by Leah Conolly
Edward ordered Elizabeth’s plate filled with food. Elizabeth simply watched as the cakes and sandwiches piled up on her plate. She already knew that she wasn’t going to eat anything.
“Please eat, Elizabeth,” pleaded Edward. The phrase was beginning to sound so wearily repetitive. “You have not had anything all day. Look,” he added with a smile, “your favorite sandwiches!”
“I appreciate your effort, Father, but I am still not hungry.” She took a few sips of tea, hoping that it would appease him.
Edward heaved a great sigh. “Elizabeth, please tell me what I can do.”
Elizabeth paused then looked into her father’s eyes. “You would not understand, as much as you try. I feel like I am a piece of property being sold off, not a woman being given in marriage.”
“You will be in good hands after tomorrow, Elizabeth. I will ensure it.”
Tomorrow. Elizabeth couldn’t believe that the minutes and hours were still passing, that the day was drawing nearer and nearer.
“What if you are wrong? What if I am miserable with Lord Huxley?”
Edward seemed to think deeply about the question. “There is a brighter side to every situation,” he said eventually. “When I lost your mother, I thought I could never see anything good in the world ever again.” He looked away from her. For a moment, Elizabeth’s heart softened. He had rarely ever talked about her mother’s death.
“But there was something else I had to live for, and that was you. Your mother charged me with looking after you and making sure you would be cared for when you got older.” He met her gaze, and his voice trembled. “Please believe me, Elizabeth. I am doing the best that I can. I’m sorry that the fate of saving the estate has fallen on you. It was never what I wanted.” He looked down at the table, his folded hands fidgeting. “I do not think it was what your mother would have wanted either.”
Elizabeth wasn’t sure that she had ever seen her father display so much emotion or be so honest with her. Elizabeth put her hand over his. “I’m sorry, too, Father.” She saw the pity in his eyes and knew that he couldn’t be sure of her happiness, however much he wanted to be.
Tomorrow was coming, looming before her like a terrible monster from a fairy tale. But at least now Elizabeth could take comfort in knowing for sure that her father had done his best.
Chapter 38
After James sat in silence for a few minutes following Victoria’s arrest, he went upstairs and informed his family that everything was safe. “Though I must warn you,” he added, “there are still constables in the house who want to speak with me. Do not be afraid of them. They are only here to help.”
“Real constables?” Oscar asked, excitement in his eyes. “May I speak to them, Father? I want to know how they catch thieves and murderers!”
James chuckled. “I will see if I can arrange a conversation.”
As Miss Ludwig took Oscar aside for a lesson, Erin pulled James aside. “Will you tell me what happened?” she asked insistently.
“Yes,” he said, glancing over to make sure Oscar was fully entertained. He didn’t want him to hear the full tale quite yet. “I’m afraid that the Countess of Chester has been apprehended for murder.”
Erin started and lost her balance. James reached out to steady her. “Forgive me, Mother. I suppose I might have said it too abruptly. Are you all right?”
“Yes,” she breathed, putting a hand to her chest. “That is rather dreadful news. She was here, in our home, not all that long ago! And I got on so well with her!”
James sighed. “Well, yes, unfortunately, her looks and manners were rather deceiving. I know this is quite a shock.”
“But how?” breathed Erin. “How did you know? What did you do?”
“It was Elizabeth.” He shook his head. “So brilliant, so clever. She figured it all out. The countess tried to poison Elizabeth. That’s why she became ill before the ball. She wrote me a letter just before she left for Deuney Keep. I couldn’t tell anyone about it for fear that the countess would hear of it and elude justice. So, I invited her here and had the constables search her home for solid evidence. They found some and brought it here, then arrested the countess.”
“What sort of evidence?”
“Poison disguised as a flask of brandy. I’m afraid she killed her late husbands.”
“Oh, how terrible,” Erin said, clearly distressed. “That is so awful!”
“I know.” James frowned. “I confess that even after the wrong she has done, it gave me no satisfaction to watch her being taken away. She is a sad and depraved creature. However, I am glad that I will never have to see her again.” He dragged a hand over his face. “I must tell Isabelle. She will not take this well.”
“You must tell Elizabeth as well, and thank her,” Erin insisted.
“Yes,” James murmured. He had known that he would write to Elizabeth, so she knew he was safe, but there was something else tugging at his mind. Somehow it didn’t seem as though a letter would be enough. Besides, for the moment, he had other things to deal with. “The constables want to talk with me,” he continued, “but they should not be in your way downstairs.”
James went back down and found Mr. Lock waiting for him in the drawing room. He stood as James walked in and nodded in greeting.
“I must thank you, my lord, for bringing such a criminal to our attention. I’d like to tell you exactly what we found if that’s all right with you.”
