by Nancy Wells
There was silence for some time. Elliot did not have to open his eyes to know that Shane wanted to ask more. He could sense disapproval and anger in his voice. Russell might have reacted more violently, but that did not mean Shane was any less angry.
“Why did you do it?” Shane asked.
Elliot knew he was asking about his behavior. Why did he hurt her last night? What made her scream in his study? How can he turn into a heartless cad?
“Because I am a monster.”
Elliot had a guilty conscience. He was responsible for her condition. He believed he deserved the disdain of others. Even if the girl went outside without his permission, she did not deserve his vile behavior. His only saving grace was that he did not force himself upon her.
“Last night, we were at the gaming saloon when your butler came looking for us. He told us that you were killing the girl. Russell did not want to come because he was confident you would never harm her. He believed the butler was lying, but I forced him into coming here. I thought it would be a misunderstanding and we would laugh together at the mistake of the butler.
“In the carriage that day, Russell deliberately pointed to the girl. He wanted you to take notice of her. He knew you would save the girl if we mentioned the deal with the gambler. He believed in you. Russell… he was abused as a child. He wants to help anyone that might be suffering from the same fate. He is damaged, Elliot. He understands the pain of another abused person more profoundly than the rest of us. Make me understand, Elliot. What made you push towards this insanity?”
Elliot was conflicted about whether he should unburden his soul or let the grief fester in his heart. Shane and Russell were his only friends in the world. If Shane abhorred him after knowing about the reason for his ghastly behavior, then so be it. He was already disgusted with himself. Nothing excused his behavior. Drunk or not, he should have control over his emotions.
“I… I came home and she was not here. Neither was the butler. A maid told me they went alone without telling anyone. I became drunk and stupid. When she returned, I saw the face of Sara. I did what I used to do whenever we had a fight. I did not see Emily, I saw her—it always comes back to her. Shane… She is still haunting me… Why did he bring this girl to my attention? She and I have nothing in common. She is afraid of me, Shane. When I asked her about the markings on her back, she was afraid I would hurt her. Why did he bring her into my life?”
Elliot looked towards the doorway where Shane was leaning against the doorframe. Elliot was expecting disgust on his face, but Shane was looking at him with pity and sympathy. Instead of making him happy, his reaction had the opposite effect on him. Elliot did not want to be perceived as a victim. He had hurt an innocent person, he deserved punishment.
“She has more in common with you than you realize.”
When Shane turned around to leave, Elliot was desperate to assure him that he did not hurt the girl the way he was thinking. He was in a state of undress when they came inside the study, but he did not force himself upon the girl. He considered himself a bastard, but he was not so demented as to bed an unwilling partner.
“I did not abuse her the way you are assuming,” Elliot said, hesitantly. “I did not damage her.”
He was not sure whether Shane would believe him or not. No matter how many times he screamed his innocence, the state of the girl was not hidden from anyone. He was responsible for her fever. Directly or indirectly, he was responsible for her condition.
“I never said you damaged her. And Elliot, before the physician arrives, dress her in suitable clothes. She has suffered enough. Her honor is in your hands now.”
When Shane left, he banged his head against the headboard. When Shane mentioned her dress, he recalled asking her to go to a seamstress. He had asked her to take a servant with her to the seamstress. She was only following his orders. She did not need his permission when he was the one asking her to go in the first place. He never specified to her which servant to take.
Pulling the string of the bell beside his bed, he waited for a maid to answer his call. Shane was right; Emily’s dignity was in his hands. She was not comfortable lying naked beside her own husband, she would be devastated if he let someone else see her like this.
A knock on the door made him aware of the maid’s presence. It was not the same maid who was in the study last night. He needed to investigate that matter too. If the maid had deliberately lied to him, he would not tolerate her remaining in his house.
“Your Grace, what can I do for you?”
“Bring me her green dress and all the underthings.”
He never gave orders for new dresses yesterday, as he completely forgot about the seamstress. The only dress suitable for his wife was her wedding dress. He vowed to clothe her in silks and jewels. She was his wife; she deserved all the finery in the world. He did not intend to ignore her anymore. He would listen to her every word about her life before and after he came into it. He had disappointed her once; he would not repeat the same mistake.
“A maid took that dress, Your Grace.” The maid looked down when he looked at her in anger. “She… she wore it a number of times.”
Now, he understood why she was in her garb on the first day of their marital life. Someone took her wedding dress and since the girl was scared of everyone, she did not raise her voice when someone stole the dress. Elliot vowed to give the girl some courage. She needed to speak up for herself. Otherwise, people would push her around all her life. Elliot was already upset and the realization that his servants were mistreating the girl added to his grief.
“Are you telling me that a common maid had the gall to take my wife’s wedding dress?” Elliot seethed. “Bring me that dress even if you have to rip it from the corpse of the maid.”
The maid ran from the room like the devil was at her feet. Elliot was not a forgiving sort and all his servants were aware of it. He looked back at Emily who was once again shivering and mumbling something. Holding her close to his body, he provided his body heat to her. In her delirium, she was calling for a prince to save her from a monster. There was no doubt whatsoever in his mind that he was the monster in her nightmares. When her shivering did not stop, he threw fresh logs in the hearth and closed every window and door in his room. The room became so heated, his shirt was sticking to his back.
