A Most Rebellious Debutante

by Karen Abbott

  She paused for breath, giving Lord Rockhaven the chance to ask sharply, ‘Who is he? What does he look like?’

  ‘I haven’t seen him, but one of the villagers said he is about your age and has a slight family resemblance.’ She raised her eyebrows questioningly as she said the latter phrase, noticing that Lord Rockhaven didn’t seem surprised by the revelation. ‘The man with him seems a bit of a roughneck and best avoided.’

  ‘When did he arrive?’ Lord Rockhaven asked, breaking eye contact to demand, ‘My chair, Staines.’

  Staines hurried to wheel it into the appropriate position, murmuring, ‘Sorry, Cap’n. I didn’t think anyone had seen me.’

  Lucy replied to Lord Rockhaven’s question, ‘Only today. Mrs Boulton didn’t think anyone would deliberately betray you, but feared someone might mention Mr Staines without thinking. It’s some village lads who have noticed you here, Mr Staines.’ She turned back to Lord Rockhaven, a note of reproof in her voice as she added, ‘The villagers are quite poor, you know, especially since the Hall was closed down. Many are out of work and have to catch rabbits and suchlike to be able to feed their families. And I really think you should let your dogs roam loose for the time being and maybe find somewhere else to live for a while. Isn’t there anywhere up at the Hall? It would be more suitable.’

  Lord Rockhaven’s face was grim and he didn’t acknowledge her suggestions. He was too busy manoeuvring his chair deftly towards the doorway.

  Staines leaped out of his way. ‘T’lass is right, Cap’n. We needs to get you away from here without delay. You’re a sitting target in that chair.’

  Theo grimaced at Staines’s words. Didn’t he know that! ‘I’m not running away,’ he snapped. ‘If my cousin has the temerity to come here to kill me, he’ll find me ready and waiting for him! He won’t shoot me in the back as he did last time!’

  ‘Your cousin?’ Lucy echoed, horrified that a family member should be the one who had tried to kill Lord Rockhaven and, presumably, had killed his brother.

  ‘He is a braggart and a wastrel and, since Con’s death, he, unfortunately, is my heir,’ Lord Rockhaven said tersely. ‘His extravagances have brought him to point non plus and he has his greedy eyes on my title and fortune. I refuse to run away from such a character.’

  ‘Nay, it’s not running away,’ Staines argued. ‘It’s a tactical manoeuvre … just until you’re stronger, Cap’n. Let him find me. I’m only what folks think, an ex-soldier tekin’ shelter. I’ll humbly apologize and move on me way until he’s gone.’

  Theo could see the sense in that. If they both suddenly disappeared, it would look too providential to be a coincidence. ‘What if he recognizes you? His companion sounds like that thug of a batman he had.’

  ‘I’ll tell him ’er ladyship says as ’ow I could come here. From what you’ve said about ’er, she would ’ave if she knew.’

  ‘That might satisfy him…. However, I won’t get far in this,’ he pointed out, still reluctant to protect himself and leave his servant behind.

  ‘What about the children’s den?’ Lucy suggested. ‘It’s incredibly well-hidden though it offers no protection against the weather.’ She looked at him doubtfully. ‘You might have to stay there overnight.’

  Theo looked at Staines. ‘Would it do?’

  ‘Aye, I reckon it would. They’ve made a good job of it and I put some added branches there to make it thicker.’ He looked apologetically at Lucy. ‘I ’ope you don’t mind, miss. It reminded me of when I was a lad.’

  Theo made a swift decision. ‘Right! We need to move fast then. I’ll need a couple of those old horse blankets out of the stable, Staines, and my greatcoat from the cottage. Oh, and a cob of bread and my canteen of water … and anything else that might betray my presence here.’

  Staines hurried across the yard towards the cottage.

  ‘I’ll get the blankets. Is that the stable over there?’ Lucy asked, pointing to her right.

  ‘Yes. They’re hanging on hooks near the door. Two should be enough.’

  Lucy darted across the yard. Staines was emerging from the cottage when she returned clutching the blankets. They smelled of horses, but she didn’t suppose a seasoned campaigner like Lord Rockhaven would find the smell offensive, nor the texture too rough.

