by Wolf, Bree
For a moment, annoyance surged through Phineas. Still, it vanished as quickly as it had appeared. Instead, laughter bubbled up in his own throat, and he found himself reaching for the straw by his feet, clutching a handful and tossing it at Louisa. “Perhaps straw will improve your appearance as well.”
Louisa shrieked and tried to dash away. Soon, they were both dancing around in the small space, launching armfuls of straw at one another, laughing so hard that their sides began to ache. Phineas could not remember the last time he had had that much fun.
Childlike fun.
Something utterly useless and without purpose.
“Wait!” Louisa exclaimed suddenly, holding up a hand to halt his next attack.
Phineas chuckled, “Don’t for a second believe I will show you mercy!”
“No, I found something!” Crouching down in the straw, Louisa once more used her hands to dig a little hole, soon revealing the lid of the wooden chest. “It’s a treasure chest.”
Phineas slapped his knee and laughed, “I don’t believe it!” Then he knelt beside her. “Is it locked?”
“I don’t think so.” Louisa ran her hands over the smooth wood before she flipped back the small metal slab that held the lid closed. Then she slowly opened the chest, her teeth sunk into her lower lip as she all but held her breath.
“I’m not expecting gold or jewels,” Phineas remarked with a grin as he watched her. “Any ideas what could be in there?”
Louisa did not answer. Her eyes were all but glued to the growing gap, slowly revealing what lay inside the treasure chest they had found.
And then the chest lay open before them, the fading light in the barn unable to illuminate the contents within. “What is this?” Phineas asked, carefully reaching out a hand.
Louisa was faster, though. “Notebooks,” she replied before she had even pulled the first one out and slowly turned it in her hands, her eyes running almost lovingly over the leather binding.
“Notebooks?” Phineas frowned. “I must admit, notebooks I would’ve expected as a treasure for Leonora, but for you? Do you hold any secret ambitions of becoming a scientist?”
Louisa laughed at the playful note in his voice, “Don’t be absurd.” Then she sighed, a faraway look coming to her eyes as she reached for yet another notebook.
Phineas watched her curiously. “This means something to you,” he observed.
Louisa nodded. “When we were little,” she began with a sigh, “our mother gave these to us, saying that the world of the written word opened up new possibilities for us. She told us to fill these notebooks with whatever held our hearts. She said it did not matter what it was as long as we cared about it enough to keep it close, to make a note of it, to remember it in the years to come.” She looked up at him, and he could see tears brimming in her eyes. “Jules filled hers with musings, thoughts that simply came to her throughout the day. Leonora, of course, noted down all kinds of observations about the world around her, posing questions to herself she wished to be able to answer one day.” Her hands moved to yet another notebook, opening it gently. “Chris wrote stories about fairies and elves and dragons, and Harry wrote about her animals.” A deep sigh left her lips.
“And you?” Phineas prompted, wondering how Louisa had solved the problem of being unable to write down anything important to her. How had she filled a notebook without being able to read and write thoughts of her own?
Louisa shrugged, and a tear ran down her cheek. “I simply copied poems Jules used to read to us, claiming they held a special meaning for me.” Regret and shame darkened her voice, but she lifted her chin and met his gaze without flinching. “I did what I could.”
Phineas nodded, reaching out a hand to cover hers. “I know you did.” His gaze swept over the open chest and the many notebooks inside. “Why do you think they left these for you?”
A smile slowly spread over Louisa’s face as she opened yet another notebook, the one she had been holding in her hands. “They left a new one for me,” she whispered, her voice choked with emotions. “So, I can begin again.”
Phineas returned her smile, glad to see her spirits lifted. “What will you write in it?”
Louisa shrugged. “I don’t know…yet.” A hint of a smile came to her face as she contemplated all the possibilities opening to her. If she continued down this path, she would soon be able to express anything she wanted.
“Will you ever write me a note?” Phineas asked grinning. “After all the little notes you’ve received this week, I assume everyone would be delighted to receive some in return. I know I would be.”
