HOLY POISON: Boxed Set: The Complete Series 1-6

by Margaret Brazear

  His bedchamber was still as he had left it, so he stayed the night and the following morning the cousins set out together to continue the search, while Bethany waited, desolate and heartbroken.

  The nurse brought Estelle to her and she held her in her arms until she started to get restless and squirm about on her lap.

  "Will you eat something, My Lady," the nurse asked as she took her daughter into her arms.

  She shook my head.

  "No, thank you. I do not think I can."

  "But the child, My Lady. It needs nourishment."

  Bethany could only stare at her. She knew she was right, but she also knew that anything she ate would come straight back up.

  She had some mild pains as well, although the child was not due for another month or so and she wanted no one to know that, least of all Richard. She hoped Anthony was sincere, that he had indeed come to seek forgiveness and to help, but something about him looked false.

  She laid down on the settle and dozed off, against her will, and some time later she was awoken by voices in the hall.

  ***

  When Louisa came to wake Rachel herself instead of leaving it to the other maids, she knew something was wrong. She was waving a piece of parchment which had been well used as was the custom. This new note seemed to have been written between the lines of the previous one. Louisa hurried to the bedside.

  "My Lady," she said hurriedly. "It is from Lucy. Lord Summerville's son has been taken."

  "Taken?"

  "Yes, My Lady," she replied pushing the letter in front of her mistress. "It seems the child has been kidnapped right from the estate, almost right out of Lady Summerville's very presence."

  Rachel took the letter and read the few lines which Lucy had written. She had taught both these girls to read and write and she had never been so glad of it as now, or she would never know what was going on.

  "Seems it was a week ago now," she murmured.

  Just after Anthony's visit, Rachel thought. Just after she rejected him, told him Richard would never forgive him. Right after she told him where the orphan home was.

  "Help me dress," she said at once, swinging her legs out of bed. "I must go to Suffolk."

  "Not alone, My Lady."

  She looked at Louisa thoughtfully. She did not want a coachman knowing she was visiting the Earl's estate. On the other hand, she did not want to drag Louisa off to the place where she had found her, to stir up painful memories.

  "No, Louisa," she replied. "You must come with me. We can take turns in driving the carriage. But be quick."

  Rachel decided she would tell her on the way precisely where they were going and leave it up to her whether she accompanied her or not.

  Louisa helped her with her clothing, but she could tell there was something on her mind as she did not chatter away in her usual manner.

  "Do you think it is wise, My Lady?" She said at last.

  "What do you mean?"

  "To go there at this time. The people there already resent you; they will not be kind if you show your face when Her Ladyship is so distraught. They will think it is rubbing salt into the wound."

  Rachel turned and stared at her. She was right, of course, but she had more important things to think about.

  "I have little time for what they might think, Louisa," she said. "I believe I may know what has happened to the child; I may even know where he is."

  ***

  "I do not think Her Ladyship will want to see you," said Nancy's voice. "Really, My Lady, it is not seemly for you to come here at all, never mind at this time."

  Who on earth could the woman be talking to? Bethany got up and went to the door.

  "I have information for Lady Summerville," Rachel was saying.

  "Nancy," she interrupted. "You will not speak to Lady Rachel in that insolent manner. She has had a long journey; bring some refreshments at once."

  She turned back to her while Nancy shuffled away to do her bidding, muttering under her breath as she went, and closely followed by Louisa. Bethany was angry with her, but also grateful that people were prepared to defend her. Rachel stood in the hall, looking her usual stunning self, making Bethany feel even less attractive than ever with her dishevelled state and her overblown stomach. She had not changed out of these clothes since it happened, even her shift was the same one.

  "Bethany," she said, reaching out as she stepped forward.

  "Rachel. Forgive my maid. She thinks she is defending me against the evil other woman."

  "Good," Rachel replied firmly. "That is what she is meant to think. But none of that is important now. Your son is missing and I believe I know where he might be."

  Bethany took her arm and pulled her into the sitting room.

  "Where is Richard?" Rachel asked as soon as she was seated.

  "He is out searching, as he has been every day since it happened."

  Rachel glanced at Bethany’s figure then. Could she really not have noticed before? Or did she have so many things going on in her mind the knowledge swept over her?

  "I did not know you were with child again," she said softly. "This must be a terrible strain."

  Bethany blushed. Why did it matter so much that this woman should know of her condition, should know of how she got into this condition? It mattered not at all that anyone else knew, all the household servants, all the tenants, all the villagers, but somehow having Rachel know was embarrassing.

  "Richard has gone out with Anthony."

  Her expression changed to one of alarm and Bethany reached out to reassure her with a touch on her arm, just as Nancy brought the drinks and put them down on the table. She glared resentfully at Rachel and Louisa glared resentfully at her. Bethany wondered whether it would not be better for all concerned if she was not known as Lord Summerville's former mistress. She could not imagine what everyone had to say about her, about the way she seemed to accept her, and now that she had come here they would all believe they were still lovers, despite Richard rarely leaving his wife’s side.

