Ducal Encounters 02 - With the Duke's Approval Read online

  “Your bath is ready, my lady,” Fanny said, removing Anna’s tray.

  “Right, Anna, we shall leave you to your ablutions.” Mama kissed her head. “You just relax, and I’m sure that by tomorrow you will feel much better.”

  “I am sure I shall. Enjoy the evening, if you can, and happy sleuthing, Portia.”

  Portia grinned good-naturedly and followed her mother from the room.

  Anna found her legs most reluctant to support her weight, but refused all offers of assistance from Fanny. She walked the short distance to her sitting room, where a bath had been filled for her in front of a roaring fire. Anna shed her night clothes and groaned with pleasure as she sank into the warm water. Fanny washed her all over, including her hair, and Anna gladly submitted to her skilled ministrations.

  An hour later, clad in her warmest gown, her hair dried and tied back with a ribbon, she glanced in the mirror and winced. She barely recognised the pale creature who stared back at her through haunted eyes. Her lips was cut and swollen where that brute had struck her, and a colourful bruise covered half of one cheek. The other was red with angry grazes where her face had come into harsh contact with the ground when she fell from the tree. Her wrists were sore from where they had been tied, her fingers fat and clumsy.

  But she was still alive. Alive and ready to fight back. She pulled a thick shawl around her shoulders, walked through the door Fanny opened for her, and slowly descended the stairs.

  “Welcome home, my lady, “Faraday said, materialising as he always did when a member of the family was anywhere around. He smiled and opened the drawing room door for her.

  “Thank you, Faraday.”

  She paused on the threshold. Her brothers, Lord Romsey, and Frankie were engaged in intense conversation.

  “What are you five plotting?” she asked.

  “Anna!” Zach bounded across the room and hugged her. “What the devil are you doing down?”

  Chapter Eight

  Clarence stood back, feeling like the intruder he was, as the Sheridan males greeted their sister with fierce hugs and questions about her health, none of which she adequately answered. She turned to Frankie instead and as he watched them embrace, Clarence was consumed by a fresh bout of guilt. He had let her down, neglected her, and she had suffered a terrible ordeal as a consequence. She must hold him responsible, much as her brothers did, and the loss of her respect cut to the quick.

  Winchester took his sister’s hand and led her to a chair beside the fire, where she was greeted by his dogs.

  “You should not have come down, Anna,” he said gently.

  “I know you must have questions for me,” she replied, absently fondling one of the dog’s ears. “It would be better to get them over with so you can decide what is to be done.”

  “They can wait until you are feeling better,” Nate said.

  “I have a slight headache, my fingers feel stiff and awkward, and I am a little shaky. But,” she added, tilting her chin defiantly, “I am home, I am alive, and I will recover. I know this business has greater implications because I was not the intended target—”

  “You know that?” Zach asked before Clarence could.

  “Certainly I do, and I thought Lord Romsey might need to hear what I have to tell.”

  Her eyes sought him out, wide yet bruised, flaring with anger and something more fundamental. Clarence was unable to hold back a smile of admiration for her courage and quick thinking. Most females recovering from the type of ordeal she had experienced would take to their beds for a week, but Lady Annalise appeared more concerned about the implications than about her own recovery. She was, quite simply, remarkable.

  Something passed between them when their gazes clashed, Clarence wasn’t entire sure what that elusive emotion could have been. He had never experienced anything quite like it before. He prided himself upon understanding every nuance of a person’s body language—it was a necessary qualification for any aspiring diplomat—and yet Lady Annalise surprised him at every turn. He thanked every deity he could think of for her safe deliverance, simultaneously boiling with rage when he observed the damage to her lovely face. She appeared vulnerable, indescribably endearing, and resolutely determined all at the same time. Clarence had never met another woman remotely like her, and he was caught up in a web of fascination that was both distracting and dangerously addictive.

  “All right then, Trouble,” Winchester said with a resigned sigh. “I know better than to argue with you when you set your chin in that particular manner.”