When the maid brought the dress, he took it from her hands and sent her away, refusing her help. With tenderness and care, he removed the torn dress and coat from her unresponsive body. He saw fading marks on her chest and his guilt redoubled. He dressed her in the silk gown and ignored the heavy petticoats and the constricting corset.
When the physician arrived, he was pacing beside his bed like a madman. The physician opened the windows, allowing fresh air to enter and put out the fire in the hearth.
Elliot stayed by her side as the physician examined her. Following the physician out of the room, he listened to his instructions like an eager pupil. Apparently, all his methods of comfort were wrong. Instead of keeping the room hot like an oven, he ought to let fresh air and sunshine into the room. Instead of keeping her warm, he was supposed to bring her body temperature down by giving her cold baths and putting cold strips of cloths on her face.
The whole household was standing before the duke in his study. He was sitting behind his desk like a real aristocrat with his powdered wig and a wooden cane. This was a day of reckoning for all of them. The duke had ignored them for a very long time, but now things were about to change. New rules were being imposed because the house had a new mistress now.
“How many of you were aware that the duchess had gone to the seamstress with the butler?” the duke asked.
A majority of the servants lifted their hands with a nod of heads. The duchess was seen in her cloak when she came to the garden. The gardener was there when she made a request to the butler about taking her to the seamstress. Word traveled from the gardener’s mouth to others and soon almost everyone was aware of her whereabouts.
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Elliot looked for the maid who had informed him rather innocently that his wife had gone alone with the butler. If there was not a good reason for her lie, then she would not be part of his household any longer.
“Madam, an explanation, if you will?” The duke pointed his cane at the maid.
Clutching her hands before her navel, the maid looked at him like a trained servant. She was docile and subservient, basically a perfect personal maid for any fine lady. She was Sara’s choice, she should be good at her job.
“I was not aware of their whereabouts, Your Grace. I never get the chance to participate in gossip and chitchat. I had other important duties. I told Your Grace, what I knew to be true.”
Her wording was perfect. There was no flaw in her manners, except for one small detail that might have gone unnoticed by others but Elliot was a keen observer. He noticed her as she put emphasis on the word, important. She was considering herself higher in ranking than the other servants. She replied for everyone when he asked her the question that day. Chalking up her answer to narcissistic behavior, Elliot found it normal that as a personal maid to his former wife, this maid considered herself above the other servants.
“Very well, madam. You may step back.” The maid joined the rest of the servants. “From now on, two maids will serve as personal maids to the duchess. The duchess will choose her maids herself. Now, who among you stole the dress of your mistress and why? There better be a good explanation for it.”
The servants looked at one another but no one came forward. They were protecting the culprit. Either they feared the duke would be hard on anyone who came forward or they were starting a mutiny against him. Elliot was sure they all knew who was responsible for the theft, but he had a far more pressing matter to attend to than wait for them to speak. Emily was still unconscious in his room where a physician was looking after her. He had hired a physician to stay with her for as long as she remained unconscious. He had no experience in curing a fever. He was wise enough to not try heroics by sending everyone away and locking himself in the room with her.
Elliot searched for the maid who had told him that someone took the dress. Pointing at her with his cane, Elliot said, “From whom did you get the dress?”
The maid was scared. She looked at the maid who had misinformed him about the whereabouts of Emily for a split second and then looked away. The maid was holding her skirt in her fists, nervous and afraid for being the recipient of his question.
“It was in the duchess chamber, Your Grace,” she said. “No one took it, I was mistaken.”
Elliot’s suspicions were true. The maid considered herself above everyone and was lording over his servants. The other servants were afraid of her. His house was in need of some serious changes. People were nominating themselves as masters in his absence.
“Keep your eyes open while on duty.” Dismissing her, he looked at the maid who considered herself better than everyone else. “I am demoting you to the status of scullery maid in the kitchens. You make one more mistake and there will be no more leniency.”
“Forgive me, Your Grace.” She held her hands before him. “This punishment is too harsh.”
Elliot did not take pity on her. She was the reason he hurt an innocent person. His inebriated state had a hand in it too but her words were the reason he was pushed into drinking his sorrows away. He never trusted the girl and when he learned about her absence, neither his mind nor his heart trusted the girl. She kept the company of harlots and thieves. She was already half a culprit in his eyes, so the maid’s words acted as gasoline for the fire of his distrust.
“Your excuse was you did not have time to listen to the gossip of others. Now, you will have plenty of time to partake in some extracurricular activities. I hear the kitchen is where all the gossip begins.” Elliot raised a brow, challenging her to contradict his words.
“Your Grace, I am begging you.”
“Do not overstep your bounds, madam. You are a servant in this house. Do not assume yourself above other servants.” Waving his hand, he said, “You are all dismissed.”
