The Mysteries of A Lady's Heart: A Clean & Sweet Regency Historical Romance Collection

by Abby Ayles

  The duke took down a length of rope that was circled together. It was not the thickest rope but it would do if he needed to tie anyone up. He also took down a long iron pry bar, which he put next to the locked doorknob.

  He pulled back on the prybar until he heard a snapping sound inside and the doorknob fell off. He pushed the door open, reached back, and took one of the lanterns from Lady Annabelle. “You will stay out here. The soot cellar is not a clean place to be. I will check to see if the reverend is in there.”

  “I do not want to be alone, my lord,” Lady Annabelle said in a pleading voice. She looked up at him, blinking rapidly in fear. She looked behind her, expecting to see the Balfours headed for them, ready to bind them up and shove them in the soot cellar too.

  “The soot cellar is no place for a lady,” the Duke of Cardinal insisted. “You must stay out here.”

  “I cannot, my lord. It is too late for us to be thinking about such delicacies. I must come with you.”

  “You will get terribly dirty.”

  She smiled at him. “It is nothing that cannot be washed off, my lord.”

  “It will ruin your dress.”

  Lady Annabelle was becoming a bit frustrated with the duke. “My lord, I insist I must come in. I cannot defend myself if I am out here alone and they cannot lock us in the soot cellar because you have just broken off the doorknob. I must come with you.”

  “You are correct. Just stay near me.”

  “I will be right by your side, my lord, I promise you.”

  The two went into the room together, the Duke of Cardinal in front just slightly, holding up his lantern. He reached back once they were in the cellar and grasped Lady Annabelle’s arm for a moment, making sure she was near enough for him to grab if he needed to keep her from falling.

  He reached out with the lantern and swung it from side to side, casting the light on the walls and corners.

  “Reverend? Are you here?”

  Chapter 38

  The Duke of Cardinal led Lady Annabelle toward the back of the soot cellar. It was not a large room but they moved slowly so as not to unrest the soot that was layered on the ground.

  In the corner was a huge pile of coal along one wall, creating a dark shadow when the lantern light passed over it. Lady Annabelle felt a chill run through her and she moved a little closer to the duke.

  “Reverend?” The Duke of Cardinal used a low voice but it echoed through the small room. He turned to the right and held out his lantern toward the corner. He took a step forward. “Reverend?”

  Lady Annabelle noticed the change in his voice. She moved around him and took a step forward, holding out her lantern the way he was. They stared for a second at what looked like a large folded rug propped up against the wall.

  “Oh no,” Lady Annabelle said quietly, hurrying forward before the duke could stop her. “Oh no, Reverend Stovington. Oh my.” She set the lantern down beside the rug and reached forward to unfold the top of it.

  The Duke of Cardinal stopped her with one hand. “Please, my lady, let me do this.”

  “I…” Lady Annabelle pulled her hand back, retreating a step or two to allow him in front of her.

  The Duke of Cardinal grasped the corner of the rug and pulled it back.

  They were staring at the face of the Reverend Stovington. He looked peaceful.

  “Oh, Reverend Stovington.” Lady Annabelle covered her mouth with one hand and turned her head away from the man in the corner.

  The Duke of Cardinal looked over his shoulder at her before touching his fingers to the side of the reverend’s neck. “He is still alive,” he said, much to Lady Annabelle’s relief. She sighed and turned back.

  “We must get him out of here immediately. We must find the Balfours before they have a chance to leave with the paintings.”

  The Duke of Cardinal nodded. “Yes. Hold the lanterns. I will carry him out.”

  Lady Annabelle quickly picked up the lanterns and followed the Duke of Cardinal when he hefted the reverend up into his arms and carried him through the open door to the outer part of the cellar. She went around him to the stairs so that she could shine the light while they went up into the church.

  “I must go fetch a doctor,” she said. “I wish that we had brought the carriage to the church. Now we will have to walk all the way back to get it.”

  “I will go for the carriage. You stay with the reverend.”

  “What if the Balfours return?”

  The Duke of Cardinal shook his head. “If there is one thing I believe about the Earl of Beldingshire and his sons, it is that they are not stupid. They must have known we would find the reverend. They have probably already loaded the paintings in a carriage and are heading out.”

  “Do you think you will cross their path?”

  “I do not know. But I believe you will be safe here with the reverend until I return or the doctor gets here, whichever is first.”

  The Duke of Cardinal laid the reverend down on the stage by the altar. “Get some water and a cloth, my lady. Try to clean him up as best you can.”

  When he laid the reverend down, some of the soot left from his feet and hair coated the stage underneath him. Lady Annabelle stared at it, thinking about what the reverend had been through in the past day.

  She did not want to picture how the Earl of Beldingshire and his sons got the reverend into the cellar. They must have hurt him somehow.