Louisa groaned in mock exhaustion, slapping a hand to her forehead. “Oh, all the work! If only I had known, I would have never wanted to learn. Now, I suddenly must write notes?” she chuckled, carefully settling the notebooks back into the small chest.
Phineas heaved a deep sigh, suddenly feeling utterly content for the thought of exchanging notes with Louisa was one most—
Stilling, Phineas felt all blood drain from his face. The air around them no longer felt warm and soothing, but utterly chilling as his thoughts were drawn back to a night months ago.
A night at a ball when a footman had brought him a note. A note asking him to come to the library. A note he had assumed had been from Louisa.
Only once there, it had not been Louisa who had awaited him, but Miss Mortensen instead. She, too, had received such a note, the words written in the same hand, signed by nothing more but the letter L.
Who on earth had written these notes? Had Miss Mortensen done so to lure him there? Had she meant to trap him into marriage? It was not a practice unheard of. In fact, Phineas remembered that soon upon entering the library, footsteps had echoed outside in the hall, coming closer. To save them both, Phineas had disappeared through the window.
Had it been her? Or someone else? But who? And why?
Indeed, Phineas could not shake the feeling that Miss Mortensen did not possess the daring nor the kind of calculating mind required to set such a plan in motion. Indeed, she had seemed utterly dumbfounded herself.
Who then?
Chapter Thirty-Three
Return to Windmere Park
Christmas was drawing near, and the Archibald Christmas Ball once more loomed on the horizon. Anne and Tobias could not wait to attend as their own happily-ever-after had begun at that very event a year before.
Louisa enjoyed the expectant thrill that seemed to linger upon Whickerton Grove these days. Everyone was counting the days until their departure for this year; all the Whickertons intended to attend.
All but one.
“You cannot stay behind on your own,” Louisa counseled Leonora as they walked arm in arm across the snow-covered grounds. “Everyone is going. You will be utterly bored. Also, people might talk if you remained here all by yourself.”
Leonora exhaled a slow breath, its small cloud drifting away upon the icy breeze chilling their skin. “I know,” she mumbled, a look of deepest turmoil upon her face. “I know.” She stopped in her tracks and turned to look at Louisa. “What am I to do? I cannot imagine attending and…and…and…” Utter panic stood upon her snow-white face.
Louisa grasped her sister’s hands tightly. “You will not be alone,” she promised her, her green eyes looking deeply into her sister’s blue ones. “I promise I shall not leave your side. Nothing will happen. Trust me.” She could see plain as day that the thought of once again mingling within society terrified her sister more than anything else ever had. It was the night of the masquerade that still lingered in her thoughts as well as the question of who her masked attacker had been. What if they crossed paths again at a societal event? Would she recognize him? Or would she converse with him, never knowing that it had been him?
Inhaling a deep breath, Leonora nodded. “I know I cannot shut myself away for the rest of my life,” she said, her jaw tensing as she forced more strength into her words. “And I do not want to.” She shook her head, a dark scoff leavin
g her lips. “This is silly! Of course, nothing bad will happen. Nothing bad ever happened before. Not at a ball. Not with my parents, my grandmother, my family around.” She swallowed hard. “Nothing will happen.”
“So, you will come?” Louisa asked, once more squeezing her sister’s hands reassuringly.
With her lips pressed into a thin line, Leonora nodded. Still, the look of panic upon her face had not waned, and Louisa worried how her sister might fare at a crowded house party with dozens of people around. She could only hope it might bring back old joys and prove to her that she was indeed safe with her family at her side. After all, Leonora needed to take that first step back into life. Louisa did not dare imagine what would happen to her sister if she never found the courage to do so.
And so, after weeks of planning and packing and chatting and laughing, all the Whickertons set out for Windmere Park. They were accompanied by Anne, Tobias and Phineas as well as by Sarah and her mother, Lady Hartmore, who had arrived only a sennight before their departure.
