by Joyce Alec
But the handsome face of Mr. Barnes burned too brightly in her mind for her to think logically, and her heart was far too weak to resist his attention.
She returned her gaze to him, and straightened up.
“Mr. Barnes, I must know. Is this…” she hated even to say the words. What would happen if she heard what she wanted to hear? How would she feel if she did not?
“Yes?” he asked.
“Is this what you want as well?” she spit out, surprised at hearing her own voice.
She heard him chuckle in a low voice before looking back up at her.
“Do you think I would be here, asking you this question, if it isn’t what I wanted?”
She clutched at the window sill, gazing down at the man whom she had loved for many years now.
Is this what it feels like when your dreams come true? she wondered. Is this what love truly feels like?
Her mind started racing. How quickly could she pack her things?
“Mr. Barnes?” she asked.
“Yes, my dear lady?” he replied.
She beamed at him, the tears in her eyes reflecting the moonlight.
“I will run away with you. Tonight.”
2
The Harvest
“Lady Harriette, please, do not go that far!” Miss Bonnie said, clutching at the back of the girl’s dress. “I do not mind that you wish to take a walk outside, but we need to let the men over there work. It’s for your Father, you know.”
Lady Harriette furrowed her brow and crossed her arms over her chest. Even at ten, she still acted like a child occasionally in front of her governess. This morning she wore a pale pink dress and her dark tresses were pulled up in a tight bun behind her head. Her green eyes gazed at the ground beneath her moodily.
“Oh, don’t be quite so stern, little one,” Miss Bonnie said, pinching her cheek affectionately. “Otherwise you might grow up to look like that.”
“No, I will not!” Lady Harriette replied. “I just want to see what they are doing over there.”
“Preparing for harvest,” came another voice.
“Lord Henry!” Lady Harriette cried, clapping her hands together. “How wonderful to see you!”
“You just saw him yesterday,” Miss Bonnie replied, laughing softly.
“He is my very dearest friend, and it makes me happy to see him!” Lady Harriette answered, laughing as well.
The young man, no older than eleven, stood in front of her, with a face that resembled a boy’s, but was quickly transforming into a young man’s. His once chubby cheeks were now slim, and his jaw was prominent. His blue eyes that were once so childish and full of spirit were now cool and calm, but his wide, goofy smile was ever the same, and she loved it.
“Well, I am well aware they are preparing for harvest,” Lady Harriette replied as Lord Henry fell into step beside them as they continued their walk. “But I wonder why there are quite so many of them here today. Yesterday was much quieter than it is today.”
Lord Henry, with his hands behind his back, gazed over her head. “I believe that your Father has just decided to start building that vineyard, correct?”
“A vineyard?” Lady Harriette replied. “How very odd.”
Miss Bonnie smiled. “Dear, it is all your Father has spoken about for weeks, isn’t it?”
“Perhaps, but it has been of little interest to me,” she replied.
Just then, in front of them, a young boy crossed their path. He was the same age as Lord Henry, but he had sandy blonde hair, the color of the straw on his hat, and bright green eyes that reminded her of new grass in the springtime.
“Oh, Mr. Barnes,” Lady Harriette said, feeling her cheeks flush with color. “I didn’t know you would be here at the estate today.”
“I’m here to help with the building of the vineyard,” he replied, grinning widely.
“Miss Bonnie!”
The group turned to see Mr. Walters, the butler, coming down the lawn to meet them.
“Miss Bonnie, Lady Harriette’s mother wishes to see you. Something about the magnolia project?”
“Oh, of course,” she said. “Now, Lord Henry, you keep an eye on her until I return. I wouldn’t recommend going any further than this path.” She gave him a furtive nod. “You know how her father feels.”
Lord Henry smiled gently and inclined his head. “Of course, Miss Bonnie. You know I will watch her closely.”
Lady Harriette looked concerned. “What does mother need?” she asked.
