Domnika nodded in agreement.
Chapter 13
Not only did a carriage so large that it could easily hold eight people arrive precisely at ten, but when the girls and their protectors opened the carriage door they discovered it already contained Mrs. Halloway and Catherine.
“Come in, come in,” Mrs. Halloway insisted, refusing to allow any of the four King’s best men to ride outside. “Let that young valet of Nicolas’ ride outside if you must, but I want to have it said that I once rode in a carriage with the King’s finest soldiers at my side.”
Seeing Mrs. Halloway would have her way, the four well-dressed soldiers entered. Mrs. Halloway placed them at all four window seats. “If I recall that is proper procedure.”
Gunter nodded to acknowledge she was correct.
Mrs. Halloway sat back with Amy on her right and Sam on her left. “I feel like a queen.” She explained during the war, she was provided protection on occasion, but none so fine as these gentlemen.
“I’m sure they were good men,” Sam said.
“Oh, they were fine enough to protect me, but they were not the King’s best. And nor should they have been. The King’s best were exactly where they should be, doing what was needed.” Her eyes turned to Gunter. “You are even fiercer looking than I remember. I have no idea how any soldier could rally the nerve to stand against you.”
Gunter smiled. “There never seemed to be a shortage, as far as I could tell.”
“And do the spirits of the men you killed still haunt you?”
Gunter looked over at Amy.
Amy shook her head.
Fortunately, the ghost of Uncle John appeared in the corner of the carriage ceiling. “It is I who told her Gunter, not Amy. I apologize, but the woman loves a great story.” The only ones who could hear him were Amy and Gunter, and one seemed pleased by his arrival while the other did not. “Stop scowling. It is not as if I thought the two of you would ever meet.”
“Oh dear, I suppose I was not to mention that. It is hard to believe that at one time I could actually keep secrets. But rest assured, I have never mentioned it before today. I just assumed everyone here knew, and it has worried me greatly. In fact, I may even have a man that can help, his name is Father Duncan.”
Gunter stopped scowling at Uncle John and smiled at Mrs. Halloway. “Thank you for your concern, ma’am. The colonel brought the Father to my cabin near ten years ago, and I am happy to say the father is worthy of his reputation.”
Seeing that Mrs. Halloway wished to hear more, he sighed and explained why the spirits had ignored their light to heaven and stayed to torment him. With the Father’s help, they finally understood he had smiled at them in honor of the skill in which they had fought. With that misunderstanding corrected, they were more than happy to go to heaven where the Father promised them a joy beyond anything they had ever known.
“What a wonderful story.” Mrs. Halloway grabbed her handkerchief and dabbed her eyes. “I will never tell a soul, Gunter, but I will treasure the story all my life. Thank you for telling me.”
Her appreciative nature resulted in Sam recounting an exciting event of his own during the war. When they arrived at her London home, she insisted the men must come inside and have tea with her. The four instantly balked.
Gunter spoke first. “To be honest, ma’am. I’d be in fear of breaking your fine furniture.”
As a compromise, she ordered her servants to set up the gazebo for tea, followed with lunch for eight. “The gazebo has new lumber and will hold you easily.”
The men found her determined spirit impossible to refuse.
As they walked to the garden and admired the sturdy gazebo, Sam and Brick pulled back, surveying the grounds for areas of potential trouble.
“She’s rather like a grand old ship. Once it gets its wind, there’s no stopping it,” Brick whispered to Sam.
“She’s a grand woman, and her husband was most impressive for his strategies and the information he obtained to create them. If not for him, we might be speaking French by now.”
Amy noticed Mrs. Halloway perk up at Sam’s words, which told her Mrs. Halloway had excellent hearing. Sam and Brick were ten feet behind them, speaking in a very soft whisper that she could barely hear.
