by Lucy Leroux
Cursed
A Spellbound Regency Novel
PUBLISHED BY: Lucy Leroux
Copyright © 2015, Lucy Leroux
http://www.authorlucyleroux.com
ISBN: 978-1-942336-07-5
First Edition.
All rights reserved.
This book is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, and events portrayed in this novel are products of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
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Thank you for respecting the author's work. Enjoy!
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Credits
Cover Design: Robin Harper, http://www.wickedbydesigncovers.com
Editor: Rainy Kaye, http://www.rainyofthedark.com/
Thank you to all of my readers especially Mary, the Romazing Reader, Andrea Mason, and Karen Shoridge. Special thanks to Jennifer Bergans for her editorial suggestions. Extra special thanks to Alexandre Albore for all of his advice on the Italian aristocracy and help with translations. And finally thanks to my husband for all of his support even though he won’t read my sex scenes!
Chapter 1
Isobel twitched the curtains apart carefully. If she opened them too wide she might be seen. Her room was directly above the center of the drive. A person standing at the right angle could clearly see her curtains. Although, it would have been a little odd if their guests bothered to look in the tiny third-floor window that belonged to her room.
Below her on the expansive gravel drive the staff were unloading the finest traveling carriage she had ever seen. The carriage was a black lacquer monstrosity with red and gold paneling on the doors. The horses that drew it were a sturdy pair of matched greys, doubtless the best that could be had at the last coaching inn their guests stopped at.
A more modest carriage had preceded the one currently in the drive several hours before. It had unloaded a few servants and a multitude of fine trunks. All the servants were male. There were no maids in the group the Garibaldis had brought with them from Santa Fiora, Italy, which meant no women had been included in their party.
The entire household had been buzzing about this visit all week. Guests were rare in this isolated corner of Northumberland. Her employer Sir Clarence Montgomery, a close-fisted minor baronet, did not like to entertain often. But these visitors were an exception. Sir Clarence had mentioned the upcoming visit of his half-sister's husband and son twice in her presence, which for him positively constituted boasting.
Aldo Garibaldi was an Italian count. Miriam Montgomery had met the Conte Garibaldi de Santa Fiora at a ball in London during her first London season, shortly after her debut. After a brief courtship, the Conte proposed and Miriam went off to Italy for her happily ever after.
Unfortunately for her, ever after was only a decade. She had passed away when Matteo, the count's only heir, was just a boy. According to the servant's gossip, Matteo was a handsome and intelligent young man of eight and twenty, a paragon of propriety and honorable behavior.
He sounded extremely dull.
She didn’t know if Sir Clarence had been close with his older sister. There had been a younger sister Anna as well, but Isobel's employer never mentioned her at all. According to the servants, Sir Clarence believed his younger sister had married beneath her. She had died young too, but if Clarence Montgomery felt the loss of either sister with any degree of emotion, it was hidden behind layer upon layer of proper manners and cold British reserve. But Isobel preferred that innate coldness in her employer. It was preferable to the alternative.
She had to leave her last position after the warm and fatherly Sir Isaac Warton, her former employer, made it clear that her duties went beyond the instruction of his spoiled children. He would wait until his wife was away paying calls in the neighborhood to waylay her and flirt shamelessly. Isobel had rebuffed with a polite but firm hand. When that didn’t deter him, she had advertised for a new position. She had been fortunate enough to find one right away. She was gone in a few weeks.
Isobel considered herself lucky to have found the Montgomery's. They didn't hold her Scottish heritage against her—although it was probably an excuse for paying her less than the last tutor despite her mastery of mathematics, Latin, Greek, and Italian. Her new charges, Martin and Amelia, were quiet and well behaved. Most importantly, the Montgomerys kept to themselves. Truthfully it was a little dull, but a governess' lot was often this way. Those of her brethren who yearned for adventure and excitement were the ones who got into trouble, something Isobel scrupulously avoided.
She didn't have anyone to talk to outside of her brief interactions with the servants. Her place in the household was in a strange nether position. By birth, she was above the servants, technically equal to the Montgomerys, but circumstances had placed her actual existence below them—far below.
It was a lonely life, but one Isobel had no wish to change. A friend may have inspired confidences she could not afford to share. It was better this way.
Sighing, she turned her attention back to the drive. Where were the Conte and his son? She had been watching for several minutes and so far no one had emerged from inside the massive conveyance.
Isobel was contemplating giving up and going to bed when there was a flurry of sudden activity. The occupants of the carriage had finally deigned to leave it to face the dark grey Northumberland sky. Two of the male servants that had been deposited earlier hurried to the carriage to assist a slow moving figure.
Finally. She leaned closer to the window for a better look, her loose auburn hair falling forward. The gap between the curtains widened despite her best intentions to leave them as they were.
