“Good morning,” I called out to Julia. Mrs. Bancroft covered her ears, and I watched her as she moved to the stone bench beneath the window. Her eyes focused on something I couldn’t see, and her lips moved without sound. All the while, her fingers caressed the petals of the flowers in her lap.
Bending down, Julia scooped up the boy’s hand in her own. She stepped out the doorway and met me on the grass. “Are you in search of Nicholas?”
I nodded.
“I have not seen him since very late last evening. He rushed back here and raced off soon after, and I haven’t the slightest idea where he has gone.” Her voice was weak, trying to sound strong. I tried to ignore the fear and worry that erupted inside of me, feigning calm for her sake.
“I am certain he is all right,” I said, but I wasn’t sure I believed it. My chest tightened with unease. Where would Nicholas have gone? What had Mr. Parsons done to him?
Her brows turned downward. “I saw a man here last night. He wore a mask. He followed Nicholas into the woods.”
I inhaled sharply, pressing my hand to my chest. My heart pounded with dread. “How was this man dressed?”
“In fine clothing … he wore a coat with several brass buttons. He was very tall and rather thin …”
The only image I could conjure from her description was the man from the night my coach was robbed. The highwayman that had dragged me from my seat. Nicholas had told me that one of the men was shot. Could this man Julia spoke of be the man that survived the attack? Could he be seeking revenge for Nicholas’s betrayal? My breath came fast and my thoughts refused to calm themselves. But how had Mr. Parsons been involved? I squeezed my eyes shut and opened them with another gasp. I had met Mr. Parsons in the village the day after the attack. Perhaps this highwayman had found himself a new accomplice that night.
“What is it?” Julia reached for my arm.
“The man you saw—he is dangerous. Perhaps you might leave your house, go to the village. I don’t think it is safe to remain here if that man might return.”
Julia looked on the brink of dissolving into emotion. Her chin wobbled but she tightened her jaw to stop it. Her eyes were hard one moment, staring into mine, but then she seemed to melt, putting her hand to her forehead and slumping her shoulders. When she looked up again, her eyes were vulnerable and trusting. “Will you look after Simon?” she blurted, shifting her grip on the young boy’s hand. “I cannot look after both him and my mother outside of these grounds.”
“Of course.” I swallowed my fear and put on a smile. Reaching forward, I touched Simon’s small shoulder. His nose scrunched at me and he squirmed his shoulder away.
“Would you like to spend the day with me, Simon? My name is Lucy. We may play games and explore, and I am certain we will become friends.” He refused to meet my eyes as Julia let go of his hand. An idea struck me and I gasped. “May I take him to visit an acquaintance of mine at Willowbourne? I know for certain she will welcome him. She has two young brothers that I am sure Simon will benefit from interacting with.”
Julia nodded, her eyes glazed with fear. “Please return him here by the afternoon.” Her face was firm again, hiding all emotion. “Thank you, Lucy. I do hope Nicholas returns soon.”
I pressed my lips together as my stomach twisted. “As do I.”
Simon was a strange child. He was shy and sweet at one moment, and wild and angry the next. As we walked to Willowbourne, I tried to quiet my mind of its worries, but it was impossible. Simon refused to hold onto my hand, and many times throughout our walk I was forced to chase him before he could be lost.
I caught my breath and planted my hands on my hips. Simon had finally stopped running, standing beside a birch tree on the opposite side of the village. We had almost arrived at Willowbourne, and I had dealt with quite enough of Simon’s mischief. I puffed a curl out of my eyes. “Simon, you must never run away from me again, do you understand?”
Simon giggled, backing away from me. I rolled my eyes. Why could I not be intimidating? I was never taken seriously. A small, curly haired, large-eyed woman that appeared to be much younger than she truly was did not make for a convincing threat. If I looked more like Julia, then perhaps I could be taken seriously. She was tall with firm features and straight, long hair. Simon continued walking away, and I begged him not to run again.
“If you become lost I will be very angry with you,” I said in a scolding voice.
This caught Simon’s attention, and he walked over slowly and took my hand. He looked up at me, his freckles darker under the sun. His crystal blue eyes widened. “Mama is lost.”
