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‘I am well, sir,’ she said. ‘I have had good news—I have been offered employment with a lady.’
‘Most generous terms they are, too,’ her companion said. ‘I wouldn’t part with my Eliza for the world, but she may get the chance to mix with quality, and that must be good for her.’
‘Good day to you both,’ Daniel said. ‘I must get on, for I have an appointment.’
He rode on by, conscious of the fact that something tugged at him and made him want to turn his head. Yet he conquered the need. He admired the young lady but at the moment he had more weighty matters on his mind than dalliance.
‘Are you sure you have all you need? Enough money to come back if the carriage isn’t there to meet you?’ Betty asked, looking at Eliza anxiously. ‘I’ve packed you some food for the journey, love.’
‘Thank you. I have all I need,’ Eliza said and hugged her again. She felt very emotional now the time to part had arrived, and her throat was tight. ‘You will answer my letters?’
‘You know I can’t write much,’ Betty replied. ‘My Ted will read yours to me and he’ll write what I want to say—but you are to write as soon as you get there and let us know you are safe and happy. If there is anything you need… anything you don’t like… you are to come back to us on the next mail coach. You have a home with us for as long as you like.’
‘Thank you, my dearest friend,’ Eliza said, tears springing to her eyes. She held them back because if she cried Betty would, too. ‘I have been so blessed in my friends. I shall write to you as soon as I can, but I am sure I shall do perfectly well. Lady Sarah sent me a guinea by special post for the journey after she got my letter. Was that not kind of her?’
‘I’m glad we made you that new travelling gown and pelisse,’ Betty said. ‘You look a proper young lady and that is only right for you will be mixing in company, I dare say.’
‘I think we may live very quietly. Lady Sarah said that she is a widow and her health is sometimes poor. I do not expect to go anywhere much, except perhaps to the Pump Room.’
‘The waters are supposed to be good for anyone sickly,’ Betty said. ‘Well, always remember you can come home if you’re unhappy, my love.’
‘Yes, I shall. I had better go, Betty. Ted is ready with the dogcart. I must not keep him waiting; I think he has business in Norwich.’
‘Off you go then, Eliza. Have a good time and be as happy as you can.’
Eliza went out to where her friend’s husband sat patiently waiting for them to say their goodbyes. The young groom came to help her in, grinned at her and stood back as Ted whipped up his horse.
‘She looks a proper treat,’ he remarked to Betty as they drove off. ‘Anyone would think she were quality.’
‘Well, she is and better than most,’ Betty said. ‘Thanks for your help with the trunk but you had better get off now or they will be looking for you at the stables.’
‘Yeah. Ain’t got a piece of yer gingerbread, ‘ave yer?’
‘I might have,’ Betty said and smiled. ‘Come into the kitchen and I’ll see what I can find.’
She cast one last regretful glance at the dogcart and went back into the cottage.
‘Well, here we are then, Eliza,’ Ted Wright said as he pulled the cart to a halt in the busy market square. He glanced round and nodded as he saw the carriage waiting close by the clock tower. The driver seemed to be looking about, as if expecting someone. ‘I’ll just go and ask if that’s the transport for Miss Eliza Bancroft.’
‘Surely it can’t be? A carriage like that for me?’ Eliza protested, but the groom was getting down and coming towards them.
‘Would you be Miss Bancroft?’ he asked, tipping his tall crowned hat respectfully.
‘Yes, I am. Did Lady Sarah send you to fetch me?’
‘I was sent to take you to Lady Sarah Manners in Bath,’ he said, an odd look on his face. ‘Can’t exactly say as she sent me. This carriage belongs to the marquis, miss.’
‘The marquis?’ Eliza was puzzled. ‘I don’t understand.
You have it right—you are to take me to Lady Sarah, my employer?’
‘Those are my instructions, yes. Is that trunk all you have with you?’
‘And my portmanteau,’ Eliza said. ‘I shall carry that—if you would help Mr Wright with the trunk, please?’
‘Yes, of course.’
