Maid to Be Mine: A Regency Cinderella Story (25 page)

“
Aye,” Robert was quick to answer. “He seems to care about you, and you deserve nothing less than an earl.”

Cynthia pressed her lips together, which stopped a sigh from escaping her lips. His answer should have been perfect, but she was strangely disheartened by Robert's reply.

They rode in silence for the rest of the journey. Despite the fact that Robert's horse continuously stalled, they somehow made it to their destination. Shortly after they arrived at Ridgeley Manor, they were confronted by a tall, gaunt butler, who stared at them down the length of his impossibly long nose.

“
I am here to see Lord Charmington,” Cynthia said. When the butler didn't flinch, she added, “I'm... his fiance?”

“
Oh. I see.” Her provincial attire must have given him pause. “I believe he is out searching for you, my lady.”

“
He is?!” Cynthia squeaked. “Where is he searching?”

“
Of that, I cannot be sure,” the butler said. “If you would like, you may wait for his return. Or, if you prefer not to stay, I can inform him of your safety when he arrives.”

Cynthia glanced at Robert, who appeared to be woolgathering. She had to nudge him to get his attention. “Robert!”

“
Oi?”

“
We should search for him!”

“
We should search for the man who is searching for you?” Robert chuckled. “That seems a bit ironic.”

Turning her attention to the butler, Cynthia said, “If my fiance should happen to return, please tell him I am in good health. And good spirits.”

“
I will certainly do that, my lady.”

“
Furthermore...” she continued, “do you happen to know the whereabouts of Edith? She's my stepsister.” When she saw the butler's creased brow, she added, “she's a bit taller than me, with auburn hair, hazel eyes, a--”

“
A young lady who fits your description was here, my lady,” the butler informed her. “I believe she is in the company of his lordship.”

“
Wonderful! Thank you.” Cynthia grabbed Robert's elbow and dragged him outside, back to the horses.

When he saw her climbing onto her horse, Robert asked, “Would it be more sensible to wait for his return? If he's searching for you, and you're searching for him, you might end up searching for each other for the rest of the night!”

“
He's worried about me!” Cynthia exclaimed. “If there is any chance I can find him and assuage his fears, I
must
look for him!”

“
So you say.” With a sigh, Robert mounted his finicky nag. “But it seems like a bad idea to me.”

“
You'll accompany me, won't you?”

“
If I let you ride into the great unknown on your own, what sort of man would I be?” Robert flashed a dimple-ridden smile. “Anywhere you go, Princess, I will surely follow.”

“
I am in your debt, Robert.”

Cynthia led him into the surrounding woodland, where she was plagued by memories of the previous night. The cold. The rain. The chill. The heartache. As she recalled her misery, Cynthia's body shuddered.

“
Are you alright?” Robert asked.

“
I am well enough,” Cynthia said. “I was thinking about last night... and how grateful I am that you came to my rescue.”

“
I didn't really come to your rescue. You stumbled in my path. I got lucky.”

Cynthia rolled her eyes as he downplayed his role. “Be that as it may, you
are
my savior. Do you think I might have died out there? When you found me, I could have sworn I was seconds away from freezing to death!”

“
I doubt it was as dire as that. Nevertheless, I am glad I found you when I did. I...” She looked at him expectantly, waiting for him to continue. “I never want anything bad to happen to you, Cynthia. There is nothing I wouldn't do to keep you out of harm's way.”

“
That is very kind of you, Robert. You're such a wonderful...” Her tongue was temporarily frozen, rebelling against the word. “
Friend
.”

As they followed the woodland path, Cynthia's horse was halted by the sound of an animal rustling in the brush. Spooked, the white mare let out a tiny whinny.

Cynthia leaned close to her horse's ear and whispered, “What is it, girl?” She gave her mane a scratch, hoping the affection would ease the animal's worries, but it only got worse. When a starling flitted from the bush, the horse reared up on his hind legs.

And Cynthia was thrown from her saddle.

Chapter Twenty Six

The three thieves were almost identical, which made Edith wonder if they were brothers. Tanned skin. Dark, overlong hair. Piercing eyes. They were dressed like gypsies, in dingy caps, scarves, and billowy white shirts. The one standing closest to them raised his pistol and pointed it at Lord Charmington's head.

“
Your belongings, if you please.”

James exchanged a nervous glance with Edith, who was chewing on her lip. “I have nothing,” he said.

“
Nonsense!” The armed gypsy man laughed at his claim. “A man dressed as fancy as you is bound to have something. Hand me your coat.”

“
I don't think—”

“
Hand me your coat
!” The thief shook his pistol as he restated his command. He watched intently as Lord Charmington shrugged off his greatcoat and tossed it at the assailant's feet. The pistol-wielding gypsy whistled at one of his companions, who grabbed James' coat and fished a hand into the pockets. He pulled out a handkerchief, but nothing else.

“
See? I wasn't lying,” James said. “I have nothing.”

The thief pointed his pistol at Edith, and the sight of the close-range barrel made her gasp. “The lady, then? Hand over everything you've got!”

“
There is really no need for this, gentlemen,” Lord Charmington attempted to reason with them. “Leave the lady alone.”

