“I hoped to find Mr. Reynolds,” she finished finally. “At first, I was confused. I did not credit that I was witness to something so dire in this house of all places. I could not believe what I had seen. When they were gone and I was alone in the entryway, I realized that… that I had seen a terrible thing. I do not know how long I stood there, I really do not. I froze, like a frightened child.”
“I then thought to seek out Mr. Reynolds. I knew he was a King’s Man. I have known him almost as long as you have and he seemed… the wisest choice. I know now that he was off searching for her, for Jane, but his men did not know where he had gone and….”
Margret’s eyes fell again, color rushed to her cheeks. “After the horrible things I said to her, I know it must look as though I had something to do with it, especially considering that I harbored such a villain on my staff, but I never wished her harm, Keegain. Truly I did not.”
The earl sat back with his coffee and looked at the both of them. When he spoke it was his friend’s name. “Ted.”
Reynold’s head shot up with the familiar use of his first name. It was not a look of defiance, but he was more alert than before. Lady Margret looked at Keegain too, concern on her face. The earl pretended not to notice her hand gripping Ted’s under the table.
“Do you love her?” he asked his friend suddenly.
Reynolds never let a bit of emotion show on his face, but he said the words with all seriousness. “I do, more than anything. I have no prospects fitting for…”
“I do not care,” Margret burst in. “I would live in a hovel, if it were with you.” She gazed up at Reynolds adoringly.
“I hardly think that will be necessary,” Keegain said. “We will find a way around this, Ted.” Keegain took a deep breath. “In the meantime, have you questioned the prisoners?” he asked.
“Yes, they enjoyed the hospitality of your cellar last night. They were cold enough and miserable enough to talk rather freely this morning.”
“So who was the fourth man? The one that got away?”
Reynolds shook his head. “They do not know his name or they wouldn’t say for fear of repercussions. I do not know if they are lying, but they said all contact with the man was done with him in a mask or cowl, they had no good description except to say he was a gentleman, by the sounds of the power he commanded, someone pretty high up.”
“So there is a maniacal kidnapper working for Napoleon loose not only in my area, but has infiltrated the gentry as well. And is quite likely still in the house because the roads are too much of a mess for anyone to leave.”
“He will give himself away somehow.” Of this Reynolds seemed certain. “And then we shall catch him. The Duke of Ely seems to have some inkling of the man’s identity regardless of the near useless description. We will find him.”
Keegain had his doubts. They had not found him in the days leading up to the ball. They had less chance now that it was over. Soon the guests would start finding their way home. It was very likely he would slip out with the rest and justice would go unserved. “If I find out who it was, I shall put a ball into his head.” Keegain made the words a solemn vow.
Margret chuckled, though with a tinge of regret despite the smile upon her face. “You speak as a protective husband.”
“I do not know how this will end, Margret, for my part, I believe that you are innocent of these things, but I cannot offer you forgiveness, as I am not the injured party. Know that I have no grudge against you. As for whether or not you will ever be welcomed into this house again…” Margret raised hopeful eyes and the earl did not want to hurt her more than he had already done. “That depends greatly on the disposition of the future Lady Keegain.” he said. He let her take that in for a moment.
When Lady Margret nodded it was with a grim sort of resignation, coupled with the relief that she had tried so hard to hide. “As it should be,” she whispered.
“In the meantime. I will hold you blameless for the dissolution of our banns. I am given to understand that the length of our betrothal has some wondering at our sincerity, so it should come as little surprise that we are not marrying after all. I will, however, not see your reputation impugned, and I see no need to mention any part of your witnessing the abduction, nor your hesitation in reporting it, nor the fact that one of the scoundrels had wheedled his way into your employ.”
“Thank you.” Margret said.
“I will explain our decision to your father. He will not be happy, but I will make him understand.”