  Staines dropped a bundle on his master’s lap and then draped the blankets on top.

  ‘I’ll take Bruno with me,’ Theo decided. ‘He’s a good watch dog and will keep quiet on command.’

  The two dogs had been whining and grumbling during the recent activity and their noise increased at the prospect of imminent release.

  ‘Quiet!’ Staines commanded, as he entered the pen, separating Bruno from the other dog. Bruno, tail wagging, willingly squeezed through the gate that Staines held only partly open and bounded over to where Lucy stood beside Theo. She felt only a vague unease, realizing that neither man would have released the dog if it was likely to harm her. She stood still whilst the dog sniffed around her.

  ‘Friend!’ Theo said quietly. Bruno immediately transferred his attention to his master, who heartily scratched the dog’s ears. ‘Good boy!’ Theo praised, and then said more sharply, ‘Patrol!’

  Bruno stood still, only the muscles along his back and haunches quivering as he tensed for action.

  ‘Don’t forget to dismantle all my training equipment and scatter it in the outbuildings as soon as you come back, Staines,’ Theo remembered to say.

  ‘I’ll do that, Cap’n. Now, ’old on tight. We’re off.’ Staines took hold of the wheelchair handles and set off at a trot, trundling the wheelchair over the cobbled yard and along the track towards the wood.

  Bruno loped alongside and Lucy hurried to keep up.

  Once they left the hardened track she could see that the wheels were leaving two narrow parallel ruts along the ground. Careless of her smooth hands, she grabbed hold of a fallen branch and began to sweep vigorously across the tell-tale evidence.

  They reached softer ground and the wheels sank too far into the ground to allow Staines to make much headway. ‘It’s not much further,’ he told his master. ‘If it’s all right with thee, Cap’n, I’ll carry thee. Can you fetch t’rest o’ things, miss?’

  Lucy gathered them up from Lord Rockhaven’s lap and turned away, sensitively realizing that Lord Rockhaven would not wish her to watch as Staines gathered his tall yet slender form into his arms and expertly draped him over his shoulder. Staines set off in the direction of the den, loping along as if he had no more than a sack of grain over his shoulder. Lucy dropped the assorted bundle on to the seat of the wheelchair and yanked the wheelchair around, knowing it would be easier to pull it through the long grasses and undergrowth, rather than push it. She followed Staines at a slower pace, her breath rasping in her throat.

  When she arrived at the den, Staines was holding back some springy branches that served to disguise the entrance and Lucy pulled the wheelchair through, unceremoniously pulling the skirt of her dress free from some thorns that had snagged hold of it. She turned round, surprised to find herself no more than a few inches away from Lord Rockhaven’s standing figure.

  ‘Oh!’ She let go of the wheelchair handles and instinctively stepped back a little. ‘You’re standing. It … it seems strange.’

  Lord Rockhaven was holding on to an overhanging branch with his left hand and his face was taut with controlled pain. Bruno lay at his feet, his body relaxed but his eyes watchful. A faint flicker of a smile relieved the tension of Lord Rockhaven’s face. ‘Yes. I have improved much in the past few weeks, but I cannot yet walk unaided.’

  He held out his right hand and Lucy found herself responding to his gesture by placing her right hand in his.

  ‘I have much to thank you for,’ he said tenderly, looking down into her eyes. ‘I hope to have the opportunity another time to thank you more leisurely.’ Glancing down, he turned her hand until it was palm uppermost and looked at the scratches and the blisters that were already forming. He
traced the lines of scratches tenderly with the pad of his thumb, then looked up again, his one eye revealing a depth of emotion that made Lucy’s heart race with anticipation and she held her breath as he lifted her hand up to his lips and tenderly kissed her palm.

  She would not have believed that such a simple act could have such an effect on her heart. It was beating so rapidly within her breast that she quite expected it to burst out of its confines. His action was more moving than any of the well-presented protestations of undying love that many of her suitors had effusively uttered. She felt a warm blush flow over her cheeks and she lowered her eyelashes in confusion, not wanting him to see her reaction to his courtly gesture.

  ‘Tell me your full name, so that I may greet you properly the next time we meet,’ he asked softly.

