Thomas glanced out the window before responding. “It seems it will come to a stop soon, Miss Isabel. Perhaps half an hour longer, if not less.”
“And how long will it take the Duke to arrive once it’s over?”
“Judging by the distance between the manor and the nearest rest stop, Miss Isabel, I would estimate around an hour.”
“That’s perfect! Don’t serve the food until you’re sure that he is here, all right?”
“Yes, Miss Isabel.”
Isabel gave the dining room one last look before she turned and headed to the library. She would spend the rest of the time waiting for the Duke to arrive in there, though she doubted she would be able to focus on anything. The excitement thrumming through her was much too potent to contain.
Oh, hurry, Your Grace. I cannot wait to see you.
* * *
David didn’t know how long he laid there passed out. When he opened his eyes, the rain had stopped falling and he could see slivers of fading sunlight peeking through the still dark clouds. There was no telling how long the storm had lasted, either.
He tried to get up. His head was still pounding, but he pushed past the pain, easing his slightly throbbing wrists underneath his body to push himself up. He couldn’t manage it.
The pain was much too great. His left leg was bent at an odd angle and it had gone numb entirely. He was shivering as well, and the rain had seeped into his clothes.
Any longer here and I’m going to freeze to death.
But he couldn’t muster the strength to move, no matter how many times he attempted to.
He sagged back to the ground, defeated. His numerous attempts did nothing but make the pain worse and tire him out. His body shivered incessantly, and he contemplated calling out for help.
But where was he? He looked around as best as he could, trying to take stock of his surroundings. The storm definitely took quite a toll on this area. Bare branches from nearby trees were now lying around him, in such multitude that David found it difficult to see clearly between them. Even so, he could tell he wasn’t far from the manor. If he had moved a little faster, he would have reached it in time.
No use thinking about that now. I need to get help.
Easier said than done when he was immobile. But, sensing someone out there, David glimpsed a shirt nearby. He wasn’t entirely sure if he really saw a head of black hair or if his eyes were playing tricks on him, but he spoke up nonetheless.
“Is someone out there?” he called as loudly as he could. He cleared his throat and tried again, craning his neck to the side to catch a better glimpse of whoever was there. “I need help!”
The person came running. David sighed in relief. It was a man around his age, dressed simply, his eyes wide with shock.
“Your Grace!” he exclaimed. David’s relief shot to the sky. This man recognized him, which must mean he was a servant of the manor.
“I’m glad you’re here,” David said. “I need help. The storm hit while I was on my horse and it got frightened by thunder. It threw me off and I fell unconscious. I don’t know how long I’ve been here.”
It was a struggle not to stutter while he spoke, since the cold was making his teeth chatter.
The man stooped at his side, clearly not knowing what to do.
“As you can see, my leg is very badly hurt and I don’t think you’ll be able to carry me by yourself,” David continued. “Go get help and come back.”
“Yes, Your Grace!”
The man was on his feet and hurrying off a second later. David watched him go and fervently prayed he wouldn’t be too long. A slow numbness was crawling over his body now and he was bound to pass out again before long.
He laid there waiting, not knowing how much time passed. It was probably a few minutes, but it felt like hours before the man returned with two others. They helped him up, half carrying him, and began the slow trek back to the manor.
David said nothing on the way there. He could barely keep his eyes open. Before his body had been dangerously cold, he now felt terribly hot. His eyes fluttered as he struggled to remain awake. The men spoke to him, telling him over and over again that they were nearly there.
Eventually, they arrived at the manor. Shouts went up around him. A man, looking much more well-dressed than the others, hurried forward. He began barking orders at people David couldn’t see, then he pointed in another direction. David’s eyes fluttered once more as he fought to hold on to his consciousness.
“Don’t worry, Your Grace,” someone said to him. “You’ll be fine.”
David could not focus on what was being said. His head lolled to the side and he caught sight of the skirt of a gown. Slowly, he tried lifting his gaze, to see who this well-dressed lady was, but before he could see her face, the darkness claimed him.
Chapter Three
Isabel waited in the library for a long while. She didn’t know how long because she refused to count the seconds. But the longer she sat there staring out the window, willing the Duke to arrive, the more her patience wore thin.
She also tried not to chew on her bottom lip. Yet, it grew more difficult as the minutes went by and silence descended over the manor. She had watched a few servants head out to search the surrounding area for damage from the storm a short while ago and even they were yet to come back.
“Where is he, Elisa?” she asked, though she knew Elisa knew as much as she did.
Still, Elisa answered, “He is on his way, Miss. You needn’t worry.”
But she couldn’t help but worry—and worry even more when one of the servants came running back in a hurry. Isabel’s head swiveled toward the sound of his voice when she heard him calling for Thomas, the Duke’s steward.
