Alice shook her head, staring at Lady Susan with a straight face. “I shall do no such thing.”
“S…surely,” Lady Susan sputtered, taken aback by Alice’s bluntness. “Surely, you do not think you stand a chance?”
“Whether I do or not, Lady Susan, is my business, do you not think? As it was, I had no interest in Lord Erlington whatsoever. But seeing how dedicated you appear to be to him, now I wonder if I really should allow him to court me.” Alice put her finger to her chin in mock thought, enjoying the way Lady Susan gaped at her. “However, whether I do or not, is not anything you should worry yourself about.”
“How dare you!” Lady Susan’s entire face had gone red now and she was gripping her fan so tightly, Alice was afraid she might snap it in two. “Lord Erlington is meant to marry me!”
Alicenearlyrolled her eyes. “If he truly is yours, Lady Susan,” she said as she strolled past, “then you shouldn’t be worrying at all, should you?”
She continued to walk away, out the ballroom, leaving a sputtering Lady Susan staring after her. A dark sense of satisfaction came over her, even though she knew she’d only provoked Lady Susan for no reason.
Lord Erlington only brings one problem after another it seems, Alice thought, sighing.
Shoving the bothersome confrontation to the back of her mind, Alice focused her attention on finding Emma. She headed down a winding path of loose stones, letting the overhead moonlight light her way ahead. The crunching stones beneath her kid slippers mingled with the low hum of chatter within the gardens. Alice felt a twinge of worry as she went deeper, hoping she would come upon Emma soon. It would not be very proper for her to be found too far away from the ball.
Suddenly, Alice heard the heavy sound of feet behind her. Gripping her fan tightly, she whirled toward it, wondering if perhaps Lady Susan had been daring enough to come after her. Rather, it was Lord Erlington, with his brother right on his heels.
“My Lady!” Lord Erlington breathed the moment he came to a stop before her. Alice tried to ignore the sudden racing of her heart, to keep her expression neutral, but all she could wonder is if Lord Erlington had truly followed her all the way from the ballroom. For what reason?
“Is there some other matter you need me for, My Lord?” Alice asked, grateful for the fact that she was able to maintain her composure despite her traitorous heart.
His brows knitted together and for the first time since she’d met him, Alice witnessed something other than mirth and arrogance on his features—genuine concern. “I noticed that Lady Susan had approached you,” he said. “I hope she has not said anything too improper.”
“It all depends, My Lord, on what you deem improper,” Alice responded cryptically. In the corner of her eye, she noticed Lord Christopher shifting uncomfortably away from them, as if he sensed he should not be here to witness this conversation.
Lord Erlington’s frown deepened. He parted his lips to reply and Alice braced herself for the beguiling words that would spill from his lips. But then, Lord Erlington’s eyes darted upwards, focusing on something behind Alice. Before she had the chance to react, he was darting away from her, racing toward something in the distance.
Then, she heard a scream.
Alice whirled on her feel, grabbing the skirt of her dress on instinct. She took off after Lord Erlington without thinking, recognizing Emma’s voice. She didn’t stop to think that perhaps she was running into danger. All Alice knew in that moment was that Emma had screamed in fear and she had to do whatever she could to save her, even though she was still not appraised of the full situation.
Emma was on the ground. Alice only had eyes for her, not caring about the fact that Lord Christopher had already darted past her and that another figure had rushed off into the shadows. She rushed to Emma, not thinking twice before she sank to her sister’s side. “Emma,” she gasped. “Are you all right?”
Emma looked shaken. She nodded jerkily, accepting the hand that Lord Christopher held out as he helped her to stand. Her hand was shaking and her cheeks, even under the dim moonlight, were devoid of color. “I…” she tried to say, “I don’t—”
Fear seized Alice so painfully that she didn’t know what to say for a moment. Lord Christopher took Emma’s other side, looking just as worried as Alice was. Alice pushed the fear down, taking her sister’s hand in hers. “Tell me what happened,” she said slowly, trying to exert a measure of calmness that she did not feel.
Emma’s hand still shook within Alice’s as she looked at her, fear still apparent in her eyes. “I was going for a stroll, wanting to admire the flowers, when suddenly a hooded figure grabbed me from behind.” She visibly swallowed, as if steeling her nerves. “But the oddest part is that he called me by your name, Alice.”
“What?” Alice murmured. She was gripping Emma’s hand so tightly that she thought it might hurt her. Taking a deep breath, she loosened her hold.
“I don’t know why,” Emma said, shaking her head. “He twirled me around and when he saw my face, he ran off, pushing me down when he did. I screamed and that was when Lord Erlington arrived.”
Swallowing, Alice looked over to see Lord Erlington searching around the area. A flood of relief rushed through her at the sight of him. Had it not been for his quick reflexes, Alice was loath to think of what might have happened.
At that moment, Lord Erlington whirled back toward them and Alice quickly averted her eyes, her cheeks coloring with embarrassment when she realized she’d been staring. But Lord Erlington didn’t seem to notice. He stalked toward Emma, bending slightly to level his face with hers as he asked, “Did you see his face?”
Emma met his eyes, shaking her head. Alice peeked back at him. He sounded so serious, looked so…outraged. When Emma shook her head, his expression broke into one of concern and he straightened, running a hand down his face. He was still looking around, as if frustrated that he could not find this man.
Warmth spread through Alice’s chest at the sight. She didn’t fight it when Emma’s hand slipped from hers, turning toward Lord Christopher who was trying his best to console her. She couldn’t look away from Lord Erlington, whose knitted brows of indignation affirmed his protectiveness of Emma.
Suddenly, his gaze fell on her. Alice didn’t have the time to look away. “My Lady, are you all right yourself?” he asked, his tone concerned, a little rushed.
Alice nodded slowly. “I was not the one startled by that man’s actions,” she said, much calmer than she felt. But it didn’t help to quell the rising fear drying her tongue.
Who could that man be?The question echoed through her mind over and over again. And considering the fact that he had tried to grab her when she was alone, along a semi-dark path, only meant his intentions were not in the least pure. Alice wasn’t surprised that he’d mistaken Emma for her, considering they looked so much alike.
“You all should return to the ballroom,” Lord Erlington spoke again, this time addressing them all.
