Bittersweet Endeavors (50 page)

“As Sutherling, I
, too,
am a faithful servant to His Majesty and am
titled
and
well
compensated for my efforts
,” he said.  “
In fact,
my
lands
are
no
t so far from your Brunnington.

“I apologize,” she said
, standing.  She
curtsied.  “I truly didn’t intend
to show
disrespect.”

“You never need apologize, milady.”
Thomas
reached for her arms and held her in a
warm, friendly
embrace
. 
Myra
looked into his eyes and smiled,
but she felt uncomfortable in his arms. 
Although h
is embrace was
welcoming
and
platonic
, he wasn’t Seth.

“
I appreciate your sacrifice,
Thomas
.
But
I love Seth
and
could
never
love another.
And you, above all other
s, deserve to marry a woman who
is worthy of you.
”

“Then what
shalt
you do?”

“I don’t k
now.”

“I beg your pardon,
Lady
Myra
, but time is
short, and if it comes to Lord Sutherl
ing
or
me
,
for your sake,
I
think you should
reconsider.  We don’t love one another, but I think in time,
our friendship could sprout into affection
for
one ano
ther.  But most of all, as I’ve proven, I
’m capable of
protect
ing
you from
harm.
And tonight,
your uncle
shall
seek his revenge
upon you
.”

“If I must
choose
betwixt the two, I’
ll
be honored
if it is
you,”
Myra
smiled.

“Very well,” he
returned.
  He
patted her hand and placed a chaste
kiss
on her forehead,
much in the fashion her father
did
when she was young
.  “I must make way to court.  Shall I escort you?”

“I wish
for
a few more moments to think.”

“Very well, milady, I shall leave a few men outside your doo
r
.  They’ll
escort
and keep you safe
when you
leave
for
court.
”

“
Nay
,
tis
not necessary,
”
she said.
He paused near the door and turned to look at her.  Concern etched at his brow.  She suspected he already knew her intention was not to return to court.  She
finally concluded that
she’d
only allow her heart to guide her, not The King’s order.  No amount of wealth
was
worth giving up a child’s father. 
She hoped
Seth would
realize
that in time, as well as her son when he became a man.

“And
Thomas
,” she called out before he quit the room. “
About the inquiries on Hester
…
you
stated you
have information?”
With all the day wrought, she
found herself desperate to
receive
a semblance of good cheer.
  If all
was
lost for her own happiness,
she wished to a
t least
send
pleasing news to Lucia about her mother.

“
Aye
, I near forgot. 
I apologize,” he said. “
She is
happy and
well
.  She’s
presently
a maid
residing at
a
good
home
at
a respectful family
in London
. 
I personally spoke to her and
conveyed Lucia’s well wishes.  I
also
expressed
to her about
Lucia’s happiness since her
good fortune to have befriended you.”

“
This news brings harmony t
o my heart and peace to my mind,” she said with tears of happiness.  “
As I,
Lucia
shall
be
very
pleased
to hear her mother is alive, well, and happy
.”

Myra hoped that if all went well, and S
eth
more
agreeable
than their last meeting
, she
too
would
soon
be happy.

*                     *                    *

Seth
worked
tirelessly
and
prepar
e
d
for
his departure
,
as well as set
a trap for
Ashton
before he left
the country
.
  He
relayed
to the
men at Brunnington that he
was angry at
T
he
K
ing’s ruling and
intended to
abduct
Myra
from court
and take her to the docks
. 
He knew they’d convey his intent to Ashton. 
And
the docks
was
where
Seth
la
id
hidden, waiting
for
Ashton
to take his
bait
.

He pray
ed
that
Myra
didn’t listen to his request
—
nay,
his
demand
—
for her to marry Suther
ling
. 
He was
a
fool to ask and expect her
to
take on such an
undertaking
. 
As Myra accused, h
e
allowed
his father
, albeit out of sight,
to
sway
him from using b
etter judgment. 
No amount of
wealth or prestige
could compensate
the moments of happiness he’
d
found with her
or will enjoy with his son
.

Seth realized that i
t was a fool-
hearted mistake to have left her alone to face The King and
Lord
Sutherling.  He wondered if it
was now too late.  Perhaps she was
already Lady Sutherling.  He closed his eyes and blocked out the thought that he
had
lost
her forever.  He could
n’t dwell on it.  The notion
drew
him to distraction,
and
he needed his attention kept on his objective.
  His
priority
was
to keep
Myra
and his son
safe, and until Ashton
was
dead, they
’
d
be in harm’s way, always. 
Seth hauled anoth
er heavy rope onto the ship he
chartered in preparation to take
Myra
back home, if time still allotted.  He
s
wiped the sweat from his brow.  He
had
never
intentionally set out to
kill a man,
and the intrusive thought bothered him
.
When he killed
Frederickson
,
it wasn’t
his intention.  It just happened
due to circumstance
and he wasn’t able to prevent it
. 
Al
though he found
revulsion
with
the actual deed,
it
was
necessary. 
Unlike Frederickson, Seth decisively aimed to kill Ashton. 
Ashton
brutally murdered
Myra
’s parents
—
his son’s
grandparents
—
he reminded
,
and made
the decision easier to accept
.  If the
feat
didn’t get accomplished
by his hand, then surely
one day,
it’
d
be done by
someone else
. 
A man
with
Ashton
’s debauched
reputation,
numbered
his days considerably. 

Seth heaved a heavy chain to the deck and looked down at the rest of the gear
that
needed loaded. 
S
omeone approach
ed
, and when h
e looked off to
ward
the pathway
in expectation of Ashton’s
arrival, he instead saw Myra
.
 
Seth
stood
, undecided whether to let
his fear, an
ger, or relief let loose first
once she made her way to him
. 

“Dash it,
Myra
!  What are you doing here?” he shouted.

“Please, Seth, don’t turn me away.  I can’t marry Lord Sutherl
ing
, or even
Thomas
, for that
matter.”

“
Thomas
?”
he
asked, confused.

“
Tis not important,
” she
said, and
waved him off.  “My
opinion
is, I cannot be happy nor
shalt
our son if I go through with this.”

“
Myra
,” he began.

“
Nay
,
you will not
sway me, Seth,” she
said, her tone firm
.  “If I must, I’ll take our son elsewhere, but I’ll not be bartered off to any man who holds a title for
the
sake of land.”

“
Myra
,” Seth tried again, but
once more
flouted
by her persistence.

“
Nay
, I’m not finished,” she said angrily.  “You were willing to give up everything for me in
Jamestown
, Seth, so why would you expect any less from me?”  She raised her hand and slapped his away when he raised his finger to interject.  “
Nay
,” she ordered again, “I’m not yet
finished
,” she
said, her voice harsh and unyielding
.  “I
’
d
gladly live
as
a
maid
.  A
lowly, poor indenture
to your family if it meant
we
could be
together.
  Our son is of our blood, Seth, and he
,
too
,
will find happiness
, as we did
at one time
. 
Aye
, certainly coffers
wo
uld make it easier for him, but
—
”
She abruptly stopped and notice
d
him smiling. 

He couldn’t help it.  She
became
more
delightful by
each s
econd
passed
as she ranted
,
and tried
s
o
desperately
to
convince him of a decision he
had
already
settled
.