  Bethany was not sure how she felt about that. They might all be thinking she was here to accommodate Richard while his wife was heavy with child? That is what she would think in their position and she did not like the idea of them thinking that about him. And what did they think about her coming here when his son was missing? It had all got so complicated since he first suggested their pretence.

  Rachel was shaking her head slowly as Bethany watched Nancy retreat to the kitchen.

  "Not Anthony," Rachel said as soon as she was gone. "I am sure he is responsible for the child's disappearance."

  "Anthony? He came here two nights ago, seeking forgiveness."

  "He lies, Bethany," she said then stood to pace about the room.

  Bethany got to her feet and grabbed her arm, turning her to face her.

  "What do you mean? You said you knew where my son might be."

  Rachel studied her carefully, not sure whether she should tell her what she knew.

  "I knew about the argument Anthony had with you and with Richard. I tried to persuade him he was wrong, that he should go home and make peace, but he would have none of it." She paused and started to ring her hands together. "Then he visited me and asked about the orphan home where I found Louisa." She turned her beautiful black eyes to look at the girl where she stood beside the door. "He said he had friends wanting to adopt but when Lucy sent word about your son being taken, I began to wonder. Anthony must think I am stupid not to connect the two."

  "He thinks all women are stupid, Rachel," Bethany told her. "That was one of the things he argued with Richard about. Where is this place?"

  "About an hour from here. I will take Lucy," she said. "She knows what the child looks like; I do not."

  "No. I am coming with you."

  "Do you not want to wait for Richard to return?"

  "No. There is no telling how long that will be and all the time my little boy is scared and lonely and god knows how they are treating him." S
he walked into the hall and pulled her cloak down from the board. "Besides, what if you are wrong? We do not want to build his hopes up, nor do we want to cause a further rift unnecessarily."

  She called for Nancy, who came running, bringing with her the same scowl for Lady Rachel. She had no time to be angry with her.

  She grabbed some parchment out of the drawer and wrote the location as Rachel told it to her.

  "I want you to give this to Lord Summerville the minute he returns," she told her, pressing the note into her hand. "Not to Mr Anthony, nor to anyone else. You must give it into His Lordship's hands personally. Do you understand?"

  "Yes, My Lady," she agreed. "But should you be travelling about?"

  She gave Rachel another glare which cried out her disapproval. It was obvious to her that her mistress was being coerced.

  "I have to go, Nancy," she said. "We may find my son." She turned to Rachel then as a thought occurred to her. "Do you have a driver?"

  "No," she replied, shaking her head. "We drove here alone. I did not want people to gossip."

  Bethany turned back to Nancy.

  "Fetch one of the men, please, quickly. Someone who can drive the carriage."

  Still she looked suspiciously at Rachel until Bethany thought she might slap her, but she eventually went and returned with Thomas, that same man who had accompanied her to London, who had been with her when she watched her husband driving in the park with this very woman, laughing at her jokes, the same man who had been with her when she witnessed the execution of her sister.

  He glared at Rachel insolently.

  "Thomas," she said, "please follow Lady Rachel's directions and be quick." She turned back to Rachel. "We will take the Summerville carriage, let your horses rest."

  They both boarded the carriage while Louisa climbed up beside Thomas. Rachel turned and looked worriedly at her companion.

  "Richard will never forgive me if anything happens to you," she said. "It is going to be a rough journey. I assume the child knows your man here. Why not let me go with him?"

  "I need to go, Rachel. He does not know you and he does not know Thomas that well either; he will be even more frightened if strangers come and take him." She clutched her hand as the carriage moved away. "Part of me hopes you are wrong. I want my child back, desperately, but if you are right it will mean Anthony has betrayed us. I did not think he would do that, despite the rift between us."

  "He wants Summerville," Rachel replied. "He has been ranting about it since Richard came home. With no son, he is Richard's heir."

  "That is what I believed, but I talked myself out of it. I do not understand. I thought he would be happy for Richard to have a son."

  "That was before. Now he resents you, believes Richard married beneath himself and he thinks he should have married a Catholic. He does not mind Richard having a son, just not your son." She paused and put her arm around Bethany’s shoulders comfortingly. "I am sorry, My Lady," she went on. "I do not want to be the one to tell you these things, but you need to hear them. Richard also needs to hear them. Anthony is a fool, but I fear he may prove to be a dangerous fool."

  “So he came to help, to make peace so Richard would make him his heir after all.”

  Bethany held her gaze for a few moments, wondering whether now was the right time to mention her recent letter, a letter she had decided to keep from Richard.

  "I received your letter," she said after some thought.

  Rachel looked at her, the concern clear in her eyes.

  "I am sorry," she said quietly. "I could think of no other way to make him leave me alone. It had always worked in the past, with other men. If there had been any other way I would have taken it, but he frightened me. He refused to take my word that I wanted nothing to do with him."

  That must have been awful for her after her ordeal, Bethany thought.

  "Do not trouble yourself, My Lady," Bethany said softly, then added almost against her will: "As long as it was a lie."

