A Bride for Lord Esher (14 page)

Yours affectionately,

Lord Warren

Wisteria House, Hastings, 1790.

As quick as she could, the lady closed and locked the drawer, and returned the key to its proper drawer along with the quills and the wax stamp. She slipped the letter inside her bodice, just as he footman returned with Lady Warren. Red and flustered, Lady Ashworth waved herself down with the palm of her hand.

“Just in time, I need that water, I feel so faint.”

“Perhaps I should order your carriage,” said Lady Warren. “A lady in your condition can’t be too careful.”

Lady Ashworth nodded. “Perhaps you’re right,” she said. “Have my man sent for at once.”

A moment later, the wheels of her carriage rolled away along the gravel drive, and Lady Ashworth inhaled deeply. Betty sat across from her, cloaked in green. “Did you find what you were looking for, your ladyship?”

Lady Ashworth clutched at her heart. “Oh yes,” she said. She withdrew the letter from her bodice and read the words again. It was certain Lady Esher was in trouble. She prayed to heaven that it was not already too late, and that her brother could get to his wife in time.

Chastity had seen a few peculiar guests at Wisteria House, but none were as strange as the gentleman at the top of the house. In all the time he had been there, he had never once shown his face or talked to her as all the other guests regularly did. So her curiosity was kindled one day when the man’s valet asked her to join her master for a late night supper.

“Tell your master I am deeply honored but I do not dine alone with the guests in their rooms.”

“But you would not be alone, I would be there to wait on you,” said the handsome valet.

“Nevertheless, I would not feel comfortable with it. I’m sure as a man of honor your master will understand.”

“Am I to tell him there are no circumstances in which this can be arranged? My master would like to thank you in person for the comfort of his stay. You would offend him deeply if you do not meet his request in some measure.”

“I’m sorry I cannot, not in his rooms. I am happy to bring something up to him but I can’t tarry in a gentleman’s room for more than a minute or two. It’s just not seemly. Please convey my regrets to your master.”

The valet disappeared, but for the rest of the morning Chastity had the distinct feeling he was watching her. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the young man head out with his master, who as always, hid his face behind a silken mask. She had no clue where they went on their excursions, and after today’s unwelcome invitation, had less interest. A cold shiver ran down her spine, but she shook it off, and carried on with her duties.

Since her arrival in town, Chastity had been attending the local church, but the old pastor was dying, and the living promised to a new brother of the cloth. While the old man still lived at the vicarage, his replacement had secured lodgings at Wisteria House, and Chastity expected his arrival that afternoon. Though she had forgotten his name, there was no mistaking the round figure of Able Matthews as he climbed awkwardly down from the evening coach.

Though Chastity recognized him at once, the minister seemed a little muddled after his long journey.

“You say we’ve met, my dear woman, but how odd. I’m sure I’d remember a pretty thing like you, but then sometimes I’m forgetful, and facts pop in and out of my head all too often. A slice of mutton on some warm bread will return me to my senses, and perhaps a little ale? Is there such a feast to be had in your fair establishment?”

“Of course,” said Chastity. She took the old man inside the house and escorted him directly to his room. “Sit down and I will get you something to eat.”

A little while later Chastity returned with a plate of sliced mutton, some freshly baked bread, and a frothy tankard of her best ale. She watched as the old man devoured the food with relish, and smiled as he cleaned his mouth on the sleeve of his coat.

Much recovered, the old man slapped his thighs before turning to address her. He peered long and hard through two tired eyes and then at last threw his hands in the air and roared with delight. “Ah it’s coming back to me now, as you see a little supper always revives me. The double event, I recall it now, that particular one’s been troubling me for some time.”

Intrigued, Chastity leant forward in her chair. “Oh, how so?”

“Well, the groom wanted so hard to undo what he had done, and of course I denied him. He certainly seemed sober enough at the time. But then I remembered no banns had been read, and in that parish, a marriage contract isn’t binding if they haven’t been read. So you see, the poor fellow was never married at all, and though I kept meaning to follow it up I get so forgetful these days, and after a little while I forgot altogether.”

