“I will kill the first one who lays a hand on me. I swear it, you filthy gutter snipes!” I screamed at them as I danced around dodging their lame attempts to trap me in between them.
“Get around her, Tommy, you useless wanker,” Roy yelled at Tommy, trying to distract me so he could move in and grab me.
His biggest mistake was coming at me in the first place. His second mistake was thinking that I carried a dagger merely for show.
“What a pretty little sticker you got there, girly,” Roy taunted as he reached for my wrist.
Slashing his hand, I laid it open from the top of his wrist to the first knuckle.
“Ouch! You little tramp. She cut me, Tommy,” Roy cried out as he quickly withdrew his hand, blood squirting out from a vein.
“Come on, Tommy, give it a try, you may not be so lucky,” I taunted. “I have an older brother who should be along any minute now. If you think I’m tough, just wait till he gets here,” I yelled, trying to buy time.
Roy made a noise close to me as he came in again. I whirled around, clocking him with the palm of my hand. I heard a gruesome snapping noise as I smashed his face, then I swiftly stuck my dagger hilt deep into his soft belly. Pulling it out, I turned to Tommy who had used the opportunity to come up behind me, grabbed me around the waist and trapping my arms to my side. I could hear the pounding of horse hooves approaching, but I was unsure if they were coming to rescue me or assist Tommy and Roy. My mind went wild. I was not going to be taken hostage by a couple of gutter rats.
Pretending that I had fainted I became dead weight in Tommy’s arms. When he shifted to pick me up, I lashed out at him, slashing him across the face. He screamed in surprise as I swung again getting his upper arm. Blood now dripping down his face as he grabbed his arm, retreating from what must have been his worst nightmare come true.
Instead of running from him, I advanced on him, my dagger held high and a murderous gleam in my eye. “I am going to kill you slowly, so I hope the horses I hear coming are my people and not yours,” I said with real malice.
Tommy tripped over a branch as he backed away from me. Falling to the ground, he curled up into a ball, covering his head with his arms.
There I stood over Tommy, the would-be kidnapper with my chest heaving legs spread apart, dagger in hand, covered in blood when Jonathan, Jude, and Honore sped in on their horses to rescue me.
Jonathan leaped from his horse and ran to me first, his hands searching me head to toe.
“Angelina, are you hurt?” he asked, looking for the source of the blood. “Look at me, speak to me.” I could hear the concern evident in his voice. But I couldn’t speak. Not yet.
Honore had reached Roy as he lay on the ground dying from the blood loss and writhing in pain.
Jude simply walked up to me taking the dagger from my hand and handed it to Jonathan. Picking me up in his arms, he cradled me gently, his breathing was calm and steady as he carried me to his horse. Honore was there in an instant as Jude handed me off to him.
Jude climbed into his saddle, reaching his arms out to retrieve me from his friend as the two moved as one. Safely seated in front of him I clung to his neck as reality struck, and hot tears of pain and relief began to flow.
“Honore, you know what to do with the one still breathing.” Honore moved to retrieve his charge and be off. “Jonathan, I am taking Angelina to the nearest inn. Go back and tell your parents that she is safe and get her horse. I’ll meet you there. Don’t concern yourself with him,” gesturing to the man on the ground curled into a ball, Honore will see to him.” With that, Jude kicked his horse into action and we were off.
Spent from the fear of fending off two would be attackers, shock set in as I lay silently in his arms, comforted by the steady beating of his heart, lulled by the clopping of his horse’s pace.
Feeling my movement against him, Jude shifted to look down at me as I reached up to touch his face.
“Why is your face so beautiful to me?” I asked softly. “Right now you look like a carved statue so strong and stern.”
“I thought you had been thrown from your beast of a horse and lay dead on the side of the road. Imagine my surprise when I came upon you standing over that cowering man covered in blood,” Jude said, his words filled with pent-up emotion. “Did you really kill the one and go after the other yourself?”