“
Gentlemen?!” laughed one of the thief's cronies. “Did 'e jes say we was gentlemen? That was polite of 'im!”

“
Is that a necklace I see?” As he leaned toward Edith, the thief grinned, which put his rotting teeth on display. He held out his free hand and uncurled his dirty fingers. “Hand it over, and we won't hurt no one.”

Edith unfastened her necklace, an onyx pendant, and held it out to the thieves. The man with the pistol snatched the necklace and gave it a sniff, as if the scent would somehow determine its quality. “Looks fancy enough,” he said.

“
Robbing from a lady...” James shook his head with disbelief. “There really is no honor among thieves, is there?”

“
Ey? You be quiet!” Once again, the thief pointed the pistol between Lord Charmington's eyes. As he tossed Edith's pendant to one of his accomplices, he said, “Turn out your pockets, gent.”

“
But I already--”

“
Your pockets, milord, on the double!” the gypsy demanded. “And if I find out youse been lyin, I won't take kindly to it!”

James' hand was trembling as he dipped into his pocket. When he turned out his pockets, a gold pocket watch tumbled to the ground. As soon as Edith saw it, she winced. She hoped the thief would not deliver on his threat.

“
Ooo, and whaddo we have here, men?” Keeping the pistol on James, the thief squatted to get a better look at the pocket watch. “Is that something of value I see?”

“
It is practically worthless,” James said.

“
It don't look worthless to me.” He snatched the pocket watch from the ground and observed the quality. “This is real gold, innit?”
“It...”

“
You lied to me, ey, guvnor? About not having nuffing? Was this little trinket more important than your life, guvnor?!”

When he saw the thief shaking his pistol, James stepped in front of Edith, shielding her with his body. “You have her necklace and my pocket watch. Is that not enough?”

Apparently, it wasn't. The pistol was fired, and James fell to his knees. When she saw the blood soaking his shirtsleeves, Edith gasped. As the thieves fled into the woods with their stolen possessions, Edith dropped to the ground beside the fallen earl.

“
I'm... fine,” he grumbled.

“
Oh, James...” She watched him grip his stomach, where the blood was seeping through his shirt. “You're not fine! What am I supposed to do?!”

“
I--”

“
I need to get back to Ridgeley Manor. I need to get help!”

“
No!” When he saw her rise, James grabbed her arm. “Don't leave me! Help me to my feet!”

“
I don't know if that's wise.”

“
I don't want to be alone in the woods, by myself, bleeding to death,” James said. “What if you never find me again? No... I have to go with you!”

“
V-v-v...” As panicked as she was, Edith could no longer string together a lucid thought. She wrapped the earl's arm around her shoulders, and with a grunt, she hoisted him aloft. When she saw his pained expression, she asked, “Is there nothing I can do to help!?”

“
Just get me back to Ridgeley Manor...”

“
Of course.”

“
What about Cynthia?!” He kept his arm around Edith as they made their way forward.

“
Please, James... right now, your health is our primary concern.”

“
But Cynthia might be dying!”

You
might be dying!
That's what Edith wanted to say, but she didn't want to discourage him. The front of his shirt was soaked with blood, and the color had drained from his face.

All of a sudden, Lord Charmington's footmen came rushing toward them, having been summoned by the sound of the discharged pistol. Without warning, they brushed Edith aside and took hold of the earl's body.

“
What happened?!” bellowed one of the stockier footmen.

Edith followed the footmen, all four of them, as they headed back to Ridgeley Manor with Lord Charmington. “We were accosted by thieves,” Edith explained. While her ankle was still throbbing, it was suddenly the furthest thing from her mind. “They took our possessions, then they shot him.”

The footmen murmured something amongst themselves, but Edith could not make out what they were saying. Something about “sending someone after the thieves,” but she could not be sure. The footmen moved quickly, and with her sore foot, Edith had a hard time keeping their pace.

When they returned to Ridgeley Manor, they carried James to his bedchamber and sent for a doctor. James, who was quickly losing consciousness, tore off his shirt and fell into the bed. “I want to see it...” he murmured. “I want to see the wound.”

Edith followed them into James' bedchamber. It might have been improper, but given the circumstances, she did not care. She sat beside him on the bed and stared at his wound, where dark blood had amassed around an undulating hole.

“
It looks terrible, doesn't it?” James whimpered. “I'm going to die, aren't I?”

“
No. No, of course not.” Edith gently stroked his forehead, where his wavy locks were matted to his perspiring skin.

One of the footmen tried to press a cloth against the earl's wound, in an attempt to halt the bleeding. James' face was twisted in agony.

“
I'm in... a great deal of pain,” he grunted.

“
I know. I'm terribly sorry... I wish there was something I could do to ease your pain.” Edith ran her fingers through his hair as he whimpered. As she continued to caress him, her thoughts wandered.
If only Cynthia were here
! She knew her stepsister would want to be at her fiance's bedside.

“
Is my mother here?!” James asked the footman.

“
No, my lord... she left for London yesterday.” The footman exchanged worried glances with Edith. “Do you not remember?”

“
Oh...” James pinched the bridge of his nose as he tried to recall that detail. “I can't remember. Why can't I remember?! Am I delirious!?”