Had Simone showed Sophie the slightest kindness in the past, she would have pursued Amelia and told her to knock it off with the magical hijinks and yet, Simone had served her with nothing but disdain for their entire lives, so she might as well get a little bit of enjoyment out of Amelia’s magical sport.
The young girl did have to practice her transformation spells, and using Simone to do it seemed like a wonderfully novel idea. She glanced over at her father and noticed the one corner of his mouth twitching, telling her he had heard Amelia as well.
Charlotte looked conflicted. “Maybe I should ride with the twins…”
“No, Charlotte, you stay with me. We need to discuss what happened here tonight,” their father said. “Simone will be fine. She could be stuck with worse. Amelia and Alexandra will have a bit of fun, and Simone will be none the worse for wear when the carriage arrives at Rayne House.”
Sophie couldn’t believe that he was condoning Amelia’s mischief. She did make it rather well and Simone did deserve all that she was served.
They waited while their carriages were brought around and watched the twins climbed into their carriage with Simone looking serenely peeved off as she followed them inside.
Sophie smiled, and stared up at the full moon glowing brightly in the night sky. Somehow the night had turned out better than she had initially expected.
Once they were settled in the carriage, her father looked at Charlotte with a haunting glint in his eyes. “Charlotte, Beaufort might be alive come tomorrow morning, and I have no way of knowing whether or not your memory of the last three years will be rewritten.”
Charlotte paled, and her hands started to shake.
Sophie was lost, why would Beaufort coming back from the grave affect Charlotte? Granted, she had not always attended the balls that her sister had attended, so maybe Charlotte had met Beaufort at one of them all those years ago.
“As Charlotte knows, the day that we lost Beaufort was a day that might have changed the course of her destiny for that night Beaufort had been invited to Rayne Castle to meet me.
“I was going to explain our family history to him and show him the Ruby. If the Ruby didn’t divine him as being meant for Charlotte I would have done what all FitzCharles guardians of the Dragonwyck Ruby have done in the past, I would have altered his memory.”
“Charlotte, you never told me about Beaufort,” Sophie said softly.
“It was our secret. I only confided in Papa when I realized how deeply I felt for Beau. You were unreachable then, Sophie. It was right after we lost dear Sylvie.”
That explained Charlotte’s sudden holiday on the family Isle after Beaufort’s untimely passing. She had gone to be with the only members of the family who would understand her heartache.
“Well, I pray that come the morning the hole in your heart will be healed, Charlotte, and that the Ruby speaks in your favour.”
Charlotte looked uncomfortable. “I hope you are right, Sophie. I don’t know what to think anymore. I dare not hope for something that has already been torn from my life.”
Light rippled through the carriage, and when her vision adjusted, she found a smiling Redding sitting across from her. The jubilant smile made her nervous. He snapped his fingers, and a newspaper sat on her lap.
“There you are, darling. Go ahead and read fast, because I have just worked a miracle, and I want you to see the fruits of my labour.”
Charlotte peered over her at the paper, as Sophie read it aloud,
“Mayhem in Mayfair last night when Lord Huntingdon had hallucinatory fits stemming from what can only be a guilty conscience and imbibing heavily on spirits. He mortified his wife, the new Countess, and various Lords and Ladies, and other dignified guests at the ball, with a confession detailing his dastardly actions concerning the will of his late Uncle, the 5th Earl of Huntingdon.
“Rumor has it that he will be retiring to the Country for an indefinite amount of time while the Dowager Countess returns to town to reclaim what The Villainous Earl stole from her. The authorities will be investigating the troubling events concerning the switching of the last earl’s will. Needless to say the ton is abuzz with the latest revelation and all will flock to welcome Lady Huntingdon and her daughters when they return to their magnificent townhouse on Curzon Street.”
As soon as she had finished reading the news article, the words started to magically change. She looked incredulously over at Redding.