“I don’t know exactly what came over me, I just went crazy for a minute. If the other one hadn’t let go of me, he probably would be dead now as well.”
“Most likely they are highway men and you were in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Jude replied, attempting to comfort me.
“No! I heard one of them tell the other that I was to be delivered unharmed, but I didn’t have time to ask any questions.”
“Don’t worry, Honore is the best man for the job. He will ask all the pertinent questions. For now, you are safely in my arms where you belong,” he lovingly pulled me closer, wrapping his arm tightly about me as I snuggled in for the ride.
Jude found an inn, two and a half hours ride from where we began. Exhaustion overtook me and I drifted in and out of sleep a few times, knowing that I was safe.
He secured a room once we reached our destination and ordered a tub and hot water to be brought up to the room while I waited in the stables. Then sneaking me in, with his coat wrapped around me, Jude kept his arm draped protectively around me.
I sat at the window staring at nothing in particular, shock still burdening my mind. Nothing made sense. Who would want to kidnap me?
Jude arranged for a clean gown and linens to be brought up, as he paid the young man filling the tub a few extra coins for his discretion.
Hesitant at first, I let Jude lead me to the tub and helped me from my gown. He soaped up a cloth and scrubbed the blood from my face and hands as I sat emotionless. My eyes filling with tears, but I simply refused to let them spill.
Helping me to stand, he gently wrapped me in a clean linen, then carried me over to the turned down bed when I stood frozen in place. Pulling the covers over me, he smoothed back the stray hair that fell across my face, before leaning over to place a kiss on my forehead and eyes.
“Sleep now, I will only be a moment,” he said, turning he walked to the door and waited for me to obediently close my eyes before closing the door.
I fell into a deep fitful sleep, awakening with a start and screaming at the top of my lungs.
“Wake up, Angelina. I’m here with you.” Jude shook me gently by my shoulders, his face showed distress. We must get you dressed now.” I could hear the urgency in his tone. He helped me into a clean dress then slipped my riding boots on and laced them for me like I was a helpless child.
“What has happened, Jude? Tell me why we are rushing?” I asked, searching his face for answers.
“I went down to get a pint of ale and the entire room is abuzz with talk of the murder.”
“What murder? Who was murdered, Jude?” I asked feeling darkness engulfing me. Somehow I already knew what he was going to tell me before the words passed from his lips.
“There was a murder at the king’s party last night. They say a girl was violated, cut several times and drowned.” Jude kept looking at me as if I would suddenly fall to pieces.
“There’s more isn’t there? Tell me the rest, Jude. I need to know it all.” My nightmare came back to me in vivid detail.
“Yes, my love, but you’re not going to like it,” he added, concern for my well-being written on his face.
“Please, Jude.” Taking a hold of him for strength as we locked eyes.
“She was wearing nothing but a slip, a corset and a wig with pearl strands laced through it.” Each word was like a punch to my gut.
“Tell me the rest. I know that isn’t all. I see it in your eyes, Jude,” My voice cracked with strain as tension gripped my chest.
“She was found on a boat tied to the docks on the south side of the lake. The same boat we made love on Angelina. They are saying
that she wasn’t a guest from the party. They said she was from the gas lamp district and she had red hair. Darling, I think she was wearing your corset and wig.” Fear etched in his voice.
I felt the blood draining from my face and the room began to spin.
“Stay with me, my love,” was the last thing I heard Jude say as I surrendered to the darkness.
Sweet blissful darkness swallowed me whole.
10
MONDAY, MAY 4, 1763;
THE GREAT AWAKENING
AWOKE IN THE EARLY MORNING hours just before the sky took on the dusky hues of the sun rising over the ridge.
My room was dark except for a single lamp still lit at the bed side. Jonathan was keeping vigil asleep in a chair next to my bed.
“Could I have a glass of water?” I managed to choke out, my throat bone dry and tasting of so much waste left behind. Getting no response, I went to move the covers and felt damp from head to toe.
