Page 57

T he peal of the clock in the hall brought Athena back to consciousness from a deep, troubled sleep. It took her a few blinking seconds to realize that she was in her own bed at Thorndale Manor. Why that filled her with relief, she couldn’t say.

Sunlight filtered in around the edges of the drawn curtains.

A fire burned in the hearth. She was alone in the room.

Her throat hurt, her lungs felt irritated, and she was wracked by a cough.

Athena counted as the clock’s tolls reverberated through the air.

Nine. Ten. Eleven. Twelve. Twelve! How could it be noon?

Why hadn’t someone woken her? Oddly, Athena couldn’t recall coming to bed last night.

She did, however, recall her dreams. Or rather, her nightmares.

They had been filled with images of a fire and a heart-pounding need to escape from a burning building.

Why did her left leg smart so painfully?

Athena sat up, shrugged the coverlet aside, pulled up her long nightgown, and studied her leg.

Her right shin and ankle were still bandaged from the dog attack.

But her left leg was now also wrapped in gauze up to her thigh.

She noted smudges of soot on her skin and detected the scent of smoke clinging to her hair. What had happened?

All at once, the events of the previous night flooded her brain.

The plan that had gone so horribly wrong.

Mr. Chapman’s smug assertions as he had tied her and Selena up.

The dower house on fire. The secret door to the hidden staircase. How fortunate they had been to escape!

Athena remembered making it to the front drive. The building engulfed in flames. Then Mr. Vernon had arrived out of nowhere. Had Mr. Sinclair been with him? And Mrs. Hunt as well? Everything after that was fuzzy.

The door quietly opened, and Selena entered. “At last you’re awake.” Selena crossed to Athena’s bed where she paused, coughing. “Forgive me. I can’t seem to stop coughing. How do you feel?”

Athena couldn’t prevent her own answering cough. “My lungs and throat feel raw, my leg hurts, and my head aches, but otherwise, I think I’m all right.”

“Mr. Quince said the cough is from smoke inhalation. It may take weeks to resolve. And my head hurts too. Apparently, that’s from the drug Mr. Chapman gave us. Mr. Quince suspects it was chloral hydrate, a sleeping aid he had prescribed for Mrs. Hillman.”

“When was Mr. Quince here?”

“He tended you at Darkmoor Park. Your leg was badly burned.”

“I don’t remember a thing about it.”

“You passed out. Mr. Quince applied a salve and said you will heal in time. He gave you a sleeping draft and I have pain medicine, if you need it.”

They both coughed again in tandem. Athena noticed that Selena’s wrists were marked with red abrasions, no doubt from the rope that had bound them. “Apart from the cough and headache, are you all right?”

“I’m fine.” Selena sat on the bed beside her and caressed Athena’s cheek. “Sister dear. There are no words to express my gratitude to you. You were so brave last night.” Tears studded her hazel eyes. “If not for you, we both would have died.”

“There was no time to think. I just did what I had to do.” Athena struggled to recall more about the previous night. “I remember everything up till the fire, and our escape. But after that, it’s mostly a blank. Has Mr. Chapman been apprehended?”

“He has. Mr. Neville Sinclair arrested him last night.”

“Thank heavens.” Athena breathed a sigh of relief, then coughed again. “Having experienced Mr. Chapman’s charms myself, it’s not surprising that Sally was infatuated by him.”

“What a rogue he is.” Selena’s jaw set. “We were all taken in by him. I hope I’ll know better than to trust such a charismatic man in future.”

“Me too. How did we get home, Selena?”

“I’ll tell you, but first things first. You need to bathe. Mr. Quince said we must keep your leg dry, so I’ll call for a sponge bath.”

Tabitha and Laura soon arrived with pitchers of hot water and an empty round, tin tub, which Selena positioned by the hearth. Once the maids had quit the room, Selena helped Athena to undress and sit on a chair in front of the tub.

“Am I remembering correctly?” Athena asked as she lay her head back against a rolled-up towel atop the chair. “Did Mr. Vernon come to the dower house last night?”

“He did.”

Athena enjoyed the relaxing sensations of hot water being poured onto her hair and heard it rain down into the tub below. “Were Mr. Sinclair and Mrs. Hunt there, too?”

“Yes. Mr. Vernon brought them.”

“Why? And how did he know to come?”

Selena struggled to stifle a cough as she lathered her hands with soap. “I wrote to him.”

“You wrote to Mr. Vernon again?” Athena closed her eyes as her sister massaged soap into her hair. “Why?” she repeated.

“I knew your feelings for Mr. Vernon, and that you despaired of him ever forgiving you for your part in Caroline Vernon’s discovery.