***
Seated on the thick gazebo benches, Mrs. Halloway insisted it far too hot to wear their jackets. She ordered all jackets removed and hung on the gazebo railing. Amy, Domnika, and Catherine found this wonderfully improper and giggled as they removed their jackets. They waited in breathless anticipation for her next shocking instruction. It was not long in waiting. Instead of hot tea in tiny porcelain cups, she requested ice tea in the largest glasses she possessed.
The servant stared at the men. Without their jackets, their gentlemanly façade was lost. “The servant’s glasses are largest,” she whispered to her mistress.
“Then use those,” she suggested.
“For you and the ladies as well?”
“Of course,” Mrs. Halloway replied. “Now hurry about. My guests are thirsty.”
She then turned to the men and asked for another story.
Sam grimaced. “Perhaps the young ladies might prefer another topic.”
“I cannot imagine they would, but let us take a poll, shall we?” Ann suggested and turned to the girls. “Amy, perhaps you have already heard the stories and are bored by them?”
“Not at all,” Amy assured her. “I have heard them a hundred times, yet, I am always asking them to tell me again. I think it grand I can have my stories without the slightest bit of effort on my part.”
Mrs. Halloway turned to Domnika.
Domnika smiled. “I find myself intrigued, not just by what they say, but also by what they do not say.”
Tomas frowned. “What do you mean by that?”
Mrs. Halloway would not allow her to answer. “I understand her perfectly.” She then looked at Catherine for her response.
Catherine laughed. “Mother, you need not ask me. You surely must know I am finding this to be the most interesting and delightful tea party I have ever had. In fact, my only fear is how I will survive tomorrow when you drag me off to Lady Witherspoon’s.”
“You will sit there with a pretty smile on your face and recall the pleasure of today,” Mrs. Halloway instructed her and then turned to Sam. “Well, the vote is in and it is unanimous. We wish to know more about the King’s best men and how they saved our country.”
When the servant returned, she brought reinforcement: the housekeeper and butler. After eyeing the size of the men, the housekeeper asked if she wished the ham or turkey for lunch.
“Let us have both. Lay out a buffet table beneath the elm tree and we shall serve ourselves.”
Having worked for Mrs. Halloway most of their lives, neither the butler nor housekeeper seemed the least bit ruffled by her orders. However, the young servant would have spilt tea on Mrs. Halloway had not Tomas’ quick reflexes come to the rescue as he tilted the tray back to horizontal and then caught hold of it as the servant jumped away.
Sam acted to keep the girl from tumbling backwards over the railing, but his grip on her arms caused her to scream in fear.
The housekeeper yelled her name and the girl fell into terrified silence. “Enough of your silliness. Come down here immediately,” she ordered. She then looked at Mrs. Halloway. “I am sorry ma’am. I thought she was ready for more responsibility. I was clearly mistaken.”
“I hope she’s not going to fire the girl over that,” Sam said.
“No,” Mrs. Halloway assured him. “But she’ll probably spend another year working as an upstairs maid. However, had Tomas not come to her aid before she doused me with tea, it is quite possible Mrs. Jones would never allow her the chance to be a serving maid again.” She then smiled at Tomas. “So you are a hero once more, sir.”
“And you didn’t even have to kill anyone,” Brick added.
Tomas laughed. “Yes, but Sam almost did; he nearly scared
the poor girl to death when he grabbed her.”
Sam’s brow furrowed. “Well, she was going over the railing. What choice did I have?”
The situation reminded Amy of a story in which Sam had to save a drunken general from falling off a railing. The problem was that none of the men inside knew that Sam was there, and had he been caught, he might have been mistakenly shot as a spy. She insisted he share the story and of course, Mrs. Halloway took up the cause.
Uncle John immediately spoke up. “Be careful, Amy. There are some stories you know that in the wrong ears could cause trouble, this being one of them. Fortunately, Mrs. Halloway can keep a secret. I hope the same can be said for Catherine and Domnika.”
“You know, that story isn’t that funny now that I think about it. Sam tell the one about the stubborn horse,” Amy insisted, certain that a story in which some fool bought a hundred mules for the army as cavalry horses could not be troublesome.