No one had mentioned that the Conte was an invalid, but there he was being helped down by the servants. He was quickly followed by another man.
Wait.
The figure being helped down from the carriage wasn't grey-haired like the one in the fine waistcoat next to him. It was a young man, moving with painful slowness. The two male servants were positioned at his sides, supporting his weight as they made their way to the front door where Sir Clarence was waiting. Isobel leaned back from the window as the group disappeared inside.
How sad. The count's heir was obviously in very poor health. And it was unmistakably the younger of their two guests. Though he had moved with careful precision, the figure being assisted through the Montgomery’s front door had to have been Matteo Garibaldi. He was still fit, with broad shoulders and dark midnight hair. Whereas the Conte Santa Fiora had gone grey and had a discernible roundness about the middle.
Why would they come all this way with an invalid?
The Garibaldis had traveled weeks and weeks to reach this cold and rainy corner of England. But wouldn't the warm and sunny climate of Italy have suited an invalid's delicate constitution better? Especially with winter fast approaching.
Perhaps the illness was recent.
There was little point in speculating, Isobel told herself firmly as she climbed into bed. It
was late and her days were full. No doubt the servants would have gleaned all the information about their guests by morning.
Between the upstairs maids, the grooms, and the kitchen staff there were no secrets in the Montgomery household. It was an efficient machine for gossip, one wasted on a completely respectable and slightly dull family. But now the servants finally had something to talk about. Her curiosity would be satisfied tomorrow.
Chapter 2
The next day, Isobel woke early. As soon as the sun had broken through her windows she was dressed, preparing to get her charges up and fed so they could have their first lesson out of doors. She wanted to take advantage of the fine morning to give her pupils a biology lesson before all the leaves fell from the trees.
Breakfast in the servants hall was full of empty gossip. Very few of the staff had glimpsed their guests since the Garibaldis had arrived so late. But the day was still young, she thought quickly drinking her tea and rushing to join the children.
A few hours later, Isobel was making excuses not to go back inside. The fine weather had lasted beyond her intended lesson, so she and the children lingered going over their readers outside on the lawn near the edge of the woods.
“Ms. Sterling, can we go to the stables, please?” Martin piped up from the blanket where they sat, interrupting the recitation he had been making at Isobel's instruction. “I'd like to show Amelia my pony.”
Little Amelia, the Montgomery's ward, nodded eagerly, her face filled with anticipation. The children were due inside for lunch soon, but she could hardly say no to the yearning in those big blue eyes.
Amelia had been living with the Montgomery’s for only a short time, a few weeks longer than Isobel herself. The little one was still quite timid about voicing her desires and wishes. Isobel didn’t want to discourage her from expressing herself, and she often wondered if Amelia had been as timid when her parents were still alive.
“Very well. Once you finish that passage,” she said agreeably.
The children smiled at each other, and Isobel marveled yet again at how easy they were to please. She bade Martin to continue with his recitation. As his clear bell-like voice filled the air, she let her mind wander. Martin was a fine reader and rarely made mistakes. But Amelia was still shy and often stumbled over the words. Isobel wanted her to grow more comfortable before she had her read aloud during lessons. Listening to Martin was one way for her to prepare.
Breathing deeply, Isobel leaned back on the blanket and closed her eyes, enjoying the warmth of the sun on her face. With her auburn hair and pale complexion, she had to be careful not to get too much sun or she would freckle. Despite that, she couldn't help enjoying what decent weather they did get here, especially now that the days were growing shorter and shorter.
A prickling sensation at the back of her neck made her eyes fly open. She sat up and looked down at her charges. Martin was still reading diligently, Amelia's eyes trained on him. But someone was watching them. She could feel it. Turning surreptitiously, she caught sight of an upright figure standing on the other end of the lawn near the stables.
The observer was a dark-haired young man, tall and fit. He was elegantly dressed in a fine gold waistcoat and dark riding coat paired with fawn colored buckskins. His top boots had brown uppers, the gleam of their polish evident even from a distance. And he was staring fixedly at her, not the children.
Isobel’s breath caught. She could feel the stranger’s gaze as if it was a physical thing, pressing in on her until her heart raced in response. She stifled a wild impulse to jump to her feet and run away into the woods. But instinct told her that would have been a grave mistake.
He would hunt her down.
What was wrong with her? The man was just looking at her. There was nothing threatening about that. From this distance she couldn't be sure of his expression, but it looked benign. He was probably simply wondering who she was.
You are being ridiculous.
After what seemed like an interminably long time the elegant man inclined his head. She was debating on returning his greeting when he turned on his heel and disappeared into the stables.
Was that the count's son?
She couldn't think of who else it could be…but the stranger was no invalid. He had stood without aid and walked with determined steps into the stable.
