by Alexia Praks
Mrs. Ross looked at Christine, and then she said, “Master Chris, you should be downstairs; the earl is waiting for you at the stables.”
Christine looked up to Mrs. Ross in confusion, “In the stables?”
“Aye, in the stables. Now you should go else his lordship will not be happy.”
Christine looked from Mrs. Ross to Emma and then to the doctor. Dr. Liam was still tending to Emma. He wouldn’t be ready to leave her yet. Reluctantly, she walked out the door and down to the stables.
Down at the stables Merrick said, “Come, we have things to do.”
“Things to do?” Christine asked in confusion.
He was smiling at her with amusement; his eyes twinkled. He walked off, leaving her behind. She caught up with him in a few seconds, then she slowed down to walk beside him. She sensed him looking at her and glanced up at him. He grinned at her. They came to the front gate and saw Jacob there with two handsome horses and a curricle.
“Are we going somewhere?” she asked.
“We have things to do,” he said again. They walked to the curricle as Jacob jumped down from the driver’s seat.
“Afternoon, my lord,” the stable master said, lifting his hat in salute.
“Jacob.” Merrick nodded, gracefully climbed onto the carriage, and took the reins. Jacob signaled for Christine to climb onto the seat next to Merrick. Without hesitation, Christine climbed on and sat comfortably next to Merrick. He smiled at her and flicked the reins. The horses moved forward. They traveled in quietness.
Then twenty minutes later, Christine blurted out, “Merrick, I went to see Claire this morning.”
Merrick turned from contemplating the lovely scenery to look at her.
“I was curious,” she explained. “I saw a lady coming out her room when I was going to go in. I heard them talking, too,” she commented and looked up at him to see if she could see any reaction on his face. Nothing. No expression whatsoever. She continued. “I saw that the lady has blond hair, and when I went in to see Claire, she looked ever so scared. I asked her questions, but she said she couldn’t tell, and she wouldn’t.” She turned to Merrick abruptly. “Oh, and I went to see Emma too. She isn’t very well at all, and she was all shaken, and she said some strange things. I think she saw what happened to Claire. The doctor said she was in shock. It was terrible, and she said there was a woman who laughed like a witch, and there was also a man. The man has red hair, and he is fat. Merrick, do you think that Claire’s lover wasn’t actually the one who did that to her? Do you think?” Christine asked, staring up at him, hoping for an answer.
Merrick gazed down at her for a long while, then he said, “Don’t worry about it, love. The magistrate will soon find out.”
“But Merrick, this is important,” she explained.
“Now, love.” He smiled at her.
Christine sighed. When she opened her mouth to utter something, he caught her head with both his strong hands and pushed her lips against his. He kissed her roughly. After a moment, he pulled her back, staring at her. He smiled. “Now, love, be quiet. All right?”
Christine looked at him for another long while, and then she nodded. She placed her head against his shoulder. He gave a flick of the reins so that the horses galloped faster.
“She was very beautiful, wasn’t she?” Christine mused.
“Who was beautiful?” he said, frowning down at her.
“Your wife, Lady Angela.” She looked up at him. He stared down at her hard and long. Then he nodded.
“She was.”
“You loved her very much then?” she whispered.
Merrick sensed the fear in her voice. He could tell she felt insecure.
“Yes, I did. She and Frederic were my life. When they were gone, I had nothing left. I was lost and alone. There was nothing but emptiness within me. But something happened.” He stared deep into her eyes.
She waited. When he didn’t continue, she asked, “What happened?”
“Something happened to change my life,” he said, half smiling down at her, his eyes flaming with blue-green fire.
“What was that?” she whispered, her heart pumping wildly in her chest, waiting, wanting to know.
His head came to hers. His breathe tingled her face. “You,” he whispered near her ear.
Her heart stopped beating for a full second, then it began pounding again. She slowly looked up then into his face and saw him smiling at her with love.
“Me?”
“Aye, you.”
“Why?”
