Somewhere My Love (14 page)

Ju
lia flung her arms around his neck
and clung
to him
as if
for dear life
. 
“I don’t understand
!
I don’t
understand
!
”

He clutched
her to him
with the
urge
to protect her
from God only knows
what
.
“
Neither do I.
But i
f
, as you say,
I’m the reincarnation of
Cole,
then how
am I
pulling that
damn
cloth off?
Or is there some
other gho
st here with a particular
interest in this portrait?”

“No. 
I
t must be
Cole
.
”
 
Julia’s
voice
was
muffled against Will’s shoulder.
”
Who else?”

“Just because we can’t answer that doesn’t mean it’s him.”

“Yes,” she insisted. “
Maybe he’s warning us.”

Will
gave a low whistle
.
“
What about?
”

“Perhaps what he did before
.
T
o be on
our
guard.
”

“
Against what
––
who?”

“
I wish to God
I knew.”

“
One thing’s clear.
I’m taking that
portrait
with
me.
T
here’s more
work
to
be done
and I suspect he wants it finished
.”

“Do you paint?”
she asked shakily.

“I used to
.
”

She burrowed into his chest.
“Cole
––
I mean Will
––
I’m scared
.”

He couldn’t blame Julia for her slip of tongue after all that had happened
right before their eyes
. “Don’t be afraid.
It’ll be all right.”

“How?”

“I’m not sure, but it will.
I’ll make damn certain
,
”
he swore, his own fear making him both angry and determined.

A high
-pitched
yapping carried
up
from downstairs
boisterous
enough to blare
through the span of time.
The canine
alarm
could only mean one thing
,
worse than all the spirits of Foxleig
h combined. 

“Heaven help us
.
It’s Jasper
,
Grandmother’
s
bratty
little
Jack
Russell
terrier
.
As strange
as our situation is now, m
atters are about to take a turn for
the worse
.
Brace yourself
, Julia
.
The Queen Mother
has arrived
for a
royal
visit.” 

Jasper barked a continuous summons as
grating to Julia’s ears as a clanging gong. Uncertain what to do regarding the ‘royal visit,’ she stood hesitantly while
Will
hurriedly hung
his coat
on the costume
rack.
Rubbing
a
hand over his chin
, he
ran
his eyes
down
the length of her
.
She shied b
ack from the
critical light in
his dark gaze
. 

He shook his head.
“Leave your sandals and sundress
behind
. We’ll get them later.
Heaven forbid Grandmother Nora
should
think
I was up here while you changed.
What a time for her to come.
”
He rolled his eyes
then fixed them
again
on
Julia with a compelling glint.
“
Deep breath
, girl.
G
ird you
r
loins
.”

She twisted
her
borrowed gown
between
clammy fingers
.
“
I don’t have loins.”

“Everyone has. Except action figures.”
He picked up the portrait, turning the face toward his chest.

“Do you think your Grandmother will
like me?”

Giving
Julia a sideways glance
, he said,
“She
doesn’t
like
anybody.
The question is will sh
e approve you?
I’ll stash this
painting
in my room.
Don’
t feel up to explaining the resemblance
between you
just now
.”
 

Will headed to the attic door.
Julia caught up her long
blue
skirts and
followed nervously
at his heels
. F
eeling as though she really were meeting the queen
, she descended
the steep stairs
.

The instant Will’s
feet hit the
second floor
landing
he bolted down the hall
and into his bedroom.
A moment later h
e reappeared
without the pa
inting and
dashed back to Julia
.
“
Th
at’s the
only place in this world she
doesn’t go.  Might
catch me in a state of undress.”

“William! I’m waiting!
Where a
re you
,
sir?
” the old lady called
from the first floor
, her
commanding
tone
punctuated by
the
incessant yapping.

Eyes narrowed, he
muttered
,
“Am I twenty
-
eight or twelve?” then called out,
“Coming, Ma’am!”

Goo
d heavens.
Will
even called her m
a’am.
She was bloody royalty.
“Maybe I should just wait
in your room?” Julia attempted.

A dry smi
le acco
mpanied the shake of his head.
“
Chin up.
Stiff upper lip.  You Brits excel at that.”

“Only when faced with dire calamity
, like the Blitz
.
This is worse
,
somehow
.”

“Tell me about it.”
He took
her
arm
in a no-nonsense grip
and marched
her
down the hall. 

Julia trailed at his side, biting her
lower
lip.

“S
mil
e,” h
e said
under his breath
.
“
Victims have gone to the gallows
with more cheer
than you
.”

Summoning
the semblance
of gaiety
to her quivering mouth
, Julia
l
ifted her head as they walked down
the staircase.
By heaven, she would meet her fate with regal courage.
Oh, f
or pity’s sake, she wasn’t Mary Queen of Scots
being led to her execution.
Or was she?
She surely felt the part.

I
n the great h
all, s
eat
ed on
one of the gold brocade Queen Anne chairs
,
was an imperial f
igur
e.
The elderly
lady
held a gilt-headed cane like a scepter
in a bony hand
heavily marked by age
.
Nora
Wentworth
might be
old
but she emanated authority li
ke a true monarch
of the realm.
She could
have
been Elizabeth the First, onl
y her hair wasn’t flaming red.
A bluish halo
permed in
carefully set waves wreathed
her head beneath the navy pill
box hat.  Her
equally
antiquated navy and white suit
was finely tailored and hu
ng on her thin frame.  T
a
ll for an elderly
woman, she
hadn’t shrunk like most.

Mrs.
Wentworth
turned her head at their approach and fixed them with
hooded
watery eyes; n
ot
dark
brown, like Will’s, but blue.
A
web of w
rinkles
l
ined her face
like ancient
parchment
and obscured
any resemblance
to him
, but the
y
shared the
st
rength
evident in her
, t
hough Will was a
more
benevolent ruler.

Jasper’s eyes bugged out at the sight of Julia and
he barked so forcefully his paws
lifted off the polished floor.
The sound was deafening.

His mistress rapped her cane
on the wood
with an echoing tap
. 
“Jasper. 
B
e silent
, sir
.”

The
noise ceased and the
little brown and white terrier groveled at her feet.
  Julia heard Charlotte
’s voice
droning in the next room as she conducted the tour.

Mrs.
Wentworth
fingered the pearls roped around
her sagging neck. 
“
I do weary of these interminable
guests.
Much preferred it when the place was alive with hounds and horses.
”
Her watery gaze brightened as if in memory, and then the spark faded.
“
Jasper
.
S
it down
this instant
.”

The small dog
obediently
lowered his wagging rear
end
.
Julia stood where
she was as
Will hastened to the waiting matriarch
.
He bent to kiss her papery thin cheek and gently embraced her frail shoulders.

“Grandmother Nora, I’m
so
glad
to see you
.
”
 

She see
med pleased
, but the type of woman
determined not to show it
, and
gave a slight nod
.
“Took m
e ages to convince that fool
doc
tor the outing would do me good.
”
 

Will
’s brow creased
.
“Are you unwell?”

“Nothing the grave won’t cure.
”

“Is
the staff
looking aft
er you properly?
I’ll make phon
e calls
,
check round more
often
.
”