  ‘L-Lucy Templeton,’ she stammered, feeling almost dizzy from her close contact with this man. She raised her head slightly and her glance settled on his lips; lips that curved into a lazy sensuous smile that seemed to invite her confidence and promised … what? She wasn’t sure, but she hoped she had the chance to find out. She knew what those lips felt like; their smooth velvety strength had teased her own lips into a yielding spiral of desire. A kiss completely forgotten by its giver, she realized.

  Time seemed to stand still and she couldn’t tear her eyes away from his face. In spite of the scar and the patch over his eye, his expression was … tender, she realized. Her thoughts led her to run the tip of her tongue lightly over her lips and they tingled in anticipation.

  Impassioned by the simple action, Lord Rockhaven groaned within himself. How he wished he had met this entrancing young woman before he had been injured so disfiguringly! He sensed she might have been the one who could have banished the blackness of the family curse that had hung over him since his childhood.

  By the softness of the hand that he still held, he realized she must be of genteel birth, maybe a poor relation of some local family. He vaguely thought of the Cunninghams whose land was separated from his own by this small woodland. Of course, that’s why they felt free to play there! There had been no children in the family in his younger days, but, now that his thoughts took him this way, he remembered Cunningham’s pretty but compliant wife who had graced his mother’s drawing room on several occasions some years ago. Was she the mother of the children who had accompanied Miss Templeton on their first meeting? They had called her Aunt Lucy. Was she Mrs Cunningham’s sister? Or, from the lack of style in her clothing, a more distant relative?

  Whoever or whatever she was, she was no namby-pamby socialite! She had as much courage and resourcefulness as a seasoned campaigner on the Peninsular and he wanted to know her better. But not now. Not while his cousin’s presence in the area might endanger her life along with his own.

  A small cough brought them both back to reality.

  ‘The young lady’d best be on ’er way, Cap’n,’ Staines warned. ‘We’ve no knowing what Lieutenant Potterill might be doin’.’

  Lord Rockhaven released her and unsteadily regained his balance, shaking his head in wonder. He wasn’t sure what had happened within him. Was she aware of his thoughts? He looked at her searchingly, wondering if she would be looking at him with loathing for having lifted her hand to his lips.

  She wasn’t. Her eyes steadily held his and she seemed to be as spellbound as he was. She wasn’t repelled by him: her face glowed with wonder.

  He felt a jolt of— He wasn’t sure what to call the sensation he felt as he looked into her eyes. He suddenly knew that, if he survived the coming encounter with his cousin, he would come back and search her out – whatever her social standing, or lack of it; she had pierced his heart.

  He reached out and gently trailed his fingers down her cheek. ‘Thank you,’ he murmured softly. ‘I am indebted to you, but now you must go.’

  ‘Yes,’ Lucy said faintly, pulling her thoughts together. ‘I … I’ll come back in the morning, if I may,’ she whispered faintly. ‘To make sure you’re all right,’ she added, as if fearing that her motive was likely to be misunderstood.

  He gripped her hand again, holding it tightly in the intensity of his sudden fear for her safety. ‘Do not return tonight, nor, if you suspect that Piers is still here, tomorrow. He would have no hesitation in eliminating you if he thought you privy to his actions. Promise me!’

  Lucy felt a pang of fear. This was no game they were playing. Her startled eyes met Lord Rockhaven’s intent gaze.

  ‘I demand your promise!’ he insisted, all traces of softness now gone from his expression.

  Lucy nodded. ‘I promise,’ she whispered. She withdrew her hand from Lord Rockhaven’s and made herself smile briskly. She knew she had to be on her way – her presence was a hindrance to his concealment – and she was anxious to be somewhere on her own so that she could sort out her tumbling emotions.

  ‘God be with both of you,’ she said, as she carefully slipped out of the den between the overhanging branches and hurried back to where she had left her gig.

  ‘A grand lass,’ Staines commented, as the branches dropped back into place. ‘What I’d call a real lady.’

  ‘Yes,’ Theo agreed, thinking of the softness of the hand that had lain in his, burning his own toughened skin. ‘Lucy Templeton,’ he repeated softly, knowing he would be forever in her debt. But, there was no time for such reflections right now – he had all night for that!

  ‘Help me into the chair, Staines,’ he said more briskly, ‘then you, too, must be on your way. And, yes, may God go with you, my good friend.’

