Chapter 18
Chapter Eighteen
The first pale hints of dawn stretched across the eastern horizon by the time Jane stirred.
For a brief, disorienting moment, she did not remember where she was.
The unfamiliar ceiling. The scent of woodsmoke lingering in the little cottage.
The warmth of the dying fire. Then everything returned in a rush.
She sat up quietly on the narrow sofa, careful not to disturb the man sleeping on the floor only a few feet away.
The duke lay on his back, one arm folded beneath his head, the blanket half slipping from his shoulder. Even in sleep, there was something disciplined about him. His posture remained composed, as though years of responsibility had trained him never to relax entirely.
For the first time since she had met him, his face looked younger. Without thinking, Jane took a step towards him. Her hand lifted instinctively before she stopped herself.
A faint smile tugged at her lips all the same. He had insisted he would survive a night on the floor. He looked as though he had.
She quietly crossed to the hearth instead, where only glowing embers remained. Kneeling, she stirred them gently with the poker until a small flame sprang back to life.
The soft crackle roused Hector. His eyes opened almost immediately. He did not startle awake like most people. Awareness simply settled over him in an instant.
When he noticed her, he pushed himself upright. “Good morning.”
His voice was still rough with sleep. The sound of it did funny things to her insides, and heat pooled between her legs.
She smiled. “Is it?”
He glanced toward the window. “It will be soon.”
Outside, the sky had begun turning from black to deep blue. “We should leave before sunrise,” he said.
Jane nodded. “The roads will be quieter.”
Before Hector could answer, the bedroom door opened. Colin stepped into the main room first.
Though still bruised, he looked stronger after a few hours’ rest. Evan followed behind him, carrying a small satchel.
“I found enough provisions for the road,” Evan said. “It is not much.”
“It is more than enough,” Jane replied warmly.
Colin crossed the room toward her. “I was hoping you would still be here.”
She looked carefully at him. The swelling around his eye had gone down slightly. Fresh bandages covered the cuts on his temple, and though he remained pale, some color had returned to his face.
“How are you feeling?”
“As though I lost a fight.”
“You did.” She reached up and gently straightened the collar of his coat. It was an old habit. One she’d had since they were both children, whenever he’d rushed out the front door with his cravat crooked or his buttons mismatched.
Without warning, he pulled her into another embrace. “I do not know how to thank you. You saved my life. You refused to stop looking.”
She closed her eyes briefly. “I never would have.”
He rested his forehead lightly against hers. “I know.”
When they stepped apart, Evan approached. His smile carried both gratitude and uncertainty. “I owe you more than I can ever repay, Lady Jane.”
“There is only one thing I ask,” she said. “Take care of him.”
Evan’s expression softened immediately. “There is nothing I want more.”
She glanced between the two men. “You have both hidden long enough. I hope wherever you go, you finally have the chance to live honestly.”
Colin slipped his hand into Evan’s. The sight filled Jane with quiet joy.
“You have my blessing,” she said simply. “And Mother’s, once she understands.”
Colin swallowed. “I pray she forgives me.”
“There is nothing to forgive.” She smiled. “I shall remind her of that every day if necessary.”
That finally earned a genuine laugh from him.
Hector joined them. For a moment, the two brothers simply regarded one another. There was no awkwardness now, only affection.
Evan reached into his pocket and withdrew a folded piece of paper. “I wrote down the address.”
Hector accepted it. “In case we must write first.”
“If we move again, we shall send another letter.”
Hector clasped Evan’s shoulder. “You have survived too much to disappear without warning again.”
Their eyes met. Some unspoken understanding passed between them. The bitterness born from years of supposed rivalry had vanished completely.
Jane wondered what their lives might have looked like had they never been forced to pretend hatred. She pushed the thought away. There would be time enough to mourn what had been stolen.
Today belonged to hope.
Evan disappeared briefly into the bedroom before returning with writing supplies.
“I nearly forgot.” He handed Jane a small folded sheet. “My first letter.”
She blinked. “You have already written?”
She tucked it carefully into her reticule. Outside, birds had begun singing in the hedgerows. Morning had arrived.
Hector glanced toward the window. “We should go.”
No one argued. The moment had come. Jane hugged Colin one last time. Then Evan. “Write often.”
