With her heart racing, she slid the door open and slipped out into the chill night. A moon just shy of being full gave enough light to see despite the fact she stood in an alley, and she pressed an ear to the door she had closed behind her. Trying to control her breathing, she listened until she heard the telltale sound of footsteps. Connor had found her!
In a panic, she glanced around her. The alleyway was long and foreboding despite the moon’s attempt to maneuver around the nearby buildings. When the footsteps stopped, she pressed her back to the wall, and counted to twenty before letting out a sigh of relief. Connor must have done as she had expected and gone through the other door. She was safe.
She rubbed her hands over her arms to warm them in the cold night air. Looking first in one direction and then the other, she considered her options. She could chance walking around and reentering the house from the safety of the front door. However, too many shadows hid unknown threats, and furthermore, who would hear her cry for help if she was accosted? None had heard her in broad daylight when Connor had accosted her before! Yet, what if Connor was waiting for her when she returned to the room on the other side of that door?
In that moment, Hannah wanted nothing more than to have John by her side. He would see her protected from any harm, and he would love her like no other man could. However, he was not here, so she took a final deep breath. The safest option was to return to the servants’ room, and once inside, she would alert Laurence and Isabel. She would tell them what he had done before, and they would remove him from the house.
As she turned to head back inside, a figure appeared in front of her. She went to scream, but a hand covered her mouth, and an arm wrapped around her waist.
“Come with me,” a man’s voice whispered in her ear. “Your mother is in danger.”
***
“I am sorry,” John said as he shivered from the cold. “I am sorry for having to approach you in such a manner, but there was no other way. You must understand that I love you, and nothing will stop me from telling you so.”
He let out a sigh and shook his head in frustration at his words. “Let me try again.” He cleared his throat. “I am nothing without you. A former rogue who has been set free from his foolishness by you. Do you understand? I cannot allow you to not hear what my heart feels for you.”
He groaned and pressed a hand to his forehead. He sounded like a fool! He began his harried pacing once again from his place across the street from Laurence’s townhouse, where he had been for the past ten minutes trying to build up the courage to approach Hannah. However, each attempt to speak the words sounded more awkward than the prior, and he did not know what to do. He had only one chance to make things right with Hannah, and he would not fail!
As each moment passed, he grew colder and realized that he needed to speak with her whether his words were foolish or not. Therefore, resigning himself to the fact that his words would not be any more elegant with more practice, he straightened his coat and began what seemed a great distance to cross the street.
Halfway, his feet gave pause as two figures emerged from the alley that snaked between Laurence’s townhouse and the one belonging to the neighbors. The woman in the blue dress was no doubt Hannah, and an older man held her hand. They moved quickly as they turned and hurried away from him, and his heart filled with dread.
He was too late. Hannah had been driven into the arms of another man. In her heartbreak, she had made the decision to steal away into the night as a way to ease her pain, and he could not blame her. Yet, she had not mentioned any gentleman who had caught her eye. Therefore, this man had no doubt leapt at the opportunity to gain her trust while she was reeling from her heartbreak over what John had done to her. If that was true, then this man would use her for his own pleasure only to leave her even more heartbroken than before.
The question was, would Hannah, even in sadness, run off with another man, any man? Surely she would not do such a thing, and certainly not so soon after what she had endured. Even if she was hurt, which she most certainly was, would she sneak off into the night during a party where her sister and mother were in attendance? It made no sense no matter how he considered it.
“What will you do?” he asked himself.
Something was not right; he was certain of it. Therefore, he decided to follow the couple. He would follow close enough to not lose sight yet keep his distance so they would not see him. If Hannah had indeed found another man, at least John would have his answer, and he no longer had to rehearse what he would say to her. If she was being taken against her will, he would never allow that to happen.
John had seen the man look over his shoulder more than once, forcing John to scurry to one doorway or another to hide in the shadows. At the next alleyway, John came to a stop and pressed his back to the front wall of the building, hoping they had not seen him. This was the moment, he was certain of it. He would learn if she was a willing accomplice or a hostage.
The moment when he heard Hannah screamed, he realized he had his answer, and John bounded around the corner only to find the alleyway empty. He had waited too long.
He shouted her name, and when no reply came, he cursed himself for not going with his instincts sooner. Now he had no way to find her, and he was certain she was in peril.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Hannah had never been more terrified in all her life. Her heart threatened to leap from her chest as she was led away, and she made an attempt to escape only to have a hand clamped over her mouth once again and she was dragged into the deep shadows of a thick hedge in the alley.
“Hannah!”
She fought against the arm that held her tight. That was John! However, try as she might, she could not break free. Tears ran down her face and her head grew light as the hand covered not only her mouth but her nose, as well. Tears ran down her cheeks. She would die here in this alley, and whatever she might have been able to rectify with John would be gone forever. For he had come to save her! However, her rejoicing turned to torment when he ran past where she stood in the shadows with her captor.