The man turned away. Together, he and Ted strapped the heavy trunk on the back of the carriage and then Ted came back to her. He held out his hand, placing his other hand over hers as she took it.
‘Don’t forget, you can come home any time you like, Miss Eliza.’
‘Thank you,’ she whispered, glancing at the groom as he stood with the door open, waiting for her. She climbed in and waved to her friend from behind the window. Her mouth felt dry as she settled back against the comfortable squabs and her throat was tight. She was certainly to travel in luxury and that made her a little apprehensive. Why would the marquis send his carriage—whoever he was? For a moment she wondered if she were being abducted and then the absurdity of such a notion made her smile.
The groom knew the name of her employer. It was quite possible that the marquis was a friend of Lady Sarah and that he had agreed to bring her companion to her.
Feeling relieved to have settled the thing in her mind, Eliza sat back and took out the battered copy of a book she had bought from the second-hand stall at the market. It would serve to pass the time as they traveled, for she knew they would be some days on the road. She would need to take a room at more than one inn and she would have to rely on the coachman to find a decent house that was not too expensive for her purse.
Eliza looked out of the inn window and smiled as she saw it was yet another clear fine day. They had already been three days on the road and she would be glad when they reached Bath, which should not be more than another day at the most, for they had made good time. The Marquis of Cheadle’s carriage was well sprung and the journey had been less tiresome than it might have been had she travelled on the mail coach. She had been surprised to find herself staying at the finest inns on the road; when she tentatively asked how much she owed the first morning, she was told that the Marquis of Cheadle’s groom had settled the account.
Eliza had immediately tried to settle the debt, but the groom shook his head. ‘I was given me instructions clear, miss. You wus to ‘ave all the best and he would pay for yer lodgings.’
‘Oh…’ Somewhat taken aback by this statement, she was at first at a loss for words, then, ‘I suppose my employer has settled it with the marquis.’
‘Yes, miss. I dare say you are right.’
She moved away from the window and picked up her portmanteau, which contained all she required for her immediate needs. Her trunk had already been loaded on to the carriage and they were ready to leave again.
‘How much further have we to travel?’ she asked as the groom opened the door for her.
‘If we make good time and meet no accidents, we should reach Bath before dark this night, miss.’
‘Thank you.’ She smiled at him, relieved that only one day of travelling remained. She had finished her book and the last hours of the previous day had seemed tedious. ‘You are very kind.’
‘You are welcome, miss.’ He touched his hat. ‘I hopes as it is the lady you’re working for, miss.’
‘What do you mean by that? I told you at the start, I am to be a companion to Lady Sarah Manners.’
‘Right then, miss. Nothing to worry about then. Get in and we’ll be orf.’
Sarah climbed into the carriage, feeling puzzled once more. Something in the groom’s manner had disturbed her. She wondered why she was riding in such luxury and once again a shiver of apprehension slithered down her spine. Had she been naïve in accepting the first offer she received?
For a moment she felt a frisson of fear at the nape of her neck, but then she took a hold of her nerves. She was being very foolish. It was most unlikely that any marquis would go to so much trouble to abduct a girl he had never seen. She was hardly the most beautiful girl in the world. The thought made her laugh. She had been reading too many romances!
Daniel looked across the square and saw the carriage drawn up outside the inn just as the young woman entered it. He frowned, feeling concerned as he recognised her and the crest on the carriage. What on earth was Miss Bancroft doing in the Marquis of Cheadle’s carriage? Alarm bells began to ring in his head. He recalled that she had been pleased to receive a generous offer of employment—was she being lured to a false promise? Would she join the legion of the missing?
The thought of Miss Eliza Bancroft being sold into white slavery appalled him. He could not bear to contemplate such a thing. It must not be allowed to happen. He must do something—and quickly.
Eliza must be warned that the marquis was not all he seemed. If he had charmed her into believing that she would be his lover or his mistress… no, he would not permit it.
Somehow he must prevent her from plunging into a life of shame and degradation. Yet how could he prevent her? He must go after her—but how to stop the carriage? What could he say?