Chastity bit her tongue and once again, an incredible numbness consumed her entire body. The tears would come, but not yet. She would hold them in until she was alone and they could fall freely. The old man was too journey-weary to catch the flatness in her tone.

“You should rest now. I hope you have everything you need to get comfortable.”

“Oh yes, dear, I’m as happy as can be. Better now that thought is off my mind, these things can drag you down so….”

Able Matthew’s voice trailed away as she closed the door. So Robert Esher was not hers. He never had been, he never was, and he never would be. She wondered how a small body such as her own could carry such a weight of emptiness.

Ahead of her a young girl hired to help her with the evening suppers was sweeping the parlor floor.

“I need some air,
Jane. It’s fairly quiet tonight, so I may take a little stroll into town for some exercise and a little peace. Would you mind?”

“Naw, Missus, you leave it wi’ me, I can cope for a bit.”

“Thank you, child.”

It was a fair walk from Wisteria House down to the main stretch of town. After a recent article in the papers about the health benefits of the resort, the population had bulged slightly, and a few more homes were being constructed to accommodate their rising numbers. Still, now the sun was sinking, the streets had become quiet, and Chastity listened to the sound of her own footsteps as they traipsed along the hard stone below. A few red coats stood quietly by a local inn, their voices lowered in private chatter, but they nodded respectfully as she passed, and she walked on unhindered.

She truly was Lady Esher no more, never had been, and her virtue had been sold for a song to the amusement of the rich and the benefit of no-one. Since arriving in Hastings, Chastity had pondered hard on the matter of the cameo, and had wondered how such a thing had come to pass, but each thought led to more confusion. She had long since given up trying to fathom things out. Now there was no point to any of it. The one man in the world she would ever love was gone from her, never to return, and she felt certain she would never see his handsome face again.

Lost in a world of thought, her walk took her right to the outskirts of town, near an old abandoned church, full of neglected gravestones and broken gates. Though not inclined to be superstitious, the pale moon made the place an eerie prospect and it broke her from her reverie, forcing her back to the here and now.

I best get back before I’m missed
, Chastity thought. She turned to get her bearings, and only then realized just how far she had come. As she pulled her shawl tight about her, she heard the wheels of a carriage as they rolled toward her in the darkness. The streets in this quadrant were unlit and only the sad moon illuminated the path ahead. Some unknown sense inside her triggered a growing fear, and her pace quickened, ever conscious of the increasing noise from the rolling carriage behind her. Her pace quickened to a trot, and then she almost ran into one of the soldiers she had seen at the inn earlier.

Frightened, she turned, just as the closed carriage rolled on beyond her and into the darkness.

“Are you alright, ma’am?” asked the tallest of the group.

“Yes, yes,” Chastity replied quickly. “Just a bit of foolishness. I’m alright now.”

“You’re from the top of the hill, Wisteria House, am I right?”

“Yes.”

“Then let us see you safely home, ma’am. It’ll be no trouble at all.”

“Thank you, thank you kindly.”

Flanked on either side by red-coated militia, Chastity felt safe as she continued her journey home. The two men stayed with her right to the threshold of Wisteria House, and then after a polite salute, disappeared back into the darkness. Much relieved, Chastity dashed inside the building, anxious to leave the demons behind in the dark. All was quiet inside, so she dropped her shawl on the stairs, and retired to her own quarters at the back of the house.

When Lord Esher finished reading the letter he crumpled it in his hand and threw it to the ground. Lady Ashworth remained at a discrete distance, afraid of what his anger might bring him to. She backed into the wall, careful to stay clear of anything that could be kicked or thrown.

“Damn that scoundrel,” cried Lord Esher. “I thought he was my friend, but he was my enemy the whole time.”

“More importantly, your wife is innocent and in danger. What do you plan to do?”

“Why, I will ride down immediately of course. I only hope I’m not too late. I’ve been such a fool. Oh, my poor dear wife, how Chastity must be suffering! I should have listened to her. How could I have been so stupid?”