“You reminded me of my brother the first time I saw you. I cannot abide cruelty. I couldn’t stand watching Mr. Brad whipping you.” He removed one hand from the reins, and his fingers stroked her cheek. Christine nodded her head.
“What happened to Frederic?” she asked.
“He was stolen from me. He was twelve years old when they kidnapped him and sold him on the black market. I searched for him. It took me six months, and then I found him working in a mill. I went to get him. The day I saw him, they whipped him almost to death. He was in the very same state as you when I found you. I couldn’t stand that. I had to save him. I had to save you,” he said, staring down at her. Then he smiled, and his strong white teeth flashed in the sunlight though his eyes were very sad.
“I took him with me. I knew he had the mill fever. He was so thin. He died there in the forest. Then that night I received a message. It was from Allan, and he said Angela died from a fever. I was deeply in grief. I lost the two most important people to me in the world.” He gritted his teeth for the recollection of the past was painful. But he had to share it with her. He felt a great relief to share his past with her.
She heard the grief in his voice and laid her head against his shoulder, hugging him to her. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry, my love. I found you. You have replaced what I lost. You fulfill the emptiness inside me. You are my whole world now. Remember that,” he said, kissing her forehead.
“I will, Merrick. I always will,” she whispered again. They rode on in silence.
Twenty minutes later, they arrived in Hammingshire town. The vehicle drew to a stop, Merrick got out, and he helped Christine down. He led her into a store. Once they were inside, a woman came to greet them with a big smile on her face.
“Ah, good afternoon, my lord. I see that you are here as promised. I am ready to measure you if you would follow me,” Mrs. West said.
Merrick chuckled.
“Why, my lord, you are not following me?” she asked in surprise.
“It’s not me you are measuring,” Merrick told her and dragged Christine in front of him to show the woman. Mrs. West stared at Christine for a long while.
“Well, umm, if you would please follow me then.” She led the way to the back of the store.
Christine looked up at Merrick, her confusion clearly showing in her eyes. He smiled at her and then dragged her to Mrs. West. They entered one of the small rooms.
“Now, then let’s choose the material and the kind of breeches and shirt you shall have, lad,” the woman said, bringing out dark cotton materials.
“Not breeches, Mrs. West,” Merrick told her, chuckling.
“Not breeches, my lord?” Mrs. West asked, her eyes wide in confusion.
“It’s gowns that we want,” Merrick supplied.
“Gowns, my lord?” the woman asked, her mouth opened in the form of an O.
“Aye, gowns, many of them, and one for the ball, a really beautiful one in the latest fashion,” Merrick instructed with a smile still playing around his lips.
“Gowns, my lord?” Mrs. West’s hand went to her throat. Lord, she had never heard of such a thing and at a ball, too.
“Aye, Mrs. West, gowns,” Merrick repeated and took off Christine’s hat. The short curls tumbled down to the nape of her neck. Although in her boy clothing, Christine still presented a picture of beauty with her eyes clearly as confused by the situation as Mrs. West was. Her lips were full
and red, and her cheeks blushed to a rosy pink.
Mrs. West sucked in her breath when she realized what was going on. Then as she remembered her place, she nodded.
“Aye, gowns, many gowns and of the latest fashion,” she clapped her hands together, suddenly very optimistic indeed that such a beauty was hers to adorn with the latest in fashion. Aye, she’d do her best for this one, no doubt a most beautiful one. She went out, and minutes later she came back with loads of brightly colored silk and muslin materials in her arms.
“Now then, let’s choose the materials,” she said as she placed them on the table.
Merrick looked at his pocket watch. He frowned. “I’m sorry, Mrs. West. Would you please look after this young lady for me? I have business for about an hour. Would that be all right?” he asked, putting his pocket watch away.
Christine, who was looking at all the assorted materials lovingly, turned to him.
“You did not mention anything to me,” she said, truly hurt that he would not be here to help her choose the material.
“I’m sorry, but I will be back in about an hour.” With that, he turned to leave. In seconds, he was out of the salon off to somewhere she didn’t know.
