Miss Shaw and the Doctor

by Fenella J Miller

Isobel was sitting with the baby on her lap, Lorna on her left and Beth on her right, all three looking thrilled with the new arrival. Dropping to her knees on the carpet, Sarah smiled down at the sleeping infant. “He’s so tiny; it’s quite extraordinary but he already looks exactly like his papa.”

  “See, Miss Shaw, he’s got fingernails just like ours.” Beth gently spread out a little hand.

  “He’s perfect in every detail. Ah, here’s Nanny to collect him, and Jo has come for you three as well. I expect high tea has been set out upstairs. I shall join you shortly. Make sure you save some for me. I could eat a horse this afternoon.”

  Nanny carefully removed the baby, and Isobel slid from the sofa. “I could eat a whole cow all to myself.”

  Not to be outdone, Lorna joined in. “Beth and I could eat an elephant between us, couldn’t we, Beth?”

  Laughing, Lady Fenwick embraced them all in turn. “I take it the food on your journey was not palatable?”

  “I thought it absolutely vile, not like when we went down to the seaside,” Isobel announced.

  “Never mind, darling, you’re home now. Run along and have your tea. Your beloved Miss Shaw will be with you directly.” Lady Fenwick’s smile vanished as the door closed behind her children. “My dear, you’re in dreadful trouble. My husband has gone to the city to try and have charges brought against you and Dr. Moorcroft. He would not listen to me, but then he never has. I was foolish to run away; I only made him more determined to snatch my darling Isobel from the bosom of her family.”

  “Lady Fenwick, Dr. Moorcroft wrote to Sir John explaining that he had advised we remove to the seaside for a few weeks as both Isobel and Lorna had suffered a severe setback in their recovery. A change of scene, somewhere that they could forget about their grief, was essential for their well-being. Unfortunately Dr. Moorcroft’s man, who was chasing after Sir John from place to place, was unable to catch up with him. Sir John has never read the letter.” Sarah handed it over.

  “Good heavens! I can’t tell you how pleased I am there’s a simple explanation to your disappearance. I must send this letter on to Sir John immediately.”

  Sarah thought this was not the time to remind Lady Fenwick that she had been the one to suggest they flee from Sir John. “Mr. Burton has gone to recover the money you sent me. I did not spend any of it. Perhaps the letter could be sent express using these funds to pay the exorbitant charge?”

  “I had forgotten all about that money. I sold the jewellery I inherited from my own mama. Please, my dear, don’t look so horrified. The setting was hideous, I had never worn it, and I’m certain none of my girls would ever wish to do so either. They were mine to sell, and the money is mine to spend how I wish.”

  The letter was enclosed in a fresh piece of parchment, a quick note explaining its provenance added by Lady Fenwick, and a senior footman was sent galloping to the nearest inn to send it on its way. Sarah was invited to the drawing room once more. “There, it has gone. Now we can relax. Did you enjoy your meal, my dear?”

  “Indeed, madam, everything was quite delicious. I’m quite restored now I’ve had time to wash and change my gown. Betty will have to launder the one I travelled in. It’s unlikely the trunks will arrive for a day or two.”

  “You always look as you should. No one could possibly fault your appearance.”

  “Tell me, what’s this I’ve heard about you being betrothed to our handsome doctor?”

  “It’s quite true, my lady, however I can assure you, unless Sir John wishes to dismiss me, I shall stay with the girls until they are ready to accept someone else.”

  “Dismiss you? Whatever next! That will not happen, I can assure you. I’ve never seen the girls happier. Isobel is a different child. I know it’s all down to your good offices.”

  Sarah was glad this subject had been mentioned. “Is she still to go away to school?”

  “I fear so. However, we have reached a compromise, and she’s to go to the school that I attended, a select seminary in Bath. I have written to the principle explaining the circumstances, and they will be most sympathetic.”

  “Isobel appears to be resigned; I’ve told her it’s possible, as Sir John’s grief lessens, that he might reconsider and allow her to return here for the holidays.”