Sam jumped into the story without hesitation and Gunter winked at her in approval of her quick maneuvering.
When lunch arrived, it was a massive affair, and everyone ate as much as they liked. She smiled with happiness.
It was a perfect day, absolutely perfect.
***
Joining Domnika and Catherine under the shade of a magnificently large tree, she was pleased to see the after-effects of her guardian’s temper had finally faded from Domnika’s mood.
Mrs. Halloway’s laughter carried across the lawn to where they sat.
Catherine smiled. “I haven’t heard her laugh since father died. This is the nicest day I’ve ever had.” She reached out and took Amy’s hand. “Thank you.”
“It is not me who has made this a perfect day. It is the King’s best men.”
“Yes, but you brought them. This would not have been possible without you. Mother misses the old days. She was very much involved with whatever my father did, but with his death, she became useless. It’s been very hard on her. When your men tell her a story, I can see her mind connecting the lines between their actions and hers, knowing if the men had not succeeded this would have failed, or if she and father had not done their best, something else might have happened. They remind her of the magnificent woman she was.” Catherine looked away as she blotted her eyes.
“Catherine, your mother is the most magnificent woman I’ve ever met. That has not changed,” Amy insisted.
“She has not changed, but she has lost the opportunity to be magnificent. That is the way of women. It all comes down to the husband you choose and then how long he lives. Only with a husband’s support can a woman achieve greatness. Otherwise, she becomes a useless appendage.”
Domnika stared at Catherine. “Have you chosen wisely?”
“I hope so. Mother thinks I have, and that gives me courage. Still it is so hard to tell about a person when they are courting you, especially if you are well-dowered. They will say anything you wish to hear. They will confuse you with caresses that make you believe you are in love. Without Mother’s guidance, I would have made a very bad choice.”
“What happened?” Domnika asked.
Catherine pulled them further away from her mother. “Mother still has ears like a hawk, and though I told her some of this, I never told her all.” She pulled them to a bench and took a deep breath.
“Last season, when I first came out, I was deemed the catch of the season, and my hand was sought by so many at first that I had trouble remembering all their names. I even called one good man by the wrong name for two months before he stopped vying for my hand.” She stopped and smiled. “More on that gentleman later,” she promised and continued her story.
“At the fifth ball I attended, I met a Romanian count, with eyes so sultry that he could mesmerize you with a single look.”
She glanced at Domnika. “You are no doubt thinking I am embellishing to improve the story, but I swear I am not. There were several girls who would literally swoon when he smiled at them. At the time, I thought them ridiculous and was determined to set myself apart by showing no interest in the man at all.”
“Did that work?” Domnika asked.
Catherine sighed. “All too well, if my inner desire was to lure the count to my side. Looking back, I believe my attempts to ignore him challenged his very grand ego. If I had thought him disturbingly attractive before, now that I became his focus, he was utterly irresistible.”
She grabbed hold of each of their hands. “I know it sounds ridiculous, but the truth was, when he suggested I looked warm and needed a breath of air, I knew I should not go anywhere with him. I knew it would ruin my life, but I could not refuse him. The heat of his burning hands upon my waist completely seared away my will to resist.”
Seeing no looks of contempt from either of her friends, she continued. “He led me deep into the garden and pressed me against a large oak tree. He pinned my arms above my head with a single hand, although I am not certain why, since I was not resisting. His eyes bore into mine as his burning hand crushed upon my breasts, and when he kissed me, my whole body melted. I would have fallen had he not pressed against me, and his kiss invaded my mouth.” Catherine closed her eyes for a moment.
“I felt as if I was being devoured by some unearthly wolf, but oddly I wasn’t afraid. In truth, I was exhilarated. I wanted his touch. I ached for it. My body pressed hard to his as if it knew that it belonged to him, only him.”
Catherine paused and looked at Domnika and Amy. “I don’t know if I should go on. I would be devastated if I were to lose your friendship.”