“There is probably heavy storm debris nearby, Miss Isabel,” Elisa said in an effort to calm her frazzled nerves. “I reckon he is only coming back for help to be rid of it.”
“That is probably it, isn’t it?” Isabel tried letting out a low breath, to calm herself. She didn’t believe the words as much as she should have. “It probably has nothing to do with the Duke.”
Her words were proven wrong only a short while later. As Elisa predicted, more servants rushed out of the manor, following the one who had returned. Isabel told herself that the Duke was all right and his lateness had nothing to do with the frantic men.
But soon after, they returned… and they were carrying someone to the manor.
She shot to her feet and hurried to the foyer, her heart pounding in her ears. What would come through the doors?
Isabel wasn’t used to much excitement. It happened to her, yes, after her parents were mysteriously killed when she was young, but to see such a commotion before her very eyes was something else entirely.
She stepped back, wanting to blend into the walls as she heard the shouts from outside. People were rushing through the front entrance, and the steward was barking for more people to come.
“What’s happening?” she whispered to her lady’s maid, who was now standing at her side.
Elisa looked much less frazzled by what was going on, as if she was used to such things on a daily basis. Truthfully, Elisa was the calmest person Isabel knew. Her voice never fell or rose when she spoke and she always had a controlled response to everything. To Isabel, she was the picture of experience, as if she’d been through everything life had to offer and was surprised by nothing.
“It seems the Duke has been hurt on his return to the manor, Miss Isabel.”
“Hurt?” Isabel gasped. Now her heart thudded painfully and she gripped her gown, watching the servants hurry about. “What happened?”
“I’m not sure, Miss Isabel.”
Isabel watched the steward rush back into the foyer, waving his hand. Two servants held the massive double doors open as the Duke was carried in. Isabel watched it all with wide eyes.
This wasn’t how it was supposed to go. Our meeting was supposed to be perfect, the way I’d imagined it. Things shouldn’t have gone s
o... wrong!
Isabel was crossed between stepping closer to see and pressing into the walls so as not to get in their way. They were holding his leg delicately, so she instantly knew it had been injured. As they carried him past, as quickly but carefully as they could, she caught sight of his sweaty face, eyes fluttering.
The sight was brief. A servant blocked her view and he was carted up the stairs, out of her field of vision. Isabel watched him go.
“Thomas!” she called to the Duke’s steward. “What happened to His Grace?”
“Oh, Miss Isabel, I didn’t see you there.” He looked flustered, visibly trying to collect himself in front of her. Isabel waited patiently. “It seems His Grace was caught in the storm on the way here. The thunder scared his horse and threw him off its back.”
“Oh, heavens!” Isabel gasped, hands flying to her mouth. She’d been worried when the storm hit, but she believed he would have thought to take cover and wait for it to end. “He decided to ride through the storm?”
“We’re not sure, Miss, but it does seem that way.”
“Oh.” Isabel’s hand fell to her side. Like Thomas, she tried to collect herself and hide her worry. “Please have someone go for the physician.”
“Yes, Miss Isabel.” He nodded briskly, then hurried after the Duke. Isabel watched him go, trying not to let her worry consume her.
“Would you like a cup of tea, Miss Isabel?” Elisa asked gently.
“Yes,” Isabel said. “A cup of tea would be lovely right now.”
Elisa nodded and headed off to prepare it. Isabel decided to wait for her in the drawing room. It was also close enough to the foyer that she would hear when the physician arrived.
How terrible. He must be in so much pain.
Isabel tried forcing those thoughts away but they always kept coming back. Despite the very brief glimpse of his face, she’d seen that he was suffering from a fever. How long had he been lying in the cold enduring the storm? She could imagine how lonely and defeated he must have felt. The thought made her heart ache.
“Miss Isabel?”
“Hm?” Jolted from her worry, Isabel saw Elisa standing by her with a tea tray. Elisa set it down on the table and offered her a steaming cup. “Oh, thank you, Elisa. Have you heard word of the physician?”
“A servant has gone out to fetch him, Miss Isabel. He should be here soon.”
As soon as those words were out of her mouth, thunder sounded from outside. Isabel whipped around to face the window, and her eyes widened when she saw that it had started raining again. “I see that the storm hasn’t fully stopped.”
“The physician will come, Miss,” Elisa told her. “There’s no need to worry.”
“I can’t help it, Elisa. He is my guardian.”
He’s the only one I have left to take care of me.
She didn’t say that last bit out loud because she knew she didn’t have to. Elisa had been by her side nearly all her life. She had been her confidante through her lonely times and the happy ones, so Isabel knew that the older woman was well aware of how afraid she was of being left without a guardian.