  “Well, of course you do.”

  Everyone took seats close to her. Clarence noticed dark shadows beneath her eyes, blending in with the colourful bruise on one side of her face and angry red scrapes on the other. Her fingers were red raw, but he had seen men suffering from similar cases of exposure and was confident, now that Lady Annalise was assured of warmth and comfort, she would recover—physically, at least. The demons bound to invade her mind whenever she closed her eyes would take longer to exorcise.

  “Did I do something to my shoulder?” she asked. “I remember feeling a lot of pain.”

  “You put it out somehow,” Zach told her. “Romsey here put it right for you.”

  “Thank you, Lord Romsey,” Lady Annalise said politely. “I am extremely grateful for the relief from pain.”

  Clarence inclined his head. An inappropriately capricious mood gripped him, and he was sorely tempted to wink at her. Good heavens, whatever was the matter with him? Clarence did not wink at ladies, especially in situations such as this.

  “It was the very least I could do,” he assured her, managing not to wink.

  All three of her brothers glared at him, a situation to which Clarence was becoming accustomed.

  “Do you feel up to telling us what happened to you?” Zach asked.

  “Most assuredly.” Lady Annalise took a deep breath and explained how she had been literally plucked from the terrace. “I was so surprised that at first I didn’t do anything to resist. Then I fought like the devil, but the person who had grabbed me hit me so hard my head swam. By the time I recovered my senses, he had subdued me, and there was nothing I could do.” She pulled a disgruntled face. “Although, I tried very hard to kick him. Then a sack went over my head, I was thrown into a carriage, and…well, I was tied hand and foot. I had no idea where they took me, although I tried to keep track.”

  “It was incredibly brave of you even to try, given the circumstances,” Vince said.

  “It was a carriage with a single horse, probably a curricle, and we travelled mostly at walking pace for about thirty minutes. We finished up somewhere close to the river. I could smell it. They took me into a warehouse and made me keep the sack over my head while they cut my bonds. They said if I saw them, it would be the worse for me.” She related events in a matter-of-fact tone, as though they had happened to someone else. When she got to the part about it being the worse for her, she shuddered, giving a clue to just how terrified she must have been. “I believed them.”

  “It was sensible of you not to test them,” Clarence said, nodding his approval.

  “Once they locked me in, I removed the sack, but the room was in complete darkness. I couldn’t see a single thing.” Her face drained of what little colour it possessed, and she now looked truly petrified. Her brothers had not exaggerated. She really was scared of the dark. Clarence felt ready to burst with renewed anger at what she had had to endure. He was able to keep his expression passive only through his training as a diplomat. “It was the worst experience of my life,” she added simply, tears brimming.

  “You poor thing.” Frankie leaned forward and grasped Lady Annalise’s hand. “I can’t think how you endured it.”

  “I had no choice in the matter.” She lowered her head and concentrated upon petting one of the dogs. “My perilous situation helped me overcome my fear of the dark to some extent. I mean, I couldn’t just passively sit there, at least, not without trying to discover where
I was. And so I felt my way around the room and found it was some sort of storeroom. There was a window, but unfortunately, it was on an upper floor with no means of escape. My captors told me someone would be coming to talk to me later, but they did not say whom. I was relieved to discover they didn’t mean to…” She gulped, her eyes hazy with suppressed fear. “Well, to…you know, but couldn’t think for the life of me why anyone would wish to speak with me. I assumed they wanted a ransom, and couldn’t understand why they didn’t just say so immediately.”

  Her eyes were huge, unfocused, and her hands trembled. Clarence ached to go to her, to wrap her in his arms, apologise until his voice gave out, and comfort her in any way he could. But, of course, that was impossible. He was glad when Winchester got up and poured a glass of water. He handed it to his sister, placing a hand on her shoulders and gently massaging them until her body ceased to tremble. She sipped at the water and gradually regained her composure. Putting the glass aside, she continued to speak.

