All activity stopped upon seeing her enter. Several men sat scattered at tables, most eating dinner of some sort. To her relief, there were a few women about, several of whom appeared to be matronly travelers. A few even had children seated with them, which proved to be a great relief to Harriet.
This must be a legitimate place of business, she thought to herself with gratitude.
Half-expecting the horrible man to barrel through the door, Harriet quickly moved towards the hearth where the innkeeper and his wife were set about their tasks.
“Please, madam, can you help me?” Harriet gushed, addressing the woman. “I need… I don’t know, I think I need help.”
“Help, girl? What’s wrong?” her husband answered, but his wife elbowed him sharply. He looked to her, perplexed, then opened his eyes wider when the older woman gently fingered the collar of her frock, jerking her head at Harriet.
“Oh my goodness, I mean, My Lady,” he added, taking in Harriet’s fine gown, ignoring the mussed appearance of dirt and tears from her escape.
“Sir, please. I need to get home. If you can somehow send word? I don’t… I don’t quite know where I am,” Harriet said, fighting back tears. She lost her composure completely when the innkeeper’s wife came around from behind the table and gently put her arm around Harriet’s shoulders and guided her to a bench close to the fire.
“There, there, ya poor dear! We’ll certainly do all we can to help ye! But pray, what has happened? How do ya not know where ya are?”
Harriet sniffled, then explained. She began with the thievery of her sister’s horse, continued with the scoundrel’s intentional trickery, then finished with the chase through the copse of trees. The innkeeper at times alternated between astounded and enraged, while his wife shook her head sympathetically, clucking with understanding all the while.
“Harry, send for the boy and have him fetch the Duke. He’ll know what to do, even if he might not know this poor fine creature here,” the woman said.
While her husband sent word to someone, the woman took her own shawl and wrapped it around Harriet’s shoulders. She brought her a bowl of stew and a mug of warmed tea, then looked deeply into Harriet’s eyes.
“My Lady, are you… are you harmed?” she asked in the lowest possible voice.
“What?” Harriet asked weakly, looking up. “I mean, I don’t think so? I scraped my shin while jumping down from the wagon, and you can see these scratches here and here from a few brambles, but otherwise…”
“No, my dear,” the woman said, shaking her head and smiling tenderly. “I meant to say, this scoundrel… did heharmyou?”
It took Harriet quite a few moments to decipher the woman’s meaning, at which point her cheeks flamed a deep crimson. She shook her head quickly, unable to bring herself to answer the question aloud.
“Tis all right, I wouldna breathe a word to anyone, love. But it matters to know. You’re sure?” When Harriet nodded fiercely, the woman smiled at her. “Tis well and good. I’m sending someone for the constable to go after this man, though. He’ll not be ‘round here, mark my words. You’re perfectly safe with us!”
Harriet’s shoulders slumped as she smiled with relief. “Thank you, madam. My father will see to it that you are well compensated for your trouble.”
“Pish-posh! A bowl of stew and a cup of tea? What’s the cost of that compared to a young lady of breeding and class who was in mortal peril? You just sit there and let the fire warm you. You’re safe now.”
Harriet had finally begun to feel calm when the innkeeper opened the door to a familiar face. She sat straight up in her seat, the feeling of dread rising up in her once again.
“Where?” the man asked, then looked where the innkeeper pointed. He followed the direction and hurried to where Harriet was seated.
“Lady Harriet!” the Duke of Fenworth said as a relieved sigh escaped him. “I’m so glad you’re safe!”
“Your Grace,” she replied by way of greeting, but Harriet felt nothing of the same relief the Duke so obviously did. “I’m terribly sorry that you had to be troubled this evening.”
“It is no trouble at all!” he replied, smiling with a genuine warmth. “After all, we’re to be family soon. This is only a trifling matter for me! But you, you’re the one who experienced such a horrible ordeal. Come, I’ve brought my housekeeper as chaperone. We’ll see you home at once, and you can tell me what happened along the way.”
Harriet noticed the Duke pass some coins to the innkeeper and his wife for their trouble. They declined at first, insisting that they couldn’t take money for helping a girl in such dire need, but the Duke refused to take advantage of them. They finally accepted with a weak smile, begging Harriet to stop in again under happier circumstances.
Outside, an older woman named Mrs. Bancroft stepped forward and took Harriet by the arm, guiding her to the closed carriage. They climbed inside and the Duke followed this time rather than sit up front with the driver.
“Poor Lady Harriet, please tell me what happened,” the Duke implored, but Harriet faltered. She knew not how much she should divulge. After all, she still did not know where Marjorie might be.
“Well, Your Grace, I chanced to see out of my window this evening that someone was in the courtyard at the house. He was leading a horse away from our stable—my sister’s horse—which I knew couldn’t be right. I flew out of the house, determined to stop him, and fell for his tricks.”
“Tricks, my dear?” Mrs. Bancroft whispered fearfully, her face somewhat pale. She cast a glance at the Duke, but said nothing else.
“Oh no, madam! That was not what I meant. I only mean, he deceived me. I assumed he was taking the horse to Marjorie and insisted on coming along should she need me. Why else would he be bringing her a horse? Only after he sped the carriage to a rather frightening pace, I discovered that he was nothing more than a common horse thief, and he had no intention of delivering me to her safely.”
“That is unacceptable!” the Duke roared before remembering himself and lowering his voice. “To think, any ruffian can parade himself up to a noble manor like Windle and steal from their stables, then make off with a lady of the household. I’ll see him hanged for this!”