I frowned. “What do you mean?”
“Julia and Nicholas said—they said she is just lost. Her mind is lost and she can’t remember some things sometimes. She’s lost.” His voice was clear and quiet. He shrugged and kicked the grass as we walked. My heart ached. I was so distracted that I didn’t notice Simon tear his hand away from mine and take off running again.
“Simon!” I yelled, scooping up my skirts and chasing after him. “Simon, come back!”
His giggles echoed through the air. I may have had short legs, but Simon’s legs were shorter, thank heavens. I caught up to him just as Willowbourne came into view. He stopped, gazing up at the estate in awe. Sneaking up behind him, I lifted him into my arms, heaving with his weight as I carried him over the grass. He squirmed, but I tightened my arms around him.
At last we reached the front doors and were greeted by Annette. Her hair was hanging loose around her face today, and her freckles illuminated her cheeks when she smiled. Her husband welcomed us as we entered the house. They ushered us to the drawing room, where Simon and I sat across from Annette and Dr. Kellaway. I introduced them to Simon, calling him the Bancrofts’ cousin, although I knew it wasn’t true.
“He has quite the spirit,” I said. “I chased him the majority of the way here.” I wiped a trickle of sweat from under my lower lip.
Annette exchanged a look with her husband, and they both burst into laughter. Dr. Kellaway eyed Annette before turning to me. “We are quite experienced with the mischievous workings of young boys. Perhaps Simon will benefit from a day spent with our boys.”
I sat forward on my chair. “Yes, that is precisely what I was thinking upon bringing him here.”
Annette grinned. “Peter and Charles will love to make a new friend. Their cousins have been away for several weeks now, and they have been bereft of socialization. I am certain they will love Simon.”
Dr. Kellaway stood to leave the room to retrieve the boys. He kissed Annette in farewell, as he had to go visit a patient. I patted Simon’s shoulder. He glanced around, his brow furrowed with nervousness. His hands fidgeted in his lap.
“What is wrong?” I asked. Annette crossed the room to join us.
“A friend?” His voice was just a squeak.
“Yes … Peter and Charles will be your friends. They are little, just like you.”
Simon’s eyes widened.
“You have nothing to fear, Simon. A friend is a very good thing. I am your friend, am I not?”
His eyes met mine and he gave a slow nod.
“You see? Not to worry.”
The door eased open and Peter and Charles stepped in, chattering in quick voices over who should be Simon’s favorite. They stopped, grinning when they saw me sitting beside Simon. The hurried over, pausing when they saw the critical stare Simon was giving both of them. After making their introductions, Charles pulled on one of Simon’s arms, and Peter pulled on the other, dragging him to his feet. Simon giggled, grinning up at them as if they were the Prince Regent himself.
“May we play outside?” Charles asked Annette.
She nodded, ruffling his hair as the three of them left the room, Simon trailing tentatively behind them. Annette and I followed them to the back property. I wanted to admire the bright colors of the many trees and gardens, but my worry and fear over Nicholas consumed me. We sat on a wooden bench that overlooked the
boys as they played.
“So.” She raised one arching eyebrow. “Have you confessed your love to that Nicholas?”
My cheeks flushed. My voice was stammering and not nearly as smooth as I intended. “No. I have much to tell you.”
When I finished telling her of the events of the previous night and the day he had proposed to me, and how Nicholas had not been seen all day, I felt the familiar choking of emotion in my throat. I gave a shaky breath. “But I do trust him. I think I always have; I have just been afraid. I know he is honorable. He has forsaken his past wrongdoings. But he is gone, and a dangerous man was seen pursuing him.” I pressed my face into my hands. “He could still have been involved in the robbery with this man, given the circumstances, but I do not believe it. If he is not involved in the robbery, then where is he? The only other option I can contemplate is that he is in danger.”
Annette chewed her lip, thinking. She fell back against the cushions, at a loss. “It is very strange … would he not inform you of his departure had it been planned? He trusts you with all of the workings of his past and the many secrets he has.”
“But I told him not to visit me alone ever again. He could not have informed me. I didn’t return until dark, and he could very well have been gone by then.”
