As soon as she touched her daughter, her mother’s eyebrows raised.
“Perhaps I’ll see you later then,” Laurence said. He took his leave.
As soon as he was gone, her mother said, “Come along. We’re right in the middle of the walking path. We need to move aside.”
They walked down the pathway toward the music pavilion. Hetty’s mother whispered, “Are you feeling unwell?”
“No. I’m perfectly fine.”
“Your skin is hot. It seems quite feverish.”
“I’m not ill. It is warm out here so maybe that’s what it is.” Hetty sure didn’t want her mother to say she had to return home because of some kind of fever. That would be a disaster. She needed to stay here. Where Laurence was and where she’d have another chance to see him.
Finding a spot at the music pavilion wasn’t as difficult as she thought it might be. She was thrilled the seats her father chose had a view of Laurence where he sat with a lovely older lady dressed in a sumptuous deep-green and gold gown. His mother, she presumed.
She listened to the music and enjoyed it, but spent most of her time watching Laurence as he sat as if rapt with the sound of the quartet. Hetty wondered what he was thinking and if he really enjoyed the performance or was merely staying there with his mother because she liked it.
At the interlude, Hetty watched him whisper something to his companion who kissed him on the cheek. With a wave of her hand, Laurence stood and left the pavilion.
Determined to follow, Hetty said to her mother, “I need to find the ladies’ retiring room.”
“It’s not far, I believe. I’ll go with you.”
“No need. I can find it and be back before the music starts again.”
“But you need a chaperone.”
“Nonsense. It’s as safe here as if we were in Lady Millbank’s home and I was leaving the ballroom for a moment. After all, we practically know everyone here.”
“I don’t know, dear. Perhaps John could accompany you in that direction.” Her mother turned to her brother. “Hester seems not to want to be seen with an old woman so could you be sure she arrives safely at the ladies’ retiring room and wait for her return?”
John grumbled but stood to obey.
Hetty wasn’t happy at all about the turn of events. Laurence was long gone now that her mother had talked so much and to make things worse, John was now her guardian. No chance he’d let her follow along after the Oxford man.
“Come on then,” John said.
She stood and followed him out of the music pavilion. He stomped along for a few minutes ahead of her, but again, the gods were helping. One of his friends happened along and grabbing his arm, led him away.
John glanced back over his shoulder, but other than nodding at her as if to encourage her to return to their parents, he allowed himself to be dragged off toward some other amusement.
Now, all she needed to do was make a walk along the pathways until she discovered where Laurence had gone.
As she walked along, the sky got darker and the lights in the trees seemed more magical. Hetty could scarce believe the luck of Laurence being there. While she’d hoped earlier for that very thing, she’d realized he’d most likely still be in Oxford so when she’d seen him, she had the same reaction her father had.
The real question was why he was in London. In all the time she’d known him, he never mentioned having a family in the city. Of course, she hadn’t had the kind of acquaintanceship with him where they shared that kind of information, but she thought she should have at least once heard him mention visiting his family.
She realized she didn’t know him at all, really. Much as she wanted to, she didn’t. And chances were, she never would.
Almost despondent, she decided to return to her mother and father. Truth be known, she was getting a little scared. Seeing men and women moving off the paths and giggling together was making her uncomfortable. Maybe she needed to have that chaperone after all. Much as she hated to admit it.
Hetty whirled around, her skirts rustled against her legs and with a fresh wind that had blown up in her face, she tried to move quickly back through the ever-growing crowd.
In a few moments, she realized she was hopelessly lost. How had she gotten so off the beaten path that she didn’t remember from what direction she came? Had she really taken that many turns when she thought she was staying on one route?
Panic rose in her. With effort, she attempted to push it down and quash the dread in her chest. What would happen to her if she couldn’t find her way to her parents?
She calmed herself for a second. Didn’t she tell her mother this was just like being in an acquaintance’s ballroom? She knew these people. Someone would assist her. No need to fret.
Then she took a moment to glance around. Not seeing a soul she knew of her circle, but finding many rough-seeming men leering at her was more than disconcerting. Would one of them try to hurt her?
Two of the meanest faced men she’d ever seen stepped up to her. Both were dressed in serge coats of grey and worn breeches that looked as if they dated back to the days of the first King George. One had a missing eye and the other had a wad of something black in his mouth and was missing about half his teeth. They both smelled as if someone had dumped the contents of their bedpan on them.
The one with no teeth grabbed her upper arm. He spat on the ground. “Lookie what we have here, Gus. A pretty Miss who no one cares enough about to make sure her purity is protected. What are we going to do about this tragedy?”
“I say we take her out into that secluded spot we just left that plain prostitute. This time around, we can have some sweet, fresh piece. Won’t that be a treat? I don’t know about you, but I can go again.”
“You can take her first. I still need a bit of time to recover from that other one, but I’ll enjoy watching you first.” No Teeth ran the back of his dirty hand across Hetty’s cheek. “She shore is purty, ain’t she, Gus?”
