Page 92 of Almost a Bride
She lifted up her skirts and began to run, catching up with the company of soldiers as they reached the door leading to the gardens. She clutched the door frame and called, “Spencer!”
He looked over his shoulder as the soldiers pulled him toward the river.
“I can help you!” she cried. “Trust me!”
“No!” He turned toward her, but was dragged backward. “This is my battle and I will win it. Go back to Wight—go back to John. Stay safe!”
She stood in the doorway long after the soldiers had loaded Spencer and his brother onto a barge. Though she knew he was only trying to protect her, his words still angered her, as if after all the intimacies they’d shared, she would abandon him.
With a sigh, she finally closed the door, then turned and found the hall scattered with servants watching her with expressions ranging from disgust to interest to amusement.
She lifted her chin, hoping they’d disperse without her insisting on it. But they continued to stare until an older gentleman smartly attired in blue and gold livery stepped forward.
“I think it is time you left, mistress,” he said calmly.
“Left?” she repeated, using the haughtiest tone learned from her mother. “I have business here.”
“I am quite certain the master no longer needs your particular business.”
He thought she was a harlot! Before she could defend herself, a woman’s voice called, “Hold!”
Spencer’s mother stood at the top of the stairs, as regal and unsmiling as the queen. Roselyn felt a tremor of worry, imagining how she would explain her actions to the viscountess.
“Young lady,” Lady Thornton said, “I believe we have met before, but your name eludes me.”
Roselyn walked forward and stopped at the foot of the stairs. “I am Roselyn Harrington Grant, my lady.”
There was a moment of tense silence, and she was certain that Lady Thornton must be feeling nothing but hatred for her.
Lady Thornton glanced at the man who’d asked Roselyn to leave. “Allbright, please have the servants return to their work. See to it that within two days this house is as I last saw it.”
There was a sudden flurry of movement, and the hall was soon deserted but for Roselyn and Lady Thornton. Roselyn remained still, waiting for anger and condemnation as Spencer’s mother descended the stairs, but the older woman only said, “Please walk with me, Lady Roselyn.”
With Roselyn silent at her side, the viscountess toured the hall as if she’d never seen it before. It was difficult for Roselyn to hold her peace when she wanted to blurt out the danger Spencer was in and beg for Her Ladyship’s help.
Lady Thornton came to a halt before a recessed shelf set in the wall, lit with candles. Proudly on display was the statue of her naked son—with wings.
Lady Thornton shook her head. “Madre de Dios,but he makes it like the shrine of a saint, does he not?”
Roselyn couldn’t help the smile that tugged at her lips. “I think it was done in pride and jest, my lady. I understand that Alex presented it to Queen Elizabeth, though it seems the queen did not wish it displayed long.”
She was beginning to realize who was the truly scandalous twin.
“You seem to know much about my sons, for someone who wanted no part of this family.”
“I have only met Alex today, my lady, but I have spent much time with Spencer this last month.”
“I did not know he had returned from Europe,” Lady Thornton said, eyeing Roselyn with narrowed dark eyes. “Perhaps you would care to tell me what led to this… injustice.”
Roselyn told Lady Thornton about Spencer’s mission, and how he had recovered from his injuries on the Isle of Wight. She left out the details of their new relationship.
Lady Thornton had brought her into a drawing room during the explanation, and both now sat upon cushioned chairs. “I knew some of what Spencer was involved in, because I insisted Alexander reveal it.”
Roselyn smiled.
“For one day only, Alexander pretended to be his brother in front of me. As if I would not know the difference between my own sons,” Lady Thornton sniffed. “Alexander told me that Spencer was performing a secret duty for the queen, but spared me the true extent of the danger. I preferred to continue my mourning in Cumberland, but weeks ago Alexander sent for me to keep me ‘safe,’ or so he claimed, should England be invaded. But I believe he felt guilty, because Spencer made him promise to visit me often, and it usually…slipped his mind.”
She wore a faint, amused smile, and Roselyn saw the love she bore her sons.