  “I heard the two of men speaking in low voices on the other side of the wall, but I couldn’t make out what they were saying. I was frozen to the marrow, with cold and with fear, but unbelievably I must have dozed off. When I awoke, I was able to see a little. The storm had passed, and the moon shone through the window. I was then able to confirm I was definitely in a warehouse, and there was a tree right outside the window.”

  The brothers exchanged another of their looks that rendered words unnecessary.

  “Please tell me you didn’t try to climb out of the window,” Vince said for them all.

  “Not at that point, no.”

  She went on to explain how another person had arrived. “He was furious because they had abducted the wrong lady, which was when I realised this wasn’t about me and there must be graver implications that you would understand, Lord Romsey.”

  “They wanted me,” Frankie said. “I am so very sorry you got caught up in this, Anna.”

  “You were not to know.” She flashed a brief, mirthless smile. “Besides, I doubt you have much experience at climbing trees. I, on the other hand, have four older brothers.”

  “She followed us around like a shadow, insisting upon involving herself in our pursuits,” Nate said, leaning down to ruffle Lady Annalise’s hair.

  “Your pursuits were far more interesting than the ones Portia and I were supposed to follow,” she replied, the dullness in her eyes replaced by a brief glimpse of mischief.

  “What else did the new arrival have to say for himself?” Clarence asked.

  “I heard him berate his men for their foolishness. They defended themselves by saying he had told them to abduct a lady wearing a colourful shawl who would be walking on the terrace at some point. That’s how I knew it was you they wanted, Frankie.”

  “Yes. My habit of taking the air is no secret.”

  Winchester muttered something unintelligible, and probably unrepeatable in mixed company.

  “Then I heard him tell them to dispose of me, as though I was a piece of unwanted merchandise.” Lady Annalise shuddered, her expression a combination of fear and outrage. “I was of no mind to sit obligingly by and allow them to dump me in the river. I cannot swim, you see. Nate tried to teach me when we were children, but I seemed determined to sink. Be that as it may, desperation can make one very inventive.”

  All three brothers turned accusatory glances towards Clarence when she calmly explained how she had escaped by climbing through the window, negotiating a snow-covered tree, and falling from it, dislocating her shoulder.

  “Oh for the love of God!” Lady Annalise glowered at her brothers. “Will the three of you please stop frowning at Lord Romsey? This is not his fault, and you are being most unreasonable in blaming him. He tried very hard to return me to the ballroom before speaking with his secretary, but I was determined to remain outside. If I went back inside Lord Roker would have cornered me and recited more of his terrible poetry.”

  “Better that than—”

  “You have never had to listen to Lord Roker’s odes, Vince. If you had, you would understand.”

  Her brothers all smiled. “Well, I suppose that did give you a legitimate reason to linger out of his reach,” Nate said grudgingly.

  “Quite so. What happened to me was unfortunate, but no one is to blame, except perhaps me for being so stubborn.”

  “I must disagree,” Clarence replied. “If you wish to claim responsibility then you must join a queue, Lady Annalise. I agree with your brothers and blame myself, you see, and Frankie blames herself. We are both ahead of you. But in actual fact, the blame lies with the person who ordered Frankie’s capture.”

  “Quite so,” Lady Annalise agreed with a wan little smile that near broke his heart.

  “And so, little sister,” Nate said, “you found yourself inadequately clothed, in the dead of night, in a district of London you didn’t know. You must have been terrified. How the devil did you find your way home?”

  Lady Annalise explained about the inn, and borrowing the cob.

  “You didn’t think to ask for help?” Winchester asked.

  “You saw how I was dressed.” She lifted her shoulders with apparent caution, as though expecting pain. Clarence was pleased none appeared to be forthcoming, and she visibly relaxed. “It seemed too risky. I didn’t know whom to trust, especially when my captors appeared and bribed the night porter at the inn. I suspected he would be more likely to support their cause than mine, even if I could prove who I was.”

  “Good thinking,” Vince said, nodding his approval.