  “I should have said that was part of the arrangement. Isobel will be allowed back next summer. Unfortunately he will not budge on the Christmas and Easter vacations.” Lady Fenwick’s face was sad; the thought of being parted from her favourite child for almost a year must be unbearable.

  “You can exchange letters every week. It will be difficult for all of you, especially Isobel, but the months will soon pass.” Sarah realised no further mention had been made of her engagement, but at least she didn’t have to explain she and Adam were no longer betrothed or the reason why this was so. Poor Lady Fenwick had enough to bear without burdening her with this.

  “When is Isobel to leave?”

  “She must be gone before Sir John returns. So she will depart tomorrow morning some time, Nancy can travel with her. She does not need to wait for her trunk; the garments she will require at school have been prepared in her absence.” She dabbed her eyes with a tiny embroidered square. “I’ve arranged that she join me in my apartment after dinner. We have so little time to spend together and I think it will do no harm to keep her up this once. I doubt she will sleep. I know I shall not.”

  The following morning there was no laughter anywhere. All the staff were aware that Isobel was to leave later. To her surprise, the child had appeared in her riding habit.

  “Mama gave me permission for a last ride around the grounds before I leave. I shall not be more than an hour, and Nancy has my clothes waiting for me to change into when I return. Would you like to come with me?”

  “I dislike horses, as well you know, young lady. However, I should be pleased to walk with you to the stables and watch you from the terrace.”

  In fact, Isobel’s pretty palomino pony was waiting at the front steps. The groom lifted Isobel into the saddle and with expert ease she rammed her foot home in the single stirrup and gathered up the reins. “As I am to remain within the grounds, I’m allowed to ride alone this morning.” She clicked her tongue and the pony moved smoothly from walk to trot, to collected canter.

  The elderly groom touched his cap and nodded to Sarah. “Miss Isobel will come to no harm. She’s like her pa, was born in the saddle. Them two’s very similar. Can’t see why he don’t see it himself.”

  He stomped off, his disgust at the situation evident with every footstep. For all her past naughtiness, Isobel was obviously well thought of. Could it be this old family retainer had found the nub of the problem? The little girl wanted not Lady Fenwick’s love, but Sir John’s, and perhaps the more time she spent being spoilt by her mother, the worse her relationship became with her father. Maybe he did recognize himself in his eldest daughter and was jealous of the attention she gave to Lady Fenwick.

  What a muddle, but it was not up to her to put it right. She must pray when Sir John returned he was more sanguine, and had dropped the charges against Adam and herself. From the terrace she and Lady Fenwick, Beth and Lorna watched Isobel enjoying her final ride.

  “Miss Shaw, Mama, Isobel has gone,” Beth said a few moments later. “I can’t see her any more. Why doesn’t she come back?”

  Sarah scanned the grounds. In the blink of an eye, the pony had indeed vanished. “She must have ridden into the woods. Is it safe in there, Lady Fenwick?”

  “I believe so, but I’ve never been in myself. Look, isn’t that Dr. Moorcroft galloping down the drive? We can ask him to go and look for Isobel.”

  Animosity forgotten, Sarah picked up her skirts and dashed down the terrace, and around the side of the house so that she would be waiting in the turning circle when he arrived. There was something bothering her about Isobel’s behaviour, about her appearance, but she could not put her finger on it.

  She frowned and tried to recall a
n image of the girl on the pony. Good grief! Isobel had been concealing a package beneath her skirts. Her apparent acceptance had been a ploy; she’d taken this opportunity to run away and had taken some belongings with her.

  Adam vaulted from the saddle, tossing the reins to a waiting groom and raced to her side. She didn’t hesitate; she flung herself into his open arms. “I’m so glad to see you, how did you get here so speedily? I’m so sorry we parted on bad terms, I love you and want—”

  “My darling, I came to say the same to you. I saw Burton briefly, and he explained the whole. Don’t look so distraught. We shall not be arraigned. I give you my word.”

  “It’s Isobel; she has run away on her pony. I should have realised how things were. She was too docile, too accepting. I should have been more vigilant.”

