Cast in Shadows

by Laura Landon

  She stopped midsentence. She couldn’t give voice to the thought that raced through her mind.

  “What?” Lord Benjamin asked.

  Eve sat down on her chair and lifted Gideon’s hand in hers again. She knew what she was about to suggest was absurd, and that Gideon’s brother would no doubt think she was insane. But her thought refused to go away, and deep inside her she knew if she didn’t act on it, and something happened, she’d never forgive herself.

  She locked her gaze with Lord Benjamin’s and breathed a deep sigh. “Would you do something for me?”

  “Anything.”

  “Would you ask your father to place guards in the area, and around the cottage?”

  “You think Gideon’s still in danger?”

  Eve lowered her head to her hands. She was tired, and weary, and so terrified she could hardly force herself to take her next breath.

  She dropped her hands to her lap and looked up. Since Gideon had been shot she’d pushed one unbelievable thought from surfacing, but it refused to go away. It was preposterous. Ludicrous. Dangerous. Yet it was there, and even though she couldn’t say her thought aloud, especially to Gideon’s brother, it grew in substance.

  What if the seizures and the attempt on Gideon’s life were related?

  What if someone wanted Gideon dead?

  CHAPTER 13

  It had been nearly a week since Gideon had been shot, and somehow he was still alive. Eve didn’t know how. Her heart wanted to soar each morning when she opened her eyes and he was still breathing. She thought they’d lost him more times than she could count. And the terror she experienced made her realize she didn’t know how she’d manage if he died and wasn’t in her world any longer.

  The Duke of Townsend had sent men to guard the cottage. She wasn’t sure how many there were, but she’d seen at least six different men walking the area in the last week. At times, she felt foolish for thinking it was necessary to guard Gideon. In the next breath, she was relieved they were there. At least she knew he was safe.

  Lord Benjamin came every day. Twice, his sisters came with him. Eve enjoyed their visits. They were a joy to be around. They had wonderful personalities, and Eve enjoyed listening to them talk, especially about their upcoming Season.

  Whether he realized it or not, Benjamin was much like his brother. Both in looks, and in personality. The one difference she saw was that Benjamin had an unrestrained zest for life and the pleasures he found in living a carefree existence that Gideon had never had the freedom to enjoy. Where Benjamin was lighthearted and untroubled, Gideon was much more serious and mature.

  And of course, Lettie was never far away. She came early every morning, and stayed until nearly dark. She spent most of her days in the kitchen cooking and baking so Lord Benjamin would have something to eat when he came to visit his brother. Eve had lost count of the bowls of broth she’d made and brought in to Gideon’s room for Eve to try to feed him. So far, she’d been mostly unsuccessful, and Gideon’s gaunt features were evidence of the weight he’d lost.

  She reached out and held his hand. His fingers were warm, his hand large compared to hers. The connection still sizzling. She realized how much of her heart she’d already given him. How much of herself she’d lost to him.

  “Has his lordship wakened?” Lettie asked, stepping into the room and placing another hot bowl of broth beside the bed.

  Eve shook her head. “But he moved his hand earlier. And his feet.”

  “That’s a good sign,” Lettie said, placing her hand on Gideon’s forehead. “At least there’s no fever. That was his biggest risk. Even more than the wound.”

  “I know.” Eve sat back and watched Gideon’s nurse fuss over him. Her worry lines eased a little each day that Gideon survived. He wasn’t out of the woods yet, but he’d survived this long. There was more reason to hope than there’d been five days ago. Or even three.

  “I have an apple and a peach pie in the oven. Lord Benjamin should be here shortly. I thought he might like a piece of pie with his tea.”

  Eve smiled. “I’m sure he would.”

  “How about you? Would you like me to bring in a tray of meat and cheeses for you? You’ve eaten almost nothing all week. It will do his lordship no good if you’re as weak as a kitten by the time he wakes, and you can’t care for him proper like.”

  “I’m fine, Lettie. I ate a little for breakfast, then had some tea earlier. I’m not hungry yet.”