“Jonathan, wake up. Why are you in my room at this hour?” I questioned, indignation tainting my tone.
Stirring in his chair, Jonathan opened his eyes slowly to see me looking at him.
“I’m sorry, did you just say something?” he asked, wiping the sleep from his eyes.
“Yes, I asked why you are in my room at this hour. And could you please pour me some water? My mouth is terribly dry,” I admonished, trying to sit up.
A huge smile broke out on his face as he jumped from his chair to do my bidding. Helping me sit up in bed, Jonathan handed me a glass of water, then ran to fetch Anna and Mother.
Before I knew it my room was abuzz with activity before the sun had come up, and Jonathan was eagerly filling me in.
I had gone unconscious after hearing the shocking news of the murder. Jude had carried me from the inn to the waiting carriage.
When I developed a fever, the doctor was called. He had wanted to bleed me, but Mother told him he was crazy and sent him away vowing never to recommend such an incompetent physician again.
I had been in a state of unconsciousness for nearly three days, restlessly tossing and talking in my sleep.
Jonathan told me that Jude had been vigilantly by my bedside for two and half days without sleep, only agreeing to get some rest four hours ago. Jonathan didn’t have the heart to wake him just yet.
Sarah had been by every day sitting at my bedside talking to me and wiping my fevered forehead with cool cloths.
Honore had returned early yesterday. Tommy, the surviving would-be-kidnapper, didn’t know who had hired them. He went on to say that Roy had been the one to secure the job. The only thing he did know for sure was the man must be rich because he had paid them well. They were given a one-pound note each which was six months wages to them, for their efforts making it an impossible opportunity to pass up. Afterward Honore turned the man over to the constable and filed a report.
“I, for one, have had enough rest and would like a bath and something to eat. I am positively famished,” I announced to the room.
Anna jumped into action, ordering a fire and bath immediately, and Mother went down to the kitchen to get toast and tea.
Jonathan dutifully helped me from the bed, slipping me into a robe when Jude came through the door.
“You look simply awful,” I quipped. Jude’s eyes were bloodshot while his shirt and trousers were a wrinkled mess. A three day growth of beard replaced his normally smooth-shaven face.
“Thank you, kind woman, but I am not the concern here, you are.” He took over for Jonathan, as he tied my robe closed and helped me to the lounge.
“So what exactly happened? One minute you were talking to me, the next you were gone,” Jude asked, concerned.
“I really can’t talk about it because I really don’t know what happened,” I lied. If I told them that I dreamed the murder, I would be committed to the nearest asylum. What’s more I was having a hard time understanding the whole thing myself. No, it was best for me to remain quiet. After all, it was merely a freak occurrence, a phenomenon and it would never happen again. And I, for one, was thankful.
“I have to say you really scared me when I couldn’t wake you at the inn. After all that talk in the pub about the murdered woman, I carried you down the stairs unconscious. Why, I thought the folks were going to string me up. I had to do a lot of fast talking. Then Jonathan came through the door while I was explaining and vouched for me.
“Fortunately, I might add for you both,” Jonathan concluded.
“They really stopped you from carrying me out?” I asked in shock.
“The owners of that fine establishment, along with everyone who was downstairs eating in the pub.” His expression was very animated as he related the story. “I think someone even called for a rope,” he added, bugging out his eyes while sticking his tongue out, he tilted his head to one side like someone just hung.
The crazy animation and storytelling made me laugh and for a moment, I forgot all about the bad dream and the last three days. Anna had the tub set as Mother returned with tea and toast.
Anna, who was in protective mode, started shooing everyone out the door. Mother passed me toast while Anna scrubbed my hair, and I was grateful for the distraction. It gave me less time to think about anything else.
11
WEDNESDAY, MAY 11, 1763;
LIFE RETURNS TO NORMAL . . . WELL, SORT OF
TOP IT, JONATHAN! I MEAN it. You are no longer funny,” I said, giving my brother the stern eye as he continued teasing me.
