Seductive Lies (Secret Lives Series) (26 page)

The mullion windows gave a glorious view of the ocean and the cliffs.
Harriet walked towards the window and stared out. She could see the waves cap in the distance. Suddenly, Harriet felt a chill sweep through her. Cold…noticeably cold. She wrapped her arms about herself.

There was something unsettling. The air thickened. She
found it difficult to take a breath. She felt she wasn’t alone.

She whipped around. No one was there. A sudden thought raced through her mind. This room was once Sophia’s. It had to be. Why had she not thought of the fact? Oh, good
Lord, she couldn’t stay in the room.

“My lady,” Sadie said, walking into
the room. “Your trunk will be up shortly so you can change. I have brought up some tea.” Abruptly, she halted her thought. “Are you well? You look pale.”

“I am quite well, only a
little tired,” Harriet answered. “I’m sure tea will be just lovely.”

Sadie sat the tray down. “I will go check on your trunk. You will need to change.”

“No,” Harriet uttered louder than she intended. Sadie glanced back at her mistress in a questioning manner. Harriet shook her head. “No, it isn’t necessary. I’m certain it will be brought up in a timely manner.

“It is fine, Sadie. You may leave.”

Harriet watched Arthur walk into her chamber by the connecting door. He dismissed her maid and turned to her with a knowing smile on his face.

“You can
redecorate immediately.”

“It is quite
lovely, but…” Harriet hesitated. “But I believe I shall, if you have no objections.”

“It is yours. You
should make it your own. I would have had it done before your arrival if you weren’t so insistent upon accompanying me.”

She frowned. Perhaps she hadn’t thought
through the whole of the circumstances.

“Do not pout
.” He pulled her into an embrace. “You are going to be a success, Lady Daneford. I believe they quite fancy you.”

“Do you think so?” Harriet asked, eagerly, surprised their acceptance meant more than she
realized.

Touching her
cheek in a gentle manner, he nodded. “Why, Mr. Higgins said you brought a ray of sunshine to the manor. Felt right to have you back.”

“I
am so glad. I suppose I had worried about returning. It…hasn’t been quite a year since Sophia died…and with the scandal of my absence…” Harriet stumbled over her words. “I want to make it work. Truly, Arthur. To be honest, I’m looking forward to opening the nursery. I think Victoria will greatly enjoy it here.”

“So
you should. It has been a long time since this house has heard the laughter of children.” He kissed her. “And I think we should consider adding to the nursery. I wouldn’t want Victoria to be lonely.”

His lips found
hers again. She pushed back against his chest. “Not here.”

He held her at arm’s length while he considered her. Harriet had no doubt he saw her nervousness.
He tilted his head to the side and caught her eye. “I won’t object if you prefer to sleep in my chamber until this room is redecorated.”

“You are sure you
won’t mind?” Harriet readily accepted, knowing she was being terribly silly. “I promise not to be a bother. Or I could stay in another room until…”

“Not on your life,
my love. It’s taken me forever to get you back into my bed. It is where I want you.”

She
smiled up at him. “You know I love you.”

“Forever, I’m
told.” He took her hand in his and led her into his room. “I will hold you to it, too, my love.”

* * * *

Weary, Harriet forced herself to wake. She felt so safe in Arthur’s bed. Though, Harriet didn’t like that he would leave her side for their first evening in Ayercombe Manor. True, he had warned her that he had issues that had to be addressed, but she found herself oddly out of sorts.

Harriet withheld her true purpose from her husband for her accompaniment to
Ayercombe Manor. How could she ask him to place faith in something she herself didn’t understand? All seemed so real. She had convinced herself that she truly had some sort of
gift
. Here now, she wasn’t so certain.

Walking into the room
that had been occupied by Sophia, Harriet had been encompassed by a strange, overwhelming sensation of a presence that she couldn’t explain. It scared her.

In London, she had come to the conclusion she needed to find the ring, the ring that she had given back to Arthur when she had left him. He had told her that it had been lost. For some reason, she
felt
it was here.

Harriet never mentioned her desire to find the ring to Arthur. The thought would distress him. On their arrival, his pride shone in his eyes for her. She didn’t want that light to fade. He had suffered greatly from scandal. He didn’t need another wife who rumors swirled about
and thought strange by Society.

True, there was a difference
, though, between Sophia and herself. This was her home. Her people. Poor Sophia. No matter if it had been a much-sought union between families, Sophia had been a desperate woman from the impression Harriet had gathered.

A woman who loved a man who did not return her love…not in the manner she desired. A woman who lost her child. In turn, lost her hope. There had been no acceptance of her here at
Ayercombe Manor. A woman lost…so lost she saw no hope except through death. Harriet shuddered at the thought.

The room suddenly darkened.
The time wasn’t that late. The weather, though, sounded harsh outside. Wind and rain
beat heavily on the window. A storm had arose while she slept.

“My lady.”

She turned over to find Sadie in the doorway, unsure whether to enter into his lordship’s room. Harriet slipped out of the bed.

“Come in, Sadie,” Harriet said. “I need to wake. I won’t sleep tonight otherwise.”

Sadie eased over and helped her with her wrapper. “I wanted only to see if you would like me to bring you up a tray. I doubt his lordship will return before dinner, not with the weather.”

Harriet grimaced at the thought, but realized even without the weather Arthur’s presence would be doubtful. He searched for Bessie. It would not be an easy task. Neither he
nor Harriet believed it would be as easy as sauntering into Beebe Manor. He needed to take her relatives by surprise, explaining his need for the visit this evening before they received word of his return.

“Something light would be lovely,” Harriet said. She looked
past Sadie into the adjoining room. “I will be in the pink room.”