“I will speak to Father,” Lady Margret said authoritatively. In that moment, Keegain saw the girl he once knew, the one that had once seemed free and kind and regal. She was lovely then, a trait she had lost and traded for a coldness. Now that gentle authority had returned. He thought he approved of this new Lady Margret.
“If your parents give you difficulty, just let me know. I will speak with your father, if you so wish.”
“I will speak with her father,” Reynolds interrupted and then flushed. “I am sorry, my lord.” He blurted.
“What’s with this formality, Ted?” Keegain smiled nudging the man. “We are friends, are we not?”
Reynolds returned Keegain’s grin with his own small smile.
Lord Keegain did not know when he had ever felt so free and happy. He was free to court Jane, and apparently, Reynolds was free to court Margret even though the man had no money. Her father would hate that she was giving up an earl for the second son of a baron, but Keegain had faith that Lady Margret would bring him round. Perhaps, the Duke of Ely could speak to the Regent about giving Reynolds a bit more prestige after his work here tonight. After all, they did catch three of the four traitors.
“So then.” Keegain said. “I wish you both the best of each other and a long and happy life.”
Reynolds looked startled. Keegain smiled at him. “I know that look,” he said by way of explanation. “The look you give her. I know it from the inside out.” The servants returned, opening the doors again. “To a long and happy life.” Keegain raised his cup in a toast.
“You cannot toast with coffee, old boy!” Fitzwilliam said as he strode into the room, “Have I taught you nothing? And why are your servants jealously guarding the food from your guests? We are all out in the hallway suffering from various hangovers.”
“I’m sure you shall survive.” Keegain grinned at his old friend.
“Oh, I might, yes, but judging from the sounds coming from the stable last night, you shall not have groomsmen for a fortnight!”
“Nor horses,” Keegain ventured.
The other guests began walking in, smiles and greeting all around, even if some did so rather quietly.
“Oh my!” A young lady Keegain did not know exclaimed as she looked out the large window. The storm last night had dropped a large amount of snow and ice and it turned the landscape into an unbroken white vista. “It is lovely.”
“It is,” agreed her male companion, “but a terrible thing in which to travel.”
“The invitation has been extended to you all, please stay another day or two, or a fortnight.” The earl offered. “We shall enjoy Christmas together. In any case, you all must wait until the roads are passable again.”
There was a ragged chorus of thanks.
The man who had spoken about the ills of travel continued. “I appreciate that my lord.” He bowed slightly. “But I was thinking of that poor girl, the one from last night. Still, she showed a lot of good old English backbone throughout that whole affair. I am sure a little ice and snow shall not dissuade her.”
“What are you saying?”
“Ruddy.” Alice piped up. “You do not know? Jane is leaving. Jacqueline just told me.”
“What? When?”
“Even now, her trunk is loaded, she’s out in….” but Alice spoke to an empty chair. The earl was already on his feet and through the door before his sister could finish.
“To a long and happy life!” Lady Margret called behind him.
36
Jane knew she had to leave.
She had spent the night in Lady Amelia’s room. The gown was ruined, but she returned the jewels with shaking hands and recounted the whole dreadful story.
Lady Amelia was horrified. “They thought you were me,” she whispered. “Because of the sapphires.”
“I doubt that,” Jane began, but then she remembered the men saying her father doted on her, and wondered if Lady Amelia could be right.
“Oh Jane I feel awful. I am so sorry,” Amelia said reaching out to hug Jane. Lady Amelia had never seemed to be a demonstrative person, and the embrace shocked Jane, but held close, she felt a true friendship blooming.
“You could not have known,” Jane said. “You were being kind.”
“And I might have gotten you killed,” Lady Amelia lamented. “Oh, Jane I never would have forgiven myself.”
“No harm was done,” Jane said.
Lady Amelia moved over in her bed and patted the spot beside her. She declared that Jane should not leave her side. Lady Patience joined them and then Lady Charlotte and Alice. There was not room enough in the bed for all of them, but none of the girls could sleep. They talked until nearly dawn, sharing stories and confidences. Only Alice seemed to really get a good night’s sleep, curled up between the others while they talked.