Hetty turned her head to get his hand off her and, at the same time, kicked him in the shin. She twisted to try to escape.
One-eyed Gus smacked her across the face. “Behave. Don’t you make a fuss.” He held up a knife that seemed to come from nowhere. “Come quietly or I’ll make that pretty face of yours such that no man will ever look at you again.” He put his face close to hers with his reeking breath. “Wouldn’t want that now, would you?”
“Come on before someone notices.” No Teeth dragged Hetty off the path and into the woods.
Tears poured down her face. Her cheek ached where Gus hit her and her knees threatened to buckle under her. What was she going to do? She couldn’t stand by and let these men violate her.
With effort, she resisted moving forward as No Teeth kept striding through the woods. It dawned on her that she should scream. How stupid was she to be quiet?
As she opened her mouth to let loose with it, Gus pushed his knife against her throat. “I see what you’re going to do. I suggest you think hard about that since this knife is sharp enough to cut out your tongue. You need to lay back and enjoy it because no one is coming to help you. No one.”
Hetty’s stomach clenched and her heart raced. What was she going to do? She opened her mouth to scream, but a nasty hand clapped over her lips before she could get out a sound.
“You made a big mistake coming here to the gardens alone, lady. I wonder at your family for letting you do so.” No Teeth spat on the ground again.
That wad of black stuff in his mouth made Hetty want to vomit. The stench, the fear and the blackness of the night and her situation all conspired together to make exactly that happen.
She suddenly had no control over herself and expelled the contents of her stomach all over the place. The vomit hit both of the men’s boots as well as got on her gown. In fact, if she wasn’t in such terror, Hetty might have laughed at the expressions on her captors’ faces.
Gus smacked her again. This time he hit her so hard, she fell backward and land
ed on her rear.
Taking that moment to try to escape, she turned and attempted to crawl away, all thoughts for the condition of her gown gone.
One of the men grabbed her ankle and dragged her body through the grass and dirt, scraping her knee and tearing her stockings. A roaring sound grew in Hetty’s ears as she finally let herself go into a full panic. She shook her head to try to clear it, but it was hopeless.
“What, ho? What have we here?” a third male voice that sounded somewhat familiar broke through her fear. Who was that?
“Go on now, Gov’ner. Nothing to see here. She’s just a prostitute who agreed to rough games.” Was that Gus or the one with no teeth? Hetty couldn’t tell.
“I think not. She’s dressed a bit too nicely to be what you describe. I suggest you move away.”
“And what are you going to do if we don’t? Looks like it’s two of us against your one. I like those odds for us, don’t you Gus?”
Hetty didn’t know what happened next because all she heard was the scuffling of leaves and shoes. The fight was taking place behind her and she didn’t want to watch whatever was going on anyway.
She almost fainted, but pulled herself together long enough to try to stand in order to flee. Knowing this was her chance to get away, she forced herself to grab hold of the closest tree and use it to assist her to her feet.
When she was upright, Hetty wobbled as she took a step.
“Wait—Hetty—I mean, Miss Hale.”
The sound of the voice that she finally recognized stopped her in her tracks.
Laurence couldn’t believe it when he saw Miss Hale being dragged off the path by two ruffians. He had to follow her even though he would miss out on his quarry. There was no way he could allow harm to befall a young woman of his acquaintance.
He didn’t want to think about how she’d ended up alone and vulnerable on this side of the Gardens. Where were her parents and that brother?
Arriving at the trio as the shorter of the two blackguards dragged Miss Hale across the ground by her foot, he soon made use of his training to make sure neither of them could harm her again.
With them both at his feet and unconscious, he held his hand out to her. “Please let me escort you back to your family.”
She burst into tears.
Not really knowing how to comfort a lady in distress, Laurence did the best he could. He stepped over to her and patted her awkwardly on the shoulder. “It’s all right. They can’t hurt you. I’ve taken care of them.”
“But look at me.” Miss Hale’s hands shook as she ran her palms down the front of her gown. “I can only see the front of this and I know the rest must be worse. How can I walk through the crowds? Everyone will see and I’ll never live down the scandal.” She sobbed. “Perhaps it would’ve been better to allow them to have their way and then kill me. The outcome would be the same.”
“Don’t be nonsensical. Death would surely be worse than being rescued from those evil-doers.”
“Don’t get me wrong. I am grateful for your aid, but it will make no difference to the good people of London. The mere fact that I wasn’t chaperoned and wandering about by myself is enough to censure me.” She indicated her gown again. “And the state of my garments will only serve as proof that I’ve been debauched.”
Taken aback, Laurence said, “Do you know the meaning of that?”
Miss Hale shook her head, the effect of which was for more of her curls to fall from the ribbons that now haphazardly held them back from her face. “Not really, but my father is always saying if I’m not careful it will happen to me. And here I was, not being careful. Not at all.” She sobbed again. A sound that tore at his heart.
“How did you end up here without your chaperone?” Laurence was determined to figure out a way for her to leave the grounds without being seen. He wanted to talk to her to calm her down a little while he searched his brain for a solution to her problem.