“All of Mayfair was delighted last night to see the Countess of Huntingdon emerge from mourning her late husband to host a ball that will be known as one of the gems of the season. Her son, the new Earl of Huntingdon, is said to have his eyes on the eldest daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Dragonwyck.”
Echoing silence resonated throughout the carriage as her father exchanged a knowing glance with Sophie.
Charlotte sat in stony silence, and inched farther away from Sophie so she could put as much distance between them as possible.
“What? No…what the bloody hell going on? That has to be a misprint, doesn’t it?” Sophie asked, shaking the newspaper, dread curling through her.
“Well, that won’t do at all,” Redding muttered.
The fruits of Redding’s labours had backfired in his face. This had to be a mistake that could be rectified as easily as it was created.
Charlotte would kill her if it were a genuine article.
She was so bewildered, she felt like she was losing her mind!
Her nerves were frayed and almost at the breaking point. So much so, she nearly let out a scream when Reggie’s ghostly head popped through the moving carriage door.
“You and Lord Redding fixed it all like you said you would, my dear sweet Sophie. I thought I would warn you before anything catches you by surprise. It seems my Beaufort is carrying a torch for you as he believes you can build a bridge to communicate with me in the spirit world, that and the fact that your ethereal beauty quite literally takes his breath away. He is quite besotted, my dear. Completely bewitched, if you know what I mean,” Lord Huntingdon said, giving her a playful wink. She looked away. She couldn’t bear looking at him presently.
“He is supposed to like Charlotte,” she hissed, a sinking feeling entering her stomach. Lord Huntingdon smiled at her once more, and then disappeared. She sighed heavily, and met Redding’s gaze.
“So Beaufort is supposed to be sweet on Charlotte instead of you, eh? Well, that would make me happy, but he shan’t have you, Sophie. You are meant to be with me,” Redding said. He looked as if he truly regretted what he’d set into motion.
“Sophie can’t make do with just one lord pursuing her. She has to have my Beau as well?” Charlotte asked, tears welling in her eyes. The carriage rolled to a stop and a footman opened the door. Sliding over, Charlotte quickly got out of the carriage.
Sophie sighed, and tried to leave the carriage, but her father stopped her. Calling out to Charlotte, she almost admitted something that would have been her downfall. “No, Charlotte, it isn’t what you think! I don’t want Beau, I would rather have…” she stopped short, before she accidentally incriminated herself by confessing her extreme fondness for Redding.
Anger filled Redding’s eyes. He looked like he was ready to throttle Beaufort. Sighing, heavily, her father followed Charlotte. He gave her a glance of sympathy, before he climbed out of the vehicle. Had her father’s memory been altered as well?
Her question was answered when her father stopped and looked back at them.
“I suppose Beaufort decided three years ago not to take me up on my invitation. Perhaps, Charlotte believed his affections to be more serious than what they were. She has always had a way of reading more into a situation than what is actually there.
“Why don’t the two of you take a few minutes to sort things out between the two of you? I shall wait outside of the carriage for you and if I hear anything that I shouldn’t be hearing, I’ll be sure to do my duties as chaperone.” He winked conspiratorially at her, s
lammed the carriage door shut, and left them alone.
“I won’t lose you to Beaufort,” Redding said resolutely, his eyes filled with green fire.
“You forget, sir, I am not yours to lose. I thought I had already made that quite clear to you.”
“Blast and damn it, Sophie! Why can’t you just accept the fact that I want you? That I have always wanted you and you know as well as I do that you want me just as much. You love me…you have always loved me—” He looked as if he was going to elaborate further when he caught himself and clamped his lips together.
Her words dried up in her mouth before she could even get them out. Why couldn’t she accept that a man like Lord Redding wanted her for his wife?
“You can’t have me unless the Dragonwyck Ruby deems you worthy of my love, and fate never gives me what I want, Lord Redding. Look at what has happened between me and Charlotte all because of my bloody curse. I don’t wish to be a soul seer or a soul protector. It has only brought me more grief than I can possibly hope to handle.”