An idea so reckless and foolhardy that it made him laugh for sheer mischief came to his mind. He dismissed it instantly, but it returned and he felt that he must risk it for Eliza’s sake. He was not sure if she travelled alone, but if the marquis was with her in the carriage it would be necessary to disguise himself. A grim smile touched his mouth.
If Cheadle was involved in the vile gang that he believed was behind his cousin’s death, he would find out soon enough that he had an enemy.
Eliza was brought from her reverie by a shout of alarm from the coachman and then a violent jolting as the carriage came to a sudden halt. She was thrown from her seat and for a moment landed on her knees on the floor of the carriage. Picking herself up, she was about to look out of the window when the door was opened.
‘You had best get down, miss. I hope you wasn’t hurt?’
‘No, just shaken.’ She took the coachman’s hand. ‘What happened?’ she enquired as he helped her descend. ‘Have we…?’ She was about to ask if the carriage had suffered an accident, but seeing the masked rider caught her breath. ‘What are you doing, sir?’ He had a pistol directed at coachman’s chest. ‘That thing is dangerous…’
For a moment the highwayman seemed disinclined to answer. He sat his horse, staring down at them in silence.
Eliza lifted her head, anger making her impetuous. ‘I fear you have mistaken your victim, sir. I have only a few coins in my purse—and this ring.’ She felt for the ring she had found in her mother’s sewing box. It was still on the ribbon that had been with it, hidden under her baby clothes. She took out her purse and offered both it and the ring to the highwayman. ‘Please take these and allow us to go on. I beg you, do not harm these good men—they have done nothing to hurt you.’
‘Who are you?’ the masked man asked in a gruff voice she suspected was disguised. ‘Why are you riding in the Marquis of Cheadle’s carriage—what is he to you?’
He had accepted the purse and ring, which she noticed he examined before slipping them into his coat pocket. For a moment he hesitated, then beckoned her closer.
‘Come with me for a few minutes. I wish to speak with you.’
‘Don’t you listen to him, Miss Bancroft. He is a rogue and not to be trusted,’ the coachman cried and took a step towards her, stopping as the gun pointed in his direction once more.
‘I mean you no harm.’ The masked man bent down, offering his hand, then glanced at the coachman. ‘Wait for your passenger, man, and do not try to be a hero—or you will regret it. Remember, a wild shot might harm the young lady.’ He barked the words at the coachman, his pistol still aimed in his direction. ‘If you do anything foolish, your wife will be a widow this night.’
‘Please do as he asks. I am not afraid,’ Eliza instructed.
She gave the highwayman her hand. He grasped her arm and she clutched his saddle, instinctively jumping as he hauled her up before him.
‘Well done,’ he murmured in an approving tone that sent tingles down her spine. ‘You are quite safe. I do not kill women and children.’
Eliza shivered. At first she had been terrified by the sight of a masked, armed man, but for some unaccountable reason her fear had gone as he rode with her into the trees.
They travelled only far enough to be out of sight of the coachman before he halted. He dismounted and held out his arms. She slid down into them. For a moment he held her and she was aware of the pleasant smell of soap and a breath of cologne. He was very clean for a common highwayman.
‘Well, sir,’ Eliza said, her heart beating very fast, ‘what have you to say to me that could not be said in front of the coachman?’
‘Why are you travelling in that devil’s carriage?’ he demanded. ‘Do you have any idea what kind of a man he is? Whatever promises he has made you are likely to prove your downfall.’
‘The marquis has made me no promises. I have never met him. I am on my way to Bath, where I am to be employed by Lady Sarah Manners.’
The highwayman stared at her. Eliza felt a start of surprise as she noticed how blue his eyes were.
‘Is that the truth?’
‘Why should I lie to you?’
‘Where did you get this ring?’ He took her ring from his pocket, looking at the inscription inside for a moment before handing it to her. ‘What does it say?’
‘Love means more. Why do you ask?’
‘I have seen a similar ring before.’