“We shall.”
“Do not make me send the duke after you.”
Evan laughed. “I suspect that would be quite terrifying.”
“It would,” Hector answered dryly.
Colin smiled. “We have every intention of staying exactly where we belong.”
Jane nodded. “I think you do.”
She stepped outside beside Hector. The air was cool and carried the scent of damp grass. Behind them, the cottage door remained open. Colin and Evan stood together in the doorway.
Jane raised one hand. They did the same. Then Hector climbed into the waiting carriage before offering her his hand. She accepted it.
As the carriage pulled away, she looked back one final time. The little cottage grew smaller with every turn of the wheels until it disappeared behind the trees. Only then did she settle against the seat.
She did not realize she was crying until Hector quietly handed her his handkerchief. She accepted it with a grateful smile.
“They’re going to be all right,” she whispered.
He looked out at the brightening horizon before answering. “Yes.”
Jane believed it too. She did not realize how tightly she had been gripping the reins until her fingers ached.
The ride back to London had passed in near silence.
Dawn had painted the countryside in pale gold, but she had scarcely noticed it.
Her thoughts had remained behind in that little cottage, with Colin and Evan standing together in the doorway, watching until she and the duke disappeared around the bend.
They were alive. Together. Free. It was everything she had prayed for. And somehow, it also felt like saying goodbye.
When Wynten House finally came into view, her chest tightened. Home had never looked so familiar, or so changed. She dismounted before the groom could reach her, handing over the reins with distracted thanks, and bidding farewell to the duke with a promise to see him again soon.
“Is Mama awake?” she asked the butler the moment she stepped inside.
The older man bowed. “Her ladyship has been awake since sunrise, my lady. She has been asking after you.”
Guilt pricked at Jane. Her mother had worried through another sleepless night.
“I’ll go to her immediately.”
She climbed the staircase two steps at a time. Outside Lady Wynten’s bedchamber, she paused, smoothing the dust from her riding habit and attempting to compose herself.
She could not tell her everything. Not about Strachan. Not about warehouses and gunmen. Not about nearly losing her own life.
Her mother had already suffered enough.
Jane knocked softly.
“Come in.”
She entered.
Lady Wynten sat beside the window with embroidery forgotten in her lap. The moment she looked up and saw Jane, she stood so abruptly that the embroidery frame clattered onto the floor.
“Jane.” Her mother crossed the room in hurried steps. “You are safe.”
Jane embraced her tightly. “I’m safe.”
Lady Wynten held her at arm’s length, searching her face. “You were gone all night.”
“I know.”
“I feared...” Her mother’s voice trembled. “I feared something dreadful had happened.”
Jane managed a reassuring smile. “I’m sorry. Truly.”
Lady Wynten brushed a loose curl from Jane’s cheek. “You look exhausted. You found something.”
It was not a question. Jane hesitated only a heartbeat. “Yes.”
Hope exploded across Lady Wynten’s face. “Colin?”
Jane nodded. “I found him.”
For one glorious second, pure joy transformed her mother’s features. Then she grabbed Jane’s hands. “Where is he?”
The question struck like a stone. Jane swallowed. “He is alive.”
Her mother’s eyes filled with tears. “Oh, thank God.” She pressed both hands over her mouth as sobs escaped despite her efforts to stop them. “My boy...”
Jane guided her gently toward the sofa. Lady Wynten sat heavily.
“Tell me everything.”
Jane chose her words with care. “I found Colin hidden away in the countryside.”
“Hidden?”
Jane nodded. “Yes.”
“Was he hurt?” Fear dripped from her mother’s voice.
“He had been treated badly.” Jane thought of the bruises covering Colin’s face. “He is recovering.”
Lady Wynten squeezed Jane’s fingers. “Then bring him home.”
Jane looked down. Silence settled between them.
Her mother’s hopeful smile slowly faded. “Jane?”
She lifted her eyes. “There is something else.”
Lady Wynten went very still. “What is it?”
Jane took a slow breath. “Colin is not coming back.”
Confusion crossed her mother’s face. “I don’t understand.”
Jane had rehearsed these words during the ride home. “He left because he loved someone.”
Her mother frowned. “Loved someone?”
Jane nodded. “A gentleman.”