“It brought us together. I never would have been brought so intimately into your orbit, if the Agency hadn’t told me to seek you out. The first time I set eyes on you, I knew I wanted you. You ignited a flame inside of me that will never be extinguished, Sophie.”
“I suggest you fall back out of love with me, Lord Redding. I must away. It is very late and I am quite tired,” she muttered, emotion threatening to overwhelm her.
She made haste to leave the carriage and joined her father on the steps outside of the townhouse. When she glanced back at the carriage, she discovered that Redding had already done a disappearing act.
“He won’t give up so easily, Sophie,” her father mused. They walked up the steps to meet their butler who stood waiting for them with the door opened.
It was fortunate that they employed only those who knew about the magical world of theirs because their coachmen, butler, footmen and grooms would have been quite shocked by Redding’s antics if they weren’t already wise to them.
“No man would want a burden like me in their life, Papa. I fear I shall be a spinster. What man in their right mind would want to make me their lawful blanket? No one would want to spend the rest of their life with a woman who can see the dead.”
Her father gave her a sad look and said, “Love rarely makes sense, Sophie.”
With that he left her alone to agonize over what she had said to Lord Redding.
*****
Redding stood in a state of magically cloaked silence, watching Sophie walk into Rayne House. She looked so defeated, almost as if telling him off had saddened her. He thought back to what she had said to him. She had told him that fate never gave her what she wanted. So that meant she did want him. Altering her memories couldn’t change the way her heart had once felt. He had had a hell of a time winning her the first time around, and he expected a bit of a challenge the second time around as well.
Whether or not she could fully admit it, she wanted the Dragonwyck Ruby to pick him as her life mate. All he had to do was gain the courage to seek out its judgement.
“I am coming for you, Sophie,” he murmured. Sighing, he used his magic to transport himself back to his own townhouse.
*****
“You are a cad, Lord Redding,” Seraphina murmured, “and yet, I shan’t see my beloved Sophie die of a broken heart. She will get her heart’s desire even if I have to move Heaven and Earth to see it done.” Seraphina sighed heavily, and turned to walk through the front door of Rayne House.
Chapter Four
Sophie dragged her feet up the steps to her bedchamber. The house was unsettlingly still. Charlotte had apparently run to her bedchamber intent on staying mad at her until who knew when. She couldn’t figure out how saving Beaufort could have screwed up her life in such a spectacular way.
Why couldn’t he still have eyes for Charlotte? Or had he never truly been out to court Charlotte? Maybe he had just gone after Charlotte so he could get to her. Which, troubled her even more. She was sick to death of men pursuing her because of what she could do when it came to communing with the dead.
This new set of events was really going to confuse her, as she had no recollection of the changed timeline and the rest of her sisters did. If only, if only the change had resurrected Sylvie. How terribly she missed her wise counsel. Her heart ached for her lost twin and before she knew it the hot tears streamed down her cheeks.
Opening her bedchamber door, she let out a stifled shriek when she noticed Pamela sitting on the end of her bed.
“Lady Sophie, I am so happy to see you!” Her eyes sobered, as she took in Sophie’s miserable appearance. “Whatever is the matter, my lady?”
“I was just overcome with memories of Sylvie, Pamela.”
“Oh, you poor thing,” Pamela murmured. “You look a frightful wreck.”
“Thank you,” she said, as Pamela handed her a handkerchief to wipe away her tears. “You didn’t have to stay awake for me, Pamela. I have told you that time and again, I can manage to get my clothing off all by myself if necessary,” she muttered, attempting to avoid eye contact with her maid.
All she wanted to do was throw herself down on her bed and have a good cry. She wanted her twin back so badly. Why could she talk to other spirits of those who had passed in their family and never once had she seen Sylvie? Why would Sylvie move on without at least saying goodbye to her? Why?
“How did it go with Lord Huntingdon?” Pamela’s question pulled her back to the harsh reality she know lived in.
“How did what go, with who now?” she asked, totally taken off guard by Pamela’s question.