“Robert, it doesn’t help to torture yourself thus. Time is running out, and you’ve yet to find her.”

Lord Esher didn’t waste another word. Within the half hour he was changed and saddled, riding like a fury through the night to the south coast.

***

Chastity had spent an unsettled night. Her dreams were plagued by dark thoughts. Demons chasing her through an unhallowed church, a wedding ceremony performed by Satan, and all tinged by the bitter despair lurking in her subconscious mind that her love would never be fulfilled. She woke early, and though the dreams soon faded, she felt unsettled and restless. Nothing gave her comfort or peace.

Wisteria House was quiet. The servants had not yet stirred. The cockerel had yet to crow, and even the owls were silent. Chastity poured some cold water into a basin and washed the sleep from her face. A sense of unease settled in her belly, her entire body was tense. She knew not how to shake the feeling off.

A board creaked close behind her, and her heart jumped into her mouth. She turned and stared into the darkness but could see nothing. No candles were lit, and what little light there was could not penetrate the dark shadows of the old room. She reached for a candle, but could not see a tinder box to light it. She listened intently, but there were no further sounds, and at last her heart beat a little more slowly and she allowed the breath to leave her lungs.

Just as she turned to feel along the shelf for a match, a strong arm reached around her and covered her mouth. Her assailant was strong, and she couldn’t resist as she was dragged over to the bed, his hand crushing her jaw and muffling the scream she wanted to release.

The dark menace fell hard on top of her, and though there was little light, she saw the glint of a blade in his hand.

“You will be silent or I shall cut your throat and make you so. Do you understand?”

Chastity nodded, her eyes wide with fear as her attacker’s weight crushed her on the bed. She saw the man was masked but she saw through the disguise. This was Mr. Brown, the masked man from the upper floor. And there was something about the voice, something familiar. All this came in the flash of a moment and though she recognized her assailant she thought only of survival, and the blood coursed wildly through her veins for she knew her chances were slim.

“Please, please don’t hurt me,” Chastity pleaded. “Take what you want, but don’t kill me.”

The man laughed a low, brutal laugh that chilled her to the bone. “What I want, what I
really
want, you could never give me. But I can
take
from you, nevertheless.” He inhaled deeply, as if smelling her, and his masked face came close to her own. “I shall take what you wouldn’t give, and you will suffer all the more for it.”

Chastity turned her face and closed her eyes tightly. His very voice distressed her, for even though he tried hard to disguise it, there was something familiar about it. She sensed were the mask to be removed she would know him by sight.

Desperate, she made a fresh appeal. “Please, for the love of our sweet Lord do not do this thing. I know you have a charitable heart, please, I beg you, set me free.”

The blade flashed again, this time close to her eyes so she could see it, then down to her mouth. “Hush now or I shall cut out your pretty tongue, which will be a shame as I plan to use it. Do not speak again.”

Whatever support he had had vanished as his free hand whipped a scarf from his neck. His total weight winded her, and Chastity coughed violently as the air was squeezed from her lungs. In the next moment the villain gagged her, pulling the scarf so tight it cut into the side of her mouth. And then slowly, as if enjoying her misery, the man sliced through the fabric of her nightgown from neck to hem, exposing her naked flesh below.

But just as his hand reached down to her milky-white thighs, the door to her chamber was thrust open and Robert Esher dashed into the room. His unexpected arrival caused the attacker to turn quickly, and Chastity gasped in pain as his rough apparel cut cross the surface of her exposed flesh.

Seeing his love thus violated, Lord Esher flew into a mad frenzy, and he plunged forward, grabbing the assailant by the scruff of the neck and throwing the man to the ground.

But Esher did not see the blade still clasped in the attacker’s hand. Recovered from the first shock of discovery, the man lashed out wildly in his own defense and caught Lord Esher in the tendon at the back of his knee. Like a felled beast, Robert crashed to the ground, unable to rise, disabled in one leg, just out of reach of the assailant.