suit and shirt as elegant and impressive as the palace that was now his home.
He nodded politely. "Jane." He stepped forward and lifted her from the mare. "Welcome to Cinnidar."