Mrs. West and Christine chose the materials and then the style of the gowns and then more materials for hats and gloves. There was lots to do, and an hour later, they still had not finished and Merrick still had not returned. When another hour had passed, they had finally finished. Christine said farewell to Mrs. West and went outside to wait for Merrick. She was walking along the pathway when a hand caught her arm. She jumped and turned to see Merrick smiling down at her.
“Running away from me?” he jested.
She smiled up at him and crooked her head to one side. “Hum, yes, I am.”
“You won’t get away from me, you know. I’ll hunt you down and then—” He pulled her against him. They were so close their bodies almost fused. “And then,” he said seductively, “I’ll ravish you,” he finished off.
His breath was caressing her ear, sending bolts of sensations down her spine. She giggled and said, “I’d like that.”
“All right then, my love. Wait until tonight and see,” he whispered hotly into her ear. She giggled again.
Merrick dragged her not so forcefully along the street to the waiting curricle.
On the other side of the street, Mrs. Smith widened her eyes in shock at what she had just witnessed. Her heart was beating so furiously she thought she might die of shame. How did it happen? Suddenly, she felt her head spinning, and she was afraid. She was scared of what might happen. Nay, she couldn’t let it happen again. She had to tell her husband.
She picked up her skirts and rushed from the spot.
NINETEEN
Dinner that evening was delicious, although all the guests could talk about was the accident. Merrick tried his hardest to keep the talk away from that topic, but the women were persistent. He sighed as he stared unseeingly down the table. He supposed he hadn’t really tried very hard to keep the talk mild and on other topics. His mind was constantly wandering to the lovemaking he and Christine would do that night. Lord, just the very thought stirred his blood, and he felt his member harden with pleasure. He raised his drink, smiling to himself. He wondered what Christine would think when he made love to her on one of the large armchairs. She would think it outrageous, he was sure.
“Huh, hmm! Do you have a joke you want to share, Huntingdon?” Lord Queensbury asked.
Merrick looked at the older man and shook his head. He looked down the table and saw that every pair of eyes was upon him.
“It’s nothing,” he quickly told them. He saw Max raise his eyebrows at him. Merrick ignored his friend.
“Perhaps you are thinking of the ball, my lord?” Lady Queensbury put in. “Mayhap, my lord, you have something special to announce that night?”
Merrick turned his attention to Lady Queensbury. He stared at her blond hair.
“My lord!” Lady Queensbury exclaimed.
Merrick blinked.
“You did not answer my question.”
It seems everyone was staring at him again, waiting for his answer. He cleared his throat and began to explain. “Well, my lady, I assume that you will have to wait until the evening of the ball to find that out; otherwise, it would not be a surprise.” He raised an eyebrow, challenging her.
Lady Queensbury smiled in return and nodded her head in agreement although she felt very irritated inside.
“Well, perhaps we ladies should retire to the drawing room.” She stood up and walked toward the door. The other women followed.
Jane was looking about, frowning as they entered the drawing room. Anne and Lady Queensbury took the seat near the hearth. Amelia and Mrs. Vander took the sofa at the far end of the room, and Miss Green and Mrs. Anderson walked toward the pianoforte. Lady Maria Ferguson went to the window seat alone. Still standing at the door, Jane felt as though something was wrong. She went to her mother, who was sitting on the far side of the drawing room and seemed to be in deep thought. The other groups of women were talking quietly amongst themselves.
Twenty minutes later, the men joined them. Instantly, Anne rushed to Merrick, put her hands in his, and they both walked toward the hearth. They were talking quietly again. Jane looked up at the other men as they walked in. After Merrick, there was Sir Allan, then Lord Queensbury, who was in deep discussion about something with Mr. Wilson. Mr. Vander and his son, Alex, came next and then were followed by Mr. McNaught, and lastly Max, who didn’t seem to give a damn that nobody dared to converse with him.
Something was still missing though. All the men came into the room, scattering around in various seats. Then it hit her hard. Lord, her brother was not at dinner.
