Bittersweet Endeavors (26 page)

Yet something gnawed at her gut. 
As sure as the sun would
rise
the next morning,
Myra
fe
ared
there’d be a
n
unwelcomed
change
coming soon
.  S
he
felt
it with every beat of her aching heart.

Myra
stood motionless when Anvil walked into the room with Zachary at his side.  An instant feeling of dread surged through her.

“
Myra
, this is Zachary Frederickson.”  Anvil pierced a warning stare at her, but she wasn’t sure
his
reason. 

“I’m pleased to make your ac
quaintance, Mister Frederickson,
”
she said
polite
ly
, but instinct gave her a sense of alarm
.  S
he took a wary step back.
 
Pretending she
had
never met
him, she raised her
gray
skirt
just a slight bit above her
ankles
and curtsied.
It ha
d
been f
ive
months since Seth
had
left for England and
th
at
was the first she saw
Zachary Frederickson
since that time
.  His flamboyant standard for fashion
hadn’t
change
d
, she noted, as he swept multicolor plumes from his hat in front of him in a grand gesture of greeting.

“For a servant, s
he is very well mannered, Anvil. 
I’m most impressed.” 

Frederickson fingered
a newly grown
mustache and openly
appraised her.  By all standards
, the man
was
handsome,
Myra
thought.  Any woman would find him attractive, and
although an older man,
she could
justify
Margaret’s attraction
to him
despite his age.
  It matter
ed naught, though, for there wa
s
something very disconcerting about him
.  Something lacked
in
his character—she
saw
it in his eyes, menacingly cold within their murky
gray
depths. 
Hard
and calculating
,
and th
ey reminded her of
her uncle,
Sir
Ashton
.
  She wondered if Margaret finally
had taken notice
of his
unpleasant demeanor, too, and wa
s the reason sh
e and Frederickson no longer me
t.

“I agree,” Anvil boasted.  “She
’
s very well mannered, indeed.
Insomuch, she’s been staying in our new home as Mrs. Preston’s personal maid.”

Myra
’s flesh crawled as Zachary continued
to stare
at her in
a peculiar, improper way.  His
tongue slithered
out
of
his mouth
and he
wet his thin lips.  Not once did his eyes leave her, and although she averted her eyes from him, she
still felt
his gaze bor
ing
into her. 

Myra
faced him,
and prepared
an excuse for her leave, but his dark
gray
eyes squinted
angrily
and she relented.  He smoothed his fine,
black-gray
hair, and
looked over the length of her and
smirk
ed.  I
t sent a chill
down her spine and her hair stoo
d on edge.  Plain and simple—the man
’s manner
had
repulsed her.  How dare he do something so ungentlemanly
?  A
nd for
him
to ogle
her
so openly without reproach
added
more
insult.

“I have duties to attend,” she murmured.  “T’was
an
honor to have met you
, Mister Frederickson.”  Taking quick,
long
strides, she h
urried toward the door, but
was
thwarted by Zachary’s hand that
barred
the door’s opening. 
Myra
swallowed hard.  She turned, faced Anvil, and raised a questioning brow, but he nervously cleared his throat and turned away.

“Please,” Zachary said.
“
S
tay and have some tea with me
…
I insist.”

“I really mustn’t.”  She tremulously smiled and took a step away from him.  The scent of his fragrance flailed her senses and a wave of nausea consumed her.  “I
must
finish some errands
for Mrs. Preston
.”

“You
shall
stay,
Myra
,” Anvil sternly ordered.  Anvil walked to the doorway
, and h
is fingers grasped the doorknob so tight that his knuckles whitened.  Before he shut
the door
behind him, he added, “You’ll be respectful
and
agree
able
to
Mister Frederickson’
s
requests
.”  He
closed the door behind him,
but
Myra
detected a moment of hesitation before he
left
her alone with Mister Frederickson
.

“What
requests
do you ask of me?”  She stepped ba
ck behind the chair and
her nails clung deep
into
the tightly strewn cushion. 

