Chapter Fourteen #2
“My father has men watching me. We need a plan if I am to leave the house and travel to Newmarket undetected. Samuel is a guest at Baron and Baroness Ramsburys’. I don’t dare send him a message until we arrive. I can’t risk it getting into my father’s hands.”
“Hmmm,” Letitia said as she returned the brush to its rightful place on top of the dressing table just as her stomach growled.
Clarice jumped up and exclaimed, “Where are my manners? Let’s go to the drawing room for tea and refreshments.
” She didn’t bother trying to smooth the wrinkles out of her sage-green linen day dress.
It was well-creased from lounging on her chaise longue for most of the morning and into the early afternoon.
On the way to the drawing room, Clarice spoke with a footman and sent him to the kitchens to ask the cook to send in a tea tray.
Sitting together on the settee, the tea tray newly arrived, Clarice poured the tea and handed the fine china cup and saucer to Letitia, then picked up her own.
“I’ve been thinking, do you think it’s worth the risk traveling to Newmarket, knowing Stanton is there, too?” Letitia sipped her tea. “You definitely don’t want your father making good on his threats, even if you stay away from the duke.”
“Wonderful question.” One she would have said no to the day Samuel left for Newmarket.
But after wallowing in self-pity and heartbreak for two days, she was willing to risk anything to see him again.
Even if she didn’t have the chance to feel the warmth and safety of his arms around her.
To witness the amusement in his dark eyes when he was carefree and the desire that could come on instantly—her body tingled.
It would be hard to keep her distance from him, but she believed Samuel when he said he would find a way for them to be together in marriage.
“I refuse to let my father ruin the rest of my life. He took years away from me, years when I was married to Chesterfield, and I won’t let him take any more.
What we need is a plan. Will you come to Newmarket with me?
And will you help me escape my father’s men?
” She knew it was a lot to ask her friend.
But she was hopeful. She also knew he wouldn’t be fooled for long and would eventually find out where she was.
But if she had a week or so of freedom, she would be happy.
Letitia reached out and took her hand. “Of course. What are friends for? We’ll need some help from your servants, though.”
“They will help me.”
“Good. Let’s plan.”
*
Two mornings later, during a windswept rainstorm, Clarice paced her drawing room, waiting for Letitia and one of her young housemaids, who was close in height and weight to her, to arrive.
Last night was the longest night of her life, filled with worry about today and what might happen.
She wondered if they could fool her father’s men with her escape.
She panicked about where they would stay when they reached Newmarket.
The Red Lion Inn would be their first hope, but with the racing season beginning, she imagined they were already booked solid.
But she couldn’t stay here and do nothing.
She’d been biting her nails until they bled ever since Samuel left, and the end wasn’t in sight.
Not until she came face-to-face with him.
She and Letitia had a plan, but knowing how things could go wrong, they needed to be flexible.
“Marchioness Rutherford has arrived, my lady,” a footman said as he entered the drawing room with Letitia on his heels.
“Thank goodness,” Clarice said as she hurried forward to greet her. “I’m going crazy with worry and nerves.”
“I know,” Letitia replied, “So am I. And before I forget, tell you, thank you for indulging me with this excursion in the hope of running into Greyson.”
“You’re most welcome, even if I’m only going to feast my eyes on Stanton.”
“We are both doing favors for the other,” Letitia said. “It is ghastly outside, which should work in our favor. The man guarding your front door looks miserable, trying to stay dry, hunched in his greatcoat. He barely gave us a passing glance when we arrived. Today is a good day to slip away.”
“I thought the same thing when I woke up and saw the rain. Come, sit down and have some tea. We must make it look like you spent a respectable amount of time visiting with me before we leave.” Clarice picked up the teapot from the tray, which had arrived shortly before Letitia’s arrival, and poured the hot tea into two cups, doctored them with cream and sugar, and handed one to her friend. They sat side by side on the settee.
“Is everything arranged?” Letitia asked as she sipped her tea.
“Yes. Williamson, Mrs. Shelley, Mrs. Jones, and one trusted housemaid know what we have planned. I had the housemaid, Penny, pack her old trunk with my belongings and travel to the Black Pigeon Coaching Station, take two rooms, and wait for us to arrive.”
Letitia set her now-empty teacup down. “I was wondering how you planned to get your things out of the house. What an ingenious idea.”
