Page 12 of Jaxon (Gentlemen of War #4)

Amelia

I drew the blanket from our laps to our chins as a flash of lightning illuminated the sky. Within seconds the booming sound of thunder cracked above, drowning out my forced words of comfort.

Daisy clutched my hand and whimpered as another bright flash of lightning lit up the entire carriage as if it struck perilously close. The deafening clap of thunder that was almost instantaneous sent shivers through both of us, and at that precise moment, the carriage lurched violently to one side. Daisy’s scream pierced the air as my own cry lodged in my throat. Flung sideways, we clung to one another, bewildered by the sudden tilt. Another jarring jolt propelled us forward. I slammed into the squabs while the carriage slowly teetered to the opposite side, then began a terrifying descent as though the road gave way beneath us. Shrieks filled the air, though I couldn’t discern if they were Daisy’s or my own.

The carriage then struck the ground with a brutal thud, now fully on its side, yet the horror had not ended as it seemed to slide further downward with an unsteady grate. Daisy and I struggled to disentangle ourselves from the heap we’d fallen into, searching for any smidgeon of stability. It wasn’t until the ominous sound of rushing water reached my ears that dread truly seized me. Waves battered the undercarriage then surged around the sides, engulfing us as if we were being swallowed alive.

We must be in the middle of a river or a creek.

Our only hope of escape lay above, where the carriage door now pointed skyward. I stood to my full height, grasping at anything solid to steady my trembling frame, and pushed with all my might against the door overhead.

It did not relent.

My chest tightened under the pressure of a crucial release before this contraption became a watery tomb. I fisted my hand and pounded on the windows as water leaked through every minute crack and pooled at our feet. Though we were not engulfed in complete blackness, the only time we could truly see clearly was when a flash of lightning surged, which led almost immediately to the jarring sound of roaring thunder.

“Miss!” Daisy shrieked as the water at our feet rose at a steady pace.

“Mr. Duncan!” I shouted and continued pounding on the side of the coach which, prior to overturning, was the ceiling. “Mr. Duncan!” I hollered, mustering my inadequate strength. The rushing water and thunder seemed to overpower my cries. “Ennis!” I screamed, hoping he somehow lingered closer than the driver. Searching around for my reticule, I found it floating on the surface of the water. I fumbled with the clasps, opening it, and when my fingers withdrew, they gripped a small thin dagger. Ignoring the impropriety of possessing such an item, I shoved my reticule down the front of my bodice tightly between my stays and skin and unsheathed the pearl-handled blade. Peter gifted it to me on my nineteenth birthday, understanding my proclivity to independence, but fearing for my safety.

“Why do you have a dagger?” Daisy cried through trembling lips.

“Put your head down Daisy. Cover your eyes.”

“Why?” Her lips trembled.

“I am not going to hurt you!” My patience stretched as the water now reached our knees. “Close your eyes and put your head down now!” I gripped the handle and squeezed my own eyes shut as I struck the window as hard as I could with the point. The glass cracked. Daisy looked up. “What are you doing?” she cried.

“Daisy, close your eyes!” I demanded forcefully. “This is the only way we are going to get out of here.”

The hem of my dress now floated on the water’s surface, and my stockings and underthings soaked through with each passing minute, but my greatest concern lay with the occasional groan of the carriage. It had not yet reached its final resting place.

Daisy lowered her head as I struck fiercely once more, closing my eyes to the subsequent shattering of glass. The skin on my hands, face, and neck bore the brunt of the small shards scattering about, though I ignored the accompanying sting as I reached up and fumbled for the latch from the outside, attempting to pull it open. It didn’t budge. “We will have to climb out through the window,” I shouted.

Rain now poured in from the top where the glass had offered minimal protection. “Daisy, hand me that blanket over there.” The blanket we had used for warmth floated loosely along the water near the opposite side of the carriage. She tugged it toward her and grunted as she handed it to me. Soaked with water, it was heavier than anticipated. I lifted it up above my head and pushed it over one edge of the jagged glass. I didn’t care that it was drenched, only that it was a suitable barrier between the glass and our bodies as we strived to wiggle our way out.

The water now reached our thighs.

Daisy’s screams only confirmed the precariousness of our circumstances as water continued to gush in. We needed to get out of this coach, or we would be dead soon enough.

“Stop Daisy, you must stop screaming!” I hollered. “It is not helping! Now listen to me, you must step on my leg and reach for the window frame to pull yourself through.”

“But Ennis and Mr. Duncan will come help us, won’t they?”

“I don’t know.” I pushed a mass of wet strands out of my face to see better. Nothing surely remained of the stylish twist Daisy had fashioned for travel this morning. “You must calm yourself at once.” I retrieved my reticule once more only long enough to replace the dagger and shoved it deeper down my bodice. I did not wish to lose its contents. Particularly, the items from Peter.