“If he cares for you as much as he has proclaimed, then surely he would not abandon you without word.”
“Julia said he rushed off somewhere. He was not abducted or hurt … It seemed to be a choice. But he was indeed followed. Perhaps he does not care for me at all.”
“I know he does. How could he not? He proposed to you. And I have never met a more adorable and lovely person than you, Lucy.” Annette smiled with reassurance. “There must be some other reason.”
I strained my mind to remember every detail of the night. Mr. Drew had tried to delay me from entering the house. Mr. Parsons had spoken to Nicholas—an encounter Mr. Drew had also tried to prevent me from seeing. Surely Mr. Drew was not innocent either. I closed my eyes, scrunching my face in focus. They had been hiding me from Nicholas. What had Mr. Parsons said to him in the dining room? Did it involve me?
Annette’s grip tightened on my arm and I jumped.
“Did Nicholas know where you were during dinner?”
I shook my head.
“Did he see you at all after you left the dining room?”
I suddenly knew what she was hinting at. My heart thudded and I sat up straight. “No!”
“No!” she repeated, clapping her hands together. “Mr. Parsons needed to draw Nicholas away from Stanton Manor somehow in order to carry out his plan. Mr. Drew was involved, taking you outside so you would not be seen. Nicholas believed you to be in danger! That is why he left in such a rush.”
“He was looking for me.” I gasped.
She sat back in triumph. I couldn’t think or breathe. Where was Nicholas? And where had Mr. Parsons told him I was? I shot off of the bench, pressing my hand to my chest. “How will I find him?” If this other highwayman had pursued him, how could he be safe? Dread poured over me in a fresh wave.
“I haven’t the slightest idea.”
My face was sullen and stiff. Panic laced through all my limbs, making me feel frozen where I stood. The cool air outside created chills on my arms, but I didn’t feel them.
“Sit down, Lucy. Relax. You will find him.”
“Or he will find me.” I sat down in a daze, watching as Nicholas’s half-brother raced on the grass, giggling and chattering with Peter and Charles. It was still incomprehensible to me that this was the son of Mr. Rossington, and yet he provided him with no education, no clothing from his pocket, and forced his family to keep him hidden. He annulled the marriage with Mrs. Bancroft, leaving her to ruin and his son illegitimate. I wanted justice for Aunt Edith, for Mrs. Bancroft, for Simon … but I didn’t know how.
Annette was staring at me as I chewed my nails, still in my daze. I blinked.
“Leave Simon with me,” she said. “I will look after him while you return to Rosewood. Perhaps Nicholas is already there, and it will put your mind at ease. Philip is with his nursemaid, down for a nap. I am quite capable of caring for three little boys.”
I hesitated, tempted by her offer. Julia had trusted Simon to me; I couldn’t leave him. But my mind was already elsewhere, stricken with worry. I had nearly forgotten to look after Simon already. “Very well … but I will return within an hour or two.”
I stood to leave, and Annette insisted that I take their carriage. I was relieved that I would arrive back at Rosewood sooner. I thanked her thoroughly before setting off toward where I hoped Nicholas would be.
TWENTY-ONE
When the carriage pulled into the drive at Rosewood, I jumped out without waiting for assistance, hurrying across the property to the Bancrofts’. The autumn air was harsh today, chilling my cheeks and the tip of my nose as I approached the front door. I couldn’t see any signs of Nicholas’s return. I stopped, catching my breath before striking my knuckles against the door. And then I remembered that Julia had taken her mother to the village.
I sat down on the steps in defeat, at a loss over what to do. Nicholas was likely in danger, possibly searching for me, and I was here, completely helpless. Never had I felt more powerless. The road that approached the property from the east was clear, without many trees to conceal it from view. After watching it for several minutes, I looked down at my hands, wringing them until they were white and warm despite the cold.
After staring at my hands for what felt like hours, I glanced up at the road again. I leapt to my feet in shock. A man was trudging in my direction, passing a bend of trees, but he was too far away to recognize. I wrapped my arms around myself to keep warm as my heart thudded with hope. As he came closer, I gasped. It was Nicholas. I could see his soft brown hair and his height and broad shoulders. I stumbled down from the steps, fighting the urge to run to him. As I moved toward him, I waved my arms, jumping up and down like a madwoman. Perhaps I was one.