  Lettie shook her head. “That’s not enough, Miss Cornwell. That gown doesn’t fit you near as well as it did a week ago. You’re working yourself to skin and bones.”

  “All I’m doing is sitting here, Lettie.”

  “All you’re doing is worrying yourself sick. You won’t even let me sit with his lordship so you can lay down and get a couple of hours of sleep.”

  “I’m fine, Lettie.”

  Lettie turned and walked to the door. “Just so’s you don’t get sick, miss. I’m too old to take care of both you and his lordship, and still bake to keep Lord Benjamin filled up.”

  “Don’t worry, Lettie,” Eve reassured the nurse as Lettie left the room to go back to her pies in the oven.

  Eve bathed Gideon’s face in clean cool water, then sat on the side of the bed and lifted his head enough to attempt to spoon some of the broth Lettie had brought to him. She placed the spoon between his lips and pressed down, hoping he’d open his mouth and she could let some of the liquid slide into his mouth.

  He did. He parted his lips and swallowed the broth.

  “I’d rather have some of that…pie I smell baking in the…kitchen,” he uttered between gasps if breath.

  Eve squeaked in surprise, then dropped the spoon and clapped her hands over her mouth. “Oh, my lord,” she said as her eyes filled with tears and she fought to take in a breath. “Oh, Gideon.”

  She reached for his hand and held it. “You don’t know how glad I am that you’re awake.”

  “I gather I’ve slept quite a while,” he whispered.

  “Yes, far too long.”

  “What happened to me?”

  “You were shot.”

  “Shot?”

  “Yes.” Eve poured some water into a glass and held it to his lips. “Here, drink this. You need to get some liquids into you.”

  He took a sip or two, then turned his head. She set the glass back on the bedside table.

  “Do you know who…shot me?”

  She shook her head. “Matthew searched the area but didn’t find anything.”

  “Do you know—?”

  Eve placed her finger over his lips. “That’s enough, Gideon. There will be plenty of time for questions later. For now, just lay still.” She rose from her chair. “I need to get Lettie. She’ll want to know that you’re back with us.”

  Eve crossed the room and opened the door. “Lettie,” she said from the doorway. “Come see who decided to wake up.”

  It wasn’t but a moment and Lettie rushed into the room. “Oh, my dear boy.” She swiped at the tears streaming down her cheeks, then reached for Gideon’s hand and held it. “You’ve made this old woman very happy by deciding to come back.”

  Gideon lifted his gaze until his eyes met Lettie’s. He smiled at her. “Is that apple pie I smell coming from the kitchen?”

  “There’s no doubtin’ you’re improvin’ and will be back to normal in no time, your lordship. Anyone who can smell a pie just out of the oven is well on the road to being well again.”

  Lettie let out a loud cackle, then turned to the doorway when a deep voice interrupted them. “What’s going on in here?” Lord Benjamin said, rushing into the room. “Has my lazy brother finally decided to wake up?”

  Lettie swiped tears from her cheeks, and so did Eve. Then Eve answered Lord Benjamin’s question. “Yes, my lord. Your brother woke up to the smell of an apple pie baking in the oven. He knew he needed to wake up or you’d have the whole pie eaten and he wouldn’t get even a small piece of it.”

  L
ord Benjamin made a path directly to the bed and clasped Gideon’s hand in his. “You have no idea how good it is to see you awake, brother.”

  “I wish I could say the…same. I felt a lot…better…when I was…asleep.”

  Eve stirred some laudanum into a small glass of wine and held it to Gideon’s lips. “Here, drink this. Slowly, now.”

  Gideon drank the wine, then lowered his head to the pillow. He closed his eyes, then opened them again. His gaze locked with hers. “Have you been here the whole time?” he whispered.

  “She has, my lord,” Lettie answered. “She hasn’t left your side but once to get a change of clothing. And that was on one of the first days after you’d been shot. She hasn’t left your side since.”

  Gideon’s gaze locked with hers and held. Eve felt her cheeks warm and knew her face was flushed. She cleared her throat, then struggled to speak. “It wasn’t a hardship, my lord,” she answered. “Lettie’s food was much better than anything I had to eat at home.”