  Nine

  LUCY REACHED HER gig, relieved that the remaining dog was barking no more than its usual recognition of her presence. She swiftly unhitched Maud’s reins and led her round to face the track before she climbed aboard. Then, with a click of her tongue and a gentle flick of her whip she signalled Maud to set off. She felt tense with apprehension, thinking that, for once, she would be relieved to be back at Glenbury Lodge, and even more relieved on the morrow when she met Lord Rockhaven once more and was assured of his safety.

  She had seen a softer side of his nature, the part of his character that would have been more evident to his mother and grandmother, generating within them the obvious love they bore for him. Had he been aware of the surge of passion she had felt for him? She hoped not. She had worn her heart on her sleeve too visibly when she had thought that Mario Vitali was as much in love with her as she had been with him. And how mistaken had that belief been! But not even that sobering thought could dispel the euphoria that surrounded her. She felt as though she were floating on air. ‘Oh, please keep him safe!’ she breathed in almost silent prayer. Surely, tomorrow they would be laughing about a wasted piece of drama!

  She paused at the end of the track and drew in her breath sharply. A well-appointed curricle was coming at a fast pace from the direction of the village. The hope that the vehicle would continue past her faded as the curricle slowed its pace. The driver, a dandy if ever she saw one, regarded her with an aggressive air as he began to turn his matching greys towards the track.

  She immediately knew from Mrs Boulton’s description that this was Lord Rockhaven’s cousin. Someone must have indeed mentioned the vagrant ex-soldier to him and he was coming to check who it was. She had to delay him!

  Clicking her tongue and giving the reins an imperceptible flick, she urged Maud forward. The man’s aristocratic features glared down at her as he realized that a collision was imminent.

  ‘Hey! Look out!’ the man bellowed, pulling hard on his reins.

  Lucy tugged on the left-hand rein, swiftly followed by a tug on the right, giving Maud a contradictory signal. Maud mis-stepped and, instead of turning, reared slightly as she found herself too near the high-stepping greys.

  At that point, Lucy put the best of her driving skills into practice and pulled the left rein again, taking Maud to within a whisker of the off-side grey and her gig followed behind, her wheel neatly sliding between the curricle’s offside wheel
and the body of the curricle.

  A sharp oath briefly drew her glance to the thickset groom in the rumble seat, his weatherbeaten face snarling at her seeming ineptitude. A ripple of fear ran down her spine but she concentrated on reining in Maud before irreparable damage was done to her gig.

  The dandy had brought his greys to a shuddering halt. They were now rearing and bucking, their eyes rolling wildly at the sudden halt to their progress. The man uttered a coarse oath as he strove to control them. Lucy’s face flushed with embarrassment and anger, but she strove to keep her voice in neutral tones.

  ‘Oh, dear,’ she uttered mildly, looking up at the irate driver, hoping that he took her rosy cheeks to be the outcome of embarrassment. ‘We seem to have become entangled somewhat, don’t we? I’m most dreadfully sorry.’

  ‘Entangled? You clumsy—’ He managed to bite back whatever epithet he was about to bestow upon her and, instead, ground out, ‘Ham-fisted drivers such as you should be barred from driving on public roads. If you were a man I would knock you from your seat! Get down at once so that we can sort this mess out – and keep that bone-setter still, will you!’

  Lucy felt incensed. Even though she had performed a deliberate piece of bad driving, she couldn’t believe that any gentleman, even one of dubious character, would speak to a woman in such a high-handed fashion. Her mouth tightened as she fastened the reins to the side of her seat, then stood and swung around to face the furious young man, the backs of her hands resting on her hips.

  ‘Maud is no bone-setter, sir,’ she said indignantly. ‘She is as finely bred as your … your …’ No, not even in anger could she pour scorn on his beautiful pair. She decided to change tack and use feminine wiles. ‘Well, maybe not,’ she said in softer tones, ‘but she is a sweet goer, all the same. I beg you, sir, do not blame my pony for my mishandling of her.’

  ‘“Mishandling” is not how I would describe your lack of driving skills, miss,’ he said haughtily. ‘Do you realize that you could have caused a nasty accident here? I have never seen such appalling driving, even from a female!’