Page 63 of Persuasions of an Earl's Daughter

“Oh dear,” was all she managed to mutter.

The vision of a boy swam in front of her eyes, and she tried to sit up only for her stomach to lurch.

“Miss, you’ve had a fall.”

She closed her eyes, sucked in a breath, and opened them again. The boy remained there and there was no sign of her twin sister or her cozy bedroom.

But of course there wasn’t. Ivy was married and Lilly hadn’t snuck into her sister’s bed to steal her warmth in over a year. She pressed her palms to the cold stones and slipped her fingers over remnants of straw. “A fall...” she murmured to herself.

It rushed back in one sharp image. The stablemaster upon Icarus rushing toward her then the sharp stomp of a boot upon her chest. Then...nothing.

She rose sharply, unable to hold back a groan when her head throbbed. A hand to the back of her scalp, she gingerly touched the lump forming there then glanced at her gloves. No sign of blood so that had to be good surely.

“Where’s August?” she asked, her tongue thick.

“That man you were with?” The boy eyed her as though he had little idea what to do with a barely awake woman. She didn’t much blame him.

“Yes, him. Where is here?”

“He ran off somewhere. Looked bloody—excuse me—looked furious.”

Lilly straightened. “Ran off? Where? In which direction?” The damned man was probably in pursuit of Icarus and Brown. She waved a hand at the boy. “Help me up.”

“I don’t think you should be standing, miss. You don’t look right if you don’t mind my saying.”

“Help me up, damn it.”

With a shrug, he took her hand, and aided her to standing. Lilly took a few deep breaths and waited for the spots dancing in front of her eyes to clear. Her head throbbed with every step, making her wince, but there was no way she was letting August face that thief alone.

A hand to the wall, she made her way out of the stables, gripped her spencer about her, and forced herself forward. When she emerged from the courtyard onto the main road, she saw no sign of August or Brown. The sick feeling in her stomach had been replaced by a rolling sensation. The stablemaster was a greedy man, intent on not only ruining August’s life but plundering as much profit as he could. What would he do if August caught up with him?

She stumbled down the road, ignoring the boy calling after her and nearly knocking into a woman strolling past.

“Watch it,” the woman shouted but Lilly ignored her too. She needed to find August, needed to know he was safe.

She heard the bellow as though it had rippled from the depths of the earth.

“Brown!”

The intermittent streetlamps offered little splashes of gold in the gloom where buildings hung close to the road. She heard laughter from the inn and the sound of carriage wheels in the distance. A chill raced up her spine when thundering hooves approached. She turned in the direction of the sound and under the light of a far-off lamp, she saw the flash of a horse and its rider.

In the next flash was August.

Her heart jumped into her throat. They hadn’t gone far. And August was still safe.

She picked up her pace, forcing herself to take steady breaths and ignore the waves of pain that kept rolling over her. All she needed to do was get to August. Nothing else mattered. She’d been so lost her whole life—most especially after her sisters had married—throwing herself into looking after horses and planning races with Icarus. She still intended to race Icarus and pursue her interests, but she knew what was missing now.

She was never intended to be a gentleman’s wife, but August wasn’t a gentleman.

And he was perfect for her.

Now all she needed was for him to be safe and well.

The horses dashed toward her. She didn’t recognize the horse on which August rode, and she scarcely recognized August. His expression remained so fierce, so dark, and he didn’t spot her in the darkness of the street even as he hurtled down the road after Brown.

But Icarus did. She saw the moment the horse recognized her. Icarus stopped. He went from a gallop to a halt in mere moments. She saw the panic on Brown’s face before he hurtled to the ground and landed with a thud that made her wince.

Lilly froze and blinked at the man. Brown remained on the ground, a crumpled heap. She looked between Icarus who shifted restlessly to the man who didn’t move a muscle. Finally, she jolted into action and dropped beside him to feel for signs of life. The faint flutter of a pulse teased her fingertips and she straightened to look at the horse.

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