“Or what?” Jonathan challenged. “Do you think to make short work of me too just like those thugs you singlehandedly subdued?” he teased, prancing around Dante with his equally powerful stallion Galahad.
Jonathan and I had been to Sarah’s visiting for the afternoon.
“Don’t ever doubt my abilities, big brother. My handiwork is proof enough,” I teased back and kicked Dante in the side as my horse shot forward. And the race for home was on.
I was constantly surrounded by body guards everywhere I went now, namely Jonathan, Jude or Honore. Father had feared the attempted kidnapping was not an isolated incident and therefore, being overly protective, decided I was not to leave the house without an escort.
I had not had any recurring dreams, and life was getting back to normal. Jude and Honore were staying at the estate at the request of Father to watch over Mother and me while he was away on business with Uncle Jamie.
Uncle Nicholas was holding down the family business while his two brothers were gone. Nicholas’s wife and kids were visiting with us. Aunt Victoria, and my cousins — Albert, sixteen, Andrew, fourteen, and Emma, age ten — were a lively bunch. Our house was filled to capacity with bodies and noise, so finding a quiet moment alone with Jude had proven to be more than a small challenge.
Taking matters into my own hands, I arranged for Anna to make ready the hunting lodge for me in case an opportunity presented itself. All that was left for me to do now was wait patiently, and patience was never my strong suit.
I was having delicious thoughts of Jude and what I intended to do to him next time I had him alone when Dante’s powerful legs stampeded down the road and through the gates of our estate. I pulled Dante up short to prevent running over my two cousins Albert and Andrew as I raced for the official finish line with Jonathan.
I had Jonathan beat. Breathing deeply of victory I tasted the sweetness of besting my brother again.
“Hey, watch out, get out of the way,” I yelled as I tried to stop in time.
Albert shoved his younger brother Andrew out of the way and barely managed to avoid being trampled by Dante’s enormous hooves.
“I am so terribly sorry,” I cried as I jumped from my horse to help Albert up. “Are you all right? Albert speak to me!”
“Have you lost your mind, Angelina?” a very indignant Albert said as he dusted himself off and walked over to Andrew pulling him from the pile of dung he landed in.
“I do believe you have landed in it this time, my dear An
drew,” Jonathan said, stating the obvious as he dismounted from his horse and chuckled under his breath.
“You really aren’t helping, Jonathan,” I said derisively, as I fixed him with my most stern look.
“Poor Andrew would not be in this predicament if you didn’t feel the need to always win at any cost, you know,” Jonathan taunted me again.
“Jonathan Edward Allan Stewart, I am warning you! Tread lightly less you go too far!” My face no longer that of comportment, I attempted to console Andrew and make amends. Storm clouds formed over my head. I was in no mood for anymore teasing.
“Honestly, how careless must one be to nearly kill a pair of hapless young men minding their own business?
That tears it. Jonathan Edward the Third, enjoy your last full breath of air because it is about to be your last!” Suddenly, the clouds burst and thunder and lightning exploded. I took off running after Jonathan, my intent clear — I was going to do him harm.
Jonathan took one look at my face and realized too late that he had taken his joke a step too far. Turning around he headed down the drive laughing and yelling in terror at the same time.
Stopping momentarily to pick up a large stick with the intent to beat the stuffing out of him, I chased after him.
Two men on horseback came through the gates and witnessed the entire incident. I was consumed with blind rage and had not noticed them because my focus was on the fool running from me.
“Do something! I truly think she intends to harm me this time,” Jonathan screamed as he ran past them.
Next thing I knew my immediate path was blocked by a horse. I stopped, then looked up and saw a very amused Honore motioning for me to turn around.
My first mistake was getting distracted by Honore and my second was turning my back on that shiftless rogue.
Before I knew what was up Jude had a hold of my arms as Honore was lifting me up to him.
“I will take that, thank you Mademoiselle,” Honore said as he removed the branch from my hand. “Best of luck, my good friend,” saluting us both as his laughter rang in my ears.
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