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Felicity blushed furiously and cursed herself for revealing such a thing. “I was very tired when I arrived last night. I thought…he was in my room upstairs. And this morning I thought he stood behind me as I looked out over the land.”
Lord Falcon folded her hand between both of his and lay back against the pillows with a sigh. “I should have known he would seek you out.”
“Who?”
Ignoring her question, he sighed, “Oh, this is indeed a memorable day.” His eyes suddenly snapped open. His tone sharpened. “Did you say ‘bedroom upstairs’? Is that where you slept last night?”
She nodded, puzzled by his sudden agitation. “It has a lovely view of the village in the distance.”
“No. Oh, no. That will not do at all.” He tugged on the bellpull. Almost at once Maud Atherton appeared.
“Yes, m’lord?”
Lord Falcon’s voice frosted over. “Why did you put Miss Andrews on the upper floor?”
The housekeeper shot a stinging glance at Felicity, then lowered her gaze. “It was quite late, and I wasn’t prepared for the young lady’s arrival. I thought…that is, I did not wish to anger Lady Honora…”
“I want her in the suite beside mine,” he said sternly.
“Yes, m’lord. I’ll see to it at once.”
“See that you do. And Mrs. Atherton,” he called as she started out. “You will instruct the servants to assist Cook in making tonight’s dinner a feast fit for royalty.”
She kept her back ramrod straight as she turned to face him. “Yes, m’lord. We are roasting a succulent young pig. There will be mutton and beef as well. Will you require anything else?”
“Not at the moment.” He returned his attention to Felicity and missed the angry look that darted into the housekeeper’s eyes. But it wasn’t lost on his young guest. She found herself wondering if so much resentment was the result of the additional work the servants were forced to do. Or was there something else?
Whatever the reason, she vowed to give the housekeeper a wide berth and to try to be as light a burden as possible while she sorted out all these strange, unsettling events.
3
Felicity remained besideLord Falcon’s bed, hoping he would tell her more about the things he feared. But the old lord’s eyes closed. His head sank deeper into the pillows, and soon his breathing became slow and rhythmic.
When Simmons entered the bedroom and saw that his master was asleep, he picked up the tray and whispered, “Lord Falcon may sleep for several hours, miss. Since Mrs. Atherton has said it may take some time to prepare your suite of rooms, you may want to explore the gardens.”
“Thank you, Simmons.” Felicity stood and followed him out of the room. “I believe I’d like to see some of your lovely countryside. I’ll just get my cloak.”
She hurried to her room and stopped in her tracks. Her trunks had been opened and her belongings scattered everywhere. Gowns, undergarments, books and papers. All had been shuffled.
A servant perhaps hungry for valuables? Or…something more sinister? Hadn’t Lord Falcon warned her?
She whirled as the door opened. Bean, the young serving girl, looked around in stunned surprise. “Oh, ma’am. What have ye done?”
Felicity quickly gathered her wits. “Made quite a mess, I’m afraid. I was…looking for my cloak.” She crossed the room and rifled through her gowns until she located it. “Here it is.” She turned. “I’ll just clean up this mess.”
The little maid held out a hand. “Mrs. Atherton would have my head if I let you clean your own room. No, ma’am. I’ll have it set to rights in no time.”
With a sinking heart Felicity turned away. As she strode down the steps of the ancient castle, she felt an icy thread of fear snake along her spine. Once again she had the feeling that she was being watched. But though she turned and studied the windows, she could see no one looking out.
She shook off the dread and moved out at a fast pace until she had passed through the gates marking the entrance to Falcon’s Lair. She would save the garden for another time. Today she needed to put some distance between herself and this strange castle.
Though the sun had broken free of the clouds, there was a bite to the air, and Felicity gathered her cloak around her as she walked. She had gone some distance when a cart came clattering along the lane. As it drew abreast, a boy of about ten years studied her with interest.
“Goin’ to Falcon’s Way, ma’am?” he asked.
“Is that the village in the distance?”
He nodded. “Would you like to ride wi’ me?”