“Shall ...” She opened her mouth, just about to ask her sister if she wanted to take a walk with her when the booming voice of her husband interrupted her.
“Charlotte,” he yelled, the anger repressed but still evident. “Can I have a word with you, please?”
Mary widened her eyes in surprise. She had been made to feel uncomfortable by Lord Jones before, but she had never heard such venom in his voice. Judging by the way Charlotte’s shoulders hunched over and her face paled even more, this was not good news. She wished that there was something she could do to help out her sister, but of course, she could not. This was not her house, and Lord Jones was in charge.
“I ... I am just coming,” Charlotte replied with a shaky voice. “One second please.”
Her chair scraped back, and she automatically ran her hands down her skirts. The nerves rolled off of her in waves, making Mary feel sick to her stomach. That sensation only grew worse when Charlotte scurried from the room and raised voices immediately followed.
Mary’s eyes bounced from staff member to staff member until she found Jennifer. The girl was not her friend, but she was the only person she had spoken to. Jennifer did not look surprised by the shouting, which suggested it was something that happened all the time.
Does Lord Jones know that Charlotte is having a baby? Mary asked herself, noting that Charlotte had never mentioned her husband’s reaction to the news. Would he yell at her like this if he knew?
Pressure built up in Mary. It started in her toes and worked its way up her body. She felt icy cold, but her boiling hot blood was racing through her veins, making her shiver violently. She hated sitting in her seat; it felt unnatural. She wanted to take action, to do something, but she could not think of anything that would not make it worse. It seemed to be a very delicate situation that she simply did not understand.
Just as she felt herself rising from her seat, Charlotte came back around the corner with red rims around her eyes. “Let us take a walk in the gardens,” she commanded her sister. “I feel like I would like some fresh air.”
“Oh ... yes, of course.” Mary pushed herself into a standing position. “Whatever you like.”
Mary slid her arm through Charlotte’s, and she allowed herself to be pulled into the grounds of the Jones’ household. Her brain span desperately, and she dug deep into it to find the right words, but there was nothing there. It was not until the cool, fresh air washed over her that she felt her tongue loosen.
“I think we should get away from here,” she whispered, almost silently. “Me and you. We should escape.”
Charlotte twisted her neck to give her sister a surprised look. She was not expecting Mary to address the argument at all; it was normal for others to ignore things like that, but as she saw her sister’s face, she realised that Mary was trying to give her a moment of escapism. A hope that she might actually be able to get away from her horrible life.
It would not happen; both girls knew that, but it was nice to imagine it all the same.
“Oh yes,” Charlotte replied with a smile. “I think we should. You and I should take off; we should get a home of our own, and we should raise this baby, the two of us.”
"We could go to the countryside, maybe even live by the ocean,” Mary continued with the fantasy. “We could even live on a farm and be totally self-sufficient. Who says that you need a man in your life to survive?” Actually, the idea of never having a husband was more appealing than she thought it would be. “I believe that we could do just fine on our own.”
It started off as a joke, but the more that Charlotte thought about it, the more she liked the idea. If she did leave, she knew she would have to go very far so that Lord Jones would never find her, which would make things very challenging, but if she somehow found a way, it would be absolutely wonderful. Of course, Lord Jones was not the sort of man to let things go easily, especially not his young wife, so it was almost impossible ... but now that the idea was there in her mind, she did not think that she would be able to let it go.
“So,” she said with a gulp, trying to take her mind off things. “There is no chance for you and the Duke?”
Mary’s expression instantly hardened. “No. I do not believe so. I do not want a man who thinks it is alright to ruin another Lady’s reputation.”
“Are you sure that you are settled on that?” Charlotte was not fully convinced. She knew more about Lady Victoria Hartmon than Mary did, and she knew what she was like, and how terrible she treated people. But the end choice lay with Mary, and she would not take that away from her. “You think your decision is right?”
Mary nodded determinedly, and she kept her expression steely. “I believe so. I feel much better now knowing that he is not in my life.”
That part was a lie, but Charlotte did not need to know that. She did not want her sister worrying about her when she had so much of her own stress to deal with. With her horrible husband and a child growing in her stomach, the last thing she needed was to lay her problems on her shoulders too. This was something she needed to do on her own. She needed to reassure Charlotte that she was just fine.
“I am simply moving forward ... or at least I am trying to. He is not even in my mind anymore.”
Chapter 18
The following morning as Mary woke up, her attitude was completely different. She knew exactly where she was, and thanks to a night of extremely useful dreams, she also knew exactly what she needed to do. She could not believe that she had not thought of it the day before when she and Charlotte were discussing their silly childish plans to leave all of this behind. She got so lost in the fantasy of it that she did not think of the reality.
It might be really possible, she thought excitedly as she leapt to her feet. I cannot wait to see what Charlotte says about it.
Before she could reach the door, she heard that soft knock again. She knew who it was now, and she was glad to see her face. “Good morning, Jennifer,” she called out. “Please come inside.”
The door flew open, and Jennifer stepped inside. Her body language remained as stiff and closed off as it was the night before, but Mary chose to ignore that. She felt that with a little bit of perseverance, that distance would eventually close ... if she was around for long enough to make that happen, of course.
“Jennifer, I need a favour,” she gushed, her cheeks flushing pink with excitement. Mary balled her fists by her side to try and remain composed. “Do you mind going to get my sister, Lady Jones, to have a word with me in my room?”
Jennifer felt stunned into silence. She did not know how to react to that. It was not common for Ladies to have guests in their bedrooms when they were not dressed, but the girls were sisters which was probably different.
“Before you get dressed?” she checked. “Are you certain?”