I wanted him to know the lengths to which we were going, to seek the truth and try to free his sister.

I found out where he was staying in York and sent him a letter, informing him of our rendezvous last night. ”

“I can’t believe you did that.” But Athena was glad she had.

“I felt that bold measures were required.”

“That still doesn’t explain why he came.”

“Mr. Vernon said that when he received my letter, he was concerned that we might be putting ourselves in danger. He was far more prescient than we were.”

“Did he suspect Mr. Chapman?”

“No.” Selena rinsed Athena’s hair with fresh, warm water. “But he convinced Mr. Sinclair to return to Darkmoor Bridge with him.”

“How is it that he brought Mrs. Hunt as well?”

“I’ll let him tell you about that himself.” Selena poured more warm water onto Athena’s hair.

“When?”

“He promised to visit this afternoon.”

Athena opened her eyes and sat up straight in the chair, coughing and dripping water all over the floor. “Mr. Vernon is coming here ? Today ?”

“Yes. Why do you think I’m trying to make you presentable? As I understand it, he had to go back to York early this morning, but he hoped to return this afternoon at three o’clock.” Selena smiled as she nudged Athena to lie back again. “Now relax and let me give you that promised sponge bath.”

A few hours later, Athena, dressed and fed and feeling much more like herself, waited with Selena for the sounds of an arriving carriage.

Mr. Vernon arrived, as promised, shortly after three. When Mrs. Lloyd showed him into the drawing room, Athena and Selena rose from the sofa to greet him. He was dapperly dressed in his charcoal-grey suit and top hat.

And he had brought someone with him.

Caroline Vernon.

Athena positively gaped.

Miss Vernon strode in on Mr. Vernon’s arm, her lavender frock a perfect complement to her raven-black hair and cornflower-blue eyes. It was the first time Athena had seen her in broad daylight, and she was even more beautiful than Athena had presumed from her portraits.

“Miss Taylor. Miss Selena,” Mr. Vernon said in greeting as the twosome crossed the room. His eyes blazed with some emotion she couldn’t quite define—but it was a look that set her heart aflutter. With an affectionate nod to Miss Vernon, he added, “May I present my sister, Miss Caroline Vernon?”

The courtesies were exchanged. Miss Vernon’s face sparkled with warmth and happiness. “It is such a pleasure to meet you both properly.”

“And you, Miss Vernon,” Athena and Selena returned in unison. Selena was beaming.

As they all sat down, Athena offered tea, but they declined, explaining that they were due to have tea at Darkmoor Park with Mrs. Hillman, who had returned on the same train from York.

Athena hid a long cough behind her hand, and Selena did the same.

Mr. Vernon’s brow knitted. “I fear last night’s harrowing adventures have taken their toll on you both.”

“I’ve read that smoke inhalation can have lasting ill effects,” Miss Vernon put in, her smile fading.

“Don’t worry, the apothecary said that we will be well in time,” Selena assured them.

“I’m glad to hear it,” Miss Vernon responded softly.

“How is your leg, Miss Taylor?” Mr. Vernon persisted, worry still clouding his features.

“It hurts,” Athena told him, “but I consider it a small price to pay for having survived with all my limbs intact.”

“Perhaps,” he replied. “But I am very sorry that you were injured.”

Athena was beset by two strong emotions. Overwhelming relief that Mr. Vernon was not looking at her with antipathy.

And gratitude that Miss Vernon sat beside him, looking hale and healthy.

“How is it that you are here, Miss Vernon?” Athena asked, fighting back sudden tears. “I hope this means you are free at last?”

“I am.” Miss Vernon’s lower lip trembled. “I don’t know how to thank you both for all that you’ve done.”

Athena struggled for words. “Please don’t speak of what I did, Miss Vernon. I feel so guilty. You were only arrested again and sent back to prison because of me.”

“Pray, think no more about it. It is because of you and your sister that I have finally been acquitted.”

Athena withdrew a handkerchief and dried her eyes. “I’m glad to hear it. But there’s so much that I still don’t understand. Please tell me everything.” She turned to Mr. Vernon. “My sister said she wrote to you?”

“Yes. The moment I received that letter yesterday, I sensed you were in danger. Neville Sinclair was in York as well. I called on him and explained the situation. He expressed regret, Miss Taylor, that you had been hurt by his dogs. And he agreed that we must stop you from holding that meeting. By then, it was already late afternoon. We boarded the first train. As it left the station, I recalled something you had mentioned, Miss Taylor, that now seemed important.”

“What was that?” Athena and her sister both coughed discreetly into their handkerchiefs at intervals as he continued.