“I can’t take credit for it. Mrs. Shelley suggested it, and it’s perfect.
We’ll stay at the Black Pigeon tonight and be in Newmarket tomorrow.
With any luck, we’ll find rooms to rent.
” She set her cup down and picked up a sweet roll.
“I don’t ever recall my father being interested in horseracing, and let’s hope it stays that way.
I would hate to do all this and have him show up out of the blue.
It’s one thing if he arrives after he finds out I’ve left London, which, honestly, I expect, given all the newspaper reporters writing about the races and who’s attending from the beau monde.
But for him to be in Newmarket purely by coincidence would make my blood boil. ”
“We should probably go,” Letitia said.
Hands wrapped around her stomach, Clarice groaned.
“I shouldn’t have drunk or eaten anything.
Please excuse me while I go to my chambers.
I’ll be right back.” She stood and left the drawing room, hurried up the two flights of stairs, and down the hall to her rooms. Once inside, she ducked behind the privacy screen and took care of her personal needs.
When she moved around the screen, she saw Mrs. Shelley entering the room with an unfamiliar cloak. “This belongs to Lady Rutherford’s maid. Let’s get you ready for your adventure.”
Indeed, she was going on an adventure, but would it have a fairytale ending?
Mrs. Shelley extended the cloak, and Clarice slipped into it. The dampness from the rain immediately chilled her. “Perhaps I could wear one of my cloaks underneath.”
“Oh my dear,” Mrs. Shelly exclaimed. “What am I thinking? You’ll catch your death wearing this damp thing.”
“Will you give Lady Rutherford’s maid one of my cloaks in exchange for hers?”
“Don’t you worry, I will take good care of that girl. After all, she is doing us a big favor by helping you today.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Shelley,” Clarice said. “What would I ever do without you?”
“You would manage just fine. Now let’s get you on your way.”
Clarice met Letitia in the front entry, standing with Williamson, who bowed when she approached and said, “In front of Rutherford House, you will find an unmarked black coach with Kirkland in the driver’s seat. He will see you safely to Newmarket.”
“Thank you, Williamson.”
Mrs. Shelley approached her from behind. “Now, off you go.”
Pulling up her hood to hide her face and block the rain, Clarice followed Letitia to her carriage, pretending to be her maid. Once inside the coach, she sighed with relief and pushed off the hood. “I didn’t notice my father’s man. Did you?” she asked Letitia.
She shook her head as she removed her hood and wiped rain droplets from her face with her gloved hands.
“I was too busy trying to hide from the downpour to notice. If he was there, which I’m sure he was, he wouldn’t be able to recognize you.
And nothing seemed out of the ordinary. So I would say we are safe. ”
Clarice reached out, taking Letitia’s hands in hers. “I can’t thank you enough for doing this. I know it was a lot to ask with you having to leave your son behind.”
“I have to admit, when you first asked, I was a little nervous that it might not work, and I didn’t want to face your father’s anger. Especially after I turned down his theater invitation. Then I thought, why not? You and Stanton deserve to be together and happy.”
“I can’t believe my father called on you. Well, actually, I can. You already have a son, so he knows you can have children. You are wealthy, which is very important to him. I just can’t imagine you and him . . .” She groaned. “No, I will not think about it.”
Letitia was startled and snorted in a most unladylike way. “Please don’t.”
They both laughed, and Clarice knew it was out of relief rather than genuine humor.
The carriage came to a stop. “We’re here,” Letitia said. “My trunk should already be loaded onto our new conveyance.”
A footman opened the door, lowered the steps, and escorted first Letitia, then Clarice out of one carriage and into the other with Kirkland in the driver’s seat.
Once they were inside the well-appointed carriage, sitting side by side, the other bench covered with two blankets and a basket of food, she removed her wet cloak and settled in for the long drive to the Black Pigeon Coaching Station. Letitia did the same.
Feeling drained all of a sudden, Clarice reached for both blankets, handed one to Letitia and wrapped the other around herself. She leaned back against the cushions and closed her eyes. “If you don’t mind, I’m going to close my eyes. I didn’t sleep a wink last night.”
“Rest,” Letitia said as she snuggled into the blanket Clarice gave her. “I’m going to as well. I couldn’t sleep last night either, and we might as well sleep since we will be on the road for hours.”
The sway of the carriage and the warmth from the blanket soon lulled Clarice to sleep.