  “This mount is fresh; tell me which way she went, and I’ll start looking. You must organise the outside men to follow. It’s not a good time for little girl to be abroad on her own. I doubt that you’ve heard, but there’s been a spate of unrest in the vicinity. It would seem that there’s a band of disaffected labourers; they started with just rick burning but now matters are escalating. We must find the child before she becomes embroiled in something unpleasant.”

  Without further ado, he was back in the saddle, thundering across the grass in the direction Isobel had taken. Large divots flew up behind him. He was ruining the lawn, but she was sure no one would complain in the circumstances.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Isobel had still not been found when Sir John arrived, mid-afternoon, in the expectation that his daughter would have left for boarding school. The house was in turmoil, Lady Fenwick red eyed from crying and Beth and Lorna clinging to Sarah’s skirts as if their very lives depended on it.

  Adam was still out searching. Both the outdoor men from Bentley Manor and his own staff had joined in the search. Surely Isobel could not have gone so far no one could discover her?

  It fell to Sarah to break the news to Isobel’s father. “Sir John, Isobel has disappeared. She went for a ride this morning, with Lady Fenwick’s blessing, and has not been seen since. Dr. Moorcroft has organised a search, but so far there’s been no word.” She expected him to fly into a rage, to rail against the daughter who was proving herself to be disobedient yet again. Instead she watched him shrink, to age by ten years while he swayed as if he might fall to the floor.

  She stepped forward to support him, but he waved to away, forcing himself straight. “Thank you for the information, Miss Shaw.” He surprised her a second time by holding out his arms to his remaining daughters; after a second’s hesitation they ran to him to be gathered to his heart. “Come along, little ones, we must go and comfort your mama. She will be distraught to have your sister missing in this way.”

  “Papa, Isobel has cried herself to sleep every night since you called us home. It’s not going to school that’s upsetting her. She thinks you don’t love her and that’s why she’s run away,” Lorna said, staring up at him earnestly.

  His expression was loving as he looked down at his child. “I have been wrong. She shall not go. I promise when she returns home she will be welcomed, not chastised, and we will be a loving family once again.”

  Taking the hand of each, he led them into the drawing room. Sarah heard him reassuring the girls, telling them Isobel was no doubt hiding somewhere and would come home before it got dark. She prayed this was so, but with so many diligent men out searching, she was certain if Isobel had been hiding she would have been discovered long ago.

  When Adam clattered back into the stable yard the night was dark. He was all but done, his horse also. The only good news he could give Sarah, and the worried family, was that the rioters had left the area; Isobel was in no danger from them.

  He dipped his head in a bucket of clean water intended for the stable, shaking the drips from his hair like a dog after a swim in the river, wiping as much grime from his face as he could with his handkerchief. There was little he could do about his appearance, but news was more important than sartorial elegance.

  As he reached the side door it opened and Sarah stepped out. She was haloed by the candles burning in the wall sconces in the passageway behind her. Just the sight of her lifted his spirits. He loved her more each time he saw her.

  “Adam, my love, have you no good news for us?”

  He shook his head. She remained at arms’ length and he didn’t blame her. He must smell appalling. “I have been waiting for you. I think I know where Isobel has gone, but I don’t think we should tell her parents.” She stepped out, closing the door softly behind her. He couldn’t see her features clearly, but could smell the sweet perfume of her lemon soap.

  “Go on, darling, tell me at once where you think she is. We have searched everywhere. I would have expected to find her pony if she’d met with an accident, but that was no sign of him either.”

  “I remembered we saw the gypsies yesterday. I believe Isobel has gone to join them. Sir John is devastated, quite overwhelmed at the lengths his daughter has gone to in order to avoid being sent to school. He has given his word she may stay, but I fear if he’s reminded about her first visit to the gypsies he will break his vow.”

  “Good grief. We saw their fires burning a few miles from here. It did not occur to us Isobel might be hiding in their camp. It makes perfect sense; however I doubt she’s a welcome guest. Their chief will know harbouring a runaway will only bring unpleasantness to his group.”