  “I will return.”

  The Duke of Cardinal hurried down the middle aisle and disappeared through the front door. Lady Annabelle watched until he was gone and then turned back to the reverend.

  “I am here, Reverend Stovington,” she said quietly, bending over him and touching his face. “I am here.”

  The Duke of Cardinal had not run in a long time. He felt a strong release of energy as he took off down the stairs and headed to where they had left the carriage. When he was past the tree line, he could see a dust cloud down the street.

  His instincts were right. The Earl of Beldingshire and his sons had taken the paintings and were leaving. His sense of urgency renewed and with another burst of energy, he ran to the carriage as quickly as he could. The horses were standing idle, waiting for their master. He jumped up in the carriage and snapped the reins.

  The Duke of Cardinal turned the carriage around and went after the Balfours, uncertain how he would get them to stop. He raced the horses as fast as they would go, knowing the Balfours were doing the same thing. They were in a wagon pulled by two horses instead of four. He was grateful because the extra two horses would have made it impossible for him to catch up.

  He concentrated on the dust cloud. It did not veer off the main road. They were headed to the city. He shook his head. They would not get away from him in the city. It was crowded and there was always at least one carriage or horse-drawn carriage on the road.

  Someone would surely stop them on the other side. And he needed to get the doctor, who was in the city, so he was going in the right direction.

  The carriage wheels jumped and hopped on the bumpy road, making the Duke of Cardinal bounce around in the seat. His body would be bruised from the rough ride but he did not care. He pictured the reverend in his mind.

  Too many people were being hurt by the pursuit of the three paintings. They were worth a lot of money but the Balfours would not even be able to sell them without being reported.

  He watched as the wagon in front of him got closer. Their horses were slowing down. He watched in satisfaction as he pulled up behind them. Lord Gilbert and Lord Leonard were both turned, looking back in his direction. They both looked terrified.

  The Duke of Cardinal was flattered since he had no real plan on how to get them to stop. He contemplated running up alongside their wagon and jumping over from the carriage. Not only was it three against one but he had never done such a stunt in his life and doubted he ever could. Perhaps when he was a very young man.

  He continued to chase them, leaning forward in the se
at as if it would make the carriage go faster.

  He could hear the young men calling out to their father to go faster.

  There was a curve at the end of the dirt road, where the street turned to smooth cobblestone and led into the city. From his position behind them, the Duke of Cardinal could see beyond the curve.

  Another carriage was approaching. He could not see who was driving it but they were about to crash into the Balfours. He slowed his horses down and let the Balfours pull out in front. The two young men in the back of the wagon looked at him in astonishment.

  He lifted one hand and pointed. The two turned and looked around the curve. They yelled to their father, who yanked back on the reins to get the horses to stop. Panicking, the animals reared back, both lifting up on their hind legs, causing the wagon to crash into them. The momentum was too high for the wagon to stop when they did.

  The Balfour men were thrown from the wagon. The Duke of Cardinal looked away for a moment, unwilling to see their bodies flying through the air. He had slowed his horses enough so that he was quickly by the side of the crazed animals.

  He stopped his carriage and jumped down, running to catch the bridle of the horses or jump in the wagon to stop them from tearing off down the road.

  He could not grasp the bridle quick enough as the animals were still rearing and whinnying in a panic. He decided to jump in the wagon. When he pulled himself up, he looked down on the back of the vehicle at the three paintings, stacked one on top of the other.

  Aggravated at the carelessness of the Balfour men, the Duke of Cardinal grabbed the reins and began calling to the animals to calm them.

  “Whoa! Whoa!” he said, pulling back gently on the reins.

  The animals came down on all fours once again and pawed at the ground, irritated.

  The carriage that had been coming in the direction of the church had stopped when the occupants saw the wreckage and the men laying on the ground. It was a couple, a man and a woman, dressed in fine clothing.

  They both looked shocked. The man got down from his seat and went around to help the woman, who took his hand without moving her eyes from the scene. She took in the two young men laying on the ground, their father not far from them in the grass nearby.

  “What has happened here?” the man said, coming up to the wagon and looking up at the Duke of Cardinal. “It looks like the animals were driven mad.”

  “They were driven hard, my lord,” the Duke of Cardinal replied. “But they will be fine. I am Duke Stephen Colbourn of Cardinal.”

  “I am William, the Duke of Rochester Island. This is my wife, the Duchess of Rochester Island.”

  “It is good to meet you, Your Grace. You were visiting with the reverend recently, were you not?”

  “Yes, that is right.”

  “He has been injured. He is at the church now. Please get him and bring him to Norrend. Do you know where Norrend is?”

  “Yes, I know the Duke of Norrend. That is, my wife knows the Duchess of Norrend.”