Miss Bonnie waved her hand dismissively as she turned to walk up the lawn. “Never you mind, dear girl. All is well. I will be back in a little while.” And with that, she turned and followed Mr. Walters back up toward the manor.
Mr. Barnes was still looking at the two of them.
Lord Henry turned and looked at the other boy standing across from them, and crossed his arms across his chest. “Charles, what are you doing here today?”
Mr. Barnes puffed his chest out. “What does it matter to you?”
“I thought that you were working for your grandfather now that you were old enough.”
“He’s been working for his father,” Lady Harriette cut in. “He was telling me all about it a few weeks ago.” She smiled wide. “Well, a few of my friends and I, that is.”
Lord Henry rolled his eyes.
“Come on, you two, let’s go down to the creek and catch some crayfish,” said Mr. Barnes.
Lady Harriette smiled and started to follow him down the path, but Lord Henry grabbed her arm.
“I do not think that is a wise choice, Charles,” Lord Henry said coolly.
Mr. Barnes raised an eyebrow at him. “Since when did you care about the rules, James?”
Lord Henry closed his eyes momentarily and sighed. “I’ve told you; you must use my title now.” His gaze softened. “I’m sorry, but it is my father’s rules. He says that since I am in society more often now, I—”
“Whatever,” Mr. Barnes said. “You know that none of that stuff matters to me in the least.”
“It should,” Lord Henry replied. “Propriety is what makes a gentleman.”
Mr. Barnes rolled his eyes. “What about you, Lady Harriette? Care to join me for a swim in the cool water?”
The idea of jumping into the river water was exciting to her, especially with him.
“Lord Henry, I think it would be fine for us to go down to the creek,” she said hesitantly. “We do not have to swim, and it is still within my father’s property.”
Lord Henry’s face hardened. “Miss Bonnie put me in charge of you. It is my job to maintain your safety.”
She gently patted him on the hand. “And I do appreciate it. Truly I do; you know that. But what harm could come from us having a little bit of fun?”
He sighed and looked from her face to Mr. Barnes, who seemed to be smirking beneath his cap.
“We will be safe, Lord Henry. You know that. We aren’t going to be children for much longer. We should make the most of it while we still can.”
Lord Henry turned and looked into her face, and Harriette noticed something in his eyes that she wasn’t familiar with. Was that sadness? Or fear?
“All right,” Lord Henry finally said. “We can go play, but only until I say so. Then we must return up here. I do not wish for Miss Bonnie or your mother to worry.”
Lady Harriette beamed at him, and kissed him swiftly on the cheek. “Brilliant. Let’s go!”
His eyes grew wide and he seemed to lose the color in his face as she grabbed his hand and chased after Mr. Barnes, who had taken off in the direction of the tree line hiding the stream.
3
The Discovery
The carriage rolled smoothly up the drive to the estate that belonged to the family of his dear friend, and he was always pleased to see it. It felt like home to him, and he spent just as much time there as he did in his own. The weather was brisk for spring, and he found himself wishing that he had not left his gloves on the table b
eside the door before he had left.
Perhaps Lord Pangborn would have a spare he could borrow for his trip out hunting with his son, Lord Matthew Terra.
He stepped out of the carriage, thanked his footman, who bowed and smiled at him, and he made his way to the front door.
He knocked a few times, and was surprised to see the door pulled open as if Mr. Walters was standing directly behind it, waiting for his arrival.
“Good morning, Mr. Walters, how are you this fine morning?” Lord Henry said, a wide smile on his face.
A flicker of panic flooded Lord Henry’s spirit as he saw the beaded sweat and pale skin of Mr. Walter’s face.
“Good heavens, man, whatever is the matter?” He asked as Mr. Walters stood aside to let him over the threshold.
“A most grave matter indeed, Lord Henry,” he said, his voice gravely and shaking. “A most terrible thing has happened since we have awoken this morning.”
“Mr. Walters, what—”
“Oh, Henry!” came the voice of Lady Pangborn, Lady Harriette’s mother. She came right over to him and grabbed his arms as if she needed him for support. “Have you heard anything? Anything at all from her?”