Sobbing and crying, the maid left his study with the rest of the household. To his disappointment, the butler was not present. In his anger, he had discharged him from his duties and the servant had taken his words to heart. He was hoping that the butler would return one day, but right now he had to concentrate on his wife.
Try as he might, he could not recall that unfortunate night in detail. He remembered his actions but not his words. He feared he might have said something harsh to her. Sara never became ill after a night like that. Something else must have transpired that night. In his stupor, he might have said something stupid.
Trapped inside a small room, Emily was burning alive in a fire. She was screaming for help but no one came to her aid. Kneeling in the middle of the room, dejected and hopeless, Emily waited for the licks of fire to send her to the clutches of death. When she had lost all hope, the floor opened beneath her and she was immersed in freezing water of a sea. She struggled against the currents of water to break free to the surface. Emily was near the surface when seaweeds grabbed her by her leg and pulled her downward. She was waving her hands and feet, struggling against the seaweeds. All of a sudden, her eyes opened and the seaweeds were replaced by strong arms while the sea by a bathtub filled with water and ice.
Emily’s mind was troubled. She did not recognize her surroundings. She was not in her aunt’s cottage and neither was she in the dungeon of the monster. She grabbed onto the hands as they took her out of the tub and held her against a warm chest. She curled against the body that provided warmth against the cold. Warm hands were roaming her back and soothing her agitated nerves.
“Bring the physician inside.”
Emily heard a male voice. She was held in strong arms near the fireplace. Emily shrieked and wrapped her arms around the torso of the warm body when she saw the fire in the hearth. It reminded her of the fire in her nightmare. Her mind had not accepted that she was awake.
“No more! No more fire!” she screamed.
Warm lips touched her forehead and turned her away from the fire. Emily believed it was her prince who had come to save her. She was not abandoned by him. He had come to take her away from the monster’s imprisonment. After waiting for a lifetime, he had finally listened to her cry for help.
“The fire cannot touch you. I will not let it come near you.”
When she felt the hands leaving her back, she held onto the torso more firmly, refusing to let go. She was afraid if the hands went away, she would return to the fire. The prince left her once; she could not take any chances by letting him go again. The monster was out there, waiting in the shadows for her prince to leave. She was safe as long as the prince stayed by her side.
“The monster will have me if you leave, my prince,” she said, whimpering. “Keep me safe in your embrace.”
The hands came back and Emily sighed in relief. The prince was not leaving her. She hid her face against his warm body when she felt someone else’s presence. They were not alone anymore. The monster had sent his goons to take her back. She remained stiff for as long as she felt the presence in the room.
“The fever broke but she is still delirious. What is happening to her?”
“She needs rest, Your Grace. She will be fine when she wakes up.”
“Escort Dr. James to his carriage.”
Elliot was leaning against the bathtub in the middle of his room. Emily was curled in his lap like a child. She had been unconscious for three nights and two days. Elliot was afraid for her state of mind. She was still in the throes of her nightmare. She had clutched his torso with all her might when he stopped rubbing her back. He could not move an inch without making her frightened. He sent the physician and maid away from his room because she was not comfortable with their presence. Elliot rocked her in his arms and let her sleep in her wet clothes.
“Close your eyes, Emily. I will guard you against all evils.”
> Elliot was dreading the moment when Emily became aware of her surroundings. She was holding onto the same monster she was afraid of. When she called him a prince, his heart broke for the girl. His own cruelty had pushed her into making an imaginary world in her head. This was all his doing. When he went to the cottage to save her from someone who might break her with his cruelty, it never crossed his mind that he would become her tormentor instead of her savior.
When Elliot felt her breath was evened out, he stood up with her in his arms and placed her with care on his bed. For her comfort and to avoid catching a cold, he removed her wet clothes. He did not want a reminder of her fever, so he threw the dress in the fire. His grief doubled when he observed she had lost more weight in the three days. He wrapped her in a warm blanket and let her rest on his bed.
While she was unconscious, he had placed orders for a large number of gowns, underthings, riding habits, nightshirts, robes, capes and female hats. They were arriving each day in small numbers as soon as the seamstress was done making them. Elliot had placed all her things in her room.
Chapter 6
Emily woke up to a raging pain in her head and stomach. One was the after-effects of her illness while the other was from hunger. She lay in her bed, staring at the ceiling with tears leaking from her eyes. The duke did not kill her in her sleep; he was going to do the deed while she was wide awake. She could run away from his house, but then he would kill her aunt. Emily looked down at the unfamiliar blanket and then looked sharply above. The canopy was gone. It was not her room. She was not in her own bed. She whimpered when she saw the duke sitting on a chair beside the fireplace. She was alone in the room with him. She hid her face in the blanket when his head turned towards her.
“Are you awake, Emily?”
The anger from last night was gone from his voice. Emily observed her state of undress and sobbed under the blanket. She had locked her door to keep him out but he had found a way to extract her from behind a locked door. He had brought her to his own den and was waiting for her to open her eyes. Like the monster in the jungle, he enjoyed the suffering of his prey. There was more fun and satisfaction for the monster when its prey screamed in horror.