Filling her lungs with air, Elizabeth let the ideas settle in her mind as she let her breath out slowly again. The thought of speaking to Lord Winterbrook was a difficult one, in itself. Even seeing him again was not something she wished for but still, Lady Yardley’s advice was wise. It would be best for her to tell Lord Winterbrook precisely what she felt, and to express her concern over their present betrothal. No doubt he would want to give her some explanation for why he had behaved so, but Elizabeth was not sure that she was ready to hear it. In fact, she did not know if she mighteverbe willing to hear it.
“You are going to the ball this evening?”
“Yes. Not that I have any desire to go.” Elizabeth spread out her hands. “I do not know if Lord Winterbrook will attend, or if I will have the opportunity to speak with him beforehand. My mother is also attending with me and thus, I cannot refuse or claim that I am unwell, not when she has only just begun to return to society.”
Lady Yardley rose from her chair, came towards Elizabeth, and settled a hand on her shoulder, her eyes kind.
“You have a very generous heart, Elizabeth.” Her touch was a comfort. “Considerate and generous above all things. I hope that Lord Winterbrook realizes how fortunate he is to have you even willing to step out with him again. I do not think that every lady would do so.”
Looking up at Lady Yardley, Elizabeth made to say something, only for a sob to erupt from her throat. Fresh tears came, and before she knew it, she had both hands over her eyes and had broken down completely. Her friends were there to comfort her, and as her tears finally subsided, Elizabeth’s resolve grew steady. This was her future she was thinking of and thus, she would have to be entirely truthful with Lord Winterbrook. Whether she could speak with him before the ball or not, she would have to let him know everything her heart felt at present. She would demand to know whether or not he had spoken the truth to her about his affection for her and, if he did not truly care for her, then she would break the betrothal. After all of her resolve, all of her determination, she was not about to let herself fall into the very sort of marriage she had long despised, regardless of what it would do to her standing or her reputation.
I have never allowed myself to even think of marrying a gentleman who cares nothing for me. I will not let Lord Winterbrook steal that hope from me too.
* * *
There wasa slight nip in the air, despite it being the height of summer. Some blamed the cold air from the north, but regardless, Elizabeth caught her mother shivering lightly as she stepped out of the carriage.
“Do hurry inside, Mama.” Elizabeth gestured to her as she took the arm of the footman, only for her gown to catch on something on the step. Turning, she sought to fix it, glancing over again to see her mother waiting for her. “Mama, please do go. I will only be a moment.”
She smiled warmly, and with a nod, her mother stepped away, much to Elizabeth’s relief. She certainly could not allow Lady Longford to stay out of doors for too long, not when the air was a little cold. Her gown tugged again and, frustrated, Elizabeth turned to see what the difficulty was. Managing finally to unhook the bottom of her gown from the carriage steps, she was finally free. Inspecting it carefully, for fear it had torn, Elizabeth let out a little breath of relief. Everything was just as it ought to be. Straightening, she smiled and went to hurry into the house, only for a man to step forward directly into her path.
“You’re betrothed to Lord Winterbrook.”
Elizabeth blinked and took a step back. Her coachman and the carriage had already rolled away, leaving her almost entirely alone. There were one or two footmen nearby somewhere, no doubt waiting for the next carriage to arrive, but for the moment she could not see them.
Her chin lifted as she fought back her fears. The man himself was tall and rather burly, with a state of dress which told her he was not a part of theton. Wherever had he come from?
“Why do you ask?” She did not answer him directly, looking at him steadily, her eyes narrowing. “These are private matters.”
“I don’t care. I want to know.”
The man took a step closer, and Elizabeth instinctively moved back again, fear igniting in her chest.
“I hardly think that this is any of your business. Allow me past.”
She kept her words and her voice as firm as she could, but the man only laughed.
“I don’t think you understand.” Tilting his head, he grinned at her, and Elizabeth shuddered. “Lord Winterbrook owes us.”
“Owes you?” Her breath was shuddering out of her, but she remained standing tall, her head held high. “Then what is between you and he means nothing to me. I am no part of it.”
“Oh, but you will be,” the man answered with a grin. “You see, we had a nice little employment with this Lord Winterbrook of yours. He was paying us to ride with him – nothing more. We hoped he’d give us some of what he stole but he never did. And then we hear he’s been giving it all back!” Twisting his head, he spat hard on the ground and Elizabeth could not help but recoil. “Worse still, then he decided he was going to do some good! Instead of doing what a highwayman does, he decided to be noble and didn’t even take from the people he stopped! I don’t know why he decided to do that, but it didn’t please the three of us, I can tell you.” Elizabeth said nothing, her eyes darting towards the door and praying that her mother would return, looking for her, wondering where she might have gone. She might run for the door itself, but if she did, then the man could easily grab her, and at the present moment she had very little understanding of what his intentions for her were. “So you’re going to tell him that we need him back.” The man shrugged. “No one else pays as good as he does.”
Elizabeth shuddered.
“You want him to become a highwayman again.”
“Yes.” The man shrugged, his smile spreading wide again. “It’s less of a request but more a demand.” Grinning, he laughed darkly. “He’s going to come back, he’s going to pay us double what he did before, and he’s going to start stealing from the people he stops. Andwe’regoing to get the bounty, not him.”
Elizabeth blinked.
“I can promise you, Lord Winterbrook will not agree to any of that.”
“Oh yes, he will.” The confidence in the man’s voice had Elizabeth’s heart quailing. “Now we know who he is, and now we know he’s betrothed to the likes of you, then we’ve figured out what it’s going to take to get him to do what we want. I don’t think it’s going to take much guessing on your part either, is it?”
Realizing precisely what he meant, Elizabeth did not allow her whole body to shake with fear as it desired. Instead, she curled her toes in her slippers and folded her fingers into fists to prevent herself from showing any evidence of fear. No doubt he had already guessed that she was very afraid indeed, but she did not want to give the appearance of it.
“Except that I am just about to end our betrothal.” Her fingernails dug into her palms. “This may come as a surprise to you, but I am not happy with my betrothal to Lord Winterbrook, and I intend to end it.”
