Page 73 of The Artisan and the Duke
Jules shook her head. “I am going to go find Gregory. There is no way that what Boris said is the truth. Stay here and do what you can with the courts,” she said as she hurried towards the stairs.
Lady St Claire objected, “No. Fredrick, go with her. I will stay here and do all I can to stall until you return. There will be nothing come of it until tomorrow anyway. I will rest and then deal with what may come. Go.”
“Are you certain?” Fredrick asked the question with concern.
Lady St Claire waved off Fredrick’s worry, “I will be fine. I have a house full of resourceful young men to help me, and I have more than a favour or two that I can call in if I need to. Boris will rue the day that he crossed me.”
“I believe he just might,” Fredrick said with a laugh as he kissed his mother on the cheek then rushed off to gather up his things.
Jules gave Lady St Claire’s arm a squeeze before she too went upstairs to find her coat and gloves. When they returned, Jules had left on her breeches and simply pulled on her riding coat over the top of her street clothes. Fredrick was waiting with his gloves and coat already on by the door.
William said quietly, “Godspeed, Master Fredrick,” as he opened the door for the nobleman.
“Thank you, Will,” Fredrick said earnestly. He patted the man on the shoulder as he passed through the door.
Jules gave William a smile which the man returned warmly. “You look after Lady St Claire, won’t you?” Jules asked softly.
William assured her, “Of course, Your Grace. It shall be my one calling.”
Lady St Claire came to see them off but could barely speak as the tears brimmed up in her eyes. Both Jules and Fredrick endured the woman’s hugs and sobs with good graces.
Jules understood the fear that the woman was harbouring. It was a hard thing to send your children off into the night and not be assured of their safety.
As they finally rode out of the gates of the St Claire manor house, Jules spared a glance back and saw Lady St Claire still on the steps watching them with her hands clasped anxiously over her chest.
Jules took a deep breath and faced forward again. She knew she was doing the right thing, but the right thing could still be a scary prospect.
***
Gregory blinked his eyes open and grunted as pain seared through his head. “What happened?” he asked to the darkness. There was no reply. “Boris?” he tried again.
Feeling around him, Gregory could only go a few inches to each side and forward. The small cramped space was damp, and the air hung heavy with the stench of mildew. “Boris,” Gregory bellowed louder.
His voice went only a short distance as the wall before him seemed to soak up the noise. “What is this place?” Gregory pondered out loud.
It was clear that Boris had gone. Was it Boris who had put him here? Had someone been lying in wait for them? Gregory sighed. For all he knew, Boris could be somewhere bleeding or captured.
There were no noises around him. Gregory sat pondering what this cubby hole was and what purpose it could possibly serve. His hand brushed a piece of leather, and Gregory jumped a bit before he grasped the leather.
It was a bond of some kind. Gregory himself was not tied up, but being free was of little use as the space was so cramped that he could hardly move anyway.
Had someone been in here before? Gregory had little to do but think on it, but his mind was groggy, and something wet stung as it slipped into his eyes.
Gregory thought of mold-lace water and wiped his face as best he could. It was only then that he smelled the iron tang that accompanied blood. The liquid had gotten into his mouth, and he could taste the metal on his tongue.
“I’m bleeding,” Gregory said, and as he moved, he winced once again as the pain seared through his temple. It was then that he remembered the blow that had struck him down as he leaned over Uncle Lawrence.
“Uncle Lawrence,” Gregory mumbled. He had no idea if the man lived or not. He had been struck down before he could discover if the man still breathed and now Gregory was lost in the darkness not knowing how much time had passed or even where he was.
Chapter 15
The roads out of London were teeming with guardsmen. Jules was glad that she had kept her breeches and cap on, as they got stopped several times asking if they had seen a convict.
Luckily they were looking for a female escaped criminal and not a young man, so Jules just kept her head down, and Fredrick did the talking.
By the time they were free of London proper, Fredrick breathed a sigh of relief. “That was quite a bit more of an ordeal than I had anticipated,” he said with feeling. “One would think that they would have thought better of stopping a nobleman.”
“Unless they were told that I might be hiding or being helped by a nobleman,” Jules said with a shrug. “They were stationed right near St Claire Manor, Fredrick.”
