“There has been a heavy loss of life, m’lady. Lots of bodies found already, but many of those poor souls will never be found. Some will be buried forever under the tons of rocks and silt that got washed down.”
“I see.” Jane felt numb inside. Now was not the time to show her grief. With a mighty effort, she gulped and raised her chin. “Thank you, Timothy. You must go up to Lord Rennie’s right away. You need food and dry clothes and someone to look after that gash in your forehead.”
“Thank you, m’lady.” Timothy started away but turned back. “What about Chatfield Court? Will it be rebuilt? I’m thinking about the horses, ma’am, or I wouldn’t ask.”
His question took her totally by surprise. She had yet to give a thought to the future of Chatfield Court or her dower house, which must be gone, too. “I don’t know yet, but I shall keep you informed.”
Soon after Jane bid Timothy goodbye, she heard a woman’s voice exclaim, “M’lady! You didn’t drown.”
Jane turned her head to see her former lady’s maid standing next to her. The sight of her brought on mixed feelings. On the one hand, Jane hadn’t forgotten Bruta’s villainous role in acquiring the oil of pennyroyal for Beatrice Elton. On the other, she would never forget last night when Bruta’s strong hands helped her escape the flood.
“Well, Bruta, I am happy to see you also survived.”
“Just barely. I never had to run so fast in my life.”
“Will you be all right? Do you have a place to stay?”
“They took me in at Lancaster Hall, same as you, madam.”
Of course, now she remembered. According to Douglas, Bruta had a dalliance going with one of the footmen. Obviously, she was welcomed and treated well.
“I will be fine, m’lady.” Bruta’s thick brows knitted together in a frown. “Everything is different now that Chatfield Court is gone and Mrs. Elton along with it.”
The Eltons are gone.
In all her worry over her mother, she had not given much thought to Beatrice, James, and Percy. Now the realization washed over her that they were dead, no trace of them likely ever to be found. She felt no joy, though, only a sick realization of the extent of this tragedy.
“You’re right, Bruta. It appears Mrs. Elton is indeed gone.”
“I have something to tell you.”
“You do?” Jane could not imagine what this sullen woman she had never liked wanted to tell her.
“I want to apologize,” Bruta burst out in her usual abrupt manner.
“Apologize for what?”
“For the oil of pennyroyal. I knew it was wrong, but Mrs. Elton said I would be dismissed without a character if I didn’t help her. She was an evil woman, madam, and I’m glad she’s gone. She got what was coming to her.”
Jane opened her mouth to object, then thought better of it. Why be a hypocrite? Any protest she made would be halfhearted at best. Suddenly, she was seeing her former lady’s maid through new eyes. Knowing Beatrice Elton, she could well believe Bruta had been forced to do her bidding. “You’re forgiven. I didn’t hold you responsible in any case. Besides, any harm you might have done to me, you made up for last night. Remember how you helped me up the hill?”
“I shall never forget. I couldn’t let you drown. You’re the best mistress I ever had.”
That is certainly news to me.
“Do you know yet what you’re going to do?”
Bruta didn’t hesitate. “I have saved a bit of money. Thank the Lord I put it in the bank, so it didn’t get washed away in the flood. I’m going to America, m’lady, to start a new life.”
“What will you do there?” Nothing would surprise Jane today.
“I suppose they have maids in America, too.”
“Then I wish you the best of luck,” Jane replied sincerely. America. Papa was there.
Douglas was a great comfort on the way back to Lancaster Hall. He refrained from uttering false words of encouragement like, “I’m sure we’ll find her” when Jane knew in her heart all hope was gone and likely her mother would never be found. Instead, he gave her an arm to lean on and quietly helped her through the muck and debris that clogged the road. Amidst her grief, she recalled how absolutely heroic he’d been. “I want to thank you for what you did yesterday,” she said.
“And what was that?” He actually sounded surprised.