“
Come and sit.”  He patted the seat
aside
his own on the sofa
, and waved his arm toward the
table
that was
set for service of two.  “Serve me some tea.”

With caution, she rounded the chair and sat on the edge of the sofa, her feet
set
in
position for
dash
ing away
if deem
ed
necessary. 
She poured the
tea with a
trembling
hand,
and
handed him the saucer that held the cup.

“I hear you
fancied
Anvil’s son.  Oddly, I ha
d not gathered that from our past meetings together.” 

“We’re good friends,” she
replied
.

“
I’m happy to hear of that.
 
I
have
personally learned
that
m
uch of
Jamestown
’s
titter-tatter
is
more tale than fact
.
  M
atters naught now, I suppose, since he’s gone missing.
”  He rested his hand on hers and she pulled away as if Hell’s fire
had
touched her.  He glared at her for a moment, but then a smile, one she
knew
h
e thought so clever, appeared. 

“He’s studying at Cambridge.  He’s absent, but not missing, Mister Frederickson,” she corrected.

“So, you’ve not been told.”

“Not been told of
what?”  A sickening feeling
gnawed at her belly
. 

“
Seth
never arrived. 
Many ships were threatened by
harsh and deadly
storms and
they
presume his ship s
a
nk
since it never reached port
.”

“You lie,” she
whispered
. 
H
er
hands shook and her
body
went
numb
.  T
he room
began
to spin
and she thought she may wretch upon the floor
. 

“I assure you
,
I
am
not.  Anvil received word from Cambridge, as well as his brother which
was
where Seth
planned
to reside whil
st
there.  Both
letters
confirm the worst.”
 
Frederickson shifted in his seat, face
d
her, and reached for her hand again. 
On that attempt
, he
didn’t give
her
the opportunity to remove it.  His grasp felt like a vice, and when she tried
pulling
away, he curved his fingers tightly around her wrist and stayed her movement.
 
“You are
now
mine
,
Myra
.”

She couldn’t fight the tears. 
She writhed from his grasp, but it did no good
.  His strength overpowered her
and
Myra
stopped her struggle.  When she did, he released her. 

“Mister Preston sold me your contract.  You are now mine.” 

Zachary paused for a minute and watched her. 
She wondered w
hy
Anvil
Preston
would
sell her bond
, especially now that Seth wa
s m
issing and perhaps gone forever.
  “I don’t wish to leave here,” she said
, her voice trembl
ed
with sadness and fear. 
She needed to stay.  It
wa
s
Seth’s home.  All her memories of him
were
at the plantation.  He’
d
be back; she ha
d
to believe that.  She needed to be there when he returned.

“I’
ll be
blunt
,
Myra
.  You can have it very easy
whilst
staying at my home or you can have a very difficult time of it
.  It all depends
on you
and your co
nformity
.” 

He watched for her reaction,
but
she
stayed
calm,
although
she
thought she’d
surely
burst into tears.

She wanted Seth. 

“My wife died
a few years past.
”  His words were cold, unemotional.  “I need someone who can bear me strong sons.”

Myra
released a gasp.  What about Margaret?  Panic surged through her and
a
nother
wave of
dizziness almost befell her. 
Nay
, she
’
d
not do it!  She might have a chance
with avoiding
his advances as a member of
his
staff within his home, but as his wife, he
’d
ha
ve rights
and
privileges she could
n
’
t deny. 
She
rushed
to the other side of the room.  A short distanc
e seemed her only escape.  She
remembered a time not too long ago when another man held her captive,
and forced her
into the life
she presently led.
  She’
d
not allow that again.
Unlike before,
she’
d
fight back and not be
a
coward. 

“
I’
ll not marry you, Mister Frederickson.”  She tipped her head upward
and hoped it
convey
ed
her determination
, but his
response was
laughter
that
echoed throughout the room
.  He
r burst of brav
ado
didn’t
daunt
him in the least.