Before she could blink, she was dragged through a narrow space between the hedges, the branches tearing at her gown, pulling at her hair, and scratching the exposed skin on her arms. They came out on the other side in a clearing, her slippers dragging across the grass of the small park she had visited often when she wanted time away from the townhouse.
She managed to glance around and was dismayed to find thick trees and other shrubbery provided concealment, and with the late hour, no one was about who would be able to see her. Her first thought was to scream again when he released her, but the knife he withdrew from his pocket negated that idea.
Her captor removed his hand, and she shivered from cold and fright as she turned to face her assailant. “Why…?”
“I have missed you,” Albert Moore said with a wide grin. “When you sent me that letter, I know it was untrue, for you would never refuse to marry me.”
Hannah wiped the tears from her face, praying that John would think to look in the park. The entrance was on the opposite side, but from where they stood, she could not see it, for the that side of the park was as deep in shadows as their current location.
How had Albert, a man she thought a friend, tracked her down in London of all places? The look in his eyes told her he had an objective, and she was it.
“You said my mother is in danger. Is she safe?” Hannah could not keep her voice from trembling.
Albert nodded. “Your mother,” he said, tapping the breast of his coat, “has many secrets, all of which she wrote down. You never told me your mother was a writer.”
“I did not know,” Hannah said, barely listening as she glanced around for any way to escape. She sucked in her breath as Albert placed a firm grasp on her arm.
“It is true,” he said. “And I know how to protect her.”
This caught Hannah’s attention. “Protect her from what?”
“Secrets,” he repli
ed. “Secrets I am certain she does not wish others to know.” The look in his eyes was that of a madman, and Hannah knew her days were nearing their end. No man such as this made plans to keep a woman such as she alive, at least not long. And she refused to be used. She would take her own life before she allowed him to touch her in that way.
“I know secrets that will destroy her, your sisters, your brother, and everyone else you love.”
The man made no sense whatsoever. “How could my mother being a writer destroy her?”
His laugh made the hair on the nape of her neck stand. “That is nothing compared to what else I know.” Then he told her things that made her stomach churn, things that could not be true. However, if she stated she did not believe, who knew what he would do?
“How will you protect her?” she whispered again.
“Why, by not revealing what I know, of course,” he said, tapping his breast again. This time she heard a deep thumping, as if he had something hidden inside his coat. “You will inform her that it is your desire to marry me, and I, in return, will keep her secrets. It is quite easy, really. What a heroic way for you to save your family’s reputation, would you not say? You leave with me tonight.” He stepped in closer. “I have secured payment for a vicar to perform the ceremony. It was expensive, but well worth the cost. Then we will return together to Scarlett Hall.”
Hannah thought she would bring up every meal she had ever eaten. “I-I cannot marry you,” she said. The man’s smile faded. “I do not love you, and I must return to the party before my mother worries.”
“Your mother will be hurt,” he hissed as he tightened his grip on her arm. “Unless you leave with me, I will see her suffer. I have spent countless hours scouring every corner of Scarlett Hall. Many nights over the last year, I have watched you and Juliet, even your mother, sleep at night.”
How could this be? she thought, her mind whirling at the thought of this man gaining access to her home without anyone knowing. Then horror struck her. “Juliet? Is she…?”
“Safe for now,” he replied, his smile eerie in the light of the moon. “As long as you do as I say, she will remain so. I will ask one last time, and I would answer wisely. Will you leave tonight with me and become my bride?”
What if he was lying? What if he had never been inside her house? Should she ask him to prove what he said?
As if reading her thoughts, he reached into his pocket and produced a bracelet she immediately recognized. “As easy as I have taken this is as easily as I could slip into her room and…” He lifted the knife to show what he would do.
“No!” she gasped as tears streamed down her face. To imagine her mother or Juliet hurt by this man was more than she could bare. “I will leave with you now.”
“Good,” he said. “Once we are wed, we will return to Scarlett Hall where I will rule over the house. I will be the master there…” His ramblings were those of a lunatic, and Hannah cringed as he pulled her to him and pressed his lips to hers.
Disgust and shame rushed through her, and she pushed against his chest with her hands.
A low groan erupted from his throat. “Do not…”
A light rustling caught their attention, and Hannah turned to see a man emerge from the shadows.
“John!” she cried.
Albert made to grab her, but at the last minute, Hannah turned and leapt to her side, the knife whizzing past her, missing her cheek by mere inches.
“Hannah, leave!” John shouted, running toward them as Albert grabbed at her arm once more. It was in that heartbeat that Hannah realized how much she loved John.
Albert, who she thought was a friend, was in fact a man who meant to hurt everyone she loved. It was that thought that replaced her fear with anger, and she brought her foot down as hard as she could onto his.
Albert cried out just as John crashed into him, sending them both to the ground.
“Run!” John shouted as he scrambled to his feet. Hannah’s feet refused to move, and he shouted at her again, “Go! Get help!”
Albert struck John in the jaw, causing him to stumble back with a grunt, and Hannah turned and ran, not only for her life, but for that of John, as well. The branches tore at her dress, arms, legs, and face, but she did not care. She had to find someone, anyone, to lend aid.