“Mother!” Jane exclaimed loudly, causing the room to echo and Mrs. Wilson to jump. Every pair of eyes turned to them, except for Max, who looked as though he would rather be in bed. The others halted in midsentence, their mouths gaping and their eyebrows rising.
“Don’t do such a thing, dear.” Mrs. Wilson frowned.
“Oh, Mama, I’m so sorry, but something is indeed very wrong. Mama, Robert was not at dinner this evening,” she said.
“Now that you mention it, I haven’t seen him at all today, dear,” Mrs. Wilson said as she began to panic, her heavily made-up face turned pale, giving her the appearance of a ghost.
Mr. Wilson, deep in conversation with his brother, halted, staring at his wife and daughter in puzzlement. He excused himself and moved to them. “Why, whatever is wrong, my dear?” he asked casually.
“Have you seen Robert today?” Mrs. Wilson asked.
“No, in fact, I haven’t.” He frowned.
“Oh, I’m so worried. Where do you think he could have gone? He could have gone home, but then he didn’t tell any of us about doing that.” Mrs. Wilson breathed, her hands fluttering to her face in distress.
Merrick turned to look at the Wilson family. He excused himself from the argument Amelia and Anne were having and approached the opposite side of the room. Once there, he noted they looked very alarmed.
“Is something the matter, Mrs. Wilson?” he asked, looking from Jane to Mrs. Wilson.
“My lord, Robert was not here for dinner this evening,” Mr. Wilson answered.
“Then he must have told one of you of his absence,” Merrick interjected, frowning now too. Damnation, he should’ve paid more attention to his guests rather than fantasizing about making love to Christine.
“No, my lord. You see, neither of us have seen Robert today. Not at all, in fact. Perhaps you might know where he is?” Mrs. Wilson said.
“Well, everyone seems to be gathering over here. I say, what’s going on, eh, Huntingdon?” Lord Queensbury asked.
“Have you seen Robert at all, Lord Queensbury?” Merrick asked, wondering what the hell was going on in his estate.
“Now that you’ve mentioned it, I haven’t at all seen Robert today; how very odd,” Lord Queensbury sa
id.
“Perhaps if we asked everyone then.” Queensbury turned from the group and announced, “Has anyone seen Robert since this morning?”
He received a shaking of heads from everyone as his answer.
“Is… is Robert missing?” Amelia said. Her thoughts at that moment were very similar to everyone’s in the room.
“Tomorrow I will tell one of my footmen to go and fetch the magistrate. There is something very odd going on here. Perhaps a magistrate would solve the mystery,” Merrick said.
“Aye, I think that would be very wise, my lord,” Mrs. Anderson said, nodding her head.
“That’s right, Merrick, perhaps a magistrate coming tomorrow would be the best solution,” Allan said, getting involved for the first time. “Perhaps I shall go into the town tomorrow. And Mr. Wilson might want to come with me as well. You will want to report Robert’s disappearance,” he added. Mr. Wilson nodded.
“I do believe that when the magistrate is here, every one of us might be questioned,” Mrs. McNaught said from the far side of the room.
“Indeed, my dear,” Mr. McNaught agreed.
They talked about the situation for another hour before the main subject of conversation was dropped and talk turned to other matters. In another few hours everyone retired for the evening. It was an earlier night than usual. Merrick was walking up the stairs when Max called out to him.
“Well, my friend, I see that you are very eager to go to bed. What is there to attract you?” He laughed.
“Damn you, Max, you knew?” Merrick frowned at his friend.
“Aye,” the man replied sourly.
“About her?” Merrick asked.
“You mean that ward of yours?” Max said.
Merrick frowned and raked his hand through his dark hair. “Aye, her,” he muttered.
“Yes, I knew, perhaps even before you knew. But then it wasn’t I that she deceived, and it wasn’t I that she cared so much about.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Merrick asked.
“What? And spoil the fun for you? I don’t think so. I assume—”
“Ho, shut up, Max. Let me return to my room,” Merrick muttered and turned.