  Everyone laughed, which lessened the attention focused on her.

  “Talk about food,” Lettie said turning toward the door. “That apple pie should almost be cool enough to cut. I’ll make some tea and we’ll have a celebration. All of us, that is, except Lord Sheffield. He’ll be having nothing but broth to eat and drinking nothing but my special tea for days yet.”

  That evoked another laugh from Benjamin and several teasing remarks about getting to eat that apple pie after all. Once Lettie left the room, though, Benjamin placed a chair beside Eve’s chair and sat.

  He stretched out his legs, then crossed them at the ankles. His face turned serious. “I have to tell you Gid, you gave me the scare of my life. And Eve’s, too. And Lettie’s, and your whole family. Father hasn’t spoken more than a half dozen words all week, and the girls have done nothing but cry tears over you.”

  “Is that how long it’s been? A week?”

  “Nearly,” Eve said.

  Gideon breathed a heavy sigh. “I remember going to the orchard. We told Lettie we’d get her some apples for a pie. But I don’t remember anything after that.”

  Eve felt her cheeks turn hot. She wasn’t about to remind him of the kiss they’d shared. “I think that may be for the best,” she said.

  He frowned. “Somehow, I don’t think so.”

  “No,” Benjamin added. “We need to find out who shot you.”

  “Did anyone see him?”

  Eve and Benjamin shook their heads. “He got away,” Benjamin said.

  “Do you know why someone would…shoot me?”

  Eve and Benjamin shook their heads again. But they didn’t have time to discuss the matter further. Lettie came in with plates of warm apple pie and a tray of tea.

  Unfortunately, Gideon didn’t stay awake long enough for his brother to tell him how delicious the pie was, or for Gideon to try to convince Lettie to allow him to have a piece.

  He was asleep before Eve finished pouring tea.

  . . .

  The following two weeks were the hardest Gideon had endured in his life. Not only was the pain from the wound severe, especially during the first week, but Eve refused to allow him out of bed. She even forbade him from sitting on the side of the bed to dangle his feet for fear he’d take advantage of her good will and try to stand. Which he probably would have done, he was so anxious to escape his bed.

  But Lettie was the cruelest to him. Even though he begged for some roasted duck, or mouth-watering beef with potatoes and vegetables, or even a small bite of meat pie, she ignored him. Instead, he was served broth three times a day and herbed tea to drink.

  Even his brother turned traitor and refused to support him in his attempts to convince Eve and Lettie that he was well enough to do more than lie in bed, sleep, eat broth, and be treated like an invalid. But at least Benjamin came every day. Gideon looked forward to his visits almost as much as he did the time Eve spent with him.

  He couldn’t believe how he looked forward to her being here. She was his rock, his safe harbor. She understood him like no one else did, even better than his father or stepmother. He knew how desperately she wanted his seizures to stop, and how much she hoped that what they were trying would work. And so far it had.

  It had been five weeks, and he hadn’t suffered from a seizure once.

  “Look who has come to see you,” Eve said, knocking once, then opening the door.

  The second she stepped aside, his two sisters rushed into the room. Benjamin followed behind them.

  “Oh, Gideon,” Winnie said coming closer to greet him. “You look ever so much better than you did even a few days ago when we were last here.”

  “Yes, much better,” Anne said, leaning over to kiss his cheek. “Lettie’s broth must be doing the trick.”

  Eve grinned and Gideon rolled his eyes. “We all know I’d be out chopping wood by now if I’d have been fed some meat and potatoes instead of nothing but broth.”

  “Am I hearing complaining coming from the lad my broth saved from death’s door?” Lettie said entering the room with a tea tray and a frosted chocolate cake cut in large slices. Lettie set the tray on a table Eve placed in front of the circle of chairs.

  “Oh, this is too much,” Gideon bellowed when Lettie stepped away from the table and he got his first good look at the cake. “Surely you don’t intend to eat that cake in front of me?”

  Winnie and Anne giggled softly, and Eve and Lettie exchanged sly looks.

  “You can hardly manage to eat such a large piece of cake when you’re flat on your back,” Benjamin teased.