“If not for your warning, many more lives would have been lost. If you hadn’t carried Granny up the hill, she would never have survived. As for me, if I had not hung onto your coat, I surely would have been swept away. I hate to think of it, but just like Timothy said, my body would have been buried forever under tons of rock and silt.”
“I can only wish your mother had listened.”
“And the others.” Her anger at the Eltons melted away. Awful through they were, even they didn’t deserve such a horrible fate. She did not even want to think about their last few moments on this earth.
“Oops, watch your step here.” Douglas took her hand and helped her over a rough pile of rocks in the road.
“Thank you.” I love you, Douglas. She stepped as primly as she could over the rocks, trying not to reveal that her heart had just swelled with such feeling that she wanted to shout her love to the world. What a magnificent man! So heroic, so caring. Such a skilled lover, too. Why had they quarreled? Oh, yes, he was not a marrying man, or so he said. Why not? She knew he loved her, because he’d said so. She could not let him go, at least without trying one more time.
“Douglas?”
“Yes?”
“Tell me again why it’s over between us.”
He stopped, faced her, and took her hands. “I once told you how I took the life of that little girl. That’s when I vowed never to marry.”
“Surely—?”
“Yes, I know. Surely I was being foolish to, in essence, to let that incident ruin the rest of my life. Yesterday Rennie set me straight. He pointed out that when I saved little Molly, I made up for the life I took. ‘Tit for tat,’ he told me in his humorous fashion.”
“But it’s true. Your heroism has surely made up for any wrongdoing of the past.”
“You’re right. I can never erase what I did, but at least now I can forgive myself. But there are other reasons why you and I can never be together.”
Her heart sunk. “What reasons?”
“We live in two difference worlds. You are a countess, accustomed to wealth and fine living. I am a fifth son, practically penniless.”
“I don’t care about that.”
“Not now, but eventually you would. It isn’t just the money. All your life you have been catered to hand and foot.”
She bristled. “I am not the least spoiled.”
Her response prompted Douglas’ hearty peal of laughter. “You are spoiled rotten, Countess, and, I might add, quite imperious. I’ve seen you giving orders to the servants, your nose in the air.”
Only because I was expected to, Jane thought but decided not to say. She had defended herself enough.
Douglas continued, “You have been a countess and treated as such, whereas I have no title to give you and little else. It just wouldn’t work, Jane. I’m sorry. More sorry than you will ever know.”
She wanted to shout how wrong he was, that she didn’t care if he had no money, didn’t care about her title. But then, she had her pride, too, and she wasn’t going to beg. “I see,” she said, her voice flat. “Then there is nothing more to be said.”
“Only this.” Douglas stood close, gathered her hands in his, and pressed them to his heart. “In my whole life, I have truly loved only one woman and that is you. I love you for your beauty, your spirit, for the way you make me feel when we make love and I know your beautiful body is mine. I shall be leaving for America soon.” Gently he touched her face, ran his fingers lovingly over her hair. “I shall carry my sweet memories of you for the rest of my life, my beautiful countess.”
He dropped her hands and stepped away. “Shall we continue
on? Your family is waiting for your sad news.”
“Of course.” She swallowed the despair in her voice. She could take no more, had suffered enough pain for one day. Douglas had said it all. There was nothing more to say.
Granny took the news of her daughter’s death stoically, just as Jane knew she would. Millicent burst into tears. “Mama so wanted me to be happy,” she said between sobs. “Now I am happy and she’ll never know.”
A while later, when Millicent was feeling better and her tears had dried, Jane asked, “What did you mean when you said you’re happy now?”
Despite her grief, Millicent’s lips spread into a tiny smile. “I’m in love, Jane. At long last, really, truly in love.”
“With whom?” She could easily guess.
“Lord Rennie, of course.” Millicent’s eyes brimmed with tenderness. “I don’t care if he is big and awkward. I don’t care if his face is less than handsome. He is truly my knight in shining armor, so strong, so brave, so masterful. I shall never forget how he threw me over his shoulder, even though I protested, and carried me to safety. I would have drowned, just like Mama, if not for him. He’s a wonderful man. I just don’t know why I didn’t see it before.”