With one hand, I clutched the hoop stick that supported the head of the inner carriage and positioned my feet as best I could in a sturdy stance. “Daisy, put your foot here.” I gestured with my other hand to where my dress ballooned. “On my knee, here, and use it to push up and out. I will follow behind you.”

“But who will help you up?”

“You will, naturally, from up top.”

“Oh, no, Miss, I can’t.” She shook her head in between sobs. “I can’t.”

I gripped Daisy’s chin, forcing her to look at me. “I need you to be strong right now. I am depending on you to get through that window. Please .”

She wiped her nose despite the onslaught of rain and took an extra breath before she nodded.

I now gripped the hoop sticks with both hands as she tried to step on my skirt. During the first two attempts, her foot slipped off, but she did not give up. When her foot found its mark on the third try, I released one hand and gripped her ankle tightly. “Okay, quickly, go now, Daisy.” I spoke through chattering teeth. “I will try to push you upward as you pull.”

Daisy tried to push up but the pressure of the water around us made it difficult for me to hold her securely. Her foot slipped again and she fell to the bottom of the carriage with her head fully submerged. I reached down and pulled her head above the chilly water. Crying loudly, she kept repeating. “I can’t miss, I can’t!” I lifted her back to her feet.

“You have to,” I pleaded.

“Grab my hand!” Suddenly, an arm appeared through the broken window. I didn’t see who it belonged to, but presumed Ennis had finally reached us and that brought forth a great deal of relief. Daisy stretched both her arms upward, and he lifted her effortlessly through the opening.

I did not realize Ennis was that strong but, in times like this, your will is certainly tested. I maneuvered under the window as the water reached my waist. My lips shuddered uncontrollably and, just as my legs were going numb, the voice called down once more.

“Here, grab my hand.” The man’s hand returned as soon as Daisy’s form vanished from the carriage. I reached up at the same moment the coach shifted, severing our touch. I fell backward and hit the side of the carriage, with only my head above water.

“Try again,” the voice said as I scrambled to find my footing and brace myself below the outstretched arm. The moment he clasped my hand and lifted, I knew this arm did not belong to a twenty-one-year-old footman. My ascent came so quickly and effortlessly that I had no time to truly see my savior. In the brief moment we faced one another, I spied a dark greatcoat and hat pulled down so low, I could not even see the color of his eyes.

“Hold on to me,” he yelled. “We have to jump.”

“Jump?” I squeaked.

“Yes, the carriage is about to go.”

I peeked at the torrent of water building behind the coach, its relentless pressure revealed the full peril of our predicament. I wrapped my arms around the broad shoulders of this mystery man, gripping him tightly as his hands encircled my waist. With a sudden leap, he launched us into the enveloping darkness, twisting midair so his body would bear the brunt of the fall. Darkness blinded my vision to where—or when—we might strike the ground. The sensation of the unknown petrified me.

We crashed hard, my frame slamming against his chest before we tumbled down the embankment, nearly plunging back into the river. A groan of agony escaped when our descent was thwarted by a snag of my dress on some unseen anchor, the fabric ripping audibly. The tear jerked us to a halt, and by some stroke of fortune, only one of my legs was exposed by the tattered hem.

Pain radiated through my knees, my head, my entire being.

Before my head fell back to the ground in exhaustion, I realized the man’s arms remained cradled around me. The mystery man had lost his hat, and his wet hair flung wildly about from the elements. I was certain, myself, that if I had a looking glass to peer into, I would be horrified at what I might find.

The man did not wait or even ask of my condition when he stood and reached beneath both my arms, tugging me further up the embankment and out of harm’s way as any movement of my own could have dumped me back into the water. Mud caked my dress and any part of my skin that lay bare in the process.

I pushed myself upright on one elbow just as ear-splitting sounds competed against the roars of thunder overhead. In the end, the carriage’s irrevocable deafening snap won out, splintering the once sturdy coach into multiple pieces while the engorged water readily carried it downstream.

“No!” I cried. My vision clouded with tears. My whole life lay in those trunks, my books, my papers, my passion… even my brother’s memory. I lowered my head into my hands feeling the weight of such a thought. “Wait.” I peered up, scrutinizing the scene. Ennis held a shaking Daisy only a few steps away from me. Good, Ennis and Daisy are accounted for . My chest shuddered. “Where is Mr. Duncan?” I shouted, trying to stand, but doing an abysmal job of it. My soaked dress weighed me down. “My coachman…” I hollered to the stranger. “I don’t see my coachman!” My lost belongings paled in comparison to a man’s life.

“There’s another?” the man questioned.

“Yes, my driver. Mr. Duncan.”

“I don’t see anyone else.”

I pushed upward again but I tripped on my blasted dress, gripping the man’s coat sleeve as I fell. He quickly caught me and a pair of the most beautiful deep blue eyes I had ever seen were staring back. Holding me carefully, he lowered me back down to the ground. “I think its best you sit here for a moment.”