“Of course.” James took a seat across from Mr. Lock.
“We not only found that flask, which from your description was what she carried around to poison people with, but we found large quantities of poison to refill it. It seems to be cyanide mixed with other substances.”
James’ mouth fell open. He couldn’t even speak for a moment. To think of how much time that he had spent in the presence of this woman, and all the while, she had been carrying around cyanide.
“I know it is shocking, sir. It’s hard to think that anyone is capable of something so cruel. Cyanide doesn’t just kill. It’s a painful way to go. It ultimately causes heart failure, which fits the diagnoses of both of the countess’s husbands. I’m not sure what went wrong with your friend Lady Gladstone. Perhaps the countess got a bad batch of cyanide or the lady didn’t drink enough—”
James put up a hand. Just the thought of Elizabeth dying so painful a death was making him feel sick. “Thank you, sir, I understand.”
“Forgive me, my lord, I got carried away. In addition to the poison, we also found several valuable items that belonged to her late husbands, hidden in her quarters. We did some research and found that most of the items were supposed to be given to other relatives according to the wills, but at the time the wills were read, the items were not to be found.”
James shook his head. “I can hardly believe it. This is worse than I could have ever imagined.”
“That’s the end of the case, my lord. There’s plenty of evidence against the countess, and there’s no doubt that she’s a murderer.”
James just sat for a moment, taking it all in.
“Is there anything else you need from me, my lord?”
“No, no. You have been a great help, Mr. Lock. I must thank you.”
“The Bow Street Runners are indebted to you for bringing this to our attention.” Mr. Lock smiled sadly. “I know it is difficult to discover that someone you know is so cold-hearted, but do not let it trouble you any longer. Know that everyone is safe and let that be enough.”
Mr. Lock stood to leave, but James remembered something and shot to his feet. “Just a moment. My son wished to speak with a real constable. He finds your line of work rather fascinating. Could you or one of your colleagues spare the time to have a short conversation with him? Making sure to leave out the most gruesome bits, of course.”
The old man’s smile lit up his whole expression. “I’d be more than happy to, my lord.”
James thanked him and arranged for Miss Ludwig to bring Oscar down to s
peak to Mr. Lock. Meanwhile, James knew that he had to write to Isabelle as soon as possible. This would be a huge blow to her.
Just as he sat down to write his letter, his butler came to him. “My lord, there are several people trying to call on you.”
James looked up with a frown, abandoning his letter. “Several people? What do you mean, Wood?”
Wood fidgeted, looking like he didn’t want to be the bearer of this news. “There is a crowd outside, my lord. Lady Kinsley, Lord and Lady Grant. They seem to be inquiring after the Countess of Chester.”
James clenched his hand into a fist. How had word gotten out so quickly? Perhaps Victoria’s screams had attracted attention, and then the gossip had spread from there.
“Tell them to ask the Bow Street Runners if they have any questions. I do not want my involvement to be advertised all over London.”
“Very well, my lord.”
A few minutes passed before Wood announced Isabelle. Her eyes were filled with tears as she rushed towards him. “Is it true, James, what they are saying? Please tell me it is a mistake!”
James stood and helped Isabelle into a chair. He ordered some brandy to be brought, though the thought of brandy still made him shudder a little, as he sat down beside his friend.
“Isabelle, I am so sorry you had to find out this way. I wanted to be delicate when I told you. Indeed, I was just about to write to you when Wood said you were here.”
Isabelle took in short gasps of air and began fanning herself. “But Victoria, she…, she was my friend.” She began sobbing and hunched over, her body heaving. Tears spilled all over her gown.
“Isabelle,” James breathed, putting a comforting hand on her back. “My dear friend, I’m so sorry this had to happen to you. I wish this had not occurred, if only to save you this grief. You do not deserve it.”
“Is it true,” she said, getting her voice a little under control, “that she killed both of her husbands? That she was a murderer the whole time I knew her?”
James sighed. “I’m afraid so,” he said gently. “You could not have known. None of us could have. She deceived everyone.”
Isabelle cried some more. “It is only now that I think back after what has happened and realize that she never treated Elizabeth well, or you, for that matter. She was not a kind person, but I was taken in because she acted like she was a friend to me. She never really was, was she?”
“Please do not blame yourself, Isabelle. Victoria is a cunning woman, and you are not the first to be taken in by her claims of friendship.”
“You have been the only true friend to me, James. I have never thanked you enough for what you have done for me.”
“You are a good friend to me, Isabelle. You helped me out of my darkest time after Braith died, and I will never be able to repay you for that. So, consider our debts to each other equal.”
She smiled up at him through her tears and tried to laugh a little. “Then as your friend, I must tell you something very important. I was too afraid to say it because it was contrary to Victoria’s opinion, but James, you must write to Elizabeth. I know that she cares for you immensely, even after what happened. Lord Huxley is such a vile man, and I would hate to see her married to him.”