Eliza’s heart raced. ‘I believe it was my birth mother’s ring. I never knew her, but my mama found it beneath my clothes when I was given to her as a baby.’ Her eyes entreated him. ‘Where have you seen a ring like mine?’
‘I took it from someone in a card game.’ He reached for her purse in his pocket, returning it to her. ‘I am not sure whether I should believe you, Miss Bancroft, but I do not rob young ladies who have no more than a few coins in their purse.’
‘Thank you.’ Her eyes were on his face. The mask covered most of it, but something about the set of his chin seemed familiar, as did the cologne he wore. She was certain she knew him. ‘Why were you concerned about my reasons for travelling in the marquis’s coach?’
‘I would not have an innocent girl fall into that trap.’
Her cheeks were pink. ‘You were good to be concerned for me, Mr Seaton, but I assure you I am not about to become any man’s mistress. As for the marquis, I have never met him.’
For a moment he was silent, then, ‘How did you know me?’ He muttered an oath beneath his breath. ‘Confound it! This is a coil, Miss Bancroft. I had hoped you would not recognise me. What gave me away?’
‘Your eyes and your chin—and your cologne,’ she said. ‘This is most awkward for us both, sir. Will you accept my word that I shall never reveal your identity on pain of death?’
‘Heaven forfend!’ Daniel said and laughed as he removed his mask. ‘I do not think you need to go so far, Miss Bancroft. Were you to be in danger of your life, you must certainly reveal my name.’
Eliza felt the laughter bubble up inside her. ‘How foolish this is! I do not think you are proficient at your profession, sir. May I enquire why you took it up?’
‘I must admit that this is my first attempt. I saw you get into the carriage where you made your last stop and feared you might be in trouble. It appears I was mistaken—but I could not allow you to go on in ignorance of the manner of man in whose carriage you rode. However, I did not wish to be seen by Cheadle, so I thought of the disguise to fool him if you were together—a disguise that seems not to have served me that well.’
‘I see…’ Eliza was thoughtful. ‘I must thank you for your concern for me—but, pray tell me, why did you not wish to be seen by the marquis?’
‘It is a matter I may not discuss with anyone—but I assure you I had good reason. And I beg you to have a care when dealing with him.’
‘I have no need of such advice. I told you, I have no intention of becoming any man’s mistress.’
‘Sometimes innocent girls are not given a choice in the matter.’
‘What do you mean?’ Her smooth brow wrinkled in thought. ‘Surely you do not think the marquis…? No, sir, that is monstrous. I have been treated with the greatest courtesy by his men. You are reckless and foolhardy and I cannot think you gave this foolish trick much consideration.’
‘You have no idea of what you speak,’ Daniel said harshly. ‘There are men capable of such infamy… things of which you can have no knowledge. Please continue your journey. I am sorry to have interrupted what was such a pleasant experience for you. When Cheadle leaves you pregnant and destitute—’
Eliza reached out and slapped him. Her eyes widened in distress as his mouth thinned with temper. ‘Oh, I am so sorry. I did not mean to…’
She turned away in embarrassment, but he caught her arm, swinging her back to face him. She had a moment to notice the angry passion in his eyes and then he caught her to him. His head bent as he took possession of her lips. The kiss was at first demanding, angry, but then it softened, becoming sweet and pleasing. Eliza did not struggle. For some obscure reason she felt relaxed and at ease in his embrace, her lips receptive, slightly parted. When he finally released her, she could only stare at him in bewilderment.
‘Forgive me. I was tempted. You provoked me too far.’
‘Then I must ask you to forgive me. It was quite unintentional, I assure you. May I leave now? You have my word that I shall not betray you. Nor shall I fall into the arms of a scoundrel. I am truly to work for a lady of quality.’
‘You are either a saint or have the patience of one,’ Daniel exclaimed ruefully. ‘I have no excuse for my behaviour—in holding up your carriage or the kiss.’
‘Papa taught me to see good in everyone and every situation.’
Eliza turned away, a smile on her soft mouth. It was as well that he could not read her mind. If he had guessed at her thoughts, which were really extremely shocking, he would know that she had wanted the kisses to continue.