They spoke of love and swore that they all would be married to gentlemen of their choosing and no other. Eventually, they all started to doze from sheer exhaustion. It was just breaking dawn when Lady Helen found them. She knocked on the door and peeked in.
“Did you all sleep in here?” she inquired as the others rose in various stages of wakefulness.
“We did not want to leave Jane alone,” Lady Charlotte said as she stretched and rubbed her eyes.
Lady Helen nodded her understanding. “I am sorry, Jane,” she said. “I was not a good hostess to you, or a good friend. In fact, I was quite rude.”
“Lady Margret is your friend,” Jane said.
Helen nodded. “She is, but she is not right for my brother, and she does not love him.”
“Ruddy doesn’t love her either,” Alice chimed in.
“We have all known for some time that it was far from a love match,” Lady Charlotte agreed. “You and he suit much better, Jane.” The comment was said in an off handed way, and Jane caught her breath. In a moment, she realized that Charlotte had no idea of what had transpired between Jane and Keegain. Jane could not allow the statement to stand.
“No,” Jane said shaking her head. “I am no one. He deserves a lady.”
“Poppycock,” Lady Patience said. “You are as much a lady as any of us here.”
“Lady Jane,” Charlotte said. “Isn’t that what your father calls you?”
“He does, but only when I am being pretentious.”
“I have never seen you act so,” Lady Patience declared.
“He may call me Lady Jane, but I am not,” Jane disagreed. “It does not matter so much to me now. I am who I am meant to be.”
“Some are born to nobility,” Lady Amelia said. “And some earn it with fortitude and poise. You are the later, Jane. It is no wonder the brigands saw a lady when they looked at you. I am sorry that my jewels put you at risk, but I think they would have seen a lady no matter what you wore.”
The ladies nodded all around making Jane feel quite special. For the first time since she’d arrived, Jane sensed that she had someone to confide in. The girls felt like family, all of them, even Lady Helen. Jane knew that she had true friends.
Although they had talked for well into the night, the ladies once again asked Jane for her rendition of the harrowing tale so that Lady Helen could know the truth. All shivered with the thought as Jane retold the story.
“You must have been terrified,” Lady Helen said.
“Yes,” Lady Charlotte added “I would have been so frightened, I probably would have swooned.”
“You would have fought them just the same as I,” Jane assured her friend.
“Oh no! You are a heroine, Jane,” Lady Charlotte said. “Without you the gentlemen would not have caught the brigands.”
“I hardly think that is so.”
“Nonetheless, I am glad you are staying with us,” Lady Charlotte said.
“I do not think I should stay.”
“Oh, no!” Charlotte cried. “But, you must.”
Jane shook her head uncertainly.
“You may stay with me for the season,” Lady Patience offered. “Mother will not mind.”
“Or me,” Lady Amelia added. “Father will agree, I am sure of it, and my Aunt Ebba will chaperone once the weather breaks. You will put this awful night behind you and think of it no more.”
“No,” Charlotte argued. “You already agreed you would stay with us.”
“Yes. Please, stay with us.” Alice put out her lip in a pout. “You know I always get my way,” she said, eyes twinkling, and Jane had to laugh. For once, she had someone to laugh with, and if she cried, they would be here to cheer her.
She lay back against the pillows as outside, the sun came up for the first time in days, lighting up bright frost patterns on the glass panes of the window. The snow had stopped, but the world was aglitter. Still, she had to leave. She could not see Keegain day in and day out. She could not see him and know every day that he would not be hers.
Jane considered the carriage ride home in the snow. It no longer frightened her. She felt as if she could conquer the world. Perhaps, Charlotte was right. She was a heroine. There was a fear that she had always carried, that she was not good enough, that someone would see through her and always find her wanting. Last night that fear had left her. In its place was a certainty that no one could take away her own self-worth. Perhaps, she was Lady Jane. She smiled at the thought, but she was also plain Miss Jane Bellevue and that was fine as well.