His stomach felt as if it had hit the floor. “Heard anything? What do you mean?”
He looked over her head when he heard footsteps on the stairs. Lord Terra, Lady Harriette’s older brother, reached the ground and walked over to where he stood. He could have been his sister’s twin; he had the very same shade of hair, the dark brunette, almost black, and his eyes were a beautiful green. They were quite grave this morning.
“My dear sister is missing, Henry. And we do not know what has happened.”
He felt the color leave his own face, and he looked down at Lady Pangborn, who still clung onto him as if he must know something.
He pulled her close as she burst into a fresh wave of tears and hugged her tightly.
“Which sister?” he asked, although in the very deep recesses of his heart, he felt as if he already knew the answer. His friend would not have looked at him in such a mournful way otherwise, as if he was aware that Lord Henry would understand.
“Harriette,” he replied simply, unable to meet Lord Henry’s gaze.
He felt as if his own knees might collapse beneath him. His very skin had grown cold, his scalp prickled, and he felt a dull numbness creep over his mind, as if he just could not believe what he was hearing.
“She didn’t join us at breakfast,” Lord Terra began again, after a moment of disbelieving silence fell over them all, “and that was our first clue that something was amiss.”
“Quite,” Lord Henry replied hoarsely, “she’s such an early riser.”
Lord Terra nodded his head. “Indeed. And so Miss Bonnie went to see if perhaps she was unwell, and when she opened the door to her room, she saw that she was gone.”
“What could have possibly happened?” Lord Henry asked.
Lady Pangborn had calmed herself somewhat and pulled away from Lord Henry. She thanked him with a gentle pat on his arms, and stood a little straighter.
“We do not know, but Miss Bonnie did say that it looked as if her things had been looked through.”
“Was anything taken or missing?” Lord Henry asked.
Lady Pangborn shrugged her shoulders, not making eye contact with him. “Some of her clothes, a few books, her Bible. So either we are dealing with a thief or…” she bit her lip as her eyes welled with tears once more, “Or she ran away.”
Lord Henry could not believe what he was hearing. Harriette Terra, run away from home? It was unheard of.
“Certainly she wouldn’t have run away,” he began. “She absolutely loved being home, we all know that. She would not have left so willingly.”
Lord Terra, his face like stone, sighed heavily. “We have been searching all over the house for signs or clues or anything that might answer our questions.”
“Lady Pangborn,” came a voice down the hall.
“Excuse me,” she said, lifting her skirt to rush toward the voice.
“Matthew, I am so sorry,” Lord Henry said when they were alone. “Your poor mother.”
Lord Terra sighed heavily. “It’s been a bit of a nightmare, really. My father is beside himself, and we haven’t even told Lily yet…”
“She didn’t leave a note or anything?” Lord Henry asked, feeling as if he might choke if his heart kept thumping against his chest the way it was.
Lord Terra shook his head slowly. “That is what was so worrying.”
“What can I do to help?” Lord Henry asked, suddenly feeling as if standing around was an utter waste of time. “Have you searched outside?”
“We’ve had the servants out there all morning,” Lord Terra replied. “So far they haven’t seen anything.” He placed his hands on his hips. “But all this standing around is driving me mad. Perhaps we should go assist in the search on the grounds.”
“Good,” Lord Henry agreed.
So the two gentlemen stepped outdoors and then could only stand in the drive, looking up and down the grounds.
“Where should we begin?” Lord Henry asked.
There was a commotion coming from what looked like the horse stalls, and Lord Terra’s brow furrowed. “Let’s go.”
The two made their way down the steep hillside to the corral and the stables, and they found Lord Pangborn standing with some of the stable hands and some of the farmers.
“Father, is everything all right?”
Lord Pangborn acknowledged the two of them with a glance before returning his attention to the stable hand, who looked particularly tired, and perhaps a bit inebriated.
“Tell me again, more clearly this time,” Lord Pangborn was saying.