  Rachel turned horrified eyes on her and Bethany immediately regretted her hasty words. Why did she say them? Had she really meant them?

  "If you doubt me, then read again his last request to me. It is all I have."

  "Forgive me. I am distraught and not thinking properly. It has been hard for me, having the children so quickly. It can make a woman feel unsightly and I know what an attractive proposition my husband is."

  "Not to me," she replied.

  "I know that. I am but being foolish."

  "You need not fear," she said, taking her hand again. "He loves you, no other."

  "Rachel," Bethany said in a frightened tone, "if Anthony is behind this, Richard will kill him. You know that, do you not?"

  She nodded silently.

  ***

  As they approached the orphan home Bethany felt a black and cold depression descending over her. She had never seen a place so desolate and it was not just the building itself, nor the empty landscape which went on for miles with no other buildings or even a solitary animal in sight, but the whole atmosphere.

  The paintwork on the window and door frames was peeling, the plaster on the walls was flaking off. The windows themselves were grimy and cracked, so no one could see in and what should have been the garden was filled with weeds.

  This was where Rachel had been forced to come with her second husband, the man who had stolen her childhood, her virginity and her life as a normal woman, where he believed she would help him procure another child. This is where Louisa was living, the luckiest little girl there that day. Rachel had saved that child's life and now she was trying to do the same for Bethany’s son.

  She watched as Rachel looked around and she saw the colour visibly drain from her face. This place must bring back some awful memories for her and it must bring back even worse ones for Louisa.

  Thomas was beside the carriage, holding out a hand to help his mistress down, and once she had her feet firmly on the ground he turned to do the same for her companion, although she could see the grudging look in his eyes. She could not tell him, or anyone, that they were wrong about her, that she was not Lord Summerville’s whore. Bethany could imagine the scene if she tried, the pity they would have for her for being fool enough to believe such an unlikely tale. They were Rachel’s secrets to tell and she would rather endure the resentment and insults of Bethany’s servants than admit she was nobody's mistress.

  They approached the front doors slowly. Bethany’s back ached and the mild pains she experienced earlier had returned. She felt awkward and heavy and her feet and legs were swollen. And here she stumbled along beside this beautiful creature, who moved with more grace than a swan on a lake and held on to her arm to steady her. Bethany was very glad Richard was not here to see them together, the comparison did her no favours, then she cursed her own vanity for even thinking of that when her child was missing, and very likely inside this cold and gloomy place.

  Thomas went to the front doors and hammered on them loudly. Bethany had to admit he was the right man to have with them as he would brook no nonsense from anyone. She had noticed that in London, but now she felt it even more. He too loved and respected Richard and would protect his wife with his life if necessary. He would also protect that man's mistress if he had to whether he approved of her or not.

  She recalled their first glimpse of Rachel, riding in the Summerville carriage with her husband, laughing with him. She recalled the hurt, the stab of sheer agony at the sight of the pair and she remembered glancing at Thomas and seeing the fury in his grey eyes. She was sure he would have tried to comfort her had he not been a servant, but instead he could do nothing but hurry the coachman along until they came to a standstill at Smithfield, until they found they had not seen the worst that day had to offer.

  The man who opened the door of the orphan home was a skinny, bald person with a crouched over figure and a nose like a crow's beak. When he saw the carriage with the crest on the side, and took in the expensive clothing of both the women
who stood before him, he crouched down even lower. Perhaps he thought they had come to make a donation.

  "We are looking for a little boy," Thomas announced before the man had time to speak. "Their Ladyships have come a long way, and you would do well to sit them down and give them some refreshments."

  The little man walked backwards as he guided them into the hallway.

  "Have you had a boy brought in within the last week," Bethany asked with a note of desperation. "He is not yet three years old."

  "We have many boys of that age, My Lady," the man replied with a smile. "Let me get you some ale and then you can choose."

  She almost slapped him. Why did he not understand a simple request?

  "You do not understand, Sir," Rachel said quickly. "Her Ladyship is looking for her own son, who was stolen from her."

  "No," he said in alarm. "None of our children are stolen. All are orphans or those poor wretches whose mothers do not want them."

  He passed Bethany a tankard but she pushed it away.

  "Where are your boys?" She demanded. "We will see for ourselves."

  "Stay there, Your Ladyship," Thomas said, pushing her gently into a seat. "I will go and look."

  "If your son is here, though that is unlikely, My lady," the little man was saying nervously, "I hope you realise that I could have had no clue."

  She could only stare at him, feeling faint and hoping she did not collapse. Rachel had been right, of course, she should not have come. But then she heard Thomas returning, and in his arms he held her little Joshua.

  "Mama!" He put the boy down and he ran to his mother, throwing his arms around her and hugging her so tight she could scarcely breathe.

  She saw Thomas smiling, she saw Rachel smiling, she saw the little man looking worried, and that was all she saw before everything went black.

  CHAPTER SIX

  The place was far more desolate than it was when last Rachel visited and weeds had grown up all around it. She was reminded of their house nearby, which also had weeds growing all around it, weeds which thankfully hid the charred remains of the monster.