“Well,” Lady Helen said standing and straightening her night clothes. “We should all be awake and dressed. It looks to be a lovely day. It is a winter wonderland.”
“Cold, but lovely,” Lady Charlotte agreed. She paused at the door. “Perhaps after breakfast we can go for a ride,” she said, “If there are any fit horses in the stable. I do love making tracks in the snow, and it rarely stays long enough to make them.”
Jane smiled but said nothing. The sisters left to go to their rooms and only Lady Patience and Lady Amelia lingered.
“I have to leave,” Jane said finally. “I do not see how it can be any other way.”
“Why?” Lady Amelia demanded.
“I cannot see him every day,” Jane whispered.
Amelia nodded her understanding.
“But what about the roads? I am sure they are all ice!” Lady Patience protested.
Jane could only smile a little as she answered, “Truly, I am not bothered by it. I trust the coachman to take me through. I am in no hurry and if some caution is warranted, I shall respect that. But I expect that I shall be fine. I find I want to be home in time for Christmas.”
The girls hugged Jane and went to dress with promises to see her at breakfast.
It was a strange feeling, having faced down her worst fear only to find it not so terrifying anymore. Nothing could scare her it seemed, save seeing the earl marry someone else.
The invitation had been issued to everyone who had attended the ball to stay until tomorrow or the next day to recover from the event. Odd how she was the one who truly needed to recover, and here she was ready to leave. Jane’s fingertips traced a bruise upon her cheek and when she sat up she moved stiffly, but she would be all right. If it would pain her to travel, then so be it. The physical aches would match her broken heart.
She called in the maid to help her dress, and Jacqueline exclaimed over the bruise upon her shoulder. The maid scolded her anew for being so careless in the first place leaving the ball, but it was a gentle chiding, covering how much Jacqueline had grown to care for her. Still, Jane was ready to return home to h
er father and sister. Her mind was made up.
Jane thought she would leave while the others were preoccupied with breakfast. She told Jacqueline to call for the footman and the man came for her trunk as the others drifted downstairs.
“I do not think you should go, Mademoiselle,” Jacqueline said.
But Jane was adamant. She told no one, not even Lady Charlotte that she was going. When the girls left her room they thought she would follow them down the stairs to breakfast. She slipped away when they were caught in the crowd heading into the dining room. Jane watched them go, seeing the happiness on the faces of those around her as they relived their favorite memories of the ball.
Jane knew her story would be passed around and become gossip for the Ton for a while, but eventually the rumors would fade. She was glad that she was leaving; that she need not be part of the gossip. Jane suspected that her friends would let the story slip about what she had done to stop the carriage. They had thought it incredibly brave. In retrospect, she saw how foolish she had been.
But the villains were caught. At least three of them were. The other…the other was still out there somewhere.
She had told Keegain last night and he said he would discuss it with the others. That there were King’s Men in the household had surprised her not a little. They would find him then, she was sure. But the news that the man had not yet been caught made it easier to leave. It just felt safer that way. Safer on all accounts; mostly, safer for her heart.
“The carriage is ready, my lady,” the footman said and bowed as he helped her with her cloak. She flushed, and corrected him gently. “Miss will do fine,” she said softly as she stepped past him into the bright glare of the new day.
The trees were coated in ice, giving the lane the look of an enchanted winter fairyland. She stood a moment upon the steps, caught up in the wonder of the bright and glittering world. The footman came forward to help her and she carefully made her way down the steps, pausing to touch a branch of a frozen bush near the door. Jane smiled and tilted back her head to gaze up at the impossible blue depths of the sky. What an absolutely beautiful day it truly was with the sun shining off the newly fallen snow, and the ice dripping from the trees.
Winning Lady Jane: A Christmas Regency Romance (Ladies of Bath Book 0) Page 22