I knew he must have seen me, for he stopped in his tracks before lengthening his strides toward me. I noticed the way he walked was a little strange, as if he were in pain. But my smile stretched over my entire face with relief that he was here—that he was alive—and I couldn’t help but run. When I had almost reached him I stopped, and my eyes filled with unexpected tears. I scowled at him.
“Nicholas! I was so worried.”
At close range, I could see the raw relief in his eyes, the emotion as he filled the remaining steps, wrapping his arms around me. He held me close, and I could feel him shaking. His face was buried in my shoulder. Then he gripped my upper arms and held me back from him so he could study my face. My heart melted at the look in his eyes. He stared down at me as if I were the most precious thing in the world to him; tears wet his eyes and spilled down his face, and his lips pressed together, creasing his cheeks.
The only other time I had seen him cry had been with the death of his old horse. He reached down and touched my face, my hair, as if I weren’t real. And he wrapped me up in his arms again. I had never felt more loved. My heart pounded with the revelation I had been too stubborn to acknowledge. Nicholas did love me. I trusted him. I had no doubt anymore. Every inch of me cried out in regret over what I had done, how I had rejected him. I wanted to stay here in his arms forever.
“They told me you were dead,” he said into my shoulder, his voice tight.
I tipped my head up to look at him, my eyes wide with shock. “What? Who?”
“I need to move you to a safer place.”
“Nicholas, what is happening?”
He placed his hand on my back and guided me toward his house, but I turned around to face him again. Fear pounded through me. I had never seen Nicholas so uncollected.
He rubbed his hand over his hair. “At the party, Parsons told me you were being held captive here, under the control of Gibbs. I hadn’t seen you for a long time, and you could easily have been abducted by Mr. Drew.”
/> “Gibbs?” The name sounded familiar.
“The highwayman that I used to work under—the one that escaped that night we met.”
The man that Julia had seen.
He continued guiding me toward the house, glancing behind him every few seconds. “So I came to find you, but you were not here, and I was accused of robbing Lord and Lady Stanton. I searched for you all night, and this morning I was apprehended by Gibbs and Parsons.” His voice was hard. “Parsons is the new man they acquired in my place. He was sent to befriend us, to gain our trust in order to frame me. They told me they had already … killed you.” He could hardly speak the words, and his voice shook. “I attempted to fight against them, as they intended to murder me as well, but I knew I wasn’t a match for two men. I was shot in the leg and I barely escaped with my life.”
I gasped, glancing at the limp in his walk, stopping him with my hand on his arm. “You must see Dr. Kellaway. Are you in pain?”
He shook his head fast. “We cannot worry over that yet. They are coming back.”
My chest flooded with fear. “What are we to do?”
“We need more men.” He rubbed his head and glanced back at the road again. I noticed the bruises on his cheeks and a cut on his forehead. Anger boiled inside of me. I wanted to fight Mr. Parsons myself for what he had done.
“Mr. Turner! I will alert him. And Mr. Rossington.”
Nicholas’s chest rose and fell with quick breath, but he was silent.
I pulled on his arm, recalling his eyes. “We must ask Mr. Rossington. He has weapons. I will send Kitty to find the constable and any others that may be inclined to help us.”
Nicholas nodded. “But we must hurry. We don’t have a lot of time. I must retrieve my family.” He turned toward his house, but I shook my head.
“They took a trip to the village. I thought it would be a safer place for them. Julia saw Gibbs pass the house last night.” I paused. “And Simon is at Willowbourne with his new friends.”
Nicholas gave me a look of confusion, but didn’t ask me to explain. “I heard Gibbs and Parsons. They plan to steal from Rosewood should they have a chance. When Parsons first discovered we intended to travel there, robbing Rosewood was their goal. But when you did not return Mr. Parsons’s attentions, he was unable to spend as much time in the home as he intended.”
Road to Rosewood Page 23