Swallowing her obscure fear, Harriet tied her wrapper tight
ly about her and walked back into the room that made her shiver. She had decided she must find the ring. It was in here. She had to find it, whether or not the room was haunted.

“Yes, my lady,” Sadie said and followed her mistress into the room. “They say she is still here.”

Harriet glanced back at Sadie. “Who?”

“The other Lady Daneford,” Sadie replied. “I know you felt it. I saw it in your eyes when you walked in the room. I wanted you to know you’re not the only one. The staff hears things. Why
, Rosie swears she has seen her.”

“Sophia? It is nonsense,” Harriet proclaimed with more confidence than she felt. “But it is not unusual. The people around here have an active imagination.”

“If you say so, my lady.” Sadie hesitated. “Miss Harriet, I hope you will forgive me. I have never mentioned what I have seen. I never will. I listened to everyone downstairs. They are excited you have returned. They believe you are here to stop the evil.”

“Evil? Oh, Sadie…if Lord Daneford hears you talk this way…”

“He won’t hear it from me. If you would like, I will stay with you.”

Harriet studied her maid for a brief moment. Sadie understood. Harriet did not bother to try
to give some sort of an explanation. She said simply, “Thank you.”

A sense of relief flooded her. Silly perhaps, but she had no desire to be alone in her search for the ring.

Harriet wasted no time. She headed straight toward what called to her…the dressing case. Sitting in front of the mirror, she stared at her reflection for a brief moment. Her eyes mirrored her apprehension.
Oh, what did she think she was doing?

She took a deep breath and began to pull out the drawers. She caught sight of her prize straight away in the upper right
-hand side. It seemed the only piece that had been left after that fateful night. Odd that it had been left in this manner.

“She was obsessed with the ring, they said downstairs,” Sadie said over Harriet’s shoulder. “The other Lady Daneford. It is what you have found. Your ring. I remember it. I said nothing to the others, my lady, but I listened.

“The ring was his lordship’s mother’s. It is said it was special to her. That is why his lordship gave you the ring. It was the reason the other Lady Daneford stole it from him. I heard them say she used to sit where you are now and stare at it for hours.”

“How do they know what has gone on? How do they know about the ring? They should not be talking of the family.”

“My lady, it is because they love the family. They care about his lordship and …you. There is more I heard from Rosie. She was once your cousin’s maid.”

Harriet realized she shouldn’t encourage Sadie to listen to gossip, much less repeat it, but Sadie had been a loyal servant. Sadie had not left her
side and supported her during her darkest hours without a word. Sadie would not repeat gossip unless she felt Harriet needed to be aware of what was said.

“Bessie. She was Bessie’s maid?” Harriet asked. “Should she not have spoken to his lordship if she has information?”

“She spoke to his lordship,” Sadie acknowledged. “She doesn’t know where her mistress has disappeared. Rosie was told her services as a maid would no longer be needed. She is scared, my lady.”

“Scared? I don’t understand, Sadie. Why would Bessie’s maid be scared?”

“Because she believes something bad has happened to her mistress. When the other Lady Daneford died, her maid disappeared without a word. Rosie is scared the same will happen to her.”

Harriet went silent. She dared not consider the insinuation. Harriet said, “She is afraid for her life. If she is afraid for her life, then she must fear for Bessie.”

“They say
she
has returned for vengeance.”

Her words sent a shiver down Harriet’s spine. The atmosphere altered in the room. Once more, Harriet felt a chill. Harriet shook her head. What Sadie was saying was an impossibility. Though, she had learned never to dismiss the unthinkable.

“I refuse to believe that Lady Sophia would return to haunt others for vengeance. It makes no sense. I well imagine the pain she endured while she lived, but I never heard she wanted to harm others. While she was here on earth, she only hurt herself…” Harriet’s words faded into the air. She looked up at Sadie. “You believe in ghosts.”

Harriet said the words not as a question, but a fact. Sadie made no protest. Her face betrayed her thoughts before she uttered a word. “Yes, my lady. I believe that ghosts are lost souls…a memory of
what once was, lingering, searching for a semblance of peace…of restoration of wrongs once done. I did not know Lady Sophia, but if I were you, I would not dismiss the rumors. I felt it, too, the moment we walked into this room.

“She envied you, my lady. You had everything she wanted. Envy is a powerful force. I do not want to see you harmed.”

Harriet was deeply moved at that moment. She took a deep breath and forced a laugh. “I believe we are talking crazy, Sadie. They will all think us mad.”

Sadie did not smile, nor did she take her mistress’ word
s to heart. “I am not leaving you.”

Harriet took comfort with the thought. She reprimanded herself. She should have never let her imagination take root. She supposed it mattered little. She had what she had come for…the ring. Reaching over, she picked it up. Nothing. She felt nothing.

She stared at it. How absolutely lovely…brilliant. The stones sparkled in the candlelight, mesmerizing. She slipped it on her finger.

It came…the vision. Clear and vivid. No fog. No haze to sift through.

Meriwether stood in the middle of a room, the drawing room here in
Ayercombe Manor. It had changed little. She recognized it readily enough.

Meriwether looked disheveled
, his clothes ruffled much like he had slept in them; his eyes bloodshot. “She didn’t come. I tell you, something is wrong.”

“Frederick, please leave me with my brother.”

Harriet watched a reluctant young Frederick Hammett slowly withdraw, slamming the door behind him. Meriwether shook his head. “Percival, believe me.”

“Captain
Burke is furious, Meriwether! He wants to know where is wife has gone. He has called you out! Did you set a rendezvous with her?”