“Do you have company?” Lydia interrupted their penetrating stare that was growing overlong and addressed the overabundance of candles. “We thought with all the lights … at this time of night … Are you entertaining?”
“Yes, indeed. My good friend Lydia Whitfield has just arrived. We have been looking forward to her company all evening.” Shelley turned to her butler. “Trenton, could you ask Cook for some chocolate and cakes? I don’t imagine she has gone to bed yet what with all this fuss. We will have a tray in the drawing room—”
“I can’t sit on your furniture in this condition,” Lydia interrupted.
Ignoring her, Shelley continued. “And have Mrs. Salinger prepare two more rooms as quickly as possible. Tell Vernon to take care of the horse, and that should be it. We will see to ourselves for the remainder of the night. Thank you and the staff for accommodating our frenzy of activity. As you can see, it was a tempest in a teapot.”
Hooking her elbow through Lydia’s, Shelley led the procession up the stairs and into the drawing room. After the introductions, nothing further was said until the door was firmly shut and they were alone—all five of them.
“Forget chocolate,” Edward said, striding over to a small table by the French doors. “What say you to a brandy, Newton. I certainly need one—you must need one doubly so.”
Robert joined him by the window, lifting his hand to take the offered glass. He hesitated. “I’m not fit for company, I’m afraid.”
“Nonsense.” Edward placed the glass in Robert’s dirty hand and gestured for him to take a place by the fire.
It was a good-sized room, with two seating arrangements. At the far end sat a collection of chairs near the French doors, which could be thrown open as soon as the word sultry was uttered. In the deeper parts of the room, a pair of settees offered the comfort of thick cushions near the enthusiastic fire.
Naturally, Lydia chose the settee nearest the fire, directly opposite her new friend; the dark brown brocade might hide any smudges from her dirty skirts, and it was as close to Robert as she could devise without causing comment. While the need to remain in chummy proximity was somewhat baffling, Lydia was neither prepared to fight the urge nor try to fathom its meaning.
Until the chocolate arrived, the conversation was frivolous. Questions were no deeper than what was the horse’s name and when was the last time they had eaten. Even after Trenton had deposited a tray full of goodies and a hot silver pot onto the side table near the fireplace, Lydia and Robert were allowed only a few sips and nibbles before the whole of their story was demanded.
Not wishing to alarm the company, they told the tale baldly. Emotions and fears were kept to a minimum, and yet the expressions of those listening made it clear that they were aware of their existence.
“If Robert hadn’t secured us a horse, we would still be miles away,” Lydia concluded with a tired smile. She looked from face to face, expecting some sort of remark, but was met with silence. She looked to Robert with her brow folded.
“We shall have to return to surnames, Miss Whitfield, now that we are back in the circle of civilized society.”
“Did I use your first name, Mr. Newton? Oh dear, I do apologize … to you and the company.”
“Very natural, I would assume.” Shelley patted Lydia’s knee. “Especially under such circumstances, but perhaps best not repeated. I don’t believe your mother would be so accepting.”
“Yes, quite right.” Lydia sighed. “Poor Mama, she must be frantic with worry.”
“I can send one of our grooms to Roseberry in the morning, if you like.” Edward stared at the liquid in his glass as he spoke, swirling it one direction and then the other. “That will allow you to return at your leisure. Though you need not be overly concerned. Mrs. Whitfield does not know that you were missing.”
“Excuse me? How could she not?”
“Your mama didn’t make it into Bath, Lydia.” Cora’s expression indicated a sense of exasperation. “None of them did.”
“I don’t understand. Was there an accident? Are they all right?”
“It would seem that forcing five into the family coach put them so out of sorts they turned around within ten minutes of starting off.” Cora sighed.
“How do you know this?” Lydia watched Cora turn to Edward as if about to ask something, but she hesitated.
“Cora, best explain to Lydia and Mr. Newton what happened—from the beginning.” Shelley nodded and looked encouraging.
“Yes, that would be best. But I will apologize to you ahead of time, Mr. Newton, for I’m afraid your employer, Mr. Lynch, is not an admirable character in my tale.”
Lydia heard Robert take a slow, deep breath, pause, and then let it out in a meaningful sigh. “What has he done now?”
“It wasn’t so much what he did, as what he didn’t do,” Cora explained, her eyes flaring with unexpressed anger. “When I ran into his office seeking help, Mr. Lynch did not believe anything I told him. Not who I was, why I was there, and certainly not that you, Lydia, and Mr. Newton had been taken. He called me utterly insulting names—never have I been so affronted. And then, he asked me to leave. Declared that Mr. Newton wasn’t in the office because it was Sunday.”
“But it’s Thursday.” Robert looked at the clock on the mantel. “Or at least it was.”
“Yes, but apparently Mr. Lynch thought I was cutting shams about everything, including the day of the week. I was beside myself with worry but had to remain calm; Mr. Lynch threatened to have me tossed into the asylum. Finally, I simply insisted on staying in the outer office, knowing help would arrive in the form of your mother and Lord Aldershot. I waited for hours … but neither arrived.”
“Not even Barley?” Lydia stared at Cora with incredulity.
“No, I’m afraid not. Eventually, I sent a boy for a constable, but without Mr. Lynch’s support, I was branded a liar again.”
“Oh, Cora, I am so very sorry. What a horrid day you have had.” Lydia swallowed with difficulty and then blinked in surprise when her friend started to chuckle.
“Lydia, my dear, you had a horrid day. I merely had the worry about it.” Cora paused to give Lydia a significant look and then continued. “I didn’t want to leave the office. It was foolish nonsense, I know. It wasn’t as if you were going to miraculously return—unscathed. I eventually realized that I needed to find someone who did know me, who would listen, and who would do the utmost to render me … or rather, you … assistance. I hired a carriage and sped here to Villers Manor as fast as I could.
“Edward thought it best to inform your uncle and solicit his opinion on how to proceed; after all, he—Mr. Kemble—is your guardian. Edward rode over to Roseberry to do just that.… But when he arrived, the family would not accept callers.” She looked to Edward, as if expecting him to take up the story, and he did.