Silence. Lady Wynten stared at her without speaking.
Jane continued gently. “His name is Evan.”
Recognition flickered. “The duke’s brother?”
“Yes.”
Her mother’s brows knitted together. “But...”
Jane squeezed her hands. “They have loved one another for years.”
Lady Wynten blinked several times. Jane could almost see decades of expectations unraveling behind her mother’s eyes.
“Their quarrels,” Lady Wynten whispered. “They were pretending.”
Jane nodded. “They needed society to believe they disliked each other.”
Another long silence. Lady Wynten looked toward the window. “So that no one would suspect.”
“Yes.” Her mother closed her eyes. “When did you learn this?”
“Very recently.”
“And Colin never told us.” Lady Wynten’s shoulders sagged. “I thought...”
She stopped. Jane understood. They had all imagined Colin would someday marry. Raise children. Continue the family line. She had imagined it herself.
Instead he had carried a secret heavy enough to reshape his entire life.
Lady Wynten looked back at Jane. “Was he... ashamed?”
Jane felt tears sting her own eyes. “He believed he had disappointed Father.”
“Oh…” Lady Wynten pressed trembling fingers to her lips. “My poor boy.”
Jane’s voice softened. “I told him Father loved him. I told him we loved him.”
“And?”
Jane smiled through her own tears. “He believed me.”
Lady Wynten began crying in earnest. Jane moved beside her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. For several minutes neither woman spoke. Only quiet sobs filled the room.
At last Lady Wynten whispered, “I wish I could have held him once more.”
The words broke something inside Jane. She rested her cheek against her mother’s hair. “So do I.”
“They intend to leave England. When they are settled somewhere safe, we can visit.”
Lady Wynten searched her face. “Truly?”
“I promised Colin we would write.”
Her mother’s expression softened. “Letters.”
“And someday, we shall visit wherever they make their home.”
For the first time since Jane entered the room, genuine peace settled between them.
It lasted only moments. Then Lady Wynten’s face paled. “The title. If Colin never returns… It will eventually pass to Zachary.”
Jane’s stomach tightened. “Yes. We knew that possibility already.”
Lady Wynten turned. “What shall we do?”
Jane had asked herself that same question countless times. Now, strangely, the answer no longer frightened her as much. She rose to meet her mother’s gaze. “I will marry.”
Her mother reached for her hands again. “You already sacrificed one engagement.”
“Maltby was never a sacrifice.”
Lady Wynten looked surprised.
Jane smiled sadly. “I never loved him.”
Her mother studied her. “I wondered.”
Jane straightened her shoulders. “I shall marry well.”
Her mother searched her face. “You speak as though you’ve already accepted it.”
Jane considered the question. Perhaps she had.
“For you,” Jane said quietly.
Lady Wynten shook her head. “I never wanted your life decided by obligation.”
Jane cupped her mother’s hands. “You and Father gave me love. You gave me a home worth protecting. If protecting it means marrying… then I shall.”
Her mother blinked back fresh tears. “You sound so much like your father.”
Jane smiled. “I hope that’s a compliment.”
“It is.” Lady Wynten drew her into another embrace. “You have always been stronger than you realize.”
Jane rested her head against her mother’s shoulder. She wished she felt strong. Instead she felt tired. And strangely… peaceful.
Colin was alive. He had found happiness. Whatever came next, at least one impossible prayer had already been answered.
Lady Wynten finally pulled away. “You must rest.”
Jane laughed quietly. “I cannot argue.”
Her mother brushed another strand of hair behind Jane’s ear. “And Jane?”
“Yes?”
“When you write to Colin…”
Jane smiled before her mother finished. “I’ll tell him you love him.”
Lady Wynten nodded. “Tell him there has never been a day that changed. And Jane? If this husband of yours ever appears, make certain he deserves you.”
Jane’s heart gave a strange little ache. For one fleeting moment, she thought of a tall duke with steel-gray eyes. She pushed the thought away before it could settle.
“There is plenty of time for that,” she said.
She left the room wearing a calm expression. Only after the door closed behind her did she allow herself to lean against it and close her eyes. She had promised her mother she would find a husband.
Now she only prayed her heart would remember it had made the promise before it had ever truly belonged to anyone else.