Confused and unsettled, Isobel changed her mind about a visit to see Martin's pony just now. She would take the children to the stables after lunch, once she was sure their guest was gone.
****
Amelia's eyes shined as Martin proudly demonstrated his little chestnut's many virtues. The girl hung on his every word, their heads were close together in conversation. She reached out to pet the horse that John, the head groom, had brought out for their inspection. He in turn watched Isobel, trying to catch her eye. She pretended not to notice.
“Can Amelia ride him, Miss?” Martin asked hopefully.
The little smile she'd been wearing fell away.
“I'm afraid not,” she said. “Amelia doesn't have a saddle.”
“She can use mine,” Martin said.
Isobel shook her head. “Amelia can't use your saddle because she can't ride astride. Young ladies need a sidesaddle,” she said, trying to sound firm.
Amelia looked crestfallen, and Isobel was flooded with guilt. She clearly remembered all the times she'd ridden without a saddle at all, back when her father had been alive. He'd been a mischievous sort, who'd turned a deaf ear whenever her mother had complained about letting their only child run wild, cavorting in the woods and riding astride with him on his horse. The fact she'd been wearing the stableboy's breeches at the time was a secret her father had taken to his grave.
Stirring from his position leaning on one of the stall doors John leaned forward. “It's all right, Ms. Sterling. Little Amelia's saddle arrived earlier this week.”
“Her saddle?” Isobel asked blankly.
“Yes, Miss,” John said, nodding at the stable boy who ran to fetch the saddle. John leaned closer while the children began to whisper excitedly. "It is her saddle,” he added in a low voice. “She used to have a pony too, but Sir Clarence said it was too expensive to keep.”
Isobel suppressed a frown and nodded. She had heard the rumors from the other servants when she had started her position. The only reason Clarence Montgomery had taken in Amelia, the daughter of a distant cousin, was because she was an heiress. Though her father had been in trade and the head of the household disdained all those who had to work for a living, the fortune Amelia was to inherit someday had apparently been sufficient enough inducement for him to take her in.
Unfortunately, Amelia's sizable inheritance did not mean she was treated with any degree of warmth. For the most part, she was ignored the way she would have been if she'd been a poor relation. But Isobel was grateful for Martin, a sweet and conscientious child who was completely unlike his parents. Amelia would always have a friend in him—and possibly a doting husband if Sir Clarence pushed for a match between them.
At least Isobel hoped that was where the baronet's intentions lay. It was the most benign of the possibilities she'd considered for her youngest charge.
“It can't be a long ride, especially as Amelia isn’t wearing a habit. We have another lesson upstairs in a quarter hour,” Isobel called after the children as John helped little Amelia to the mounting block.
“Master Martin can lead the little Miss around the paddock for a few minutes,” John said as he opened the gate for the pair.
She nodded and Amelia beamed at her, a genuine and grateful smile. The little girl primly adjusted her skirts while Isobel went to stand at the paddock fence, crossing her arms on the top rail.
Martin led the chestnut in a slow circuit inside the fenced off area. John joined her at the fence, smiling broadly.
“Pretty as a picture, aren't they?” he asked warmly.
Isobel nodded but didn't say anything. It would no
t do to encourage him, and he always stared at her a touch too long when she came to the stables with the children.
“Miss Sterling, I hope you aren't planning on going to walk to the village anytime soon. Or if you do that you not go alone.”
Puzzled, Isobel pulled her gaze from the children to meet John's eyes. His normal buoyant and overly familiar manner was gone.
“If your duties require a visit to the village, perhaps you'll let me escort you. You see there's been another.”
She raised a brow. “Another what?”
Surprise flickered in his eyes. “Another disappearance. The baker's daughter this time.”
Isobel drew herself up and stood straight. “A disappearance? I was not aware there had been a previous one.”
John clucked his tongue. “Inside servants are falling down on the job, are they? All too busy talking about the count and his son I expect, but there are two young women missing. It's the most excitement these parts have ever seen. The girl disappeared last night on her way home from visiting a friend. And this one can't possibly be a runaway.”
“They thought the first girl ran away?” She had heard something about that. It had been a minor note of gossip in the house since the young lady in question wasn't known in these parts.
He nodded. “I don't know her name. Sarah something. She was from Etal, the little berg on the north side of Ford. Went missing almost a week ago. But most everyone thought she'd run off. She was said to be fast,” he added in a lower voice. “Had several fellows she walked with, if you know what I mean. When she disappeared even her parents thought she'd gone off with some man. But now they're not so sure, 'cause this other one can't possibly be a runaway. Lottie, the baker's daughter, was engaged to the blacksmith’s son and was happy about the match by all accounts.”
Isobel mulled that over. “It's still possible that first girl did run off,” she pointed out, crossing her arms. “And perhaps the second one was waylaid by a friend or tried a shortcut in the woods and became lost.”