It looked as if Redding’s little foray into the past or whomever he had sent to do his dirty work had done more harm to her reputation than good. How deeply involved was she with Beaufort?
Moreover, how the bloody hell could she be so involved with a man she couldn’t even remember?
“You said you were going to have a difficult time avoiding the new earl. Did you manage to outwit the sly fox?”
She bit her lip. “I didn’t have any problem with him at all to be honest. I did have a problem getting away from Lord Redding.”
Pamela’s eyes twinkled mischievously. “I daresay that Miss Simone must have her nose right out of joint at that prospect. She fancied herself the future marchioness, and then someday a duchess. But then, she is going to have to deal with the fact that you are the shining gem in the FitzCharles Family. Your beauty makes you highly sought after in the marriage mart.”
Her stomach rolled nervously. She had never been highly sought after in all of her life. Men generally walked the other way when they saw her coming so the thought that she was now prized by all of the men in the ton came as an awful shock to her system.
She allowed her mind to wander as Pamela helped her out of her dress and into her nightwear. Sitting down at her dressing table, she sighed while Pamela combed her long black hair and plaited it.
“I’ll be popping off to bed myself now, my lady, as long as you don’t need anything else from me.”
“What? No. I am fine, you go and get some sleep, Pamela. Thank you for waiting for me.” She had to admit, she relied on her personal maid more than she often wanted to confess.
She climbed into bed and Pamela slipped quietly out of the room. Her mind whirled with rioting thoughts until finally exhaustion took hold, and she slipped off into dreamland, where she dreamt of Redding and a life she knew they could never have.
*****
Sophie slept away most of the next day and when she finally did wake up, she decided to take her meals in her own room, with only Seraphina to keep her company. Her mother checked in on her once to make sure she hadn’t come done with something serious and when she was satisfied, she had left telling her only that she had a few letters that needed her attention. Her mother put the missives on her rosewood escritoire and left.
Grudgingly, Sophie dragged herself out of bed to find that the letters ca
me from Beaufort, and from another lady in Mayfair that required her attention immediately. She didn’t have the energy to deal with either person, and decided to leave the letters to Seraphina’s happy affairs.
Only Seraphina would get entertainment out of reading them right now, and only her counsel would get her through the agony of finally having to deal with them. Seraphina could be a thorn in her side, and yet sometimes, on days like today when she really needed someone Seraphina delivered. For she had taken the spot that Sylvie left empty.
Seraphina was a powerful spirit and could move things from the living world with ease.
“This Lady Harding sounds extremely vexed. I should think you might want to attend to her at some point. She might throw her threats around a little heavily, but Lloyd tells me that her dead husband is giving her a world of grief that she doesn’t deserve. He says he is downright frightful and the sort that wouldn’t be allowed on this premises.”
Sophie sighed heavily. “In that case, Seraphina, I definitely can’t deal with her problem today. I am just too tired of it all. I miss Sylvie so much and I don’t why, but I miss Redding as well.”
At this remark, Seraphina dropped the missive she held. “Look at me, I’m all thumbs today,” she sighed loudly. “If you feel that way about Lord Redding, perhaps you should make yourself available to the cad.”
“Why would you call him a cad, Seraphina? Is there something devious about his nature that I should be aware of?”
“Not at all,” Seraphina muttered. “He has a big ego, but then what titled young man doesn’t? I can say he is annoying at times but his heart is true when it comes to you, dear Sophie.”
Later that afternoon, Amelia popped her head into her room, and stared at her quizzically.
“I thought I would catch you reading your spell books but instead you are talking with someone not here, aren’t you? Well, at least everyone else passing by will think you were reciting poetry or incantations, like I thought.” She carefully crept into the room, dressed in her riding finery, telling her that Amelia was intent upon going riding in Hyde Park again, most likely with Charlotte and Simone, and if she were lucky Alexandra as well if Alexandra could be coaxed to leave the house. “I take it you’re chatting with…”
The Haunting of Lady Sophie Page 7