“I was going to the ladies’ retiring room. John was with me, but he met with some of his friends and asked me if I minded if he went on with them.” Her face reddened as if she weren’t telling the whole truth, but Laurence didn’t press her.
“And so how did it happen that you got so far from the music pavilion? I think I last saw you there.”
“I kept wandering, taking in the scenery and other patrons. By the time I realized I’d gone too far, I was confused and turned around.” She let out another sob, but caught herself this time. “And then those two men grabbed me. Thankfully, you must have seen them, but now I am utterly, utterly ruined.”
“I think I have a solution. I’ve been thinking about it while we’ve been talking. It may be embarrassing, but it would be better than the alternative.”
Miss Hale made eye contact with him for the first time since he came upon her. He noticed a large bruise forming on her cheek.
Reaching out, he took hold of her chin.
She flinched as if he’d been the one to strike her.
“Wait. You’ve got a bruise. I would like to ascertain if your cheekbone is intact. May I?”
Her own hand flew to her face. “Oh no. Do you think they broke it? It does throb quite painfully.”
“May I look? Remember, I’m a scientist. I’ll only touch you as if I were your physician.”
Was that a look of disappointment that flashed across her countenance? Surely not. She must just be in pain.
She nodded, granting her permission.
Laurence took her chin again and turning her face to each side peered at her. He gently examined her face by patting it. “No. I don’t think it’s broken.”
“What was the idea you had to save my reputation?” Miss Hale stepped back.
“I think we should walk through the woods toward the cascade. When we get there, you fall in.”
“What?” She appeared aghast at the very idea, but it really was the perfect thing.
“Listen for a moment before you say no.”
She cocked her head and stared at him as if he had suddenly turned into a unicorn with a striped horn.
When she didn’t stop him from speaking, he went on, “Your hair is half-fallen out of your ribbons, your gown is a covered in filth and you have a massive bruise on your face. The only other event besides what happened to you that I can think of here in the Gardens that would cause such injuries and dishevelment is a fall into the water. You can say you hit your cheek on a rock as well.”
“And who will come to my aid and pull me out of the water?”
He bowed, “Laurence Fortescue, at your service.”
Miss Hale appeared to be considering the idea so he pressed on. “I think we need to decide soon as we are both sure to have been missed by now.”
“I agree. If you think we can get to the cascades without being seen.”
“We can only make the attempt. It’s better to try than not.” He started walking toward the waterfall.
He could hear her lagging behind him and stopped.
When she caught up, he said, “Why are you walking so slow?”
“I’m afraid. What if someone sees us before I go in the water? What if I drown? All that water on my head terrifies me.”
“If you don’t want to do it, say so. I can’t think of any other way, but I certainly don’t desire that you be fearful.” He reached out to rest a hand on her elbow then pulled back as he realized he’d be overstepping his bounds in touching her.
“No.” She straightened her spine. “I have to do this. The alternative is too dire to contemplate.”
“It’s not far now. I promise I’ll be right there. You’ll hardly notice the water.”
Instead of answering, she snorted and moved past him. To his amazement, she lengthened her stride as best she could in the gown and in a few minutes, she was around the corner.
He came around right behind her and watched as she pretended to slip and fall in.
Several ladies standing nearby screamed in terror.
Since Miss
Hale went in faster than Laurence anticipated and he promised her to be quick about her rescue, he didn’t have a chance to shed his coat.
Leaping in to the cascade behind her, he reached her side. Scooping her into his arms, he slogged his way through the water, all the while hearing the sounds of people on the bank yelling and encouraging him to get Miss Hale out of the water.
As he attempted to climb the bank with her in his arms, another man came down and met him partway. He took her from Laurence and carried her the rest of the way.
Laurence leaned over with his hands on his knees and took some deep breaths. The water was much colder than he imagined it was going to be before he suggested this little subterfuge. It stole the air from his lungs and he could only imagine how Miss Hale had taken it since she went in so much quicker than he.
When he arrived where the crowd gathered around Miss Hale, the man who’d taken her from him asked, “Do you know this young lady?”
“I think so. I saw her go in the water and when I went in after her, I realized I’m acquainted with her father.”
“And who is he?”
“Mr. James Hale. Have you heard of him?”
“Yes. I’m acquainted with him. In fact, I saw him earlier this evening. We need to send someone to find him.” The man glanced around. “There’s my son. I’ll send him.”
Laurence was glad to allow the other man to take on the responsibility of reuniting Miss Hale with her family. That made it seem less like a planned occurrence than it was.
Once the son was on his way and several of the ladies in the crowd had covered Miss Hale with their shawls, Laurence took the chance to peek over some shoulders to be sure she was really all right.
“Are you sure you can stand, Miss?” one lady in a bright pink gown that even he as a man could see was the wrong color for her complexion asked.
“Yes, I can. I’m going to be fine. I lost my footing, but I feel quite hale.” It seemed Miss Hale was doing her best to disperse the crowd around her.
Lightning Strikes Twice (The Heart of a Hero Book 4) Page 8