Jane broke into a delighted smile, her first and only on such a dark day. “That’s wonderful, Millicent, especially since I do believe he reciprocates your feelings.”
“I hope he does. I haven’t had the opportunity to talk to him yet, but I’m going to. Soon.”
* * * *
“Oh, Miss Hart, may I have a word with you?”
“Of course, Lord Rennie.” Millicent had just finished her conversation with her sister and had settled in the drawing room. With a grimace she looked down at her borrowed dress. “Forgive me for looking so frumpy. I’m not exactly wearing the height of fashion.”
Because the ladies had arrived with nothing but the clothes on their backs, Rennie had offered up the contents of his deceased mother’s wardrobe, which he had kept untouched for years. His admiring gaze swept over her full-skirted, pink-flowered gown with the ruffled shawl. “You look lovely.”
“This belonged to your mother?”
Rennie nodded. “My dear mother died in 1790. I should have gotten rid of her clothes long ago, but now I am glad I did not. I suppose her gown is rather old-fashioned, but it looks beautiful on you nonetheless.”
“That is kind of you to say.” Millicent stood to face him. “There is something I want to tell you.”
Rennie’s face began to flush. “I am all ears.”
“First I want to thank you for saving my life yesterday.”
His blush deepened. “’Twas nothing.”
“It was more than nothing, sir. If you hadn’t insisted I come with you,” Millicent’s voice choked with emotion, “I would surely be dead, along with Mama and the Eltons.”
Wanting to comfort her, Rennie started to raise his arms. He thought better of it and lowered them again. “I ... I... was only too glad to be of assistance. You’re ... uh, well worth saving, Miss Hart.”
Millicent burst into laughter. “Oh, Rennie, you dear, dear man. I shall never forget your bravery.”
As her words sunk in, Rennie’s face lit in an awakening smile. “Does this mean you could possibly care for me?”
“Yes, it most certainly does. In fact, I would venture to say I have quite fallen in love with you.”
“You don’t still think of me as a friendly puppy dog?”
“Absolutely not. You are my hero and always will be.”
Rennie let out a whoop, picked her up and danced around the room. “Of course, you will marry me.” He caught his breath and set her down.
“Most assuredly I will!”
Rennie kissed her then, a long, drawn-out smoldering kiss, the kind he had dreamed of giving her for years.
* * * *
The next morning, Rennie’s butler delivered a note to Jane. Her heart sank when she saw it was sealed with a “C.” She could almost guess its contents.
My Dear Countess,
By the time you read this I shall be gone. Know that I love you and will never forget you, but as time goes on, I’m sure you will see it’s best we parted.
Considering the vast Lansdown fortune, I have every faith that Chatfield Court, as well as your dower house, will soon be rebuilt, more beautiful than before. I take comfort in knowing soon you will be back in your old life, secure and content again.
—Cartland
First her mother, now Douglas. Jane felt a sense of loss beyond tears—the most terrible of her young life. Long, lonely, dreary years loomed ahead. She would grow old, fat and ugly in the dower house. Maybe she would lose her mind. Maybe she would start collecting stuffed birds in glass domes, just like the crazy old countess.
She would never be happy again.
That afternoon she received a visitor. “Meg Twimby! Do come in.” She ushered Meg into Rennie’s spacious drawing room, noting with dismay Meg’s gaunt appearance: the dark circles under her eyes, the bedraggled clothes she wore, the same ones she wore the day she escaped the flood. “I have worried about you. Do sit down and tell me how you and the family are faring.”
Meg settled into a chair and began, “We’re doing just fine, m’lady, or as well as we can be after what happened. We’re staying with some cousins. Matthew is a little better. Molly is the picture of health despite her ordeal. Oh, ma’am, I will never forget how Mister Cartland rescued her from the river. Such a brave man he is! How is he? One reason I came was to pay my respects and thank him again for what he did.”