First, my parents, then the Duke and Duchess of Ventbury. Please, Your Grace, not you, too.
“You needn’t worry, Miss,” Elisa said again, softly this time. Isabel didn’t answer. She sipped her tea, staring out the window and watching the storm rage, hoping the physician would truly arrive as Elisa believed he would.
She was grateful that someone had found the Duke before the storm hit again. He might not have been strong enough to endure that twice.
In truth, Isabel had no idea how strong he was. She didn’t know him. She knew his name, David, and that he had become her guardian when he inherited the dukedom after the late Duke’s death. But that was as far as her knowledge went. At times, it even took her a bit of hard thinking to remember what he looked like. The painting of him in the hallway nearby wasn’t very helpful, since it was done when he was only a child.
He’ll be fine. He’ll be fine. He’ll be fine.
She chanted the words over and over again, hoping to convince herself.
Isabel didn’t notice the growing noise outside the doors until Elisa looked up and said. “He’s here, Miss Isabel.”
“He is?” Isabel hastily put her half empty cup of tea down, grabbed her skirts, and hurried to the foyer. Sure enough, the physician was hurrying up the steps already, his soaked clothes dripping water into the carpets. Thomas was standing nearby.
Isabel considered calling out to him but he was moving so quickly that she didn’t get the chance to. She turned to Thomas and he nodded before she could say anything, knowing what she wanted. As soon as the physician was finished, she wanted to be the first to know what exactly his condition was.
Dazed, Isabel returned to the drawing room. She absentmindedly picked back up the cup of tea and took a sip, not noticing it was cold. Next to her, Elisa waited for her to put it back down before she moved the cup out of reach.
Isabel only stared out the window, picturing all the horrible things that would happen if the Duke were to perish. She had no idea if the Duke had preparations for what would happen to her if something were to happen to him. She would become a ward of someone else, she was sure, and the thought tired her.
But above all, Isabel just hoped he was all right for his sake. The Duke had already been through a lot.
“Miss Isabel?”
Isabel shot to her feet, eyes going to the door. The physician stood there, his gray hair still wet. She hurried over to him. “How is he?” she asked.
He was a pleasant looking man, with kind eyes and a tiny smile. He offered that smile to her now. “He’ll be fine, Miss. He has a fever and he seemed to have badly hurt his leg. I don’t have the things I need to mend that right now, so I’ll be back in the morning.”
Then he sighed heavily, his eyes falling to the floor. Isabel steeled herself for what was to come. She’d seen this look before, right before the physician announced the Duchess’ death. She tossed the worrying thoughts to the back of her mind and pulled her shoulders back, preparing for the words he was about to say.
“What is it?” she ventured when he took a second too long to say something.
“I’ll be frank with you, Miss,” he said, lifting his gaze to meet hers. Those eyes didn’t hold back, didn’t bother to hide just how serious this situation was. “There’s no telling what the true cause of the fever is, which will make it difficult to control. All we can do now is monitor him closely and try our best to regulate the symptoms, but he might be in and out of sleep for a while. As for his leg…”
She couldn’t help stepping closer in anticipation. She knew her concern was as plain as day on her face and she didn’t care to hide it. “How badly did he hurt it?”
“It’s badly fractured. For now, I’ll try to set the leg straight but there is no guarantee that it will be fixed, or that an infection won’t set in. Which we don’t want to happen. If that happens…”
She didn’t need him to finish his sentence. Isabel had read enough books to know what the logical response to such a medical catastrophe was. The Duke may have to have his leg amputated to prevent the infection from spreading too far.
She nodded. Again, she refused to allow her mind to linger too much on the possibility.
“Thank you so much,” she breathed. Isabel didn’t know how else to express her gratitude. “Is it fine to see him right now?”
“Yes, of course!” replied the physician, looking only slightly startled at the request.
Isabel gave him another grateful look before she hurried out the door, leaving him behind. Elisa was close on her heels. Thomas, she knew, would take care of the physician. For now, she needed to see him with her own eyes.
Elisa led the way. Isabel couldn’t think straight enough to remember where the Duke’s bedchamber was, dazed as she was by everything that was happening. Elisa wordlessly stepped ahead and before she knew it, they came to a stop before a
wide door.
She knocked and the Duke’s valet, James Humbert, opened the door. He stepped to the side, allowing Isabel to enter. Sure enough, there was the Duke, one leg beneath the sheets and another on top. She ventured closer, her breathing short.
It hit her suddenly that this was her first time seeing him up close. Every other time she saw him, he only acknowledged her in passing with a nod, and he spent most of his time in his study. Now, he was only inches away from her, his eyes closed, his face sweaty, his breathing shallow.
Daring Deeds 0f A Forbidden Duchess (Steamy Historical Regency Romance) Page 2