  “We must go at once and bring her back. I hate to ride, but on this occasion I shall put my fear aside.”

  Adam’s fatigue vanished. He would stay out all night if it meant he could bring the child safe home again. “Then let’s go. Sir John has a well-stocked stable. I’m sure he can find something suitable for both of us. However, I must report, tell him the modicum of good news that I have.” Only then did he become aware she was already dressed for riding.

  “Fortunately the trunks arrived just before dark; I always take this habit with me even though I rarely use it. In my last employment I was obliged to accompany my charges on a morning hack.” She slipped her arm through his apparently unaware, or unbothered, by his rank odour. “I am a competent horsewoman, albeit a reluctant one.”

  Sarah’s words were brave, but she was barely able to control her knees from knocking. What she hadn’t told him was on one of these morning rides she had taken an unpleasant fall and this had given her a lasting fear of horses. His hand closed firmly over hers as if he sensed her fear.

  “We must take some men with us. They can carry the lanterns. Don’t worry, sweetheart, once you’re in the saddle it won’t seem so bad.” Somehow his arm had transferred itself to her waist.

  “Did you have a fall? Is that why you’re nervous?”

  “Yes, it is. I hoped never to be obliged to ride again. I’ve no wish to do so tonight. My accident was caused by my mount’s stupidity; having tossed me into a stone wall, he bucked and upset the other horses which dislodged the young ladies I was accompanying.”

  His rich, deep chuckle echoed down pathway. Why was it he had this unfortunate propensity to laugh at her misfortunes? “Tonight you shall overcome your fear; not all equines are bad-tempered. Most are sweet natured and willing.”

  They were greeted by the head groom. “Going out again, sir? I shall come with you; how many more men do you want?”

  “Two, and the most docile animal you have in your stable for Miss Shaw. She is a nervous rider.”

  Far too quickly Sarah found herself being tossed into the saddle of an enormous gelding. The horse was an indeterminate brown colour, but had kind eyes. She sat rigid on the leather, unable to move her boot into the stirrup. The drop was too far to the cobbles. If she fell from such a massive beast she would surely break her neck. Adam gently pushed her foot into the iron then checked her girth was tight; as he stepped back, her mount’s huge ears twitched. He was telling her not to worry. He was safe with him.

  Slowly he
r muscles unknotted and she leant forward to stroke the animal’s neck. The flesh was warm and solid beneath her fingers. She should have worn gloves but in her haste had not had the time to find them. “Good fellow, I like you already.” With growing confidence, she gathered up the reins and was ready to leave.

  Adam moved his massive beast in close beside her. “It’s not that far, but we can’t travel quickly now it’s full dark.”

  “I’m fine, you were quite right to tell me I would feel better once I was back in the saddle. This is the perfect mount for me. I’d trust him with my life.”

  “Excellent, although he’s a giant, he’s a gentle one. Allow him to find his way, he’ll not put a foot wrong.”

  Sarah followed the lanterns bobbing like golden globes in the darkness, Adam riding at her knee. They didn’t cross the grass or take the drive but left by the tradesman’s track, thus ensuring that their departure would be unnoticed. “Lady Fenwick and Sir John believe I’ve retired. With luck, they will not notice my disappearance. I pray we shall bring back Isobel safely before dawn.”

  “They were both distressed the search was being abandoned for the night, but I reassured them that the only possible explanation was for her to have been taken in by someone, for we would have found her otherwise.”

  It became impossible to converse as the path they took prevented the horses travelling abreast. When the men leading the expedition pushed on into a gentle canter she discovered she felt more comfortable at this speed than she had at a trot. Her mount, whose name was Bruno, had a rocking gait, his long stride making it the most comfortable ride she’d ever experienced.

  She had long since abandoned any attempt to guide her horse. He appeared to know instinctively in which direction to go and where to place his hooves. Then, to her consternation the collected canter became extended; this was a dangerous speed and her old fear returned tenfold. Forgetting Adam was riding close behind she tugged on the reins so violently the gelding skidded to a halt blocking the path completely.