by Adele Clee
"Stand aside," Elliot commanded, his tone stern, unyielding. "You will let us in."
Mrs. Jones struggled to obey, but Elliot put his hand on the door to open it fully. "Perhaps I did not make myself clear. You will let us in."
The woman nodded as she stepped back to usher them inside.
"Is Mr. Henshaw at home?" Elliot did not look at the woman but glanced at the doors off the hallway.
"He … he's away. Gone abroad. I'm … I'm keeping house during his absence."
"Where are the servants?" he said opening the first door and peering inside.
"Norfolk. They've all gone to Lord Henshaw's house near Hunstanton."
"Why?" he demanded.
"The tapestries needed cleaning. There's dust everywhere since they've had the roof fixed. My lady sent them to help, thought they would like the opportunity to take some country air."
Grace could not contain herself and blurted, "Have you seen Caroline? Is she here?"
Elliot swung around and stared at Mrs. Jones.
The woman's gaze darted everywhere except at them. "Yes. Yes, I've seen her. There's no need for concern."
"She's here," Elliot cried racing to the stairs and climbing them two at a time. "Caroline is here."
Grace followed him while Mrs. Jones plodded behind shouting, "Wait. You can't go up there. Wait. It's not what you think."
Elliot stopped on the landing and scanned the closed doors.
"What is it?" Grace struggled to suppress her anxiety. "You're certain she's here?"
He nodded as he gazed up at the ceiling. "Up here," he said charging up the next flight to the upper floor.
They moved along the landing, trying doors and peering inside. Only one door was locked.
Mrs. Jones joined them on the upper floor, the effort taken to climb the stairs robbing her of breath. "She … she's fine," Mrs. Jones gasped. "She's just resting that's all."
"Open it." Elliot stabbed his finger at the door while Grace held her breath.
Could they have finally found what they'd spent days searching for?
Could Caroline be just a few feet away?
"Open it," Elliot demanded. "Else I'll break down the door."
Mrs. Jones picked up her chatelaine and flicked through the keys. Elliot and Grace crowded around her as the lock clicked, barging into the room as soon as she opened the door.
A candle burnt low on a dresser in the far corner of the room. The figure of a woman could be clearly seen lying beneath the coverlet on the narrow bed.
Grace rushed forward, recognising her sister instantly despite her pale complexion. "Caroline. Caroline." She took her sister's hand in her own and tapped it gently. "Can you hear me?"
Elliot came to stand on the opposite side of the bed. He studied Caroline's gaunt face, put his hand to her head, lifted her lids and examined her eyes.
"Is she asleep?" Grace asked.
"In a manner of speaking," he replied cryptically but then turned to Mrs. Jones. "Have you administered any medicine? A tincture or tonic?"
Mrs. Jones gave a curt nod. "Only what my lady told me to. It's just a tincture of laudanum."
"What are you administering it for?"
Mrs. Jones stepped further into the room. "When Miss Rosemond came here she tripped, fell and hurt her head. My lady sent for Anne and for me as she was worried and thought it would be best if we took care of her."
Grace gasped. "Why didn't you send for me? You left me alone, without so much as a word. I have been frantic with worry."
Mrs. Jones had the decency to look ashamed. "Lady Sudley said Miss Rosemond would be better in a day or two. She said it would be best to keep it quiet, so as not to cause any more trouble for my master."
"But Caroline has been here for almost a week," Grace countered.
Mrs. Jones shook her head. "Every day I have hoped she would be a bit better, so we could return home. But Lady Sudley said I must do what serves Mr. Henshaw best, what with me being in his employ. She said we must take care of Miss Rosemond in his absence. She said we must not move the patient until she's well."
"Something's amiss here," Elliot said ignoring Mrs. Jones and coming to stand in front of her. "I suggest we take her home in my carriage. That we remove her as quickly as possible. But ultimately the decision is yours."
Grace glanced at the listless body in the bed. Elliot was right. None of it made any sense. She saw no sign of a head injury though that didn't mean there wasn't one.