James’s breath quickened. As Isabelle spoke the words, he knew in his heart it was exactly what he had been longing to do. It wasn’t enough for him to tell her about Victoria’s arrest. He had to make things right. “Isn’t she getting married tomorrow?”
“I believe so.”
James sighed. “Then there is no time. A letter will not get there before tomorrow.” He paced for a few minutes then stopped. “There is only one thing I can do. I will ride to Deuney Keep through the night.”
Isabelle stood. “But James—”
“I must.” He ran a hand through his hair. “If Elizabeth still cares for me as I care for her, we must talk to each other. I must apologize for how I treated her and let her know that Victoria has been brought to justice.”
Isabelle stared at him like she was going to protest again, but then she nodded. “Then send her my greetings as well. Write to me or come see me as soon as you can to let me know what happens.”
“Of course.” James’s mind worked quickly. “There is no time to waste. I must tell my mother what is going on and leave immediately. A carriage will be too slow. I will go on horseback.”
Isabelle shook her head and let out a short laugh. “You really must be in love, James.”
James laughed too. “Yes,” he chuckled breathlessly. “Yes, I think I am.”
Chapter 39
Elizabeth awoke, already feeling an overwhelming sense of dread. She had barely slept the night before, constantly waking from nightmares and the dread that boiled in the pit of her stomach. It was the day she had feared, the day she had hoped would never come. Her wedding day.
There was a knock at her door. Edward Gladstone entered with a smile. “Ah, good morning, Elizabeth. I wanted to make sure you were awake. Today is your big day!”
“Yes,” Elizabeth sighed. “I know.”
Edward nodded and looked like he was about to leave, but he paused. “Your mother would be proud of you for doing the right thing, Elizabeth. You are so strong.”
“Thank you, Father.” Elizabeth couldn’t manage to say any more than that. It was all over. Today was the first day of the rest of her miserable life.
“I will see you soon. Please do not be late coming downstairs.” Once again, he paused, but then walked out of the door.
Elizabeth sighed. Her maid came in and asked if she wanted to start getting ready. Elizabeth waited a minute or two before replying.
“I suppose so.” Elizabeth got up and dutifully sat in front of her mirror. Her maid immediately began to arrange her hair. She had asked Elizabeth how she wanted it a few days ago, and Elizabeth had said she didn’t care. The maid had tried to press her, but Elizabeth had replied the same every time. She didn’t care how she looked.
As much as she tried not to, she thought of Lord Huxley. She saw that look of greed on his face and knew it would be the same look he’d give her when she walked down the aisle. She shuddered.
“Are you all right, my lady?”
“I’m well.” Elizabeth looked at herself in the mirror. She looked pale and gaunt with bags under her eyes, a result of her miserable condition for the past two weeks.
She had hoped to have heard from James by now. He should have sent a reply, if only to say that he didn’t believe her. He could have written to her to tell her that he wished her well, despite what had happened, but there had been nothing. She had asked about letters every day just to be sure, but there was nothing for her. It seemed James had already forgotten about her.
Once the maid finished her hair, Elizabeth looked at her work. “You have done an excellent job,” Elizabeth said sincerely. It looked beautiful, her long golden locks arranged in braids around her head. She only wished that James could appreciate it rather than Huxley.
It was time to step into the wedding gown. Elizabeth almost cried as her maid helped her with the white dress, but she held back her tears. Such a beautiful gown to be wasted on such a terrible day.
Elizabeth couldn’t bear to look at herself dressed as a bride. She didn’t feel like a bride at all. She felt more like livestock that had been groomed to be sold off.
She felt weak, and a spell of dizziness came over her. She reached out for the wall and held herself up, trying to breathe evenly.
“Are you well, my lady?” the maid asked worriedly.
“I am fine. I only need a little water.”
“Very well.” The maid rushed out of the room to collect it for her.
A few tears slipped down Elizabeth’s cheeks, and she held a hand over her mouth to quiet a sob. How could this be happening?
Chapter 40
James rode hard, as he never ridden before. Even as his horse’s hooves thundered across the terrain, he felt that his steed wasn’t fast enoug
h. What if he came all this way only to reach Elizabeth too late?
The thought stirred him fully awake. He had almost slipped off the saddle a few times, but now that he was this close to Deuney Keep, he was determined to make it there in one piece.
After what seemed like days, he finally saw the familiar estate appear in front of him. He grinned despite himself. The morning sun was only just rising over the horizon. He desperately hoped he had made it in time.
James jumped off his horse and knocked at the door. The butler opened it and tried to disguise his shock with a well-placed cough, but James could read his surprised expression easily.
“Good morning, my lord. Please come in.”