She emerged back in the alley, her breathing painful, but she did not pause. Instead, she ducked her head and ran as fast as her legs would carry her, praying that John would be safe.
As she turned the corner on the street that led to Laurence’s townhouse, she caught sight of two figures ahead.
“Help me, please!” she cried, forcing the words with what little breath that remained.
“Miss Hannah!” Forbes shouted, followed by a cry from her mother as the two came rushing up to her.
“What is wrong?” her mother asked. “Where did you go?”
“John,” Hannah gasped. “He needs help. Albert is hurting him! This way!”
She did not wait to see if they followed her as she rushed back to where the narrow opening between the hedges sat. She forced herself through the branches once again and stopped when she spotted John staring down at Albert who was lying on the ground.
“Oh, John!” Hannah said as she rushed forward, but John raised a hand for her to stay back.
“Ah, the good Lady Lambert!” Albert said with a laugh as he rolled to his side. He reached into his pocket and produced a book of some sort. “I have been wishing to speak to you, for I know your secrets.”
“Mother?” Hannah said when she saw the look of worry on her mother’s face. Was all that this man said true?
Her mother shook her head. “What do you want?” she demanded. “Do you want money in exchange for my journal?”
Albert laughed and wiped at his nose. The air grew colder, and Hannah shivered as she wondered at what Albert had told her.
“I want Hannah,” he said as he rose to his knees, a smug smile on his lips. “I want you to give me her hand. Then I want your money, your home, and your land.” He laughed as Forbes approached him and took the journal from his hands. “You believe I care if you take the book? I have memorized every word, every name, even the name…”
Forbes sent the man flying backwards as his foot struck him in the face, and Albert lay silent. “It appears this man will need to be taken to the magistrates,” the faithful butler said. “I will take care of this problem, my Lady, Miss Hannah. You should return before you catch your cold and worry your guests.”
Her mother took a step forward. “Forbes, I believe…”
What happened next was etched into Hannah’s memory for years to come. “Eleanor,” he said in a stern tone Hannah had never heard the butler use with her mother, “Attend to your daughter and leave this matter to me.”
The manner in which her mother merely nodded in obedience further surprised Hannah. Her mother turned, slipped her arm in Hannah’s, and led her toward the hedges. “Come. Let us go.”
Forbes turned to John. “My Lord, please make certain the ladies arrive home safely. Your noble deeds are done for tonight.”
John stared at the older man for a moment before nodding and joining Hannah and her mother, and soon they were on the other side of the hedges once again.
As they made their way back to the townhouse, Laurence met them on the footpath. Her mother did not give him the opportunity to ask any questions before she said, “We will enter through the servants’ entrance and go straight to the drawing room, is that clear?” Her voice was firm and brooked no argument.
“Yes,” Hannah whispered.
“If anyone asks,” she continued, “John caught a thief near the window attempting to gain entry into the house. John and the thief fought, and Hannah, fearful of what she had seen, ran and hid in the bushes.” Hannah and John nodded their agreement. “We will never speak of Albert or this evening to anyone besides ourselves, is that clear? No one!”
Her mother did not wait for their response, but inste
ad turned and headed down the street and to the door Hannah had used to escape when she believed it was Connor who was pursuing her.
Hannah’s mind was still reeling from what had transpired, but as they entered the house—lights now blazing in the servants’ hall—she felt safe inside its walls, and, more importantly, with John by her side.
***
Hannah sat beside John on the couch in the drawing room, her mother across from them. Isabel had come in earlier to see how they were doing, and their mother relayed the story of the thief and John’s heroics in stopping him. Isabel did not stay, however, for there were still guests in the ballroom, and she promised to make excuses for the three who now sat alone in the room.
Remorse over all that had happened coursed through Hannah. “I am sorry for the fiasco I caused,” she said with tears rimming her eyes once again. “It was never my intention…”
Her mother lifted a hand, and Hannah clamped her mouth shut. “You have done nothing wrong. It was that…animal…who is to blame.”
“May I ask who that man was?” John said.
Hannah glanced at her mother, who gave her a nod. “He was a friend, or rather and acquaintance, from a society of writers I met last year. I learned before coming to London that he became enamored with me, and he asked me to marry him. I did not give him an answer at the time, although I did not wish to marry the man.” She looked down at her hands in shame. “I sent him a letter explaining that I did not wish to marry him, but he said he did not believe it.” She looked up, first at John and then at her mother. “I am so sorry…to both of you.”
“It is as your mother said,” John replied. “You are not to blame. I am glad I decided to follow you.”
“Why did you leave with him?” her mother asked.
“I saw someone here…”
The door opened and Isabel entered once more, this time followed by the very man she was going to mention—Connor Barnet. Fear gripped Hannah, and she clutched her skirts in her hands as if readying herself to run once more.
Echoes of the Heart: Secrets of Scarlett Hall Book 2 Page 21