  “You could help me sit,” Gideon said, trying to keep the frustration out of his voice, but not sure he managed.

  “I suppose I could,” Benjamin said, “but that would mean there’d be less cake for me to eat.”

  “You might want to consider that I won’t be confined to this bed forever,” Gideon warned his brother, “and when I’m able to get up, you’ll be one of the first people I come to see.”

  “Oh, very well, Lord Sheffield,” his brother answered. “If Miss Cornwell approves of you getting up long enough to eat a piece of cake, I don’t suppose I can argue.”

  All eyes turned to where Eve stood pouring tea. She gave him a teasing look, then laughed. The sound was heavenly, the expression on her face divine, and her answer perfect.

  “Oh, I suppose it won’t hurt for you to sit up a bit and have a piece of Lettie’s cake.”

  Benjamin rose to help him sit. Gideon knew there’d be discomfort when he moved, but the intensity of the pain that shot from his shoulder through his chest surprised him.

  “Easy does it, Lord Benjamin,” Lettie said when Gideon moaned.

  “I’m fine,” Gideon gasped. “It’s worth a little pain to finally be able to eat a piece of your cake.”

  Everyone laughed, then Eve served the tea and cake. When she finished giving everyone else a piece of cake, she cut one for him and held his plate so he could feed himself.

  “Her Grace wanted to come with us,” Winnie said while they ate, “but the men who have been investigating who might have shot you came to see Father, so Mother decided to stay behind to find out what they had to report. She said to be sure to send her best wishes.”

  “Mother’s home?”

  Ben laughed. “She came home for a short visit, then it will be back to London for her. You know she can’t miss one moment of ton activities.”

  Gideon shared in Ben’s laughter. He knew Her Grace as well as the rest of the family. She’d always been obsessed with London during the social season.

  His laughter didn’t last long however. He remembered why Her Grace had elected to stay behind. “Do you think the men Father hired discovered anything?” he asked.

  Benjamin shook his head. “From the expressions on their faces, it didn’t appear they had good news.”

  “The more I think about it, the more I’m convinced that it must have been an accident,” Benjamin added. “Perhaps a hunter, even t
hough hunting isn’t allowed on Shadowdown. Or a gun that went off accidentally and the shooter is too terrified to come forward.”

  “That’s what Mother said over dinner last night,” Winnie said. “But Father doesn’t think it was an accident. Even though Mother thinks he should call off the investigators, he said he has no intention of doing so.”

  “What do you think, Miss Cornwell?” Benjamin asked. “You were there. Do you think it was an accident? Or do you think it was intentional?”

  Gideon focused his gaze on Eve’s. She lowered the plate that held his cake to her lap, then lifted her head until her gaze locked with his. “I don’t think the shooting was an accident. I can’t imagine why anyone would want to harm you, but it seems someone does.”

  No one spoke for several long moments. Especially Anne or Winnie, who usually had something to say on every subject.

  Slowly, everyone continued eating their cake and drinking their tea, but the festive mood had been dampened. When everyone finished, Lettie carried the dishes to the kitchen. His sisters kissed him goodbye, then left to wait in the carriage for Benjamin to drive them home. Benjamin settled Gideon back beneath the covers, then promised he’d come again tomorrow, and left.

  Eventually, he and Eve were alone. He was tired from the short time he’d been up and could hardly keep his eyes open. But before he fell asleep he had to ask her one question.

  “Do you really think someone tried to kill me?”

  She answered without hesitation. Without doubt. “Yes.”

  He was taken aback by her conviction. “Why?”

  She shook her head. “I wish I knew.”

  . . .

  The sky was filled with angry dark clouds that raced through the nighttime sky, and settled over the full moon to hide all but a glimpse of light that peeked through very briefly. The woman quickened her pace. She hated being out on nights like this but tonight she didn’t have a choice. She couldn’t chance that anyone from the manor house might see her.

  She kept in the shadows as long as she could, then made her way along the hedge line and into the copse of trees at the edge of an open meadow. Crossing the corner of the meadow would expose her to the most risk, but for a brief moment she’d have to chance being seen.