“I’m tellin’ yeh, I saw her little friend, that shody little vine boy. Real late, yeh see? Don’t know nothin’ more than that.”
“This vine boy, what do you mean?”
“I dunno, my lord. I just seen him down in the vines with his father from time to time.”
Lord Pangborn turned to look at Lord Henry and Lord Terra.
Lord Henry felt his knees get weak. “I think I know exactly who he is talking about.”
Recognition dawned on Lord Terra’s face. “Please don’t tell me…”
Both Lord Terra and Lord Pangborn turned to look at him.
Lord Henry sighed, and hated that he had to say what he was thinking. “Lord Pangborn, I think it was Mr. Barnes.”
“Mr. Barnes? Who in blazes is that?” Lord Pangborn asked. “And did he kidnap her? How do you know this?”
“No, I think we can safely assume now that it was not a kidnapping, which is one thing we can scratch off the list,” Lord Terra said. “Father, Mr. Barnes is the farmhand who works in the vineyard. His son, Charles, also works here. He and Harriette became friends when they were young, and she has been quite smitten with him for some time.”
The words felt like physical blows to Lord Henry’s chest.
“My daughter? Infatuated with a farm boy?” Lord Pangborn cried, his face blooming with rage. “How can you be so sure?”
Lord Terra looked at the stable hand that his father had been interrogating. “Was he about this tall? With straw colored hair and an old brown cap?”
“Yes, sir, precisely his description.”
Lord Terra sighed. “That’s him, Father.”
“So what do you think; she ran away with him?”
“I suspect so,” Lord Terra admitted.
“But why? He has nothing to offer her!” Lord Pangborn exclaimed.
“That won’t matter to her, I’m sure,” Lord Terra said.
“I can’t believe that she would run away with him,” Lord Henry said. “I cannot believe that she actually cared about him that much.”
“There are a lot of unknowns, but one thing that we do know is that his father works for me,” Lord Pangborn said, his rage nearly boiling over. “Where can I find him?”
“In the vineyard,
most likely,” Lord Terra answered coolly. “He might be able to tell us something.”
It didn’t take them long to track him down.
“My lord, my lord!” He said, his eyes red and puffy, but hopeful as soon as Lord Pangborn, his son, and Lord Henry stepped into the warehouse outside of the vineyard. “Please, my lord, have you seen my son? I thought for certain that he came home later than I was awake last night and returned here early this morning before I arose. Prime season, you know, and he’s been such a great help, and always works so hard. But then I got here this morning, and…and he’s not here! I’m out of my mind with worry!”
It was remarkable how much his son looked like him. The same sandy-colored hair, but his father’s was thinning and he had a balding spot on the back of his head. He was also slightly shorter than his son who had just recently turned seventeen. His eyes, however, were dark gray, like a thundercloud in a fierce storm.
Lord Pangborn seemed to lose steam, for his shoulders slumped slightly, and he sighed heavily. “Mr. Barnes, correct?”
“Yes, my lord,” he replied.
“I am sorry to admit that we are also having a bit of a problem ourselves this morning. We woke to find that Lady Harriette has gone missing as well.”
Mr. Barnes’s eyes flashed and his mouth was gaping. “What? How can this be? What does it mean?”
“Oh, come now, Mr. Barnes! You must know perfectly well what that means!” Lord Pangborn snapped.
Lord Terra interceded, placing a gentle hand on his father’s arm. He looked at him cautiously, and then looked at Mr. Barnes. “What my father means, Mr. Barnes, is that we think that they may have run away together.”
“That is simply preposterous!” Mr. Barnes said, nearly sputtering the words out. “My son has more sense than that! He would never be so foolish as to think he could get away with something like this!”
“It seems to be a reasonable explanation for the fact that they are both absent,” Lord Henry spoke up. “Mr. Barnes, please. I am Lord Henry, I know your son, we played together often when we were younger.”
Mr. Barnes studied him before nodding. “I remember you. You can’t be any older than my son. Always trailing after the lady, right?”