Snow lay in a thin layer upon the ground, allowing their carriages to reach Lord Archibald’s estate without much delay. Fluffy snowflakes drifted to the ground here and there, occasionally whipped about by an icy wind. The evergreen bushes and trees planted strategically along the drive as well as in the gardens glittered from the frost as though decorated with diamonds.
The general mood was cheerful and expectant. Harriet, Chris and Sarah never ceased speaking, discussing all they were hoping for this Christmas season. Of course, they had heard the story of Anne’s disastrous mistletoe kiss and were wondering if this year they could claim one of their own.
Of course, not a disastrous one.
As the carriage pulled to a halt in front of the large front stoop leading up to the tall oak doors, Grandma Edie was jarred awake, her eyes blinking furiously as she pushed herself into a more seated position. “Have we finally arrived?” she asked, stifling a yawn. “It certainly took long enough.”
Beside her, Louisa felt Leonora tense, and she immediately reached out a hand to her sister, pulling her close and patting her hand. “All will be well,” she whispered. “I’m here.”
Leonora cast her a fearful look but nodded. Then they disembarked from the carriage, followed by Jules and Grandma Edie.
As always, their grandmother all but hugged Jules to her side, clinging to her as though she were incapable of walking on her own. Of course, she had her walking stick, which in this moment she chose to ignore. More than once, Louisa wondered about her grandmother’s insistence on keeping Jules by her side at all times, especially whenever they ventured out into society. It seemed rather unnecessary considering Grandma Edie’s rather resolute nature. Still, Jules never fought their grandmother and tended to give in without an argument.
After settling into their assigned rooms, most of the Whickertons returned downstairs to greet the other guests and speak to someone new, someone they had not seen in the last few months. Harriet, Chris and Sarah were soon nowhere to be seen, exploring the house as well as its grounds. Grandma Edie settled into an armchair by the fire in the drawing room, Jules, of course, by her side, alternately fetching her warm tea and biscuits. While their parents were soon engulfed in a conversation with Lord and Lady Archibald as well as a few other close friends, Troy simply stood by the window, gazing outside, the somewhat slumped appearance of his shoulders suggesting that he was far from in a good mood.
Under normal circumstances, Louisa would have addressed him, asking what was on his mind. Unfortunately, Leonora still clung to her arm, her eyes wide as she looked around the room. “Are you all right?”
In answer, Leonora’s hands tensed upon Louisa’s arm. “I…I hardly know.”
Louisa continued their walk around the room, ensuring they never ventured too close to other guests. She was hoping that Leonora would slowly get used to being around other people once more. It seemed, though, that it would take a lot of time.
As the afternoon progressed, Louisa decided to follow her younger sisters’ example. She urged Leonora into the front hall where they slipped into their warm winter coats and drew on fur-lined boots. Then they hurried outdoors, enjoying the warm sunlight upon their faces as they walked across the frost-covered ground. “Better?”
With a tentative smile, Leonora nodded. “I can hardly explain it,” she replied, shrugging her shoulders. “Everything is as it always has been. It is me. Only me.”
“Do not blame yourself,” Louisa insisted as they turned down into the gardens, spotting Harriet, Chris and Sarah engaged in a snowball fight. “After what happened to you, your reaction is most natural. It will take time to heal. Do not expect too much of yourself and be patient.”
Leonora cast her a warm smile, then rested her head against Louisa’s shoulder as they stood side-by-side, looking down at the not-quite frozen lake nearby. “Do you think they will be able to skate again this year?” she asked with a chuckle, no doubt remembering Louisa’s break-neck stunt from the previous year as she had done what she had to in order to save Anne from Lord Gillingham’s advances.
“Not unless it grows colder,” Louisa replied as her gaze swept over the grounds and the many guests strolling across the green lawns, here and there powdered with snow. “Do you think he’s here again this year? Lord Gillingham?”