“He’s not here, I’m afraid. I don’t know where he’s gone.” Jane could not bring herself to say more. Her feelings for Douglas were just too raw. “I suppose your farm is gone?”
“We got the livestock up the hill, so the goats and chickens and such survived, but the farm is gone. Our only hope is that the new earl, whoever he is, might want to help his tenants rebuild. Otherwise,” Meg shrugged sadly, “it’s crowded at my cousin’s. Already we’re none too welcome, but we will make do.”
“I’m so sorry.” Jane’s heart went out to this proud young woman who had worked so hard, yet faced a future far bleaker than Jane’s.
“Don’t worry about me.” Meg lifted her chin with pride. “I’ll find a way, I always do. And how are you doing?”
“As well as can be expected, considering ...” She thought of Mama and fought back tears.
“I am so sorry you lost your mother,” Meg said gently.
I must be strong. I am not the only one who suffered a tragedy. “Nothing is easy in this life, is it?”
“No, I’m afraid not.” Meg hesitated, as if drawing up her courage. “There’s a reason why I came, other than to see how you were faring. I have a confession to make.”
“I cannot imagine what it is.”
“It is this.” Meg had been carrying a large cloth bag, which looked much like a pillow slip with something heavy inside. She had set it beside her on the carpet. Now she picked it up, pulled open the top, and thrust it in front of Jane. “Look inside.”
Curious, Jane peered into the bag. What she saw sent a wave of shock up her spine. “I can’t believe it. The Lansdown jewels!”
“Yes, m’lady, all here in this bag, down to the smallest diamond.”
Meg knelt on the floor and upended the bag. A jumble of sparkling jewels poured out and lay in a dazzling heap on Rennie’s carpet. “I took them, m’lady, I couldn’t help it. That big wall of water was coming, and there was nobody to rescue them but me. I’m so sorry.”
Jane knelt next to Meg and stared in awe at the Lansdown jewels strewn before her in all their gleaming glory. “And to think I had just assumed the jewels were gone forever.” With cautious fingers, she selected the pearl and amber necklace from the jumble and held it up to the light. “This was my favorite. Look at it sparkle. Isn’t it beautiful? I’m so glad you saved it, Meg, and all the jewels. Why are you apologizing?”
“Becaus
e ...” Meg bit her lip and hung her head in shame. “I confess I wanted to keep them, even though I knew it was the same as stealing. The thought of keeping them was just so tempting, you see. We wouldn’t be poor anymore. We would always have plenty to eat and we could buy a farm and not have to pay rent to a greedy landlord. Begging your pardon, madam, but the earl cheated us for years and that’s the truth.”
“So why didn’t you keep the jewels?”
“I could not.” Meg shook her head with regret. “I knew I was stealing. Lately I haven’t slept well because my conscience got the better of me. So here they are, ma’am, and I hope you find it in your heart to forgive me.”
“Don’t be silly, there’s nothing to forgive. Let’s see now...who else knows you have the jewels?”
“No one but me.”
“Are you aware that everyone thinks the jewels were swept away in the flood?”
“Oh, madam!” Meg sank back on her haunches. “Are you saying I should keep them?”
Jane remained silent, battling with her conscience. Her head spun with the possibilities. Why shouldn’t Meg keep the jewels? She and her family would live in comfort the rest of their lives. They were so much more deserving than the next earl in line now that Percy was gone—whoever he might be. She wasn’t sure which of the sons would succeed, but what did it matter? He was an Elton, wasn’t he? Therefore, he was bound to be as heartless and greedy as all his predecessors and did not deserve the jewels.
On the other hand ... What am I doing?
Jane had a moment of clarity. Stealing, that is what she was doing. She remembered her father’s words, spoken to her when she was a little girl: “Do the right thing because it is right. This is the magic key to living your life with integrity.”
What was the right thing? The answer was clear as crystal. The Lansdown jewels belonged to the Eltons, despicable though they might be. No one else had a right to them, even though they assumed the jewels were lost forever. “Meg, much as it pains me, I must give them back.”
The Last of Lady Lansdown Page 27