  “I’m glad you took the horse and had the sense to head west,” Clarence said. “I shall make enquiries at inns close to the wharf, find out who is missing a horse and arrange for its return.”

  “No!”

  “I beg your pardon, Lady Annalise. Did I say something to displease you?”

  “No, please don’t return the horse. Don’t let him do that, Zach,” she cried passionately. “That horse saved my life, and I promised her if she carried me safely home she would have oats and fresh grass for the rest of her life.” Lady Annalise brushed a tear from her swollen cheek, showing more emotion at the prospect of losing the cob than she had over her ordeal. “I want to keep her. Recompense the owner, by all means, but please don’t send her back. She and I have formed a bond, you see.”

  “Certainly you may keep her, Trouble,” Winchester replied.

  “Thank God Amos taught you to ride bareback,” Nate said.

  “I knew that skill would serve me well one day,” Lady Annalise replied with a flash of her former spirit. “I was able to guide the horse, mostly just using the pressure of my legs.”

  “I will find the owner, smooth matters over, and make the necessary recompense from my own pocket,” Clarence said.

  Lady Annalise treated him to a radiant smile, even though it probably hurt her swollen lip to do so. Being the recipient of enticing feminine smiles was nothing new for Clarence. He was popular with the ladies and had his needs, just like any other man. But he was as diplomatic in his romantic liaisons as he was in every other aspect of his life. He didn’t boast about his conquests and never even thought about forming attachments to unmarried ladies. In spite of that, Lady Annalise’s uncontrived smile affected him in the time honoured manner. He turned briefly away, hoping the evidence was not…well, evident to her, or to any of her brothers. They were already looking for a reason to flog his hide.

  “Thank you, Lord Romsey,” she said. “That is very generous of you.”

  “My pleasure.” He returned her smile. “Once we find the inn, we will have a better idea where you were held. Do you know how long you walked before you came upon the tavern? Would you be able to find it again?”

  “She’s not going back there!” Vince sent Clarence a murderous glare. “She has been through quite enough already.”

  “It’s possible,” Lady Annalise replied, ignoring her brother’s outburst. “It would look very different in daylight,
I dare say, but I do remember one or two of the places I passed.”

  “Vince is right,” Winchester said. “It would serve no purpose to return, other than to upset you. Besides, there cannot be many warehouses with large trees growing beside them.”

  “There are more than you might think,” Clarence replied. “But you are right, it would be inappropriate for Lady Annalise to return there. Forgive me. I should not have made the suggestion.”

  “Actually, I would like to go.” Lady Annalise’s eyes clouded again and she appeared very upset. “Zach, you can have no idea the sights I saw. Such wretched creatures sleeping outside in those freezing temperatures. It was actually the sight of them that gave me the courage to carry on. I found myself exposed to the elements for one night. They live like that the whole time and somehow manage to survive. But for how long?” She gave her head a determined toss. “We have so much. We must do more to help people who cannot help themselves.”

  “Our mother is already involved with all manner of charitable causes,” Winchester reminded her. “I am sure she would welcome your help.”

  “Bah, it is not enough! When we visit institutions for the poor in Winchester, they knew we are coming, and we see only that which they think we ought to. Last night, I saw real poverty, real desperation.” She shook her head. “Those sights will never leave me, and have changed the way I think.”

  “We can discuss it, by all means,” Winchester replied softly. “When you are feeling stronger.”

  “Thank you. I thought perhaps a foundation set up by the family to help the very neediest children.”

  Clarence came as close as he would ever allow himself to falling in love at that moment. After all this delicate young lady, cossetted and protected for her entire life, had been through, her thoughts were not for herself but for those less fortunate. Remarkable!

  “So, there you have it.” Lady Annalise shared a glance between them. “That is all I can tell you about what happened to me. Now, perhaps you will have the goodness to explain why you think Count von Hessel was behind my abduction, which is what Mama implied earlier. What did he think to gain by forcibly taking Frankie captive?”