“That will never happen,” Amy assured her. Domnika nodded in agreement.
“Mother advised me to never tell a soul. If it was to get out, my reputation would be destroyed. It might also threaten my marriage, but I hope the latter would not be true. If it were, then Benjamin would not be the man I believe him to be.”
“We will never tell,” Amy assured her. “And speaking for myself, I need to know this. I do not wish to fall into the same trap as you.”
Domnika nodded in agreement. “Your experience could help us.”
“I cannot say for certain every move he made, because my senses were confused by his kiss and the feelings within my body. However, I remember his hand was upon my most private part and my legs opened to him like a flower to the sun. Suddenly, the most wonderful pleasure swept across me and I knew with great certainty that it was love. Nothing but the truest and best of loves could possibly feel so grand.”
Catherine paused and took a breath. “And then he dropped my arms and lifted my left leg, curling it around his hip as something hard pressed against me. There was a terrible pain and then the hardness was deep inside me and his body repeatedly slammed me against the tree. I was lost in pain and unable to make sense of what was happening. I think I begged him to stop, that he had hurt me, but he only soothed me with words of love as he continued to push into me. Then he stiffened and groaned as if he hurt himself. A few moments later, he pulled away from me and tended to his dress as I watched him.
Then he looked at me and laughed, chiding me for doing nothing to set myself right. When I still did not move, he tended to my dress. Once my breasts were covered and my skirts smoothed down, he kissed me and told me I had given him the greatest gift of love a woman could give and he would always treasure it. He then returned me to the dance and asked another young woman for the honor. Before the night was out he had taken at least three other ladies into the garden.”
Catherine remained quiet for some time. “I have always confided in my mother and depended upon her guidance, but when I needed her guidance most of all, I could not go to her. I could not bear her disappointment in me. In the second week of my season, I was already ruined!
“I was angry, at him, yes, but mostly I was angry at myself. I had lost my virtue in a single dance. It astounded and disgusted me beyond all imagination.” She looked at Domnika and Amy. “I know I was never as strong as the two of you, but I thought I was better than that. I
thought there must be some part of my mother in me.”
Tears threatened to fall and Amy dabbed them away. “You cannot judge yourself too harshly, Catherine. He was obviously a skilled seducer.”
“The story grows worse,” she warns them. “I was determined never to have another thing to do with him. Yet, the next ball, he smiled with those dark sultry eyes and asked for a dance, and I accepted. When he declared me overheated and in need of air, I went without resistance, and when he pressed me upon the tree, I curled my arms about his neck and returned his devouring kisses as he drove himself deep inside me over and over. And this time it did not hurt. In fact, it felt quite wonderful, and suddenly my body shook in the most glorious feeling of pleasure I had ever known.”
Even the memory seemed to make Catherine breathless. “When he returned me to the dance, I no longer hated him. In fact, I thought myself in love with him. And this time watching him go into the garden with other girls hurt in a different way.” She pressed her heart. “It hurt here. With every girl, it felt as if he tore a piece of my heart away.”
“I promised myself that the next time I saw him that I would insist he stop taking the other girls into the garden, but it took many weeks before I actually managed to say the words. And when I did, he only laughed and assured me they meant nothing. He only walked them about the garden so that no one would think his attention to me unseemly. It was all done to protect me.”
Catherine laughed bitterly. “And I believed him. I was so determined to love him that I would have believed him if he had told me night was day and day was night.”
“You were in love,” Amy said, trying to assure her it was not her fault.
“Was I? How can you love someone you don’t even know? I knew nothing about the man, except he was an excellent dancer and seducer of young girls. When Mother, noting my preference for him, asked me about his opinions, his interests, whether he had a sense of humor, I couldn’t answer her. Thus, it is possible I was never in love with the count.”
Domnika leaned forward with intensity. “But your feelings—”
Love's Betrayals (The Extraordinary Life of Amy Winston Book 2) Page 6