Chapter Four
Mr. Clarke’s body was removed to the icehouse. The guests were ensconced in the morning room, awaiting further news. When Mrs. Hillman recovered from her fainting spell, she was taken to her front parlor, where Dr. Scott tended to her.
Selena got dressed and hurried down to the front parlor, where she found Mrs. Hillman lying on the sofa, still clad in her dressing gown, one arm draped dramatically across her eyes. Dr. Scott sat at her side, holding her hand, his medical bag on the floor beside him.
“Oh! My poor, dear Mr. Clarke—gone!” Mrs. Hillman cried tremulously. “I cannot believe it. What an awful state of affairs!”
“Again, I am so sorry for your loss,” Dr. Scott was saying.
Selena silently crossed the room to them, filled with sadness for the man who had departed this life so suddenly. The doctor stood and greeted her with a nod. “Miss Taylor.”
“Dr. Scott.” Selena was reminded of how good-looking he was. His strong jaw and intelligent, blue eyes reminded her of the sea during a tempest. “How is she?” she inquired under her breath.
“She has suffered a great shock but otherwise seems to be in good health,” he returned quietly.
“You needn’t whisper,” Mrs. Hillman declared authoritatively. “I’m right here and I can still hear perfectly well.”
Selena felt an inward rush of relief. She had worried that Mrs. Hillman would be too overcome to cope with this tragedy, but she seemed to be her usual feisty self.
Dr. Scott turned back to the older woman. “Ma’am, if there is anything you need, please say the word. I have medications for pain and anxiety in my bag.”
“I require no drugs at present, Doctor, but you may help me to sit up.” Mrs. Hillman allowed the doctor to assist her to a seated position on the couch.
Her eyes were sad, but she clasped her dressing gown closed around her neck as if determined to preserve an air of dignity and propriety.
“It seems, however, that you have come at an opportune time. Thank you for all you’ve done to assist Selena through this ordeal.
I will, of course, pay you for your services. ”
“I wouldn’t think of accepting payment,” Dr. Scott insisted. “I fear I have not done much. I’m sorry that I arrived too late to help Mr. Clarke.”
“Such a terrible accident!” Mrs. Hillman’s voice broke. From her pocket, she withdrew a linen handkerchief and dabbed at the moisture in her eyes. “I have always said it is dangerous to walk about a house in the dark. If only Mr. Clarke had slept in this morning, as anyone with sense would do.”
Selena said gently, “Mrs. Hillman, do you know if Mr. Clarke has any family whom we should alert about his passing?”
“He had no family,” Mrs. Hillman replied with a frown. “He never married nor had any children, and he was an only child.”
“When the weather clears, I suggest you make inquiries on his behalf,” Dr. Scott suggested, “and find out if he had a solicitor.”
Selena nodded. “In the meantime, Mrs. Hillman, we have five guests in the drawing room, waiting for some word. What do you wish to do?”
“I don’t know. I need a moment to think.” Mrs. Hillman sighed. “Oh! To have this happen on Christmas Eve, of all times. Such an awful start to our holiday week.” Her gaze went to the window, where a heavy snowfall was being buffeted by strong winds. “And such horrid weather!”
Selena frowned. All of her worries, she realized, had come to pass.
The weather had turned for the worse, and something unexpected—and truly terrible—had indeed occurred.
“I’m afraid there will be no walking out on the grounds today.
” It suddenly occurred to her that Dr. Scott had walked here in a snowstorm.
“Doctor. I can’t thank you enough for coming to us in our hour of need.
But how is it that you happened to be in Darkmoor Bridge? ”
“I was on my way to Edinburgh early this morning when my train was stopped south of the village due to snow on the tracks,” he explained.
“Were you on your way to see your wife and children, or perhaps your sweetheart, for Christmas?” Mrs. Hillman inquired.
“I have no wife or children, ma’am. Nor any sweetheart.”
Selena was glad to hear that, although she couldn’t say why.
“I walked to Darkmoor Bridge and came upon your hall boy by chance outside the vicarage,” Dr. Scott continued. “He said you had a man in need of medical attention, and he was told not to return unless he’d found help. I urged him to bring me here.”
“I’m so grateful you came,” Selena told him. “Where are you from?”
“I’m from Bath.”
“It seems I must thank Billy for his presence of mind.” Mrs. Hillman wiped her eyes again. “Where are you staying, Dr. Scott? At the inn in the village?”
“I had hoped to find an inn,” he admitted, “but I’m afraid I never got that far. My bag is in the servants’ hall.”