"I agree. I want to take her home. I'll call on a physician to come and examine her." Grace stepped closer, touched his arm, dismissing the warm feeling that raced through her body at the close contact. "We need to know if she's with child."
Elliot cupped her cheek, his thumb moving back and forth in tender strokes. Grace closed her eyes briefly, savouring the moment as she had no idea if she'd ever feel his touch again. "Trust me. She'll be right in no time. Come, we'll go and get help to move her."
"I'm afraid I can't let you do that."
The feminine voice sliced through the air. They turned to see Lady Sudley standing in the doorway, brandishing a pistol.
Chapter 18
"Lady Sudley. I'm pleased you were able to join us." Elliot said failing to disguise the contempt in his tone. He despised weak women who chose weapons as a means to manipulate and control. Although Lady Sudley's hair was coal black, something about her arrogant countenance reminded him of the golden-haired devil in Bavaria.
"Step away from the bed." The lady waved the pistol back and forth between him and Grace, gesturing to the place where she wished them to stand. "I'm afraid now that you've seen Miss Rosemond, I cannot let you leave."
"I don't understand. What's Caroline doing here?" Grace said, her tone revealing her distress. "And before you say anything more, I know it has nothing to do with a head injury."
"Well, no, you're right." Lady Sudley gave a sly grin. "It has nothing to do with an illness or an injury."
Mrs. Jones' hand flew to her chest. "But you said she had fallen. You said she couldn't be moved until she'd recovered and—"
"Oh, do be quiet, Mrs. Jones. I needed someone to care for her. Surely you don't expect me to cook her meals and empty her pot."
Elliot studied the exchange, trying to determine whether or not he could reach Lady Sudley before she fired the pistol. He would happily take a hit to the arm if it meant wiping the grin from her smug face.
But he would not endanger Grace.
If anything happened to her, he'd most likely rip the throats from everyone who crossed his path.
"I'm certain that when you've heard what I have to say, you will be thanking me," Lady Sudley said. "You will see this is the only feasible course of action."
"Does it have something to do with your brother?" Grace asked. "Has my sister wronged him in some way and now you're determined to seek your revenge?"
Lady Sudley laughed, the sound more an ear-piercing cackle. "If I sought revenge on all my brother's conquests, London would only be populated by men."
He noticed Lady Sudley's hand quiver. She would not be able to hold the pistol straight for long. Her arm would grow heavier by the minute.
"If revenge is not the motivation, what is?" Elliot said as he edged forward.
Ignoring his question, she turned to Grace. "You have been married, Mrs. Denton. So Mrs. Jones tells me. Do you have children?"
Elliot observed Grace's expression with keen interest. The way she answered would reveal much, he thought. Would her words convey a deep sense of longing? Did she dream of raising a family? A dream he could never help her fulfil. Could she bear a life knowing she would never be a mother?
"No. I do not have children."
Her tone was blunt and concise.
She gave him nothing.
"I am so pleased to hear that. What sort of mother would you be, parading about town with your lover while your little treasures are tucked up in their beds wondering if you'll come home?"
/> Elliot had no idea where this conversation was heading, but he feared the lady possessed a distorted view of reality.
"I would be a very poor mother indeed," Grace replied while Elliot used the distraction to shuffle forward.
"Do not come any closer, Lord Markham." Lady Sudley aimed the pistol directly at Grace's heart. "I will not hesitate. I will shoot."
Damn the woman.
He would have to use his powers of persuasion to get her to give up her weapon. Choosing the right time would be critical as she would become dazed, perhaps a little confused at first and he could not risk her firing at some imagined target.
"Some women do not deserve to experience such a precious gift," Lady Sudley continued, glancing at Caroline's still body in the bed. "Not while there are perfectly respectable ladies desperate to hold a babe in their arms. Ladies denied the opportunity at every turn."
Grace shrugged. "Nature has a way of deciding who or what best serves its purpose. I'm certain there are many respectable ladies who would make appalling mothers. Just as there are street vendors whose exhaustive efforts to raise their children are to be commended."
