Page 62 of Lady Charlotte and the Lending Library
Her mother made a shooing motion with her hands. “Now go upstairs to your bedchamber. And no reading. You should rest your eyes. You always have your nose stuck in a book.”
Charlotte didn’t mind a quiet afternoon in her bedchamber as there was always a book under her pillow. She could sneak in a few pages around the watchful eye of her mother.
After drinking a horrible tasting tincture courtesy of the housekeeper, Charlotte nodded off for a bit, comfortable under a warm coverlet. She awoke to the sound of her brother’s voice.
“Wake up sleepyhead,” he said softly. “It’s William.”
Sitting up, she yawned and stretched her arms. “Any news about Thorne’s?”
“None.” He added, “The excitement has blown over.”
“It would be nice if it has,” she replied somberly.
“Mother said you had a migraine,” William said with a frown, concern in his voice.
“Merely an excuse to forestall mother speaking to me further about Thorne’s.” She settled back against several propped-up pillows on the bed.
Her brother raised a brow. “Aren’t you going to ask me about Lord Ashford?”
“I imagine if you had news of the marquess, you would have told me already.” She kept her tone light. William need not know how worried she was about Lord Ashford.
“You play your cards close, dear sister,” William replied with a wink.
She ignored his statement. “Tell me about your day.”
He took a seat on the chair near her bed. “I went to the clubs to see what gossip is floating about. The shooting is still the talk of London.”
Charlotte peered at her brother, convinced by his indifferent tone of voice and careless shrug that something had occurred he didn’t want to tell her about.
“You look unsettled, brother. Is there something else? You did promise to be honest with me from now on.”
William rubbed a hand across his jaw. “I didn’t want to upset you. The man who shot Landry’s lackey was found dead himself.”
She gasped. “That is horrible? Do they know who killed him?”
“The rumors are the killer is a Mr. James Landry, but nobody can find him.”
It would not do for her to worry about events she couldn’t control. As far as she knew, Lord Ashford was out of harm’s way. She would hold onto that for now.
“Make yourself useful and see about getting me some tea,” she said lightly. “Tell Mother I feel somewhat better and have an appetite.”
William got to his feet. “You’re getting rather tyrannical, dear sister. I blame Louisa.”
With those words, her brother exited the room. A few minutes later, there was a knock at the bedchamber door.
“Enter!”
A maid appeared with a tray, Charlotte’s mother behind the girl. The tray held tea, bread and butter sandwiches, and ginger biscuits.
“The ginger should help your migraine, my dear,” her mother said, her face creased with worry.
The maid settled the tray on the small bedside table and took her leave. Charlotte’s mother poured the tea.
“Make sure you eat something and then get some more rest. You look a little peaked to me.”
She didn’t like to see her mother so anxious. “I’m feeling ever so much better. Thank you, Mother.”
“Just rest, my dear.” Her mother leaned in to kiss Charlotte’s forehead before leaving the room. The calming scent of rose water surrounded her.