“Well, now that you are here, it seems you will be obliged to stay the night at the very least, or a few days, perhaps.” Mrs. Hillman pulled the bell rope to summon a servant. “There is no telling how long this storm will last.”
Dr. Scott hesitated. “Are you certain, ma’am? As I understand it you have a house full of guests. Today is Christmas Eve. I wouldn’t wish to intrude.”
“You are not intruding, Doctor.” Mrs. Hillman waved a hand, as if swatting away an invisible fly. “There is always room for one more at Darkmoor Park. And I would never turn a man out into the snow.”
“Thank you, ma’am. I am most grateful.”
Selena noted relief in the doctor’s eyes. She wondered whom he had been planning to visit in Edinburgh. “I’m sorry you’ll be stuck here and miss out on your own holiday plans, Doctor,” she remarked, fishing gently.
He shrugged his broad shoulders. “My friends will understand that I was detained by the weather. And if I must be stuck somewhere, as you say, over Christmas, I’m sure I could wish for no more comfortable place than Darkmoor Park.
” He turned to Mrs. Hillman. “However, I must warn you, ma’am, I have no formal clothes with me, so I fear I won’t be properly attired for the kind of evenings you most likely have in mind. ”
Mrs. Hillman studied the doctor with pursed lips. “Thank you for bringing that to my attention. I will take care of it.”
Mrs. Middleton entered the room. “Ma’am? You rang?”
“Please make up a room for Dr. Scott in the south wing,” Mrs. Hillman directed the housekeeper. “He will be staying with us until the weather clears. Have Sam bring up his bag. And tell Wells to take Dr. Scott’s measurements and find him some evening wear.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Mrs. Middleton nodded.
Mrs. Hillman turned to Dr. Scott. “I keep an assortment of gentlemen’s wear on hand for emergencies like this one. I’m sure my butler, Wells, can find you something suitable, and if it requires alteration, one of the maids will see to it.”
“I am in your debt.” Dr. Scott bowed.
“Ma’am,” Mrs. Middleton inquired, “shall we proceed with all meals today as previously scheduled?”
Mrs. Hillman hesitated, then said, her voice breaking slightly, “Yes. I’m afraid I’m not up to seeing anyone just yet, and I couldn’t eat a bite. I shall retire to my chamber for a couple of hours. But that is no reason for anyone else to suffer or go hungry.”
“Yes, ma’am.” The housekeeper curtsied and left the room.
Mrs. Hillman glanced at Selena and Dr. Scott. “Have either of you had breakfast?”
Selena shook her head.
“It is a long while since I had anything to eat,” the doctor admitted.
“Well, then, the two of you must go in to breakfast. Please give everyone my apologies, Selena. What did we have planned for this morning again?”
“We were going to trim the Christmas tree.”
“That’s right.” Mrs. Hillman sighed. “Poll the guests. If the majority are inclined to proceed with tree trimming, then do so—with or without me.” She grabbed her cane and rose.
“As for the days ahead, Selena—here’s what I want you to say.
Tell them that although the colonel and Mrs. Whitlock and I have just lost a good friend, I believe Mr. Clarke wouldn’t want us to feel sorry for him.
He would want us to go on and celebrate the holidays as planned. ”
“Very well.” Selena nodded. It seemed a sensible plan. With this weather, their guests would be obliged to remain at Darkmoor Park for a while in any case, whether they wanted to or not.
As Mrs. Hillman headed upstairs and Selena led the doctor towards the morning room, he said, “It was kind of Mrs. Hillman to invite me to stay.”
“She is a kind woman. But no one with any heart would turn away a traveler on a day like this.”
“Still, I am grateful. It must have seemed like I came out of nowhere.”
“In truth, you did.” Selena smiled and thought he might return the gesture, but instead, he fell silent and glanced away.
As they walked along, Selena studied Dr. Scott.
Her heart began to beat to an unfamiliar rhythm—and her guard immediately went up.
He was so handsome and charming. She had learned from personal experience that such men could not always be trusted.
One only had to look to Jane Austen for further confirmation.
Nearly all the gentleman described in Miss Austen’s novels as handsome and charming—Willoughby, Wickham, and Henry Crawford, for example—turned out to be rascals and cads.
Only one exception came to mind: her favorite Austen hero, Mr. Darcy.
He had been introduced as a handsome, fine figure of a man.
But on the other hand, he hadn’t been charming.
At the outset, he had been proud, arrogant, and aloof.
Selena gave herself a mental shake. Why on Earth was she thinking about Mr. Darcy?!