Elliot glanced at Grace, admiration filling his chest. Her heart was kind, honest, and good. She did not judge; she did not preach. She bore no preconceived notions or prejudices.
"I disagree." Lady Sudley stuck her nose in the air. "Respectability is everything. And so you can imagine my horror when Mark told me his whore would bear his child."
The whore she referred to was obviously Caroline Rosemond. Elliot touched Grace's hand as it hung by he side, an affectionate gesture to calm and soothe her spirit.
Graced exhaled loudly. "So it is true. Caroline is with child."
Lady Sudley snorted. "Why else would my brother flee the country? He has never been one for responsibility. When I confronted him about his plans, he told me the apothecary dispensed medicine to help rid women of unwanted things. Can you believe he actually referred to his own child as a thing?" She gave a satisfied grin before adding, "That's when I came up with my wonderful plan."
Elliot waved his hand over the scene. "If this is your wonderful plan, then you have made a series of miscalculations. Now, I believe it is time to put the pistol down and—"
"You do not understand." Lady Sudley's eyes widened. "I have already told my husband I am with child. He is delighted after fearing he had made a dreadful mistake in marrying me. What peer wants a barren wife?"
"I'm confused," Grace said. "Are you with child?"
Recognition dawned.
"No," Elliot said. "Lady Sudley plans to take Caroline's child and pass it off as her own. Am I right?"
"The child belongs to my brother, to my family. If he has no interest in it, then why shouldn't I. It solves all our problems. My brother will think the medicine worked. Miss Rosemond may continue her career as a courtesan without such a heavy burden, and I can give my husband the child he so desperately craves."
"You were going to keep Caroline here until the baby is born?" Grace asked incredulously.
"Of course not. I shall travel to my father's estate in Norfolk. It is far healthier for a child to be born in the country. Caroline will stay in a cottage, and when the time comes, I shall take the babe and return to London. You must see it is the best option all round."
Lady Sudley was deranged, a prime candidate for Bedlam.
Elliot could feel Grace's distress. "I assume Caroline does not agree with your wonderful plan?" he said.
"She will soon come round to the idea. I have money and will make her far too generous an offer to decline."
"And what of us?" Elliot asked as he focused on the lady's tired hand. Another minute and she would be forced to lower it completely. "No child wants a murderer for a mother. You said so yourself. Respectability is important."
"But surely you see the sense in my plan now?" Lady Sudley pleaded. "Surely you cannot oppose it?"
Grace turned to face him. "Perhaps Lady Sudley is right. Perhaps she would be a better mother to the child than Caroline."
Elliot searched her face. One look in her eyes told him what he needed to know. If they put the lady at ease, they had a better chance of taking the pistol.
However, the idea amounted to nothing more than a fleeting thought as a dull thud echoed through the hallway below.
"It's the door, my lady." Mrs. Jones hovered in the corner. "Should I go answer it?"
Lady Sudley raised the pistol and firmed her grip. "Ignore it. They will soon go away."
They all stood in silence as the persistent caller knocked again. No doubt, Alexander and Leo sensed something was wrong and were keen to investigate. They would not walk away. Elliot conjured an image of Alexander demanding the use of Leo's coat to muffle the sound while he broke the window.
"Lower the pistol, Lady Sudley," Elliot said in as calm a voice as he could muster. "If you fire, you will certainly injure someone. Then I'm afraid your respectable neck will spend a few painful minutes wrestling with the hangman's noose."
"Can you not understand my dilemma?" she implored, focusing her attention on Grace. "Did you ever disappoint your husband? Do you know what it's like to spend every waking moment wondering how to make him happy?"
A sudden wave of sadness flooded Elliot's chest. He wanted to curse the lady for reminding Grace of Henry Denton's abusive ways.
"I understand perfectly," Grace said in a solemn, weary tone. "It makes you feel inadequate, a failure. Every day you feel a little less whole. Nothing you do seems to make a difference and so you smile at the world and pretend you're happy. But inside you feel like a vine of thorns has wrapped itself around your heart, piercing it a thousand times over."