Lifting her head off Louisa’s shoulder, Leonora, too, looked around. “I do not see him.” Her gaze moved to where Anne and Tobias were strolling along the entrance to the maze where only the year before he had asked for her hand. “I admit, I hope he is not, for it would be most difficult for him to see Anne with Tobias, would it not? Do you think he genuinely cared for her?”
Louisa shrugged. “That I cannot say.” A strange shiver suddenly danced down her spine, and she turned, not surprised in the least, to see Phineas walking toward them. A wide smile came to his face the moment their eyes met, and Louisa could not deny that she had missed him over the course of the long carriage ride. Indeed, her earlier hatred of him had completely disappeared, replaced by something warm and intoxicating. Did he feel it, too?
“Who is that?” Leonora asked, an odd, breathless flutter in her voice.
Louisa blinked, and saw a tall, dark man walking next to Phineas. How she had not noticed him before she could not say. Although both men shared certain outward similarities, their dark hair and tall stature, Phineas had a cheerful and at times wicked look about him. The man by his side did not. His face looked most serious, and Louisa could not help but wonder if he even knew the meaning of a smile. “I do not know,” she replied, a frown drawing down her brows as she watched the two men most closely. “I cannot say that I have ever seen him before.”
Headed their way, the men approached with slow steps, words passing between them. Still, Phineas’ eyes rarely strayed from hers, and she felt the effect of it in every fiber of her being. “Good day, my ladies,” Phineas greeted them with the usual mischievous twinkle in his dark eyes. “I hope you’re well and have not suffered overly much over the course of our journey, which unfortunately deprived you of my charming presence.”
“I cannot say that we have,” Louisa replied with a chuckle. “Although Grandma Edie’s snoring became a tad irritating after a while.”
Phineas laughed, “So did the meaningful looks exchanged between Anne and Tobias. Perhaps on our way back we can make other arrangements.”
Louisa was about to agree when Phineas’ friend cleared his throat rather loudly, a displeased look coming to his face.
“I apologize,” Phineas exclaimed, turning to look at his companion. “Ladies, may I introduce you to an old friend from Eton, Drake Shaw, Marquess of Pemberton. Pemberton, these are Lady Louisa and Lady Leonora.”
The marquess offered them a formal bow, his dark gray eyes glittering with something unspoken. “A pleasure, my ladies.”
Louisa and Leonora returned his greeting. “My lord,” Louisa exclaimed, wondering about this man she had never seen before at Phin
eas’ side. “I admit, I am most surprised to make your acquaintance. I cannot say that…Lord Barrington has ever mentioned you before.”
Phineas grinned at her directness. “To be quite truthful—”
“Which you rarely are,” Louisa interrupted with a teasing chuckle.
Phineas cast her a mocking glare. “To be quite truthful, we have not seen each other in many, many years. I admit we were not the closest of friends at Eton. However, Pemberton has always been a man who despite our many, many differences has earned my respect.” He grinned at his friend, who all but ignored him, his face rather impassive.
“And you’ve come across each other here by chance this Christmas season?” Louisa asked as she looked from one to the other.
Beside her, Leonora remained perfectly still, neither saying a word nor moving in the slightest.
An odd look came to Phineas’ face. “Not quite,” he replied, once more exchanging a look Louisa could not quite determine with the man by his side. “In fact, I asked him here.”
“Why?” Louisa asked, unable to shake the sinking feeling that somehow it had something to do with her. Perhaps it was the look upon Phineas’ face. There was guilt there, etched into his dark eyes. But why?
Inhaling a deep breath, Phineas stepped toward her, his hands reaching out to hold the one not currently clasped by Leonora. “Please, hear me out.” He glanced over his shoulder at his friend, who shifted rather uncomfortably on his feet. The stone-like expression upon his face, however, remained the same.
Louisa tensed. “Say it then.”
Phineas swallowed, and she could feel his hand tightening its grip upon hers as though afraid that she would slip away any moment. It was that sensation more than any other that sent a cold chill down Louisa’s back. “I reached out to him,” Phineas began, “because I thought he might be able to help you.”