“Please, sir,” I pleaded. “Please save my driver.”

“Diggs!” the man shouted to another figure nearby. His companion had one hand on a trunk handle, pulling it up the bank. “Take these people to the house and let Mrs. Gentry know they will need warm clothes and a fire.”

In a flash, the blue-eyed man disappeared, following the carriage as it knocked about, floating down the fast-moving river.

“Here, let me help you.” The man he called Diggs appeared before me. He was tall with broad shoulders and strong like the man who had rescued us but with brown eyes. He kindly assisted me to my feet as I stumbled forward once more, tugging at my wet garment, forcing my feet to move in the right direction. “If you will allow me, miss, I can get you to the house much quicker and out of the rain.” He gestured to carry me.

My eyes widened.

“Or at the very least, permit me to put one arm around you.”

Now that I could do.

I nodded my consent. With lanterns glowing faintly in the distance, we still had a significant walk while the rain and the wind chilled us to our bones. The reality of our circumstances had not quite set in. If we had not been near this home, would we have survived? Mr. Diggs wrapped one arm around me as Ennis did the same for Daisy. I peered back into the engulfing darkness and took a shuddering breath. My heart ached terribly for Mr. Duncan.

“If your driver is out there, Mr. Jack will find him,” Mr. Diggs said this as if he knew my thoughts. “I’m certain of it.”

I pursed my lips to keep from crying out and continued forward. My heart beat erratically as another man appeared at the front door. Mr. Diggs called out to him. “O’Keefe! Go and help look for the coach driver. Check downstream.” The man tore off toward the river and, in that brief moment, a similar comfort arose within me from the man’s stout stature. He, too, seemed fit and able like the others. We could not have been more blessed than to have our misfortune play out in front of a house of able-bodied men.

Glancing up at the foreboding domicile before me, I noted its rustic stone exterior with its sharp-angled eaves, box windows, and austere trim, appearing to be a hunting lodge of sorts. Though my father personally did not possess one, our uncle George did. It was difficult to speculate on the size of the lodgings from outside, but the moment we entered, I gasped at the sight before me—a vast great room, both vaulted and elongated.

I could not recall seeing such a room this immense outside of a ballroom, but this was certainly not a hall for dancing. I stopped short at the sight of the many animal heads and antlers receiving us from differing positions, both stationary and mounted on the walls. While I had never been one to require the use of smelling salts, my body instantly felt faint. Mr. Diggs guided me forward. As I caught Daisy’s eye, I was unsure whether her pallid skin resulted from the calamity or the disturbing décor.

She scooted next to me and whimpered at my side, crying into my ear. “I don’t wish to stay here, Miss.” As if we had a choice of lodgings. “This frightens me.”

“We are dry and safe,” I said this with a fair amount of confidence, for if the man wished us harm, he did not have to rescue us.

A warm and inviting aroma wafted through the room. The spiced scent of cinnamon softened the shock of this residence that bore the overwhelming characteristics of an entirely male domain. I stole a deep inhale. It smelled like Christmas.

I took in the layout of the room with its wide sweeping stairs leading to a second level and exposed bedchamber doors running parallel to one another. I could not recall a design such as this in all my years of visiting town homes and grand estates.

We hobbled forward as a kind-faced elderly woman rushed toward us and ushered us to the colossal hearth. The size of the fireplace allowed all three of us to stand before it without being pressed together or being deprived of warmth.

“Thank you, Mr. Diggs,” I said before he left our side.

“Just Diggs, Miss. No Mister.”

I smiled weakly. “Thank you just the same.”

Diggs turned away and went back outside without another word.

“I am Mrs. Gentry,” the elderly woman said as she handed me and Daisy a blanket to wrap around our shoulders. I could barely get my fingers to move much less clutch the fringed edging. “And this is Anna.” She gestured to the young woman at her side who handed Ennis a similar blanket. “You must be exhausted.” Mrs. Gentry pointed to the nearby sofa. “You may remain standing near the fire or sit down, but I will fetch you some tea posthaste.”

As the heat of the flames slowly forced movement throughout my limbs, I continually watched the door, wondering whether the man who risked his life for us would appear with or without Mr. Duncan. I could not even fathom the latter. I already felt the guilt of my decision to alter our route earlier today. It only showed how shallow and selfish I could be.

Mrs. Gentry returned with steaming cups of tea. “Please drink this, it will warm you from the inside out.”

Anna appeared beside her with a tray of thickly sliced bread. I reached for the cup and held it between my hands letting the heat sink in, then brought it to my lips and rested it there to warm them before I took my first swallow.

I should not have changed our course .

I chastised myself silently, closing my eyes tightly, fighting the tears that threatened to break free. If I had kept us on the path toward my aunt’s house, we might not have encountered this awful predicament.

I was entirely to blame for poor Mr. Duncan’s severe consequences.