Elliot's heart ached, too, hearing her sad words.
He had never experienced another person's pain, not in the human sense. Indeed, it wasn't just a case of being aware of her feelings. The agony accompanying the memory felt real to him.
Lady Sudley appeared surprised at her response. "It is exactly like that."
Grace shook her head. "Then you must know, to control and abuse others to ease your sadness makes you just as guilty as your negligent husband. Do not become the monster you fear. You must tell him the truth."
Staring at a spot on the wooden floor, the lady considered Grace's words. "He'll despise me," she said shaking her head, muttering to herself as she played out the conversation she would have with her husband.
"Put down the pistol, Lady Sudley," Elliot repeated.
He could sense the lady growing more agitated as she struggled to make a decision. Her gaze flitted back and forth between him and the bed. Her breathing sounded short and shallow.
The creak of a board outside the door caused Lady Sudley to swing around, and she jumped back in shock. Her hand jerked upwards just as the loud crack resonated through the room. Lady Sudley's shocked gasp was accompanied by Evelyn's high-pitched scream.
The pistol slipped from her hand and hit the floor with a clunk. She plastered her hands to her mouth and dropped to her knees. "Oh, Lord. What have I done?" she cried.
Elliot raced to the door. Leo groaned as he lay stretched out, a trickle of blood running down his cheek.
"Bloody hell," Elliot yelled as he joined Alexander and Evelyn at Leo's side.
"Oh, no," Grace called out from the doorway. "Will … will he be alright?"
Mrs. Jones rushed past them. "I'll go and fetch some clean water."
Alexander handed Evelyn a handkerchief, and she patted the obvious mark on the side of Leo's head. "Thank God," she gasped, glancing up at the ceiling and exhaling deeply. "His skin's badly grazed, but there's no wound."
Elliot looked up at the hole in the crumbling plaster. "I think the wall took the brunt of it," he said as relief turned to anger. He jumped to his feet and stormed over to Lady Sudley, who was still sitting huddled in a ball on the floor. "You shot the Marquess of Hartford," he said coldly. "You know what that means."
"I didn't mean to fire. I
did not mean to hurt anyone," she said, looking up at him as she sniffed away her tears. "I can't think. My mind is all a blur. Will he live? Tell me he will."
"Oh, he'll live. Thankfully, it is just a superficial wound. But you must answer for what you have done here."
Grace came to his side and placed her hand on his sleeve. "You mean to alert a constable? Is there no other alternative?"
After all Lady Sudley had done, Grace wanted him to show clemency.
It beggared belief.
Had it been his sister, he would not rest until he'd taken his revenge.
He turned to face her. "What if she'd given your sister an overdose of laudanum? What if she'd lost her child as a consequence? What if the shot had hit Leo in the head? Lady Sudley could have caused the death of three people. I cannot just let her walk out of here as though nothing has happened."
"I know that. But she is just a foolish woman, driven to the brink of insanity by her own perceived inabilities."
Elliot sighed as he pushed his hand through his hair. "There are women thrust from their homes by abusive landlords, left to beg on the streets. Walk through the alleys at night and you'll see men, women, young couples all huddled round a brazier in a bid to keep warm for it's too cold to sleep. Are they not driven to the brink of insanity? Yet do they go around determined to manipulate others for their own ends?"
Grace shook her head. "I know."
The look of sorrow in her eyes was like a spear to his heart. "What do you want me to do, Grace? I can allow you to make the choice for your sister. But I must give Leo the opportunity to do what he feels is right."
While Mrs. Jones tended to the abrasion on Leo's head, they spent the time deciding how best to proceed. Alexander and Evelyn were to take Caroline back to Duke Street. Elliot and Grace would escort Lady Sudley back to Hanover Square to wait for her husband. Joined by Mrs. Jones and Leo, they would explain the circumstances to Lord Sudley and agree to take no further action if the lady finds a way to redeem herself by helping the poor and needy.
"Thank you for doing this." Grace stared into his eyes, and he knew he would do anything in his power to please her. "You have a good heart, Elliot."