  “I am going to get the doctor. I will meet you at Norrend. Also, the daughter of the Duke of Norrend, Lady Annabelle, has stayed with the reverend. It would be so kind of you to give her a ride home since you will be taking the reverend there anyway.”

  “Oh yes, of course! My lord, we must go. There are people in danger.” The duchess was already heading back toward their carriage.

  Without another word but a single nod of their heads, the dukes went in separate directions. The Duke of Cardinal glanced over his shoulder once more to look at the paintings. So much trouble for these priceless works of art.

  Epilogue

  Several days later, Lady Annabelle knocked the croquet ball with her mallet and watched with satisfaction as it slid through two of the hoops. She smiled at the Duke of Cardinal, who just shook his head.

  “Remind me why I play this game with you, my lady,” he said in an amused voice. “I cannot win.”

  “You have won my heart, my lord,” Lady Annabelle said playfully. “I hope that is more important than a croquet game.”

  “Yes,” the Duke of Cardinal chuckled. “Yes, I must say it is much more important.”

  The ordeal they had just been through had exhausted them both. Once they were back at Norrend with the reverend, both of them went to their separate rooms and slept for a long time. Lady Annabelle did not find out what happened to the Balfours until the next day.

  Lord Gilbert suffered a broken leg and was unconscious for two days. His brother was also knocked unconscious but came to before his father and brother, while they were still alone in the road.

  He spotted the carriage the Duke of Cardinal had left behind, jumped in it, and left without a second of hesitation never to be seen again. He did not check on his father or brother.

  He could not have saved his father.

  Lady Annabelle felt sorry for the men, despite the harm they had caused. It seemed like the death of the Earl of Beldingshire, despite his unlawful ways, was too high a sacrifice to pay for three works of art, no matter how priceless they were.

  The family put together a celebration, inviting anyone who wanted to come to an impromptu party. They gave no real reason for the party. No one outside the Norrend home knew what had happened.

  Lady Annabelle moved up the hillside to stand by the Duke of Cardinal. She watched as Lady Julia took her turn, followed by Lady Joanna. She and the Duke of Cardinal did not speak, content to be near each other for the time being.

  They would have plenty of time to talk in the future, when they could have more privacy.

  Lady Julia smiled up at Lady Annabelle. “I am going to be as good as you someday, Lady Annabelle. You do know this, do you not?”

  Lady Annabelle just laughed. “You must practice more, Lady Julia. That is the only way to get better.”

  “Yes, I have been told that before.”

  “How is your mother? I heard she was feeling a little better.”

  Lady Julia stepped up to where they were, turning to watch her sister take her turn. “She is speaking more. And she is coming out of her room more often. It is… such a lovely feeling, Lady Annabelle. Such a lovely feeling seeing her coming out of the shell she has been in for so many years.”

  “I would like to invite her over as soon as you feel she is well enough. I have already asked permission from the duchess and she has agreed that it would be good for your mother to come and visit again after all these years. She entrusted the care of her two daughters to my family and Mother feels it would be only right for her to see how things have gone.”

  “I am grateful to the duchess for that,” Lady Julia nodded and then immediately shook her head, her eyes on her sister. “Lady Joanna, you are not holding that right. No, you must twist it just a little more to the right if you want it to go through the hoop.”

  Lady Joanna scrunched her nose at her sister. “I know what I am doing, Lady Julia.”

  Lady Julia shook her head. “I do not think you do, sister.”

  Instead of responding, Lady Joanna swung the mallet and hit the ball, sending it flying off to the right, completely missing the hoop. She turned and scrunched her face up again.

  “I do suppose I should have listened to you on that, sister, but you know how I am.”

  Lady Julia laughed and went down to banter with her sister on the hillside, pretending to show her the correct swing.

  Lady Annabelle watched them, feeling a warmth emanating from the Duke of Cardinal from where he stood next to her. She looked up at him and found him gazing at her. She smiled.

  “What is it, my lord?”

  “I am enthralled with you, Lady Annabelle. Your smile, your eyes, the way you care about your family and your friends. How is it that I could be so blessed?”

  “You have done many good things in your short life, my lord,” she replied.

  He grinned at her. “Thank you for the compliment. I do not feel as old now.”

  She gave him a shocked look. “My lord!
You are not old!”

  “I am older than you.”

  She scoffed, waving her hand in the air. “Do not be silly, my lord. That does not make you old. It makes you mature. If you were my father’s age, it might be closer to the truth.”

  The Duke of Cardinal threw back his head and laughed heartily. “Lady Annabelle, you have a wonderful sense of humor. I predict many laughs in our future.”

  “Oh, I do hope so,” Lady Annabelle replied. “I do love to laugh.” She caught his eyes and they exchanged warm looks.